GRIEF....STAGE 7.....

Stage 7
Acceptance 
 During this, the last of the seven stages in this grief model, you learn to accept and deal with the reality of your situation. Acceptance does not necessarily mean instant happiness. Given the pain and turmoil you have experienced, you can never return to the carefree, untroubled YOU that existed before this tragedy. But you will find a way forward.

You will start to look forward and actually plan things for the future. Eventually, you will be able to think about your lost loved one without pain; sadness, yes, but the wrenching pain will be gone. You will once again anticipate some good times to come, and yes, even find joy again in the experience of living.

I am in this stage now.  I am beginning to see the end of the tunnel.  Don't get me wrong, I still miss Thomas, I will always miss him.  I have accepted the situation of him being gone.  True, I have bad days and good days.  But mostly good days now.  An no, I'll never be the same as when Thomas was here, but I am finding a new me.  So if you have lost a loved one, just hold on, it will get better, I promise.    I leave you Thomas and me young, middle aged, and older aged.

Our Wedding Picture

Our 25th Anniversary Picture

 The last picture of us before Thomas got sick....

GRIEF......STAGE 6

Grief....Stage 6

Reconstruction
 As you become more functional, your mind starts working again, and you will find yourself seeking realistic solutions to problems posed by life without your loved one. You will start to work on practical and financial problems and reconstructing yourself and your life without him or her.

This stage was really hard for me.  I didn't want to do anything without first asking Thomas.  So what was I suppose to do?  I had to figure it out on my own.  After living 48 years with Thomas, I learned a few things from him.  But the one thing I'm having trouble with is how to save money.  Thomas could squirrel away money, but I just want to spend, spend, spend.  I have to learn not to spend so much money on "stuff".  But I don't have Thomas to ask for advice, so I'm learning on my own.  A few years before Thomas passed, he bought a new riding mower, our old just wore out.  He was so proud of that mower.  

 

BOOK REPORT......

The Cheyenne Bride - J. J. Devine

Product Description(Amazon.com)
Murder is afoot in the Wyoming territory, forcing Chris Davis to make a matrimonial match he never would have taken otherwise. Especially when his bride-to-be is still in love with the man he holds responsible for his parents' death. Torn between his morals and loyalty to his family, Chris Davis' heart betrays him at every turn. Nichole lied about her heritage. Could she also be lying about not being a part of his parents' death? He should just leave her to his enemy and be done with her, or kill them both. If only it were that simple. Nichole Michaels, known to the Cheyenne as White Deer, grew up hearing her mother spin tales of the visions of the man she would one day marry. Believing them to be nothing more than myth, imagine her surprise when she finds herself standing face to face with a vision come to life. She is torn between the past and a man whose love is certain, and a man whose love promised to be the strongest tie she has ever known, yet may never be able to claim. Chris needs her, but is that enough to make her deny her heritage for the rest of her life? Her heart aches to know the depth of the love claimed in her mother's visions. Is she strong enough to withstand a rancher with a heart of stone? 
Paperback: 266 pages 
Publisher: Soul Mate Publishing (August 14, 2013) 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 161935280X 
ISBN-13: 978-1619352803

MY THOUGHTS:  If you like westerns, love stories, and murder mysteries.....this book has it all.  Chris is looking for a bride, Nichole is looking for her mother's vision man.  But there is one little problem.  Nichole is half Cheyenne, Chris's parents where killed by the Cheyenne.....maybe.  Both Nicole and Chris's parents where killed, but the circumstances is totally different.  Can they put this difference behind them and build a life together?  Can they find the actual people responsible for their parents deaths?  Really awesome book, loved it.  I give this book 5.....

This is the letter C for The Alphabet Soup Reading Challenge.

GRIEF.......STAGE 5

Stage 5.....Depression

Just when your friends may think you should be getting on with your life, a long period of sad reflection will likely overtake you. This is a normal stage of grief, so do not be "talked out of it" by well-meaning outsiders. Encouragement from others is not helpful to you during this stage of grieving.

