“Fate is a very weighty word to throw around before breakfast.”

UPDATE: After reading The Raven King, I take back everything I have said about these books. I disapprove of how she ended it. I kind of hate the series, and no, I no longer recommend them because I was horrifically disappointed in the last book. 

So I figured... I ought to review Raven Boys.

Because Raven Boys is not a series I would typically read, and, while it makes me very happy, (who am I kidding, it stresses me out and makes me aggressively worry about *cough* certain characters.) it definitely has some stuff I feel like I should warn people about.

What Is Raven Boys?

(Because I'm rubbish at summaries, especially book summaries, I'm going to steal part of the one from the author's website.)

"There are only two reason a non-seer would see a spirit on St. Mark's Eve," Neeve said."Either you're his true love. . . . or you killed him."

For as long as she can remember, Blue Sargent has been told by her psychic family that she will kill her true love. She never thought this would be a problem. But when she-- a non psychic, sees the ghost of a young man who will be dead within a year, her unfortunate predicament becomes suddenly very real.

To make matters worse, she quickly realizes that the ghost she saw belongs to Richard Gansey, a young man attending The Aglionby Academy. (an elite, rich person school, with a raven for its crest, where spoiled, wealthy boys go to be educated before they set out to ruin the world.)

Blue does not like Raven Boys.

But Gansey and his friends are different from the rest. They're searching for the sleeping Welsh king, Glendower, because, legend has it, whoever finds Owen Glendower and wakes him, will be granted a favor. Blue is pulled into their friendship, and things start to get complicated: she doesn't want Gansey to be her true love, and she does not want to kill him. 

Just when it looks like stuff might be going well for Blue and her Raven Boys, it comes to light that there are others seeking Glendower, for reasons sinister, and disturbing.

The race is on, characters develop, and WOW, I AM REALLY WORRIED ABOUT GANSEY.

 source

THINGS I LOVED

So, Maggie Stiefvater is a really awesome author. She writes so freaking well! And after reading Scorpio Races, I was on a Maggie kick, and wanted to devour something else of hers, which is why I borrowed Raven Boys from Kat.

Raven Boys is really nothing like Scorpio Races, even though it's just as good.

I LOVE THE CHARACTERS

Even the ones who drive me crazy.

She doesn't have a single flat character in her books. They're all interesting and have these hidden characteristics, and layers that make you go, "Whooaaahhh,"

I JUST REALLY LIKE REAL CHARACTERS, OKAY?!

Blue is actually a likeable female book lead. (I have a problem, where I tend to find females in books so incredibly annoying.) Blue is awesome though. She's short (yay, I love short people! I'm short! Short people will rule the world one day.), she's spunky, and eccentric. She has her faults but she's not obnoxious. She's a little spitfire, is what she is, I like like her.

Gansey is so nice. He is such a good friend, and he tries hard to be normal. He doesn't treat people differently because they have less money than he does, he's just a good sort, all round.
People Are Not Nice To Gansey And It Bothers Me.
He's obsessed with finding Glendower, but it's not really selfish, it's more like he needs to find it because it's important to him. He's smart, and honest, and does his best to look out for everyone he cares about. HE JUST WANTS TO HELP, OKAY??

Ronan is a brat, I won't lie. But I love him and I can't help it because he's had a hard life, and he's damaged, and I like damaged characters. He's a fighter, and a hothead, and he has a problem with making bad decisions. If it wasn't for Gansey, he probably would have dropped out of Aglionby and run off to be a street fighter by now.
But for all that, he's incredibly loyal, when he's loyal. He's fiercely protective of his friends, especially Gansey. (They are like brothers and I am infatuated with their friendship.) He has a soft spot for animals, and I think with the right people around him, he could grow up to be a really good guy.

Adam frustrates me because I loved him in book one, and he went downhill in book two. I want to like him more, but he's got this persecution complex. (Which makes sense, considering his family life.) He's a scholarship student at Aglionby, but he resents wealth of any kind. He won't accept any financial help from his friends because he doesn't want them to own him. He's NOT NICE to Gansey, and he has plans for Glendower that worry me a little. I wish he would be kinder again, because he makes me sad how dark he's getting.

Noah is hard to talk about because he's not a loud character. He's quiet and sort of fades into the background when you're not looking. He is a sweetie and a gentle kind of person, and he adds a sense of calm to the group. He's also really sad.
I want to hug him, because he's sad.

