Where is Atlantis?

Austyn wanted to know about Atlantis one day. I don't even know what made him think of this, but I went and pulled out as many books I had in our home library that I thought might have the story of Atlantis. I didn't find much (which is a miracle if you've ever seen our library). We searched on the internet, but didn't find as much as we'd like. I ordered these books from the library. I recommend them to give a good intro into Atlantis and the many places that have been searched and studied to try and find Atlantis. Is it a real place or not? That is the question that still remains. Austyn loves mysteries, so this real life mystery was very interesting to him!

Legos Never Die!!!

 Legos are popular in our house. I have so many posts on this blog with Legos! Here is an aircraft carrier.

 Austyn also made many other things lately. Here is a house, vehicles, and people.

 This is a closer view of his house, showing the tub, toilet, table and more.

 When Zoe saw how great his house looked she decided to make one too. I helped her.

MicroSoft Surface

We have had the Surface for a while (by MicroSoft). We like it. It's easy to use and comes with many commonly used programs already on it. The great thing is that it keeps track of what the kids do and sends an update to our email. It even lets us know what they search. There are some great apps already as well. It has a stand built into the back of it and we purchased the keyboard. Although we still love our iPads, it works well for us!

Easy-Bake Oven

I'm not a baker! I say that with total confidence! So, an Easy-Bake Oven works well in our house. Zoe got one for Christmas, and we've gotten a great deal of use out of it. It's almost fail-proof. The new ovens are much different compared to when I was a kid. You just turn it on and push the little pan part way through the oven. When it is ready you push it farther through and use the flipper to pull it out the other side. The instructions are easy and, usually only require a little bit of water (measured with measuring spoons). I don't like the instant mixes usually, but Zoe really wanted this and loves to bake. It just seemed to make sense, because of my lack of ability in this area. She loves it!

Deals at Zellers!

If you live in Canada, it's likely that you live near a Zellers and since they are all closing their doors, there are some good deals there in books. Here are the books I picked up for 30% off. The prices are suppose to improve even more as the closures approach. This would be a good time to go there and pick up some great books!

The GoodReads 2013 Reading Challenge

Wondering where I've been? Well, I joined the Good Reads Reading Challenge for 2013. I joined it late and have been trying to catch up! I've aimed high for my goal, so it's been a fun challenge to try and catch up. I love to read and am even more now of how much I love it by giving myself a kick in the pants to read more. I especially like to read what "I" want since I usually read to the kids and just read what they want. It's been great!

2013 Reading Challenge

Racingmom has read 8 books toward a goal of 100 books.

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8 of 100 (8%)

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How do I plan on reading 100 books in a year? I read many types of books. I will summarize what types of books we use.

I read e-books. They are great because with an iPhone I can read anywhere. I can get e-books from the usual online places like Kindle and I can also borrow them from my local library.

I listen to audiobooks. The app/website I use for this audiobooks.com. I can download two books on each device at any given time. These books can be listened to at lunch time, bedtime, when watching the kids practice a sport, or while cleaning the house. 

I also read good, old books! We have a huge library of books here, with many of them still unread and we visit the library on a regular basis.

I've been including books that I've read to the kids, as long as the books are long enough. Wish me luck and if you love reading, maybe you want to join in and set your own reading goal for 2013!

Book Sharing Monday - And What Comes After a Thousand?

 This is probably the best book I've ever read about loss! 

 The story starts out with a wonderful friendship between Lisa and Otto. 

Otto dies and Lisa is left to deal with the loss of her friend. She continues on to do all of the things that Otto loved, but feels that people just don't understand.

This was an excellent book!