Crochet - Make Your Own Reusable Swiffer Wet Jet Mop Cover

Swiffer Wet Jet Mop Cover

So my swiffer is well loved.  So loved in fact, it's missing it's handle.  And the battery compartment is broken, so we don't actually use the sprayer, just spray with whatever cleaner we have currently.  So my swiffer is loved, but I have not bought those mop covers in an incredible amount of time.  One day I decided what a waste of money!  I could make one and then just throw it in the wash when I'm done, no buying new ones, no wasting!  So I just did a simple double crochet rectangle the same size as the bottom of my swiffer.  Since there's velcro on it, it stayed on pretty good and cleaned just as well as those disposable ones.  But then, last week, it disappeared.  My son was mopping and he put it away and he says the cover went in the laundry but it never came out.  Must be hiding out with numerous socks.  Regardless, it was time to make a new one.  My boys always complained that the cover would fall off, I never had this problem, but I'm not swinging around the mop, keeping it on the floor tends to help keep it attached ;).  So I decided to make another one, but this time I was going to make it so it would hold on.

I found all kinds of ideas.  I found a lot that involved lots of different types of stitches, some with bobbles and fringe, most of which included just extended the rectangle and then folding up the edges and sewing those to make pockets that held the swiffer on.  That was super great, except, when I made mine, I made my pockets WAY too deep and it was so difficult to get on, not something I envisioned my kids being able to do.  It also covered up those little sprayer holes.  Now remember, I don't currently use the sprayer holes, but when I do get a new one, I would like to, since I found a way to fill the bottle so I'm using whatever cleaner is cheapest and not the expensive swiffer brand.

Then I found this picture on google of a brilliant idea from Inner Child Crochet and it had straps! How smart?! What great inspiration.  Now her pattern is free, and it's a great one, but I wanted something a little simpler.  She uses front and back post stitches, which aren't hard, but more time consuming for me and I really found my basic double crochet stitch to do a great job and didn't want to complicate matters.  There was also one small part I couldn't quite follow toward the end, because on her pattern, all last 5 rows are done in round, so on one side there would be no space for the spray.  Perhaps I am misreading or something but anyway, I tweaked it just a tad, and came up with this.  I did mine is super bright orange to hopefully prevent future losing of said mop cover.  (Just now realizing I probably look like a crazed Lakers fan.)

PDF Version of Pattern HERE

Pattern

Rnd 1: Ch 32. Slip stitch in 1^st ch to join. Ch 2, hdc in each. Join. (32 hdc).

{ You will be beginning and ending this pattern in a round.}

Rnd 2: Ch 2; hdc in each. Join. (32 hdc).

Rnd 3: Ch 2; {alternate hdc & dc across} 8 times. Turn work. (16 st).

Rnd 4: Ch 2; {alternate hdc & dc across} 8 times. Ch 16; sl st in 1^st stitch to join round. (32 st.)

Rnd 5: Ch 2; {alternate hdc & dc across} 8 times. Hdc in next and each across. St st to join round (32 st.)

Rnd 6-15: Ch 2; {alternate hdc & dc across} 8 times. Turn. (16 st.)

(This is what it will look like a little less than halfway.)

Rnd 16: Ch 2; {alternate hdc & dc across} 8 times. Ch 16; sl st in 1^st stitch to join round. (32 st.)

Rnd 17: Ch 2; {alternate hdc & dc across} 8 times. Turn. (16 st.)

Rnd 18: Ch 2; {alternate hdc & dc across} 8 times. Ch 16; sl st in 1^st stitch to join round. (32 st.)

Rnd 19: Ch 2; hdc in next and each across. Join. (32 hdc.)

Rnd 20: Ch 2; hdc in next and each across. Join. (32 hdc.) Finish off.

Sew round 1 and round 20 to form pockets for sides of mop.

Weave in ends.

HAPPY CROCHETING!

Book Review - Something Rotten

Book Review

Something Rotten (Thursday Next Mystery #4) - Jasper Fforde

Bookshelves: Alternate History, Fantasy, Laugh Out Loud Funny, Mystery, Series

Rating: 4 of 5 stars (It was good)

Recommended Age: 16+ 

     A lot of young adults just won't understand some of this book.  If your teen loves all things literature, has read numerous classics and enjoys wit then they might love this one.  It's not full of romance, violence, language, deep issues or any of the classic reasons I don't recommend for kids, it simply might be out of their league, then again, maybe not.

