A day that began with a makeover from Mary Kay, a gallon of hairspray, my horse coming down with the flu and then learning I misspelled my own last name on a pageant application would end with the experience that altered the course of my life. On November 7th, 2003, I competed alongside seven other young women for the three places on the Clark County Fair Court. This was only the beginning. I’d meet my future husband that night, meet a woman who led me into other great opportunities and even managed to lock the keys in the truck. Now—after another queen title, undergrad, getting married, buying a house, getting a...
confessions: 2013 isn’t what I expected (so far)
January 1st began full of promise and hope—it was a beautiful day here in the Pacific Northwest. Sunshine anytime between October and April is considered a small miracle. I’d mapped out my goals for the year, re-launched this blog and even managed to tidy up the house. But as life tends to do, everything got tipped. Our main (and most reliable) truck broke down. Now, props to the AAA guy who managed the F350 crew-cab, long-bed dually truck with ease. As I followed behind the tow truck with my husband, it was easy to fall into despair. Great, more truck repairs. (If you know of my history with blowing up...
confessions: here we go
Yes, it’s tacky to start something on January 1st, just because it is the beginning of a new year. Every new day is an opportunity and every new day is just as good of an excuse. Alas, this worked out best for my personal calendar and vacation schedules. So call me tacky. 🙂 Heck, let’s throw in a cliched photo and call it good: This blog will be something different and new. This blog is me, unscripted and unfiltered. (Just kidding, there will be filters, I promise.) But let’s all confess: we’re never what we say we are. We’re never really what we portray online. We’re never what we really...
Top 10 Reads of 2012
To my everlasting shame, 2012 was probably the year I’ve read the least amount of books… ever. In 2013, I’ll hopefully turn that around! There are still hundreds of books to be read in my Kindle and on my bookshelves. But for the best of 2012, here are my top favs: In no particular order: Unending Devotion by Jody Hedlund – A daring and gripping take on human slavery during the 1800s. With Every Letter by Sarah Sundin – Anything by Sarah makes my 10 lists. Anything. Read her and see for yourself why. Love Finds You in Mackinac Island by Melanie Dobson – I’m a bit biased here,...
Book Review: Against the Tide
Book Description: Boston of 1891 is a city of hope and ambition, where mariners, merchants, and dreamers thrive in the cobblestone streets of America’s most historic city. Within the harbor of Boston’s naval shipyard, Lydia Pallas has become a trusted assistant to an Admiral in the U.S. Navy. Fluent in seven languages, she spends her days translating documents from all over the world. Lydia’s remarkable language skills bring her to the attention of Alexander Banebridge, a mysterious man on a quest to rid the world of the scourge of opium. Only Lydia has the rare combination of language skills and courage he needs to advance his cause. A man as...