This is a post for all of my fellow Tolkien fanatics (I know there are quite a lot of you here on HSB)! I want you to know about a reading challenge that I’ll be conducting on a blog that I’ve created exclusively for this project: http://tolkienquest.blogspot.com. Beginning on September 22, we will read The Hobbit, moving on to the Trilogy, The Silmarillion, Unfinished Tales, The Children of Hurin, all 12 of the History of Middle-earth series, and others! You don't have to read all 22 if you don't feel up to it, but you are more than welcome to join in with as many books as you choose.

I'll be updating the blog as we go with discussions on the books, information, helps and guides, and some fun trivial tidbits on Middle-earth and J.R.R. Tolkien. This has been a project that I've been thinking about doing for a long time, and I'm pretty excited to actually be starting it soon. ;) It'll be all the more fun if there are more people!

Also, I'll be kicking it off with a reading of The Hobbit on the SAYR.

Please join us--and don't forget to tell your friends! I know there are MANY Tolkien-lovers here. ;)

No galu govad gen,
Sylvia

I’m not old enough to vote yet (gaah!!), but I’m going to do everything in my power within the next 8 weeks to get John McCain and Sarah Palin elected. Why you ask? Because if I didn’t, I would be going against all of my moral sense. It makes me want to beat my head against the wall when people like James Dobson (for whom I have a lot of respect) say that they won’t vote, or if they do, vote for a third party. You're just going to stand on the sidelines and wait to see what happens? You're going to drop your responsibility as a citizen because you don't think McCain is good enough or he makes you feel uncomfortable? Now I have respect for someone who is willing to take a moral stand on something, but I think that this is going about it the wrong way. This isn't the right moral stand to take, and believe me, if Christians don't get out there and vote in November, it will have disastrous consequences.

You say that you have a problem with voting for the "lesser of two evils?" Whenever you vote in any election, no matter who is running, you'll be voting for the lesser (or greater) of two evils. I'm sorry to tell you that there is no perfect candidate. McCain certainly isn't perfect, but he is in an entirely different class from Obama. They are literally worlds apart in their beliefs and policies.

I could talk about the War on Terror, education, oil, government spending, or any of McCain's stances, but these aren't the reasons why Christians should vote for him. We can look at all of these things only after we take a look at his moral positions. The obvious first question that we should ask about our candidates is do they support murder?

You know, I think that the best endorsement McCain has gotten has been from the National Abortion Rights Action League. Yeah, you read that right. Do you know what his rating is from NARAL? ZERO PERCENT. Take a stab at what Obama's rating is. ONE HUNDRED PERCENT. In fact, even when NARAL claimed neutrality on the Born Alive Infant Protection Act, Obama voted against it twice because he thought it would undermine Roe v. Wade. That makes him even more pro-abortion than NARAL. [Check out Jill Stanek's blog if you want more info]

When does McCain believe that life begins? Without hesitation, "At the moment of conception." When does Obama believe that life begins? "Well...you know...I think that...whether you're looking at it from a theological perspective or...uhh...a scientific perspective...uhh...answering that question with specificity...uhh...you know...is...is uhh...above my pay-grade." (yeah, that's an exact quote, with the "uhhs" and everything)

Now let's use some common sense. McCain's pro-life voting record isn't impeccable, granted, but if you had the choice to put either of these men in the President's office, would you go neutral and just let the dice roll? Well, guess what: you DO have a choice, and you should be ashamed of yourself if you forego it by avoiding the voting polls in November.

Here is what I believe to be the #1 reason why Christians should vote for McCain: this next President will be nominating possibly up to 3 Supreme Court justices. Think about how significant this is. The scales in the Supreme Court will be tipped on way or the other. McCain has pledged to nominate people like Roberts, Alito, & Thomas. Obama has pledged to nominate people like Ginsburg, Breyer, & Stevens. I haven't even mentioned the marriage amendment to the constitution. Legalized homosexual unions? Do you want this to happen?

