Literary Baby Shower Gift

One of my sister's and my favorite gifts to give to babies and young children is books. At baby showers, especially, people seem to receive lots of clothes and toys - both of which are important, but the first won't last long because babies grow so fast and we prefer books to toys because we're both bookworms :). Recently, I visited my sister a few days before she was to attend a baby shower for a woman at her church and we put together the shower gift together.

First we went to the store and bought some classic baby books. Goodnight Moon and The Very Hungry Caterpillar were two of our personal favorites growing up.

Then we went to Marshall's and tried to find a basket that would look cute with all the books in it. We failed. But then we were walking down the aisles and I had the brilliant idea to buy this metal "S", which happens to be the baby's last initial, and stick it on top of the books, all tied up with a bow. Ashton loved it so we bought the letter. It was only $6, totally gorgeous, and about as decor-neutral as you can get with it's lovely dark silver finish.

Ashton had some ribbon at home that we used to tie the books and letter together and I think it turned out really cute!

I talked to my sister after the shower and she said her gift was a total hit. Success!!!

Two Days 'til Autumn!

It will officially be Fall on September 22nd, but I'm already in a very Autumnal mood. This is my very favorite season. Today I thought I'd write down a few things I'm enjoying right now. In no particular order:

1. Starbucks iced coffee with hazelnut syrup. Delicious! And perfect for the pleasantly warm NorCal transition from summer to fall.

2. Essie's Head Mistress nail polish. It looks dark pink here, but it's more of a deep, blue-red with pinkish undertones (kind of a dark cranberry). I love it! I really think it's the perfect shade of red for all year-round. But especially late summer/early fall, and I plan to wear it a lot during the holiday season.

3. Reading for fun. I recently started reading Intellectuals and Society by Thomas Sowell and so far it is excellent! I've ALSO been enjoying all the reading I've done for school so far, so I think I can count it as reading for fun.

4. Wine tasting! I went last Saturday in Lodi with some friends and it was a blast. Lodi, CA has a special Roadtrip Passport to Lodi event that runs from September 1-October 6 and it only costs $15 for the booklet which gives you access to numerous winery events and free tastings at 27 wineries (which works out to to about $0.55 per tasting!). I'm going again on the 29th with some gals from church and I'm sure it will be just as much fun as last Saturday was.

5. Foyle's War. I recently started watching this show on Netflix and it's really good (ok, the first 2 episodes are really good - I haven't watched the rest yet!). Something about Autumn just makes me want to make a cup of tea and delve into all things British.

Favorite Children's Books

As a former English major and future English teacher, I (Adri) love to give books as gifts to my friends' children. I feel like kids always have an abundance of toys, but good books can sometimes be hard to find and I feel that good books are vital to developing a love of reading in children. Here are a few of my and my siblings' favorite books from when we were little. Most of the books here are fairly unique, so the odds that a young one in your life already has one of these books are pretty slim and would be a safe bet for a gift, in my opinion.

We absolutely loved the Max & Ruby series. The stories and illustrations are cute and fun and the fact that they're board books makes them appropriate for even the youngest kids.

My younger brother couldn't get enough of this book when he was 3-7 years old. We went to the library at least once a week back then, and every other time, he would check out  Airport. Everyone in our family had it memorized because we read it so many times!

Pretzel is a great story about a really long dachshund and his search for love. This was one we read over and over...and over again.

Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel is another great story. It's been so long since I've read it, that I don't quite remember what it's about. But, I do know that we kids and our parents loved it.

"Keep Calm" Posters

I've never been a fan of the "Keep Calm and Carry On" poster trend, but ever since I saw one of my best friend's versions of the poster that reads "Lose Hope and Despair," I've been a huge fan of the parody versions! There are a lot of them for sale on Etsy, like this "Freak Out and Throw Stuff" one, for instance.

Anyways, this past weekend has been a rather lazy one for me since I've been recovering from a cold and this afternoon, while I was messing around on my computer, I came across this site that lets you create your own version of the poster. I had so much fun playing around with different versions! Here are a few of the ones I made (feel free to download and print for your personal use):

This translates to "Deeds not words," and is the motto of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy.

This is, of course, a paraphrase of Lizzy's acceptance of Mr. Darcy's second proposal in the 1995 BBC version of Pride and Prejudice.

"Love Conquers All" 

"God and Glory"

A key phrase from Captain Wentworth's letter to Anne in Persuasion.

This is a paraphrase of the motto of the Air Force ROTC's Arnold Air Society motto: "The warrior who cultivates his mind, polishes his arms."

This is for my brothers Nano and Jon who are headed to cycling nationals this week. I hope they do well but most importantly, stay safe!

An epic line from the epic movie, Ben-Hur.

I thought it could be cute for someone to use this poster trend to propose.

