Once upon a blog...

my words...my world

[mybooknerdlife]

Mother's Day 2015

I think this day becomes more meaningful every year. Maybe because every year I appreciate my Mom more and more. She has done so much for me in my 23 years that I can't even comprehend it all in one thought. As life goes on moments come back to me of how my Mom impacted me so deeply in certain areas of my life. Memories remind me how much she always loved me and all the effort she put in to make me happy. The important lessons she taught me even when it wasn't easy, sacrifices she made for my sake; it all becomes more clear with time. And every year I am more grateful. But this year.... This year I am blown away and completely undone by the measureless love of a Mother. I always knew my Mother loved me without end. But I never comprehended the depth of that love until my own daughter came into the picture. Even before her birth she is already changing my heart and molding me into a Mother. She changed the way I look at life, she changed the way I think, she inspires me to be my greatest self. The love I already feel for her isn't something someone could have foretold me. It wasn't until I heard her heart beat, pulsing with new life, and felt her move and grow inside me, that I began to understand a Mother's love. Along with this unfathomable love came an overwhelming sense of responsibility, a lot of fear and self doubt. Fortunately I have an amazing linage of mothers to look up to. They left an outstanding legacy of motherhood for me to follow. I am so proud to be a descendant of such a great line of mothers who were strong and great in every aspect of the word Mother. I just hope I can live up to the amazing example my Mother lived and continues to live with grace and dignity. Happy Mothers Day, Mom. And Thank you for.....everything.

[mybooknerdlife]

The writer who doesn’t write. A tortured soul. Plagued by millions of words that consume her. Begging to be emptied. Words that escape the lasso of her pen only to haunt her once more when the pen is put away. What’s the point of this suffering. She is full of words, overflowing. Yet always craving more. She collects words where ever she can find them. Hoarding them, tasting them, letting them bounce around in her brain. Even when she thinks she can contain no more, she continues to feast on words. Hoping that one day they might burst through her pen, creating something beautiful.

-S.R.Miller

[mybooknerdlife]

First page of @piercebrownie 's #GoldenSon!! To be released on Jan. 6! In 47 days!! #RedRisingTriology #number1fan #teamdarrow #teamBrownie #teampiercebrown #readthisbook #irecommendthisbook #bestbookoftheyear #bookaddict #readmorebooks #onceuponatime #legendarybook

[mybooknerdlife]

Growing Pains

  When you find out you're moving 1000+ miles away from the place you called home for 15 years you start looking at things differently. You drive down the same highway you've driven down a million times before and you soak in every tree, every knoll, every dirt road. Your brain starts taking mental pictures of every thing it sees through your eyes through out the day.  Nostalgia hits you like a hurricane with memories of the past decade and a half.  I've lived on McCormick St for 14 years. Im the girl who lived a pleasantly average life in a pleasantly average small town. I've always had the comfort of having my parents in arms reach when ever I needed them. And my faithful friends to go shopping with... Idie, Jennifer, and Janelle... what on earth will I do without you? Shopping unnecessarily will lose all its meaning! And how does one cope when you don't have the luxury of going to dads house just cuz when ever you get the urge? Saying goodbye to the only church family you ever knew is tough too. There really aren't words for everything I'm feeling these days. But I've decided to embrace it. It's exciting, in a scary, growing up way. When I got married things did change but  not like this. Only 3 digits of my address changed from that. So much of my life is based on McCormick St. Even the heat from the pavement gives me a homey feeling. LOL ...I suspect that years from now, even if the course of life never brings me back, I will still think fondly of McCormick St. There's so much Im going to miss: Charlene, the sweet old lady thats works in Dollar General, Miss Erdene from the library, Cemetery Rd and its host of memories, all the people from Logan County Library, my favorite book stores, the Library itself and the familiar favorite books, all of Bowling Green and its awesomeness! 

 All the sad partings aside..... I am excited to start this next chapter in life. I feel more like it's the next volume, and my life before this has been Vol. 1, The Early Years. Im excited to see what God has planned for us. All the new people, new places, and a new home. I really look forward to discovering new "book spots". ;)  (i have to confess, one of the first things I did when I found out we were moving was google for books stores near Delta :P) 

A huge plus will be living near my nephews. That will be delightful! With the nephews and the other family that lives there, I'm sure I won't die from loneliness. I'll just have to get used to missing a different set of people, the people who have been part of my every day life for 15 years (and my whole life). 

