What's On Your Nightstand - February

I plan to read:



From my January post I read:
Cousin Kate by Georgette Heyer (review)
Letter from New York: BBC Woman's Hour Broadcasts by Helene Hanff (review)
Love on the Line by Deanne Gist (review)
The Resolution for Women by Patricia Shirer (review)
Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll* (review)

I also read:
An Elephant in the Garden by Michael Morpurgo (review)
Gone West: A Daisy Dalrymple Mystery (Daisy Dalrymple Mysteries) by Carola Dunn (review)
The Blythes are Quoted by L.M. Montgomery (review)
The Children of the New Forest by Frederick Marryat* (review)
Family Grandstand by Carol Ryrie Brink (review)
Men of Iron by Howard Pyle*
The River Queen: A Water Wheel Novel by Gilbert Morris (review)
Educating the WholeHearted Child by Clay & Sally Clarkson (review)
The Organized Heart by Staci Eastin (review)
Who Gets the Drumstick? : a Story of a Widow and Widower Who Met, Fell in Love, Married and Lived Happily Ever After by Helen Beardsley (review)

I listened to:
Mrs. Pollifax and the Golden Triangle by Dorothy Gilman (review)

I am currently buddy reading with my son:
Farmer Boy (Little House) by Laura Ingalls Wilder

See what others have read over at 5 Minutes for Books.
*Read alouds

Teaser Tuesday

Teaser Tuesday is hosted by Should be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:
•Grab your current read
•Open to a random page
•Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
•BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
•Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!



Bath Tangle by Georgette Heyer

The start to the elopement was not altogether auspicious, for the bride was tardy, and the groom harassed. What had seemed to Gerard, after watching the first act of a romantic drama, a splendid scheme, he found, upon more sober reflection, to present several disagreeable aspects to his view. p. 348

The Homeschool Mother's Journal - February 20-24, 2012

Homemade Pizza!

In my life this week…
This week life, thankfully went back to normal. I even slept in a little later than usual a couple of mornings. By the time we came to the end of the week, my poor husband had come down with a nasty cough and just feeling bad. On Friday I decided to deal to attack potty training with Delani. After her experience with two UTIs, she has been very resistant to giving up diapers. She met with success, though by the evening she was DONE with sitting on the potty. She was begging for a diaper.

In our homeschool this week…
We are closing in on the end of Term 2 and Chantry and Destini are finished up Bard of Avon: The Story of William Shakespeare by Diane Stanley. Chantry also started cursive in Reason for Handwriting Transitions.

Caleb is plugging along quite nicely. He recently started a new literature selection,  Taste of Chaucer by Anne Malcomson and I can't say he is enjoying it, but he is persevering.

We also started a new Shakespeare play, The Merchant of Venice (SparkNotes No Fear Shakespeare).

Places we’re going and people we’re seeing…
Destini had piano lessons on Thursday. On Friday, Caleb went over to a friend's house for the afternoon. The rest of the kids and I went to Walmart.

My favorite thing this week was…
Delani actually using the potty!

What’s working/not working for us…
I am using First Language Lessons with Chantry and not really sure it is working.   I really like how poetry memorization is incorporated, but the rest of the lessons don't seem to be registering. I wish I could totally relax in Language Arts as suggested by Charlotte Mason, but I can't.

Questions/thoughts I have…
What to used after Mystery of History III? Caleb is really learning a lot from this and is almost finished.

Things I’m working on…
-Ambleside Online Year 3 and Year 8 Lite Term 2 Exam Questions
-The next term schedules

I’m reading…


See what my Reading Journal for this past week.
I’m cooking…
Homemade pizza--crust, sauce and all!, potato soup, & spaghetti
.
I’m praying for…
My husband to get better.

See what others are doing over at The Homeschool Chick.

Reading Journal - February 24: A Georgette Heyer Novel, Mrs. Pollifax & an YA Read

What I read this week:



Cousin Kate by Georgette Heyer

My thoughts:
I don't know if I've read a Georgette Heyer book quite like this one. It has a feel of a Gothic tale and is a much darker tale. Kate Malvern, a penniless orphan, goes to visit her Aunt Minerva at Staplewood. Though her aunt showers her with many wonderful things, Kate begins to realize that things aren't right at Staplewood. First is her uncle, Sir Timothy,  who lives in his own wing of the house, second is her cousin, Torquil who has excessive mood swings, and then there are these odd incidents that keep occurring. Thankfully Sir Timothy's nephew, Philip appears and slowly they unravel the mystery--and what a mystery!!

Cousin Kate starts off in Heyer's wonderful witty style and ends with murder, mayhem, and love. If you enjoy Heyer's novels this one needs to be added to your list.


Mrs. Pollifax and the Golden Triangle by Dorothy Gilman (audiobook)

My thoughts:
Mrs. Pollifax and her husband Cyrus head to Tiawan for a little vacation. At the last minute, Carstairs has a little courier job for her to do. Of course, her "little" job results in Cyrus being kidnapped and Mrs. Pollifax chasing him through the jungle to find him. There are lots of twists and turns and the bad guy is never who you expect. Excellently narrated by Barbara Rosenblat.



An Elephant in the Garden by Michael Morpurgo

My thoughts:
From the author of War Horse, this YA story is set at the end of World War II in Dresden tells the story of Marlene an elephant who is allowed to stay with Lizzie's family. After Dresden is bombed they evacuate with Marlene and meet up with Peter, a Canadian from the RAF. They slowly work their way to the Americans defying sickness and attempting to avoid attention.As with War Horse, it takes a while for the action to happen, but the ending is very touching and makes up for the slow beginning.

I am linking up over at: