The Ladybug Lounge

Amazon Giftcard Winners

Hi friends ! Happy Monday ! Thanks to all that entered the Amazon gift card giveaway !! it was fun to read through all the items you would use your gift cards on.  I've randomly chosen 2 winners via Random.org

The first winner is ....

Alaine from Queen of Happy Endings

I would buy another book for my Kindle, probaby another Jane Austen, I'm collecting the whole set.

I can't believe Alaine won. She is actually one of my very favorite bloggers and read her blog daily. Make sure to head over and check her out. She has wonderful taste in books !! 

Sarita from Obsession with Reading won the 2nd giftcard

I would spend the gift card on something off to to-read list, but I'm not sure what exactly yet. Too many good choices!

I found Sarita's blog earlier this month and have enjoyed following along on her blog. Make sure to go check it out ! 

I look forward to hosting more fun giveaways as the year progresses ! Next up will be a book giveaway for the month of February. 

When your child becomes a writer

 

The Facts about Bottled Water

Aloha Friday #3

 

I've really enjoyed participating in  Aloha Friday over at Islandlife808 . All the participants as an easy question for their blog readers.  Hop on over and join in the fun. 

My question for this week is 

How many pets do you have and what are they ? 

We have a zoo over here literally ! I love every second of it too !!

12 year old Golden Retriever - diagnosed with lymphoma and is on borrowed time now :o(

8 month old Cavalier King Charles Spaniel 

13 week old Golden Retriever 

4 year old cat 

Oh Crap - was that today ? Noah's Ark cartoon

 

  

According to Jane by Marilyn Brant Review

 

I had read some great reviews on this book and it revolved around one of my favorite authors.  I love anything relating to Jane Austen so I was excited to get a chance to read this book.  I really wanted to love this book but I found it falling short of my expectations. The first few chapters kept me entertained and I laughed out loud quite a few times but it all seemed to go downhill from there. I never grew very attached to Ellie or any of the other characters. They lacked true depth. The story also jumped back and forth quite a bit which I found annoying.  I found this to feel like more of a YA read even though we get to follow Ellie all the way up until her 30's as she searched for her "Mr Darcy". My favorite part of the entire book was reading what Jane had to say to our main character about her choices and life. I'm glad I got this book for free on Amazon for my Kindle. I gave it 3 out of 5 stars. 

Star Wars vs Titanic

via i.imgur.com

1998: Lucas sent this to Cameron, when Titanic dethroned Star Wars at the box-office

Worldless Wednesday

 

Synchronize watching Youtube with your friends online !

Have you ever sat on the phone or online with friends and tried to watch a youtube video together ? Trying to synchronize when to push play and never watching it exactly together ? Well, for those of you that like to watch youtube with friends then there is a website for you !! 

Try the website Synchtube . It is like an online chatroom of sorts. You create the room, invite friends and everyone watches the video together ! Problems solved ! 

 

Free Subway Sandwich Coupon

Subway: My Sub My Way

It must be free food day ! Lots of coupons floating around for free food !! Go through the process of designing and naming your sandwich, and at the end you can enter your name and e-mail to receive a coupon for a free 6" with purchase of a 6" and drink.

Qdoba coupon for free food with drink purchase

Remember the game MASH? Well, it's back...Qdoba style!

Play the came and get a coupon for FREE Qdoba food - YUM !!

Family Flyaway Sweepstakes

John recently took an exciting trip to the Walt Disney World® Resort in Florida where he got to stay in a beautiful vacation home at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Villas. Now you can enter for your chance to stay at this amazing Disney Vacation Club Resort, too!

via tesh.com

Jane Eyre by Masterpiece Theater 2006

Believe it or not I've never read Jane Eyre before <shock!>. It's been on my to read list for years and I've just never gotten around to it.  Typically I will always choose to read the book before I ever watch a movie. The books are always so much better ! I've even been known to skip a movie altogether if I have read the book yet ( My Sisters Keeper as an example - I KNOW I want to read the book first and still haven't gotten around to it). 

As part of my Period Drama Challenge though I put this on my list because it is so highly ranked as a period drama you must see. I decided I would go ahead and watch the movie. I did a little research before watching it and read that they took quite a bit of creative liberties with this adaptation and really breezed through her childhood. 

I think they really should have spent a little more time at the start of the movie developing her childhood before diving right into her character as an adult. The childhood of Jane Eyre and her need for love is such an important part of the entire story. Ruth Wilson who plays the adult Jane does a wonderful job of conveying her emotions to the watcher. 

I'm glad I chose to watch the movie and not wait because it has really lit a fire in me to read the actual novel ! I would rank it a 4/5.

What are you reading Monday ?

If you haven't already head over to J. Kaye's Book blog. She hosts What are you reading Mondays and has a wonderful blog I enjoy reading on a daily basis. 

This week I completed According to Jane by Marilyn Brant. The review will post later in the week. It wasn't my favorite and was glad when I finally finished it. 

 

I also finally completed Persuasion by Jane Austen. This was in Audio book format. Review will also be coming soon. 

 The great part of this week was that I knocked out two of my books in my Jane Austen challenge !! Hooray !!

