Top Books of the Year

I had a goal this year to read 100 books. I didn't think that would be too far fetched as I read 92 books last year. But sadly I only got to 86 books this year, but I blame my first trimester of pregnancy, I was way too sick and not feeling good to read very much. Looking at my list of books this year there were only a few that stood out to me as being really great. I hope to rectify that situation next year. I hope next year is the year of amazing books! Here are my top five books that I read this last year.

The Help is one of those books that will stick with me forever, it was just that good. I didn't know too much about it except that it had been the top selling book for quite a bit of the year when I picked it up. Even if you don't think this is one that you'll enjoy, just pick it up and read it; it's that amazing! I put it akin to "To Kill a Mockingbird", it's just such an important read. I really can't gush enough about this book, seriously go pick it up now and read it, you won't regret it! To say that I'm a Riordan fan is an understatement and to say that I liked this book is a drastic understatement. This book was clever, witty and just plain fun. The Percy Jackson series included gods from Greek mythology and this one included the gods from Egyptian mythology. I am not well versed in Egyptian mythology but this book sure helps you know who the major players are. I couldn't read this book fast enough, I just couldn't get enough of the two main characters. I caught myself laughing out loud at 1 in the morning, probably annoying Joe. One of my favorite series ended this year (his last book came out on my birthday, I'm pretty sure he did it as a personal birthday present for me). Mull knows how to end a series. There was plenty of fighting, reconciliation and revelations throughout this magnificent end of a magnificent series. I recommend this series to so many people and I really haven't had anybody tell me they didn't like it. Go pick it up and start reading it with your family, it's so much fun! Although this book follows a lot of what I read, dystopian society with a very courageous young heroine, it was different enough for me to really love. I also think I have an odd fascination with midwives which is what this young girl is studying to be. Sometimes I find myself thinking of this book as I'm letting my mind wander. I'm extremely happy that she wrote a sequel to this book. I might get some flack for putting this on my top 5 list but I just think Collins stuck to who she is and finished the series the way you know stays true to her writing. It was dark, much darker than the other ones, but seriously with all they go through how can it not be that dark? She kills off people, makes people pretty miserable, but really I didn't expect much different. I also think she ended with some hope which is a little unlike her writing, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. I read this pretty slowly so I could savor everything and really take in the last of my favorite series. I thought she ended it perfectly and am completely and utterly happy with this final installment.

I am always looking for a good read so if you come across one you think I need to read, I would love to hear about it! Did you read any of these on the list? What did you think? I'm excited to see what the next year of books will entail. Happy reading!

Our Christmas in a few pictures

Christmas was very relaxing this year (it usually is). The kids had a great time opening presents and an even greater time playing with said gifts. Although the windows look dark in the pictures the sun was well up by the time they got up. This year Blake was really into Santa, so we had to have a few talks about Santa. One of our endless discussions was that Santa brings one present and fills your stocking with candy. He was convinced that all the presents under the tree were from Santa, um no, I did not go through the crowds just for Santa to get all the credit. In the end he was excited that Santa visited, ate his cookies, drank his soda and left him and Kalli a present. Blake with his loot. He was very diplomatic and played with all his toys equally. Joe got Blake the 1700+ mega blocks set that literally he worked on all day (he had three more to build at 11 that night that he just left for the next day). It was really fun shopping for Kalli this year because as long as it's girly or princess she'll love it! Her little chest of dress up clothes was a huge hit. She had already done four costume changes in a very short time. Her kitchen was a huge hit this year also. She loves playing in it. Oddly enough, her favorite part of playing in the kitchen is washing her hands. She also asks us to go wash our hands. I'm not quite sure where she gets this stuff. I should have gotten a picture at the beginning of this project. This was the result of the 1700+ mega blocks set. It was a construction set that he put together for Blake. At least his work has been appreciated, Blake loves the new set.

It was nice to spend a quiet relaxing day with the family enjoying being together and playing together. We hope you each had a very Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas with Love!

We wish you each a very Merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year!

Thanksgiving in Utah

This year we decided to spend Thanksgiving in Utah with Joe's family. We had a great time even though we all got sick. Here is a little of what happened.

Kalli and Blake loved the snow. Kalli only got to go out one day because Blake used the snow boots all the other days. I wish I had gotten a picture of Blake in the snow but nonetheless he loved it. He went out every day multiple times a day. His favorite snow companions were his cousins and his little buddy Maestro. We had a bunch of cousin time! Blake loved having the big kids to hang around. That little girl on the end talked him into dressing as a princess a couple times. I think she may have a future as a public leader =) Kalli sitting nicely ready to eat Thanksgiving dinner. Little turkey didn't eat any of her dinner though, stinker! Uncle Ryan doing the carving. There were 30 people all together which meant a lot of food! And oh was it yummy! The adults sitting and eating. I'm not sure when we will go out of town for Thanksgiving again but it was a fun occasion to be around family and enjoy each other's company.

Another one down....

We finally bit the dust and decided to get our painting done in our kitchen. It was a two day process. We did one big wall on a Saturday night and then the next week finished up all the other walls on a Friday night. We love it and it just makes it so much more homey!

Our next project to paint is the kids' rooms. I already know what I'm doing in the girls' room but Joe still needs to decide what to do in Blake's room. Hopefully that will be done sometime in January!

Woodworking man...

Awhile back I did a post on a beautiful picnic table that Joe built for our kids off of a great website called knockoffwood.com. Since then I have shown Joe a lot of projects I want him to work on. Because of this, Joe said he needed a work bench before he could complete any more projects. I agreed if that meant I got to have my projects completed. So here is his new workbench in our garage.

Beginning stages. Here is the finished product. He did a great job and now he can start on my projects. You can see Kalli's new bed in the making, her headboard and footboard. I am so excited for that project to be completed! It's going to look so great! Joe is doing such a great job! And because Joe had some extra wood I found a project for us both to work on. He cut the blocks and sanded them for me. I painted them, mod podged scrapbook paper and added vinyl I cut. I think it's so cute and it only cost us a few dollars! I love when we work together.

I can't wait to show you the finished product of Kalli's big girl bed. It's going to be awesome!

This year I took exactly 4 photos of my kids on Halloween... that's it. They all look identical to this one. Happy Halloween a couple days late from spiderman and a cute little puppy!