Encyclopedia: E

E is for Edith Wharton

Edith Wharton (1862-1937) is one of my favorite authors. I remember when I first decided I wanted to be an English major, I thought I'd like to focus my studies on British Literature. Until I started my studies and quickly realized that, in general, I much preferred American Literature, and Edith Wharton is a perfect example of why. My favorite novel of hers is her most popular, The Age of Innocence (1920), but I really enjoy her short stories a great deal, too. The Custom of the Country and Old New York are both lovely little collections. Here are some pictures of Ms. Wharton's estate. I hadn't ever seen this until now, but apparently she and I have a common affinity for formal gardens.

E is also for Emily of New Moon, English major, & England

Your Library

I was browsing through my sister's Real Simple* magazine by the pool in Hawaii and came across their recommendation for a website called LibraryThing. You can catalog all of the books in your library (up to 200 free, then there's a fee). It's a great way to see what you have and to determine your preferences for new reads. In fact, once you start cataloging, the website will even recommend books that it thinks you would like! Sure, Amazon does this, too, based on things you search for and things in your wishlist, but my recommendations are always kid books or dental anatomy manuals. My LibraryThing account is all my OWN books. Yay for things just for ME. ;)

Check it out here!

And here's more info.

Image of color-coded bookstore found here. You should see the other ones.

*Steph, I stole your magazine, btw. Thanks. :)

Giada

Giada DeLaurentiis is my favorite celebrity chef. Not only is her food delicious, but her books are beautiful and she wears Anthropologie clothes on her show. Almost every single thing she makes looks delicious, and every recipe I've tried of hers has become a favorite. She has a new book. Yay. Mine came yesterday. Even better. I'll be sure to share my favorites over at the recipe blog.

Book Tag Game

I found this game on Thoroughly Mormon Mille's blog, which is often quite entertaining. We all love books, don't we? Let's play!

The Rules of the game:
1. Find the nearest book to you.
2. Name the book and author.
3. Turn to page 123.
4. Go to the fifth sentence on the page.
5. Copy out the next 3 sentences and post to your blog.

The nearest books to me at this point in time (12.05 pm) are a stack of library books for the kids. None of them have 123 pages, so I waltzed over to the bookshelf and chose the first book I saw.

Romeo & Juliet
William Shakespeare

Romeo speaking to his good bud Mercutio in Act 3 Scene 1:

"This gentleman, the Prince's near ally,
My very friend, hath got this mortal hurt
In my behalf. My reputation stained
With Tybalt's slander--Tybalt, that an hour
Hath been my cousin! O sweet Juliet,
Thy beauty hath made me effeminate
And in my temper softened valor's steel."

Three sentences, but seven lines. Doesn't that just take you back to ninth grade? Oh, Romeo was such a heart throb (for me anyway). Tag, you're it!

A Little Pat on the Back

I've accomplished all three of my goals for the week, and it's only Wednesday! They weren't difficult goals, of course, but I like to start small.

Goal #1: Finish The Bonesetter's Daughter by Amy Tan. It was a wonderful read, I recommend it highly! Here are two of my favorite excerpts:

"And then I realized what the first word must have been: ma, the sound of a baby smacking its lips in search of her mother's breast. For a long time, that was the only word the baby needed. Ma, ma, ma. Then the mother decided that was her name and she began to speak, too. She taught the baby to be careful: sky, fire, tiger. A mother is always the beginning. She is how things begin."

"These are the women who shaped her life, who are in her bones. They caused her to question whether the order and disorder of her life were due to fate or luck, self-determination or the actions of others. They taught her to worry. But she has also learned that these warnings were passed down, not simply to scare her, but to force her to avoid their footsteps, to hope for something better."

On to Three Junes, by Julia Glass, my next pick. Anyone read it?

Goal #2: A new post on one of the Family History Blogs I created. A very rewarding and fun goal to complete. Check out what I posted about my beautiful great-grandmother here!

Goal #3: My housework schedule, complete and ready to go for our delayed Family Home Evening tonight. Some little people are getting some jobs around here, once and for all. Charlotte led me to some good information online. Here's a chart with some ideas for jobs for kids at the appropriate ages, and here is an FHE lesson on responsibility. (After you click, you need to scroll down to see both pages.) Here are some cute chore charts.

Kid Books

We have at least 300 children's books in our house. They're pretty much my favorite thing to buy; I can't ever say no when it comes to books, and hence, we have a million. But, they last much longer than toys, and they're usually cheaper, too! We have a very extensive collection, and we love to read! Here is a teeny little sampling:

This is Miles' new favorite thing to stare at. This is the best little book; even newborn babies can see the shapes and there are no words. I flip through it over and over and he loves it! It sends his little arms flailing, legs kicking, and eyes widening. There's another one called "Black on White."

This is Parker's current favorite:

One of Audrey's recent reads:

This is one I really like, especially at this time of year. It's about a little girl who is sent to the store on Thanksgiving to get whipped cream for the pumpkin pie. It has really cute illustrations, and a very simple story.

Happy Reading!

More books . . .

For the past two days or so, I've been having some painful and numerous contractions and have ordered myself to bed. I've got to keep this baby in here at least a few more days, and luckily, I am able to be in bed because my lovely sister, Julianne is here to care for my kids. During each contraction, I think that surely there is no way I can stay pregnant until the 22nd (when my C-section is scheduled), so I'll keep you posted. We may have our little one sooner than we thought. So, in my state, I can either will myself to have more contractions just by glancing at a clock, or I can read books. I'm trying to read books. I've read these:

Three Against Hitler
The true story of three young German LDS men who actively and fearlessly tackled the Nazis in their own way in Hamburg, Germany at the beginning of WWII. They paid a very large price for their bravery and the story is chronicled by one of them, Rudi Wobbe, a survivor.






A Cup of Tea: A Novel of 1917
by Amy Ephron

A much lighter, very quick little novel about a love triangle during WWI in New York. A good "bathtub book," as my friend Allison calls it. (In other words, it doesn't take a whole lot of brainpower, but the story is good, nonetheless.)

Reading Corner

These are my latest reads. All three were quite enjoyable! Check 'em out!


The Pearl, by John Steinbeck

A short story I was never required to read in highschool, but by one of my favorite authors. It follows a poor, young fisherman who finds a very precious pearl in the ocean, which subsequently brings great change upon his small family, and reveals facets to his personality he never knew existed.






Gift from the Sea, by Anne Morrow Lindbergh

A memoir of sorts written by a woman on vacation alone. She ponders the relationships of her life and compares them to sea shells. An inspiring read, quite quoteworthy!















Katherine, by Anya Seton

My mom left this book at my house for me to read. (Thanks, Mom!) It was a good one, based on real people, Katherine and John, the powerful Duke of Lancaster. They were in love for many years and married toward the end of their lives. It all happens amidst much peasant revolting in England in the 1300s.




PS: 36 weeks today! If I had been on bedrest, I would have officially been allowed to get up today. :)

Bloomin' Booooks

Just read this one:

Quite an interesting read, it's a novel about black slaveowners in Virginia in the 1840s, a topic I knew nothing about. The author has won a Pulitzer Prize, it's a good one!

Now I'm reading this one:
Oooo, it's good so far. Sad, but good. About a man who grew up in Afghanistan in the 70s and 80s. Explores the intricate relationships between Sunni and Shiite Muslims during that time, and follows him to America, which is where I am now. What are you reading?

My Little Baghead

The other day at the library, we got this book called Baghead about a little boy who cut his hair by himself and so decided to wear a paper bag on his head for a few days.

It's a very silly book, and my kids loved it. So much in fact, that Parker insisted on becoming Baghead today, too.