I love Jasper Fforde.  To me, he is amazing.  His books aren't like anything else I've ever read.  He has the amazing ability to take classic literature and bring these characters to life.  He creates a world inside of books that is unmatched.  His creativity is astounding.

In the last novel we were left with Thursday as bellman of Jurisfiction, the leading authority in the book world.  The wild and crazy shenanigans she deals with, in addition to raising her son, Friday, prove too much and she decides to retire and return to Swindon, England.  Here she hopes to put an end to Goliath, Yorrick Kane and reactualize her husband, Landen, who was eradicated in the last book.

This one jumps right in with the good stuff, getting you excited for what's to follow.  I must admit when I realized she was actually leaving the book world I was worried that good ol England wouldn't compare and I'd be disappointed.  This was not the case.  After leaving the book world, Thursday's adventure just begins.  I love the political pokes and the game show, "Evade the Question" was one of my favorites.  That's exactly how I feel about watching debates during election time.  Politicians finding everything going wrong in England somehow being blamed on the Danish.  The political satire is thick with this one.  I loved the intro about the Volvo that no longer was the safest car because the vents did not protect against poisonous gas and when dropped from a height of sixty feet most occupants suffered neck injuries.  

I would have to say that the last half of the book was my favorite and all my favorite characters made debuts. I even loved to hate Kane and the Hamlet is now one of my new favorites.  I was a little disappointed in Landen.  He just seemed like such a one dimensional character and I wish there was a tad more on Friday instead of just his nonsensical one liners.  But considering I'm talking of a character who was just brought back to existence and a two year old, I'll wait for another book before making rash judgments.  The ending was good and I love how even if during, you are a bit confused, it all comes together.  Definitely continuing on.

Happy Reading!

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FREE Kindle Version of Help Me Be Good Books

Help Me Be Good Books

I love all the Help me Be Good Books by Joy Berry.  I had a couple handed down to me from my mom and I found a bunch of the series at a used book store and bought them all!  My kids love reading them just for story night, but I also find them very helpful to read when we are having a problem with a certain trait.

Each book focuses on defining what the action is, how it makes people feel and what to do about it.  It helps both sides, if your child is the one teasing or the one being teased (or other trait).  It's simple and quick and my kids love the little mouse or bunny character that pops up.  The beginning shows what can happen when you do certain things, and in the end shows a much happier outcome if you try something different.

The ones I have are about:
Being Bossy, Being Bullied, Being Careless, Being Forgetful, Being Messy, Being Selfish, Disobeying, Gossiping, Interrupting, Lying, Overdoing It, Tattling, Teasing, Throwing Tantrums, and Whining.  I don't have them all, and I definitely didn't spend $75! But I was able to score these $2 each  which is more than half off.

The best part is right now some of these books are FREE in kindle edition.  The prices are always changing, so hurry if you want your free copy! Remember, you don't need a kindle, you can find a kindle app on many devices and you can always download a kindle reader to your computer.

Help Me Be Good - Disobeying

Help Me Be Good - Being Forgetful

Help Me Be Good - Overdoing It

Shopping Trip Week of 08/26/13

Shopping Trip

Week 08/26/13

So my husband is a police officer, and they don't make very much money.  Pair that with our almost family of 8 and I really got to be careful where the money goes.  Other than housing, the number one place our money goes is groceries.   My daughter also has a food allergy to wheat and buying Gluten Free is NOT cheap!  In order to control it, I started couponing and shopping deals, it took awhile, but I've built up a pretty good stockpile and a nice size price book that really helps me stick to this.  

The USDA's most recent statistic on how much the average person spends on groceries is about $60/week/per adult.  Depending on the age of the child kids were about $40/week.  If we stuck to that, we are talking, over $1,000/mo for our family without including baby 6.  Even if we stick to their "thrifty plan" we would still be spending $760+/mo.  That's just not what we can afford, so we took that and cut it even farther.  We've budgeted $400/month on groceries.  I don't include everything in our $400 budget, mainly food.  We spend about $500 total on groceries and toiletries.  Sometimes going a little over in one category one month and then under another.  I make weekly shopping trips and I take out $125 cash.  I use that for the week and I'm done.  It doesn't matter if there's a super great deal, once it's gone, it's gone.  If I only spend $75, I save the rest for the next week or until it's needed, but I don't take out more than $500 total a month.  Some weeks I plan really well and our fridge is stocked, we run out of nothing and have greatly planned meals.  Other times, we end up with a few nights of pb&j or grilled cheese and soup.