God help us if Obama wins this election.

We cannot let this take place!

For Today…September 3, 08

Outside my window…the sun is starting to appear through the trees

I am thinking…about starting my Latin course today

From the learning rooms…the school area is empty because the kids are having a late start today

I am thankful for…this house and these gorgeous grounds

From the kitchen…freshly made grape jam from our vines

I am wearing…tan capris and my Last Day tshirt (dressed for some DISC!!)

I am reading…nine books at the moment

I am hoping…that Victoria and I will get to have a movie night with Dad soon

I am creating…a very elaborate crosstitch

I am hearing…the boys being loud outside my door

Around the house…there are buckets of grapes waiting to be turned into jam

One of my favorite things…listening to soundtracks

A few plans for the rest of the week…drive to town tomorrow for music lessons, hit the library, have the first youth choir practice on Sunday then rush home to babysit for Mom and Dad's NFP class.

Here is a picture I thought of sharing with you:

For my birthday, I received The Collected Letters of C.S. Lewis (edited by Walter Hooper) in two volumes. One wouldn’t think reading letters would be particularly interesting, but I’ve been so fascinated by them, especially his correspondences to his best friend Arthur Greeves, who shared many of the same interests in literature. Basically all they do is write about books! It’s been great discover Lewis’s taste in literature, especially as a young man. And how uncanny to read him raving about the same stories and writers that I’ve so enjoyed over the span of my teenage years so far! Also, it’s incredibly interesting to read about his philosophical viewpoints, especially as Arthur remained a Christian while Lewis wandered off into atheism. I could share so many quotes that gave me sweet little pleasures of discovery about this great writer whom I’ve loved since a childhood.

Anyway, that is the origin of my title for this post. He sometimes wrote at the end of his letters to ask what Arthur was “doing, reading, and thinking.” So often, most of what they were “doing” was reading, and nearly all of their thoughts were directed toward books. So in the end, they still ended up just writing about “reading”. ;) The same could probably be said for me in regards to the recent weeks of summer…here are some of the books that have been hitting my log lately:

Fiction:
Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes [Quite amusing, but overly long.]
The Mysterious Stranger by Mark Twain [ugh…I never realized how bitter Twain was toward Christianity! This was eye-opening!]
Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte [Not my favorite of the Brontes, but I can still see why it’s a classic.]
The Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling [So much to say about this…message me on goodreads or something if you want to chat about it!]
The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde [haha…so brilliant! It’s one of those plays that everyone needs to read]
Watership Down by Richard Adams [Good book, but not my style]
Black by Ted Dekker [I had to see what this Dekker fellow was like…and I was pretty intruiged. This book actually reminded me quite a lot of Lewis’s Space Trilogy, not just in form, but in theme.]
Great Expectations by Charles Dickens [About halfway through now. After reading so much modern lit my craving for Dickens pretty much took over…lol]
The Lady of the Lake by Sir Walter Scott [Just started it today…Scott is always lovely]

Non-fiction:
Orthodoxy by G.K. Chesterton [PURE BRILLIANCE.]
Every Young Woman’s Battle by Shannon Ethridge [Very candid and relevant to pretty much any teenage girl.]
The Lessons of St. Francis by John Michael Talbot [Great content, though not a very stirring read. I have a lot of respect for JM Talbot.]
Crossing the Threshold of Hope by John Paul II [Still getting through this one. It’s not something to be read fast. I’m trying to soak everything in.]
The Olympic Games by M.I. Finley [In honor of the games in Beijing…I’ve been reading this during the commercials…lol]
The Rhythm of Life: Living Every Day with Passion and Purpose by Matthew Kelly [I don’t normally read books like these, but this was given to me so I thought I might as well.]
The Collected Letters of C.S. Lewis Volume I: Family Letters 1905-1932 edited by Walter Hooper [of course]

