Wordless Wednesday (4)

I just found out that my favorite Prison Break star will be in the newest Resident Evil movie to come out in September!!  

~Wentworth Miller never fails to make me swoon~

Media Monday (4)

Just a little recap of the new movies and TV shows I've watched, books I've read, and new music I've listened to...and what I thought about them too!

Movies

• Terminator: Salvation - I love luv LOVE the terminator movies. Christian Bale didn't disappoint! And I think I now have a crush on Sam Worthington who played Marcus. The action was superb and the special effects top notch.
  
• District 9 - I both liked and was disturbed by this movie. The first 10 minutes I hated it. The beginning is heavily made like a documentary and I was afraid that the entire movie would be that way, but it slowly dissolved about 30 minutes in. That's when I started to enjoy it. The whole thing seemed absurd when they filmed as a documentary but when the transition was made, that's when the "movie reality" set in.  Overall, I think it sends a good message of tolerance as well as doing what's right and honorable.
  

Television

• Heroes - ah! so, the Claire/Sylar kiss was forced (boo) but it looks like they may have something in the future. I don't like Claire going girl-loving though - I think the Sylar thing would be much more controversal. I'm not sure what to think of the Hiro near-death dream. The fighting bit was pretty cool and I'm glad his tumor was taking away, but it seemed like a really long process to have that done and a lot of wasted Heroes minutes that could have been filled elsewhere.
  
• Vampire Diaries - VD is back!  (I always feel like I'm stating a sexual disease when I put VD) So first off, I just want to ask, what is up with Damon's hair??  It's way too long and looks windblown in every scene. Second, Stefen was looking extra-monkeyish when he scrunched his face up at the end to confess his undying love to Elana, and third, Sean Farris was in that episode and I didn't recognize him!  Was he the vampire that tried to kill Damon? 
  

Music

•  It may be 40 degrees but my summer music tastes made an early return this year. I downloaded pop music again...lol!  Black-eyed-peas  "Imma Be" is my new favorite. I also grabbed Britney Spears "3", Sean Kingston "Replay", Ke$ha "Tik Tok", Miley Cyrus "Party in the USA", and Owl City "Fireflies.
• I also discovered Matt Duke after reading through a few twitter pages. He has a song called Sex and Reruns that I like and put on a playlist - but I haven't downloaded anything yet.
  

Books

• The Dark Divine by Bree Despain - 4 stars! Click here for details!
  

Crazy Faces

The Many Faces of the "Coopster" 

I may have an actor in the making!

 

The Dark Divine by Bree Despain

Author: Bree Despain

Published: December 22, 2009 by EgmontUSA
Hardcover: 384 pages

Synopsis:

Grace Divine, daughter of the local pastor, always knew something terrible happened the night Daniel Kalbi disappeared--the night she found her brother Jude collapsed on the porch, covered in his own blood--but she has no idea what a truly monstrous secret that night held.

The memories her family has tried to bury resurface when Daniel returns, three years later, and enrolls in Grace and Jude's high school. Despite promising Jude she'll stay away, Grace cannot deny her attraction to Daniel's shocking artistic abilities, his way of getting her to look at the world from new angles, and the strange, hungry glint in his eyes.

The closer Grace gets to Daniel, the more she jeopardizes her life, as her actions stir resentment in Jude and drive him to embrace the ancient evil Daniel unleashed that horrific night. Grace must discover the truth behind the boy's dark secret...and the cure that can save the ones she loves. But she may have to lay down the ultimate sacrifice to do it--her soul.

My Opinion:
This book was fairly predictable but still quite entertaining. I didn't love Grace's character; Daniel and Jude were more interesting to me. Neither of the boys were swoon worthy, but I was interested in their connections with everyone else in the story.  The story progressed appropriately without any real down time, which I appreciate, and it was all very PG 13, which makes it a great read for even the middle school kids.

The only real annoyance I had with the story were all the subtitles within the chapters. "At 2 in the morning", "Later that evening", "A few minutes later" - those were so unnecessary and just disrupted the flow of the story.  I just don't see how that is necessary unless you are doing a major flashback or flash forward. If the next scene is 7 years ago, then yes, please let me know....otherwise....cut it.

