Written by the lesser known Bronte sister, Agnes Grey is a  fairly short book composed by Anne Bronte. It follows a few years in the life of young Agnes, a daughter born to parents who married for love and not for money, which their income is lacking. To help with the pecuniary situation, Agnes decides to pick herself up and leave to be a governess. With some reluctance, Mrs. Grey allows her daughter to go, but warns her it will not be what she thinks. Nevertheless, Agnes is sent to a home with children who rule their parents. After a few months of horrible spoilt children, Agnes is then sent to a calmer home, but still with its faults. While there presumably she meets the curate, Mr. Weston, and the two grow to enjoy each others company. I will leave the rest for you to read on your own:)

I would say that the book is well written, with a flowing style of writing, yet the only thing I wished for in the story was perhaps a little, okay a lot more detail in the plot, with perhaps some twists or obstacles, but nonetheless it was still an agreeable read.

~

Our family also has enjoyed the BBC costume drama, Little Dorrit based on the book by Charles Dickens. My review is from the perspective of one who has not read the book. It is 7 and a half hours long, with a tremendous cast, and lovely filming. A lot of actors can be seen amidst dozens of other BBC adaptations, which gives them a familiar feel.

from left to right: Mrs. General, Mr. Meagles, Pet Gowan, Mr. Gowan, Flora Finching, Mrs. McClennam, Arthur McClennam, Flintwhinch, and Affrey

Little Dorrit is about a young lady born in a debtor’s prison with her poor father and a host of friends. She begins work for an elderly lady, Mrs. McClennam, whose son has been abroad for 15 years and who has come back due to his father’s death. But the house of McClennam has a secret many try to hide and unearth.

Amy Dorrit

The storyline brings sinister villains, mainly a Frenchman named Rigaud, extremely lovable characters such as John Chivery, interesting inhabitants like Mr. Pancks, and plenty of warm, detailed, and relieved moments. However the story does contain sensual expressions, a somewhat bloody suicide scene, and violence (usually in the presence or right after the presence of Rigaud).

Arthur McClennam

Despite the previous, I enjoyed the movie, and have been able to re-watch it many times. I rated it with the likes of Bleak House, although I think I enjoy Bleak House a tad more than Little Dorrit, but Mum really enjoyed Little Dorrit, more than most costume dramas.

Thanksgiving is sadly more associated with turkey and food than with honest thankfulness to our Lord. I unfortunately found myself thinking today of food and family more than thankfulness. We, as Christians, are able to see Thanksgiving in a completely monumental way as compared to those who do not believe in the salvation of Jesus Christ who died for us. That is what our lives should be based on, and Thanksgiving allows us to see how much we have to be grateful for. (Though everyday should be such a day)

Today, as our family told of two things we were thankful for, I put in my contribution. (#1 Conditioner and #2 Bamboo Knitting Needles) Yet as I went through the list, it was apparent there are so many things that we don’t even recognize as blessings though they are present in our lives.  With an affliction, the Lord has given blessings aplenty. One of my favourite verses (Psalm 119:75) states:

“I know, O Lord,

that your rules are righteous,

and that in faithfulness

you have afflicted me.”

Both our afflictions and blessings are given by God in complete faithfulness. We should be thankful for both, for with our Great Creator, everything He deals us falls into his perfect plan…whether we know it this side of Heaven or not.

I am thankful for: a cozy home that suits my needs, costume dramas, soft yarn, library books, scarves and hats, blogging buddies, the ability to learn, music, warm wool socks, cups of hot chocolate, animal friends, church family, fresh bread, white Christmas lights, snow, patterns on sale, health, shoes, Fiesta ware, pashminas…

For the first Homemade Christmas hosted once again by my cousin, Emily Rose, I decided to share what I will be doing this Christmas. On Monday night, I took a class on glass etching, which was very simple, and so I now have another thing which I can do for Christmas gifts.

Glass etching with the acidic cream is simple. One picks out a stencil, traces it onto contact paper, then cuts out the shapes, leaving an outline. Next, one places the peels off the back of contact paper, leaving the part to stick onto the glass. Next, we dab on the Armour Etch Cream onto the part where we want the frosted look to be, usually on the inside of the stencil. It looks like this…

I chose a dragonfly stencil from a library book, but one can chose anything to suit holidays, names, personalities, etc. The teacher put her son’s name on one side and then a helicopter on the other. Mom also had the idea of putting a word like “Jellybeans” or “Sugar” onto a jar, then filling it with that substance.

Not many people do this regularly, but it is easier than “actual” glass etching. There are endless ideas for this craft, and Christmas can be a great opportunity for experimentation.

A few more posts that I have done earlier in the season which could be used for Homemade Christmases:

The Blanket Buddy

Preparing for Homemade Christmases

Fingerless Gloves

A dear friend of ours suggested this (309 page) book to us after Mom had written a post about Stonewall Jackson. It was written by Harnett T. Kane and I would call it historical fiction. It is about the marriage and love of Anna and Thomas Jackson, who were dedicated to the Lord through their trials, and whose love for their Creator enhanced their feelings for each other. The story, with a simply elegant writing style, goes from Anna’s single years with her family, through her marriage with Tom, up until his death after the Wilderness. I probably shed a tear or two as I imagined their words spoken to each other. (I seem to be growing ever more sentimental) And in the book I was reading, there were two pictures of Anna Jackson and her husband on the back covers. It was nice to be able to flip back and see what they looked like, so as I could have a correct picture in my mind.

My latest knitting project was this little guy here.

He is very easy to make and super sweet when finished. It makes for a great baby shower gift, or a Christmas present for a small child.

The pattern in is this helpful book:

101 Designer

one-skein wonders

edited by Judith Durant

Being our practice buddy, he is not perfect, but his buddies will get better with time and practice. Other than requiring concentration, the Blanket Buddy was fairly harmless.

I have an addiction, one that consumes my free time and occupies my thoughts, and it is in Mom’s blood too. We are filled with the desire to do and we can not seem to get it out of our minds. We want to do it in church, in the grocery stores, and anywhere we go.

Knitting

That is what we are grasped with the desire to do. A project must be going at all times and we must have one ready for when we are done with the present one. A shawl, hat, scarf, fingerless gloves, or washcloths. We must have something going on. If not, we feel idle. That, or we are having knitting withdrawals, which are very REAL!

My latest project was a simple shawl. I cut a dishcloth pattern in half, with just an increase. It was an easy work, which allowed me to listen during school (we usually discuss passionately who will read and who will get to knit) or during our evening Bible reading. I also needed a shawl that would go with my birthday dress, which you will see in the pictures.

It was late in the evening and I had just finished it. I have that look on my face “It’s done, take my picture so it will be finished”