So there’s a quick overview of my summer reading. I’d love to hear what books you’ve read over the past few months! Add me on goodreads (if you haven’t already), send me a message or something and we can CHAT LIT! ;)

As for what I am (or will be) doing and thinking…

Normally, by this time in the summer, I am making schedules for my new school year, creating lists of things I want to accomplish, and planning for all of my classes. For some reason, though, I have a total lack of motivation right now. It seems like summer hasn’t been long enough; as if I haven’t even had my break yet. Perhaps it’s because I’ve known ever since the beginning of high school that this was going to be my most challenging year. Tenth grade was actually comparable to a nice, breezy ride down the river. I only had 5 classes and none of them were particularly difficult. Now I have two big monsters glaring down at me: Intro to Chemistry and Algebra II. Chem I’ll be taking at the college along with American Lit and Government. Algebra will be my main class with K12, accompanying Health and Latin I (yes, I dropped French for Latin…I just had to. Hopefully I’ll be keeping up with French on my own, though). Maybe the reason that I’m so intimidated is because I’ll be going to a different (and much bigger) campus for my college courses (though it’s still the same school, it’ll all be very new and unfamiliar).

I suppose I should also mention that I started driving school last week. I don’t like it at all, but it’s something I’ll have to get over with. I don’t mind driving in general, but the class is just a pain.

This post has become freakishly long, but that’s to be expected as I haven’t written any entries at all for…well…too long. I guess this will just have to pass as my single summer update. Maybe I’ll just write one post each season to keep things simple…lol.

Don’t forget to tell me all that you’re “doing, reading, and thinking!”

Regards,
Sylvia

Blogging has sort of become a chore for me. I remember the good old days when I would post every other day and jump onto every comment I received! Haha…I guess times and priorities have changed.

Well, I went to see Prince Caspian the day it came out—May 16 (was it really that long ago?) and I have to say that my expectations were VERY low. Ever since I found out that Walden was making it, I knew that it wouldn’t be made the way I would want it to be. Prince Caspian is a wonderful book, but the term being thrown around to describe it is “un-cinematic.” I have to agree. If there were a movie that followed the book word for word, it would be a horrible film. I anticipated many changes that I wasn’t going to like ever since the get-go.

Halfway through the movie, I was sitting in my seat being unable to contain my idiotic grin. I was sooooooo happy with how it was turning out! However, having watched and read every single spoiler that had come out, I knew that the worst was yet to come. I was right. From the point where the Pevensies met up with Caspian, I was squirming in my seat. I wasn’t so much disappointed with the plot changes, but with the changes to the characters.

Susan was awful. Yeah, you knew that was coming. Honestly, why did they have to wreck her character by making her some sort of warrior-princess, Legolas-shoot-off, male-attracting-hot-chick? I couldn’t even look at her without grimacing at the dark eye-make-up. I would have been okay with her doing some archery and getting involved in the battles a little bit, but why was she charging with Peter and Caspian in the night raid scene? It should have been Edmund there, or Glenstorm, or Reepicheep, or somebody, but NOT SUSAN!!

Peter wasn’t the high king. He was supposed to be a hero, but he was a moody, incompetent, argumentative jerk. That’s all I have to say about that.

Caspian didn’t seem like the main character. When all of the scenes were cut with him and Dr. Cornelius, showing his longing for the Old Narnia, he lost A LOT of his dynamic. He wasn’t badly portrayed, he just didn’t seem very distinctive.

The kiss was just cheesy. It cheapened the movie.

I do have to say that I was overall happy with it, though. Most of the changes that they made were warranted.  I loved Trumpkin, Lucy, Edmund (though he should have gotten more screen time IMO), Miraz, Sopespian and Glozelle, Glenstorm, Reepicheep, and all of the lines and scenes that were taken from the book.

All in all, my low expectations made for a better movie experience. I think that the reason I was happy with it was because of all the little scenes that just captured the spirit of the book. I liked it for the same reasons that I liked it when I read it. I’d say that makes it a success.