Overall, a fun book - didn't make me think too much - I give it 4 out of 5 stars!

Trim Down Thursday (3) & Job-Change Craziness

Um...so any and all aspirations I had of losing weight on January 1st have been put on the back burner. Why?  Mainly because of work times' schedules.

I decided to take a break on substitute teaching and I started working tax season on January 4th. In teaching, work hours were 7:30-3:00 with a 20 min lunch. New job was 8:30-5:00 with a 30 minute lunch. Big difference on my afternoon hours since we didn't get home till 5:45 most days and only had a few hours before bed. I got really good about bringing my lunch to the office but at night, I was so tired, I wanted nothing to do with my kitchen and everything to do with take-out.

Then, on Jan. 12th, I got offered an even better permanent job and started it this week, the 19th. Now my hours at 8:00 to 5:00 with 60 minute lunch (that I sometimes feel like I can't take). It's high pressure, high multi-task, black suit type of job. I leave my house at 7:15 and don't get home until 5:45 or 6:00. I NEVER have energy to cook nor have the capacity to even think of replacing my unhealthy cravings with something better. For instance...instead of dinner tonight, I ate swiss cake rolls and donuts and I felt not one ounce of guilt for it.

I think I'm just uber stressed, but I'm afraid my uber stressfulness is going to give me a weight gain instead of a loss. My trim down plans have gotten lost in the craziness of my work changes. Perhaps when this all settles down and becomes a routine, I can focus on some changes.

Until then...my goal is to not gain a single pound!

We'll see how I do...ha!

Media Monday (3)

Just a little recap of the new movies and TV shows I've watched, books I've read, and new music I've listened to...and what I thought about them too!

Movies

• The Librarian - Quest for the Spear - About a year ago, I watched the 3rd Librarian movie on TNT without realizing there were 2 before it and I had been watching TNT's listings ever since to see when they would play the first 2. Then I joined Netflix and low and behold, they have them on DVD! This made me happy. I liked this first one, the Quest for the Spear, because it showed how he became the Librarian. I also liked his co-star, Sonya Walger, who I know better from LOST and Flashforward. The action was great for a made-for-TV movie and it was definitely my favorite Librarian movie compared to the other two.
  
• The Librarian - Return to King Soloman's Mines - the 2nd movie was good, but I didn't like it as much. Sonya's sidekick character was replaced by a super smart know it all and it just didn't seem as funny. I felt it was very Indiana Jones-esque and still quite entertaining

Television

• Heroes - Can I just say that I will miss Hiro's crazy talk?  Storm troopers and ewoks are much better names for cops with german shepherds any day! I will miss it. I am glad to see that super fine Mohinder Suresh has been rescued from the psych ward and what is with the preview of next week's episode where Syler uses powers to throw down Claire and then kisses her?!?!?!? I can hardly wait!

Music

•  Nothing new this week :(
  

Books

• Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl - see my opinion here
  

Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

Authors: Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl
Published: December 1, 2009 by Little, Brown Books
Hardcover: 576 pages

Synopsis:

There were no surprises in Gatlin County.
We were pretty much the epicenter of the middle of nowhere.
At least, that's what I thought.
Turns out, I couldn't have been more wrong.
There was a curse.
There was a girl.
And in the end, there was a grave.

Lena Duchannes is unlike anyone the small Southern town of Gatlin has ever seen, and she's struggling to conceal her power and a curse that has haunted her family for generations. But even within the overgrown gardens, murky swamps and crumbling graveyards of the forgotten South, a secret cannot stay hidden forever.

Ethan Wate, who has been counting the months until he can escape from Gatlin, is haunted by dreams of a beautiful girl he has never met. When Lena moves into the town's oldest and most infamous plantation, Ethan is inexplicably drawn to her and determined to uncover the connection between them.

In a town with no surprises, one secret could change everything.

My Opinion:
Entertaining and different than what I expected. The hype for this book was huge and I kept hearing that it was the best book of the year. The title is powerful and completely appropriate and while, I can't get into southern charms, confederate wars, nor old-time voodoo, the authors made it quite convincing. The story line was interesting as well.