During this time, you finally realize the true magnitude of your loss, and it depresses you. You may isolate yourself on purpose, reflect on things you did with your lost one, and focus on memories of the past. You may sense feelings of emptiness or despair.

I haven't had any motivation to do anything that I used to do.  I haven't worked on a quilt since my husband passed.  I just haven't had the motivation to do that.  This is part of stage 5, Depression.  As I thought Depression was something else, I was really surprised that this is the same as Depression.  Sitting around the house, no desire to go anywhere, don't have the desire to clean my house.....the list goes on and on.  But it gets better, I have taken up embroidery again.  There is a little spark inside me that wants to work on a quilt, but it hasn't quite gotten out yet.    I leave you with Thomas doing his favorite thing......fishing.

GRIEF......STAGE 4

Why am I posting the 7 stages of grief??  I thought maybe if I post about them it would help me through this.  Possibly helping someone else who is having trouble adjusting after the loss of a loved one.  It's not that I'm anexpert....but I have gone though them. 

4. Bargaining 
You may rail against fate, questioning "Why me?" You may also try to bargain in vain with the powers that be for a way out of your despair ("I will never drink again if you just bring him back")

I skipped this one, why, because I knew there was no way of Thomas coming back to me.  And the truth be told, I didn't want him back, don't get me wrong I would have wanted him back, but not the way he was.  He was in so much pain at the time, I just wanted him to quit hurting.  I wanted him to let go so he wouldn't hurt anymore.  As I've said the man laying in the bed wasn't the Thomas I'll always remember.  That man was gone.  This is the Thomas I would want back.....being outside.......enjoying the spring day.

 

GRIEF......STAGE 3

The 3rd stage of grief really surprised me when it happened.  I couldn't believe the feelings I had.

3. Anger
Frustration gives way to anger, and you may lash out and lay unwarranted blame for the death on someone else. Please try to control this, as permanent damage to your relationships may result. This is a time for the release of bottled up emotion.

I wasn't mad at someone for Thomas passing away.  I was mad at Thomas for leaving me.  We have been have so much trouble with the appliances breaking, the plumbing sucks, and the termites have eaten the floors.  So I got so mad at Thomas for leaving me here with all this "stuff" to take care of.  I know it's not his fault, but at the time I couldn't think of anyone else to blame.  It's really hard to figure it all out when Thomas took care of all this stuff.  Now I have to make the decisions and figure out where the money is coming from.  Thankfully my son helps me a lot.  Stage 4 is for tomorrow.  I leave you with our Wedding Picture.....

GRIEF........STAGE 2

The 7 stages of Grief are real.  I've been through several of them.

2. Pain and Guilt
As the shock wears off, it is replaced with the suffering of unbelievable pain. Although excruciating and almost unbearable, it is important that you experience the pain fully, and not hide it, avoid it or escape from it with alcohol or drugs.

You may have guilty feelings or remorse over things you did or didn't do with your loved one. Life feels chaotic and scary during this phase.

I personally think this is the worst of the 7 stages.  The pain of losing my husband was excruciating, I kept telling myself he wasn't really gone, just sleeping....but that is so not right.....and then you have to face the fact you have to bury your loved one.  Then the guilt sits in....if i would have only prayed more.....or I loved him more....or I helped him more.....the questions keep going on and on of things I could of done to keep him longer.  But of course that wasn't possible.  You eventually get over this stage.....and walk right into stage 3.  Which I will be posting tomorrow.  

My hubby, Thomas, as the young man I fell in with......50 years ago.

 

GRIEF........STAGE 1

My husband of 48 years passed away June 18, 2016.  He had Colon Cancer.  He fought for 2 and a half years, but he didn't make it.  He went through the Chemo and Radiation.   He also has surgery to remove the tumor, but it didn't do any good.  He started a down hill slide and couldn't seem to pull out of it.  When you loose the one you lived and loved for 48 years, it feels like a piece of you went with them.  I have been fighting, trying to get on with my life, but I'm stuck.  So I went searching to some help on the internet.