Yeah, I’m a big sister…AGAIN! Little baby #8 arrived on May 13 at 12:42 pm. He was a whopping and healthy 9.9 pounds. Riley's record (10 pounds) still holds. lol

  Gregory Lawrence

We're all pretty excited...he came home earlier today and is enjoying a nice LONG peaceful nap while all the kids are at piano lessons. Both he and Mom are doing incredibly well! Thank God!

Talk to you all soon,
Sylvia

A year before, you would have never caught me wearing a skirt on a normal weekday. I have changed so much since then! It was mostly because Miss Claire challenged me so much, not only by her words, but by her example.

Here are some more pictures from the challenge:

A year ago, you probably wouldn’t catch me wearing pink either. ;)

I love braids! My sister does the best French braiding. (I had been running around all day, so in the evening it was a frizzy mess…)

This is a nice skirt, but I don’t wear it as often because it has a slit in the back. The jacket is one of my favorites!

Again, it’s quite frizzy by the end of the day...

This skirt is really soft and comfortable; I like wearing it around the house.

Here you can see a little more detail. I wore my hair French braided again (I didn’t have time to mess with it).  

This is probably my favorite out of all of them. I wear my brown peasant skirt A LOT. It was warm enough that I wore short sleeves, but when I went outside or was cold, I put on the jacket. (And if you're wondering what the thing on the door is, it's a chart from The Silmarillion of the Sundering of the Elves)

Here’s the detail on the sleeve. The back says REST in big letters and then has Matthew 11:28-30 under it:  Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest, take my yoke upon you and learn from me. For I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls, for my yoke is easy and my burden is light.

More braids. :)  Doesn't my sister do a good job?

I wore jeans again to the college this week and it felt really weird. I realized how much I love being different in the way I dress! I don't want to be just like everyone else. If I'm going to be modest, I might as well go all the way!

Oh, The Society of Avid Young Readers is going to start Till We Have Faces  by C.S. Lewis on Monday! It's not too late to join! Mom was really sweet and actually bought the book for me without telling me. :) I was so excited. I also picked up a couple books from a library that was getting rid of some stuff. I have absolutely NO shelf space!!

Thanks for visiting.
My best regards,
Sylvia

I am a bit late in posting these, but here they are!

I love jean skirts, especially ones that are very full and easy to walk in. As I guess you can see, I like being able to look sort of casual while still wearing a skirt. The braids are my easy, regular, everyday hairstyle (one of my ends is a little crazy in this picture, but oh well). Since my jacket was 3/4 sleeve, I pulled out a bracelet from my old jewelry box that also doubles as one decade of the rosary (it has a crucifix and 10 beads).

These are my favorite shoes! You can also see the flowery pattern at the bottom of my skirt, which I really like.

Since the weather was so GORGEOUS, I went outside to take these pictures. It was ultra-windy, but I got some decent ones. I wore a new shirt that I got from C28 that has 1 Corinthians 15:51 on it--Behold, I tell you a mystery: we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed. Then it has Not of This World written in shiny letters below it. The skirt is the exact same as the one before, except in light tan.

This is my "medieval maiden" hairstyle...haha. It added a bit more feminine feel to have my hair let down, long and flowing. I also found a pretty bracelet with small purple stones set into a gold chain.

This is a random one that Leandra shot when I was fixing my skirt in the wind. It gives you a little better view, I guess.

I have been enjoying this challenge! I suppose you could call me a bit of a "tomboy" in a way; I don't pay much attention to clothes/jewelry/hair/etc. It's been good for me to step out and be a bit more "fearless" with my femininity. It makes me feel so much more unique and...well...beautiful.

