6 Months of Reading

So last time I posted about the books I've read I posted what I read in the last year. But I got a little hazy on all the details so I wanted to post at 6 months this time.

January 

      Book Club Read: "Edenbrooke" By: Julianne Donaldson

This book was a pretty good read. A fun little romance. I loved getting sucked into a romantic story again, but I sort of got pulled back out by reality and would get a little depressed while reading it.

     Personal Read:

I think I was trying to just finish "A Tale of Two Cities". And I started "Mother Had a Secret".

February

I took a break from reading in February and March because I was overwhelmed with my EMT Class.

But for the Book Club Read for this month was "The Giver" By Lois Lowry

I so highly recommend this book. It is so simple, and just so genius. At least to me anyway. It ranks high up on my favorites. I read it and couldn't stop talking about it. I made my husband read, and then anxiously awaited a gift giving moment to get my Dad a copy, so I could discuss it with him. LOVE this book!

March

     Book Club Book: "The Secret Life of Bees" By Susan Monk Kidd

This was a very enjoyable book that I read in another book club. I really enjoyed it then, but didn't read it this time around because of the EMT Class.

     Personal Read: "My Peace I Give Unto You" By: Doug Mendenhall

This book was pretty much life changing for me. I would totally recommend, but only if you feel like it is what you need, or something you're interested in. I know that sounds weird. I guess I would say, pray about it. The book is about a girl who had a near death experience. She miraculously survived and came back with a little less of a veil. Her experiences, I feel, have given me some great insight. I feel like the door to life has been opened just a little bit more. I'm not entirely sure how to feel about some of the things, but I take them and see if they make anything in this crazy world make more sense. They say not to judge or immediately dismiss the things said in this book. Instead take it, put it on a shelf and pull it down sometimes to see how you feel about. That's what I try to do. Near death experiences can be kind of tricky. So many things can be left to a persons interpretation. Then there is my interpretation of her interpretation. That's why I try to take the pieces of it and see if I feel like it rings true through the experiences I have had in my life. Either way, there are things in this book that I believe can help to bring people peace.

April

     Book Club Read: "Sophie's World" By: Jostein Gaardner

This was not a favorite, even amongst the group. There were some interesting things about it. I enjoyed getting a brief explanation of all the famous philosophers. But I really struggled to read the whole thing.

     Personal Read: "Mother Had a Secret" By: Tiffany Fletcher

I wasn't too sure about this book at certain points along the way, but when I go to the end I really enjoyed and appreciated what the author had shared. There were parts that were just so touching, and had so much truth. It was a good book!

May

     Book Club Read: "The Glass Castle" By: Jeanette Walls

This book is so incredibly well written. And the story is fascinating. It's hard to explain. You just have to read it, but it really is a really good read. The author has a great talent for writing. And seriously you will not believe her story. It's actually a memoir, and it is just amazing. I really enjoyed reading this, and I had a hard time putting it down.

     Personal Read: "In His Arms" By: Denise Mendenhall

So that book "My Peace I Give Unto You" was written by the father of the girl who had the near death experience. This book is written by the girl herself. She was sixteen years old when she wrote it, and has some disabilities from her stroke, and you can tell when you read it :). The writing is incredibly simple, but so much was said, and learned, in just one simple sentence. That's how I felt about it anyway. She has since looked back on this book, and said that she wished she had written things differently, and that some things she had misinterpreted. Just another one of those reads where if you feel like you want to read it keep in mind these are her interpretations of her experiences. I don't want to say, "You have to read this! It is Amazing!" But I really feel like it has helped me greatly in my life. I think reading it is just something everyone needs to decide for themselves. I read it, and then just took the information and used it as I observed the world around me. Parts were very touching. Parts I felt were very true. And parts I feel have given me a little more understanding even if I'm still not completely sure how to feel about it. I guess if anything it opens up your mind to looking at something from a different perspective. That perspective may not be complete truth. But just simply getting insight to that perspective, I think, has helped me find a little more peace and understanding.