Besides the main characters, you also have Blue's mother who is so odd, but I really like her anyway.

The Gray Man, that I was unsure about and won't say anything else concerning him, so I shan't give any spoilers. (I won't even say if I like him or not, because that's kind of a spoiler in itself.)

Blue's weird, psychic aunts who do things like Aerial Silk in their living room, and threaten hit men.

Gansey's sister who I vary between liking and finding her annoying.

Ronan's brothers who I can't decide if I like or not.

Adam's messed up parents.

Noah's past.

It's all very intriguing, and I am quite absurdly fond of everyone in a general book hug of love.

THE PLOT

It thrills and freaks me out a little, and that's okay. It's clever, and has all these intertwining threads, which make this particular reader go "whaaaaaaat?!" in true minion fashion. (A have a theory about Gansey, and how it's going to end, and it worries me. I worry. I am worried.)

THE WAY THE PSYCHICS ARE HANDLED

I don't really like psychics. I mean, I guess it's possible for people to have a higher sense of the supernatural, but seriously, let's not get carried away. I like the way Maggie Stiefvater explains the psychics, and doesn't make them witchy or satanic. (unless they're evil, but that's okay, because witchy and satanic are evil.)

ALL THE RELATIONSHIPS ARE FABULOUS 

Whether it's between Blue and the boys, between just the boys, between Blue and her mother, or between Gansey and Blue, the relationships feel real and not forced. They grow well, they're not like, "and all of the sudden I love you."

Let me reiterate my fandom war cry: I love friendships, and brother stories. (I like the occasional romance, if it's handled well.) I love family stories, and conversion stories, and mysteries, and Raven Boys has ALL OF THEM. It's a friggen miracle.

I ship Gansey and Blue. So hard. But I don't want to ship them, because if Blue kisses her true love she'll kill him! *sobs* I don't want my ship to be sunk with a kiss, okay? It will be sad and I am really, really worried about Gansey's fate, OKAY?

MAGGIE STIEFVATER'S WRITING STYLE MAKES ME REALLY HAPPY 

It's not typical young adult style. It doesn't patronize or talk down to the reader, it's beautiful without being flowery. Her descriptions are some of the best I've ever read, and yeah. I am a fan.

She sucks you in and you read voraciously and aggressively turn pages.


So okay, there we go. Stuff I liked.

THINGS I DIDN'T LIKE. 

So, they're teenage boys. Teenage boys curse. A lot. And I'm not talking mild words damn and hell.... (though they're included) I'm talking F Bombs and every variation of the S word, and all manner of bad words in between.

I have this talent where I just breeze over them and forget about them. Until I recommend it to someone and I'm like, oh yeah. Um. Awkward.

I know people swear, and swearing doesn't really bother me personally. I don't, but if you swear, I'm not going to shun you. But I wish there was less of it in this book, because there are a lot of F Bombs.

There was a really weird, kind of dark and uncomfortable scene involving pills and boys getting high. It was handled well, but yeah. It was creepy. I read it sort of squinty eyed and felt somewhat disturbed.

There was an awkward scene with kissing. It never got dirty, and I never felt like it went too far, but neither had kissed before and they were figuring it out, and it was awkward.

AWKWARD.

SO BASICALLY

Yes, I do adore this series. Yes, I do absolutely recommend it. But I'd say wait until you're at least sixteen.

If it were a movie I'd rate it PG-13 for swearing alone.

And if you don't like kind of dark fairytales, don't try it. (Well it's not dark. It's.... it's dim.... yeah, okay, it's a little dark.)

My sister preordered Blue Lily, Lily Blue, which is book three in the series, and if I'm really nice, she might let me read it when she's done.

I WOULD LOVE THIS.

Did I mention I have a theory about Gansey and I hope I'm wrong?

I hate waiting to read books.

It is stressful.

Go find the books. Read them. And let me know what you think.

Cheers!

 (PS, real quick. Do you guys like my reviews or are they annoying, and you wish I would stop?)

"Tell me what it's like. The race."

Let's talk Scorpio Races.

Oh my gosh, Scorpio Races!!

*le squeak*

It was fabulous.

So I'm going to review it. And the review will be peppered with my fanart because I read it and immediately obsessed and drew quite a bit. 