Strength and honour are her clothing; and she shall rejoice in time to come. ~ Proverbs 31:25

Best regards,
Sylvia

This is something I've been thinking a lot about recently, so I thought I'd write a little something to share with all of you. Oftentimes, girls don’t think that lust is an issue for them. We tend to skip over verses about lust thinking that they only apply to men. We're different from guys in that sense; we aren't wired in the same way. But just because we're different doesn't mean that we don't struggle with it--we are simply tempted in a different way. I like to call it, "emotional lust."

Yes, we like to daydream. Most of us have probably lain awake in bed at night thinking about "Prince Charming" sweeping us off our feet. I'm not exactly what you would call a romantic person, but even I've experienced feelings like this. There's nothing wrong with being attracted to guys, but when we start obsessing over it in our minds, it becomes and issue. The problem with this is that we can become very easily "swept off our feet" in our daydreams and easily justify it by saying, "I didn't actually do it!" We're actually still giving little pieces of our hearts away when we do something like that, even if it's not real. And the more we do it, the more likely we are to get swept off our feet too quickly in real life.

The temptation is to dwell on frivolous selfish desires. The thing that I've done to overcome this is dedicate my heart to Jesus. Yes, I know that's what every Christian does, but it is the only way to overcome sin, so it all works out. It's okay to be cliche. ;)

Haha, but seriously--every day this prayer is what helps me to overcome temptations of emotional lust: "Jesus, let every beat of my heart be for you and you alone." When my mind is occupied by different guys, then everything I do is hindered from channeling to Christ (and I'm not sure if that makes any sense, but it's what I've experienced).

Girls, be firmly planted on the foundation of Christ. Don't let anyone sweep you off your feet. Keep your gaze fixed on the only one who can truly satisfy your desire for love. Let your focus be on becoming the woman that will be worthy of being Prince Charming's wife, and let God be the one to develop true and pure love in your heart. His dreams for you are much bigger and more beautiful than you could ever imagine anyway. ;)

Much love,
Sylvia

PS Here's my first photo for the Feelin' Feminine Challenge. I wore my favorite jean skirt with a nice blue and white striped polo and dark navy jacket. I love this skirt because it's super-comfortable, easy to run around in, and has no slits! :D

Victoria snapped the picture when I wasn't quite ready, so I'm making a funny face. lol

I wore my hair pinned up like this:

I like wearing my hair this way, but it always takes me a while before I can put it up just right.

I rarely wear any jewelry. I don't have my ears pierced, and necklaces always irritate the skin on my neck. I do wear some bracelets, but only in the summer when I wear short sleeved shirts. Even then, I only wear stuff that people gave me because I never spend money on things like that.

It'll be fun to see all of your pictures! It's neat how different girls have different styles, but we can all be modest and feminine in our own ways.

Love to all!
~S

Yes, this blog has been resurrected! I know I’ve been absent for a while (more than a month…yikes!), but I’m back, and hopefully I’ll be posting more often.

So, why haven’t I posted in so long? I guess you could say that schoolwork took over my life for a little bit. This quarter, my college composition class has been CRAZY HARD. I've been spending every spare moment compiling my 50 resources for my annotated bibliography and researching each one, taking notes and writing my 20-page paper. Yeah. I'd rather not talk about it. Thankfully, I have a little break in the homework this week, so I'm trying to catch up with the rest of my life.

About 3 weeks ago, our youth group went to Washington D.C. for the March for Life. It was one of the greatest experiences of my life! We had such a good time; everyone bonded so much. I never thought I'd have friends like that again. It really was amazing. We got to stay at Michael's friend's parish in Maryland where we had a huge lock-in with the youth group there. We attended Sunday Mass at the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Shrine which was beautiful. The night before the march, we attended the Salesian Vigil for Life. All I have to say about that is CONFESSION IS POWERFUL!!! (and Fr. Steve is one of the coolest priests ever) The march was tiring, but worth it. Every second of it was for the babies. Oh, and I got interviewed on TV a couple times. That was cool. =D

I haven't been reading as much as I would like since I've been so busy, but right now I'm in the middle of The Complete Stories by Flannery O'Connor and a book called Mystics and Miracles by Bert Ghezzi. Both of them are interesting; I only wish I had more time to sit down and really get into them. Also, I know it's late, but I plan on starting up the SAYR again. We'll be reading The Giver by Lois Lowry. Let me know if you're interested in joining us!

