A Rather Exciting Announcment!!!

Hello Peeps!! I'm popping in briefly with a rather exciting announcment!!!!!

One of my very bestest real life friends IS STARTING A BLOG!!!!!!

She's suuuuuch a talented writer, (not to mention she's an awesome person as well) and I can already tell the blog is going to be amazing!!!! (Also the name of it is just great to begin with so it's already set up for awesomness)

So head right on over and give her a follow at.... *drumroll*

Imagination's Edge

Now go go!! Make haste!! Let us storm the gates and fill  her followers list!!

Yours truly,

Miss Woodhouse

Stay Happy :)

Sometimes, life isn't perfect. Sometimes, something that you thought was going to be really fun, turns out to be a total flop. Sometimes, that person you thought was your friend can end up doing something that hurts you. Sometimes you totally fail a test that you thought you did well on. Life happens, and a lot of life are these dissapointments that you didn't want, and sometimes, at the end of the day, you will find yourself saying... 

"But that wasn't how it was supposed to be..." 

These days can just drag you down and through the mud, and I know how it feels, I've had those day too. And I know also, that when this happens, sometimes all you want to do is dwell in misery,  because there's no reason to be happy anyways, right?

But what if, in our moment of misery and self pity, we sat up and looked out the window, and saw how gorgeous the sunset is? Or what if you paused to think about the adorable baby you saw on the bus today, or about that moment last week when you laughed with your friends until you couldn't breath. Maybe, we'll start to see, that even though things seem pretty bad right now, and life can seem so unfair, that you still have all those little, seemingly insignificant moments that happen to somehow, make your day a little brighter.

That amazing new song you just discovered, a rain storm, an impromptu road trip, getting your favorite drink at the coffee shop, that one friend who has the most amazing smile, rainbows, that new plot twist you just thought of for your book, that sweet "I miss you" text, that cute dress you found at the thrift store, freshly washed sheets, a new book, that OTP moment that makes you squeal and scrunch up your face because they are just sooooo adorable!!! All those little things that make you happy when you think of them, all those silly little reasons to keep smiling!!

I recently discovered a photographer whose work I really, really like, though that's aside the point. At the end of the caption in all of his posts, he finishes with the words "Stay Happy". And I love that. Life may be tearing us down, and things may not be going the way we want, but you can always find some small reason to stay happy. Maybe your drive to work was nice, maybe your outfit is on point, maybe you saw a really cute dog. If you try hard enough, there's always something to be happy about. 

And if today sucked, and nothing went the way it was supposed to, and you couldn't find a reason to smile, because we do occasionally run into awful days like that, just remember, in the words of our dear Anne Shirley, "Tomorrow is always fresh, with no mistakes in it."

And on top of all this, always remember that we have a loving Father who knows what he is doing. He has a plan for our lives and every bad day and failed test is just a step he is using to bring you one step closer to where he wants you. Our Jesus suffered such pain and torture, he had nails put into his hands and feet FOR US because HE LOVES US. That right there is reason in itself to be happy.

So my dear friends, I hope this post might help you a little bit next time you are having an awful day. Please remember that there is always something in this world, no matter how small, that can give you reason to smile. Stay Happy :)

Yours Truly,

Miss Woodhouse

Summer 2018

Salutations everybody!!

Well, I have officially started school...

Has anyone else's summer gone by ridiculously fast!?

This summer has been different than most summers I've had. For starters, I got my first ever REAL JOB at the end of the school year, so a lot of these three months I spent working.

Secondly, my friends and I have all reached the ages where everyone is starting to head off for college. About 1/2 of my friends are leaving for college this year, several of them going to colleges that are really really far away. 

I'm still taking classes at our community college, so moving away isn't quite here yet. It will probably several years more for me. It's still weird though, to see a lot of really great friends head off.   

But all that aside, here is a basic summer recap :)

//Enjoying//

All the lovely things of Summer that there are to enjoy :)

Swimming with friends, backpacking trips, frozen yogurt stops, starry nights, bike rides, church picnics, and swing dances

Also, kinda been going nuts over aesthetics lately, especially aesthetic pictures. I don't know why, but they just make me unreasonable happy ^.^

//Watching//

Downton Abbey

So my sister and I are watching this series for the first time, and OH GOODNESS I LOVE IT!!!

It tends to be dramatic, and I definitely would not recommend it for younger viewers, but that aside, it is a lovely, lovely period drama!!! 

