2011 and 2012.

Well, WOW. Today is New Years Eve, people! Isn't this exciting?! A new year. New people. New faces. New experiences! Now, I know there's a lot of people going around pulling their hair out saying, "The world is coming to an end in a flipping year!" If you're one of those people, I'm sorry If I offended you. I don't believe that the world is coming to an end in 2012. I do believe it's going to end soon, though (I'll have a post about it soon, hopefully). I have no idea, so I'm not going to go jump of a cliff in order to save the world. At home, me and my family do joke around about the world ending. Like today, I was making my mom some coffee and I walked up to her and said "Hey, mom, can you believe the worlds going to be ending in a year?" She smiled back and went along with it. "I know. It's crazy, huh?"

I'm very excited to have a new year, and I sure hope you are too! I'm going to ask a simple question for you to answer;

Question #1: What is your new years resolution?

Have fun this new year, and be safe! :-)

--Abbi

Fifties Chix: Travel To Tomorrow

Hi!(:
This week I've been reading a book I won called Fifties Chix: Travel To Tomorrow by Angela Sage Larson.
I'm excited to be reviewing it, I've been waiting to (-:
I enjoyed reading it, the characters ( Mary, Ann, Maxine, Judy, and Beverly) all have their own personality. When the girls are asked to do a project, it goes a little bit to far. . .into the future, that is. The book has a bit of everything: humor, happiness, sadness, and a little romance. The book is probably for middle schoolers. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend  it to anyone. I hope you join the Fifties Chix as much as I do. They will become a part of you like they did me. Make sure to visit the Fifties Chix website.

Here's a little question: What character in Travel To Tomorrow do you relate to you and why?

I believe I either am like Mary or Ann. I'm very artistic like Ann, but I do love reading and cooking like Mary.

I think I'll wrap this up now. Thanks for visiting!(-:

~Abbi.

Happy Birthday!!!!!!!

Happy birthday. . . to ME! Well, my birthday's not until Dec. 17th. Today is actually my older (Now 16!!) brothers birthday. We're four years apart, but our birthdays are back-to-back! Too cool, right? :-)
After begging (Actually, it came from my 16, almost 17 y.o sister. . . not me :p ), my mom said this morning I could open ONE. I opened it, but I knew what it was because I was at Books-A-Million when I told my mom I wanted the book. The book is by Lynn Rae Perkins, It's called Criss Cross. She is actually a winner of the Newbery Metal! So. . . congrats to her on that, even though I'm late, haha. :-)

I actually have read part of the book, but never finished it because I was so busy. Now that I have it, I can read and . . . NOT GET FINED! ;)  I'm really interested in it, and I'm sure you'd love it, too, so check it out.
Anyway, after even more begging (A bit from me, but still from my sister), they let me open them tonight because my birthday is in, like, an hour and a half. You'll never guess what I got unless you don't finish this sentence and look down! I got a flipping KINDLE! Not the fancy-shmancy kind. Just the plain 'ol black & white one. I still love it though. I squealed, haha. :-)

My brother opened on of his HUGE presents early (An E-reader), like a week ago; He hates surprises, and just "Had to open it early or it would drive him crazy, and he wouldn't sleep and nag until they say yes."  Seems
as if my parents just get annoyed easily, right? Well, they do, but they just love us so much, and cant resist my adorable puppy dog eyes :-) Even though there's a contest going on for a Kindle Fire and I have a Kindle, I'd still love it. I mean. . . it's a Kindle FIRE. Like . . . whoa. :p Anywho 'nuff about me. I hope you all a merry Christmas, and happy holidays! :-)


-Abbi

Fifties Chix: Travel To Tomorrow Has Arrived.

My Fifties Chix: Travel To Tomorrow has arrived and I am one excited girl! :-)
It arrived a few days ago, but I haven't gotten around to posting that is has because I've been reading it!
It is so amazing. Really. Hopefully, I finish it in time to enter your contest! (:
Thank you so much Angela Sage Larson and Heather Vogel Fredrick for my books!!! I love them. (-:


~Abbi.

Home For The Holidays!

                                                           My Home For Holidays book by
                                                                   Heather Vogel Fredrick!

It arrived today, and I am so excited! I cannot believe I won.(: If you're reading this, Mrs. Fredrick, I'd like to thank you, again. Now, I can read it over and over again without getting fined! Hurray!

An Excerpt!

