Baby Room :)

I don't know how people keep up with blogging! I haven't posted in FOREVER! But lots of you have been asking to see McKinley's room, so I figured this would be the best way to share :) 

 The dresser was Michael's Mom's when she was a little girl :)

 Shelves made out of rain gutters! Made by Michael

 We love this rug! It is so soft and thick! Overstock.com

 Bedskirt made by my amazing Grandma!

 Blanket made by Grandma also

 From Aunt Carey :)

Fancy Camera

I enrolled in a photography class last month....unfortunately I missed like half of my classes! :( I took this picture for one of my homework assignments, using a camera borrowed from a friend. I cannot wait until I can have a fancy camera of my own!! This is a photography of my Charles Dickens collection (mentioned in a previous post). Just thought I would share :)

Week 9 Blog Challenge: A Picture of Your Friends

I've definitely been slacking on my blog, especially my blog challenge! But here it is, Week 9. I don't have a picture of all of my friends in one photo, so I'm am uploading a few. Enjoy :)

Tobacco Road

I found a copy of this novel for $3 while antiquing in Warrenton, TX.  One thing that I love about reading antique books is the questions that I get asked. "What are you reading?", "Why are you reading such an old book?", etc. It gives me a chance to express my love for books, antiques, and the book list that I WILL finish :)

Tobacco Road by Erskine Caldwell, is my favorite book I've read from my list so far (I did love Gone With the Wind, don't get me wrong....but it was a liiiitle bit too long). This novel left me with a much deeper understanding of The Great Depression. It was a very comedic story, but at the same time it was extremely tragic. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who would like to read an old, straight to the point novel.

The Sound and the Fury....this one is going BACK on the list

I haven't updated in awhile, but I FINALLY finished The Sound and the Fury in October. Seriously, it was the hardest book I've ever read. The first part of the book is told from the point of view of a mentally disabled 30 year old. His thoughts were scattered everywhere, jumping back and forth between the present and the past. Punctuation was almost non existent. I decided to google the book to try and figure out if others had a hard time following as well, or if I have just been out of school too long and wasn't understanding it. I came across this article stating that The Sound and the Fury is the SECOND hardest peice of literature to read. The article says to "imagine a librarian with Alzheimer’s reading Tennessee Williams and you’re on your way to understanding “The Sound and the Fury". I felt much better after discovering that I am not alone in my comprehnsion of the novel. Unfortunately, when I discovered this site that lists the most difficult pieces of literature to read, I also discovered that several of my other books are on this list. Ugh. Why did I decide to read such hard novels??

My idea of switching between a book for pleasure and a book on my list is actually working out well. I've finished The Sound and the Fury, The Help, Tobacco Road (which is on my list, I'll post a blog about it later), and now I am reading Hunger Games (thank you Tracey!!). I've been really behind on blogging (with both my books and my blog challenge!). I blame it on Pinterest!! Maybe I should make it a New Year's resolution to blog more??

Book Sale :)

So...I may have a went a little book crazy at the book sale on Friday.  I found a set of Charles Dickens Works from 1875. The complete set includes 15 books but the set I found is missing one. I purchased them for $18.00. When I got home I googled them and found that this set, if complete, is worth over $1000. Needless to say, I will be on a mission to find that one book! I also found a set of of 6 Edgar Allan Poe Works. There is no publication date, but by the looks of them, I'm guessing somewhere around the early 1900s. My favorite purchase is a book called "So You're Going to Paris". Its basically a travel guide for short trips to Paris...published in 1929. Love it. The only problem with all of these books is that I'm completely out of places to put them...I think its time to build my dream library! :)

Slack-a-lackin'

Obviously I am completely behind on my book list........I am still on book #3 (The Sound and the Fury). This is definitely going to turn into a 2-3 year challenge haha. The past few months have been crazy with traveling, overcoming obstacles I never thought I would have to face (which reminds me, I have the most amazing friends, family, and husband that anyone could ask for. Without them, I could not have gotten through these months), starting a new job, and just living life. The Sound and the Fury was not giving me the distraction that I needed at the time, so I put it on hold for awhile and picked up some new books.

While on a beach trip, I read Safe Haven. It was an easy read and a great escape. I tried to pick up book #3 again but got distracted by some movies that came out that are based on books. A couple of my friends and I decided to watch Water for Elephants but I HAD to read the book first. I just can't bring myself to watch a movie that is based on a book, if I have not read the book yet. Then, One Day came out. Had to read that one too! However, I ended up not finishing in time, short by about 50 pages. For the first time ever, I thought the movie was better. And I'm actually glad that I didn't make it to the end of the book. Amazing movie. Bring tissues and wear waterproof mascara :)

Next books on my list:

• The Help
• The Hunger Games Trilogy
•  Never Let Me Go

I have told myself that I MUST finish The Sound and the Fury before I can start any of these. Off to go read, I have a lot of it to do :) I will try not to neglect my blog anymore!

~Namaste~