I'm not one of those crazy coupon ladies you see buying 500 bottles of mustard and 30 cases of soda.  I buy food and other items our family uses.  I'm not brand particular and I make a lot from scratch.  My goal is to try and stay around a 50% savings from the average price.  This way my family eats stuff they love, usually brand name and a lot of healthy items we couldn't otherwise afford.

This week, I scored some deals I wasn't planning on and took advantage of clearance items.

My first stop was Walgreens and the problem with going on Wednesdays is that they receive their inventory that day.  If you go at night it might be perfect, but I go right after the kids get on the bus and most weeks stuff is so picked over I come out with barely anything.  This week the same thing happened, however, to make room for new inventory they were clearancing a bunch of allergy meds.  I checked my price book and these prices were some of the best deals I've ever gotten on this type of medication.  So I grabbed a bunch.  I never clear the shelves and don't buy more than we will use.

Walgreens $17.19

Purex Ultra Packs $5.99 But on Sale Buy 1 Get 2 Free (yes 2!) - $1/2 coupon = $1.66 each pack

Since each pack comes with 18 tabs it's .09/load.  

(I usually make our own laundry soap, but when it's less than .12/load or less I will buy some for those times when I just ran out and need something washed right away. )

Papermate Eagle Ballpoint Pens 10 ct = $0.29

Wal-Tap Child Cold & Allergy Elixir 4 oz = $1.50 (on clearance)

Dimetapp Children's Cold & Allergy Elixir 4 oz = $2.00 (on clearance)

Robitussin Nighttime Cold & Flu Capsules 20 ct = $2.00 (on clearance)

Sure Deodorant 2.7 oz = $1.50 - $1/1 coupon = $0.50

I also had a $5 walgreen coupon.

Smiths $9.46

French's Injection Marinade 3.5 oz = $1.49 (clearance) - $1/1 coupon = $0.49 each

Herbal Essences 10.1 oz = $2.50 - $1.50/1 coupon = $1.00

Crest Kids Avengers Toothpaste 4.2 oz = $1.00

Celery = $0.99

Target $37.76

Market Pantry Apple Juice 64 oz = $1.89 - $1/1 & 5% Cartwheel = $0.84

Snickers Mini Bites 8 oz = $2.66 - $1/1 = $1.66

Market Pantry Oreo Cookies 15.35 oz = $1.70 - $1/1 = $0.70

Coppertone Sunscreen Spray & Stick 6 oz + 0.6 oz = $6.28 - $5/2 = $3.78

Dial Kids Body & Hair Wash = $2.79 - $2/2 = $1.79

Bikini Zone Anti-Bump Shave Gel = $3.44 - $1.50/1 = $1.94

(I spent much more here than I was planning because of the deal I found on the sunscreen.  Sunscreen is something my very pale family cannot live without and instead of spending $10/bottle stocking up when it's 50% or more off is something I do often.  This isn't the cheapest I've found it, but it was pretty close for the spray.

The Dial also isn't the cheapest I've found, but it's tear free, which means I can use it on the baby and that is usually much more expensive.)

Harmons $16.27

Kraft Cheese Slices (Pepper Jack, Provolone, Swiss) 8 oz = $2.39 - $1.50/2 = $1.64