Summary:

Every November, the island of Thisby holds a dangerous event: The Scorpio Races. The riders must keep their vicious water horses from returning to the sea, and race to the finish line. Some riders live. Some riders die. 

Puck Connolly signs up -- the first woman to ever race.

Sean Kendrick is the returning champion, racing for more than just winning.

And it's November.

So the sea is calling to the horses.


*Dies*

Scorpio Races was one of those books I wasn't sure I wanted to read. I mean, my sister loved it, so I was pretty sure I would like it too. But it just sounded weird. Like a Hunger Games type thing. People racing demon water horses once a year. Lots of death. The race is an event. It was not really something I felt like I wanted to spend an evening reading, ya feel me?

But then Bella got it into her head to read it and sat about the house in various states of ecstasy, looking at me and wispering, "I ship it."

FYI, Bella ships everything.*

*lies. Bella only ships** almost everything. And only when there is an obvious possibility of a relationship.

**"SHIP." v e r b? Meaning to obsessively pair couples. For example, I ship Shawn and Jules from Psych. They are a couple, and they are adorable. Therefore I ship them. Hard.

ANYWAY. Bella wispering, "I ship it."  got me into the "Oh dear. It's a romance. I don't want to." stage.

So I dug my feet in and refused, because I can be a real stubborn little turd when I want to be.

Long story short, Between Bella and Kat, and Amy, I finally sat down and..... read it in one sitting. (maybe two. But the first four chapters didn't really count, since I read the great majority of the book in one sitting.)
And my final impression of the book was one of, "Why did I put it off for so long? I am a fool."

Because OH MY GOSH, you guys.

I want to buy it. Or get it for Christmas. Or buy it. It was so good. It was so, so good.
It's been a while since I've squealed and hugged a book to my chest in delight.

Okay, so let's talk characters:

PUCK CONNOLLY. 

"My mother always said that I was born out of a bottle of vinegar instead of born from a womb, and that she and my father bathed me in sugar for three days to wash it off. I try to behave, but I always go back to the vinegar."

Puck surprised me by making me like her. In books especially, (and specifically YA novels) I tend to find the leading ladies a royal pain. People try to write strong female characters and fail miserably by either making them A.) SO OBNOXIOUS I can't even deal, (like trying to go for sassy and sarcastic and managing only to portray utter brattiness.) or, B.) So depressingly self-sacrificing (generally in a selfish way. *coughKatnisscough*) that I find them appallingly lacking in any character whatsoever.... And then there's C.) The generic, self-serving snit that makes me run in fear of all teenage girls ever created.

Puck wasn't. Puck Connolly was spunky in a good way. She was brave without realizing it, she was kind of sweet in a mean sort of way. She's a lot more vulnerable than she lets on. She has a lot going on in her life, and the races are her way of controlling her environment. She's clever and cute, and reminds me a lot of.... Ireland. Her whole personality just reminds me so much of Ireland.

SEAN KENDRICK 

"Why do you stay?"
"The sky, and the sand, and the sea, and Corr."

Sean.... Seanyface is fabulous. He's one of those characters that will always be a little bit mysterious. You know that he's an orphan, and that his father died in the Scorpio Races. You know that he loves aspects of the races, and that he and his horse have a special connection. But that... that's pretty much it. He's reserved and quiet, even when he's the one narrating. He loves horses. Even the water horses. He's a lonely sort of character who is taken by surprise by Puck. He's actually very gentle and thoughtful.

Sean has a cool relationship with Corr, the water horse. It's epic, the way the author describes how much he loves Corr. He loves everything about that horse, he loves riding that horse, he loves racing that horse, he loves training that horse. He and Corr are a team.

"My thighs sting from the friction of the saddle. My arms ache from holding up two thousand pounds of hourse. I have forgotten what it is like to be warm and what a full night's sleep feels like, and what my name sounds like spoken instead of shouted across yards of sand.
I am so, so alive."
 

He is seriously one of the coolest guys I've read about in a while.

LET'S TALK STORY.

"It's the first day of November, and so, today, someone will die."

That. Is. The. First. Line.
It's odd how well it worked out.
They don't really portray the Scorpio Races as a good thing, which I liked, because people shouldn't portray evil water horses and death as a good thing.... that would be very wrong.

"Tell me what it's like. The race."

