1. If I Stay by Gayle Forman was A-MA-ZING. Enough said.

2. I forgot to put Charlie St. Cloud on yesterday's novel/movie list. I saw the movie first (hello Zac Efron) and read the book later. This was one of those rare cases where I liked the movie better. (But again- hello Zac Efron.)

3. The house is strangely quiet with two of my kids gone. Except when Kori throws a tantrum because she doesn't have her older brother and sister to play with. Sigh.

4. Why do people have to force deeper meaning into Jane Austen? No her books are NOT about slavery, lesbianism, incest, or whatever else you want them to be about. They are about women trying to make the best of the world they live in. They are about people. And they are about love. So there. If you have a degree or wrote your thesis on her or are somehow a Jane Austen expert- feel free to curse and contradict me to your hearts content. As long as I can't hear you, I don't care.

5. I got the WORST splinter in my foot yesterday. That's what my intolerance for shoes brought me. I'm not joking when I say it was the most painful splinter ever, causing my foot to ache and me to scream when my husband had to perform an emergency sliver-ectomy- which turned out to be a complete failure because after half an hour of digging into my foot... nothing. It's still there and I finally gave up because I'm wimpy like that. Which means I'll be limping around until the thing forces itself out. (You better hurry you crappy splinter or I'm gonna... oh wait, I'm not gonna do anything cuz I'm too wimpy.)

6. Note to all the singles out there: do NOT go on a date to Five Guys Burgers and Fries. It's so messy, it's inevitable you'll end up with ketchup on your face. Or in my case- your lap. Luckily I wasn't on a date, but with the man who swore to love me no matter how much ketchup gets smeared onto my jeans.

7. Taking notes while reading a book kinda sucks. Although I'm really delving into the characters in a way that flying through the book never allows. I'm doing this because my new WIP is me trying a modern take on a classic. We'll see how it turns out.

8. Captain America was a surprisingly good movie. Not only was it funny and I loved the WWII plot line, but it didn't have any swearing (I don't think), sex scenes, or graphic violence. Shocking for a movie these days. I recommend it if you're into superhero movies and you don't mind the inevitable cheese that comes with them. And Chris Evans is a bonus (plus it's funny to see him all teeny-weeny).

9. Like all the fans out there, I'm still waiting... and waiting... and waiting... Meanwhile, I have to listen to their oldies to tide me over (above and below).