The costumes are stunning, the houses are gorgeous, and I love the characters, save for the nasty few *throws very large version of the dictionary at Miss O'Brien and Thomas* (I despise those two sooooo much)

We are halfway through season two now. And I must know, but does anyone ship Sybil and Branson as stinkin' hard as I do?? I mean, the two of them are just.... just...aslkjghsejrhglw!!!! I LOVES THEM AND I WISH THEY WOULD JUST GET MARRIED ALREADY AND THAT SYBIL'S FAMILY WOULDN'T DISOWN HER IF THEY DID!!!!! *sobs*

Christopher Robin

I just saw this in the theaters and may I saw that it is one of the cutest movies I have ever seen!!! I absolutely loved it!! It was sweet, it was endearing, and who doesn't love Winnie the Pooh?! If you haven't already seen it, then you should!

(also Haley Atwell is gorgeous and was born to play a woman of the 40's!)

//Writing//

So I'm super excited to say that I am a chapter away from finishing my first ever novel!! 

I'm still working on my Peter Pan WIP that I mentioned awhile back, and it's come so far since the beginning, and I couldn't be more excited, though rather sad at the same time, to be nearly done with it!

When it's finished I definitely will be doing a post about it, and perhaps I'll share some excerpts :)

//Listening to//

Thought I might as well provide the links to a few of my favorites!

For You to Be Here; Tom Rosenthal

Thiiiis sooooong!!! It's so lovely, do listen to it!!

Rain; Simply Three

Anything instrumental is lovely, and I love the sound of rain in the background.

This is Why I Need You; Jess Rubin

Such a sweet song!!

Also lots of Owl City, Ed Sheeran, Lindsey Stirling, Sleeping at Last, The Chainsmokers, The Piano Guys, and Coldplay.

So there you have it!! A basic recap of my Summer!! 

And so school begins. Despite being sad to have to leave the laziness of Summer behind, I'm actually excited about this new school year! I have friends in many of my classes, which is always a blessing, and it will be nice to see school friends whom I haven't seen in awhile.

Btw, in case you haven't already noticed, I've changed my blog look! I actually changed it at the beginning of summer, But I haven't posted at all since changing it, so I thought I might as well give it a mention ;)

I promise that I will try to be better about posting!! I've been terribly absent lately, but I hope to be more present here in my little corner of the Internet :)

But for now, I hope you are all having a fabulous school year so far!! Good luck to all of you who are heading off to brave college!!

Tell me what you've been up to!! How was your Summer? How is school going?

Liebster Award!!

Yoohaloo Ladies! The lovely Elanor just tagged me with the Liebster Award, which is my first ever award!! I decided it was high time I pop in and answer the questions!

Acknowledge the blog that gave it to you and display the award.

Thank you so much Elanor!!! :D <3

Answer the 11 questions that the blogger gives you.

1. What is one thing you have in excess?

Ohh let's see...

Unwritten book ideas...? Does that count, cause I got plenty of those! 

2. How do you spend a lazy day?

Ooo I like lazy days. Usually I spend them writing, or occasionally drawing.

3.Who is your favorite author?

L.M. Montgomery hands down. I love her books to little bits <3

4. Are you more like your mother or your father?  Explain.

Hmm... a little of both I think? I think I've got a lot of my mom's mannerisms. My dad is a people person, and I AM NOT. AT ALL. But other than that, a pretty good mix of both I think.

5. What is your biggest pet peeve?

Well this is kind of a silly one, but if I have my music on shuffle, and someone walks in and messes with my music and stops my shuffle, it drives me crazy!! Because then I have to start it again, and it will replay songs I've already heard, and it will just drive me nuts!!

  

6. If you could spend a day with a celebrity, who would it be and what would you do?

THAT'S SUCH A HARD ONE!! Just one celebrity? Couldn't we make it like a celebrity get together...? 

Hmm...

I think I'll go with Lily James. We would walk around London together, and she would show me all the cool places. Then we would visit old bookshops, and have tea, and just do all sorts of fun, silly stuff :)

(my second choice would definitely be Tom Holland. 'Cause he's awesome <3 And the English accent gives him extra points ;))

7. What is one thing you hate that most people love?

Stranger Things. I don't get why everyone is so obsessed with it (sorry Stranger Things fans)

I've just never been a fan of scary movies in general, so yeah... not exactly my thing...

