Books You're Better Off Just Watching the Movie

If you're an avid reader, as am I, then you've had that friend who exclaimed, "Oh, you just HAVE to read the book!  It's soooo much better than the movie!"  9 times out of 10 I completely agree with their opinion.  The books usually are "sooooo" much better than the movies, however, there is that rare story that is simply better when it is seen (or heard) in real life.

1. GAME OF THRONES

Utterly fantastic story.  There are no two ways around that one, but if mountains of details are not your thing then skip this book and head straight to your HBO channel or borrow the disks from a friend because the show is absolutely worth seeing.  Everyone I know who read the books pictured characters and details in exactly the same way as I did- which is both good and bad.  Scenes were so thoroughly described that there was no mistaking what George Martin was trying to convey- good point.  In some instances, the amount of detail (though thorough and beautiful) bogged me down and became a bit much to take in- bad point.  Some people may not feel the same way, but I had to take this book in small chunks because it was a bit too much to absorb in long sittings.  Not to mention there are about a thousand characters you have to keep straight.  The easiest way to get through it was to watch an episode of the show and then go back and read until I had caught up.  I didn't read beyond the first book, so I can't say whether this would work for everything that followed, but the show stayed amazingly true to the first story (almost word-for-word at parts).  I honestly couldn't point out anything you would miss by just watching the episodes on TV (aside from lots and lots of visualizing details and maybe a little character development).  If you're a Song of Ice and Fire fan, I'm sorry for raining on your parade.

2. HARRY POTTER AND THE SORCERER'S STONE

Having already seen the movie, I came to this book with great enthusiasm.  Many friends of mine were Harry potter nuts (and I mean that in the nicest way possible).  The series came highly recommended, so I took an afternoon of sitting at Barnes and Noble and sipping on a hazelnut latte to read the book.  The impression I came away with was a wonderful story that had been perfectly replicated on the screen.  Now, I am not the type of person who can sit down and tell you all the minute details that were either portrayed or written incorrectly for the screen, but from what I could tell the movie director had done an excellent job of staying true to the story.  Sadly, the writing style was juvenile at best because it had been intended for children- not adults.  The rest of the series was much better written and Rowling's style evolved as she went, but you aren't missing anything by skipping the first book entirely.  If you've seen the movie, start with Chamber of Secrets.

3. THE LORD OF THE RINGS

Details, and details, and more details!  Don't get me wrong... I honestly believe that Tolkien gave us an unparalleled gift when he wrote The Lord of the Rings, and many people are probably shocked that I listed it here, but Tolkien took such painstaking care of explaining Frodo's journey that I found myself almost shaking with anxiety while trying to hurry the story along.  For the same reasons I found Game of Thrones to be a heavy read, Lord of the Rings also fits the bill.  The language Tolkien used also flirts with a hint of Old English which can be a struggle to read in and of itself.  While the movies are phenomenal and I've watched them at least 50 times each, there are very important sections of the book that were left out in the interest of time, I'm sure.  If details are your thing, then this is the book for you.  I don't regret reading it (I say "it" because I own the three-in-one version instead of the individual books), but it was a bit heavier than I had anticipated and I found it less enjoyable than the movies.  Also, the music score absolutely MADE the movie, but more on that in a bit.

4. THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA

Speaking of music!  When the trailers for the new movie of The Phantom of the Opera came out while I was in high school, I decided I needed to read the book first... because that's the responsible thing for a college-bound student to do, right?  For a book that was written around the turn of the century, it was surprisingly enjoyable.  Leroux goes into greater detail of the phantom's history and painful childhood which was captivating, however Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical rendition brought me to tears!  The movie is a tad long (though not as long as seeing it live on Broadway due to the intermission) but there is no replacement for the music.  The story without "The Music of the Night" is nothing more than a mere story.

