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it's official...

fall is definitely here -- this little guy is my "official" sign!

dreaming of a little vacation in the city

My 10th wedding anniversary will be in March. After my first trip to San Francisco, I told Chris that that's where I'd like to go for our anniversary when #10 rolls around. Luckily, we actually got the chance to go, just he and I, this past summer. So that's one "want" marked off my list. Still, I would like to take a nice weekend together when March rolls around, and I've been eyeballing this place lately. Isn't it so amazing?

dwell nine twelve | a modern abode b&b

 
Isn't it absolutely gorgeous? I love the modern decor, I love the idea of having a place like this right in the middle of the city -- that mix of getaway and get-closer.

St. Louis is located just a few hours drive from us, too. We've been a time or two to see a concert at The Pageant with friends, though much of our time was spent in Granite City rather than in STL itself.

 

I know the middle of March isn't the ideal time to visit STL, but that can't be helped. So for those of you who've spent some time in the city, what cool things do we want to make sure we do while we're there?

(all images via the Dwell website)

have you seen this?

My friend Jennifer at Simple Scrapper has teamed up with Operation Write Home to provide digital scrappers an opportunity to use the hobby they love to bring a little cheer to our soldiers serving overseas. To find out more about this charitable challenge and to take the pledge, click here.

10 on Tuesday: the music edition

Here's a list of songs that are on constant repeat on my iPod these days. It's a random eclectic mix, but these are the songs I'm enjoying right now for a variety of reasons. Feel free to share your recent favorites with me, too, in the comments section below.

1. Magpie to the Morning, Neko Case -- I just love her voice, and this one just makes me want to sing along.

2. Be Here Now, Ray LaMontagne -- This song is just so fitting for this time of year, although I think it will be even more so in the winter.

3. Wake Up, Arcade Fire -- I keep listening to this as a reminder of Where the Wild Things Are. Love how the music progresses here.

4. Glass, Ingrid Michaelson -- I'm a sucker for a sad song, and this is easily one of my all-time favorites.

5. Rise Up with Fists!, Jenny Lewis -- Thanks to Pamela for introducing me to Jenny Lewis. Hers is another voice I'm in love with right now.

6. An Ocean and a Rock, Lisa Hannigan -- One that has grown on me. Quirky and interesting, and Hannigan's voice is just enchanting.

7. Magick, Ryan Adams -- This sounds like a Neil Young song to me, which reminds me of my dad.

8. Falling or Flying, Grace Potter and the Nocturnals  -- Another good one I came across; gorgeous voice.

9. The Fixer, Pearl Jam -- I'm a fan of anything Pearl Jam. 'Nuff said.

10.Wunderkind, Alanis Morissette -- Another one I keep coming back to. The girls enjoy it too.

October, stay a little longer, please?

Delicious autumn!  My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking the successive autumns.  ~George Eliot

 

 

 

 

photos: just a peek

I had a photo session on Wednesday afternoon, and I've got two more today. Lots of yummy photo goodness going on right now -- thought I would share a quick peek, since things are so busy. Back soon.

 

book review: Lighthousekeeping

taken from Goodreads:

 

"Lighthousekeeping tells the tale of Silver ("My mother called me Silver. I was born part precious metal, part pirate."), an orphaned girl who is taken in by blind Mr. Pew, the mysterious and miraculously old keeper of a lighthouse on the Scottish coast. Pew tells Silver stories of Babel Dark, a nineteenth-century clergyman. Dark lived two lives: a public one mired in darkness and deceit and a private one bathed in the light of passionate love. For Silver, Dark's life becomes a map through her own darkness, into her own story, and, finally, into love.

One of the most original and extraordinary writers of her generation, Jeanette Winterson has created a modern fable about the transformative power of storytelling."

I've read a few Winterson novels, but never fully enjoyed them because I always felt a little turned off by the voices of her characters -- something about them always bugged me in a quiet nagging sort of way. That's why I enjoyed this novel so much, I think -- because the narrative voice here carries the cadences of old fairy tales and stories spun near the fireside. There's no denying the lyrical beauty of Winterson's prose, and this short novel really creates a darkly magical mood, right from the beginning.

But it's not an easy read -- nothing that Winterson writes is ever an easy read. The prose is spare, symbolic, and requires thinking; it's not just something you skim over and "get" right away. She makes you work for the connections here. And that worked for me, right up until the main character has to move out of the lighthouse and get back to the real world. That transition was so jarring for me, and that's where I felt the story took a left turn and never really came back to how it started off. It lost some of the magic and got too postmodern and abstract for me to fully enjoy.