8. Give three words that best describe you.

Quiet, Adventruous, and Sweet. 

9. Which genre of music is your go-to?

I like several different kinds of music. From period drama soundtracks, to the occasional One Direction song (don't judge, they do have few good ones XD), to a lot of instrumental things like Piano Guys and Taylor Davis, to a little bit of Owl City. Yep. *nods head* I like a lot of different genres...

10. What is a little known talent of yours?

I sing, which I don't think very many people know.

11. If you could bring one fictional character to life, who would it be and why?

AGAIN THIS IS TOO HARD!! JUST ONE!! HOW COULD I EVER CHOOSE!?!?

UMMMM....

UMMMMMMMM......

*begins to hyperventilate*

I guess...

I think I'll go with... I guess Gilbert Blythe cause he's an absolute sweetheart, and I love him lots... 

Moving on before I suffer a heart attack!!

Give 11 random facts about yourself.

1.) I am one of those people who will burst into song if you say something that even vaguely sounds like a song lyric

2.) I am also one of those people who can leave the room singing along to a song I have playing, and when I come back to the room, find myself still right on time with the song

3.) I am a hardcore Pantser when it comes to writing, and it's not always to my benefit :P

4.) I have never been to Europe, but I really, really, reeeeally want to go someday

5.) I should be asleep right now, but I'm writing this instead XD

6.) I've never been to a concert of a music artist that I really admire, but I'm working on that ;)

7.) I am not a morning person at all...

8.) I am running out of facts...

9.) I am a slave to aesthetics. They make me happy :)

10.) I'm reading the Penderwicks right now and I love it!!

11.) It's not easy to type while laying down. I know because that is what I am doing right now

Nominate 11 blogs.

Let's see... I nominate

- Olivia @ Meanwhile in Rivendale

- Amaris @ The Storybook Journal

- Catherine @ The Rebelling Muse

- Cordy @ Any Merry Little Thought

- Tessa @ This Great Adventure

- Natalie @ Ramblings of a Redheaded Girl

- Kat N Lia @ The Singing Writer

- Katherine and Grace @ The Maidens of Green Gables

- Madeline Joy @ Tower of Joy

- Anna Holmberg @ Bookends and Bwopper-Eels

- MiddleEarthMusiscian @ Music, Mystery, Middle Earth, and Mitochondria

 Give them 11 questions to answer.

1.) Are you an Introvert or an Extrovert?

2.) Describe your fashion sense in three words

3.) Who is your current, or most recent, celebrity crush? (Mwahahaha)

4.) Do you like social media, or is it a waste of time in your opinion?

5.) Are you a Planner, or a Pantser, (or mayber a Plantser) when it comes to writing?

6.) Do you prefer milk chocolate, or dark chocolate (And if you say you don't like chocolate, I shall think you very odd indeed)

7.) If you could do anything you wanted for a career, without having to worry about money or anything like that, what would you do?

8.) What's the most recent book you read and what was your opinion of it?

9.) Do you prefer skirts/dresses, or jeans?

10.) Current favorite singer?

11.) If you could trade places with a fictional character for a day, who would it be and why?

So that's that!! Thanks so much for tagging me Elanor :D 

~ College Aesthetics ~

Every college semester that I have taken has had a different feel to it. Different colors, different people, different music. There's just something little about each one that is different from the last. So once when I was in a particularly aesthetic mood, I wrote this particularly aesthetic post. So here are my college semesters thus far, in aesthetic form.

{ 1st Semester }

Early, misty, Summer mornings // Long braids // Rhythm of Love by the Plain White T's // Jogs around the lake // Algebra notebooks // Last minute homework in the library // Singing exercises // Cherry Sodas // 

{ 2nd Semester }

Sun on your face // Laughing with friends // Card games // Study groups // Anxiously awaiting test results // Inside jokes and schemes // Hoodies // Short hair // Ice skating trips // 

{ 3rd Semester }

Rain drops // Glow sticks // Cozy mornings spent in a corner of the library, whispering with friends // Text messages // Fuzzy Sweaters // Umbrellas // Waving Through a Window by Owl City // Pie eating contests // Laughing until you can't breath // Walks around the campus // Secrets // Long drives in the fog // Sleepovers // English research papers // Old Journals // Dark blues and greens // Street lights //

{ 4th Semester }

Old friends // Skateboards // Broken Pencils // Long career discussions // Comfortable Silences // Sign Language // Amazing new friends // Black music notes // Backwards baseball caps // Guitars // History books // Movie nights // Faded jeans // The Time of Our Lives by Tyrone Wells // Walking to class with random friends you bump into // Book discussions // Freckles //

An Announcement + An Ask me Anything!

