Mailbox Monday - May 25

Mailbox Monday is a meme started by Marcia of To Be Continued. Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came in their mailbox during the last week. It now has a permanent home at the Mailbox Monday blog.

Happy Memorial Day! I am behind in getting things posted, but it was a hectic weekend.

My baby celebrated a birthday. Hard to believe he is 33.

I planted the garden.

I am learning a new diet because the Lil' Princess insists she wants to eat healthier. 

Well, at least the furry residents of the house enjoyed some relaxation.

Being busy actually feels good. I'm out showing houses again--had an accepted offer from Saturday showings. I'm still ordering groceries online and having them delivered, but I go shopping for special occasions--like cupcakes for the birthday boy. I'm editing the first full length novel I ever completed. We are making plans to visit the Outer Banks like we do each summer. 

Massachusetts is in Phase 2 of re-opening. Do you know what that means? I can get a haircut! I'm not sure when the last time is that I've been so excited about that. 

My physical mailbox had a fun little surprise this week.

I also grabbed a couple of Kindle books.

That's it from my neck of the woods. Hope you have a great week.

As Seen in The Hunger Games Giveaway

As Seen in The Hunger Games is giving away a Tree of Life Salad Plate Set which comes in a set of four. They can be used for dessert or salad, and are a perfect addition to your dining table. Additionally, they are the PERFECT Christmas presents for anybody regardless of them being a Hunger Games fan or not.

Here are the plates that they are giving away.
http://www.asseeninhungergames.com/product/tree-of-life-4-salad-plates

You can visit http://blog.asseeninhungergames.com/as-seen-in-the-hunger-games-giveaway/ for your chance to enter and win!

Checking In

 

 

Where does the time go? It seems like only yesterday the Lil Diva (11) and the Lil Princess (8) were running around barefoot in the rain. It's a rainy Wednesday in Western Mass, as the remnant of Hurricane Issac makes its way up the coast. My fall vegetables will enjoy this break from the heat.

 

 

I've remained busy this week. Today is my deadline for the editing project I am working on. I'm over 2/3 of the way done, so I should make it without a problem. I've also been trying to catch up on reading. I recently posted a First Chapter Review of David Wesley Hill's At Drake's Command and a review of Healing Music by Carolyn Huebner Rankin. Today's review is of Back to Bataan by Jerome Charyn. I also recently finished the next book in Marilyn Meredith's Deputy Tempe Crabtree series, Raging Water, and the final book in the Freedom Series, The Deliverer, by Kathi Macias.

 

 

This weekend we'll be hosting a sleepover for the Lil Diva's 11th birthday, which was last month. iParty didn't have The Hunger Games party supplies in stock, but we managed to create our own theme by purchasing orange and yellow plates, napkins, and cups. I think I'll come up with some type of scavenger hunt for the kids. In addition, I'm going to make a punch and call it Tracker Jacker Venom. Some blueberries could be a good substitute for nightlock berries. And what party would be complete without some bread, the kind gift that Peeta gave a starving Katniss.

 

 

Hope you're having a great week.

Movie Review: The Hunger Games (2012)

Photo credit:  www.thehungergamesmovie.com

In what was once known as North America, the Capitol forces each of its twelve districts to send one teenage boy and girl to compete in The Hunger Games, a nationally televised fight to the death annual competition where only one victor can be named. The Hunger Games are a punishment for a past uprising by the districts.

When young Primrose Everdeen's name is called at the reaping, her older sister, Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence), volunteers to take her place. Relying only on her instincts and limited advice from her drunken mentor, Haymitch, Katniss must make impossible choices in the arena if she ever hopes to see her family again.

Having read The Hunger Games and Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins, the Lil Diva (10) and I were eager to see this movie. As an author, I especially enjoy comparing books to their film counterparts. Though I liked the books more, I was totally captivated by the movie. It had action, adventure and a hint of romance.

Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutcherson, who played Peeta Mellark (the other tribute from District 12), portrayed challenging roles to perfection. Hutcherson is so talented, it's hard to imagine him not being superb in any role, but he does so well as the shy, quiet son of a bakery family. Though what is amazing about Peeta in the book and in the movie, is how he knows exactly what to say and do to make the people in the Capitol want to root for him and Katniss.