"What it's like is a battle. A mess of horses and men and blood. The fastest and strongest of what is left from two week of preparation on the sand. It's the surf in your face, the deadly magic of November on your skin, the Scorpio drums in the place of your heartbeat. It's speed, if you're lucky. It's life and it's death, or it's both, and there's nothing like it." 

Not a whole lot happens in the book, which is odd, considering it's genre, but it works so well, you don't even realize how little happens until you finish and try to do a review on it. It's written in such a way that it sucks you in and makes you care, whether you want to or not.

There is a little romance, but it isn't the focus of the book. It's more like a secondary thing. Neither character realizes that they like the other until someone else mentions it to them.

"She stands beside Corr, looking up at him.
I want her to love him."

They're drawn to each other, but the book isn't like, "And then Sean turned around, his dark hair glistening with ocean spray. I think I want to kiss him." It's more like, "Heeeey, he's interesting. I'm fascinated by his attachment to the horse that potentially eat his face." (Which is a vulgar way of putting things, and I'm sorry, Katrina. You probably hate me for that. :)

The writing style is.... I'm not even sure how to describe it. It isn't typical YA. It's... beautiful to read. And I don't usually go in for beautiful writing, but this is a special kind of beautiful. Maggie Stiefvater has a way of describing things so perfectly, it almost takes your breath away. Like, "WOW THAT WAS PERFECT, I KNOW EXACTLY WHAT SHE MEANS."

LETS TALK WATER HORSES

Okay wow. This was such a different take on water horses, I was infatuated. They come from the sea, and they're part of the sea, but they're still horses. They can be almost normal, or they can turn into monsters that are mad with the call of the sea. It's so neat. They're big and powerful, and magical... and yeah. I was quite taken with her take on them.

"The water horses are hungry and wicked, vicious and beautiful, hating us and loving us."

LET'S TALK SETTING

I have never wanted to visit the ocean so badly in my life. The way she describes the island makes me want to travel to Ireland and sit on cliffs, in the wind, and watch water horses come out of the waves. The island is wild place, strong and unpredictable, like the sea it's in. You feel like you're there, and that is so awesome.

"Happiness isn't something this island yeilds easily; the ground is too rocky and the sun too sparse for it to flourish." 
 

SO BASICALLY

You should all just read it. There are some mild swear words, but nothing a teenager can't deal with. It's exhilarating and exciting. The writing style is awesome, the characters are awesome, the story is really awesome, and in case you couldn't tell, I highly recommend it.

It's the first day of November.
And so,
today,
someone will die.

Shhhhh, this post should have been up on Saturday.

Hello, hello, blogging friends!

Yes, I know. It's been over a week since my last post. This is frightful... I mean, how do you guys cope without me!? *coughCaitcough* 

Let me explain. I have a job now. (All hail the brave Treskie for tackling that terror.) This isn't really an excuse though, because I've had plenty of days off.

In actuality, the reason I haven't blogged, it because.... last time I turned on my computer.... it did.... this.

NO REALLY. IT LITERALLY DID THAT. (maybe not to that extent, but there was definitely  smoke pouring out of it's intestines.)

Except it felt more like:

And then I went:

And was like:

And I haven't turned it on since. I hope I can salvage my pictures and stories. I need those to be okay.

And I miss my butterfly laptop. Do you know how hard it is to blog, email, and comment, without a computer? Not awesome.

I finally got around to drawing. I spent the last few afternoons on the back deck, deliciously overheated, sipping ice water, with my sketchbook on my lap and pinterest handy for inspiration.

So we have the cowboy.... crooning. Do cowboys croon? Whatever, he's strumming and singing and even though it's a rough sketch, I really like it.

And then we have the random couple because I have this thing for drawing couples. It's a fetish, really.

Then we have the song lyrics + dancer that I did to my current favorite Christina Perri song.

The picture I did to this quote I saw on pinterest. I might have totally teared up when I read it. Yep. Those are my emotions, running rampant.

Epically, I get to show you the commissions I did! lalala. Yes, I blurred out her name for privacy.

And finally: Agents! I'm really proud of this one. I think it turned out spiffingly.

What do you think? Yes, no, maybe? Which one's your favorite?

Unfortunately, since I'm borrowing someone's computer, that's where I'm going to end this here.