Life is beautiful. Im grateful for every day I had here in Ky and for all the lovely memories I have with the people here. And I will be grateful for every day God blesses me with in Colorado. 

P.S. I know I am not the first one to feel all this and experience all this. But this is the first time I've gone through this. And here I thought growing pains were something you experienced in your teens.... its kind of a life long thing huh? 

[mybooknerdlife]

Trying out Brandon Sanderson for the first time. I LOVED Legion! My only complaint is that it's a short novella. I wasn't done with Stephen Leeds and his vivid hallucinations! If The Way of Kings is as good as Legion then I am up for a delicious literary treat...a rather sizable one! Can't wait to find out! #mybooknerdlife #brandonsanderson #legion #thewayofkings #thestormlightarchive #ilovebooks #ilovereading #goodread #instabooks #booknerd #bookworm #bookstagram #readmorebooks #recommendthisbook #ilovethisbook

[mybooknerdlife]

Loved this children's novel by Mark Steensland! A fun spooky story with a moral about right and wrong. #mybooknerdlife #youngreader #kidsbook #ilovebooks #spookystories #youngandfunbooks #goodread #recommendthisbook #imagination #behindthebookcase #bookworld #bookworm #booknerd #ilovereading #readmorebooks

[mybooknerdlife]

#BookReview. #OfPoseidon by Anna Banks. I liked this book. I really enjoyed it. I can't say it wasn't well written, but I guess it just wasn't as masterfully written as what I'm used to reading. It was the type of writing that kept me thinking "I could have written this" all through the book. (Which was encouraging, since it's a published book ha!) This is a debut novel and I look forward to reading it's sequels, to watching the the author progress in her work. I loved the characters and their under the sea world, obviously. 💚💜💙 #ilovereading #mybooknerdlife #bookreview #bookaddict #booklove #library #bookworm #readmorebooks #novel #underthesea #ilovetheocean #mermaid #syrena #triton #poseidon #fairytales

[mybooknerdlife]

The thing about staying up late to finish a book is that you can't fall asleep from exhaustion at the end. Your mind is still lingering in the book. Digesting the message, reliving the adventure, saying goodbye to the characters, and taking mental pictures of the fictional world it's leaving behind; so that a part of it will always be a part of you. #goodread #carolineleavitt #picturesofyou #mybooknerdlife #bookaddict #booknerd #booklove #ilovebooks #bookworm #mylibrary 📚❤️📖

[mybooknerdlife]

Ah wow what an accomplishment it would be to read 100 #classics! But what are the odds you could enjoy all 100? Slim! There is one book on this list that I have read and LOVED, #ToKillAMockingbird. Then there are several I have started and quit because I just wasn't into them. Collecting them all ...now that I would enjoy! ❤️📚❤️📚💯 #mybooknerdlife #bookcollector #booklust #booknerdproblems #library

[mybooknerdlife]

"What you should have learned at school is that literature is fun and it's personal. Don't let anyone tell you how or what to enjoy." -Michael Powell There is no book on earth that is loved by ALL men. So don't be disappointed or think that you have some literary disability because you couldn't enjoy a classic or a book that came highly recommended by a friend. Books are meant to be fun, not torture!

Michael Powell and myself

[mybooknerdlife]

Why Do You Read?

      Ralph Waldo Emerson, a brilliant author, wrote an essay titled Circles. In this essay he says “Our moods do not believe in each other. Today I am full of thoughts and can write what I please. I see no reason why I should not have the same thought, the same power of expression, tomorrow. What I write, whilst I write it, seems the most natural thing in the world; but yesterday I saw a dreary vacuity in this direction in which I now see so much. In a month hence, I doubt not, I shall wonder who he was who wrote so many continuous pages.” I most definitely can relate to this! Hence the long gap between blog posts.

