Summer Reading Blog Hop: The Wedding Dress

My bloggie friends and I decided to do a Summer reading blog hop.  I really like this group of girls and as much as we enjoy each other (and our blogs) we also come from different places.  I can't wait to see what books they're dishing about.

My first book this month was actually a Kindle freebie that I thought looked interesting.  You ever just want a good, fun read?  This is it. 

 

 

The Wedding Dress by Rachel Hauck follows Charlotte Malone as she discovers a wedding dress in an old, beaten trunk.  It follows the story of the four women who have worn this dress and the path they have taken to find it. 

 

I loved the way the story weaves between the women.  Although Charlotte is the main character, through the other ladies we learn about her past as well as the struggles of each women as they follow their path in life, trusting in God and not always following the easiest or most acceptable path. 

 

It is a love story, woven into the love stories of the other three ladies.  It was sweet and touching.  I would definitely recommend this for a great Summer read.

 

Hop on over to check out some other great Summer reads:

 

 

Clockwise, from top center:

Lorrie @ Life and Lessons Learned, Audrey @ Everything Beautiful, Tracey @ Building My House, Jessica @ Redeeming the Home, Charli @ WV Urban Hippies, Selena at Campbell Clan, and bottom right Maria @ The Joyfully Frugal Home 

Not pictured: Megan @ Parenting Beyond

 



Book review: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.

On the recommendation of many people - co-workers, my bff Vicki, even the wonderful librarian at our Bookmobile - I finally read The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. 

Oh. My. Goodness. 

First things first.  This was a graphic book.  I skipped over quite a few disturbing parts in this book. 

The premise is the present day solving of an event that took place over forty years ago.  The first few chapters were a lot of back story, including a diagram of a family tree, which I thought was odd.  Turns out I needed to reference that tree a few times to figure out who was who. 

Once the story takes off, it really does get your attention.  I did not see it ending anything like it did.  I actually read until the wee hours of the morning on this one. 

While I did mostly enjoy the story line of this book, the majority of the characters are  morally bankrupt and frankly, the whole story - present and past - creeped me out.  It reminded me of the TV show Criminal Minds - which also creeped me out and I quit watching.  I have enough nonsense taking up space in my head without adding disturbing images. 

So while I really appreciate that fact that Mr. Larsson was able to take me by surprise with this story, I don't plan on reading the rest of the trilogy.  I'll just make Vicki tell me what happens to Lisbeth, who was really the most interesting character by far.

As always, this is just my opinion.  By all means, feel free to have your own.

First book of 2012....done!

Look at me!  I'm off to a great start.

I finished One Bite at a Time by Tsh Oxenreider.  I actually enjoyed this book.  Tsh had some great ideas to organize and simplify your life in 52 weekly projects.  Some are quick and easy, like drink more water.  Others are definitely more time consuming, like plant a garden. 

While I personally don't have time to pull off all 52 projects this year, there were quite a few I'm going to take a stab at.

My plan for this year:
1.  Establish a morning routine
2. Establish an evening routine
3.  Eat your frog.
4.  Take an annual vacation (or staycation)
5.  Schedule regular date nights.
6.  Create an essential papers file.
7.  Get more sleep.
8.  Plan in advance for the holidays.
9.  Regularly turn off your TV.
10.  Organize your photo collection.
11.  Make a compost bin.
12.  Use the envelope system.  (Again)
13.  Declutter your wardrobe (and focus on your outward appearance).
14.  Create a regular monthly budget.
15.  Drink more water.

A lot of her suggestions are things I keep planning on doing but never get around to.  A couple of things I really liked about the book were that the chapters are short and can be fully read without sacrificing a large chunk of your day (unlike staying up until 3am to finish The Help).  I also liked that I actually already do quite a few of the things she has as projects.

Things I've already done:
Make a debt free plan
    We're back to Dave Ramsey's Total Money Makeover system. 
Menu plan
     Nothing new here.  I don't know what I'd do without it (other than eat out!)
Streamline your receipt system
     We did this with our rental business this October using NeatDesk .  Love it.
Clean your kitchen as you cook.
      I have limited counter space....no other choice.
Plan weekly planning meetings with your spouse.
Eat whole foods (on a budget)
Declutter and rotate your kids toys
Switch to non toxic cleaners
      I generally either use Shaklee Get Clean, Murphy's oil soap or vinegar.
Start cooking staples from scratch.
Start a garden
Eat locally
      Can't get more local than the veggies in the yard and your cow in the field.
Make annual goals
Create a daily to do list.

If (and that's a big if) I pull of the projects I've listed above, there is one more project that I might consider for no other reason than pure and simple curiosity.  It's "Switch to gentle, eco-friendly hair care".  It's basically going shampoo free.  I've read about this on other semi-hippie blogs and in a way it does make sense, but in another way it also grosses me out to think about not using shampoo.  I guess if you see me at church all greased up you'll know I took the plunge to try it. 


I noticed that the book is priced at $5 on Amazon right now.  If you're interested, you can click my affiliate like below and help support my ongoing Amazon addiction. 

Be sure to stop by Life as Mom see what others had to say about this book and others.  

Good Morning Girls Summer Kick-Off!

Here's the link to the Sally Clarkson book at Women Living Well/Good Morning Girls.


Good Morning Girls Summer Kick-Off!

For GMG's NOT Participating in the Summer Book Club

Here's the link for Reshaping it all. I decided to join in on this one as I was eating peanut butter pie from Apple Annie's last night. (and yes, it was delish!)

For GMG's NOT Participating in the Summer Book Club

Summer Reading List

I'm trying to be more realistic this year about my summer reading goals. I always make an outrageous list of what I'm going to read this summer, and end up failing miserably. This is my final list for summer.

Creative Correction by Lisa Whelchel
Reshaping it all by Candace Cameron Burr
Ministry of motherhood by Sally Clarkson
Lies homeschooling moms believe by Todd Wilson
OAMC Family Favorites cookbook
Bringing up boys by Dr. James Dobson (audio book)
Finish the Esther bible study.


I'm planning on listening to the audio book with Ronnie on the way to the beach later this month. I've already started Lies homeschooling mom's believe - loving it! I'm starting an online book club/bible study with Courtney at http://womenlivingwell-courtney.blogspot.com/ for the Ministry of Motherhood and Reshaping it All. As far as the cookbook goes, I've been wanting to try once a month cooking for a while now. I already cook large batches and freeze extra from time to time, but I'd like to be more consistent and actually try for 1 baking day and 1 cooking day a month. I'll let you know how it goes.
I'll post the links if anyone would like to join me for the online book clubs. If your interested in making our own Good Morning Girls group, let me know. It's basically an accountability group for our devotional time. Check it out and post a comment or send me a FB message if your in.

Have a great day!