I love you all!

~~~Treskie

"A Test of Loyalty" cover reveal!

I need to post more than once a week.

I realize this and shall attempt to be better about it.

Anyway.

Today is the cover reveal for Jack's new book!

*happy dance*

More happy dances!

Alright enough of that madness.

Look at this awesome cover!!

 

A Test of Loyalty

 

Upon learning he is one of the sons of the now dead king, Prince Lachlan is forced to leave the only home he has ever known. Fleeing for his life, his step-brothers a step behind, Lachlan finds safety and friendship with a young seamstress named Magda, a hermit, an Elf, and two Dwarf brothers. Determined to keep the young prince alive, Magda and the others seek out help in the surrounding Nations.

Everywhere they go, the fugitives are constantly turned away. They are followed by Lachlan's half- brothers who are determined to kill him so that one of them might take their father's crown and become the next king. With every place Lachlan is taken, his brothers close in and when the finally catch up Lachlan is forced to face the question that has been haunting him since he left home.

Lachlan was saved in the hopes he would become a better king then his father and his brothers. But the last thing he wants is to sit on the throne. If he refuses the crown, will there be anyone willing to fight to keep him alive?

I need to get my hands on the first one, so I can read it because... *eyes Jack accusingly* I haven't read it yet.

The Jack of Awesomness

About Jack:

Jack Lewis Baillot has the ability to wear a red shirt because she is convinced she is Scottish and therefore immune to expendable dying. 

It also helps that she has a last name.

Jack claims the title of Author, which makes her feel like a Time Lord when she capitalizes it. She has a sonic pen which deepens her Time Lord claims. She enjoys a good Science Fiction story though spends most of her time writing Fantasy and Steampunk, or a mixture of both.

She believes cliff hangers are terrible and feels the need to apologize over and over when one of her books ends on one.

When Jack isn't writing, which doesn't happen often, she goes on long hikes through the ice lands she calls home. She believes she will one day meet the Abominable Snowman and share a cup of hot chocolate with him.

You can learn more about Jack's other published work and upcoming books at her website, jacklewisbaillot.com

Seriously now, she is quite a delightful author and you are missing out if you haven't read her books.

And now I must go.

We are going to a Renaissance Faire and I'm excited.

Cheers to you all!

The Frenchiest Fry

Picture Saturday || Mostly gushing.

So this week, I was not drawing much.

I either draw non-stop, or I don't draw at all, and there is no in between.

Seeooooooooo.

Le Completed Dragon. (Which turned out with me going, "Hmm. I can do better, we go again?")

Okay, there's this series that Le Jack made me read. 

And it turned out to be the reason why I didn't draw this week. I sat there going, "ASDLKFJASDFK. *dead*"

I haven't been so emotionally involved in a book since the Attolia series. (Eugenides, anyone??)  

OHMYGOSH, YOU GUYS! Read the books. Reeeeaaad the books. I might see if I can do an official review about the series, because honestly, they are amazing. I plan to own them. (My birthday is in July, if anyone loves me.) 

So much loooove. 

So I immersed myself in the series this week, and read them in like four days. And then I finished the last book yesterday, and was like:

Cue le fanart. 

I really recommend those books. *nods* 

Anyway, someone just turned on Real Steel, and since my life revolves around boxing movies....

I'm just gonna...

gonna....

Picture Saturday + Update

There is so much going on in the living room right now.

Nothing special, just kids running around screaming "you fight the fairies!" (which, I'll admit, was my bad, for shouting "Fight the fairies!" in the first place.) There are people singing loudly to Taylor Swift and Hayley Westenra. Bella is sitting next to me cackling in fiendish glee over someone's pain regarding The Winter Soldier. The dogs are barking. I keep feeling the urge to read aloud hilarious pinterest pins.

I'm really distracted.

*crosses eyes*

RIGHT. Picture Saturday. I'm not gonna lie, this week was a bomb when it came to drawing. I did not feel like drawing.

So we have two. We have the one I did, spur of the moment, before dinner.

YOU SMELL THOSE FLOWERS. 

Annnnnnnnnnnnnnnd! *drumroll* We have the Doctor Who fanart that I ended up being really proud of. It even looks like them!

Boom! 

And now for the update. 

