Snuggle Up With A Good Book!!

Sink Reflections aka The Fly Lady by Marla Cilley

In her debut book, Cilley, a.k.a. "The FlyLady" to the thousands who log onto her FlyLady.net Web site, reaches into the everywoman's home to help make her housecleaning more fun and her life more organized. Beginning with "Shiny Sink 101," Cilley explains how a spotless kitchen sink can direct even the most discouraged housekeeper onto the path of well-ordered domesticity. Through several straightforward routines, including the 27 Fling Boogie (the cut-throat practice of quick junk disposal), the Five-Minute Room Rescue ("another step on the road to clutter recovery") and the Hot Spot Fire Drill (for an area that, like a forest fire, takes over your home), Cilley advises her "FlyBabies" on how to overcome clutter and CHAOS (Can't Have Anyone Over Syndrome). Filled with testimonials from online followers, the book aims to help readers establish manageable daily and weekly habits by incorporating spirituality and family into the program. Detailed and direct, this is a guidebook for the stay-at-home or working woman who wants to have it all, including her sanity. Marla Cilley

1022 Evergreen Place by:Debbie Macomber
Dear Reader,
Guess what? I'm falling in love! With Mack McAfee.
My baby daughter, Noelle, and I have been living next door to Mack since the spring. I'm still a little wary about our relationship, because I haven't always made good decisions when it comes to men. My baby's father, David Rhodes, is testament to that. I'm so worried he might sue for custody.
In the meantime, the World War II letters I found are a wonderful distraction. Both Mack and I are trying to learn what happened to the soldier who wrote them and the woman he loved.
Come by sometime for a glass of iced tea and I'll show you the letters. Plus I'll tell you the latest about Grace and Olivia, my brother Linc and his wife, Lori (who tied the knot about five minutes after they met!), and all our other mutual friends. Oh, and maybe Mack can join us….
Mary Jo Wyse
Debbie Macomber

Vanishing Acts by:Jodi Picoult
Vanishing Acts is about Delia, a woman who searches for missing people, but whose life has so far seemed idyllic. Then one day Delia has a memory that seems out of place with her life. Suddenly the missing person she is searching for is herself -- she must found out what truly happened in her past and who she is. Jodi Picoult

90 Minutes In Heaven by: Don Piper
90 Minutes in Heaven is the runaway bestseller about one man's experience with death and life. As Baptist minister Don Piper drove home from a conference, his car collided with a semi-truck that had crossed into his lane. Piper was pronounced dead at the scene. For the next 90 minutes, he experienced the glories of heaven, where he was greeted by those who had influenced him spiritually, and he experienced true peace. Back on earth, a passing minister who had also been at the conference felt led to pray for the accident victim even though he was told Piper was dead. Miraculously, Piper came back to life, and the pleasure of heaven was replaced by a long and painful recovery. For years Don Piper kept his heavenly experience to himself. Finally, friends and family convinced him to share his remarkable story. An inspiring and encouraging account, 90 Minutes in Heaven continues to touch and comfort millions of people around the world as it offers a glimpse of inexpressible heavenly bliss. Don Piper

More Summer Reading

The girls have really enjoyed the summer reading program!
Emily & Kayleigh have both received ice cream from Dairy Queen & are currently working on their next prize which will be Girl Scout Cookies!
Go Girls Go!!

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I have read some really great books too! I also finished the Navy Series!!


In this contemporary tale of love and friendship, Jodi Picoult brings to life a familiar world, and in a single terrifying moment awakens every parent's worse fear: We think we know our children… but do we ever really know them at all?

For eighteen years the Hartes and the Golds have lived next door to each other, sharing everything from Chinese food to chicken pox to carpool duty-- they've grown so close it seems they have always been a part of each other's lives. Parents and children alike have been best friends, so it's no surprise that in high school Chris and Emily's friendship blossoms into something more. They've been soul mates since they were born.

