The Sleeping Room

When we first moved into our new home we knew that we were compromising the size of our bedroom for the size of our living space. I mean it made sense. This house gave us a huge dining room and a living room to die for in exchange for a bedroom that really only fits our Queen size bed, night stands and a dresser. And with the slanted ceiling Pete has to duck to get into his side of the bed. But it's super cozy.
The sky light lets in tons of natural light so the room feels bigger. The way the bed is positioned, (the only place it would fit) allows us to look at the stars at night and wake up to a view of the trees and the farm next door.
All of our bedrooms in the past have been really good sizes. Large enough for our desks, TV, chairs, bookshelves, etc. But they were all in apartments, so really you needed to keep all of that in your bedroom. But now we have a whoooooole house to lay out all our crap, not just a room or two. So we made the executive decision to NOT have a TV in our bedroom. I know, I know, pick your jaw off the floor. It's unheard of. Well it was for us anyway.
Beofre, I was a total insomniac, it would take me hours to fall asleep. I would have to have the TV on for the noise to even consider getting some shut eye. And even then I would wake up multiple times because my brain would be racing and I would wake up exhausted every morning.
But now the simple act of taking the TV out of the bedroom has made all the difference in the world! I have never slept so well in thirty years! Only when we are in Maine do I get this kind of rest! Not having electronics in the room has allowed my brain to shut off. Bedrooms are for sleeping and doin' it. All that other stuff needs to find it's own space or it will get inside your head.
The best part is I have finally found the time to read again. I have read 17 Novels and numerous "how to" and information books in the last few months alone! And now my gift to you is a brief summary of some of the novels that have lulled me to sleep at night. That way you will have some books queued up when you decide to yank that monster out of your bedroom too!
All SEVEN Harry Potter Books by J.K Rowling

For YEARS Pete has been trying to get me to read these books. And as I told him time and again, "I'm not into your Dungeons and Dragons Crap!" (Side note: My husband really isn't into any of that I just thought that's what Potter was) But then my goobers that I nannied for really started to get into them. We couldn't go anywhere without a book or two in toe. They became absolutely absorbed into this world and they were so sad that I had no idea what they were talking about. So I promised Ben that I would read the first one. And really that was all it took. I was hooked. I read a few books in between just to keep my head clear, but really I just zoomed through them and loved every single second of the ride. I may done it years after the masses but I did it on my own time and was able to watch the Movies as soon as I finished the book! I swear i was dreaming in Potter but it was worth it!
Sunday At Tiffany's By James Patterson
It started out with promise. A little rich girl spends her Sundays having tea and window shopping at Tiffany's with her imaginary friend while her high falootin mother ignores her. eventually she grows up with all sorts of relationship issues and runs into who she remembers as her imaginary friend. Not so imaginary. It was headed in a really great place but stopped short and didn't explain allot. I think there is a made for TV movie already hopefully that will be better.
Bossy Pants By Tina Fey

Let me start by saying I adore this woman and all she has done to pave the way for women in comedy, but I was never really into celebrity memoirs. I had heard a few good things and decided to try it out. My life would not be the same if I had not. I laughed so hard I peed a little. I seriously would keep Pete up at night trying to hold the laughter in but shaking the whole bed. This book is really just a series of essays (Very David Sedaris but from a woman's point of view) about growing up, her parents, becoming a woman, becoming an actress and becoming a mother. She is so honest and open you can't help but fall in love with her over and over again as you turn each page. I seriously think I did some real internal damage from reading this book it is LITERALLY side splitting humor. Can't recommend it enough! Pete read it as soon as I was done and also loved it - just so you men out there don't dismiss this! Aaaaand as a little incentive, you learn how she got that scar on her face...
Lost and Found By Carolyn Parkhurst
I bought this book because of her last novel The Dogs of Babel - Now there is an amazing book. This one, not so much. It essentially is about a reality game show that travels the world on a scavenger hunt in teams of two. She tried to say that the book is all about the teams and the secrets they reveal as they play. But she really only goes into depth on a few people. And she sprinkles in way too much lesbian stuff, and not even the good kind! I finished it, and it was okay at best but I was very disappointed. the Dogs of Babel is an amazing book that you should definitely read but dog lovers beware, sometimes it's hard to take!
Raven Stole The Moon By Garth Stein

This book fell into our laps because of his first novel The Art of Racing In The Rain - AMAZEBALLS. Seriously a MUST for any dog lover, or anyone with a beating heart. Stein can really tell a story. This book was not as good as Racing, but did not disappoint. It's the story of a mother who is enveloped by grief after  her little boy drowns in a village in Alaska. The story starts to weave us through her emotions and desperation to learn the truth while mixing in Inuit magic and Native American stories. You really get sucked into the mystery and you cheer for her tirelessly. By the end you're not really sure what is real and what is fantasy but its a really intense ride.
Me Talk Pretty One Day By David Sedaris
Sedaris is my home boy. He's the little gay man I always wanted and ask for every Christmas. I adore his work and have read all of his books up until this one and I am sad to say this was not my favorite. Again, a collection of essays which he is so brilliant at. It started off with such promise, stories of his childhood and his father. Essays about his father's desperation to turn his family into a band and growing up as a closeted gay boy. But then about halfway through He goes to France and never returns. Essay after essay that loose their humor and travel in and out of France. They had their moments but really they would have been edited down to the better ones. I still love you David, but you owe me.
Room By Emma Donoghue

I adored this book. I wanted to hug this book and tell it everything would be okay. I wanted to cuddle this book on a rainy afternoon and watch Ellen with it and give it warm cocoa. I will never quite know how Donoghue takes such an awful subject manner and makes you fall in love with it. It's the story of a college girl that is kidnapped and kept in a shed for years and years, repeatedly being raped by her captor with no escape in sight. But the story is told through the eyes of her 5 year old son who was born in this room and this room is all he knows. Its a story of unconditional love and bravery. You can't help but melt with every word that comes out of his mouth. He is so innocent and it's heartbreaking but I promise it has a wonderful ending. I read this in one sitting. I had to make sure everything would be okay.