RTT: I can't believe I'm 26!

It's been awhile since I've done an RTT. I hope I've been missed! 
Let's make this introduction short and sweet; Stacy is still the host of Random Tuesday Thoughts. Check out her blog at Stacy Uncorked.

I can't believe it's almost Halloween. Isn't it still August!? Haha. Well, anyway, yesterday was my birthday. I'm twenty-six! At least I'm still 9 months younger than J! :P 
I just finished making the treat bags for the trick-or-treaters. I put in two Dum-Dums, a pack of three crayons, a Halloween pencil, two bracelets, two spider rings, a pair of plastic fangs, two peanut-butter Mary Janes, One mini Almond Joy/Payday, one Reese cup mini and around five pieces of mixed candy (gum, jawbreakers, suckers, sweettarts, Warheads, lemon drops, taffy, etc.). I made 23 bags, b/c I ran out of candy. :( I hope that we don't have any more kids than that. I think we'll have to go get more candy anyway. 
 Mama, Amanda and the babies came by to see my yesterday. They woke me up by banging on my bedroom window. Scared me to death, but it was worth it. :) They pitched in together and bought me all three of the Twilight movies on DVD and Mama made me a cake. :) 
 J and I went to Douglasville to eat dinner and then shop some. We got a bunch of stuff at Party City and some stuff for the fur-babies. And some crazy good deals at Ross! I'll take pics later when I post the pics of the Halloween decorations. 
  Unfortunately, I woke up this morning with a sore throat and stuffy nose. I feel pretty awful, but still have a million loads of laundry to wash,dry, fold and put away {lots of smokey camping stuff}. I'm gonna end here. Hope everyone has a great week and Happy Halloween! :)

Book Review: Brother Odd by Dean Koontz

Brother Odd by Dean Koontz

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I really enjoyed this installment in the Odd Thomas series. I have had this book on my to-read list for quite awhile, along with the others in the series and this one didn't quite live up to the other two, but it was still a great read.



Odd has gone to live with the monks at St. Bartholomew's Abbey after the massacre in the mall that resulted in the death of his beloved Stormy. Odd has ventured to the Abbey to learn to live fully again and with the help of the Brothers, Nuns and Orphaned children, he is finding his way.



But of course, trouble is never far away where Odd Thomas is concerned. The bodachs are back and this time, there are children involved. As Odd ventures out to find out what the bodachs know that he doesn't, he stumbles across a monk in the oncoming-blizzard. Before he knows it, he's being conked on the head and the monk is gone. Then he encounters a never-before-seen entity that has him puzzled and observant. There are even a few questionable characters staying at the Abbey, including one of the novices!



Odd Thomas' adventure is worth reading and re-reading. Just don't read this one at night like I did. I had some strange creatures in my dreams!



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Book Review: Multiple Choice by Claire Cook

Multiple Choice by Claire Cook

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


Originally I rated this three stars, but I changed my mind after I summed it up for my husband when he asked what I was reading. It was just so ho-hum.



March and Olivia, mother and daughter, are both attending college at the same time, just not at the same school. However, when forced to take on an intern position, they both choose the same radio station by coincidence. Olivia acts like a stuck-up, spoiled teenager who's parents pay for everything. {I don't understand this at all, especially since I've always paid for my own things.} I sided with March, even though she's a middle-aged college drop-out who has decided to have a mid-life turn-around or something.



The producer or whatever he is, at the radio station decides to fill a time slot that is being vacated by this crazy lady who has no clue what she's talking about. The new show will be co-hosted by March and Olivia. March has a crush on a guy at the station and feels like her marriage is dull.



Those are the major points. I mean really, nothing happens. There was no climax or anything significant. I could have gone forever without reading this and never felt any regret. I hate to be so harsh, but when I read a book, I like for something to happen.



Maybe pre-menopausal women will appreciate this more than I, especially since I don't have kids and have only been married 3 years. If you're looking for a book that doesn't require any brain-power, this book might interest you. Otherwise...



**Note: This does not reflect on the author as a whole, just on this book.**



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Book Review: If I Should Die Before I Wake by Han Nolan

If I Should Die Before I Wake by Han Nolan

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Wow. I loved this book. It should be a requirement for all high school Holocaust/history students.



Hilary is a neo-Nazi sixteen-year-old who is injured in a motorcycle accident and sent to a Jewish hospital, where she lies in a coma. She begins to relive the life of Chana, a Jewish teenager whose family suffered tremendously during the reign of Hitler in Poland.



The story as a whole makes you realize that no matter how bad you think you have it, someone somewhere else has had it worse. This is a great book to teach kids how to appreciate differences in religion/race/etc.



Even though Hilary started off as a neo-Nazi supporter, when she awakens from her coma, she realizes the mistakes she has made and plans to turn her life around.



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Six Word Saturday!

I'll be twenty-six

on Monday!

J said we could do whatever

I wanted to do for my birthday weekend since

he has to work on my birthday, Monday.

So, we went camping last night

in the Talladega National Forest and we nearly

froze to death. It was at least 32°F and even

though we had three blankets, I was still too cold to

sleep. Not to mention the dogs that were barking

all night. {We think some people were coon hunting}

And Jeremy either has a cold or some allergies

b/c he was all stuffed up last night and was snoring 

SO loud! 