* I've been re-reading the Gallagher Girls books. They're quite hilarious. There's something about the matter-of-fact way that Cammie says things that makes me chortle. 

* My friend found out that I hadn't seen Lion King, Tarzan, or 101 Dalmatians. She was so indignant that we ended up having a sleepover and a movie marathon. (Cue insane cackle. Whatdoyoumean,toomuchcaffeine?)

*I have my driver's test on Tuesday. 

I'M FREAKING OUT. 

Please pray for me!

*It snowed again. It's cold and gray. Yay, spring!

*I'm almost done with making my etsy shop an actual thing. Lalalala. When it's up I shall post it and make a big deal about it. :) 

*We're going to have tea and cookies and watch Red 2 tonight. 

*I'm excited. 

*That is all. 

FIGHT THE FAIRIES!!

Yours sincerely:

The Frenchiest Fry

"May these memories break our fall" (a.k.a. Jack is gone and I'm depressed.)

JACK'S VISIT WAS AWWWESOME!

Seriously, that's the most fun I've had in a long time. I can honestly assure everyone who follows her, (and if you don't, why not? Get over there and follow her now.) that she is just as lovely and hilarious in real life as she is on her blog, and I am so happy we got to meet her for real.

We kept bursting out with the "We gonna partay like it's EIGHTeen Eighty-eeeiiight!" from Psych the Musical

I had this song stuck in my head for a lot of the visit and I think it's highly applicable to how I felt while she was here. 

 I said, "Remember this moment."

in the back of my mind.  

That night we stood with our shaking hands

the crowds in stands went wild.
We were the Kings and the Queens
And they read off our names.
The night you danced like you knew our lives
Would never be the same
You held your head like a hero
On a history book page
It was the end of a decade
But the start of an age.

I will admit that I was a bit nervous. We're all shy. She's also shy. I had visions of us meeting each other and nodding and smiling and being highly uncomfortable.

That didn't happen.

Although, my dad may have called us at the airport, to warn us that if SHE turned out to be a HE, to leave, because she/he was probably a murderer.

True Story.

Jack!

She kind of just slipped right in to the family.

So we did fun things.... like went to cool shops with beauteous paper weights, and also the most epic kaleidoscopes I've ever seen.

And then we came home and watched Leverage. See, the goal was to get Jack through all five seasons in two weeks and one day. Challenge accepted.

On the first Sunday, we went to the meadow and read and talked and it was really peaceful.

Long live! The walls we crashed through
All the kingdom lights shined just for me and you
I was screaming long live all the magic we made
And bring on all the pretenders
One day, we will be remembered

She wishes to remain anonymous, so we will have a bunch of pictures like the one below, because really, we need pictures of Jack, without showing her faaaaace. 

Jack introduced us to John! (I love John!) But unfortunately, I cannot help but refer to him as Jawn, and not John. 

Jaaaaaaaaaawwwwwwwwwwwwn

 

And then we went home and watched more Leverage. We had 77 episodes to get through, people!

The day after that, we went to a different meadow. One we could walk to. We brought books and cameras and talked.

 

And then!!!! You guessed it. More Leverage! (We were up to season two by now. I think we'd watched a Tim Hawkins' concert too, and the Three Amigos.)

Jack, this gif is just for you. LOL!

Next came a hike up to Cascade Lake. We were having really beautiful weather for the first part of her visit and the hike was really fun.

I said remember this feeling
I passed the pictures around
Of all the years that we stood there
On the side-lines wishing for right now
We are the Kings and the Queens

You traded your baseball cap for a crown
When they gave us our trophies
And we held them up for our town

 And the cynics were outraged
Screaming "this is absurd"
Cause for a moment a band of thieves
In ripped up jeans got to rule the world

And then home.... and..... Leverage. =)

I MADE THIS GIF!!

At this point, Sammie was comfortable enough around Jack to curl up next to her and go to sleep. I told you she became part of the family. (Sammie eventually started going, "This is my Jackie. She's my big sister." and it was adorable.)

Also, by now, we were all booping each other in fine Supernatural fashion.

I made this one too

In between trips to Starbucks and Jamba Juice and other drink places in town, we did a lot of this:

 And this:

 Also this:

See? Jack likes to read in the sun, just like us! Lalalalalalala! Normalcy is such a rare thing to find in other human beings.

Some days we'd just stay home and read, or talk, and it was relaxing. Other days we'd mix in sitting on the pier and looking at the lake.

