What I'm Up To

Hello to the Internet world! I'll resume my France posts soon. But for now, here's what I'm up to right now:

Making Blueberry Zucchini Bread
with our produce box goodies

Reading these books

Where'd You Go Bernadette by Maria Semple

I started this book a little unsure of how interested I'd be in the story, but I had heard from so many people it was great that I decided to give it a shot. Several times have I almost busted out laughing mid-read, it's that funny. I also failed to notice that the author is one of the writers for Arrested Development. It has just as many awkward, ironic situations as you would picture and more. Such clever writing. I'm almost finished and a little sad about it.

Book review: The Glass Castle

I just finished an amazing book about a girl who grew up with dysfunctional parents who were unrealistically big dreamers, and because of that big failures. The Glass Castle is a memoir of Jeannette Walls's past, and I honestly don't know how she found the courage to write it. Her life really is an amazing story: she has a drunk for a father and a free-spirited mother, neither of which took on the responsibility of raising their children.

Here is an excerpt from a scene where Jeannette and her brother had found a diamond ring outside their house in the woods of West Virginia, at a point where they were so poor they didn't even have a lunch to bring to school:

"We brought the ring home and showed it to Mom. She held it up to the light, then said we needed to have it appraised. The next day she took the Trailways bus to Bluefield. When she returned, she told us it was in fact a genuine two-carat diamond.
'So what's it worth?' I asked.
'That doesn't matter,' Mom said.
'How come?'
'Because we're not selling it.'
She was keeping it, she explained, to replace the wedding ring her mother had given her, the one Dad had pawned shortly after they got married.
'But Mom,' I said, 'that ring could get us a lot of food.'
'That's true,' Mom said, 'but it could also improve my self-esteem. And at times like these, self-esteem is even more vital than food.'"
- The Glass Castle, p. 186

This doesn't even begin to describe the ridiculous hardship this girl lived through because of her selfish parents. I honestly could not put it down from the minute I started - it is that good. What completely astonished me is that it is all true. Read the book. It is truly incredible.

Check it out here: amazon.com/Glass-Castle-Memoir

Beachin' it

I just spent a glorious (half) week with my family at the beach. I wish it had no time limit! But right now, life and responsibility has called us back home. Thankful for the few days we did get to spend at the lovely Litchfield Beach. Some highlights:

• Spent some fun time with my cousin's sweet daughter Ella, who is going to be 1 on the 14th. Talk about feeding the baby fever! We tried so hard to get her to take her first steps, but she keeps trying to walk on her tip toes, just like a little ballerina. Precious!

• Bachelorette finale with allll the girl cousins. Every year at the beach, the house is full of way too many girls, and it is too much fun! There are 15 grandkids in the Christian family, and 2 of those are boys. My brother is quite glad to have Michael to pal around with now.
• Finally finished reading Jane Eyre! Started it on my LAST beach trip with Michael's family, work and busy weekends provided necessary distractions, and 2 months later I finished it. Such a classic romance, with the most rich luxurious language. Long, but so glad I read it. Now I'm going to watch the movie, and probably be disappointed.
• Night beach walk with the hubs. Haven't been on the beach at night in such a long time but it was great! And we saw a shooting star!
• AMAZING food, as always. Every year I try to diet for the beach, and then have to diet afterwards, too. But it's sooo worth it.

Missing my family already! Here are some photos from the trip:

Beautiful girl

no makeup the entire week... and it was wonderful

The cousins, minus a few who weren't there. Love them!

It's Beach Time!

We're leaving for Ocean Isle Beach today with Michael's family! I'm so excited for Michael to have some time off work and just to enjoy the gorgeous weather and relaxing ocean shore. Here's just a few things I'll be bringing:

Trader Joe's green salsa

My new shades from Forever

To get my tan on

My goal is to read this before I see the new movie version

Now I'm off to have some fun in the sun! I sure hope
you enjoy your Memorial Day weekend.

Salute to our Soldiers

I just finished a book by Elizabeth Berg (a very good author by the way) called Dream When You're Feeling Blue. It's all about a family in Chicago during WWII and what their life was like being here in America when the war was going on in the rest of the world. I personally LOVE historical fiction, and I found it fascinating that everyone in America was so unified in supporting the war during the '40s. Every single American believed that soldiers deserved everything - letters, support, anything to boost their morale, and most importantly, respect. I mean, they were giving the ultimate sacrifice for their country, don't they deserve all that? The mother of these three sisters in the story made them sit down every single night and write to the soldiers. Not just their boyfriends but anyone who they wanted to exchange letters with. She also forced them to go to the USO dances at the Servicemen Center where the soldiers were held before they were shipped overseas. It was all about boosting their morale! They were forced to ration their food, couldn't buy anything new that was made of metal, and women took on hard labor jobs that the men left behind to put together planes and weapons for the war. Wives raised children by themselves while their husbands served thousands of miles away from them. Propaganda was all over the place encouraging people to do whatever they could to show their support for the soldiers. Disrespect for FDR or the war wasn't even tolerated. Supporting the war and those fighting in it was not an option.

Why don't we do this today? I know there aren't quite as many of our men overseas this time, but honestly I don't even think about them being over there in the Middle East but maybe once a month. I certainly respect them and am happy for what they're doing for our country, but do I really show them that? It kind of bothers me that there are so many people in opposition of the war and not in support of what our soldiers are doing for our country. I'm not saying that war is the answer and a lot of what goes on in a war is actually really horrible. But I feel like this war is not unifying our nation - rather it's divisive. I think our country really grew during WWII because everyone was in support of it together and were willing to do what it took to protect our country. I don't feel like the USA has grown together at all in the last 9 and a half years - if anything we've grown apart. We take for granted the fact that we have a safe home and a country where we have so many freedoms that others do not. Wouldn't you think that Americans of all people would want that same freedom for everyone else? Shouldn't the oppression of people in nations with tyrannic governments bother us? I think it's easier for us to turn a blind eye to it all, and just focus on our own wants and needs.

I wish I wasn't so selfish. I wish I would pray for the soldiers and the Middle Eastern people every day. I wish I acknowledged and paid attention to all the hardship that's going on over there rather than ignoring it. I wish our nation was more unified that it is.

I don't really know what my point is, but I guess just be grateful for what we have here. Even in the midst of a struggling economy we still have so much to be thankful for. We are so blessed, and most of the time we just focus on the things we don't have. My resolution is to be grateful and to be aware. I hope you resolve to do the same.