The Joys of Having a Little Sister

Kristin: "Hello, is (insert girl's name) there?"

..........

Kristin: "This is Austin's sister."

..........

Kristin: "Do you know who Austin is?"

..........

Kristin: "Austin (insert last name here)"

..........

Kristin: "Well, he has a huge crush on you!"

.........

Kristin: "Yeah, and he has a really red face right now!"

........

Kristin: "Do you like him?"

.........

Kristin: "Oh, okay."

........lots of giggling..........

Kristin: "'Kay, bye!"

Ramona & Peter's Wedding

Lost and Found by Carolyn Parkhurst

Lost and Found is a novel about reality t.v. After her teenage daughter hides her pregnancy, Laura decides that spending time together as a team on the reality show, Lost and Found, is exactly what she and her daughter, Cassie, need to reconnect. They join many other teams from around the country and travel throughout the world, solving riddles and searching for items on the massive scavenger hunt.

The idea behind this book has a lot of potential and the characters on the reality show had great back stories and interesting life situations, but the story of their experience on the reality show did not meet my expectations. Each of the pairs on the world-wide scavenger hunt had been chosen by the producers of the show for the potential conflict and interesting relational dynamics that they would offer the show. It was this that propelled the story forward. But, I found myself wanting something more from the characters (more individuality that would differentiate one from the other) than just their interesting circumstances, and the personalities were simply too weak to deliver.

The book was a quick and easy read- perfect for summer. But, if you have a long list of books-to-read, don't add this one to it. There are more worthwhile books to read than this one.

Lovely Day

My friend from college, Gail, is visiting for Ramona's wedding this week and I was lucky enough to have her all to myself for most of the day today! This morning, after sleeping in, Gail and I spent the morning doing some reading at Boulder Street Coffee Roasters. (I have major reading to do as I prepare for the upcoming school year. I'm sure I'll be writing more about that later!) Then, we walked through lovely downtown Colorado Springs, stopping in one of my favorite stores, Terra Verde, where I purchased a lovely Christmas present for a lucky recipient who will remain unnamed! After lunch at Bruegger's Bagels, we headed to the thrift store and stocked up on reading material. While Perry and Becca were visiting, I was introduced to this fantastic new website titled Paperback Swap. Members of this site "swap" their paperbacks for only the cost of postage. To join you must have at least 10 books to give away. Because I am not ready to part with any of the books I currently own (ridiculous as that may be), I had to go to the thrift store to get the 10 books I needed to be willing to swap. I bought 21 books. Even when I'm giving them away, I just can't stop.

Finally, we headed to the Olympic Training Center. It's embarrassing to admit that I have lived in Colorado Springs for six years and today was my first time visiting this popular sight. At least I timed my visit well. With the Olympics starting in just 11 days, there was a buzz in the air despite the fact that many of the athletes have left for Beijing already. It was inspirational to see where the athletes train (and live) and to hear about all the hard work they have done for the past 4 years to prepare for these games.

It was also a lovely day to catch up with an old friend!

Ramona & Peter's Shower

Matt & Rebecca's Wedding