     In my absence I have been doing what I call “random reading” (reading a few different books without finishing them.) I guess you could call it literacy  A.D.D. :P Perhaps the cause of this A.D.D was that my other creative senses, such as smashbooking, were in high gear the past couple weeks. Our recent snow days have put me in the mood to clip, cut, and glue pictures and words into my journals. I love creating something beautiful out of random simple things. I have a few different books I like to “smash” things into. One is a 2014 journal into which I record the everyday adventures of my life. Another I fill with things that inspire me. Things I find beautiful or intriguing; such as a poem I read and want to remember. Or verses of scripture that have helped over the years. I like to take those inspiring words and craft them into something to pretty. I think its important to have little hobbies like reading(or you name it) something that gives you joy, that you can turn too no matter how stressful or “ugly” life can get. You know what they say, “It’s the small things in life that matter.”

        On Facebook one of the reading pages I follow asked the question, “Why do you read?” People had a lot of different answers and a popular one was ”to escape”. I understand that, sometimes life makes you want to escape into another world. But for me, that’s not the case. I read to broaden my world. I read to understand and know the thoughts of those who have lived before me. Perhaps the author still lives and if I never read his work, I would live along side him and never know what his heart had to say. I might miss out on ideas that could have enlightened me and made a difference. Writing is a way to share all the wonderful and impossible ideas that we harbor inside, fearing we may come across as crazy and insane. I love the line from Alice in Wonderland where the Hatter asks Alice if she thinks he’s crazy. She replies, “completely bonkers! But all the best people are!” I agree! :) Brilliant minds most often come across as bizarre. That’s why I read. Because every author deserves a chance to be read and understood! (My favorites are the eccentric ones who create impossibly beautiful worlds!)

#mybooknerdlife

[mybooknerdlife]

Happy World Book Day!! Be sure to celebrate by reading, to yourself or to a child or an elderly. #readmorebooks #feedtheimagination

[mybooknerdlife]

First sketch in months! I have too many hobbys. Can't ever stick to one 😝 I want to be a #mermaid when i grow up! 🐬 and my best friend will be a dolphin who loves to read. And together well scour the ocean for the "lost books".

[mybooknerdlife]

Ramblings of a word lover

Writing... Words... Sentences... Paragraphs... Poems... Essays... Blogs... Books... ...Words Words haunt me... I love them. I love how there are so many beautiful combination of words. So many famous words. "To be; or not to be?" Shakespeare said it; people remembered it. "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him, shall not perish but shall have everlasting life." Jesus said it, John recorded it, and the world was changed forever... Words.... the possibilities overwhelm me. When I stop and think about how many gazillion combinations of words have already been scripted, my mind staggers. And yet there is so much that is yet to be written. The very idea excites me to the core! I don't know why my mind thinks of these things, but these are the avenues my mind wanders through on a daily basis. That's it. That's why I feel the urge to go buy another stack of books when I already have an unread stack at home. I love to possess words. Sure I may not have read all the words in my personal library but I am comforted by their presence and take consolation in knowing that they're in reach if ever I need them. So yes, as long as there are books out there that I haven't read, I will feel the need to go find them. (If I sound greedy, I apologize, I dont feel greedy.) I don't always read the whole book. Sometimes I stand in front of my bookcase and pick out a few titles that I feel will satisfy my word cravings. Then I grab the first book and drink in a few lines from the author; maybe just a paragraph. Then I move on to the next one. One of the most satisfying ways to read is to be surrounded by stacks of books n read out of each of them for hours. So many beautiful words. When I read words I'm unfamiliar with, I look them up. I always write them down if the definition impresses me. Reading the dictionary and writing down words with their definition is a fun exercise for me. (I realize to most everyone else that sounds painfully boring.) And now to confess my word handicap. I can not write on demand. Words have to come to me on their own. Which is why sleep eludes me tonight and instead of being in bed at 11:44pm with my husband, I sit at my desk writing in my journal. There are times I so badly I wish I could write but after staring at a blank page for 15 minutes, the page gets left blank. Staring at a laptop screen is the biggest cause of writer's block for me. I write better on paper, in unique journals that inspire me with my favorite pen or pencil. (Hence the reason I'm always tempted to buy new writing utensils when I have 1,234 pens at home. *that number is an exaggeration*) I simply cannot force words. It almost seems like the words are in control, and I am merely the hand that holds the pen as words flow out. Words are wonderful. They can be a warm hug or a harsh threat that sends chills down your spine. The right combination can get you what ever you may need. When ever I need warm huggable words I read old letters written by my late grandmother, Orpha Emma. She had such a sweet and snuggly nature. Everyone felt warm and loved in her presence. If I need cheerful or reassuring words, I pull out newspaper articles written by the late Paul Hostetler, my grandfather. His words make you laugh and can give you a knowing that everything is okay. That was his nature. Both of them were writers and their words were always beautiful. It breaks my heart that Grandma's writing was interrupted by cancer and her book was never finished. Paul and Orpha, two inspiring souls I wish I could have known longer and introduced to my children. But their legacy of faith and love is something that will always stay with me. Words ... what would life be without words? Painfully void. P.s. im sorry if the lack of paragraph indentions makes the reading unpleasant but I cant fix it. I guess im technologically challenged. But it could also be because the laptop I use has an outdated browser and says that tumblr may not work properly. So i guess that makes so I dont have all the conveniences. Why do I not update it? well its not mine to update. I don't own a laptop... shocker huh? The sun still comes up in the morning and I survive without one constantly at my disposal :)