June

Book Club Read: Tuesday's with Morrie

This was a great book. Full of great advice. Very touching. And it's a pretty easy read.

Personal Read:  A Tale of Two Cities

I finally finished A Tale of Two Cities. I really do love this story. I love Charles Dickens, and consider him my favorite author because I find his stories to be very moving, touching and inspiring. But his actual writing can be a hard pill to swallow. It took some effort but I did finally make it through this novel. His writing is very good, but sometimes over descriptive. But still I love his stories.

Happy Mother's Day

I hope everyone enjoyed their Mother's Day. Mine was pretty good. Craig and I woke up early and went looking for a van on Saturday, I used some student loan money to put together a down payment. Then I went to a cleaning appointment. I rushed to get to a bridal shower. Then headed to pick up the boys. The plan was to head out and get some gifts for all the mom's in our lives.

Sadly I ended up getting upset with my mom. We left and tried to get into any little shops we could to find some gifts. The only place open was Deseret Book so we were scrambling all over the place trying to find any little things that the moms and grandmas might like.

Then we went to dinner at Applebees. It was a fun night in the sense that we did fun things, but it wasn't a fun night in the sense that I didn't have much patience, and we all had had a very long day.

On Sunday I just could not stomach going to church. Sometimes its just hard to have these days that are focused on you-- my birthday is the same way. I don't know if it's because I feel like I have to put the plans into making it fun and relaxing and so there just doesn't seem to be a point. Or maybe its because if I do demand my day be about me getting a break it ends taking such effort that I end up frustrated and upset. Then I feel like a spoiled brat, and then I just feel like a horrible mom, who doesn't deserve a special day. In someways I don't know how to handle the attention when I actually get it. But I don't know how to handle it when I don't get it either. I want someone to give me permission to take these days and enjoy them, but it never feels like I really get that. Like everything else in life I just need to give it to myself.

Anyway. . .I ended up not going to church. I got really upset with Big H that morning, and turned into monster mom. Then I really felt like I didn't want to celebrate mother's day. Well, Craig decided to treat me to a picnic up in the canyon.

The boys gave me their gifts.

They kept saying, "It's your birthday. Happy Birthday Mom!"

And we also made some gifts for the other mothers in our lives too.

We came home so Craig could go to work and then I went over to my parents so I could visit with my Grandma's.

And the day ended up being OK. My boys sweet, and forgiving, spirits made it worth celebrating.

I really do hope that everyone had a great Mother's Day. I really believe that women are incredibly valuable and important in God's eyes. And I know that I should truly live my life knowing that I am of value, and never give into the idea that I am worth less then it really am. So I need to try and let these days of celebration be everything they can be-- even if it's hard to accept that they can't be all that they promise to be.

Happy Mothers Day :)

School, Work, Kids

I have way too many blogs, so I probably shouldn't be starting a new one. But I decided to devote my other blog specifically to updates on my kids. This blog will mostly be about what is going on with my life, and since the kids are my life they're will be stories about them here too.
 
The other day I stopped by my local fire station to ask some questions for a homework assignment for my EMT class. I scheduled a ride along for the next day and I love it. I felt so welcomed by the Paramedics that work there. Something I wasn't really expecting. But they were interested in what I my plans were after I got my EMT and such, and I just had a lot of fun.

My boys went with me the day before, and of course we had to take some pictures. My kids ask me to pull my camera out more than I do on my own. But even so I can hardly manage to get a good pic.

I was glad I went on the ride along because it reassured me that I really might be capable of entering the EMS world. I had gotten cold feet while taking my EMT class because I just felt completely lost, but being in the atmosphere really reset my confidence to keep moving forward in this career.

I'm hoping that there will be more post to come. I have a blog about being a mom, and the trials, stress and joy that brings. I may just use that as my outlet for updates for my life, but we'll see how it goes :).