More Valentine's Day Printables!

The last post was full of pink, and this one is full of red. Today I am printable-ing three great quotes:

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"I don't want sunbursts and marble halls. I just want YOU." - L.M. Montgomery, from Anne of the Island

If you have any question on the love I have for the Anne series, see the Anne of Green Gables post a few weeks back.

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"Whatever our souls are made of, His and Mine are the same"- Emily Bronte from Wuthering Heights

That whole Catherine and Heathcliff dynamic always seemed strange and unhealthy to me as a youth. But as I have read Wuthering Heights over in adulthood, I have gained a new appreciation for this Bronte sister. (I always loved Charlotte...)


And last but not least, a "fake" Pride and Prejudice quote in two styles. Let me just say that if Jane Austen has heard this quote, I think she approves of it. It is the genius work of Deborah Moggach, the author of the most recent P&P screenplay.

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Okay, couldn't resist a little more pink...

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Oh, Mister Darcy, I love you too. We all love you. :)

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Guest Post: Book Review of "French Women Don't Get Fat"

Our amazing and uber-talented little sister (who is waif-thin, by the way) offered to do a guest post on "French Women Don't Get Fat." And considering that she certainly hasn't gotten fat, despite having a baby this year (I know, curses!), I think she might have the authority to speak on this one. 

But I also have a sneaking suspicion it may have something to do with the behavior exhibited above... Well, without further ado, here's our awesome sis, Katie:


I love food, and I mean LOVE food. To give you an idea, when I was dating my husband J, he had a heart to heart with my sister's husband. My brother-in-law, who had been married to my sister for quite sometime, and was more than well acquainted with the four girls of the family, had one piece of advice for J: "All you need to do to keep the girls in this family happy is feed them."  I laughed when he told me this. We sound like puppies. Just make sure not to miss mealtime and all will be well with us. Sadly, this is true.  I was lucky enough to marry someone who loves food as much as I do. Some of our greatest travel memories are the different restaurants we have stumbled upon all over the world.

(Hawaii)

When a friend recommended French Women Don't Get Fat by Mireille Guiliano as a good read, I was skeptical. I do not diet. I never have. With the exception of giving up dairy while nursing, and an occasional abstinence from sugar or meat during Lent, just for the challenge, I have never bought into the idea that diets are worth it. Why keep yourself from things you love? She assured me it was not a diet book.  And so, in my reluctance, I began to read. It turns out this was no diet book at all, and was in fact catered to me who had refused to diet all along.

Mireille writes about her experience moving to the states from her home in France as an exchange student and returning home fat. This book wittily describes what it is about American culture that makes us fat. Upon her return to France, her family quickly hired a doctor to take care of their daughter's "health issues" and get her looking slim again. I love her description of the "French Paradox." Have you ever wondered how french women can eat bread, pastries, wine and cheese and still stay as slim and slender as they do? Mireille takes a humorous approach to how lifestyle can determine the size of your body.

I love everything about this book. It reminds you that moderation is the best way to enjoy life. It helps you appreciate the French and all their quirks while also poking fun at Americans and all their quirks. It makes me remember all the reasons I love food so much. And it has a load of recipes to boot. Who wouldn't want the secret to a perfect croissant. Yes, I said croissant. I am talking, the buttery-flaky-whole-day's-worth-of-calories-croissant. That is totally allowed and encouraged.

 

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My mouth is watering just thinking about it. In honor of this new year, I am not pledging to starve myself and eat only Special K for 80 days.  I am not joining a fancy gym.  I am not going to read a thousand diet books.  But, I will read this one again, master my pain au chocolat, and enjoy myself a whole lot more! How about you?

Printable: Anne of Green Gables

I imagine most fourteen year olds spend their trips away from home talking about boys, putting on makeup, or gossiping about what have you. Not my best friend B and me. No, we spent our days of freedom holed up in B's Aunt's basement watching and re-watching every minute of Anne of Green Gables and Anne of Avonlea; you can't really stop after the first. Strange behavior for teenage girls? I contest that it was wise; what fourteen year old boys in our acquaintance could possibly hold a candle to Gilbert Blythe?