Woody Harrelson (Doc Hollywood, White Men Can't Jump) played the role of Haymitch Abernathy. The first thing the Lil Diva and I thought when we saw him in the trailer was, "He doesn't look anything like Haymitch." Haymitch is a former District 12 victor of the games. Now serving as Katniss's mentor, he's supposed to provide direction and insight to Katniss on how to win the games. In between drunken stupors, he proves himself funny and helpful. Harrelson did a fabulous job of bringing him to life, despite his physical traits being totally off.

One of the largest differences between the book and the movie is that the entire movie is focused on the character of Katniss. While she is the narrator in the first two books, you get the feeling that the story is almost as much about Peeta as it her. You don't even get to really meet Portia (Peeta's stylist played by Latarsha Rose) in the movie, but you do get to know her in the books. You also learn a fair amount of information about some of the other tributes in the arena in The Hunger Games book, but the only two tributes who get any real time in the movie are Cato (Alexander Ludwig) and Rue (Amandla Stenberg).

The sole focus on Katniss also is responsible for downplaying her relationship with Peeta in the movie. Because the viewer isn't privy to her internal thoughts--which they get in the book--she doesn't really know exactly how Katniss feels about Peeta.

Director Gary Ross created an action-packed, intense movie with great effects.  It's no wonder The Hunger Games has taken the top spot at the box office the past two weekends. The soundtrack from this movie, The Hunger Games: Songs from District 12 and Beyond, debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 chart too. If you're looking for a good movie, you'll definitely want to choose The Hunger Games. This movie is rated PG-13 for, "intense violent thematic material and disturbing images - all involving teens." I felt it was on the edge of violent content for the Lil Diva's age group. The IMDB provides a detailed parent guide. Run time is 142 minutes.

I saw this movie in the theater on March 31st. I received no monetary compensation for this review.

You've Got Mail Mondays

I'm having one of those I hate Monday morning type of days. I fell asleep in the Lil Diva's bedroom last night. I woke up to realize I hadn't prepared the girls' snacks for school, my husband's lunch, or written the book review I have scheduled at The Book Connection. So, by the time I did all that and took my bath--read a bit of Little Did I Know by Mitchell Maxwell too--it was about 2 AM when I slid into bed.

Mondays are also grocery shopping day, which I total despise. If I could afford to pay someone to go for me, I would. Oh, and then I noticed I have misplaced my sunglasses.

Is anyone ready to ask if I want some cheese with my whine? 

At least my mailman was fairly kind to me last week. He didn't load the box up with junk mail and bills. The most interesting item received was a sample of Nozin®. The tag line for this product is: Think hand sanitizer for your nose™.  The package contains two prefilled ampules and a $2.00 off coupon. The 8-hour all natural formula (patented formula of moisturizing botanicals and naturally derived alcohol) claims to kill 99.9% of germs. It has a soothing citrus scent and is zinc free and gluten free.

You can check it out at www.Nozin.com if you want more information.

For books, I received Christmas Jars and Christmas Jars Reunion by Jason F. Wright. This came along with Chasing Mona Lisa by Tricia Goyer and Mike Yorkey. I won these from a giveaway at Reviews by Molly.

Just in time for the movie release of The Hunger Games, comes the book, Katniss the Cattail by Valerie Estelle Frankel.  This is an unauthorized guide to names and symbols in The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. The Lil Diva (10) and I read Collins's book in anticipation of the movie. She cannot wait to see it. Dystopian fiction is not my favorite genre, but I wasn't sure what the book contained, so we opted to read it together. Now she wants to move on to the next two books and I'm not sure I want her to continue. You can read my review here, if you're interested.

Finally, Banana Split by Josi S. Kilpack arrived last week. Each time I would see a new book come out in her culinary mystery series, I would say, "I'm going to read that one." My schedule never allowed it. So this time I am forcing it into my schedule, no matter what.

Hope you enjoyed taking a peek inside my mailbox.