My Return Home

Leaving Romania for me wasn't that hard. My kids didn't know I was leaving and my schedule was a little hectic the last couple of weeks. So I think that made it easier when it was time for me to leave and I knew I was stopping in Holland to visit Rachel which was something for me to look forward too. 

I got to spend some extra time with my roommates before I left. We visited Peles and Bran Castle. It was pretty awesome and it was on my bucket list of things to do. 

While in Amsterdam with Rachel, I visited the Anne Frank House and got to spend some time with her family. Which was nice and relaxing transition on my way back.

I am not going to lie was a little disappointed with Anne Frank's house. It was just a whole bunch of quotes on the wall. My recommendation is to just read the book.

My transition back home has been a little rough. Not starting my job as soon as planned, not having a car, and lack of money. Has left me at home with not much to do these past few days/weeks except think about Romania and all my kids. But I promise to blog about the little things like new recipes, cute kids, and exciting new movies? And if I get any news on my kids in Romania I wont hesitate to inform you too. 

Hope your week is more exciting then mine!

The Revolution Lives

It's not a secret, I am a huge Hunger Games Fan. So I was so excited when my roommates agreed to see it in the theaters with me and not just any theater, the IMAX theater.

It was amazing movie, it reminded me of how much I loved the book and seeing it on the big screen was awesome but what made it even more great was seeing it here in Romania. Throughout the movie people would start cheering and clapping, bringing out the true revolutionist in many. For Romanians this wasn't just a movie this was something they could relate with. As Lavi said the other day, "The best gift Romanians ever got was when Nicolae Ceasusescu was killed on Christmas". Romanians know what it feels like to live with someone controlling their lives. 

I can't wait till the third movie comes out, it will be my goal to make it back to Romania to watch the final movie here. 

While you live, the revolution lives. 

We like reading... A LOT!

We also don't like smiling when Shannon is taking our picture. But we know she loves us anyway. 

P.s. If I randomly start quoting Dr. Seuss or the Berenstain Bears don't be surprised.

Borders of the Heart

This book was about romance and suspense. It was a pretty good choice to read while at the beach. 

Desperate to escape haunting memories, J. D.  travels from Nashville to Tucson and volunteers on an organic farm. The hardened landowner has one prevailing rule: If J. D. sees an "illegal," call the border patrol. But when an early morning ride along the fence line leads him to a beautiful young woman named Maria, near death in the desert, his heart pulls him in another direction. Longing to atone for the choices that drove him to Tucson, J. D. hides her and unleashes a chain of deadly events he could never have imagined. Soon they are running from a killer and fighting for their lives. As secrets of their pasts emerge, J. D. realizes that saving Maria may be the only way to save himself.

A very good book and it's by a christian author so you know it's gonna be clean. I would give this book a four star rating out of five. 

On a cold cold wet day!

I am sure it is beautiful bright and sunny back home. I know this because I checked the forecast :)

Unlike our forecast which is mostly rainy for the rest of the week. And on a rainy day like this there is nothing more perfect then to grab a cup a coffee and a couple of books. Josiah and I read the "Cat and the Hat" and a few Berenstain Bear books. But with having break this past week and Rachel being in Holland I have had a lot of down time. So I have got a lot of reading done myself. One of them being, "Fatherless Generation". 

This book was very good. It was recommended by my mom who had read that it had a really good review. This book is about our generation growing up without Father's and how it is affecting our family lives, society, and even our government. I would recommend this book to anyone working with kids. It helps us understand why our society is the way it is and how we can prevent it from getting worse. This book was also a really short read. I read it in less then a day. It was very interesting and had my attention the whole time. Have you read any good books lately? Let me know I wouldn't mind reading them myself. 

   

I Miss The Christmas Season Already. . .

I really do miss the Christmas season already. I miss the endless Christmas movies and music. I miss business of Christmas. Which my mother says what got me sick this week. I didn't know any one could feel so miserable in their life from being sick between the stomach ache, bright lights, dizziness, and being sick to my stomach. . .   I am skipping work today and am sick in bed. Since I can't play with all my new stuff or show it off by wearing it in public. I thought I would brag about it on my blog :) Bear with me, I am just a sick girl in bed, sad over the Christmas season.