5. WICKED

This book was one I picked up at Hasting's on a 4 for $5 deal.  It made for an extraordinary musical, so I figured the book would be amazing as well.  The thing I missed most?  The music.  Oh, the music!  The story is still there (obviously, since that's what the musical was based off) but the writing felt very blah with loads of conversations about seemingly important topics that vanish in the next chapter and turn out to be nothing.  I know people who have read the book and tell me they enjoyed it, but I struggled.  If someone asks my opinion on this one... just see the musical.

6. SEX AND THE CITY

Watched it... LOVED it... read it... felt a little let down.  If you've seen the show and fallen in love with Carrie and her friends then reading the book leaves you feeling a little, "Wait, where's the rest of the story?"  There is surprisingly little mention of the main characters we know and love, and while reading the book woke up my inner creative voice and inspired me to do a little writing of my own, I found there to be very little of an actual story line.  Mostly, the book is random encounters with random fabulous people and their conversations.  While an exhilarating read, if you come to it looking for the show you'll be let down.  The book felt completely different.  Bushnell's writing style kept me engaged and the book was a very fast, very entertaining read, but it's not the story from the show.  Come to it, enjoy it for what it is, and that's that.

7. THE HUNT FOR RED OCTOBER

I believe it takes a certain kind of person (probably with a military background) to enjoy Clancy's writing style.  That person is obviously not me.  After seeing the movie, I found the book on a clearance rack and decided to give it a go.  I figured that knowing the movie's plot would help me keep the story straight in my head while I read- this trick worked wonders for me later when I was reading Game of Thrones.  Sadly, the cut and dry story laced with military jargon and dry characters left me appreciating the movie even more.  In all honesty, I made it- maybe- a quarter of the way through the book and had to put it down.  It was simply too dry for my taste.  Love the movie, though!

8. THE TIME TRAVELER'S WIFE

"The book where nothing much happens," is what I would have entitled this one.  In the grand scheme of things, the story is beautiful: a woman falls in love with a man tortured by uncontrollable time travel, and she suffers a life with a man who unwillingly comes and goes.  It has all the makings of a great movie.  The book, on the other hand, felt like a lot of waiting.  There was nothing difficult about the read, but not a whole lot happens over the 500+ pages.  While muddling through the boring interior, I kept thinking, "It's going to get better.  It HAS to get better.  They made a movie out of it for crying out loud!"  My male doctor walked in for my appointment and happened to see the book laying on the counter.  "How are you liking it so far?" he asked, and I had to be honest... I was bored.  He laughed, "Yeah, I felt the same way about it.  It doesn't get any better, either."  I was less than 100 pages from the end, I knew what ultimately happened, so I threw in the towel.  Great idea.  Great movie.  Less than stellar book.  If you get an itching to read it you're more than welcome to my copy- KEEP IT.

9. A WALK TO REMEMBER

I know I'm probably alone in this, but Sparks' writing style had me wishing for more.  And, this isn't the only book of his I didn't care for... I own several because I keep telling myself that maybe I'll like the next one.  Just as it had with The Time Traveler's Wife, the overall story had me hooked, however the writing style didn't impress me in the least.  The book is short, it was easy to read, and yet I didn't enjoy it at all.  Again, it's probably just me.  There hasn't been a Nicholas Sparks movie that I HAVEN'T bawled my way through, and yet the books always seem to fall flat in comparison.  It's nothing I can stick a pin to and say this is the culprit... I just don't care for the written versions of his stories.

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Breathe New Life Into An Old Wreath

Last year I was given a beautiful, live wreath in the shape of a horse head.  It was gorgeous and smelled great!  Any way, by the time Christmas rolled around the wreath was well past its prime and was begging to be tossed out.  On a whim, I decided to pull the withered branches off and keep the wooden horse form.  Surely, something could be done with it...

The original horse wreath

Thanksgiving of the next year:

It was finally time to do something about the bare horse form that had been cluttering up my husband's garage.  I pulled two rolls of artificial greenery from my Christmas stash (purchased for $1 each at a yard sale) and taught myself how to use our electric staple gun.  I feel silly for even admitting to my undeserved fear, but I truly was intimidated by the thought of using a GUN!  

