The other night when I was on Facebook with my Momma I saw a phrase: "What a year this week has been." A lot has happened in the world this past week. I am a little dog and I don't understand it all, but I know it is very serious, and it means that my Momma is spending extra time at home with me. (This is the silver lining of the situation, if you ask me!)
I just wanted to send a note to my friends and let you know that I appreciate you all and am sending love and care. Please be safe and stay well!
I am trying to think of one nice thing a day. This helps. Today my thought is this: I am grateful that I have a soft, comfortable place here.
What are you grateful for today? Take care, and I look forward to talking more soon! Love, Abby xoxoxo
My Review The Happy Camper tells the story of Dillon Michaels. Dillon leaves her dead end job and commitment-phobic boyfriend in Colorado. She heads home to Oregon, where her grandfather and estranged mother live on the family farm. After a few nights sleeping on the old sofa, Dillon's grandfather gives her a vintage camper. This novel tells the story of how Dillon's life changes as she restores the camper into a little tiny home. Along the way she grows closer to her family, works on the farm, teaches swim classes, and even finds a new romance. I wanted to read this novel because I love vintage campers. I even have a Pinterest board about them! The camper in this book is a 1964 Oasis Aloha and I spent way too much time looking up photos, descriptions, specifications, and old brochures of this model. I absolutely loved the vintage camper details in this book. The author meticulously describes the process of restoring and decorating an old camper. It was a lot of fun to read about! Dillon is a very likable character. She is warm, kind, and caring, a hard worker with a strong independent streak. I enjoyed reading about her growth as a person. By finding that she loves restoring campers, she also finds herself. Jordan Atwood, who owns the small town hardware store, makes a fine book boyfriend. He is a genuinely decent, good guy -- and to Dillon's delight he also is a vintage camper fan. I loved the slow building romance between Dillon and Jordan, even as they dealt with the unwanted complication of her persistent old boyfriend. The Happy Camper is a fun, upbeat read - perfect for a leisurely weekend. It would also make a great beach read! I recommend it for fans of women's fiction, sweet romance - and of course, vintage campers! Book Synopsis Home is the place to heal . . . right?
At least, that's
what Dillon Michaels is hoping as she leaves her disappointing career
and nonstarter love life behind to help her grieving and aging
grandfather on his small Oregon farm. The only problem? Her eccentric
mother beat her there and has taken over Dillon's old room. After a few
nights of sleeping on a sagging sofa, Dillon is ready to give up, until
she receives an unlikely gift--her grandfather's run-down vintage camp
trailer, which she quickly resolves to restore with the help of Jordan
Atwood, the handsome owner of the local hardware store.
But just
when things are finally beginning to run smoothly, Dillon's noncommittal
ex-boyfriend shows up with roses . . . and a ring.
Author Bio Melody Carlson is the award-winning author of over 200 books
with sales of more than 7 million, including many bestselling Christmas
novellas, young adult titles, and contemporary romances. She received a Romantic Times Career Achievement Award in the inspirational market for her many books, including Finding Alice. She and her husband live in central Oregon. Learn more at www.melodycarlson.com.
Dear Friends, I hope you are having a great week! This past week one of my friends sent my Momma a link about Baby Peggy (Diana Serra Cary), who was a silent movie star. Baby Peggy recently passed away, and there was an interesting article about her silent movie career. (Thanks, Shari, for sending this!) The article had a clip with one of Baby Peggy's movies. I watched with Momma and guess what? The movie clip costarred a famous dog I'd never heard of!
