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Simply Sara

Simply Sara by Hillary Manton Lodge is the novel I read most recently. It is the story of Sara, who decided to leave her Amish family to do something in the fashion world, which she could not do if she stayed Amish. It made me wonder why the Amish people are so hardline about keeping their people Amish and generally will not associate with the people who have chosen to leave. Losing a family member because they will not adhere to a group's standards seems harsh. I enjoyed the book, but liked her first novel Plain Jayne better.

perspective

I read a book yesterday, The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini. No, I wasn't home sick, but my evening was free...and I had even exercised and run errands after school. It was an well written story, but I don't know if I would recommend it. The story revolves around the life of Amir, a young Afghan. It sure does bring a unique perspective to read about people so different than me living a life I cannot quite imagine. It made me feel that people that don't read miss out because reading is a great way to broaden your perspective of life and the world. What do you think? And have you ever read The Kite Runner? I am rather certain the movie would be difficult to watch and have no plans to do so.

Dog Loves Books

Dog Loves Books by Louise Yates is a great picture book. If you have a child who loves books, or you love books, you will enjoy this story. Dog loves books so much he decides to open his own bookstore. He reads so much that he can recommend books to others when they want to know what to read. This is a brief story without a lot of words, so it is a read aloud that would work for preschool children and elementary aged children as well. Have you read any good children's books lately?

places I went this summer

This summer I was able to go to a half dozen places that I have never been before. They are...
1. Amana Colonies in Iowa
2. Herbert Hoover birthplace in West Branch, Iowa
3. Laura Ingalls Wilder place in Burr Oak, Iowa
4. Toronto, Canada
5. Niagara Falls
6. Progressive Field in Cleveland, Ohio to watch a Indians-Twins game

My favorite was Niagara Falls...we took a ride on the Maid of the Mist and got quite close to the waterfall, which was amazing. The waterfall doesn't seem that impressive until you get really close. But all the places were fun to visit and I would probably go back to all of them, except maybe the Laura Ingalls Wilder place in Iowa. It was smaller and less developed than some of the other Ingalls places I have been to.
Where did you go this summer?

boy quilt

I made this quilt last week for my newest nephew. My quilting fanatic sister quilted it for me, which made it possible for me to complete it in four days. I have never finished a quilt in such a short time, but deadlines (summer almost being over and the baby being here already) sure have a way of making me get things get done.