But I really don't think it lived up to the 5star hype. It was a very slow to me at parts and I can think of at least two chapters that could be cut out altogether; they were completely unneeded to help the storyline grow. The last 100 pages definatley picked up but I'm not sure what I think of the final ending pages - the story could have ended fine, but its like they changed it just so they could write a sequel and that sort of thing really dissapoints me. And lastly, this story is told from the male perspective and I couldn't connect to him and therefore couldn't connect to the other characters either. If you like books with witchcraft and voodoo, you'll like this book. 4 stars.

Friday Fun

I'm having a very Grumpy Friday. So, I asked my twitter friends to make me laugh or swoon and they are wonderful! Here's a few videos that came my way this morning:

Pants on the Ground - American Idol Audition

Keep your hands off my momma!

Cop goes sledding on his shield in Britain

Haiti Earthquake - Locals stuck - Help Needed

This is an email I had forwarded to me originally from one of the members of my old church that is stuck in Haiti. They were there doing mission work when the earthquake happened.

Clinton sent the following on Jan 13th:

I'm sending this email to several people in hopes it will be received soon. We are in Jacmel, Haiti, on the coast, south of Port au Prince. There are hundreds of people already confirmed dead, and probably

hundreds more still trapped in houses. Chris Weeks and myself are in the offices of ACDI/VOCA. My dad Bobby Hall, Jordan Hall, Ben Ensweiler, Bobby and Kyle Scott, Christian and Danielle Kincaid, and Raymonde Jacques are all safe here. At least half of the houses and buildings are damaged or destroyed.

The only way out of Jacmel is through the mountains, and the roads are destroyed by rock slides. The little airport has been turned into a tent town with thousands seeking refuge there. We met a wealthy businessman who runs Texaco stations in the chaos last night who gave us his phone number and told is where he lived. After sleeping (very little with all the aftershocks) we went to his house about 6:30 am. He had a satellite Internet, phone, and TV. We were able to call some loved ones to let them know we are safe. We lost

Internet and phone shortly after 8:00 or so, and continued to watch CNN coverage. CNN made it sound like p-a-p was damaged and everywhere was pretty good, but trust me, we are surrounded by complete
devastation. After spending the day at the business man’s house, we started walking back to Markey's when we ran into an American working with ACDI/VOCA. He brought Chris and I back to his office to get

pictures off Chris' card. He is wanting to use then to help get the word out about how bad things are here. The American's name is Emmet Murphy. His wife lives in DC.

It sounds like unless we get military units coming to get us, we are looking at days if not weeks before we can get anywhere. Right now we have a good food and water supply, but it has been suggested we start
rationing.

We are needing everyone’s help in getting out the word about how bad Jacmel is. We talked earlier with a girl from Chicago whose boyfriend (an American) was killed in a hotel here in Jacmel. Not sure when we'll have phone or internet again. Pray all the people stayed subdued and no riots break out. There is almost no aid to be seen here yet and it is desperately needed. All the gas stations are running out of gas.

Clinton Hall

The oh-so addictive Hunger Games

It has been almost three months since I read Hunger Games and Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins. And these have been three months in which I absolutely cannot get Katsa and Peeta out of my head! I originally borrowed the books from my local library, but I found them to be a story that deserved to be on my shelf...and I only buy my favorites. I coveted the black and red covers with the mocking jay symbol for months, never able to purchase them on my own (money is a fickle in my house-we never have any it seems). But then, as if it was fate, I won Catching Fire in a giveaway at Ramblings of a Bibliophile. Then, on Christmas, my most amazing and wonderful new sister in law, bought me not one, but BOTH Hunger Games and Catching Fire!!  And five minutes later, I opened another gift - Catching Fire - from my mother.

I think at this point, my family knew I really wanted these books  :)

So, I ended up with one Hunger Games and three Catching Fire's and its been three weeks since Christmas. And no, as much as I love the books, I didn't keep all three of them - I exchanged them for others I have been wanting to read for a while as well. Overall, Christmas brought me 14 new-on-my-shelf books, 12 that I've haven't read yet and these two that I've already read, but here's my confession: I think I may have to re-read the Hunger Games before I can focus on the others. I find myself thinking of the arena while I'm supposed to be all wrapped in magic or vampires; I just can't focus.

