The Wishing Tree

While on vacation on Hornby Island in August, my sisters and I went down to beachcomb (and drink) at Sandpiper Beach, not far from our vacation house.  It was very quiet - in fact, it was taken the same night as the previous post.  As we moved down the shoreline, we saw this one tree that had shells hanging from it, like Christmas ornaments. Someone told us that it was a wishing tree - you make a wish and hang your shell from the tree.  So I did.



To be honest, I don't remember what I wished for.  I was just happy to have some time alone with my sisters, because we only get to see each other once a year.  The memory loss also may have something to do with that bottle of gin and tonic in the green bottle behind me.



It was a good night.

Quiet Nights

Sometimes you need quiet nights. Sometimes the days never turn out like you hope they would, things pile up, there are so many things going on, and you feel yourself pulled in so many directions. I want a few quiet hours of no yelling, no cajoling, no frustration - and just have quiet, the sun setting, and my fingers trailing through rocks.

Playing Along

This picture was taken in Sidney, BC this past summer, and it was completely Piper's idea. We were spending the afternoon and night in Sidney before flying home the next morning, but glad arrived too early to check into our hotel. So, we circled around until we found a street parking spot (not an easy feat in Sidney!), and then walked around and window-shopped. Piper ran up to this statue of the two kids cuddling a cat and said, "Take my picture!" This was funny in itself because she normally hates getting her picture taken (see the previous post as evidence!). So, I snapped away.

Tough Piper

Piper at 5 years, 9 months, and 1 day. I am having such a hard time with this kid right now. She is so brash and bold and wants to show no fear (because she is a superhero, don't you know?) - but unfortunately this is coming across as defiance and disrespect to adults around her. Kindergarten has been a bumpy road for her thus far.  Serious look aside, she is a crazy intelligent and loving child - I just wish teachers at her school saw the same side of her we see at home.

Serenity Now

Miss me?

I think I have forgotten how to blog.  I just spent the last hour trying to figure out how to upload a picture from my iPad.  Seeing as I am currently sitting at my desk, you can gather how productive that hour was.

Alapocas Run State Park

(Not) Silent Sunday

I was so relaxed with this long weekend that I thought today was Sunday and was just going to put up a Silent Sunday post.  Instead, you get to read me blather. Enjoy the flowers!

Better Days

 I have a really bad habit of not using my vacation until halfway through the year - I have it in my head that I need to conserve it somehow. I have 23 days of vacation this year - no small amount (although I have friends and family who have much, much more and it boggles my mind). But - with trips to visit my family in Canada, those days get eaten up quickly, and I always want to make sure I have time to take a week off at Christmas as well. Now, it will be a few more years before I earn another weeks' vacation at work, so I think I need to budget my time differently. I may have to forgo taking the week of Thanksgiving off, or not as much time off at Christmas - because I am seriously burning myself out with no downtime.

 Don't get me wrong - I have fun - I spent a weekend down at the Maryland Shore a few weeks back, we went to the Wilmington Flower Market, we spent a day at Longwood - but all these things were stuffed into our already cramped weekends, and so the run activities were interspersed with running around and unneeded stress of trying to get the normal stuff finished as well as having fun. Memorial Day weekend is our first long weekend since January, and I have relished it so far. Even if the backs of my thighs are screaming after all the weeding from yesterday! The yard looks nicer, the house neater, and Andrew even cleaned up and tuned up the bikes so we could go riding through the neighborhood with Piper in the faux tandem attachment. I'm feeling good, and we still have another day tomorrow to unwind. It is Memorial Day here in the US tomorrow, which I think is more closely aligned to what Remembrance Day is in Canada (unlike Veterans Day, which is the same day as Remembrance Day).

It's A Start

Andrew and I spent collectively about 6 hours today working in our yard - he mowing the expanse - and in the backyard, actually mowing it twice, whereas I attacked the weed-infested flower beds in the front. I don't even know if weed-infested is a strong enough word - after about 2 hours of pulling weeds, my arms were starting to shake. We learned a few years ago that tomatoes grow really well in front of our house; it shouldn't have been a surprise - it is a south-facing wall with full sun, with the additional benefit of the warmth of the brick behind it. I planted 4 tomato plants today - two on either side of the front door, and all varieties of cherry and grape tomato. If you look carefully in this picture, however - there are 3 plants on this side of the door. We always have a lot of volunteer plants come back each year - and this one plant was looking pretty healthy and was in the exact spot I would have planted something anyway. I have no clue what kind of tomato it will be, but I am really hoping it is the tiny grape tomatoes that were in the same spot last year.