Hey peoples, guess what today is!!!

IT'S MY ONE YEAR BLOGOVERSARY!!!!!!!!! 

I've been blogging for one year today, and I'm super excited!!! 

Having a blog has been such a blast!! I love being a part of the blogging community! Ya'll are awesome! I love all the amazing comments you guys leave me, every single one makes me smile :D Thanks for sticking with me this long! You ladies encourage me so much!! <3 

Might as well show the good ole' blogger stats...

Followers ~ 24 

Pageviews ~ 4,755

Posts Published ~ 29 (quite productive aren't I? :P)

Top 5 Most Viewed Posts ~ 
Couples That Never Were, But Should Have Been...
In Which I Tell You Alllllll About Mine Self; Part 1
In Which I Tell You Allllll About Mine Self; Part 2                                            

IT'S ALMOST CHRISTMAS + Lately

Another Period Drama Tag

I have to go cram for finals, but I didn't want to let this occasion pass without at least acknowledging it, so I thought I'd do another Ask Me Anything post in honor of it! So ask away, and pass the chocolate cake while you're at it!!

Camp NaNoWriMo Wrap Up: How I Did, What I Wrote, All The Good Stuff

I'm alive!!!! Guess who dissapeared for more than a month without being polite and informing ya'll...

I do have a good excuse though. I participated in Camp NaNo for the first time ever!!! It was so great! I actually for real got some writing done!!

So how'd it all go...

(Also please ignore all the purple words in this post, blogger is being schnibly unto me and won't let me change them back to black)

 What I Wrote 

I worked on my Peter Pan story that I mentioned in this post, and I'm really happy to find myself getting so into this story. I'm not a consistent write. I will usually get about two chapters into a story before I get discouraged and quit. I didn't want that to be the case with this book, because I really liked this idea, and I wanted to finally see myself finish a book.

At the beginning of the month I was in a real writing rut. I'd reached a point where I didn't know where to go. So after staring at the screen for forever, I finally had to tell myself that I was never gonna reach my word count if all I did was nothing. So I just started by putting one word down at a time. A lot of it sounded boring, and a little discombobulated, but at least I was writing. 

After that I was doing pretty well, until I realized that I had no idea where I was going with this story. I had absolutely. no. plot...

So after doing much of the above, I enlisted the help of a fellow writing friend, and my sister (who, by the way, is killer at thinking up plots), and we finally ended up putting together a plot that I think is a pretty good!! It's very intricate, and intricate plots are always the best!! :D Anyone else out there who loves writing really tricky, intertwined plots?

So a little advice ladies. Never, EVER, start a book without at least vaguely knowing what your plot is going to be. It will save you much toil and tears, and set you up for success in your future life! 

 How I Did 

So because this was my first year doing NaNo, I decided to start slow, and set my word count goal for 20,000. School was also a big factor for deciding this because I didn't want to get no where near 50k and then feel discouraged because I didn't make it. So 20k was a good in-between. 

I happen to be the slowest writer I know. So I was a little worried about not getting anywhere near my goal. Somedays I got lucky, and the words came, and ideas flowed easily, and it was just like...

And then other days are more like...

In the end, I finished with 9 chapters, 40 pages, and 15,181 words. That wasn't my goal, BUT GUYS, that is the largest word count I've ever had in any of my books!! I went back and looked at a story I was working on when I was about 14, and was my most worked in WIP yet. It only had 7,000 words. I've passed that up by more than 8,000 words!!! 

I'm pretty proud of what I completed, I hope to actually finish this book before the next Camp NaNo rolls around, so that I can work on another WIP. (I should say one of her Ladyship's WIP's, for there are several...) ;)

Also, THREE WEEKS TILL SCHOOL IS FINISHED!!! I'm soooo ready to be done and start my summer. I need to do a lately post sometime soon, so we'll see if I get around to that. Also I want to do a post on my Peter Pan WIP. Like character overviews, music inspiration, excerpts, stuff like that. Let me know if ya'll would like to see any of these kind of posts!!