WHAT ARE THE SEVEN SIGNS OF GRIEF.......

1. Shock and Denial....
You will probably react to learning of the loss with numbed disbelief. You may deny the reality of the loss at some level, in order to avoid the pain. Shock provides emotional protection from being overwhelmed all at once. This may last for weeks.

For me this lasted for a couple of months.  I couldn't quite believe everything you have to go through after a husband dies.   You have to change all the vehicles to your name....along with the car plates and insurance.  And don't forget you have to have the death certificate to prove all this.  The price of burying someone is exorbitant!!  It cost 15,000 plus dollars to bury my husband.  This was my way of working though the fact my husband had died.  It kept me busy getting everything arranged.  

I'll be posting one grief sign everyday this week.  Wondering about my hubby....this is Thomas....

this was taken a few years before he passed away.  I love him with all my heart and miss him so much.

BOOK REPORT.......

Winesburg, Ohio - Sherwood Anderson

Product Description(Amazon.com)
Winesburg, Ohio was inspired by Sherwood Anderson's early life experiences growing up in Ohio. This frank realistic portrayal of small town life brought the novel into the twentieth century. The influence of this book cannot be overstated. Writer's as diverse as Ray Bradbury, Amos Oz, and Henry Miller, and F. Scott Fitzgerald were deeply influenced by this American classic.

MY THOUGHTS:  This is my book club's choice for April.  I tried reading this book a few years ago and couldn't finish it.  My personal opinion......this is a boring book.  I did finish it, but can't say I really liked it.  There are some interesting characters in the book, but it seems to keep going on and on when it should have stopped sooner.  I give this book......2

This is for the letter W for The Alpha Bet Soup Reading Challenge.

BOOK REPORT.....

The High Mountains of Portugal - Yann Martel

Product Description(Amazon.com)
In Lisbon in 1904, a young man named Tomás discovers an old journal. It hints at the existence of an extraordinary artifact that—if he can find it—would redefine history. Traveling in one of Europe’s earliest automobiles, he sets out in search of this strange treasure.

Thirty-five years later, a Portuguese pathologist devoted to the murder mysteries of Agatha Christie finds himself at the center of a mystery of his own and drawn into the consequences of Tomás’s quest.

Fifty years on, a Canadian senator takes refuge in his ancestral village in northern Portugal, grieving the loss of his beloved wife. But he arrives with an unusual companion: a chimpanzee. And there the century-old quest will come to an unexpected conclusion.

MY THOUGHTS:  This was my book clubs choice for March.  Most of the gals at book club didn't really like this book.  But I loved it.  A great story spanning many years.  At first you wonder how are all these stories connected.  But they are connected, not only by the area but by the people.  I won't give any clues as to why they are connected.....I don't want to ruin it for you, if you read it.  If you like reading stories that span years, you will like this book.  I give this book 4.....

This is also for my Alphabet Soup Reading Challenge.  This is for the letter P.

BOOK REPORT..................

The Rosie Effect - Graeme Simsion

Product Description(Amazon.com)
Don sets about learning the protocols of becoming a father, but his unusual research style gets him into trouble with the law. Fortunately his best friend Gene is on hand to offer advice: he’s left Claudia and moved in with Don and Rosie.

MY THOUGHTS: This is book 2, the first book, The Rosie Project, was really good.  Check it out, just click on the link.  Don and Rosie are expecting their first baby, but as usual Don over does it.  His research leads him all over New York.  And it drives Rosie to brink of leaving Don and going back to Australia.  Really great book.  This is also my book for March at my book club.  We of course read The Rosie Project.  2 great books....check them out.   I give this book 4....

This book is also for my reading challenge......Alphabet Soup Reading Challenge.
This for the letter R..... 

IT'S BEEN AWHILE.....

since I posted anything but books.  So I thought I'd get back into the swing of things.  I'm joining Heather over at Books and Quilts for Needlework Tuesday.  Want to join in?  Just click on the link and you'll be there.  What is Needlework Tuesday? 

