-
My Favorite Books this Year
Hello everyone! It’s Mattie. This week, I just wanted to share a few books that I’ve really enjoyed this year. The Sherwood Ring by Elizabeth Marie Pope ⭐⭐⭐⭐ “Newly orphaned Peggy Grahame is caught off-guard when she first arrives at her family’s ancestral estate. The house is full of mysteries and ghosts. Soon Peggy becomes involved with the spirits of her own Colonial ancestors and witnesses the unfolding of a centuries-old romance against a backdrop of spies and intrigue and of battles plotted and foiled.” This book was written in 1958 and has an almost dual timeline between then and Colonial New York. The synopsis sounds strange, but don’t let…
-
Finding My Secret Gardens
A few days ago, while I was at work, I remembered something. I was tired, bored, ready to go home; I was generally just fed up and grumpy. But as I worked, I remembered something that I hadn’t thought of in years. When I was in my younger teens, I decided almost subconsciously that I would start to see the beauty in everyday life. I’ve been reading The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett, and it has awakened a wonder for the world around me that I think I had lost. The joy the children see as the spring arrives, and the wonder they have as they watch everything grow…
-
In the Midst of Hardship
Amidst all the preparations for the oh-so-special Thanksgiving meal, I had a few thoughts that I wanted to share with you. For some people, the holidays can be very painful. The last few years have been particularly hard for me and my family, especially around the holiday season. Sometimes it seems like I’m faking it. I smile, I laugh, I eat turkey and dressing and play games. How can I let myself enjoy it all when deep down there is so much pain? I feel as if I’m waving away the pain, acting as though it never happened. But I have come to realize that enjoying the times I have…
-
Sunbeams
Hello everyone, this is Mattie! I just wanted to share a quote with you that I’ve had hanging up on my bookshelf for a few years. It’s from The Twits by Roald Dahl. “If a person has ugly thoughts, it begins to show on the face. And when that person has ugly thoughts every day, every week, every year, the face gets uglier and uglier until you can hardly bear to look at it. A person who has good thoughts cannot ever be ugly, You can have a wonky nose and a crooked mouth and a double chin and stick-out-teeth, but if you have good thoughts it will shine out of…
-
Our Top 10 Books of 2020
Hello everyone! For the past two weeks, Amelia and I have been thinking about our favorite books we have read this year, and what makes them our favorites. Even though it’s a long one this week, we hope you enjoy watching our video, and hopefully learn about some new books to read! Thank you for watching! – Mattie Grace
