Books Read in 2013

Why didn't I start this list earlier, instead of the last week of May? I didn't realize how much I would enjoy looking back at the books read.
P.S. Just because a book shows up on this list doesn't mean that I recommend it. Just that I read it.

A Scoop of Desert: Lessons From Being Baked on Deployment by Travis Stephensen (Non-fiction/Memoir?)
The Importance of Bing Earnest by Oscar Wilde (Fiction/Play-via iBooks)
Swim by Jennifer Weiner (Fiction-via iBooks)
The Morning Gift by Eva Ibbotson (Young Adult Fiction)
The Guardian by Nicholas Sparks (Fiction)
Drops of Gold by Sarah M. Eden (Fiction-via Deseret Bookshelf)
Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict by Laurie Viera Rigler (Fiction-via audio)
Airhead by Meg Cabot (Young Adult Fiction-via audio)
Hattie Big Sky by Kirby Larson (Juvenile Fiction)
Hattie Ever After by Kirby Larson (Juvenile Fiction)
Persuasion by Jane Austen (Fiction-via iBooks)
The Two Princesses of Bamarre by Gail Carson Levine (Juvenile Fiction)
Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict by Laurie Viera Rigler (Fiction) 6/7/13
Unbroken: A World Ward II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand (Biography 92-via audio) 6/7/13
Pegasus: The Flame of Olympus by Kate O'Hearn (Juvenile Fiction-via audio) 6/14/13
Rules by Cynthia Lord (Juvenile Fiction-via audio) 6/15/13
Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow by Jessica Day George (Young Adult Fiction) 6/16/13
Invaluable by Holly J. Wood (Religious Fiction) 6/21/13
Lemon Tart: A Culinary Mystery by Josi S. Kilpack (Fiction) 7/2/13
The Report Card by Andrew Clements (Juvenile Fiction) 7/2/13
One for the Money by Janet Evanovich (Fiction) 7/15/13
Jangles: A Big Fish Story by David Shannon (Easy Fiction) 7/16/13
John Blair and the Great Hinckley Fire by Josephine Nobisso (Easy Fiction) 7/16/13
Midnight in Austenland by Shannon Hale (Fiction) 7/18/13
Safe Haven by Nicholas Sparks (Fiction) 7/23/13
The Host by Stephanie Meyer (Fiction) 7/29/13
Wicked Appetite by Janet Evanovich (Fiction) 7/31/13
The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman (Non-Fiction 646.7) 8/2/13
Wicked Business by Janet Evanovich (Fiction) 8/4/13
Dragon Slippers by Jessica Day George (Juvenile Fiction) 8/8/13
Saving Wishes by G.J. Walker-Smith (Young Adult Fiction-via iBooks) 8/11/13
Second Hearts by G.J. Walker-Smith (Young Adult Fiction-via iBooks) 8/12/13
Candle in the Darkness by Lynn Austin (Inspirational Fiction-via iBooks) 8/22/13
The Five Love Languages of Children by Gary Chapman & Ross Campbell (Non-fiction 649.1) 8/25/13
The Heist by Janet Evanovich and Lee Goldberg (Fiction) 8/30/13
Wedding Night by Sophie Kinsella (Fiction-via Overdrive) 9/13
Against the Tide by Elizabeth Camden (Inspirational/Historical Fiction-via Overdrive) 9/13
Things Hoped For by Andrew Clements (Juvenile Fiction-via Audio) 9/13
The Magic Horse of Han Gan by Chen Jiang Hang (Easy Non-Fiction 398.2) 9/13/13
Chocolat by Joanne Harris (Fiction) 9/19/13
Odd Boy Out: Young Albert Einstein by Don Brown (Easy Biography 92) 9/20/13
The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare (Juvenile Fiction) 9/25/13
The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt (Easy Fiction) 9/30/13
Why Did the Chicken Cross the Road by Various (Easy Non-fiction 741.5) 10/2/13
Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen (Fiction-via iBooks) 10/11/13
The Third Sister: A Continuation of Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility (Fiction) 10/20/13
Blackmoore by Julianne Donaldson (Fiction) 10/21/13
Zen Ghosts by Jon J. Muth (Easy Fiction) 10/23/13
Wonder by R. J. Palacio (Juvenile Fiction-via Overdrive) 10/30/13
Zen Shorts by on J. Muth (Easy Fiction) 10/30/13
Longbourn by Jo Baker (Fiction) 11/8/13
Pros and Cons by Janet Evanovich and Lee Goldberg (Fiction-via iBooks) 11/12/13
For the Birds: The Life of Roger Tory Peterson by Peggy Thomas (Juvenile Biography) 11/22/13
Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt (Juvenile Fiction) 12/13/13
Pale Male: Citizen Hawk of New York City by Janet Schulman (Juvenile Non-Fiction 598.9) 12/16/13
Glimmer of Hope by Sarah M. Eden (Fiction) 12/28/13
Storm Shells by G.J. Walker-Smith (Young Adult Fiction-via iBooks) 12/30/13