So, I think I'll do just that - finish my current book and put all the others to the side for a bit. I mean, I own the books therefore I have all the time I need to read them, right?

But in the meantime, I found this fantastic fan-made trailer for Hunger Games. Someone has some real talent!

Media Monday (2)

Just a little recap of the new movies and TV shows I've watched, books I've read, and new music I've listened to - in the past week.

Movies

• Aliens in the Attic - This movie was better than I expected it to be. My 3 year old had wanted to see this movie since it hit theaters this past summer, but I held him off till it came out on DVD. We enjoyed it via Netflix. I found myself laughing along with the kids at the funniest parts. There is one scene where the kids use the alien technology to make the older sister's boyfriend (whom they didn't like) hit himself in the face over and over and over again; that never gets old and I couldn't help but giggle. The part was played by Robert Hoffman. He was poked fun at the entire movie getting beat up by an grandmother, saying he pooped his pants, and falling off the roof - he was fantastic. Hoffman is apparently a talented dancer as well having been in both Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights and Step It Up 2: the Street.
• Watchmen - The previews looked half decent and I was able to catch this on HBO this week but it was horrible!!  The special effects were good, but the dialogue was cheesy and the acting was subpar. I don't recommend anyone see it.
  

Television

• Heroes is finally back!!! - and it was two hours of amazing goodness!  I'm so glad to see bad boy Skylar back in action as himself - I don't even care that he can't kill anymore. He just adds so much more to the series than anyone else can. And his new (rekindled) fascination with Claire will just add to the drama goodness. I wander how much longer they can draw out this series, but I'll enjoy it for as many seasons as they can dish out.
  

Music

•  to my embarrassment, I downloaded some Ashley Tisdale songs *ducks*  I'm not a pop fan, but I heard Hot Mess and had to have it. While I was at it, I downloaded her other songs, "It's Alright, It's okay" and "Switch".
• I also reconnected with a bit of Simon and Garfunkel's "The Sound of Silence"
  

Books

• Fire by Kristin Cashore
• Started reading Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl
  

Writing/Dating Advice & Quote of the Day (7)

I can't remember where I found this - but its a great philosophy.


Q: What advice would you give to aspiring writers?
A: When you get rejected (everyone does), just think of the worst book you’ve ever read and remember there was some idiot out there who thought that was good enough to be published. All you gotta do is find your idiot. Also a great dating philosophy.

I'm feeling all warm and fuzzy now

I received another award! Yay!  It's called the The Heartfelt Award and I got it from Adriana @ Loves to Read!

"Do you reach for a cup of cocoa or tea when your relaxing, seeking comfort, sharing a plate of cookies with family and friends? You know the feeling you get when you drink a yummy cup of cocoa, tea, or a hot toddy? That is what the Heartfelt Award is all about, feeling warm inside.

I'm passing this award on to some of my favorites...

Angela Corbett

Welcome to the Nut House

Both of these ladies never fail to make me giggle.

Directions for the award-ees:

Put the logo on your blog/post.

Nominate up to to 9 blogs which make you feel comfy or warm inside.

Be sure to link your nominees within your post.

Let them know that they have been nominated by commenting on their blog.

Remember to link to the person from whom you received your award

Let it Snow: a Mom's tale

Once upon a time....in the wild lands of kay-why lived two young brothers who dreamed of snow. For weeks, they tired their mom of questions: "Mom, it's Christmas, why isn't it snowing? Mom, its cold, why isn't it snowing? Mom, why can't you make it snow?" Their mom was at her wits end...

...until the day it finally snowed.

*cue chorus bells*

The brothers demanded to play. Even their pet dogs ran a muck with glee.

Shortly (and by shortly, I mean 5 minutes later), they became bitterly cold. Mom, having listened to them for weeks, wouldn't cave and let them inside until she snapped their picture.

The youngest brother shrugged out of his layers and said, "It's too cold in the snow."

The next day, the brothers said, "We want to play in the snow!" Mom took them to hike instead.

They saw waterfalls, creeks, and massive icicles.

They threw snowballs and hugged trees.

And even mom had to agree, it was a good day.