Hi! An excerpt of my new story....kind of. I hope you like it! Also, I'd like to add that I'm kind of new to all of this writing thing, so It's not going to be perfect. It's an unnamed story. Here's chapter one! p.s I don't have any writing things on my laptop, I only have notepad, and it doesn't have spell check.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As I'm running through the dark hallways of the abandoned building right outside of my town, Proggem, I think of what's going on, and how I could've gotten myself into all of this trouble.
I try to re-think of what happened earlier today. Nothing out of the ordinary, I don't think. School was fine. Nothing was different at home, either. I'm so lost in my thoughts, I run into a wall. I laugh at my"smart" thinking and feel for anymore walls. Instead I feel the soft, but rough fabric of a shirt, I'm guessing made out of some kind of straw.

"Hello?" I whisper.


I hear a grunt, but no actual reply. I pull my hand away. I begin digging through my backpack to try and find a flashlight, but instead, I find my phone. I gently tug it out of my bag, and thrust it in front of me. There's a woman, probably in her sixties, slouching against the wall. She seems sad, or at least lonely.

"Leave this place," She says, in a groggly, but quiet voice. "It's not good here; bad things will happen."

I'm running out of time, so I just whisper that I can help her if she wants, and tell her that I'll be back tomorrow. I continue running through the building, trying to find an exit. After about a minute of running It crosses me that I should have asked the woman about the exit. I see a small light in the distance. I start walking towards it. The thought of escaping makes me happy, so I smile. Being trapped inside an abandoned building Isn't fun. When I find the light, I notice that It's only a crack in the wall. I hit the wall, and it crumbles a little. After about fifteen minutes of banging my fist against the wall, there's an opening big enough for some of me to get through. Since It's not big enough for all of me, I go back to hitting the wall. That doesn't work, so I find my flashlight in my backpack, and I hit the edge of the wall where It's crumbling, with the end of my flashlight. It works better, so I continue doing that. I finish making an opening and squeeze myself through. It's only five in the evening, but It's almost pitch black outside. Pulling my flashlight out of my backpack, I here a small wimper of maybe a child, or a young adult. I can't see their figure, but I can see a dumpster, half empty, and a giant fence. Probably big enough to see past a few buildings. Not wanting to have another situation like I had with the old lady, I don't talk, and carry on.

 Climbing on the fence trying not to get caught on the sharp points, I stop at the top of the fence, and try to suck in everything I've gotton myself into. Yesterday was when it all happened. After leaving my school, I saw an unusual animal that looked the rare Polopher dog run into the building I was just in a minute ago. I figured Aunt Jenna wouldn't mind me bringing home pets. I mean, she's a vet, she loves animals. So I followed it. What I found was not a dog. It was a beast.I tried running away, but I just got lost in the building.Then I found bodies, lots of them, too. Fresh bodies. Deep inside me, there's this feeling that that lady was a sign, or something. The feeling wont go away. My phone rings. I dig through mybackpack for it. "Alexus Parker speaking."
Aunt Jenna's voice booms out of my phone. I pull it my phone back a little from my ear.

"Alex!? Why aren't you home? I've called at least six times! Where are you!?"

I sigh. "Aunt Jenna, I'm fine; my phone was just on vibrate because of school. I'm sorry."

She calms down a little bit. "Yes, well...where are you?"

"I'm right outside of town, I...got lost," I lie.

I hear her sigh. "Alex," She whispers. "Don't lie to me. You've lived In Proggem for six years, you know this place like the back of your hand."

I squeeze my eyes closed tight. "I...I'm on my way home. I'll talk with you there, okay?"

She agrees that It's fine that we talk when I'm home, and I put my phone away after saying goodbye.
For a minute I just sit on the top of the fence and think of what I'm going to say, while looking over the buildings. I pull out my flashlight and jump off the fence, landing on my feet perfectly, something I've learned to do after years of practice. Walking around the street at night is scary. Especially outside of Proggem, in Furder.I walk a mile or so, and see my school. It's not too fancy. It is a private school, but It's sort of new, so the place is nice. So are the teachers. Most of them are young, though. The principal, though, Is the best. On Fridays, she lets us eat outside for lunch, and even lets us wear hats! One of the teachers, Mrs.Jackson, is the meanest. She was the teacher for the old private school building in Trester, a town a few miles out. It was shut down three years ago, when a teenager, Chester Baldwin, was mysteriously murdered. The muderer was never found, and the case was dropped. I feel bad for poor Chester. It's like no one cared enough to find out more about his murder. I find myself in my neighborhood, already. Wow, I think. Time sure does go by fast. Walking up the front door steps, I trip over a screw sticking up on the stairs. Millions of times I've asked Aunt Jenna to fix that. She never does, though. She says It's history of the house, and gives it character. I think It's a danger zone. I tripped. I could've died! Okay, maybe I'm over exaggerating. But...still, you never know. Wiping the thought of dying out of my mind, I focus on what may be for dinner. As I walk through the front door, I smell something sweet. Aunt Jenna calls out.