In Persuasion, there are a couple quotes that talk about Anne having to choose between duty & prudence and romance & risk in breaking off her engagement with Captain Wentworth and in refusing the proposal of Mr. Elliot. I think this is a dichotomy that many people can relate to.

North and South is easily one of my favorite British novels and BBC adaptations. This is a line from Mr. Thornton's ill-fated proposal.

First year of grad school. Done.

The title of this post was my Facebook status on 5/17/2012 and it felt so, so good to finally have all of my papers turned in. I'm not quite sure what grades I'll be getting - one paper was worth 50% of my grade, another was 40%, and the last was 20% - but by Thursday morning, I was simply glad to have everything "done enough" on time and turned in. All semester, and especially for the last three weeks of school, my brain was a mish-mash of thoughts revolving around the following terms and topics:

House of Mirth reputation Chaucer homeschoolers storytelling peer review Wharton gossip A Lost Lady social control language guile Manciple's Tale loss of voice writer's authority Legend of Good Women innocence Lily Bart caution interaction Cather self-promotion society Phebus Selden true women

And that's just the ones I can remember nearly a week later, a week I've spent putting all thoughts of school out of my head. I've spent most of this time at my parents', relaxing and trying to decompress from the most stressful year of my life. It's been nice to have some time to relax without feeling that I really should be starting on my next assignment.

During these past few days, I've gotten quite a bit of reading done and it's all been for fun. I think I've read a total of 4 books for fun in the past 3 years, but this week I've already finished all of The Hunger Games books - granted, they're easy books to fly through - and I've continued with Anna Karenina where I left off last summer. I'm still trying to get my bearings in that book again since there are so many characters and the narrative tends to move from one to another, so there are several characters I remember from last summer that I haven't encountered yet and when I do, I'm just hoping I remember the details from the first couple hundred pages of the book.

I've also started reading The Meaning of Everything which tells the story of how The Oxford English Dictionary was created. I'm not quite sure that I'll finish it, since so far, I'm not too keen on the style. But I'm going to stick with it a while longer, since the story sounds interesting and I would like to know more about that dictionary. Someday I hope to own a copy of it, but since it consists of 20 volumes and costs $1200, I'd be surprised if that ever happens. I just don't think that it will be a priority by the time I can afford it.

I have several more books on my list this summer, too. I plan to read a couple by P.G. Wodehouse because I absolutely loved A Damsel in Distress when I read it a few years ago. And I'm hoping to round out my experience by reading works from some authors I've never read, such as F. Scott Fitzgerald, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, and Thomas Hardy. Let me know if you have any suggestions for other authors or specific books by the authors I've mentioned!

Men Act, Women Appear

I thought I'd share an excerpt today from a book that I read last semester in one of my grad classes. First published in 1972, Ways of Seeing is a book made by John Berger and four collaborators, based on the BBC series with John Berger.

I'm sharing this passage here because it struck a chord with me when I read it and I've thought about it frequently since then. I'm currently reading some books in my American women writers class that, I think, could easily be analyzed using the arguments in this excerpt. I will probably write some more about that in the coming months.

Please note that this is not easy reading, but I think it is worthwhile reading. You may want to read it more than once. And please feel free to comment with your thoughts and reactions.

According to usage and conventions which are at last being questioned but have by no means been overcome, the social presence of a woman is different in kind from that of a man. A man's presence is dependent upon the promise of power which he embodies. If the promise is large and credible his presence is striking. If it is small or incredible, he is found to have little presence. The promised power may be moral, physical, temperamental, economic, social, sexual - but its object is always exterior to the man. A man's presence suggests what he is capable of doing to you or for you. His presence may be fabricated, in the sense that he pretends to be capable of what he is not. But the pretence is always towards a power which he exercises on others. 

By contrast, a woman's presence expresses her own attitude to herself, and defines what can and cannot be done to her. Her presence is manifest in her gestures, voices, opinions, expressions, clothes, chosen surroundings, taste - indeed there is nothing she can do which does not contribute to her presence. Presence for a woman is so intrinsic to her person that men tend to think of it as an almost physical emanation, a kind of heat or smell or aura.
To be born a woman has been to be born, within an allotted and confined space, into the keeping of men. The social presence of women has developed as a result of their ingenuity in living under such tutelage within such a limited space. But this has been at the cost of a woman's self being split into two. A woman must continually watch herself. She is almost continually accompanied by her own image of herself. Whilst she is walking across a room or whilst she is weeping at the death of her father, she can scarcely avoid envisaging herself walking or weeping. From earliest childhood she has been taught and persuaded to survey herself continually. 

And so she comes to consider the surveyor and the surveyed within her as the two constituent yet always distinct elements of her identity as a woman.
She has to survey everything she is and everything she does because how she appears to others, and ultimately how she appears to men, is of crucial importance for what is normally thought of as the success of her life. Her own sense of being in herself is supplanted by a sense of being appreciated as herself by another. 