 And it was enough to satisfy their snow-playing needs...at least until the next snow day.

Quote of the Day (6)

Be the kind of woman that when your feet hit the floor each morning, the devil says, "Oh Crap, She's Up!"

Fire by Kristin Cashore

Author: Kristin Cashore
Published October 5, 2009 by Penguin Group
Hardcover: 480 pages

FIRE is a companion novel to GRACELING, not a sequel. It takes place 30 years before Graceling and only 1 character overlaps, however I still recommend reading Graceling first.

Synopsis:
She is the last of her kind...

It is not a peaceful time in the Dells. In King City, the young King Nash is clinging to the throne, while rebel lords in the north and south build armies to unseat him. War is coming. And the mountains and forest are filled with spies and thieves. This is where Fire lives, a girl whose beauty is impossibly irresistible and who can control the minds of everyone around her.

Exquisitely romantic, this companion to the highly praised Graceling has an entirely new cast of characters, save for one person who plays a pivotal role in both books. You don't need to have read Graceling to love Fire. But if you haven't, you'll be dying to read it next.

My Thoughts: 
Fire is the last known human monster alive and has fought against her nature her entire life. She has built a life in the north of Dells and has a close relationship with her neighbor Archer and his father Brocker. Her father, Camsrel, was also a human monster and evil to the core. She was relieved when he died the year before. While her inherited nature is to ensnare and manipulate the thoughts of others, she is determined to live a life devoid of affecting others and actually achieves a sympathy that others do not encompass. Her self discovery in this story is pivotal to the events that progress in the story.

Other characters in the story - Archer, Roen, Brigham, and Nash - have differing viewpoints on her nature and are pivotal to the story. Archer grew up with Fire and loves her deeply. Roen, the widowed queen, respects her as a woman and holds secrets of her own. Nash, the first son of Roan and king of Dells, is completely infatuated with Fire and refuses to block his mind around her. Brigham, the second son of Roen and commander of the Dell army, despises Fire because of her father and wanted to kill her before he even met her.  As Fire grows up and comes into an understanding of her own self, her relationship with all of these characters deepens in both respect and confusion.

One character, a young boy, is the element that fuses both GRACELING and FIRE together as companion novels. His presence is not huge in the story, but he does make choices that affect the lives of the main characters. His introduction and exit from the story does not disappoint.

This story was beautifully written, much like GRACELING. Despite many others profession that it is better than GRACELING, I cannot say that I agree.  I liked the different elements that Graced persons brought to others in the first novel; Fire and the boy being the only persons with powers was slightly disappointing to me. I also felt there were too many twists, turns, and extended connections in the story. Many times, I needed to stop reading and map it out on paper to conceptualize it all.  Some secret connections are wonderful; too many are confusing.  But despite that one issue, I loved FIRE and once again can't help but wonder what happened next, which is what a good story should do.  5 Stars.

Trim-Down Thursday (2)

*Trim Down Thursday is a weekly blog post on my progress to better myself physically. One of my five resolutions for 2010 is to lose 50 pounds (I'll keep my actual weight a secret but post my progress each week). This weekly blog will keep me motivated. Any and all trim-down buddies would be appreciated! It's never fun to do this alone.

How I did this past week: 

• Goal 1 was no fast food - I basically achieved this! I did have Little Caesars Pizza one exhausted night, but that's so much better than the fast food trips 4+ days a week that I had been making.  
• Goal 2 was to drink 60 ounces of water a day - I only drank half or less but I'm working on it. 
• Goal 3 was keep a food diary - on this I completely failed. I didn't write a single thing down.

Weight Loss for the Week:  1  pound

Total Weight Loss for 2010:  1 pound

Okay, so in addition to no fast food, I've begun making changes from high fat foods to the lower fat versions. After this week, I've decided to take the needed step forward and make more drastic dietary changes. Half of my problem is weaning the high salt, oil and fat fast food from my system and now that I have a good start on that, its definitely time for phase 2 of my trim-down plan - restriction.

Goals for this week:

• Keep calorie count between 1500-1800 per day
• Keep the food diary
• No fast food
• 90 minutes of aerobic activity

If you have a weight loss resolution, please join me/comment below!  I'll need the support (and you may too) and it would be fun to do it together.