Brownie the Wonder Dog was a 1920's dog actor. He appeared in 51 movies between 1918 and 1924. I was not able to find out much about his life - where he came from, who he lived with, etc. I did read that there was a French comic strip based on his life from 1926 - 1927, Les Aventures du Chien Brownie. I wanted to share the little three minute clip from Playmates (1921) starring Baby Peggy and Brownie the Wonder Dog. It is fun to watch, and I hope you enjoy it too! Wasn't that fun?! I loved learning about an old time famous dog I'd never heard of before this week. Love, Abby xoxoxo
My Review The Moonglow Sisters is a novel about three sisters: Gia, who owns a handmade kite business, is the sweet peacemaker in the family; Maddie has a successful TV show about home and lifestyle; Shelley is a free-spirit who has been living at in South America. The sisters have grown apart but come back together when their beloved grandmother, Helen, who raised them, has emergency surgery. This is their story. I wanted to read this novel because I enjoy women's fiction and beach reads. I had not read Lori Wilde before but loved the book cover and description of this novel. What an enjoyable book from start to finish! It is told in short chapters with alternating viewpoints. The reader gets to know the sisters slowly as they come back together in Moonglow Cove, Texas, to support their grandmother. The mystery of their estrangement unwinds through the book. The author does a wonderful job at characterization. Gia, who is such a sweet, kind person, was my favorite sister, but I came to like Maddie and Shelley too, over the scope of this novel. There is also a romantic story about Gia and her handsome neighbor, Mike. Mike is a carpenter and was Gia's childhood friend. She invents an engagement to Mike in order to convince her sisters to work on a wedding quilt that their grandmother wants them to make. Mike is pretty dreamy! He makes a great book boyfriend. I enjoyed the format of the book with little epigraphs about sewing and quilting introducing each chapter. The little coastal town of Moonglow Cove was almost a character itself in this book. I loved reading about it and felt like I'd spent some time on a beach vacation with this novel! I heartily recommend The Moonglow Sisters for fans of women's fiction and anyone looking for an enjoyable, rewarding beach read. Book Synopsis Welcome to Moonglow Cove, Texas, a place where your neighbors know
your name and the gentle waves of the Gulf of Mexico lap lazily against
the sands. It’s a magical spot, especially in the summertime… Once the town was the home of the Clark sisters—brought up by their
grandmother at the Moonglow Inn. Nicknamed “The Moonglow Sisters”, as
children they were inseparable. Then, a wedding-day betrayal tore them
apart and they scattered across the globe and away from each other. But
the sisters have at last come home… There’s Maddie: smart, sensible, and stubborn. Shelley, who ran off
to find her bliss. And Gia, a free-spirit determined to keep the peace.
It’s her impending wedding that keeps them together…but Gia has a
secret, and when her sisters find out all heck is going to break loose! The Moonglow Sisters continues Lori Wilde’s trademark storytelling to create an unforgettable novel of family, betrayal, love, and second chances.
Author Bio Lori Wilde is the New York Times, USAToday and
Publishers’ Weekly bestselling author of 87 works of romantic fiction.
She’s a three-time Romance Writers’ of America RITA finalist and has
four times been nominated for Romantic Times Readers’ Choice Award. She
has won numerous other awards as well. Her books have been translated
into 26 languages, with more than four million copies of her books sold
worldwide. Her breakout novel, The First Love Cookie Club, has been optioned for a TV movie. Lori is a registered nurse with a BSN from Texas Christian
University. She holds a certificate in forensics and is also a certified
yoga instructor. A fifth-generation Texan, Lori lives with her husband, Bill, in the
Cutting Horse Capital of the World; where they run Epiphany Orchards, a
writing/creativity retreat for the care and enrichment of the artistic
soul. Find out more about Lori on her website, connect with her on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
I received a copy of this book from HarperCollins and TLC Book Tours.
Dear Friends, I hope you are having a good week! I am doing fine, although it has been very rainy here, so my walks have been shorter than usual. The rainy weather gave me time to enjoy some dachshund videos online. I found a fun one! It features a bunch of dachshunds digging. They are digging so happy -- the dirt is flying! It looks like they may be planning to dig a tunnel that will connect somehow. They have certainly gotten a lot of digging done in their yard. There is some fun Keystone Cops type music playing as the dogs dig. You'll find the video here. It's from The Dodo channel on Youtube, which I like a lot! They have nothing but animal related videos. If you have a dog, does he or she like to dig? I walk on leash so don't get the opportunity. I don't really enjoy getting muddy so I am not sure I would be a big fan of digging in the mud. Wishing you a good week ahead! Love, Abby xoxoxo