So when midnight calls from the hospital come in, no one is ready for the appalling truth: Emily is dead at seventeen from a gunshot wound to the head. There's a single unspent bullet in the gun that Chris took from his father's cabinet-- a bullet that Chris tells police he intended for himself. But a local detective has doubts about the suicide pact that Chris has described.


The profound questions faced by the characters in this heart-rending novel are those we can all relate to: How well do we ever really know our children, our friends? What if…? As its chapters unfold, alternating between an idyllic past and an unthinkable present, The Pact paints an indelible portrait of families in anguish… culminating in an astonishingly suspenseful courtroom drama as Chris finds himself on trial for murder.


With this riveting psychological drama, Jodi Picoult explores the dynamics of intimate relationships under stress-- from the seemingly inexplicable mind of a teenager to the bonds of friendship and marriage. Few writers have such a gift for evoking everyday life coupled with the ability to create a level of dramatic tension that will keep you up reading late into the night. The Pact is storytelling at its best: wonderfully observed, deeply moving, and utterly impossible to put down.


Be prepared to meet three unforgettable women:
Twenty-two-year-old Skeeter has just returned home after graduating from Ole Miss. She may have a degree, but it is 1962, Mississippi, and her mother will not be happy till Skeeter has a ring on her finger. Skeeter would normally find solace with her beloved maid Constantine, the woman who raised her, but Constantine has disappeared and no one will tell Skeeter where she has gone.

Aibileen is a black maid, a wise, regal woman raising her seventeenth white child. Something has shifted inside her after the loss of her own son, who died while his bosses looked the other way. She is devoted to the little girl she looks after, though she knows both their hearts may be broken.

Minny, Aibileen's best friend, is short, fat, and perhaps the sassiest woman in Mississippi. She can cook like nobody's business, but she can't mind her tongue, so she's lost yet another job. Minny finally finds a position working for someone too new to town...

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Finished the Navy Series!!
#5 Navy Baby<;/strong>

It was a night she'd never forget. . .two strangers coming together in one breathless moment of intense need and heart-stopping desire. But now sheltered Hannah Raymond is expecting the child of rugged naval seaman Riley Murdock--a man she never thought she'd see again. . .

Riley has been searching for the elusive Hannah for months--ever since that night of searing passion left him shaken to the very depths of his soul. Now fate has finally reunited them. Determined to give his child the chance he'd never had, Riley marries Hannah.

They had created he miracle of life together, but would that be enough to spark the miracle of love?

#6 Navy Husband<;/strong>

When Ali, a Navy nurse, is sent on assignment she leaves her daughter in her sister's care. When she asks a friend of her late husband, Adam Kennedy, to look in on them the Lieutenant Commander meets his match (and his matchmaker!).

Summer Reading

Since the girls have been out of school, we have spent a lot of time at the library! I have been very impressed with the little library here in Holliday!

The girls have signed up for the summer reading program. They read so many books and earn prizes. I have really enjoyed spending time with them & watching the books that they select. Emily has picked a few that have been to hard for her, but I help her & Nattie likes to sit & listen too.

Even though I don't earn any prizes, I have really found some good books to read too!


The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner is the riveting story of Bree Tanner, a newborn vampire
first introduced in Eclipse, and the darker side of the world she inhabits. The novella chronicles the newborn vampire army’s journey as they prepare to close in on Bella Swan and the Cullens, following their encounter to its unforgettable conclusion.


On the anniversary of his beloved wife’s death, Dr. Michael Everett receives a letter Hannah had written him. In it she reminds him of her love and makes one final request. An impossible request. I want you to marry again. She tells him he shouldn’t spend the years he has left grieving her. And to that end she’s chosen three women she asks him to consider. During the months that follow, he spends time with Winter, Leanne, and Macy, learning more about each of them . . . and about himself. Learning what Hannah already knew. He’s a man who needs the completeness only love can offer. And Hannah’s list leads him to the woman who can help him find it.


It is the story of a teenage girl who, after being raped and murdered, watches from heaven as her family and friends go on with their lives, while she herself comes to terms with her own death.