Long live the walls we crashed through
All the kingdom lights shined just for me and you!
I was screaming: long live all the magic we made
And bring on all the pretenders
I'm not afraid

Courtesy of Jack

Also courtesy of Jack

 JACK

 NOT JACK

And then came the day that we went to thrift stores and got clothes and Jamba Juice. WHICH reminds me.... I FINALLY GAVE A FALSE NAME. TWICE! I was Jules. And then I was Jo.

Jules

Jo

Heeeehehe.

Anyway. Jamba Juice also included going and sitting in a park for a while, because it was really warm, and fruit smoothies + warmth = delight.

Long live all the mountains we moved
I had the time of my life fighting dragons with you
I was screaming long live that look on your face
And bring on all the pretenders
One day, we will be remembered 

This involved Bella taking an embarrassingly awful 

picture of me grooving, Dean style, to Heat of the Moment

So as payback, I might have taken a picture of her falling asleep in the car on the way home. 

Twice

Home again, home again. 

Terrible picture, but there you go. Sorry. *Grin*

MORE STARBUCKS

CAFFEINE

More of this: 

We spent a day at Barnes&Noble. I freaking love that store, you guys.

I OWN THIS. (thanks, Kit. lol)

 More Jamba Juice

Sammi came over and spent the night at one point....

PARTAAAAY! (Like it's 1888...)

More booping. Everyone was booping everyone by this time.

Chloe parked herself on that counter while we made dinner, and sang with much gusto to Sparks Fly and Long Live.

Hold on to spinning around
Confetti falls to the ground
May these memories break our fall

We even taught her how to play revenge! (a card game that needs speed, accuracy, and power... actually, just speed and a good eye for pairs.)

And about this point, I got clever and starting yelling at her to cover her face in pictures. Literally, "COVER YOUR FACE, JACK!"

She was very obliging.

Coffee!

Sammi joined us for the above and then we went and hung out at Mahri and Amy's cabin for a bit.

COVER YOUR FACE, JACK!

And right after that....

 

This is Jack's last day and it was kind of bittersweet, because we were having fun, and all, but there was that inevitable sadness in the back of my mind that made me go, "We could just.... sleep in too late and make her miss her flight..."

Will you take a moment, promise me this
That you'll stand by me forever
But if God forbid fate should step in
And force us into a goodbye
If you have children some day
When they point to the pictures
Please tell them my name
Tell them how the crowds went wild
Tell them how I hope they shine!

Cover your face, Jack!

Amy and Jack

Beware the Weeping Angels

So we made gnocchi for dinner. (Jack helped roll them off forks and it was fun.)

We also made strawberry pound cake and it was delish... we ate it while we watched the LAST EPISODE of Leverage! We did it, guys! We watched five seasons, and only skipped three episodes.

After that, just us older girls went to the lake to watch the sunset. It was cold and snowy, but epic, because... we make all things epic.

There were actually so many pictures from this that I had a hard time choosing which ones to post.

Long live the walls we crashed through
I had the time of my life, with you
Long, long live the walls we crashed through
All the kingdom lights shined just for me and you
I was screaming long live all the magic we made
And bring on all the pretenders
I'm not afraid

COVER YOUR FACE, JACK!

Me and Jack

Mahri and Jack

Singing, long live all the mountains we moved
I had the time of my life fighting dragons with you

The snow looked like shooting stars to mah camera

 JAAAACK!

 I even took a video, which everyone allowed me to upload. Honestly, I couldn't have asked for a nicer vacation. It was really perfect. 

Between watching Leverage, (and The Three Amigos, The Italian Job, TWO Tim Hawkins concerts, The Sorcerer's Apprentice, 42 [the baseball movie], Kate and Leopold, AND The Eagle..... What? So we watched a crud load of films! SO WHAT?)  and the quoting, and the tickling, and the sharing of hatred of a certain fictional character, Jack fit in so well, and we all got along... she's pretty much been adopted as another sister. (She and Sammi both.)

And long, long live that look on your face
And bring on all the pretenders
One day, we will be remembered 

I am so happy we got to meet her, and I am so depressed that the visit went by so fast. We have all been moping a bit. *Sob*

 

L-R from back row, Jack, Bella, Kat, Amy, Mahri, and me

So, Jack! We miss you already! When are you coming back?

Witch. (it's not an insult if you know why I call her that.)