Men survey women before treating them. Consequently how a woman appears to a man can determine how she will be treated. To acquire some control over this process, women must contain it and interiorize it. That part of a woman's self which is the surveyor treats the part which is the surveyed so as to demonstrate to others how her whole self would like to be treated. And this exemplary treatment of herself by herself constitutes her presence. Every woman's presence regulates what is and is not 'permissible' within her presence. Every one of her actions - whatever its direct purpose or motivation - is also read as an indication of how she would like to be treated. If a woman throws a glass on the floor, this is an example of how she treats her own emotions of anger and so of how she would wish it to be treated by others. If a man does the same, his action is only read as an expression of his anger. If a woman makes a good joke this is an example of how she treats the joker in herself and accordingly of how she as a joker-woman would like to be treated by others. Only a man can make a good joke for its own sake. 

One might simplify this by saying: men act and women appear. Men look at women. Women watch themselves being looked at. This determines not only most relations between men and women but also the relation of women to themselves. The surveyor of woman in herself is male: the surveyed female. Thus she turns herself into an object- and most particularly an object of vision: a sight.

 
 

Birthday Party Ideas: Sesame Street and The Very Hungry Caterpillar

My nephew is turning 2 in a little over a month, and this has me thinking about party themes :)

The little guy is obsessed with Cookie Monster - it's by far his favorite Sesame Street character. So I thought these cupcakes would be perfect! These make me smile every time I see them.

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So....why not keep the theme going and make it all about Sesame Street? This would be an easy game to play with the little kids - especially since toddlers are always trying to get in the trash anyway ;)

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(The blog this image is from has other great game ideas too)

Aren't these favor bags cute? They would be fun to make too! Then each kid could take home their favorite character.

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When I was a toddler I loved the Very Hungry Caterpillar. My nephew loves to read (including this book), so I thought he might like this theme too.

I thought these invites were super cute! Although it could be a bit time intensive to hand deliver all the invites :)

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Instead of a cake, these tiny cupcakes are kid-friendly and easy to make

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For appetizers, an assortment of fruits is healthy and delicious (as well as pretty low maintenance and easy to prepare)

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These cookies were too cute to pass up - and anyway, you can't only have cake at a party - the more sweets the better! These would be a bit more time intensive if you wanted to get the cool shading affect.

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Whatever the theme ends up being, I know it will be fun to get to celebrate with him - since it will only be a year or two more before he is too cool to have his Aunties and Uncles at his parties ;)

A Few of My Favorite Books Part 3

After a short hiatus, here is the third installment of my series on my favorite books (see the first two here and here).

A few lighter reads for the end of the summer :)

I know you are wondering what a book on history is doing on a light reading list. But it reads like a novel - full of intrigue and backstabbing, with the backdrop of some of the most gorgeous works of art the world has known.

Unfortunately I couldn't find a bigger picture for The Two Gentlemen of Verona. This comedy by Shakespeare is hilarious! The hubs and I read it together a few years ago and laughed at almost every page. We went and saw the play last summer, which was also uproariously funny. (would you believe this is the only Shakespeare play I've read? shh!!! Don't tell anyone - they might judge me ;)

A Few of my Favorite Books Part 2

Continuing from last week's post, here are some more books that have my seal of approval :)

For awhile I was really into the movie the Great Escape, and so of course as a die hard history buff I had to learn more about the original story. This is the book that tells it all! I was lucky enough to find it on ebay (the new copies I've seen on amazon are going for $40, yikes!). Some WWII books are mind-numbingly tedious, but not this one. I couldn't put it down. It was also kind of cool to learn all the differences between the movie and what really happened.

Oh, Alexander Dumas how I love all (with 2-3 exceptions) that you've written! This was my first introduction to his works, and I was hooked from the first chapter. The intrigue and diabolical lies followed by daring escape, sudden wealth and carefully planned revenge will both thrill and at times abhor you. If you have never read the unabridged version, get thee to a library! You'll thank me later - or perhaps you will curse me when it's 3am and you can't sleep because WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT?!?!?! :)

A Few of my Favorite Books

The other day I was reorganizing a few of the shelves of my bookcases, and I realized that I really do have a varied and eclectic taste in literature. If you were to come and glance through my books you would see everything from The Art of War to A History of the American People to Memoirs of a Geisha to The Count of Monte Cristo and everything in between. I thought it would be fun to share my favorite books from some of these various genres, helping you cull the good from the bad - or worse - boring. I'll highlight two books per week, so it doesn't become too much to wade through :)

Let's begin at the top of my bookcase with something thick and heavy:

I am a HUGE history buff. i frequently go to the library and peruse the history section, picking out a book based purely on if it fills a void in my knowledge (or in this case lack thereof). Knowing that about me, one of my professors gave this book to me as a high school graduation present. It's not the lightest read by any means, but after completing it I came away with a full understanding of 14th century Europe's intrigues, plagues, wars and the role the Catholic church played in it all. I would recommend it to anyone who would like to understand that era more thoroughly. I for one know that before reading this book I had only a shadowy knowledge of what occurred during this time period.