Needlework Tuesday is a regular weekly post where I share the progress of my various needlework projects over the past week. I enjoy the encouragement that I receive from my readers and in return visit their blogs and cheer them on with theirs.

I've been working on my Redwork blocks.  There are 8 blocks.  When done I'll be making a quilt out of them.  I've also got 8 more blocks I'm going to do in blue.

This is blocks 5, 6, 7, & 8.   As you can see block 7 is almost done. 

I've also finished my At The Beach Afghan. 

I've also embroidered a little chicken.  Don't know what I'm going to do with it yet, but I have some ideas rattling around in my head.  I'll update when I get it figured out.

Don't forget to hop over to Heather's place to check out Needlework Tuesday.

BOOK REPORT......

Deserves to Die - Lisa Jackson

Product Description(Amazon.com)
Judged

As he watches, her body drifts below the water's surface, forever altered. Before he disposes of each victim, he takes a trophy. It's a sign of his power, and a warning--to the one destined to suffer most of all. . .

Condemned

In Grizzly Falls, Montana, Detectives Selena Alvarez and Regan Pescoli are struggling with a new commander and a department in the midst of upheaval. It's the worst possible time for a homicide. A body has been found, missing a finger. Alvarez hopes this means a murderer with a personal grudge, not a madman. But then a second body turns up. . .

Executed

As the clues begin pointing toward a suspect, Pescoli's unease grows. Even with Alvarez barely holding it together and her own personal life in chaos, she senses there's more to this case than others believe. A killer has made his way to Grizzly Falls, ready to fulfill a vengeance years in the making. And Pescoli must find the target of his wrath--or die trying. . . 
Series: An Alvarez & Pescoli Novel (Book 6) 
Mass Market Paperback: 432 pages 
Publisher: Zebra; Reprint edition (July 29, 2014) 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 1420118528 
ISBN-13: 978-1420118520

MY THOUGHTS:  As usual I started this series in the wrong place.  But it is a great stand alone book.  The author adds enough info that you can pick up on the characters lives.  There are  two mysteries contained in this book. The first is who is killing women and cutting off their ring finger. The second is who is after Jessica/Anne-Marie and why.  Jessica is running for her life from her husband, but why?  Then an old flame shows up and wants to take her back to New Orleans.  Who wants Jessica back in New Orleans, her family, husband or the cops.  You'll have to read the book to find out.  I give this book 5.....

Alphabet Soup Reading Challenge....Letter D

READING CHALLENGE.....

I'm doing one reading challenge this year.  I wanted something that was easy and would last me the whole year.  So went searching the web and found one over at DollyCas, it's the 2017 Alphabet Soup Reading Challenge.  Want to know more?  Just click on the link and you will go right to the sign up page.  I will be making my list and put it in my tabs at the top of the page. 

Info.....
It’s an alphabet challenge!!! The challenge is to read one book that has a title starting with every letter of the alphabet.
So there are two different ways you can set up your own A-Z Reading Challenge.

A – How I plan to do it: Make a list on your blog from A-Z. Throughout the year, as you go along, add the books you are reading to the list. Towards the end of the year, you can check and see which letters you are missing and find books to fit.

OR

B – Make a list now of 26 books, picking one for each letter of the alphabet. For example: A – Assault and Beret by Jenn McKinlay B- Bookman Dead Style by Paige Shelton  C – Cold Pressed Murder by Kelly Lane   D – Dead Cold Brew by Cleo Coyle etc.

Books can be read in any order and all formats – print – e-book – audio – are acceptable for this challenge!

BOOK REPORT......