"Alex? Is that you?"

"Yes,"

She walks into the foyer with her apron on, looking stressed.

"I'm glad, It's dark." She waits a moment before talking again. "Want to make dinner with me? We can talk while we cook. I've already made dessert."

A hopeful smile grows on her face. I smile back. "Of course,"

She boils hot dogs, while I cut up things to go on them. I tell her about today, and what I saw. After I finish telling her about all of it she thinks. We sit down to talk.

"So...you saw a beast?"

I look down, shaking my head and sigh. "I know, It sounds crazy..."

She pats my arm.

"Don't think like that, honey. I'm sure you saw some kind of animal."

I look at her with a skeptical look. She frowns like she's about to say something.

"There's been a lot of talking at work about some animal that's gone around killing," She thinks for a minute. "Maybe this could be what you saw?"

I brighten up. "What did they say it looked like?"

She squints, trying to remember. "They didn't. They said they saw unusual fur on a dead body In Cramber,"

"They did some tests and It came up with nothing, so they decided to classify It as unknown, and look further into it."

"Are they still looking into it?" I ask.

She smiles. "Yes. They're debating whether they want me to look into it, too!"

"Wow, Aunt Jenna, that's great! You'd tell me everything they say, right?"

She hesitates. "Alex...this is a beast we're talking about. I don't want you getting hurt. Your mother would never forgive me."

 "I don't really care what my 'mother' has to say about this," I use quotation marks to clarify that I don't think of my my mother as my mother, anymore.

I stand up, ready to leave this conversation.

Aunt Jenna stands up too. "Alexus Marissa Parker," She says in a stern voice, using my full name."You do not, absolutly, not talk about your mother that  way."

She sighs and sits down, again. "I know she left you, but...you do know she loved you. Right?"

"I'm not hungry anymore." I lie. "I'm going to get ready for bed."

"Goodnight," She whispers. "I'll see you in the morning."

I walk into my room and climb into bed, after changing into my pajamas. I will talk like that about my mother if I want. Aunt Jenna's just being defensive because It's her sister. I know hey were the best of friends when they were kids. My mom moved out, married my dad, and had me. From the time I was born, I figured I wasn't wanted. She left me home alone when I was five. I was always left out. Dad couldn't take it. He felt he was holding her up. The truth is...he was. Without him in her life, my mom was nothing. She couldn't get a job. She literally had no skills. Besides drinking, of course. Oh, and being a terrible mother. When I turned ten, she sent me to live with Aunt Jenna, while she tried to "pick up" her life. I'm sorry, but that'll never happen. She can dream, though. I hate talking about my mother. That's why I flipped out so easily when Aunt Jenna started talking about her. My Mother is a sensitive spot on me, Aunt Jenna should know that. Lying in bed thinking about my mother makes me feel tired and worthless. I turn over and lay on my side, closing my eyes. Eventually, I'll fall asleep. Eventually, my Mother will be a forgotton subject. Hopefully.

Kaleidoscope Eyes

Hey, guys. Today I'll be blogging about Jen Bryant and her amazing book Kaleidoscope Eyes. This book is sure to take you on a huge adventure! You're on an adventure with Lyza, a girl who lives in South New Jersey in 1968. Her mother has left, and she's living with her Father, a professor, and her sister who hangs around with the Hippie Crowd.

 When Lyza's Grandfather passes away, leaving an adventure, three maps, and possibly some buried treasure, Lyza's all in. She needs help, though. She get's her friend's to help, and off they are on their adventure!

I'm sure you'll love this book; I did. I'm going to read it, again, soon. After a while, of course. I normally don't read books based a while ago, but since I'm going to be reading  Angela Sage Larson's newest Fifties Chix books, I had to see if I'd like it. I do! It's just like today, in some ways. Anywho, I hope you'll check out Jen and Angela's books! Thanks, guys!





~Abbi.♥