Sorry I haven't been commenting on anyone's posts lately!! I do read them, I'm just a little bit too busy to take the time to comment right now. I'm going to try and catch up on it though!!

So did any of you do Camp? How'd it go for you? I've gotta go revise an essay now, but let us not say goodbye, but as the French have it, Au Revoir!!

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society Book Review

Salutations everybody!! I'm finally sittin' myself down to write my first book review!

So I know that sometime ago, I'd heard of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, but all that I thought was, "Wow that's quite a name." and then moved on with my life. It wasn't until after I read this post, that I thought I would give it a go. The movie looks absolutely enchanting, (AND LILY JAMES AND JESSICA BROWN FINDLAY ARE BOTH IN IT AND THEY ARE TWO OF MY ALL TIME FAVORITE ACTRESSES EVAH, SO YES AND YES). But I decided that I wanted to actually read the book first this time, so I toddled myself down to the library and checked it out.  

GUYS

GUUUUUUUUYS

IT WAS SOOOOO GOOD!!!!!!!!!

I checked the book out on Friday and had finished it by Monday. It's the first book in awhile that has had me so completely hooked and unable to put down. It was funny, it was endearing, it was sad, it was sweet, just ADSHKDASKIRLDHFLD!!!!!

*pauses for a moment because Perfect by Ed Sheeran just came on, and the full beauty of this song must be appreciated, and because I can't sing and type at the same time*

*song ends and typing resumes*

The characters of this book are just so life like and I want to write letters to Juliet (Letters to Juliet, anyone? ;)), and walk along the cliffs with Dawsey, and make potions with Isola, and throw teapots at Gilly Gilbert, and go Eben's bonfire parties, and just be a part of their lives! 

I suppose I should talk about Juliet, as she is the main character. I absolutely love her. She is spunky, and caring, and endearing and has A+ sass #KILLERSNARKINESS #YOUGOJULIET

Her correspondence with Dawsey is the cutest thing. AND DAWSEY!!!!!!!!!!! I JUST LOVE HIM TO LITTLE ITTIE BITTIE BITS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I have a thing for the quite, shy type of guys, and Dawsey just tops them all. *sends hugs to Dawsey*

*MAJOR SPOILER ALERT* So, we also need to talk about Elizabeth. Cause she was amazing and I loved her, and couldn't wait until they found her and she and Juliet could meet. And then, they get the news that she was killed at Ravensbruck. *anguished sobs*

WHY?!?!?! WHY DID THE AUTHOR HAVE TO KILL HER?!? I WANTED HER TO COME BACK SO BADLY. I guess it ended up working itself out fine, and that really was the realities of the war, BUT I'M STILL UPSET!! *curls up in blanket burrito and eats chocolate* *End Major Spoiler Alert*

The imagery of the TGLAPPPS (you didn't think I was gonna spell out that whopper of a title every time, did you?) is absolutely fantastic. When *semi spoiler* Juliet finally goes to Guernsey, the way everything is described just absolutely makes me want to pack my bags and move there. The cliff top walks, the fields, the misty mornings, just PLEASE PLEASE CAN I GO THERE!!! #GUERNSEYORBUST  #I'MUSINGWAYTOMANYHASHTAGS

Unfortunately there was a little bit of content in the book. There was language sprinkled throughout, and one of the characters (I won't say who cause it would probably count as a spoiler) has a child out of wedlock, although that subject is skimmed over very briefly and the author does not go into detail. Also one of the characters, (whom I personally really liked, even after I found this out, although there was a noticeable decrease in the liking) is a homosexual. This has absolutely no bearing on the story, and wasn't necessary for any part of the story telling, so I have no idea why the author felt the need to stick it in there. *Growls at author* And of course, because much of this story talks about Guernsey during the German occupation, there are some harsh stories of the way the German's treat prisoners and locals of Guernsey. 

All this aside, it was a lovely, lovely book. I absolutely loved it and would highly recommend it. And now I'm super, super excited to see the movie. From what I've seen in the preview, I think they did a killer job of casting everyone!!! (except for Eben and Amelia. I'm not 100% happy with them yet.) I'm totally going to see it in theaters, and I'm dying for it to be released now!!!

So!! Have you all read this book yet? If you haven't, you totally need to!! If you have, what do you think of the casting choices? Are you excited as I am to see this movie!!!! LET US FANGIRL TOGETHER!!!