100+ Reading Challenge - 2009

I will be participating in the 100+ Reading Challenge for 2009. I've never done anything like this, but I read a ridiculous amount of books, so I bet I could give it a genuine shot. For details, please visit http://j-kaye-book-blog.blogspot.com/2008/11/2009-100-reading-challenge.html.

The books I read from 1/1/2009 to 12/31/2009 will be listed in this post:

1. The Duchess and the Dragon - Jamie Carey
2. Blood Memory - Greg Iles
3. Never Let Me Go - Kazuo Ishiguro
4. The Sugar Camp Quilt - Jennifer Chiaverini
5. The Lightning Thief - Rick Riordan
6. The Longing - Beverly Lewis
7. The Time Travelers Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
8. Twilight - Kristen Heitzmann
9. The Book Thief - Markus Zusak
10. The Pattern - Jane Peart
11. Black Notice - Patricia Cornwell
12. I, Richard - Elizabeth George
13. The Road - Cormac McCarthy
14. Marley & Me - John Grogan
15. Outlander - Diana Gabaldon
16. The Mysterious Benedict Society - Trenton Lee Stewart
(I hate that this seems to be going so slowly, but you just wait....I'll be flying through books in no time when life is not so busy!)
17. The House of Thunder - Dean Koontz
18. Bachelor's Puzzle - Judith Pella
19. Sister's Choice - Judith Pella
20. Treasure Under Finny's Nose - Dana Mentink
21. The Deed of Paksenarrion (Sheepfarmer's Daughter) - Elizabeth Moon
22. A Rush of Wings - Kristen Heitzmann
23. The Still of Night - Kristen Heitzmann
24. 1st to Die - James Patterson
25. Light a Penny Candle - Maeve Binchy
26. The Winding Ways Quilt - Jennifer Chiaverini
27. My Sister's Keeper - Jodi Picoult
28. Black - Ted Dekker

I read many more books than this in 2009, but I quit posting one day (not even sure why!) I'm positive I didn't make 100, and I'm wondering if I even came close to 50. I'm not joining a challenge in 2010, but I will be tracking the books I read down the side of my blog so I can see how I do.

Stone Mountain, GA Trip

We had a wonderful time in Stone Mountain this weekend. When we first decided to go I was a little skeptical...after all, it's just a big rock. I kept wondering why it was considered so much fun. Well, it actually WAS fun. There is a park with all kinds of neat things to see and do. It was the first weekend of their Christmas festivities, so we got to see Polar Express in 4D (it snowed in the theatre!), go to some Christmas shows, see lots of cool lights, and watch a Christmas parade (which was short, which we very thankful for since we were freezing!) It was also the weekend of their Indian Pow Wow, so we saw some neat dancing and demonstrations of different skills. Below are just a few pictures of the gazillion I took.

I would be remiss not to mention Miss Katie's Sideboard Restaurant where we ate a couple of fabulous meals. That was some awesome pot roast! They bring a plate of fried onions, sweet potato fries, and fried pickles to every table, which were all wonderful. They also throw the rolls at you, but quite honestly I was too taken with all the fried food on the table to care much about that! The funniest part of our experience at Miss Katie's was the table we sat at for our second meal. It was rigged to turn slowly while you were eating. It turned so slowly that we had no clue it was happening. My in-laws were in on the joke, so they kept suspiciously snickering. I kept looking around to see what was going on (or about to go on) that had them so broken up. Meanwhile, I kept thinking, "Is John drinking my water? How did it get over there?" and I kept pulling my plate closer to me because it seemed to keep getting away. Did I mention how good that pot roast was? I was totally oblivious. There was even a snowman centerpiece on the table that I should have noticed was turning, but I had no clue. In my defense, John and Samuel didn't notice either!

Overall, we had a great time. If you've never been, you should consider it for a weekend of good family fun.

Me & My Boy

So, I need makeup on and Samuel desperately needs a haircut, but he wanted a new picture of us together.

Cuttin' a Rug...

Not sure if you can call it that if you're not actually dancing on carpet....hmm... Anyway, there was no specific event that lead to Samuel's outbreak of joyful dancing. Just an 8-year-old boy diggin' the sound of his flying feet on the laminate floor. Enjoy!

Anyone Want an Amish Friendship Bread Starter?

Amish Friendship Bread starters have been taking over our house lately. I finally decided to freeze one, throw two away, and keep the last one going because John and Samuel LOVE it. I'm due to bake the bread on Thursday and then I'll have, yes, four more starters...so....if anyone is in the mood for some bread baking, let me know.

Here's a pic from Samuel's soccer game on Saturday. I can't seem to get the timing right on when to press the button (I wanted him actually kicking the ball...), but it's a fairly good pic anyway. You can tell he intends to kick it! They lost again, but only 0-2. It hasn't been a great soccer season as far as winning games, but I think Samuel is having a good time.

Here is a picture from our dinner cruise on the Southern Belle in Chattanooga, TN. After I took this picture and we started to go back down for our dinner we discovered that it was far more scenic on the OTHER side of the boat. Oh well... Samuel, Matthew & Megan all seemed to have a good time. Samuel even learned the macarena. Bars and dance floors are really not an appropriate scene for my 8-year-old son, so I doubt we'll ever go again, but I'm glad we finally got the chance to go since I've always wanted to see what it was like.

This blog was edited on 10/29/2008 to remove blogging and pictures of something I gave to my secret sister at church. I originally posted it thinking "how on earth would she ever see that?" and lo and behold, now there is a chance. Slim, but still there. Oh well. In the event she reads this, she may realize who I am, but I would be surprised if she didn't already know anyway.

Writing the Bible

Crosswalk.com sends me a weekly email with interesting articles, movie reviews, etc... I always enjoy these emails and read most of the articles that they provide links for. Back a couple weeks ago, the first article in their email was called "Writing the Bible Can Be Good for Your Soul". After reading it, I decided to give it a try. They suggest a verse or a chapter, but my inner overachiever kicked in and I've started writing the book of Psalms in the NKJV. I've written the first five chapters in a pretty pink notebook. I can't say I've memorized the scriptures, but it sure does make you think about each and every word when you are writing them. And I end up re-reading the verses multiple times, if only to make sure I didn't miss a word or phrase. Here is the article:

http://www.crosswalk.com/spirituallife/11581909/

After I started this writing project, I saw an advertisement about the Zondervan "Bible Across America Tour". Zondervan is taking a bus across America and having the Bible (NIV version) hand-written out one verse at a time. I would love to be a part of it...they will be in Chattanooga on November 30th, so I'm going to try to be there.

http://www.bibleacrossamerica.com/home.php

Future Pastry Chef

OK, so these pictures are from last year...but had I taken pictures last night while Samuel was helping John make a cheesecake, they would have looked EXACTLY like this, so this isn't technically cheating. Today was "Career Day" at school for Samuel and he wore his apron and funky hat and also went wielding a spatula. I don't know for sure exactly when it was, but sometime between ages 4 and 5 Samuel decided he no longer wanted to be a bus driver (he was obsessed with buses), but that he wanted to make cakes for the rest of his life. Not a bad career choice I think. I watch "Ace of Cakes" and wonder if that could be Samuel one day? John and I dream of him making it big and us living off our boy one day.. ha ha. Samuel, of course, has decided I need to run the cash register at his pastry shop. Oh well....