Tired

 I am so thankful to have this long weekend. I need to sleep, read, knit, plant, recharge, play with my kids, and not think about all the things that are stressing me out.

Throwback Thursday: Upside Down Willow

 I was scrolling through old pics looking for something funny for Throwback Thursday, and I passed this one by initially - thinking it was a recent picture of Piper. Being upside down on the sofa is very much something Piper would do. In fact, tonight after I finished reading to her, she demonstrated to me how she can crawl like an inchworm on top of the back of the sofa. But no - this six-year old Willow. And we are doing our damnedest to get rid of this sofa - it has a huge rip in the center that gets conveniently covered up by throw blankets and I hate it immensely. Take my advice - never get a recliner sofa. You will lose everything underneath it, the stupid thing weighs about 10 tonnes, and there are too many little moving pieces. Our next sofa will be comfy, but much more utilitarian.

Random Flowers

 Just random flowers, you say!

 But there is actually a not-so-random story behind these flowers. Last August, we spent our last night in Canada at a hotel in Sidney, BC - a small seaside town north of Victoria and close to the Victoria International Airport. There was a pub attached to the hotel, and we received a discount for eating there since we were staying at the hotel, but we had to eat before 6pm, because the pub did not allow minors in after that. So, we went and had a delicious dinner - and I had my only non-Canadian beer of my entire vacation (the waitress recommended a beer from New Zealand instead and it was delicious).

 After dinner we walk back to the hotel and we hear alarms going off - and I swear, it didn't even occur to me that the alarms were coming from our hotel! The hotel personnel won't let anyone inside, and the hotel is being evacuated of all guests. We are lined up in the parking lot, sidewalk, - really, wherever they could find space for us. The firetrucks pull up and about six fully-clad fire fighters rush in and check all the floors. After about 30 minutes of waiting outside, they let get the alarms turned off and let us back inside... except they can't turn the elevators back on right away so we have to walk up the three flights of stairs. Not really fun with a three year old and masses of people, but we manage.

 We wanted to get Piper in the bath right away since we had to wake up early to get to the airport for a 6am flight. I pull out her pajamas... And the alarms go off again. So, we all shuffle downstairs and outside again. This time we only wait about 15 minutes and they let us back inside. We start running Piper's bath and the alarms go off again. Everyone back downstairs. At least by now they have figured out that it is an alarm/electrical issue, not a fire alarm or anything like that. But - until they can get it disabled to fix it, we all have to wait either outside or in the lobby. Finally, the fire fighters go back to the station and the alarm techs arrive and they finally manage to fix the alarms and let us back to our rooms. It was not really how we anticipated spending our last night in Canada... but it was something to remember.

 And the flowers? Victoria (and as an extension, Sidney) is famous for its hanging flower baskets, and I spent the first part of our exile from hotel room snapping pictures of this one while we waited on the sidewalk.

In Which Jo Looks All Serious and Wrinkled

I have weird colored eyes.

 Not quite brown - maybe more on the hazel end, but then again, I frequently get told that my eyes are the exact same color as my hair. That's a little freaky, because my hair is auburn.

 

I am always trying to get a good picture of what my eyes look like - and I haven't caught a good one yet. I think it is really cool when you see a close up of someone's eyes and you see all the variations of color - to me, close ups up the eye can look like an alien landscape.  I know I have a light grey ring around an olive-y green and hazel and splashes of a maroon-red color throughout.  I suppose I will have to forgo the selfie and have someone else take a close up!

Real (shh, Test) Post

 Holy cow, you don't even want to know how long it took me to create a blogpost with a picture with my iPad! I tried doing it with my phone first, but that got me nowhere fast. Anyway, here's a selfie Willow took with my iPad- enjoy!

Must Think Happy Thoughts

I was woken up this morning by Piper at 5am. She's still at the point where weekends mean nothing to her. Sleeping in means nothing to her. I was up late last night reading, as usual, so I was very sleep-deprived - but because Andrew had the girls to himself for a few days while I was at a conference, I let him sleep in for the second day in a row. I woke up with Piper, turned on some cartoons, and went to make myself some coffee. When I went to get something out of the upright freezer, the first thing I noticed was that the door opened way too easily.

 It hadn't been shut last night.