Maid O Clover Milk 1 Gallon = $2.50

Red Tape Bananas = $0.39/lb = $1.43

Walmart $38.75

Bounty (King Size Roll) = $1.98 - $1.50/1 = $0.48

Old Orchard Frozen Juice 12 oz = $1.57 - $1/4 = $1.32

Pull Ups Flushable Wipes 51 ct = $1.64 - $1/1 = $0.64

Herdez Tortilla Chips 11 oz = $1.98 - $1/1 = $0.98

Bakers Baking Chocolate 4 oz = $2.48 - $1/1 = $1.48

Snickers Ice Cream Bars 6 pk = $3.28 - $1.50/1 = $1.78

Johnny's Garlic Spread 5 oz = $3.98 - B1G1 = $1.99

Smucker's Ice Cream Topping 11.75 oz = $1.98 - $1/1 = $0.98

La Victoria Taco Sauce 15 oz = $1.97 - $1/2 = $1.47

Jamba Juice Strawberries Wild Smoothie Maker 4 oz = $2.68 - $1/1 = $1.68

Angel Soft Facial Tissue 65 ct = $1.17 - $0.50/1 = $0.67

Gillette Series Shave Gel 7 oz = $1.98 - $6/3 = FREE

Dole Smoothie Makers Serves 1 = $1.50 - $1/1 = $0.50

Brita Filtered Water Bottle = $6.88 (clearance) - $4/1 = $2.88

You might be wondering where my other essential food items are since what I got this week can't exactly feed us.  But that's why I buy more than 1 week worth when I find a good deal.  Our freezer right now is stockpiled with meat and veggies and we have so much pasta and cereal I can barely fit it on my storage shelves.  I also make lots from scratch, so when I buy basics I usually buy in bulk and it lasts me for quite a while.  As I progress weekly you will see how I make meals work. 

We have a separate budget for Back to School Stuff (backpacks, shoes, school supplies, etc.), so it's not counted in the $500 but I just had to share the great deals I scored at Staples.

Staples $4.25

Sharpie Accent Highlighters 5 pk = $1.00

Sharpie Permanent Markers 5 pk = $1.00

Bic Roundstic Grip Pens = $2.79 - $2.79 Easy Rebate = FREE

Pastel Colored Paper 400 Sheets = $8.99 - $3/1 coupon - $5.99 Easy Rebate = FREE

(You can get a single color in 500 sheets for the same deal, but I like the variety pack since we don't get it often.)

Hammermill Copy Paper 500 Sheets = $6.99 - $3/1 coupon - $3.99 Easy Rebate = FREE

(Easy Rebates mean you have to pay for the price, but then fill out a simple form online and within usually a month or less you get a paypal deposit, or a check mailed to you.)

SO all together I spent just under $125.  But that includes a lot of non food items, and back to school items.

Free Samples

Free Samples & Coupon Book from P&G

Request a FREE sample of Cascade Platinum, Gain Fireworks Original and Pantene Pro-V Expert Age Defy, and a P&G Coupon Book when you sign in to your P&G Brand Sampler Account (or register for a new account) HERE.

*Please note that to request samples and coupons, you must be at least 18 years old. The address you enter here will be used as the shipping address for your coupons and samples. P&G everyday allows one order request per household address per quarter. Ordering periods are generally between January 1 and March 31, April 1 and June 30, July 1 and September 30 and October 1 and December 31. Sample and coupon selections change throughout the year. This offer is open to U.S. residents only.

Thanks Hip2Save!

Free Sample

Free Sample Of L'Oreal Advanced Hair Care Product

Go to the L'Oreal Paris site, and you can request a FREE sample of L'Oreal Smooth Intense, Total Repair 5, Color Vibrancy, or Triple Resist.  (If you've already requested you won't be able to request another.)  Select your main hair concern from the drop-down menu and fill out your contact info and submit. Then your sample will be on it's way.

Thanks Hip2Save!

Cool Freebies 08/26/2013

FREEBIES!

I haven't checked the mail in awhile and I was surprised to find a bunch of super cool freebies in the mail! My favorite kind of mail. 

These guys might be little, but I love free samples, this way I get to try new products without having to spend a bunch of money on something I don't even like.  The other super awesome part is having totally sealed things like floss, wipes and mini toothbrushes to throw in my purse or diaper bag. It's perfect, way better than buying a trial size because these were free!  Oftentimes, they also come with more coupons.

I got these by visiting website or facebook pages and requesting them.  I have a separate email and fb account for all my couponing stuff so I don't get bombarded on my personal ones.  I will try to post about the next ones I do, since these ones have already ended, but I wanted to share the awesomeness!

I also got this in the mail.  When you are shopping at Walgreens, tons of coupons and stuff pop out of their catalina printer and I know most people don't even read unless it's a coupon, assuming it's an ad or just junk.  Well a month or so ago mine was for a free "beauty box."  Wasn't quite sure what that was, but you know me and free, so I followed the website and it had me answer skin tone, and hair quality type questions and said it was on the way.  This is what I found inside.

I received Burt Bee's gud Body Lotion in Pearanormal Activity, Amla Legend Hair and Scalp Serum, Neutrogena Ultra Gentle Daily Cleanser, Biore Pore Unclogging Scrub and Biore Blemish Fighting Ice Cleanser, Maybelline Dream Fresh Beauty Balm Skin Perfector in the shade I chose, and a Shick Hydro Razor!  It also came with $15 worth of coupons for these and more products as well.