$1 rolls of artificial greenery.  Yard sales are fantastic!

The bare horse form (Ignore the horsey mustache.  I got a little ahead of myself and started stapling greenery before remembering to take the BEFORE picture.  Oops!)

As you can see in the picture above, I started at the tip of the horse's nose.  The garland actually wraps around the edges of the form and staples into the back.  We have a glass window in our door and my husband would kill me if the wooden back on the wreath scratched its trim... so I did this to give it some padding.

I went up the face as far as I could until I could no longer wrap around both the top and bottom.  Next, I started at the base of the neck and worked my way up in exactly the same way.  Once I had the neat little square of bare wood you can see in the above picture I cut greenery pieces to fit the available space.  I was very careful to pull back the greenery of the previous pieces and staple underneath them so the silver staples wouldn't show.  I wrapped the tops over the top of the wooden form and stapled to the back of the wreath.

All that was left was the ribbon for the bridle, and tada!

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Super easy organization tip

REAL QUICK: What's the simplest tip for making your space appear more organized without really doing much?

Stick all your clutter (aka bottles, wash rags, table junk, whatever) in a basket.  Easy peasy!  And, done!

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Personalize your knock-off bags

I purchased a bag off eBay for a measly $7 (shipping included).  It was nothing fancy, but I put an opening bid in when the item was first posted and low and behold I won the darn thing!  When it arrived all squished into a "if it fits, it ships" box from the post office, I found a Prada tag tucked into one of the interior pockets.

Without meaning to, I had purchased a knock-off Prada bag.  Oops!  It hadn't been obvious in the pictures, but now that I was seeing it with my own eyes there was a noticeable empty space on the front of the bag where the Prada logo should have been.  I felt cheap carrying it with Prada on it, but empty without it.  What's a girl to do!?

Everyone has that family member who gives strange or odd gifts at Christmas, and I remembered receiving a horse pin ages ago which I never had any use for.  A quick removal of the old Prada tag and a switch for the horse pin, and voila!  The old knock-off bag had been transformed into a personalized horse bag for me!  Creative AND resourceful!

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Beauty Tips For Us Copper Tops

Regardless of the variety you may be, us redheads all need to stick together, right?  There's a feeling of camaraderie when we cross paths with a fellow copper top.  It's something similar to being in an elite club.  For my daughter who was also blessed with the redhead gene, I will pass along all the tips and secrets I have picked up along my journey.  However, for those of us who were born "the only one" in the family, finding the right beauty products as well as a sense of peace with the unusual and rare coloring can prove daunting.

Here are a few beauty secrets I've picked up:

Blush: Skip the traditional pinky blush that looks great on most people-- we aren't "MOST" people-- and go instead with a bronzer.  Most redheads have subtle copper undertones both in our skin as well as our hair, so embrace it!  (Did your mother ever tell you the saying, "pink and red clash," too?  Not true for clothes.  If you like pink, I say by all means wear your pink proudly!  However, stay away from the truly pink makeups.

My personal favorite is Rimmel Natural Bronzer 020 Sunshine or whatever is close and available.

Eyeliner: Have you ever seen a redhead who was proudly wearing black eyeliner?  If you're into that particular look, then feel free to skip this section.  Me, personally, I prefer a less ghostly appearance and a more natural feel.  Stick with the browns.

Almay intense i-color in brown topaz has been my go-to eyeliner for oh, 10 years or so I think?  Maybe it hasn't been around for quite that long, but I've been buying it for ages and will continue to do so as long as it is on the market.

When you're needing to dial up the drama a little bit, I like to add brown liquid liner to the outside edges of my lashes.  It draws more attention to your eyes without toning down the color.  TIP: It also works to keep your eyeliner pencil in place if you have oily skin issues.

Here it is!  Almay intense i-color liquid liner in brown topaz.  My goof was to accidentally buy raisin quartz one time.  Purple, ick!