Oh, I guess I should pass on the news that Mother had an ultrasound and the baby is a boy! His name is Gregory Lawrence. Yes, unlike *some people*, we name our children before they're born. ;) Samuel likes to hug Mother's belly and say, "I love you, baby Gregory!" It's just the cutest thing. I love my little boys.

It's hard to believe that Lent came so early this year. Today's the third day and it has already been powerful. I'm doing a novena, so let me know if there's something I can pray for you! I'll have to write up an entirely separate post just to talk about Lent; it really is awesome. You gotta hear it.

Well, I've missed you all over the last month! I want to catch up on how you're doing! Tell me all. =D I saw on some blogs that you did a skirt-wearing challenge or something like that. It was fun seeing some of the pictures. Maybe I'll post some of myself; I've been wearing skirts more often lately.

Hoping to hear from you,
   Sylvia

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and New Year!  We had a great time with our extended family in Indiana.  I posted pictures on my xanga and facebook for those of you who want to see them. 

I got some great gifts for Christmas including a long brown sweater, the sheet music from the P&P soundtrack, a scarf, hat, and gloves, and some other things.  With my Christmas money I bought a purse and The Village soundtrack.  Mom also bought me denture cleaner for my retainer...lol.  As Mrs. Sellers said, "Nothing says 'Joy to the World' like some Efferdent!" 

This new year, I went back to see all the books I had read in 2007.  The final count was 54.  This year I hope to get lots more!  Let me know if you're interested in seeing the whole list.  Here's my top fifteen (in the order that I read them):

Les Miserables by Victor Hugo
Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis
Miracles by C.S. Lewis
A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens
Interior Castle by St. Teresa of Avila
Theology of the Body for Beginners by Christopher West
Sir Gibbie by George MacDonald
Confessions by St. Augustine
Agnes Grey by Anne Bronte
50 Questions on the Natural Law by Charles Rice
The Spirit of the Liturgy by Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger
Stepping Heavenward by Elizabeth Prentiss
Go in Peace by Pope John Paul II
J.R.R. Tolkien's Sanctifying Myth by Bradley Birzer
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

I started my high school classes again yesterday.  College classes start on Monday.  This quarter, I'll be taking 2 classes Mon/Wed rather than a class every day.  It'll save gas and give me a little more time at home.  I think it'll work out a lot better.

Well, as you can see from my title, today is Tolkien's eleventy-sixth (116) birthday!  I plan on celebrating by popping some popcorn and perhaps reading some of my favorite excerpts from the Trilogy.  ;-)  It's cool because Tolkien was born in 1892 and I was born in 1992.  He's 100 years older than me! =D

Until next time,
Blessings for the new year!
Sylvia

It's a bit late to be writing my thoughts on Advent seeing that it is nearly over.  Can you believe that Christmas is in three days?  Time goes by so quickly when you're on break. Hmph. 

This is the third year that our family has celebrated Advent.  Looking back over the past two years, I can see how much I've changed.  In 2005, I didn't really see Advent as having much significance.  It was just purple and pink candles with names like "peace" and "joy".  I was really confused with all the new Catholic things we were learning, so nothing really sunk in. 

2006 was a lot different.  I remember Saturday night, I had started to pray the rosary while I was in bed.  On Saturday, we pray the Joyful Mysteries (a mystery for each decade: the annunciation, visitation, nativity, presentation at the temple, and the finding at the temple).  As I was praying the third decade and meditating on the third mystery--the Nativity--I realized that the next day was the first Sunday of Advent.  Coincidence?  I think not!