Then, I found this box with no return address and I thought maybe it was a fun birthday present for tomorrow, but upon opening it found this:

About two weeks ago I paired a great deal at Harmons with some high value Welch's coupons and on the cartons of juice I saw a Buy 3 Get a Free Nalgene Water bottle.  In my deal I ended up with six so I filled out the rebate (printable off their website) and sent it in, and scored 2 free Nalgene waterbottles and a couple more Welch's coupons.

I feel like my birthday came early this year.

Love the freebies!

FHE - Communicating with Love

Family Home Evening

Communicating with Love

So this month in church we are focusing all on marriage and family and I'm kind of bummed I didn't start
back on the blog at the beginning of the month because what an awesome topic!  As a SAHM I'm always looking for new ideas and new ways to improve as a wife and mother.

In church I have been going to the marriage and family class instead of gospel doctrine and if you've never taken the class I highly recommend it.  It doesn't matter if you are married or even if you don't have kids, the lessons can apply to all relationships and most people interact with kids whether they teach them, are aunts, uncles, close friends, or plan on having children in the future and these lessons really help you build those relationships.

This weeks lesson is in the Strengthening the Family manual, session 3, Communicating with Love and our class broke it into a two part lesson because there is so much great stuff to cover.  It's all about how to communicate with love and this really goes for anyone who is communicating.  Even with friends or your own parents, even coworkers.  Some of the key points were about paying attention to not just what you are saying, but how.  When we communicate, our entire body is telling the other person something, sometimes not necessarily what we want it to.  One that really hit me hard was about listening.

How often do we get so busy that when our child comes to us with a problem, just to talk or to tell a joke, do we respond with, "Not now, I'm busy."  I'm guilty.  I do it all the time.  And we have been struggling with communicating with our son.  He was diagnosed last year with ADHD and this year we have seen some drastic changes in his personality that are leading us to look into depression, which is a whole different post.  So I was telling my husband how he never talks to me unless it's to tell me something terrible, and during yesterday's lesson I realize, he is trying to talk to me, but I'm not willing to listen.  It's not because I don't want to.  It's simply because I don't realize that I'm doing it.  I'm so focused on other things and it seems he finds the most inopportune time to try to open that door.  But perhaps, and maybe I'm giving my son way to much credit here, but perhaps he is testing me to see what is more important, me talking to him, or making the dinner or doing laundry or whatever else it is I'm preoccupied with.  Now don't get me wrong, I'm not saying the second your child speaks you drop everything immediately and get on your knees and listen intently for as long as they speak.  As parents, that's just not an option.  BUT, if we can't take that few moments then, set a timer to remind yourself to talk with them when you are done with changing the diaper, thawing the meat, unclogging the toilet.  Don't forget.  Go back and open that door before it's closed.  Keep the communication open.  A way to really get some open communication going is to ask.  Whenever you have a few minutes, try asking a few questions, or simply talk yourself.  This way, your child knows that you do want to talk, even if at the time they have nothing to say.  They will remember you made an effort and next time they do have something to say perhaps they will try to open that door again.

As I was planning our date night (it's my week and no sitter so, it's at-home after kids in bed style) with a great idea that I found on one of my favorite websites HERE.  It's actually geared toward Back to School, quizzing each spouse on the other and see who knows who the best.  But I thought what a great way to open up communication.  To get to know a little more about the other.  To learn to listen.  And how great of an idea is that with kids?  So I planned this little FHE, and came up with a fun questionnaire to do with the kiddos.  Some of the questions won't apply to some kids and you might have others you'd rather ask, you could do them all in one night, or save one or two for family dinner convos.  The point is, the questions get you and your kids talking.  And you might be surprised on how quickly favorites change, and why.  Don't forget to ask why to some of the questions, and don't forget to ask the negative stuff to.  Kids need to know it's ok to tell you the bad, scary stuff without you having to "fix" it.  Just to talk.  So they feel comfortable talking to you.  Plus it will give you some great ideas for how to spend some quality one on one time with your kids.  I had no idea my daughter's favorite thing to do with me was help me make dinner, we rarely do it together!  That's something we can do a lot more often.  And my other daughter's favorite vegetable is squash, something I was sure only my husband and I loved.  And simple things to make my kiddos feel like I really understand them and am doing my best to make them feel that I listen.