Check out Cate's blog, Show My Face to

participate in Six Word Saturday!

We still had a lot of fun. :)

I Miss you.

It has been one year since the murder of my friend, Stephen. 
I miss him now more than ever. 
I cry for him sometimes, but I know he's in a better place. 

I love you Stephen. I always will.

You will always be loved, sexy.

Your last FB conversation. Just like you to spray yourself with mace. LOL. 

RTT: You had me at Pinterest

Tuesday. Yay! 
 Stacy is still the Random Queen until Keely decides to take the throne again. I miss her. :( But Stacy is a pretty awesome ruler, if you ask me! Check out her blog, Stacy Uncorked. Leave her a comment and link up to RTT. Go forth and be random!

• Lately, it's gotten to where I don't want to do anything but play Farmville. I need to ween myself off of it some. I haven't played it in over a year and they have all kinds of new stuff going on! 
• Yesterday, I spent 2 hours decorating the house for Halloween! :) I'll have to post some pictures later this week. I didn't feel like busting out the camera. {That's weird, right?}
• I just gave Tobias a bath. He's pretty mad at me, which is just what I wanted. He was driving me INSANE! He always wants to lay right under my face and I can't see the laptop/tv/book that I'm working on/ watching/ reading. So, I gave him a bath, so he can spend the next hour "drying" himself. LOL.
• J and I watched Hellraiser last night. Really creepy. I hate the chompy guy. His name is Chatterer. I'll put a picture on here so y'all can be as sufficiently creeped out as I am:

• Are y'all ready for Halloween? We are. We've been watching scary movies to get ourselves ready. We watched Scream 1-4, Jason X, Trick r Treat {which had no plot, what-so-ever and really annoyed us.}, Halloweentown, Hellraiser, Coraline. Actually, I watched Coraline by myself last night. J fell asleep at 7:15. I kept trying to make him go to bed, but he wouldn't. So, he slept on the couch during the whole movie. *sigh*
• I have an addiction to Pinterest and it would appear that half of Facebook does too. LOL. I even got stuck pinning last night around one am! {from my phone, no less.} 
• Speaking of Pinterest, I saw this while I was stumbling:
  

• We bought the supplies yesterday. FYI, Hobby Lobby is having a great sale on their jewelry supplies. I got the string for less than two bucks! The straight pins I bought at Wally World for around $2.67. This is gonna look so cool! :) 
• I just got stuck pinning for 30 minutes while looking for the above pin. *sigh*. Pinterest will suck you in, man!
• And just now I got stuck stumbling. This is a cool site, check THIS out! You draw your own stickman and then it comes alive! And offers you tea and cookies. Not really, but it does become animated and you can interact with it. :P
• Well, Tobias loves me again and is currently blocking the laptop, so I'll let the randomness end here. 

Hope everyone is having a great week. Happy RTT!

Blog Review: Sizzling Sixteen by Janet Evanovich

Sizzling Sixteen by Janet Evanovich
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Not what I was expecting. I really need something more substantial to happen to Stephanie. Like, hooking up with Ranger. I don't know about the rest of this series' readers, but I picture The Rock when I think of Ranger. Who wouldn't want to be with him!?!



Overall, I liked this book better than the last one. I still don't understand the point of recapping who she is, what she does and who everyone else in the book is. It's a waste of space. Who's going to start out reading this series on the sixteenth book? But, if you took out all that redundant information in this book, it would have been incredibly short. What's up with the really wide margins and huge text? I felt like I was reading a book for a 4th grader. My first chapter book! Woo-hoo!



That said, I can't wait for the next book. I love reading about Stephanie's adventures. And Lula is hilarious. J.E. please bring on something new for Stephanie!






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Book Review: Summer Blowout by Claire Cook

Summer Blowout by Claire Cook
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I love this book! I started reading it after finishing The Gates by John Connolly. I didn't want to have nightmares and this looked like a light read. I was right, but I was also surprised at how quickly I read it. Only a few hours. I couldn't put it down! I was reading it in bed while J was sleeping and had to keep myself from laughing too loudyly, quite a few times.



This is my first Claire Cook and I'm glad I wasn't disappointed. I have seen her other novel, Must Love Dogs but have never read it, since I've already seen the movie. I think I will read it now anyway.



I love Bella and her entire family. She reminds me a lot of Janet Evanovich's character, Stephanie Plum. {Crazy, large family} It cracks me up that she's addicted to lipstick and chapstick, but then again, she is a make-up artist. Her dad is a wanna-be-Italian and I just find him adorable. I wish that Claire Cook would write a sequel to this novel. I would love to find out what happens between Bella and Sean Ryan. Also, what other mischief she and her siblings can get into whilst doing make-up. lol.



I definitely recommend this if you're looking for a light, quick-read. It would also make a great beach book.



