Weekly Link Up

Fun new things I’ve discovered in the last few weeks:

A Dress A Day

(Thanks Meghan! She makes it look so easy!)

http://debbidoesdinnerhealthy.blogspot.com/

The Secret Adventures of Writer Girl

The Girl Who Ate Everything

At least it's not poison ivy

Tyler is completely healed- no more itchy spots and just a few dry skin issues to deal with over the next few weeks. A breeze compared to what we were dealing with before!

He had to get a shot at the Dr. the other day and I was able to say truthfully- it will keep you from getting a sickness that's worse than your poison ivy- and he was able to relate and not freak out over it. Smart kid.

Now he will say "at least it's not poison ivy" whenever he has a minor injury like falling down or bumping his toe. It's good he's got some perspective.

First week of school

We made it through the first week of school. It's tradition to take pictures on the first day and this year I think ours turned out super cute!

Tyler missed the first day. His legs are pretty red still- not bumpy, but a little dry and itchy still so we put him in pants yesterday for his official first day. Luckily it was hot enough that they had indoor recess. He got to ride the school bus for the first time ever!

Sammie survived the first week with only a little freak out about a multiplication worksheet for morning work that only got 10 done (out of like 50 problems). Turns out she misread the instructions and it was addition, though, and she breezed through it for homework. Whew! That was a close one!

Spencer had a blast at middle school this week. He's adjusting to a new building and new people, but other than the few little quirks going on he is doing great. His favorite class by far is his computer keyboarding class that's his elective this quarter.

Before and After

Tyler before his allergic reaction to poison ivy.

Tyler after with his face swollen up.

Gizmo before haircut.

Gizmo after. He looks kind of depressed about loosing his fluffy face.

A symptom of Summer

All week I've thought it was a day later than it really was. Looking forward to school starting if for no other reason that it reminds me that Tuesday is pizza day and Tyler has preschool on Wednesdays, and homework is due on Fridays.

It's a bitter disappointment to realize at the end of Thursday that it's not really Friday after all.

Time for a few book reviews

I've been reading a lot lately and have come across a few books that I really liked.

1. Wake by Lisa McMann

This is a teen novel at it's best. If you like teen books you'll probably get a kick out of this one. It's about a girl who can see other people's dreams. Lisa McMann has an interesting writing style- sometimes she uses incomplete sentences- she writes how people think and talk throughout the book. It's written in 3rd person, present which is unusual. Overall, even with the bit of bad language here and there I really liked it and will read the other 2 books in the series- Fade and Gone.

2. Dragonfly by Julia Golding

I loved this book. It's a completely different world taken from olden times- princes, princesses, kings, evil rulers trying to take over the known world, interesting names that I probably mispronounce in my head- if you like fantasy books this one will not let you down. This book didn't have a map at the front detailing the kingdom though. I missed having that. It's about a princess who has to marry a prince from another land to avoid war with the evil warlord trying to take over the world! Classic. There's even a giant.

The writing sometimes got a bit fro frooy for me. A lot of description. I found myself skipping to the quotes to catch the next bit of dialog at times, but I still loved the story and will read more by Juila Golding.

Here's a few more I've read and think are worth mentioning.

If you like Harry Potter and Twilight you might also like these books:

1. Hunger Games and Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins- very close second for me behind Harry Potter as my favorite books.

2. The Mortal Instruments Series- City of Bones, City of Ashes, City of Glass by Cassandra Claire

3. Graceling- by Kristin Cashore (Fire- the companion book to Graceling was not as good. The writing was good, but the topic was very strange and hard to read)

4. Gone- by Michael Grant. Not on the same level of Harry Potter or Hunger Games for sure, but an interesting idea and an easy read.

5. Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder- couldn't get into the sequel, but may pick it back up. I liked the first one though.

13th anniversary

Thomas and I celebrate 13 years of marriage today!

Yesterday we went out to lunch and then walked around down town St. Charles- something we have never done together. They have a lot of funny shops with nick nacks and other junk. We saw a popcorn shop, tea shop, spice shop, a great little book store that was quite a find, and our favorite- an old fashioned ice cream shop. I had a strawberry cone that was amazing!

Today was special too. We had our family home evening today because tomorrow night I have to go to one of the kids school orientations. We had a nice lesson by Sammie about "Families can be together forever" and Tyler picked the game of hot potato with a real "tato" for the activity. Thomas made macaroons for a treat that we all demolished with embarrassing quickness. It's been a nice day. A great day to remember our special day and the importance of family.