Challenge #57: 3 Circles

Circles, circles, circles!!! This week's Scrap Whispers challenge is an easy one. Create a layout (or card) with 3 circles. I got a little crazy and added a few more.

Here's my take:

"The History of Love"

"The History of Love" by Nicole Krauss--** (2 stars)
"The History of Love" travels through time following a manuscript. We are introduced to a man, Leo, who writes a novel for his long time love, Alma. Now many, many years later he is alone and struggling to survive day to day life. He even makes up ways for people to notice him--spilling coffee, posing nude for an art class, etc. Meanwhile, a 14 year old girl is on a mission to find her mother a mate. Alma finds herself trying to solve a mystery involving the book her mother is translating--The History of Love.

While I only gave this book 2 stars, I did find it very interesting. Each chapter was written (in various styles) by a different character in the book---all revolving around "The History of Love" manuscript. Because of this, the first half was very difficult to follow---moving through time spans, people, places, etc. By the end everything started to come together and I understood how everyone was connected in some way through The History of Love. The manner and wording that the author uses is very brilliant. Some people may like it better than others.

Challenge #56: Scooby Doo

I'm so excited for this week's challenge at Scrap Whispers!!! Scooby Doo!!!! Who doesn't love this big, sandwich eating dog?? This week's challenge is to create a card or layout using Scooby Doo as your inspiration.

Here's a little snapshot of some fun ideas to get you rollin':


Here's what I created:

"Nantucket Nights"

"Nantucket Nights" by Elin Hildergrand--*** (3 stars)
Val, Kayla, and Antoinette have been friends for twenty years. Each year they have their own "night out" under the stars on the beach of Nantucket. They swim (in the nude!), drink wine, and tell each other their deepest, darkest secrets. Until one year, things take a wrong turn when one friend heads for the water and never returns.

Nantucket Nights was a very fun book full of suspense. It is a short book so it was a super quick read (which is really nice when you are short on time!!). Each chapter kept me wanting to read more, looking for more clues. Many twists and turns take you on a fun ride throughout the book. I will definitely pick up a few more of Hildergrand's book to read in the future!

Challenge # 55: A Novel Concept

I am waaayyyyy behind this week on the Scrap Whispers challenge! My weekends are consumed with nothing but hockey and on the weekdays I'm playing catch up with the housework! Eeeekk! It's only Wednesday so you still have time to get in on this week's Scrap Whispers challenge.

This week's challenge is to create a layout (or card) based on your favorite childrens book. Since I run a childcare in my home, I read LOTS of children's books everyday. It's just too hard for me to pick just one. Instead I decided to pick a favorite author of mine (Eric Carle) and create a layout based on all his books.

Here's what I created:

Champions!

Since the months of January and February are pretty much consumed with nothing but hockey in our household, I thought it only appropriate to post this layout of the Cedar Rapids Jr. Mite Champions! This was taken during their first tournament of the season which THEY WON!!! They were so excited!

"The Other Boleyn Girl"

"The Other Boleyn Girl" by Philippa Gregory --** (2 stars)
A friend of mine passed this book along to me, knowing that I like to read historical fiction books. Since I haven't read any books during this era I was anxious to read it. However, I found myself really uninterested and disappointed.

This book revolves around Mary Boleyn---"an innocent girl of fourteen" who catches the eye of Henry VIII. Mary finds herself in the center of her families great plan to become part of the royal family. However, each chapter finds the family deeper and deeper into lies, scheming, and betrayal.

While the story itself sounds like a page turner, I found myself reading just to finish the book. Maybe it was the evilness of the family, the length of the book (which was just insanely large considering the story), or poor writing. I just never really got into this book. I'm amazed that it went as far as becoming a movie! Maybe I'll see it, maybe not. At least it would only be 2 hours of my time instead of two weeks!