Now it's 2007.  This has been the best Advent of them all.  Last year I wrote about the feeling of expectation and longing for Christ's second coming.  This year, I not only had that expectation, but it caused me to want to prepare for His second coming.  This has been the first time that I've actually gone out of my way to get myself ready for the coming of Christ.  The passage that I keep coming back to in Scripture is Matthew 25:1-13. 

Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.  And five of them were wise, and five were foolish.  They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.  While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept.  And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him.  Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps.  And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out.  But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.  And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut.  Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us.  But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not.  Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of Man cometh.

Be always ready.  Be always watchful.  Don't fall into sin.  When you fall into sin, grab Jesus' hand and get up again.  Don't waste this time.  You won't get it back again. 

My braces were taken off today.  My mouth feels so empty! 

The orthodontist gave me a bag of chewy candy and microwave popcorn to celebrate. =D  I would have posted a "before" as well as an "after" picture, but we were rushing out the door to get to the appointment on time, and the batteries weren't charged on the camera, so we didn't bother. ;-)

I also wanted to take a picture of our newly finished pole-barn, but it hasn't happened yet.  I guess I'll just describe it to you!  The outiside is a dark green color.  There's a garage door in the front, and on the side there's a regular as well as a sliding door.  The roof is pretty high when you walk in (2 feet higher than we wanted, but oh well).  There are steps that lead to the loft, which is going to be a storage-space-slash-hang-out for us kids.  It's pretty cool looking (but at the moment quite cold).  We are all pretty excited about it. :-)

The SAYR is starting A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens TOMORROW.  You are welcome to join us!  We had a great time reading The Magician's Nephew last week. 

I've got lots of stuff to do, so I will have to cut this short.  I really want to sit down and write up some posts, but I haven't gotten around to doing it yet...*sigh*

Love to hear from you!
~Sylvia

Yes, I am posting about music again. ;-)  My Christmas playlist would be A LOT longer if I could find all of the tracks that I wanted.  One of my favorite things about this season is listening to Christmas music.  One thing that I absolutely love to listen to are boys choirs.  A lot of the Christmas music that I listen to has boys choirs.  I have always gravitated toward that for some reason.  They are so beautiful!!  And for some reason, they seem very Christmasy to me. ;-)  lol

I thought I would share with you some of my favorite Christmas music. :-)

Handel's Messiah (conducted by Christopher Hogwood) - that has to top everything.  I love how it is all based on Scripture.  The choral pieces blow me away!!  Last year, I sat and listened to it for hours and hours while working on my new crosstitch.  I memorized all of the parts, including the soprano (which I cannot sing...lol) sung by the boys choirs.  ;-)  Favorite songs: Sinfony, And the Glory of the Lord, And He Shall Purify, For Unto Us a Child is Born, Rejoice Greatly, O Daughter of Zion, Surely He Hath Born our Griefs, Lift Up Your Heads, O Ye Gates, But Thanks Be to God, and Hallelujah

The Promise by Michael Card - he is a favorite at our house.  I grew up with this Christmas album always playing while we decorated the tree or baked butter cookies.  All of the tracks are peaceful and centered around the real meaning of Christmas.  Favorite songs: The Promise, Vicit Agnus Noster, We Will Find Him, Thou the Promise, and Immanuel (I learned this piano arrangement to accompany my parents singing a duet last year)

A Christmas Celebration by Celtic Woman - it's Celtic Woman, of course it's amazing!!  David Downes knows how to arrange a song in the *best* way possible.  The harmonies are really lovely and I've never heard more angelic voices.  Favorite songs: O Holy Night, Carol of the Bells, O Come, All Ye Faithful,  The Wexford Carol, Christmas Pipes, Little Drummer Boy, and Don Oiche Ud I mBeithil. 