 

These waters run deep. Of the many reasons B fell in love with her wonderful husband, I think his ability to quote "He called me carrots!" won her over more than any.

To this day, one of my favorite gifts from B was a hunter green velvet bound edition of "Anne."Books really do make the best gifts.

So in honor of the new year, I made a printable of Anne's words of wisdom. True afficionados will know that in the movie, Miss Stacy gets the honor of this line (Tweaked a bit) but as this blog is for the BOOK bound, I stuck with Anne's original, "Marilla, isn't it nice to think that tomorrow is a new day with no mistakes in it yet?"

Just click on the color you like best, and you can download, print or alter at your leisure.

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For the coming month, we are going to highlight any books that seem "New Years-ey" to us. Do you like that term? I do.

So do you know how most people watched "Supersize Me" and got angry and grossed out and appalled at the amazing McDonald's food machine?

Well, I felt those things too. However, the feeling of "I want a McD's Hashbrown" was just stronger.

This book was a different experience: 

I NEVER NEVER NEVER recommend diet books to ANYONE. I have zero interest in them. But Michael Pollan's "In Defense of Food; An Eater's Manifesto," is not a 'diet' book. It is a sensible look at what we eat, and how we can improve it. You will find yourself being fascinated by the origins of margarine. Seriously. And although I can blame Mr. Pollan for the inordinate amount of guilt I felt when I chucked a box of Imperial into my cart this year (Butter just wasn't in the August budget), I love his writing too much to give it up. And as a general rule, it's not a book that will make you feel guilty- it just helps you to understand why simple, REAL food is best for you and your family. Now I just need to figure out how to make simple, REAL food cupcakes taste as good as these ones...

From the Book Nook: A Christmas Carol

I have endeavoured in this Ghostly little book, to raise the Ghost of an Idea, which shall not put my readers out of humour with themselves, with each other, with the season, or with me.  May it haunt their houses pleasantly, and no one wish to lay it. 

Their faithful Friend and Servant, C. D. December, 1843.

 

I know that Erika and I are not the only girls in the world who had the George C. Scott version of "A Christmas Carol" memorized as children. It's a miracle that old VHS lasted as long as it did. This is mostly due to Erika's deep, deep love of all things Christmas. She would wait for July, because then she could justify playing holiday tunes on the piano under the guise of "Christmas in July." She has requested that we all sing Christmas songs at her funeral. And a couple of years ago, her beautifully decorated home was part of a Christmas home tour as the "Dickens home." As you can see, this theme runs deep in our family, so how could we possibly skip over this literary gem? Here's my recommendation for December:

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The writing is beautiful, the characters are vibrant, and the message is timeless. Extra bonus: It's a perfect book club selection for the busy month of December because it is short. Even if you don't share this with a book group this season, read it for yourself. It will put you in the Christmas spirit almost immediately, I promise. By the end, you will exclaim along with Ebenezer, "I will honour Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year."

From the Book Nook: The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie

Miriam and I just might be the only two individuals under the age of 97 who watch Matlock on a regular basis.  We thank our mother for that habit, along with our love of all other "mysterious" things---from Nancy Drew novels to Agatha Christie whodunits to breastfeeding.

This month we're happy to suggest a delightful addition to the classic mystery repertoire:  The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley.  The protagonist and "detective" is precocious 11-year-old Flavia de Luce.  She's brilliant.  She's cheeky.  And she's quite alone in the world:  her mother is dead, her older sisters ignore her whenever they aren't tormenting her, and her father escapes his financial problems in the oh-so-riveting world of stamp collecting.  On the bright side, Flavia's lack of attachments allows her to roam the 1950s English countryside snooping for clues on her trusty bike named Gladys.

Bradley's writing is fresh, witty, and captivating from the first page to the last.  And best of all, it is squeaky clean . . . aside from the occasional dead body, that is.  But we should warn you, if you start this series you had better find a comfy chair and make sure you've got Matlock on TiVo because you won't want to stop reading.  And while you're at it, put an extra copy or two of the book in your Amazon cart for gift-giving.  Cheers!

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