 Everything in the door was completely thawed and dripping everywhere - and everything else was quickly getting there. I knew we had to defrost the damn thing soon, but I wasn't planning to do it at 5am on a Sunday morning. So, I shut the door and went back to the kitchen and drank my coffee. Then proceeded to empty everything out of the freezer that wasn't rock solid frozen still. Roasts, spaghetti sauces, curry, salmon, frozen fruit, tubs of ice cream, and a three pound bag of raw shrimp! That was just the tip of the (ha!) iceburg. The only things I was able to salvage were some frozen vegetables, some cookie dough (that I baked since it thawed), some cinnamon rolls (which we baked for breakfast, since they were thawed), and some meat that was cooked up today since it was only slightly defrosted in the debacle. Andrew, who had since woken up, came down and took over with the complete defrosting and cleaning once I had emptied the freezer.

 Must think happy thoughts! I have lots of cookies! Dinner is planned for tomorrow! My freezer is immaculately clean and empty! One day Piper will learn to sleep in!
 

Life Getting Away From Me

Life is crazy like that. I feel guilty for not maintaining this blog - but the truth of it is that it is so much easier to post things on Facebook. So, I am going to try getting back into the swing of things by posting pics and comments, and hopefully build up to blogging again from there.

 

 Willow, in her Birchbark sweater I made her earlier this year.

Best Books of 2014

Hmm... Long time, no blog. I need to get better with this! Without further ado, and in no particular order, here are my ten top picks for books I read in 2014:

 1. Heir of Fire by Sarah J. Maas

 

This book had me so panicked while I was reading it - I was up to about the 75% mark, still thinking that this book was the last book in a trilogy!  I am so glad there will be more.

 2. The Professional by Kresley Cole

 

(Jo waves self) - I had no idea Russian mobsters with Daddy issues were so much my type...

3. The Islands at the End of the World by Austin Aslan



This book blew me away with how the author wove Hawaiian history and mythology together.  It also made me think that Hawaii is not where I want to be when something bad happens!

 4. Foreplay (The Ivy Chronicles #1) by Sophie Jordan



For a steamy New Adult romance, this book was also very sweet, and the heroine reminded me a lot of me when I was younger.

 5. Wallbanger (Cocktail Series #1) by Alice Clayton

 

This book was not what I had expected!  I remember seeing it on so many people's blogs and wondering why they were so excited about it.  Well, I have read it, and gifted the book to a handul of friends - trust me, it's worth it.  If you like laughter and snark with your romance, you will love this book.

 6. Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
 


This is a book that Willow and I read together, and I think it was good for us.  She is years away from going away to college, but I think it was good for her to see how different people react when at college.

 7. Opposition (Lux Series #5) by Jennifer L. Armentrout



Daemon, Daemon... sigh.  I was really sad to see this series come to an end, but it did so in such a spectacular smash bang fashion.  My only regret is that I had pre-ordered the book thinking I would be able to get it while on vacation in Canada - but it wouldn't download from there! I had to wait until we were in the Seattle airport before I could start to read it - almost a week after it came out.

8. The Moonstone and Miss Jones (Phaeton Black, Paranormal Investigator #2) by Jillian Stone



Phaeton Black is another book boyfriend I always look forward to.  I loved the twist in this book that had Phaeton sort of seeing what modern-day London was like.  For a womanizing cad, he was in for a bit of a surprise!

 9. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

 

I got sucked into this one!  Willow wanted to see this in the movie theater - but my deal with her that for any movie based on on a book, she has to read the book first.  Which meant I had to read the book.  I loved Hazel's narrative - and the movie was a rare instance where the movie didn't ruin things for me.  I haven't read anything else by John Green yet, but I definitely plan to.

 And I am going to cheat on this last one, since I read this entire series in 2014:

 10. Vampire Academy Series by Richelle Mead
 


I read this book for two reasons - first, it fell in the same bucket as The Fault In Our Stars - Willow wanted to watch the movie (which, having read the book - I don't think the movie deserved a lot of the criticism it received - if the reviewers had read the book (and clearly many of them hadn't) they would have understood a lot of the jokes).  Secondly, I had independently started reading the sequel series to this series, Bloodlines.  I was getting far enough in the Bloodlines series where I figured out there was some important information I had missed by not reading the entire Vampire Academy series.  So, I put Bloodlines aside (and 2 more books have come out since then!), and started working my way through the Vampire Academy series.  I love Rose - she is so kickass and heartfelt.

There you go!  My Goodreads reading goal for 2014 was 130 books, and I didn't quite make it that far.  I finished #120 this morning, and I don't think I will be able to finish another one by midnight!  For 2015, I plan to do something a little different - not only am I going to track the books I read (for myself), but I also want to start tracking how many books I read to Piper.

Happy New Year!