When a diverse group of women get together to chat via e-mail, they have no idea how God's going to change their lives! As they write, their conversations get "too hot," and they decide to meet in person. Ruffled feathers are soothed, and even super-Christian Jodi Baxter learns that we're all sinners, saved by grace!

Navy Brat #3 & Navy Woman #4

The Navy Brat was wonderful! The whole time I was reading it, I pictured it as a movie!

I had actually finished the book a few weeks ago, but never got a chance to post it.

The navy daughter would never be a navy wife!

Erin MacNamera had one hard and fast rule: Never, never, never fall for a navy man. But, from the heart-stopping moment her eyes met Lieutenant Brandon Davis's across a crowded lounge, Erin knew life would never be the same. Sexy, tender and strong, Brandon was all she'd ever dreamed of in a man, but he was also navy- and as a navy brat from way back, she knew better than to give her heart to a seafaring man.

When an old friend asked Brandon to look up his eldest daughter, he never dreamed Erin would turn out to be a stubborn beauty who resisted him at every turn. Couldn't she see that they were meant for each other? When Brand was called to duty, it gave him the perfect opportunity to teach his sweet Irish rose a thing or two about navy men- and love...

Navy Woman, what can I say!?! This book had a whole lot of lovin'!! It too was really good!

Could she choose between the Navy and love?

Busy attorney Catherine Fredrickson loved her job at a submarine base in Washington, but her new boss, Royce Nyland, had her spirits sinking fast. The icy widower was distant, demanding... and incredibly attractive. And though he kept her at arm's Lent, he aroused a stormy passion in Catherine that was impossible to deny.

Already struggling to keep afloat while caring for his energetic daughter, Royce didn't need any more distractions- especially not in the form of an appealing woman! Though the laws of the sea deemed naval fraternizing strictly taboo, how long could Royce resist romance when just the sight of Catherine capsized his vulnerable heart?

I have already started # 5, Navy Baby ! So far, so good!

Navy Blues #2

Oh My Goodness!! Since the 1st Navy book was soooo good, I couldn't help but race through the 2nd one!! It revolved around the same characters as Navy Wife, & expanded on two other characters.

This book was Navy Blues. Here is a little about the story:

Despite her ex-husband's bullheadedness, Carol Kyle knew he'd be the perfect man to father the child she so desperately wanted. Yet she also realized that the strong, honorable man would never allow his child to be raised without a father. So Carol needed to plot, to plan, to maneuver, to seduce Steve into her bed for one last time...

And then once more.

Still, the passion when they were together was never the problem- it was the absences that tore them apart. Had they grown enough to chance trying again- especially when Carol's plan seemed to work.

I am looking forward to starting #3! It is a whole new set of characters!! Let the reading begin!

Navy Wife #1

The 1st book I read by Debbie Macomber, was given to me by a dear friend, Leigh Giglio. Leigh gave me the 1st three books of a series titled Blossom Street. From then, I have gone on to currently own over 75 Debbie Macomber books. Some of them have been very hard to find! So I am very proud of my collection! Thank you Leigh for getting me started!

I have just completed the 1st of 6 in the Debbie Macomber Navy Series.

Navy Wife, was wonderful!!!

Here is a little piece of the story:

Impulsive, wounded, vulnerable, Lindy Kyle was unprepared for a roommate like Rush Callaghan. Strong, sensitive and sexy, the temporarily dry-docked naval officer was everything she'd ever dreamed of in a man... in a husband.

But Rush placed duty to his country above all else. Though he and Lindy were swept away on a tide of passion, he was called back to sea. They say absence makes the heart grow fonder- but will their marriage survive their partings?

I have always been intrigued by the lives of military families. My Mom comes from a military family. Her father served in the Air Force until he died. When my Nanny remarried to my PaPa, he too was in the Air Force until he retired. I have a few friends who are military & my stepsister Missy is also military. I find their lives very interesting, the places they travel & the people they meet. I think it takes a special person to live this kind of life!