Wordless Wednesday

I'm not the only one speechless, I presume?

Puppy Jace

My Puppy Jace got featured on a blog!  I can't read it since its in Mongolian, but I think it refers to the fact that Jace was named after one of the main characters in Cassandra Clare's series, The Mortal Instruments.

http://mysincereintrospection.blogspot.com/2009/09/jace-puppy.html

 

 

Media Monday

Just a little recap of the new movies and TV shows I've watched, books I've read, and new music I've listened to.

Movies

1. 500 Days of Summer (2009) - Had a very Hitchhiker's guide to the Galaxy narrator feel and a great message for those of us who feel lost in the dating world. Zoey Deschanel is brilliant.
2. All the Real Girls (2003) - Another Zoey Deschanel film, but I didn't love it. It actually bored me to sighs.
   
3. Night at the Museum 2 (2009) -I really laughed out loud, which takes a lot. Much better than the first one - Loved it.
   

Television - new episodes don't start up for another week or so :(

Music - downloaded some Matt Nathanson and Civil Twilight. Can't stop listening to Fireflight's song, Wrapped In Your Arms, Oh and I revived my Empire Records soundtrack from 1995 - LOVE IT!

Books

1. Tantalize by Cynthia Leitich Smith
2. Claim to Fame by Margaret Peterson Haddix 
3. Graceling by Kristin Cashore

New Years Read-a-Thon Challenge Wrap-Up!

New Years Read-a-Thon ending results from the Bookworming in the 21st Century

My goal was 24 hours, which was high, but being off work, I figured I would have plenty of extra time...but, alas, life just gets in the way sometimes. Here was my final tally:

12-31 (NYE):  Started Graceling by Kristin Cashore - 2 hours

1-1 (NYD): Graceling - 3 hours

1-2: Finished Graceling - 5.5 hours

1-3: Started Fire by Kristin Cashore -2 hours

Total reading time - 12.5 hours

Link to the original post with my goal -New Years Read-a-Thon Challenge

Graceling by Kristin Cashore

Author: Kristin Cashore
Published: October 2008 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Hardcover: 480 pages

Synopsis:
Katsa has been able to kill a man with her bare hands since she was eight; she's a Graceling, one of the rare people in her land born with an extreme skill. As niece of the king, she should be able to live a life of privilege, but Graced as she is with killing, she is forced to work as the king's thug. When she first meets Prince Po, Graced with combat skills, Katsa has no hint of how her life is about to change. She never expects to become Po's friend. She never expects to learn a new truth about her own Grace, or about a terrible secret that lies hidden far away . . . a secret that could destroy all seven kingdoms with words alone.

My Thoughts:
Cashore's tale is enchantingly written. Katsa is a strong yet, unsure woman who has grown up believing it is her destiny to be a killer. As she matures, she finds another purpose in life; to help others as she and committee determine are able to be saved, without the committee being revealed. She is determined to live a life of solitude, never marrying and never having children.  Enter Po - a Leinid prince and the only person alive who can fight against her and still live. She is intrigued by his combat skills and they train to strengthen each others skills. He is confident and sarcastic and a wonderful character. Their connection in the story is believable as well as heart-wrenching. As the story progresses and you learn of the secrets hidden in other lands, their relationship strengthens.

The story can be slow moving at points, but its also necessary to set the tone of the story. The world created is magical, yet realistic. I found myself entranced from the beginning to the end and I would recommend this book to anyone. 5 stars.

Claim to Fame by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Author: Margaret Peterson Haddix
Published November 11, 2009 by Simon and Schuster
Hardcover - 272 pages

Synopsis
I have to tell you my secret. I can't go on...without revealing it. I had a pretty good run, hiding from everyone for five years. For five years I was safe. But now...

It was a talent that came out of nowhere. One day Lindsay Scott was on the top of the world, the star of a hit TV show. The next day her fame had turned into torture. Every time anyone said anything about her, she heard it. And everyone was talking about Lindsay: fans, friends, enemies, enemies who pretended to be friends....

Lindsay had what looked like a nervous breakdown and vanished from the public eye. But now she's sixteen and back in the news: A tabloid newspaper claims that Lindsay is being held hostage by her father.

