Summer Happenings & Readings

I have to begin this blog with the GREAT news….Two Sundays ago, Theresa Baptist Church in Roxboro, NC, voted Lee in as their new youth minister!!! We are so thankful to God for this opportunity. This provides Lee with a job, but not just any job-a job doing what he feels God has called him to do. This also provides us with a church family and a place to serve and worship Him.

The not so good news is that I still don’t have a job. It’s very discouraging because I’ve heard of a lot of the people who I graduated with or other new teachers that I know who have jobs. I’m very happy for all of these fellow teachers, but I need a job too! Please keep me in your prayers and pray that God will provide me a job also.

I’m very excited for this weekend. I will be spending several days in Panama City for my Bachelorette Weekend. Several of my friends will be spending the weekend with me and I can’t wait to hang out and have girl time one last time before getting married. I have been so blessed with such wonderful friends. Some of the friends going this weekend are “old friends” that I’ve know most of my life and others are “new friends” that have come into my life recently.

I can’t believe the wedding is getting so close! It’s about 3 and a half weeks away. I don’t feel ready. We have all of the major things taken care of. It just seems like there are so many little things and I feel like there are probably little things that I haven’t even thought of. It also feels like every time things are going along smoothly, something happens to throw a glitch in it. I know it’ll all work out in the end.

One of my absolute favorite things to do is read. I’ve always been an avid reader. When I went off to college, it got hard to find time to read, so I got to where I only really read during the summers. This summer I have already read several books. With the kids at the daycare having nap time, it provides me with plenty of reading time. I know I should read more nonfiction books, but I just love getting lost in the world of a fiction book. And even though a book is fiction, doesn’t mean you can’t learn something from it.

Here’s a little review of some of the books I’ve read so far this summer:

“It Only Takes a Moment” by Mary Jane Clark-
I got this book because I thought it was written by Mary Higgins Clark who is a really good suspense writer. It turned out that this was a different author, but it was still a suspenseful story. It’s about a host of a morning news show whose daughter and housekeeper are kidnapped. I enjoyed this book until the end. It kept you in suspense and moved along pretty rapidly introducing you to several “suspects.” Then when it got to the end, the resolution seemed kind of cheesy. It also never had any explanation for several of the characters who were “suspects” in the reader’s mind. The only purpose of including those characters was to throw us off. I felt like I’d wasted my time on this one.

“Best Friends Forever” by Jennifer Weiner
This is about two girls who grew up best friends until an event happened in high school that ended their friendship. It takes place after one of their class reunions where one of the girls commits a crime and turns to her long lost friend for help. Of course, there’s also a love story thrown in there. I enjoyed this book overall. This book is definitely a beach read because it has no other purpose besides enjoyment. It gives you a look into the characters lives and how events that you face as a child and as a teenager can affect your whole life. Overall, this was a good book if you’re simply looking to be entertained.

“Hex Hall” by Rachel Hawkins
Our librarian in Headland sent this book home with my mom for me to read because she thought I’d like it. It’s about a girl who is a witch and is sent to a school for witches, shapeshifters, and fairies who’ve misbehaved in the “human world,” so their punishment is being sent to this school. The main character is a misfit at the school and has trouble making friends and fitting in. There’s a mysterious creature going around killing or harming students and the main suspect is the main character’s roommate and only friend. I’ll admit, it took me a while to get into this book. The beginning was very cheesy. After I got into it, though, I enjoyed it. I was ready to know what happened next and looked to see about the second book in the series and found out that it doesn’t come out until March 2011!! This book is being compared to Harry Potter and Twilight. In my opinion, it doesn’t hold a candle to Harry Potter, but I’d probably put it on the same level as Twilight. Overall, I enjoyed this book and I’m ready to read the next book in the series and see what happens. Oh yea….and the author of this book is from Dothan, so that’s pretty cool.

“The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud” by Ben Sherwood
I got this book because I saw a trailer for the movie based on this book that is coming out later this summer. I enjoyed this book from the beginning. It’s a sad story about two brothers who are in a car wreck. The younger brother dies. The older brother lives his life as the overseer of a cemetery. He can see his dead brother at night and plays catch and hangs out with him every night. So his younger brother dictates his life until he meets a girl and she changes everything. This is a very well written book and I would definitely recommend it. It’s not your typical type of story. It took me no time at all to read it. I also want to see the movie, but like all movies made from books-it won’t be as good. 

If you read any good books this summer-I’d love to know about them. I’m always looking for something new to read.