Communicating with Love

PDF of Lesson found HERE

PDF of Emotions Worksheet HERE

PDF of Getting to Know You Questions HERE

Scripture: “Those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart.” (Matthew 15:18)

Opening Song: Love is Spoken Here (Primary Children's Songbook p.190)

Lesson:

(Begin by making some faces and ask what you are feeling inside. Some examples of facial expressions are happy, sad, scared, excited, angry, confused, etc.)

- Is using words the only way to tell someone how you feel?

Sometimes we can tell people how we feel by what our face or actions say.

(Say something really nice but in a angry voice while stomping your foot and with an angry expression.)

- Do you believe that I was trying to be nice?

Sometimes our body says things louder than our words do.

(Use the matching expressions page found HERE. Have the children try to match the expression to the words).

When we talk or use our faces or bodies to say something, we are communicating.

It is important that we are saying the same thing with our bodies as we are our words. When we communicate angry or grumpy things, people don't want to talk with us as much and might not believe the things we say.

People are more willing to listen and to talk when we are communicating with love with our words AND our actions.

If someone is telling a story and you are looking somewhere else, reading a book, rolling your eyes, do you think the person telling the story feels like you are listening? Do you think that person is going to want to tell you another story? Will we remember their favorite things if we were playing with a toy instead of listening to what they were saying?

If we want people to listen to us with love, we need to talk to them and listen to them with love too.

When we are respectful and listen to each other, it will be easier to talk to one another. We can't be the only one talking, we need to listen too. When we listen and pay attention we are showing respect. We can make more friends and feel more love when we are showing more love and respect to others.

Do we always have to feel happy?

Sometimes we feel happy, but sometimes we are grumpy or angry or sad and that's ok. But we need to make sure we are not hurting other people with these feelings. Sometimes our feelings tell people things we don't mean. Sometimes we need to take a break until we can control these feelings. Sometimes it helps to talk it out with someone we love. We can communicate with love even when we don't feel happy inside. This will make others try to help us feel better and listen to us when we are talking.

STORY:

One day Julie had a bad day at school because her friends didn't want to play what she was playing. When she got home from school she was feeling very grumpy. Julie's little sister, Emily, was so excited when Julie came home and was so excited to play together she jumped around and hugged her. Julie pushed her sister away and yelled at her, “Not now!” She then stormed away.

Emily felt very sad inside and began to cry. Later after Julie felt better she wanted to play with Emily but Emily was playing with her brother instead.

• Was Emily the reason Julie was having a grumpy day?
• Did Julie communicate with love?
• What could Julie have done differently?
• What can Julie do now to communicate with Emily that she really does want to play?

Heavenly Father sent us to earth to learn and grow and make good choices to return with Him one day. Sometimes it's hard to make good choices, sometimes we get scared, sometimes we feel lonely. Heavenly Father didn't send us alone. He sent lots of people together, He sent families, people who can help us and love us. It's important to talk to these people with love. If we show them love and respect when we communicate they will show us love and respect back.

Strong families communicate with each other with love. If we listen and take turns talking we can respect each other and love each other more.

Bear Your Testimony About: how communicating with love can help build stronger relationships. Share an experience you have had about how communicating with love helped or how not communicating with love made things harder.

Activity:

Getting to know you Game found HERE

Ask questions to each other from the list and practice taking turns talking and listening. Have siblings and parents take turns asking and answering. Or use one worksheet for each child and keep it for remembrance. Remember to show you are listening with your bodies and faces too.

Happy Family Time!
 

Book Review

Wither (The Chemical Garden Trilogy #1) - Lauren DeStefano

Bookshelves: Young Adult, Science Fiction, Post-Apocalyptic, Series

Rating: 3 of 5 stars (It was okay)

Recommended Age: 17+ 

     There is a lot of sex in this book, not explicit sex but teen pregnancy, polygamy marriages (where the 13yo wife is much younger than the husband).  There is some disturbing death scenes by a nasty virus and a very bloody labor and delivery.  There's some language and some drinking. Not really any positive influences for these teens. 

I am honestly torn between a 2 and a 3 for this book.  I just don't know how I feel.  Here's what I do know.
We start Wither through the eyes of 16yo Rhine who is kidnapped and picked to be a polygamist bride.  This grabs me, something new I haven't read before.

