Wednesday, March 25, 2009



Beach Music
Pat Conroy

This book tops one of my all time favorite books. I do not re-read books but I think that this is one that I will soon pick up and read again. It was not a short book and actually it took me an entire summer plus to read this book. I would pick it up, read a few chapter or read it for a few days and then put it down for a few weeks (of course I would read something in between) The more I got into the book the more I did not want it to end so the slower I read it. I felt as if I was apart of the book and the lives and I just wanted to keep living it.

I can't tell you what it was about this book exactly, maybe it was the style of writing, maybe it was the content of the story or the lure of the characters or of the descriptions if Italy. Or maybe it was a combination of all of that, but whatever it was, I found this book very moving and it has a very fond place in my heart.

The story is of a man and his daughter and their life after the death of his wife. The story explores family life, secrets and love. My description of this story could not do it justice so I will let you either check out the description online or read the book. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Sunday, March 15, 2009

Andrea: Wednesday Book Blog: Eclipse and Full Moon

Book 3 and 4 of the Twilight Series by Stephanie Meyer


Eclipse and Breaking Dawn

Sorry to have missed last weeks book blog, but I was on vacation and did not have access to the Internet. Yes it was wonderful to be liberated from technology for a few days.


This week I am going to talk about both Eclipse and Breaking Dawn. Mostly because I can't keep track of what happened in which book and it just seems like the right way to do it.


Eclipse, the 3rd book in the series took me longer to read than the first two. For some reason, I personally was not as captivated by this book as the first two, however it could have been a bunch of things, including reading the books all in a row - I may have just needed a bit of space from Bella, Edward and Jacobs world, and I was pretty busy with not as much time to read. But the book was very good and really set up things for the 4th book.


As you can see, I read the 4th book while on vacation. As I looked around the beach, I saw more sunbathers than not with one of the books from the series. One woman saw me reading Breaking Dawn and even stopped to talk to me about the book. Funny how a book about vampires can cause conversations with complete strangers.


Breaking Dawn was by far my favorite book of the series and as with the first 2 books, I blew right through all 700 and something pages in a few days (okay so being on vacation with nothing to do but read helped). So much happened and came together in this last book and the story is told a bit differently from the other books. In case you have not read it, I am not going to spoil it for you because it was a pleasant surprise for me. Reading the last book made the first three all the more better. These are books I wish I could read again for the first time. I can't wait to see the movie when it comes out on DVD on the 20th.


Until next week, happy reading.

Thursday, March 5, 2009

Andrea: I did it!

I did it and I am so proud of myself. I just completed the 28 day detox and I have never felt better. My body feels cleaner and lighter and my clothes are fitting better than ever. I actually got into a pair of jeans I have not comfortably fit in for 2 years.

Aside from the wonderful health benefits, I am most proud of myself for not only sticking with it but sticking with it strong for 28 days. I did not cheat once, I kept to the proportions and serving sizes and did almost all of the recommended things to help with a detox (brushing my skin, lymphatic massage, exercise) and I learned so much, not only about healthy eating but about myself. One of the best things for me from this detox is proving to myself I can finish what I start and finish as strong as the day I started. No slacking and no giving in.

Go me and all the women that did the detox with me. Now I am going to go celebrate with a vacation for a few days on a sunny beach!

Monday, March 2, 2009

Andrea: Book Blog: Law of Attraction



Law of Attraction: The Science of Attracting More of What You Want and Less of What You Don't by Michael J. Losier


One day I was listening to an Oprah show on xm radio and I heard Michael Losier taking calls from listeners about how to practice the Law of Attraction. Now I have read The Secret and I find the Law of Attraction fascinating and have found that it really does work the more I put it into practice. However sometimes I felt like maybe I was missing something. Was I, in practical ways using it correctly? After listening to the show for about 20 minutes, I realized that Mr. Losier was giving people advice how to practice the law of attraction, not just the principals and the success stories, but he was actually giving advice as to how to practice it and the correct ways to think and say and live what you want from the universe.


I immediately ordered the book and could not wait for it to get here. A few days later it arrived and I picked up the book and did not put it down until I finished it. After learning the principals of the Secret, this book went one step further and taught me how to practice it. It even gave examples and you can download worksheets from the books website to help you. It took the mystery out of the law of attraction and gave me what I needed to use it more effectively. I definitely think this is a book worth reading if you have read The Secret, it takes it one step farther and I also think this is a great book to read if you want to learn about and how to practice the Law of Attraction.