Rogue with a Brogue - Suzanne Enoch

Product Description(Amazon.com)
London, 1817: Stuck in a Mayfair ballroom thanks to his lovestruck brother, highlander Arran MacLawry wants nothing but a bit of distraction from an arranged betrothal-and a clever auburn-haired lass in a vixen's mask promises just that...until he discovers that she's the granddaughter of the Campbell, chief of clan MacLawry's longtime rival. Despite their families' grudging truce, falling for fiery Mary Campbell is a notion too outlandish even for this Highlander...
THE THRILL OF THE FORBIDDEN
Raised on tales of savage MacLawrys, Mary is stunned to realize the impressively strapping man in the fox's mask is one of them. Surely the enemy shouldn't have such a broad chest, and such a seductive brogue? Not that her curiosity matters-any dalliance between them is strictly forbidden, and she's promised to another. But with the crackling spark between them ready to ignite, love is worth every risk... 
Series: Scandalous Highlanders (Book 2) 
Mass Market Paperback: 352 pages 
Publisher: St. Martin's Paperbacks (July 29, 2014) 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 1250041619 
ISBN-13: 978-1250041616

MY THOUGHTS:  This is the second book in the series.  It is a romance book set in 1817 England.  Two people who aren't suppose to meet, let alone fall in love, is what the whole book is about.  The MacLawry clan and the Campbell clan are at odds with each other.  They have a truce for now, but Arran and Mary have just upset the apple cart.  They have fallen in love and now they are on the run, to make to Gertna Green so they can be married before anyone catches them.  Is this going to cause a war between clans,  that's a definite yes, but hopefully Arran and Mary can stop it.  Really good book.  I give this book 4.....

 





This book is for 1 of my reading challenges....
Good Reads/Wacky Readers/Fun in the Sun Challenge

BOOK REPORT.....

Happy People Read and Drink Coffee - Agnes Martin-Lugand

Product Description(Inside Front Cover)
Diane seems to have the perfect life.  She is a wife, a mother, the the owner of Happy People Read and Drink Coffee, a cozy literary cafe in Paris.  But when she suddenly loses her beloved husband and daughter in a car accident, the world as she knows it instantly vanishes.  Trapped and haunted by her memories, Diane retreats from friends and family, unable and unwilling to move forward.
But one year later, Diane shocks her loved ones with her surprising decision to move to a small town on the Irish coast.  Finally determined to rebuild her life, Diane's new home is all quiet and comfort-until she meets Edward, the attractive yet taciturn Irish Photographer who lives next door.  Abrasive and unwelcoming, Edward resents Diane's intrusion into his life of solitude.  Diane wants nothing more than to heal in peace, but her neighbor's gruff manner provokes her.  Can their standoff bear the weight of an undeniable attraction?
 Paperback 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 1760292109 
ISBN-13: 978-1760292102

MY THOUGHTS:  This is my book club's choice for October.  Very good book, grabbed me at page 1 and I finished it in 2 days.  The description above pretty much is what the book is about.   But the ending isn't what you would think.  I was totally not ready for the ending, didn't see that one coming.  The good thin is, that is a sequill to this book due out in 2017.  So I'll be looking forward to it coming out next year.  I give this book 5.....

This book is for 1 of my reading challenges...
52 Books in 52 Weeks

BOOK REPORT......

Fire Storm - Andrew Lane

Product Description(Amazon.com)
In Fire Storm by Andrew Lane, young Sherlock's friend and her father have vanished. Their house looks as if nobody has ever lived in it; the neighbors claim never to have heard of them. Sherlock begins to doubt his sanity, until a clever clue points him to Scotland. Following that clue leads him into a mystery that involves kidnapping, bodysnatchers, and a man who claims he can raise the dead. Only the budding detective Sherlock can untangle the mind-bending--and dangerous--puzzles that ensnare his friends. Think you know Sherlock Holmes? Think again! 
Series: Sherlock Holmes: The Legend Begins (Book 4) 
Hardcover: 352 pages 
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR) (October 1, 2013) 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 0374323119 
ISBN-13: 978-0374323110

MY THOUGHTS:  As usual I started a series in the wrong place.  Now I have to go back to the beginning.  But this is also a really good Stand Alone book.  If you love a good mystery, this one is really good.  This is about young Sherlock Holmes.  And he is looking for some dear friends that have come up missing.  He runs into a lot of people that wants information that only Sherlock has.  But Sherlock isn't sharing.  As Sherlock and his friends go searching for his missing friends, they run into a lot of villains.  They have to out think them and get ahead of them.   With Sherlock's uncanny way of thinking, they find the clues and find their friends, but they have to get away from all the villains.  Do they make it back to London?  Read the book, it's really good.  I give this book.....

