The Truth About Lord Stoneville - Sabrina Jeffries

For a few years now,

my dear friend,

Sarah,

has been raving about

Sabrina Jefferies.

So, 

I asked Sarah to recommend a book.

It was high time

I discovered first hand

what the fuss was all about.

This is a historical romance.

A period piece.

A lovely read.

Oliver Sharpe

and his siblings

live a life with no rules,

or morals

and Grand Hetty will take it no longer.

She has given all her grandchildren

an ultimatum.

Marry within a year,

or be disinherited.

Well, 

Oliver will not be told what to do.

So he sets off to the brothel

to hire a woman to pretend to be his 

love.

This will surely shut Grandmother up.

But then he meets

Maria Butterfield.

A young American

who made the journey to England

to find her missing fiancee.

Oliver strikes a deal,

she pretends to be her fiancee

and in return,

he'll help her find her beloved.

But things don't always go as planned.

Thank you Sarah,

for introducing me to a great read.

High Five for Friday

It's been another fabulous week.

I'm finally settled back home

after our extended summer vacation

and Ethan is happy at school.

This week's highlights include:

Dinner with great friends

at Salt.

Peter and Nina will be leaving Dar soon.

It's sad when friends leave.

But being able to enjoy an

awesome meal at Salt

(Katy's new restaurant)

makes saying goodbye 

easier.

Chocolate

Really?
Need I say more?

Birthday dinner with my boys

This year,
instead of a big birthday dinner
I spent the evening with my two favourite boys.
We had dinner at Osaka
and came home to cake.
It was perfect.

Watching Ethan at his first skateboard
activity

I was a nervous wreck.
Terrified he'd fall and spend
the rest of the year
in a body cast.
I love how his mate,
an advanced skateboarder,
helped him
and was so patient.
And he didn't break any bones.

Ladies night

We tried a new Iranian place.
The owner brought out
a sampler for us to,
well,
sample!

Writer's Workshop - Before & After

Show us a before and after

For the last couple of years,

I've been growing my hair.

For over 10 years,

my hair has been shoulder length,

or shorter.

I loved my long hair.

There's so much you can do.

Keep it down,

put it up,

straighten it,

curl it,

so many choices!

My husband,

on the other hand,

likes it short.

When we met it was super short.

He's been bugging me to cut it.

I kept refusing.

Then,

this summer,

I bought 7 pairs of shoes.

And to make up

for the credit card bill,

I went and cut my hair.

It's taken some getting use to

and it will grow back,

right?

Dark Places - Gillian Flynn

I am probably one of the few people

who did not like

Gone Girl.

So when I saw

Dark Places

in the bookstore this summer,

I kept on walking.

Then, 

I stopped and picked it up.

Then, 

I read the back over.

And then, 

I bought it!

And I don't regret it!

When Libby Day was 7 years old,

her mother and two sisters were murdered.

She testified against her 15 year old brother,

Ben,

and he was sentenced to jail.

Now, 

25 years later,

Libby is approached by a group called

The Kill Club.

They believe that Ben is innocent

and want her to help prove it.

Unlike many mysteries,

where half way through I

think I know who did it,

here I really wasn't sure.

The story jumps from the day of the murders

to present day.

Flynn gives you glimpses 

into what was going on

on the day of the murder

with everyone in the family,

and allows you to make your own conclusions.

Writer's Workshop - Ordinary

Write a blog post inspired by the word:

ordinary

It was suppose to be 

an ordinary flight. 

One we've done

a million times before.

You board a plane,

take a flight.

Easy peasy.

But not so easy this time.

The flight took off,

on time.

It seemed to be going smoothly.

When suddenly,

the captain announced

we were going for an emergency landing.

Two hours later,

sitting on a grounded plane

we get ushered into a

"more comfortable room".

Another plane is on it's way,

we are all assured.

Four hours later,

a plane arrives.

Finally.

Everyone is re-issued a boarding pass

and is told transfers have also

been issued.

Thinking all is ok,

we re-board.

Happy that we are all safe.

But the connections were not made,

so the ordinary trip

is a little more confusing.

But in the end,

we made it home.

Safe and sound.

An ordinary flight it was not,

but it did inspire this week's

post.

High Five for Friday

It has been 

AGES

since I last participated.

It's high time I return.

I always loved this meme.

I wonder why I stopped?

Well it's Friday

and that means

High Five for Friday!

Here are some of this last week's highlights.

1) Salted Caramel Ice Cream

I love ice cream.

And salted caramel.

Woohoo!

2) School mates

I grew up in Ottawa

and had some great mates.

This trip home,

we were invited to dinner

with a bunch of them.

Was fantastic!

3) Mates from Dar

I met Cam in Dar.

Her oldest and Ethan are the same age.

They've moved back to Ottawa,

so this trip,

we got to hang out!

4) Girl's Night

Every summer,

I'm with Ethan,

it makes it difficult to enjoy a movie.

But, 

every year,

a few of my cousins'

arrange a girl's night.

We hit a movie, 

and Ethan gets a boys' night.

4) The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe

Ethan and I read the book this summer.

I promised him

when we finished the book

we'd do a movie night.

Complete with pizza, popcorn 

and ice cream!

How has your week been?

Writer's Workshop - Cupcakes

Write a blog post inspired by the word: cupcakes

Cupcakes

Sweet and tasty

For all occasions

For all your desires.

Forget the cake!

Go for a cupcake!

Something for everyone.

What's your favourite?

Chocolate, vanilla,

red velvet?

Pumpkin, banana,

or carrot?

Coffee, caramel, 

or peanut butter?

With so many choice

how can you not get excited?

Icing, ganache

and sprinkles.

Top it off anyway you want.

Cupcakes!

Think I may need one now too.