The Birth of Jesus by John Michael Talbot - he's a lot like Michael Card, except a little more "monkish" I guess you could say.  There are more boys choirs and chant in his album (yay!).  This is another one that we play CONSTANTLY during December at our house.  Favorite songs: The Birth of Jesus, Lo, How a Rose E'er Blooming, Of the Father's Love Begotten, Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence, and Glory to God

Christmastime by Michael W. Smith - [nearly] every track is awesome!!  BOYS CHOIRS GALORE...yes, Michael W. Smith definitely knows the Christmasy element of boys choirs.  rofl.  The orchestral arrangements are very pretty.  Some of the tracks are all instrumental and there are quite a few medleys.  Favorite songs: Christmastime, Hope of Israel, Sing We Now of Christmas, Child in a Manger, Carols Sing, I Saw Three Ships (best arrangement of this song I've ever heard)

Noel by Josh Groban - umm, okay...I haven't bought this yet, but just from the clips I know that this is one of my favorite Christmas albums ever made.  =D  He sings Petit Papa Noel, which is a French song that my mom always sang to us.  I was so excited to see that track on there.

I also love all of J.S. Bach's Christmas Cantatas. 

Honorable mention goes to Believe (Natalie Grant), Christmas Wish (Stacie Orrico), All the Joy in the World (Jump5), Joy (Avalon), and of course...Let it Snow, Baby...Let it Reindeer!!!  How much better can you get than Relient K's 12 Days of Christmas, In Like a Lion (Always Winter), and I Hate Christmas Parties?  I even loved their rendition of Handel's Messiah, and their "Untitled Track" with Matt Thiessen singing Good King Wenceslas to a ukelele?  I nearly died laughing when I heard that...

Now, I want to hear all of your favorite Christmas music!!  What CDs do you love to pull out every December? 

Over the past couple months, my musical taste has pretty much totally changed.  It’s really odd.  Maybe some of you noticed the switch from Skillet and Hawk Nelson to Celtic Woman and Enya on my playlist.  I’ve been listening to Josh Groban, Hayley Westenra, (young) Charlotte Church, John Michael Talbot, Michael Card, Eric Genuis, Yiruma, tons of SOUNDTRACKS, etc.  Basically, I have shifted to a more classical style.  I guess that after hearing Celtic Woman, I realized that there’s music out there that’s…well…beautiful.  I personally wouldn’t call Relient K’s music  “beautiful”.  It’s fun and upbeat, but I wouldn't call it real music.  Real music can communicate without words.  It can wake up emotions inside of you that pop or rock could never do. 

I've often thought it was strange to call both screamo and Bach music.  They're definitely not the same thing.  I classify music in my brain as either "contemporary music" or "authentic music".  Not to say contemporary music is fake, but to me, it's like comparing doritos to a good steak.  They're both "food", but they're totally different in terms of look, feel, taste, smell, and health.  I totally filled myself with all kinds of contemporary (Christian) music - Switchfoot, Sanctus Real, Kutless, Red, Superchick, etc.  I knew it was kind of like eating junk food, but I didn't really want to listen to other kinds of music because I didn't want to be out of the loop. 

Don't get me wrong; I still like contemporary music (and doritos).  I'm not throwing out my CDs or anything like that.  But I've found a lot of value in music that's beautiful.  And I'm not just talking about Bach, Handel, and Vivaldi.  If you look at my playlist, you won't find a single true "classical" track (although I have developed a huge appreciation for classical music).  All of it is kind of modern, but kind of traditional.  It's what I would call "authentic".  You can call it what you will. 

Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, a charm to sadness, and life to everything.  It is the essense of order and leads to all that is good, true, and beautiful. ~ Plato

Regards,
Sylvia

PS The SAYR is starting The Magician's Nephew TOMORROW!!  As of this moment, we only have 4 people participating.  It's definitely not too late to join!  I am really excited about starting.  I have already prepared discussion notes and questions for the first day and I can't believe how much I enjoyed doing it.  Even if you've read it before, it's still a great book to read again and discuss with other homeschoolers.