This book is for 1 of my reading challenges....
Monthly Keyword Challenge

BOOK REPORT.....

Against the Wild - Kat Martin

Product Description(Amazon.com)
Alaska
Where the men are as bold and untamed as America's last wilderness

It's been three years since Lane Bishop tragically lost her fiancé, and she's finally ready to risk her heart on someone else. The hot look in Dylan Brodie's eyes says he's going to be that man.

But when Lane flies to the remote 1930's fishing lodge to help him renovate, she discovers a little girl who won't speak, eerie legends and strange sounds in the night. And when she investigates the history of the lodge, she uncovers a legacy of injustice and murder.

As danger stalks his daughter and the woman he is coming to love, Dylan must risk everything to uncover the shocking truth. 
Series: The Brodies Of Alaska 
Mass Market Paperback: 368 pages 
Publisher: Zebra; Reissue edition (May 27, 2014) 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 1420133829 
ISBN-13: 978-1420133820

MY THOUGHTS:  This is the second book I've read from this series and of course not in order.  But each one is a good stand alone book.  So don't let that hold you back from reading these books.  This one involves Dylan Brodie.  He has a little girl, Emily, that has been traumatized by her mother leaving them and on top of that her mother is killed in an auto accident.  Dylan has closed his heart off, thinking he would never find love again.  Then he runs into Lane.  Lane is an Interior Designer who has come to renovate Dylan's Lodge.  While they chase down someone who is haunting the lodge and a murderer, Dylan and Lane fall in love, but don't want to admit it to each other for fear of getting hurt.  Do they stay together?  Does Emily ever talk?  You'll have to read the book to find out.  I give this book 5....

 

BOOK REPORT....

The Woman in the Photo - Mary Hogan

Product Description(Amazon.com)

In this compulsively-readable historical novel, from the author of the critically-acclaimed Two Sisters, comes the story of two young women—one in America’s Gilded Age, one in scrappy modern-day California—whose lives are linked by a single tragic afternoon in history.
1888: Elizabeth Haberlin, of the Pittsburgh Haberlins, spends every summer with her family on a beautiful lake in an exclusive club. Nestled in the Allegheny Mountains above the working class community of Johnstown, Pennsylvania, the private retreat is patronized by society’s elite. Elizabeth summers with Carnegies, Mellons, and Fricks, following the rigid etiquette of her class. But Elizabeth is blessed (cursed) with a mind of her own. Case in point: her friendship with Eugene Eggar, a Johnstown steel mill worker. And when Elizabeth discovers that the club’s poorly maintained dam is about to burst and send 20 million tons of water careening down the mountain, she risks all to warn Eugene and the townspeople in the lake’s deadly shadow.
Present day: On her eighteenth birthday, genetic information from Lee Parker’s closed adoption is unlocked. She also sees an old photograph of a genetic relative—a 19th Century woman with hair and eyes likes hers—standing in a pile of rubble from an ecological disaster next to none other than Clara Barton, the founder of the American Red Cross. Determined to identify the woman in the photo and unearth the mystery of that captured moment, Lee digs into history. Her journey takes her from California to Johnstown, Pennsylvania, from her present financial woes to her past of privilege, from the daily grind to an epic disaster. Once Lee’s heroic DNA is revealed, will she decide to forge a new fate?
Paperback: 432 pages 
Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks (June 14, 2016) 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 006238693X 
ISBN-13: 978-0062386939

MY THOUGHTS:  This is my book club's choice for September.  This is a really awesome book, I really enjoyed reading it.  If you love to read about history, this is a great book that takes you back to 1888, Johnstown, Pennsylvania for the great flood.  There is a historical person in the book also, Clara Barton, who started the American Red Cross.  It jumps between 1888 to present day with ease, the story line just follows the past and the present wonderfully.  I give this book 5....