Book Review: The Angry Little Puffin by Timothy Young

The Angry Little Puffin by Timothy Young
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was the first time I had ever received a children's picture book to review, so I read it with my resident expert - my 3.5 year old daughter, Piper. Puffin lives in a zoo, and he is not having a good day. He is housed with the penguins, and everyone thinks he is a penguin - they don't even bother to read his plaque explaining what kind of puffin he is and where he come from. He grits his teeth at first, but when the 'strange penguin' and 'cute penguin' and 'kooky penguin' comments keep coming, he loses his temper - in a spectacular fashion. I wanted to read this book with Piper, because as with many kids her age, she has anger issues. I know where they stem from; she's a smart kid, has a great vocabulary - but even with that - she is three, and most three year olds can't explain their emotions when they are in the throes of them.

I liked this book because the illustrations were simple - Piper was quick to point out the physical differences between the penguins and puffins. When Puffin was ranting on all the geographic differences between penguins and puffins, it was easy for a small child to understand the distance and difference. Puffin's emotions, from annoyance to anger to pleasure and acceptance, are all very evident on his face, so Piper was easily able to tell me how Puffin was feeling on different pages in the book. And I love that children are learning facts about puffins (and most importantly how they differ from penguins!) all throughout Puffin's rant. My one gripe with the book is all the different fonts the characters use - I found it distracting and young readers might get mixed up by it.

I asked Piper afterward what she thought of Puffin, and this was her response: "I like his colors. He's a puffin-bird and he comes from the top of the planet and penguins come from the bottom." For a three year old to pick three solid facts about puffins and penguins in a 10 minute read through a picture book? I'm happy.

#AngryLittlePuffin #KidLit


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Book Review: The Geography of You and Me by Jennifer E. Smith

The Geography of You and Me by Jennifer E. Smith
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Geography of You and Me is a quiet and sweet story of two teens who meet in a stalled elevator in the middle of a city-wide blackout. Despite the fact that they are in a fancy high-rise apartment building, they come from very different backgrounds. Lucy is a life-long New Yorker and the child of an international banker, and she is frequently left alone as her parents travel for business and pleasure. Owen is a recent New York transplant, and the son of the building's super - a man so deep in grief at his wife's recent death that he is at risk of losing everything around him. Lucy and Owen are caught in travels out of their control - Lucy across Europe following her father's promotions through different positions, and Owen supporting his dad as they move gradually westward looking for a job a stability. After their brief sojourn during the blackout, the two communicate with postcards and emails as the travel, and a romance blossoms - but a romance hard to sustain when faced with obstacles and other attractions in their respective geographies. This is the first book I have read by Jennifer E. Smith, and I was impressed by the flow of her prose, especially when she was writing in Owen's voice. The mirroring of the chapters was a bit cloying sometimes, but I accepted the style as showing that despite how different Lucy and Owen's lives were, their paths and lives were not all that different after all. As I mentioned in the beginning, this is a quiet tale - there is no big drama - but sometimes quiet tales are exactly what we need.

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Book Review: Deadly Curiosities by Gail Z. Martin

Deadly Curiosities by Gail Z. Martin
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I'm giving this story 3.5 stars (sorry - Goodreads and NetGalley don't show half stars). For me, the story fared much better than the writing. Cassidy owns an antiques store in Charleston, SC, with a cute name - Trifles and Folly; however most people don't realize that she and her store also serve to neutralize haunted and possessed objects. Cassidy is a psychometric, so she can read the history of objects by touching them, and she works along side a vampire/benefactor named Sorren and a young man named Teag, who has magical talents as a Weaver. To be honest, I read through the book and I am still not sure what that means. Teag seems to be good at research and hacking online, and somehow this also translates to tying knots, needlework, and actual weaving. I feel like Martin missed out on some exposition (or perhaps I just missed out on where the origin and usefulness of his abilities were explained). Dead bodies start piling up, and previously calm or non-haunted objects all of a sudden start turning malevolent, so Cassidy and team are called in to find out what was going on. The story drags down from there. Cassidy and Teag are not romantically involved, but they go out for meals or coffee 3-4 times, and every coffee shop and restaurant they go to has people working there with complete backstories of their own. I found myself reading and thinking, "Is this person relevant? Is there a reason why Martin is going into such detail?" But they weren't - and afterward it just seemed like a lot of unnecessary niceties. To me, this book was urban fantasy lite. Given the cover (and I know you are not to judge books by the cover), I expected something grittier. Deadly Curiosities was a fun book - the action scenes were quite good, and I was very amused that Cassidy's weapons included a wooden spoon and a dog collar. This book seems to be setting itself up to be the first book in a series; I am interested in reading what comes next - but I also hope that the writing tightens up a bit and perhaps a little romance is thrown in.

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