[mybooknerdlife]

This book! I am in awe. I absolutely love it when a book starts out mellow and it slowly seduces you. Without realizing it, you are a part of the story. At first I was having trouble getting used to the story being narrated by Death, rather than one of the characters. But the words and the feeling...

[mybooknerdlife]

The Book Thief

This book! I am in awe. I absolutely love it when a book starts out mellow and it slowly seduces you. Without realizing it, you are a part of the story. At first I was having trouble getting used to the story being narrated by Death, rather than one of the characters. But the words and the feeling of this story are very artistic; maybe that's what held me. Before I knew it, I was living the story and it was breaking my heart. It brings out the true meaning of the ironic expression "terribly beautiful". Because it really is both terrible and beautiful at the same time. Liesel lives through so much tragedy and poverty. Yet through it all she finds beauty and the love of life in the smallest things. I loved her ability to see things with her heart, and how she was content with so little. Her relationships frustrated me because of how distant she remained. She loved so deeply yet remained aloof. (which is the heart breaking part.) Her love of words and desperate need of books, which drove her to steal, is mostly likely why I so easily "became" her. In her defense, her thievery did not make her a criminal morally. But I will refrain from explaining any further; if you must know more, READ THE BOOK! ;) The book is full of rough characters but her mother would have to be my least favorite. Rudy, the charming and mischievous next door neighbor boy who silently loves Liesel, is definitely one of my favorites! I think the roughness of all the characters results from the hard times they live in under Hitler. Because of this, Liesel's story stands out even more beautifully. Liesel and her family commit a major crime by hiding Max, a running Jew, in their basement. For years he hides in the basement losing his sanity from not being able to see the outside world. But because of the endearing girl who lived upstairs, the confining life in the basement was worth it. The friendship between Max and Liesel is very touching. Both of them suffer from nightmares because of death and tragedy in their past. The similar suffering forms a strong bond between them, and they spend many nights in the basement, writing and reading for hours. When Max finally moves on he leaves behind a roughly handmade book for Liesel. This story of love, friendship, loyalty and gut wrenching war does not disappoint! Another intriguing thing about this book is that its main language is German. With my first language being a dialect of German, often the English translations were not necessary. My favorite kind of book is one with a story about books! Thank you, Markus Zusak, for this extraordinary book! ************************************** "I opened a book and in I strode. Now nobody can find me. I've left my chair, my house, my road, My town and my world behind me. I'm wearing the cloak, I've slipped on the ring, I've swallowed the magic potion. I've fought with the dragon, dined with the King; And swam in a bottomless ocean. I opened a book and made some friends . I shared their tears and laughter And followed their roads with its bumps and bends To the happily ever after. I finished my book and out I came. The cloak can no longer hide me. My chair and my house are just the same, But I have a book inside me." ~by Julia Donaldson

[mybooknerdlife]

Some people love cars, clothes, music, etc. etc. For me its books, words and all things related. Books are wonderful little portals to new worlds, cute center pieces, handy informants, and entertainment that never needs to be recharged. Its the silent, yet fully alive, companion that can accompany...