This book is also for 1 of my reading challenges......
Women's Fiction Challenge

BOOK REPORT....FOUR BLIND MICE

Four Blind Mice - James Patterson

Product Description(Amazon.com)
On the verge of resigning from the D.C. police force, Detective Alex Cross knows he can't refuse this case. His partner John Sampson has a friend who has been framed for murder and is facing the gas chamber. His accusers? The United States Army. As a new woman in Cross's life brings him hope in the face of a devastating loss at home, Cross and Sampson go up against codes of honor and silence and three ruthless killers. But a bigger threat lies in wait: Their controller, a lethal genius who will introduce Cross to new depths of terror . . the last of the FOUR BLIND MICE. 
Mass Market Paperback: 416 pages 
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing (October 1, 2003) 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 0446613266 
ISBN-13: 978-0446613262

MY THOUGHTS:  This is book 8 of the Alex Cross series.  It is just as good as the first.  Keeps you glued to the book to find out what' s going on.  Alex and John have to find the people targeting soldiers.  They set the soldiers up for murder and the soldiers get the death penalty.   But the army is very secretive about this.  They don't want to share info with Alex.  So Alex calls on a friend at the FBI for help.  They finally track the assassins down, but who's behind these men for hire?    Alex has to find out.  I give this book 5....

This book is for 2 of my reading challenges....
52 Books in 52 Weeks
Fun in the Sun/Wacky Readers/Good Reads

BOOK REPORT....BEETLE BOY.

Beetle Boy - M. G. Leonard

Product Description(Amazon.com)
Darkus Cuttle's dad mysteriously goes missing from his job as Director of Science at the Natural History Museum. Vanished without a trace! From a locked room! So Darkus moves in with his eccentric Uncle Max and next door to Humphrey and Pickering, two lunatic cousins with an enormous beetle infestation. Darkus soon discovers that the beetles are anything but ordinary. They're an amazing, intelligent, super species and they're in danger of being exterminated. It's up to Darkus and his friends to save the beetles. But they're up against an even more terrifying villain -- mad scientist of fashion, haute couture villainess Lucretia Cutter. Lucretia has an alarming interest in insects and dastardly plans for the bugs. She won't let anyone or anything stop her, including Darkus's dad, who she has locked up in her dungeons! The beetles and kids join forces to rescue Mr. Cuttle and thwart Lucretia. 
Series: Beetle Boy 
Hardcover: 288 pages 
Publisher: Chicken House (February 23, 2016) 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 054585346X 
ISBN-13: 978-0545853460

MY THOUGHTS:  This is a really good book.  It is also the first of a trilogy.  Can't wait for the next book.  To find out what Darkus gets into.  Darkus finds a beetle, or does the beetle find Darkus?  This beetle is very smart and understands Darkus when he talks to him.  Darkus and his friends find a large beetle colony living in the neighbors house.  And all the beetles understand them.  Darkus and his friends are determined to save the beetles.  They come up with a plan to save the beetles.  And Darkus finds his father and has to rescue him from the woman who is going to exterminate the beetles.  Does Darkus free his dad?  Do the beetles get exterminated?  Read the book, it's really good.  I give this book 5....

 




This book is for 2 of my reading challenges.....
Monthly Keyword Challenge
52 Books in 52 Weeks

GWENNIE INSPIRED QUILT......

I finally got my Gwennie Inspired quilt done.  For the month of August the theme was STARS.  I just used a border of stars. 

The theme for September is "Something Fishy".  I've got an idea, just have to figure out how to use it.  Hop over to Humble Quilts for a look at everyone's quilts.

I'M IN A SLUMP.......

I'm so far behind on everything....books, quilts, embroidery and the creative challenge I've been working on.   I didn't get my circles done for August, my Guinnie Inspired quilt didn't get done and my embroidery is sadly lacking and stitches.  My creative side has taken a vacation, can't seem to get the juices going again.  Haven't been reading much either.  I've been reading the same book for over a week, which is a long time for me.  So I'm hoping September will be a better productive month.  Hope everyone has a wonderful LABOR DAY weekend!