On the next shelf, you will find this gem:

I have a weakness for spy thrillers, so of course espionage was initially what drew me to this fast paced book. The $3 price tag at the used book store sealed the deal. I was pleasantly surprised at what an enjoyable read this was. It's always nice to find a nonfiction book that's as hard to put down as a novel :) And who would have thought a history of submarines would be so interesting?! But don't make my mistake - excited to learn more I went and checked out 4 more books on submarines. All were dismally dull. Stick with this one, it's a winner.

This book also gets bonus points because I've read it twice (I hardly ever read a book more than once). That's how good it was :)

Benjamin Franklin's Thirteen Virtues

I have been reading Benjamin Franklin's Autobiography (which is quite entertaining - I highly recommend it) and came across a section where he describes 13 virtues he tried to live by. Each week he would focus on a different one. He ordered them in a way that they would gradually build one on the other. I think this is a great idea, and am thinking about doing this over the next 13 weeks. I will let you all know how it goes :)

Here they are if you are interested in trying this too!
1. Temperance - Eat not to dullness; drink not to elevation.
The most difficult part for me will be limiting my coffee and sweets intake. I'm guessing this week will be great for my waistline ;)

2. Silence - Speak not but what may benefit others or yourself; avoid trifling conversation.
I'm going to have to think more about how to put this into practice. At least it will make me more aware of my topics of conversation.

3. Order - Let all your things have their place; let each part of your business have its time.
This is challenging in a small apartment, but I also firmly believe everything needs to have its place - including work!

4. Resolution - Resolve to perform what you ought; perform without fail what you resolve.
I might skip this one, or change it a bit to be more about fulfilling commitments and thinking carefully before making new ones.

5. Frugality - Make no expense but to do good to others or yourself; that is, waste nothing.
I can already tell that this one is going to be a challenge! We try to live a very frugal lifestyle, but I still find it tempting to splurge on a latte or one more top or an organizational item for the house. I need to think long term before spending money.

6. Industry - Lose no time; be always employed in something useful; cut off all unnecessary action.
This one is also going to be tough - I really enjoy unwinding with a few shows from netflix (to say nothing of the time I spend on facebook, blogs and pinterest). But I can see how this will help increase my productivity exponentially!

7. Sincerity - Use no hurtful deceit; think innocently and justly; and, if you speak, speak accordingly.

8. Justice - Wrong none by doing injuries or omitting the benefits that are your duty.

9. Moderation - Avoid extremes; forbear resenting injuries, so much as you think they deserve.
I like the part about not resenting injuries - it's very easy for me to get caught up in thinking about any slights from work or my personal life.

10. Cleanliness - Tolerate no uncleanliness in body, clothes, or habitation.

11. Tranquility - Be not disturbed at trifles or at accidents common or unavoidable.
Another good one - trying to keep calm when things beyond my control go wrong is a challenge for me.

12. Chastity
I don't need a week to practice this one - I'm always faithful to the Hubs :)

13. Humility - Imitate Jesus and Socrates.

This week will sum it up nicely :)

A Book by Emily Dickinson

He ate and drank the precious words,
His spirit grew robust;

He knew no more that he was poor,

Nor that his frame was dust.

He danced along the dingy days,

And this bequest of wings

Was but a book. What liberty

A loosened spirit brings!

Google phone Books app

image found here

Last week as I was about to fall asleep the Hubs came in to tell me he was going to update the OS on my Nexus S. I sleepily thanked him. On Saturday I was looking through my apps and discovered that an app entitled Books had appeared next to Angry Birds Rio (my occasional guilty pleasure). The Hubs informed me that it had automatically loaded when he updated my system. I have to say it has made me fall even more in love with my Droid! There are sooo many free books, it's like a candy store for the literary like me :) So far I have downloaded (all for free) A Tale of Two Cities (my all-time favorite Dickens novel), The Scarlet Pimpernel (a beloved action adventure tale), assorted poems by authors such as Frost and Hawthorne and some short stories by Mark Twain. I also downloaded Benjamin Franklin's autobiography. I am finding it to be even more entertaining than I originally expected. A favorite quote so far:

"I shall yield to the inclination, so natural to old men, of talking of themselves and their own actions and I shall indulge it without being tiresome to those who, from respect of my age, might conceive themselves obliged to listen to me, since they will be always free to read me or not."

I for one am reading with great pleasure :)