Books Read in 2012

A Billion Reasons Why by Kristin Billerbeck (Inspirational Fiction)
Girl in Translation by Jean Kwok (Fiction)
Juliet: a Novel by Anne Fortier (Fiction)
Julie by Catherine Marshall (Inspirational Fiction)
The Walnut Tree (Inspirational Juvenile Fiction) 6/9/12
Edenbrooke by Julianne Donaldson (Fiction)
The Seventeen Second Miracle by Jason F. Wright (Fiction)
Persuasion: a Latter-day Tale by Rebecca H. Jamison (Inspirational Fiction)
The Hoboken Chicken Emergency by Daniel Pinkwater (Juvenile Fiction - audio) 6/27/12
The Wish by Gail Carson Levine (Juvenile Fiction) 6/28/12
Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson (Young Adult Fiction) 6/29/12
A Lost Lady by Willa Cather (Fiction) 7/6/12
A Walk to Remember by Nicholas Sparks (Fiction) 7/10/12
No Talking by Andrew Clements (Juvenile Fiction - audio)
Extra Credit by Andrew Clements (Juvenile Fiction)
The Janitor's Boy by Andrew Clements (Juvenile Fiction)
Out of My Mind by Sharon M. Draper (Juvenile Fiction)
Eggs by Jerry Spinelli (Juvenile Fiction - audio)
Midnight in Austenland by Shannon Hale (Fiction)
The Lucky One by Nicholas Sparks (Fiction)
Jane of Lantern Hill by L. M. Montgomery (Juvenile Fiction) 9/12
Dave At Night by Gail Carson Levine (Juvenile Fiction) 9/12
Between the Lines by Jodi Picoult (Young Adult Fiction - audio) 9/12
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (Young Adult Fiction) 9/12
Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins (Young Adult Fiction) 9/21/12
Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins (Young Adult Fiction) 9/25/12
Leaving Home, short pieces by Jodi Picoult (Fiction-audio) 9/27/12
Charlie St. Cloud by Ben Sherwood (Fiction) 10/6/12
The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton (Fiction) 10/24/12
A Countess Below Stairs by Eva Ibbotson (Young Adult Fiction) 10/27/12
The Iron Ring by Lloyd Alexander (11/10/12)
A Week in the Woods by Andrew Clements (Juvenile Fiction) 11/23/12
Princess Academy: Palace of Stone by Shannon Hale (Young Adult Fiction) 12/9/12

The Quiet Game

During our late lunch this afternoon the boys started playing "The Quiet Game" against each other. Ryan said the loser should drink a half cup of lemon juice. Then he went about trying to lose the game. That boy loves lemons. Daddy saw the silly cheating going on and made up a rule that the loser would have to drink a juice of his choice. We all watched as Brett mixed together olive juice, a dash or two of green Tabasco sauce, some BBQ sauce, a little vinaigrette, and a few squirts of lemon juice. What started out as a little fun has become serious business! The house has never been so quiet. I'm pretty sure that I wasn't part of the game to begin with, but you better believe that this trap door won't be the first to open!

Update: Our house was quiet for over half an hour. A very strange, almost uncomfortable quiet, considering that all four of us were in the house, wide awake. Ryan did the best of all of us, retreating to his room and playing by himself. Finally, the pressure was too much for him. Brett and I watched Ryan come into the kitchen, dip a spoon into the glass waiting on the table, consider the taste . . . and drink it up. Todd, not wanting to be left out, sampled it as well. But it was Ryan who started and finished drinking the two tablespoons of Dad Juice. He followed it up with a loud, "Yay!" that had me and Brett busting up. Far from being the loser in this game, I think Ryan beat us all.

[Ryan said the Dad Juice really wasn't that bad, except for the taste of the BBQ sauce.]

A Case of the Lazy Mom

I try not to be. But more times than I care to admit, I have to admit I am a lazy mom. Case in point: teaching your child how to tie his own shoes. What is the appropriate age for a child to learn how to tie his shoes? I think they should start learning in kindergarten and be proficient maybe by first grade. This was true for my youngest. However, it is only true because he was motivated to learn. He asked for the skill to be demonstrated, watched, practiced, and exerted his independence by doing it himself (even if we were running a little late and I was ready to jump in and just get it done myself). My oldest is finally learning to tie his shoes, and he is (I am embarrassed to say) in the the fourth grade.Yikes! How did I let this happen? The answer--I'm lazy, of course. It was far too easy to keep buying velcro shoes. We have talked about needing to work on this skill together for years. I thought I was committed to making it happen this summer. I had a plan--a plan which quickly fell apart the moment summer began. Right before school started I bought Todd a pair of tie-shoes. We agreed that this was it. It was time for him to learn how to tie his own shoes. And he has. Only he is not using the traditional method. Brett recently taught the whole family a new way to tie our shoes. It is supposed to be much more effective at staying tied. I agree that it seems to be a stronger knot. It is a little awkward, but I prefer using it to tie my own sneakers. So while I am lazy, apparently you can teach an old dog some new tricks.

A Visit With Brett in Maine

I'm still on vacation. I'm currently with my parents in Kittery, Maine. What a summer we have had! I feel very fortunate and hope that I can share some photos to document our trip.

I am thrilled that we were able to have such a nice visit with my husband. Brett, a.k.a. "The Dude" has hiked over 1,800 miles on the Appalachian Trail (2,180 miles from Springer Mountain in Georgia to Katahdin in Maine). He started from Springer Mountain five months ago. Now he has less than 300 miles to finish, which will take about three weeks. We picked him up and brought him back to my parents' house. He was about three hours away by car. Brett spent six days with the family resting and getting his gear back on track.

It was so good to see him, though I continued to be shocked by how much he has changed physically. I told him that it was reassuring that his voice didn't change, otherwise I may not have been able to recognize him. Eventually, I got used to the new him. It won't be nearly as strange being reunited with him when he finishes.

I wish that I were able to hike to the top of Katahdin to see Brett finish the trail, but I will be home by then. The boys will be starting school soon. We knew that if Brett took a week off to be with the family we would be gone by the time he finishes. But it was worth it to have the time together.

For a few photos of Brett on our visit, check out my blog with updates from Brett's A.T. adventure.
http://bretts-at-journal.blogspot.com/2012/07/sat-72112-fri-72712-kittery-me-family.html