The choices for this week are going to be Young Bess by Margaret Irwin. This book was provided for me by Sourcebooks to review on my website in February. So look for that review next month !! 

Young Bess by Margaret Irwin.  US reissue March 1 ,2010.  This eloquent novel explores Queen Elizabeth’s life as a child and teenager, opening just before Henry VIII dies and ending when she is nearly 20. Growing up in the shadow of her mother, Anne Boleyn, young Princess Elizabeth has become adept at dodging the constant political games and royal whims that ensure her situation is never secure. When her distant father, tyrannical King Henry VIII, dies, the future brightens for Elizabeth. She is taken in by Henry’s last wife, Katherine Parr, whose new husband is Tom Seymour, the uncle of Elizabeth’s brother, the new king. Seymour, however, is playing a risky game. Marrying a widowed queen is one thing, flirting with the king’s daughter and second in line to the throne is another. As the adolescent Elizabeth finds herself dangerously attracted to him, tragedy looms ahead for her and her kingdom, and she is forced to face her future alone

And for  my new Audio Book selection is Vision in White by Nora Roberts. It's been so long since I've read anything by Nora Roberts, I'm really looking forward to this one. 

 
 

Quotable Sunday

I'm participating in Quotable Sunday again over at A Daily Dose of Toni . I love reading the quotes everyone chooses as their favorites for the week. Make sure to check out everyone else participating ! 

Dreams are only thoughts you didn't have time to think about during the day.  ~Author Unknown

Dreams are illustrations... from the book your soul is writing about you.  ~Marsha Norman

Pay attention to your dreams - God's angels often speak directly to our hearts when we are asleep.  ~Quoted in The Angels' Little Instruction Book by Eileen Elias Freeman, 1994

Dreams are free therapy, but you can only get appointments at night.  ~Grey Livingston

We are not only less reasonable and less decent in our dreams... we are also more inteligent, wiser and capable of better judgment when we are asleep than when we are awake.  ~Erich Fromm

Amazing Internet Statistics

These internet statistics are AMAZING !! I love information presented like this ! 

Created by Online Education

Aloha Friday #2

 

Last week I really enjoyed participating in my very first Aloha Friday over at Islandlife808 . All the participants as an easy question for their blog readers. 

Question: How do you keep up with all the blogs you read ? How many do you follow ? 

I personally use the RSS reader in my Mac Mail. I follow over 100 blogs and it makes it easy for me to see when someone updates their blog without having to constantly keep checking. 

Virgin River by Robyn Carr Book Review

 

My favorite part of these challenges is the actual reading part - not the book reviews. I'm not even very good at the book reviews but agreed to review them along with the challenges. 

This book seemed like a complete gear shift to me. I've been reading quite a bit of historical fiction novels lately. They have been page turning, hair raising, action packed and intense. This one was like slamming the breaks on all of that. It was predictable but I think I can say that about almost every other modern romance novel I've read in the past. 

I had never read Robyn Carr before. She is a very talented author and I would at some point love to read a few of the other novels in this series.  Virgin River was a very easy read and would be a perfect book to read while lying on a beach or when you just want a no-brainer read. The characters are both very likable and Carr does a wonderful job of describing not only her main characters but the supporting characters as well. 

I gave it 3 out of 5 stars. 

Wordless (or is it wordful) Wednesday

This is the Annie Leibovitz Dream series. She is my #1 favorite artist. That woman knows how to make anyone and anything look amazing. She has been blessed with an amazing talent !! Here are some of my Disney inspired favorites. 

Featuring Scarlett Johansson as Cinderella

 

Julianne Moore and Michael Phelps in The Little Mermaid

 

Rachel Weisz as Snow White 

 

David Beckham as Prince Phillip in Sleeping Beauty

Beyonce, Oliver Platt and Lyle Lovett as Alice in Wonderland 

 

Vanessa Hudgens and Zac Efron as Sleeping Beauty 

 

You too can participate in Wordless or Wordful Wednesday at 5 Minutes for Mom and  Seven Clown Circus, 

The PBS / BBC Cranford Miniseries review

We've already been over what a fan I am of period films. It seems for me that I like the mini series types even better.  There is more character development and you have a longer period of time in which to be drawn in and care for the characters. My two all time favorites have been the Anne of Green Gables Mini series based on the novels by LM Montgomery and Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen.  If you are a fan of either one of these then Cranford will be right up your alley. 

I hadn't realized how in need I have become of a new set of characters to capture my heart and run away with it. This miniseries is based on 3 Elizabeth Gaskell novels.  I've never read the novels myself but from what I understand they have taken some great liberties in creating their own version of the stories with the storylines varying. 

When was the last time you watched a movie and had tears in your eyes at the end ? Not because the scene was sad but because you didn't want to see it come to an end ?! That's the way I felt watching Cranford.  Every single character has their own storyline and you truly come to care about every single one. It is filled with drama and comedy. I found myself laughing right out loud with some of the scenes !  

Don't walk, RUN to your local library to see if they have this. If not, OVERNIGHT it from Amazon immediately. You won't be disappointed.  My version came from the library but I'll be sure to order my very own copy !   If I could give this more than a 5 star review I would. I think I have just found another life long favorite.