Overall, though, this was a lovely read, and it's encouraged me to tackle a few of the other Winterson novels I've had on my shelves for some time now.

book review: The Fetch

taken from Goodreads:

"A supernatural love story set in Imperial Russia.

"There's something not right about you," said Ana. She wasn't teasing him. She was concerned about what she detected behind his eyes. This made Calder's skin tingle. "You're not telling me something."
She was uncanny. Calder silently prayed she could not see how he had broken his Vows and upset her world and his own.
"You're lonely," she told him. "It must be hard to pretend all the time."
He felt a wave of sadness, sudden and deep.
"Don't be afraid," she told him. "Everyone has a secret. I'll keep yours."

Calder is a Fetch, a death escort, the first of his kind to step from Heaven back to Earth.
The first to fall in love with a mortal girl.

But when he climbs backward out of that Death Scene, into the chaos of the Russian Revolution, he tears a wound in the ghost realm where the spirits begin a revolution of their own."

I keep trying to find Whitcomb's first novel in bookstores, but it looks like I'm going to have to break down and order it online. That makes me nervous, as this book really misled me. I've heard beautiful beautiful things about A Certain Slant of Light, but then, I also heard great things about this book. The jacket flap and the back cover both led me to think that this would be a great read, but they were wrong. 

Obviously, I missed the fact that this was historical fiction, (though in my defense, there were only two words in the book that indicated this was so.) I don't mind reading historical fiction -- as long as I know that's what I'm picking up. But to pick up something that I expect to be more along the lines of modern YA fantasy and 30 pages in discover is historical fantasy just threw me off, and I never regained my balance. 

Whitcomb writes beautifully, but this story just goes nowhere. Calder's character is just so bland, and he lacks the force to really drive this story. (That seems to be a theme with novels I've read recently). For most of the story, things just drag along. In most cases, too, the choice of historical topic ties in with theme of the story, so that the two things support each other. But in this instance, the fact that this occurs during the Russian Revolution really has no impact on the story -- you could've substituted any number of historical events and it would've been the same story.

The sad thing with these issues is that I think they could've been prevented. The premise is fascinating, the writing is gorgeous -- but Whitcomb just wasn't able to find the right combination this time around.

book review: Ink Exchange

taken from Goodreads:

 

"Unbeknownst to mortals, a power struggle is unfolding in a world of shadows and danger. After centuries of stability, the balance among the Faery Courts has altered, and Irial, ruler of the Dark Court, is battling to hold his rebellious and newly vulnerable fey together. If he fails, bloodshed and brutality will follow.

Seventeen-year-old Leslie knows nothing of faeries or their intrigues. When she is attracted to an eerily beautiful tattoo of eyes and wings, all she knows is that she has to have it, convinced it is a tangible symbol of changes she desperately craves for her own life.

The tattoo does bring changes; not the kind Leslie has dreamed of, but sinister, compelling changes that are more than symbolic. Those changes will bind Leslie and Irial together, drawing Leslie deeper and deeper into the faery world, unable to resist its allures, and helpless to withstand its perils. . . ."

I'll be honest, I wasn't too crazy about Marr's first book, Wicked Lovely, and I'm afraid that many of the issues that I thought plagued the first novel are evident here, too. But there are *some* improvements. While the protagonist of the first book just sort of faded away into nothing by the end, showing no character development, no backbone, no *anything*, that doesn't happen here -- well, not quite as badly, anyway. Leslie is a stronger and more interesting character -- although she's much more damaged, as well, and that provides much of the momentum for the story -- but by the end, she's still not the character I wanted her to be, nor the character she showed promise of becoming.

I wouldn't really call this novel a sequel; it's more like a companion book. While it does follow after the events of the first novel, it tackles the Faery Courts from a different perspective. The writing is fine, and the book shows similarities to many other YA dark-fantasy novels that I've enjoyed, but in the end, the characters just didn't have what it takes to hold my attention.

photos: Muir Woods and Stinson Beach

Things are super-busy right now; it's been one of those weeks where all of my carefully scheduled plans have been turned topsy-turvy -- all of Cassidy's school events have been rescheduled, which throws the rest of our family schedule into chaos. It's a brilliantly executed dance on most days, with Chris in charge of Cami and me in charge of Cass (or vice versa), and pauses just long enough to touch base, trade information, and steal a kiss or two before twirling off to the next obligation. We're down to one car at the moment too, as the clutch on Chris's car no longer works. Ahhh...what's that about raining and pouring? ;)

So while I frantically work to make sure everyone is where they need to be, let me leave you with some relaxing images from our trip to San Francisco this summer. We took a day to visit Muir Woods and Stinson Beach, and I...well, I fell in love. I could call this place home. Oh yes.