But all the background stuff is really distracting.  I don't see the reasoning behind it.  If all these people are dying so very young and they want to keep repopulating the world, wouldn't the girls have all the power?  Why are they being turned out as prostitutes and murdered when every birth is so important?  Only North America is left, and yet people are bombing hospitals and science labs?  Is this really how Americans are going to act when the rest of the world is gone?  If so, ship me to another continent.  Throughout the whole thing there is no mention of government anywhere.  What happened to the government?  If all the old generation people are still around, wouldn't they want some form of control and a plan to find a way out of this mess instead of just letting the rich guys knock up a bunch of kids?  And all these "old generation" people.  They are ok with teen pregnancies and all these orphans?  They watched their kids die and all these poor grandkids are running around to fend for themselves?  The science in this science fiction book doesn't really work.  If it's a world created by the author's imagination, that's one thing.  But I have a hard time believing all the contradicting scientific aspects of the current world we live in and the supposed ice caps melting and annihilation of complete continents but still using a card catalog in a library and snow storms in florida?
Plot wise the book was decent.  I really had a hard time connecting with the protag.  I feel like she was supposed to be written as such a sensitive person but the way she talks about the orphans doesn't show much sensitivity.  I liked Jenna and Gabriel much better than the other characters.  What really struck me is when she finds that Linden doesn't know the truth about the circumstances (can someone really be that naive?) she doesn't find it necessary to tell him.  I felt like a lot was written just to feed the plot without actually making sense or flowing with the characters or other events.  The evil in this book disgusted me and yet I can't understand why he was even there?  If he's the only evil one in that mansion full of how many people, why in the world did they not just tie up the old man and do what they wanted?  The baby stuff of it all made me sad.  Considering my current state of pregnancy, probably not the best pick for right now.
I just don't know.  The plot fueled me, I think DeStefano is a great story teller, but the background of it all was so distracting.  I think if the rest made sense I would have loved this story.  I kept asking myself, "Huh? But why?"  I liked how the ending was more upbeat than the majority of the depressing book; however I want to know more about what happens to the others.  Perhaps we find out more in the next book.  I will probably continue but with caution and focus only on the plot.    

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Book Review

The Raven Boys (Raven Cycle #1) - Maggie Stievater

Bookshelves: Young Adult, Fantasy, Paranormal, Series

Rating: 3 of 5 stars (It was okay)

Recommended Age: 15+ 

     Romance is pretty subtle in this book and there are some positive adult roles.  There is some violence, including abuse and a murder as well some drinking and lots of language.

When I looked at the cover, title, and having read Stiefvater's Shiver, I thought perhaps this book was another shape-shifter book.  That is completely not true; however it is full of the paranormal.  

The Raven Boys begins by introducing Blue, a 16yo girl who grows up with her mother and a few other psychics.  Each year her and her mother go to watch the spirits on St. Marks Day which shows a promise of who will die within the next year.  Blue is not psychic like most of the women in her life, but she is an amplifier.  She makes everything clearer or brighter.  Usually she just writes down the names of those her mother calls out but for the first time, she sees someone, a young boy named Gansey.  She is told this means she has a special connection to that person, he is either her true love or she is the one who kills him.  Which could in fact be both since she is told since she is little that she will kill her true love when she kisses him.  

At the beginning I really thought that this book was going to focus on these two characters.  That is not at all how this book plays out.  We not only meet Gansey but a handful of Raven Boys who all go to the same private school with extremely varying backgrounds.  Blue's initial impression of them is the stereotypical rich boy jerks but we learn they are so much more than that.

The characters are what grabbed me in this book.  The setting didn't really pull me one way or another and to be honest, I felt the plot, especially at the beginning, was rather slow.  But I really felt like I knew the characters.  Some of which I liked, some I didn't, but either way they were real.  There were parts that were confusing, and at times I felt things were kind of disjointed, they didn't flow as well as I would have hoped.  Perhaps I felt this way because I don't know much about the paranormal or ley lines and such.  

I was a little disappointed in the end because we are set up in the beginning to wonder about how certain events end, which we don't even find out about.  Apparently the answer is given at the end of the series, not this book.  It made me feel like the series was written with a certain number of books in mind and the first is just the intro.  Maybe this is why it felt so slow?  It wasn't slow enough to not finish but it definitely took me a few days, which isn't typical.  I will continue to the next in the series and hope it picks up there.  

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