The truth? Lindsay has been hiding out in a small Illinois town, living in a house that somehow provides relief from the stream of voices in her head. But when two local teenagers try to "rescue" Lindsay by kidnapping her, Lindsay is forced to confront everything she's hiding from. And that's when she discovers there may be others who share her strange power. Lindsay is desperate to learn more, but what is she willing to risk to find the truth?

My Thoughts: 
Lindsay is sad, confused, and has grown up basically without parents or any sort of parental guidence. She has cut herself off from the world, doesn't watch TV, doesn't have any friends, and has only learned to relate to others from books, the internet, and her self-studies. Given this, her interaction between characters throughout the story is understandable and I can relate to her character. As the story moves forward, I wandered how she was to survive after her secret had been revealed, what additional secrets lay ahead for her, and how did her family play a role in all of the mess that her life has become. I love Toby as a side character - not a typical 16 yr old, but a heart-felt one at least.

Haddix creates a realistic world that is sad, yet engaging and sends a great message out to kids - do you really want to know what everyone thinks of you and if you did, what would you do about it?  It helps answer the question of vanity in its purest form.  Unfortunately, I wasn't pleased with the ending; it just wrapped up a little too neatly for me.

This book is young adult, but I don't believe it was written with enough power to hold a teenage audience and is better suited for middle school grades. 3 out of 5 stars

Trim-Down Thursday

(Okay so technically its Friday, but I need to start this mental mind change and I don't want to wait till next Thursday.)

*Trim Down Thursday is a weekly blog post on my progress to better myself physically. One of my five resolutions for 2010 is to lose 50 pounds (I'll keep my actual weight a secret but post my progress each week). This weekly blog will keep me motivated. Any and all trim-down buddies would be appreciated! It's never fun to do this alone.

Goals for this week:

1. No fast food unless it is an emergency (and even then, it has to be from the "healthy" menu)
2. Drink 60 ounces of water a day
3. Keep a food diary.

I'm keeping it easy this week to get my mind back in the game. I lost 25 pounds this past summer by going to the gym 4 days a week and keeping strict diet [and I've kept it off still (yea!)]. I plan to get to that kind of committment, but not right away. I'll need to make small changes first and then hit the ground running.

If you have a weight loss resolution, please join me/comment below!  I'll need the support (and you may too) and it would be fun to do it together.

Holiday Break Reading Challenge Activity #15

Challenge:  The start of the new year brings the opportunity for reflection about what we've done during the past year and the goals for what we want to accomplish in the coming year. Take today to answer the following questions on your blog. If, for some reason, some of the questions to apply to you, just answer what you can.

REFLECTIONS
1. What was your favorite aspect of your blog in 2009?  I just started my blog this year and it's been a learning process. I don't really have an agenda (aka. book blog, family blog, etc) but its nice to have a place to put my thoughts.  Having the blog is my favorite aspect.

2. Was there a particular featured/weekly post you participated in that you enjoyed and plan to continue in 2010?  I did not have a weekly post, but I will be adding two during 2010. Media Monday will feature all things media that I watched/read/listened to during the week. Trim-Down Thursday will be a weekly blog on weight loss goals for the week as well as any advice/tips or recipes that I received. I may add a Friday post on famous hotties that I have my current attention, but I haven't figured a name for it yet. any suggestions??

3. Is there anything you don't like about your blog that you want to fix? (design, posts, followers, blog host, etc.)  I just changed the design and love it. I debate whether to add a third column but don't think its necessary at the moment. My posts will be come more standard as I add those regular weekly posts. My blogger host is is just fine.  I actually have a few followers which is pretty cool :) Of course, as time goes on, I'd love to have more, but I don't want to host a contest just to get them. I am thinking of hosting a mom swap this summer though - that would be fun.

4. Is there a blog you visit that you admire and aspire to emulate?  I take note from all kinds of blogs but none in particular.

GOALS (You fill in the blanks)
1. Develop a consistency and stick to it.
2. Participate and/or host in a swap
3. Figure out why I can't comment on blogs that don't have pop-up comment windows. It's hella frustrating. lol.