And who doesn't love the little dog, Cannoli! I love being able to relate to characters who talk to their pets. :P


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Memorable Quotes: {That made me LOL}
"I pulled my suitcase out of the backseat of my bug, along with Cannoli's new travel case, a spiffy animal print pet backpack on wheels. When I first saw it, I thought maybe the dog was supposed to wear the backpack, but it turned out the person wore the backpack with the dog in it. It had a pull-up handle and wheels, just like my suitcase, so you could also roll it along the ground. It had mesh vents in the front and on the sides to let in lots of air. I unzipped the top and popped Cannoli inside, then attached the safety harness to her jeweled collar. She looked up at me in horror. "Don't worry," I said. "I won't zip up the mesh part until we absolutely have to."




   I extended the handles on my rolling suitcase and pet carrier, got them positioned evenly behind me, then hooked my shoulder bag over my head and under one arm, like a beauty pageant sash, so it wouldn't fall off. I reached back with both hands and started pulling. We moved along at a brisk, comfortable pace. The rolling suitcase was one of the best inventions ever, maybe right up there with the ionic hair dryer. I sure would like to have been the entrepreneur who thought up one of those two.
  I heard a choking sound behind me. When I looked back, Cannoli was hanging from the backpack harness with her hind legs circling frantically in the air. She looked like she was riding a bike just above ground level.
  "Cannoli," I yelled. I unhooked her and made sure she was breathing on her own. When I tried to get her back in the backpack, she whimpered. I talked to her soothingly yet firmly, then tried again. This time she started howling like I was hurting her. 
  People turned and stared as they walked by. "What are you looking at?" I said to one couple. I suddenly felt true remorse for every time  I'd stared at a parent with a toddler throwing a tantrum. I made a vow to be a better aunt to Tulia's kids if I ever made it out of this parking garage. I pleaded with Cannoli one more time."

"There also wasn't one single bit of grass or dirt outside the airport. Even the median strip was a concrete sidewalk. Where did Atlanta's pet travelers pee? Maybe city dogs just learned to use the sidewalk. We kept walking. It looked like if we crossed the road that all the cars used to get onto the highway, we might come to a planted-up area, but we also might get killed.

  Finally, I just lifted Cannoli up and plopped her down on a great big ashtray built into the top of the trash barrel. "Good thing you're not a German shepherd," I said.

Book Review: The Gates by John Connolly

The Gates: A Novel by John Connolly
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I think my library is unaware that this book and The Book of Lost Things are both young adult. So far, this book is creepy and I'm only on page 51. I mean, my neighbors are annoying sometimes, and certainly they get on my nerves when their dog barks too much or their car alarm won't stop going off {like today, it went off every 5-10 minutes. All. Day. Long. (10-03-11)}. But, thankfully, they have never held a seance to open a portal to Hell. That I know of...



More to come.



Pretty good read over all. I think it would be somewhat scary even for young adults. I definitely wanted to find out what happened to Nurd, but I liked how the book ended anyway.



I enjoyed the character that was meant to eat Samuel. {The one under the bed.} I thought it was quite funny how he didn't know what he was doing. I found myself giggling while reading his part and the weird thing in the pond. How did he get to be left behind when the portal was closed?



And the conversations between the Vicar and Mr. Berkeley was very humorous, too. I've included it in my favorite quotes as well.



"I don't think," he said, "that a vicar is supposed to beat a bishop to death, or even back to death."

Mr. Berkeley looked down upon the remains of Bishop Bernard.

"If anyone asks, we'll say he fell over," he said. "Lots of times."


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Six Word Saturday

Playing Farmville and

posting book reviews.

It's going to be a short day. Jeremy is at work. :(

I'm at home and waiting for him to get off, so we 

can go grocery shopping. He's going to feel like

he's not having a weekend at all.

Go see what Cate is up to at Show My Face 

and let her know what you're up to this Saturday.

RTT: I don't feel like it.

So I'm not gonna.

I just cleaned the house

and I don't feel like blogging.

But you should. And check out 

Stacy, the current Random leader,

at Stacy Uncorked.

Well, one random thought:

Why does my kitten put his

toys in the food or water bowls? 

Weirdo.

Here's a pic of some cuteness:

The Book of Lost Things

The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book reminded me of books I read when I was younger, like before I was a teenager. It even has a life-lesson! I found it in the adult section though.



The book starts off during Hitler's reign. The main character, 12-year-old David, has just lost his mother. To deal with it, he escapes to his books. They soon begin to whisper to him. His father finds a new wife and they soon have a baby boy. David becomes even more angry and escapes into his imagination. Soon, he can't differentiate between his fantasy world and reality.

He goes down to the garden in his backyard and is transported to another world that strangly reflects the stories in his books.

This world, that has no name, contains heroes, monsters, and a King that holds the Book of Lost Things. David teams up with a Woodsman that promises to help him get to the King so that he can help David get back home.

This book is full of adventure and heroism. I'm hoping that there are more books like this, written by John Connolly.



I recommend this book to anyone who likes fantasy, adventure and super-natural.


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Six Word Saturday

Can't believe how 

cool today is!

I'm ready for some Auburn football!

It's only 67°F today! 

And the sun is shining and the sky is clear. 

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

It's October!!

Link up with Cate at Show My Face 

and join in on this super-easy meme. :)