So I think the thing I am most excited about are my movies. I asked for the first toy story and my grandma got me all three. I am so excited and can't wait to watch them. hehe. I will probably end up watching at least one of them with my preschooler's this week :)

My mom and sister got me Columbia jacket in pink of course because that is my favorite color. And both my grandma's got me scarves with shades of pink in them. So I will look very fashionable when I wear my new jacket and scarves out. 

I also got two books for Christmas. "Wonderland Creek" by Lynn Austin and "Sherlockian" by Graham Moore. I am so excited to read these books. Lynn Austin is my favorite author and I love any book or movie about Sherlock Holmes. 

My cousin made this for me off of Pinterest, isn't it so cute?!

These are only a few of  the awesome things I got like lace up boots, tights, fuzzy slippers, giant Tangled coloring book. . . the list is very long so I wont bored you with all of them. But I hope you guys had a great Christmas and got everything you were wishing for. 

The BookClub

I am proud to say I am in a a book club. With Andrea of course and few other friends and our first book series as a official book club is the hunger games. 

And a very book series to start out with. I have read them all within the first week. Yep, I am a book nerd.  But not only have I chosen to blog about my book club just to brag about it but I have blogged about it to tell you guys to read it because its a pretty good series and the first book is turning into a movie this March. I am so excited. So get your reading glasses on and start reading :)

Books I Have Read

Well the little three week break from blogging also definitely gave me some time to catch up on my reading and during that time I have read or am currently reading three really good books. The Help, Sarah's Key, and The Art Of Racing In The Rain.

The Help

The Help is a 2009 novel by American author Kathryn Stockett. The story is about African American maids working in white households in Jackson, Mississippi during the early 1960s. The novel is told from the point of view of three narrators: Aibileen Clark, a middle-aged African-American maid who has spent her life raising white children, and who has recently lost her only son; Minny Jackson, an African-American maid whose back-talk towards her employers results in her having to frequently change jobs, exacerbating her desperate need for work as well as her family's struggle with money; and Eugenia "Skeeter" Phelan, a young white woman and recent college graduate who, after moving back home, discovers that a maid that helped raise her since childhood has abruptly disappeared and her attempts to find her have been unsuccessful. This book was as good as the movie. It was so touching, sad, and funny. Everyone should read this book. 


Sarah's Key

De Rosnay's U.S. debut fictionalizes the 1942 Paris roundups and deportations, in which thousands of Jewish families were arrested, held at the Vélodrome d'Hiver outside the city, then transported to Auschwitz. Forty-five-year-old Julia Jarmond, American by birth, moved to Paris when she was 20 and is married to the arrogant, unfaithful Bertrand Tézac, with whom she has an 11-year-old daughter. Julia writes for an American magazine and her editor assigns her to cover the 60th anniversary of the Vél' d'Hiv' roundups. Julia soon learns that the apartment she and Bertrand plan to move into was acquired by Bertrand's family when its Jewish occupants were dispossessed and deported 60 years before. She resolves to find out what happened to the former occupants: Wladyslaw and Rywka Starzynski, parents of 10-year-old Sarah and four-year-old Michel. The more Julia discovers—especially about Sarah, the only member of the Starzynski family to survive—the more she uncovers about Bertrand's family, about France and, finally, herself. This book was so sad, I don't think I will be able to watch the movie but it definitely made me want to know more about France during World War II. 


The Art Of Racing In The Rain

If you've ever wondered what your dog is thinking, Stein's third novel offers an answer. Enzo is a lab terrier mix plucked from a farm outside Seattle to ride shotgun with race car driver Denny Swift as he pursues success on the track and off. Denny meets and marries Eve, has a daughter, Zoë, and risks his savings and his life to make it on the professional racing circuit. Enzo, frustrated by his inability to speak and his lack of opposable thumbs, watches Denny's old racing videos, coins koanlike aphorisms that apply to both driving and life, and hopes for the day when his life as a dog will be over and he can be reborn a man. When Denny hits an extended rough patch, Enzo remains his most steadfast if silent supporter. Enzo is a reliable companion and a likable enough narrator, though the string of Denny's bad luck stories strains believability. Much like Denny, however, Stein is able to salvage some dignity from the over-the-top drama. I have just started reading this book and it's surprisely hilarious. Has more foul language then I usually like in the books I read but the story is good. 


I hope these summaries and reviews have interested you guys in the books and maybe you will want to read them now too:) Information has come from amazon.com