Mascara: Yes, it sounds quite repetitive, but here it is again... brown.  Finding it in that color with your favorite brush can sometimes prove to be a daunting task, but it's worth the hunt.  Now, here's the catch.  I use brown mascara as my base.  BUT, when I'm going out in the evening or for a special event I add true, honest-to-God black mascara just to the tips of my lashes.  I always feel as if exclusively black mascara makes me look washed out and scary, but using it to emphasize the brown is a nice little trick to keep in your back pocket.

My last trip to Wally World yielded only three brands that offered true brown mascara.  Covergirl Lash Blast is what I picked up and I haven't been displeased so far.

And last but not least, don't forget to color your eyebrows!  Us redheads are generally blessed with the palest of pale blondes for our facial features which results in non-visible eyebrows, so fill those suckers in with a little bit of color.  There are many tutorials floating around the internet on how to fill your brows and make them look amazingly dramatic, but who honestly has time to do that on a daily basis!?  Not this mommy!  I'm all about ease and simplicity.  Besides that, the pencils last absolutely forever AND you get 2 in a pack!

Covergirl blonde eye pencils

Funny Story: I used to be a die hard Mary Kay user.  I had been purchasing their brow pencil since middle school and either they quit making it, or I decided to switch it up-- can't remember now-- but I bought their brow liner instead of my normal pencil.  Something about their formula had a reaction with my skin and all my hairs got infected and then fell out.  I was the hairless wonder for a full month!  Nothing against Mary Kay in the least.  I merely had an unfortunate reaction, that's all, and it's funny to tell.

Best of luck in your ventures!

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My little trick for drinking more water

These long, Southern, summer months can be killer on the body.  I generally try to drink the recommended 8 glasses of water a day (and more when I'm outside "glistening" for extended periods of time), but my taste buds get rather bored with the monotony of it.


I've done the apple cinnamon water.  I love it... I really do... and I even add a little honey in, boil the ingredients in a little bit of water on the stove for a few minutes, and then dilute in a pitcher of water.  It's one of the most delicious ways of drinking water, in my humble opinion, but the apples and cinnamon are truly only good for one batch.  You have to toss and start fresh with each new batch, and I don't know if you've priced cinnamon sticks recently, but they are roughly $1 a stick... and that adds up!


I recently stumbled across a recipe for cucumber mint water.  Intrigued, I purchased the ingredients and made my first batch.  Absolutely delightful!  One downside was the cost of the mint leaves as well as the fact that they didn't keep fresh very long.  So, instead, I experimented with mint extract.  In place of the mint leaves, I used 1/4 lid mint extract (aka the very tiny lid on the bottle it comes in) and sliced half a cucumber my mom gave from her garden.  It is seriously the best water I have ever tasted!  I'm drinking an entire pitcher of just the mint cucumber water every day!  Best part is I already had the mint extract in my pantry and the cucumber was free (thanks Mom!).  I feel healthier PLUS I have ah-mazingly minty breath at all times.  Doesn't get much better than that!

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What to do with all those old cards?

I have been amassing cards (birthday, wedding, get-well, new baby, and so on and so on) for AGES.  I literally have gift bags stuffed full of them, but every time I try to reason myself into cleaning them out I nearly break down in tears.  There are so many precious memories in them to simply toss them aside.  But, what do you do with hundreds (if not thousands) of cards!?

I've been debating this very topic for the past 8 years and finally came up with the solution today!

I went through all the bags of cards, sorted out the ones I absolutely could not live without from the ones that I really didn't mind throwing out.  When I had dwindled the collection down to a
manageable pile, I decided to cut the cards in half and display them in clear page protectors.  I taped both the card's front and interior onto a piece of plain white computer paper and slid them into the protective sleeves.  Brilliant!  Even if I do say so myself!

Cards that had text or written notes on both interior pages, I kept the card in one piece and slid it, open, into the page protector.

Cut the cards in half

Tape the card's front next to the card's interior

Display your card collection in a three-ring binder or scrap book

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