Emily Rachelle Writes

Guess what? I just received the first book (volume of four books, actually!) by one of my favorite authors for a review and giveaway!  As I'm currently under the weather, the review will come a bit later - but the giveaway starts today! :) a Rafflecopter giveaway

Read about Vintage Mail Maker and how it works here . For my first letter, I chose old typewriter font, simple retro envelope, and simple retro paper.  My message is a poem by Christina Rosetti:

As part of a homeschool family, getting ready for and finding colleges is a somewhat different path for me than for public schoolers.  Public high schools have guidance counselors and information about tests, colleges, financial aid, and who knows what else.  Homeschoolers, on the other hand, have to seek out this information on their own.  That's why I'm so thankful for two college help sites, one of which is www.cappex.com .

Week Fourteen: No-Heat Hair Curling {all photos linked to source} The Pin: no-heat wavy hair tutorial

For the Firmoo online glasses retailer giveaway, we had great results!  Over 100 entries!  So now it's time to announce the six winners of store vouchers and the grand prize winner of a free pair of glasses! The winners of a $30 voucher to  designer glasses  are... Holly Storm-Burge! Jessica Sage! Jennifer Alice Duran! Rab Pom! Sue Bunting! and Aimee Webber! And, finally, the grand prize winner of a free pair of any non-designer glasses (excluding sunglasses) is... *Drumroll!* Amanda Starr! Congratulations!  I'll be emailing the winners to send off the voucher codes and get the grand prize winner in touch with Firmoo. :)

I've mentioned before that I'm good real-life friends with Kathryn at Singing Through the Rain .  A while back she was contacted by someone from Vintage Mail Maker about being the first to work with them as a blogger affiliate.  After writing several posts, she ran out of ideas to blog about them - so she suggested I contact them and offer a new blogging outlet!  The man I corresponded with was very happy to offer two printed letters for free for a review.

Last week, I reviewed a book titled Wake Up, Generation by Paige Omartian.  In that review I mentioned her focus on the reader's finding his or her individual mission in life: The focus on a personal mission was the best point of the book, I think.  In my mind, my word for 2013 - "dream" - can be used to refer to goals, but it can also be used as another word for vision, passion, mission.  So this book seems to resonate well with my dreams of this year for me!  Paige also talks about this focus on life missions on her website:  http://www.paigeomartian.com/paige/how-do-i-find-my-purpose/ {via} Since I feel like this book and my discovery through it of my mission is closely related to my word for 2013 , I decided that today I would share my mission statement and ways I will/I could/I have already live(d) it out.

Week Thirteen: Toilet Paper Tube Pillow Boxes {all photos linked to source} Note: Thursday's post was probably not worded as well as it could have been.  I intended it to sound like "We should love people all year, not just Valentine's Day."  Instead I feel like it came across more as "I hate Valentine's Day, such a dumb idea!"  Please know this was not what I meant! The Pin: do it yourself toilet paper tube pillow boxes

Edit:  This post was probably not worded as well as it could have been.  I intended it to sound like "We should love people all year, not just Valentine's Day."  Instead I feel like it came across more as "I hate Valentine's Day, such a dumb idea!"  Please know this was not what I meant! I wrote a post here a while back about Thanksgiving.  This week, I've been having similar thoughts towards a very different holiday, so I figured I'd do a new one. Most likely you think I'm going to shoot down the roses-and-chocolate Hallmark day because I'm a cynical single (very commonplace idea).  That's quite the wrong idea.  I love chocolate (very, very much) and any excuse to eat it.  Also, flowers are awesome.  I think we should have an entire separate holiday for giving anyone and everyone flowers.  The Hallmark card part... well, I'm really neither for nor against it.  You can decide for yourself to buy/make/give them or not.  I l...

One thing you, my lovely readers, may not be aware of - or may be confused about - is that I wear glasses.  Most of the images on my blog show me wearing my lovely Vera Bradley glasses, although my main photo (see me in the green dress in the right sidebar?) was taken while I was wearing contacts. My entire family actually wears glasses, contacts, or a combination.  That adds up to a good deal of money in eye doctor appointments, prescriptions, and new glasses - lens and frames - and contacts.  So when Firmoo , an international online glasses company, approached me about a review and giveaway, of course I said yes!

Wake Up, Generation  by Paige Omartion You have a life... how will you use it? Click the cover to buy When Paige Armstrong was diagnosed with bone cancer at ten years old, her entire world was turned inside out.  However, what she never dreamed even then was that a Christmas CD she made in the hospital with a friend would eventually lead to her being a semi-celebrity as a recording artist, world traveler, child sponsor, author, and more. Honestly, I'm not sure what to say about this book.  It was well-written, both in general and in light of its content and target audience.  I enjoyed reading it and thought the stories shared both to start the book off and later on to get readers thinking were amazing and well-chosen.  What I particularly loved was the personal approach Paige took - talking to individuals each made differently by God.  Another thing I appreciated was that, in light of how different each person can be compared to another, she cover...

Week Twelve: Handmade Photo Key Chains, Part Two {all photos linked to source} {See part one here .} This was a particularly long project, which in turn means this is a particularly long post with a lot of photos.  It might slow down your computer or take a while to load. The Pin: mod podge photo key chains

After It's Official! and a hint I left in The Liebster Award, I have a big, big, big announcement for you. This is bigger than my first rejection. This is cooler than when my blogging hero wrote a blog post inspired by me. Yes, this is even better than when I received  my own newsletter column. And it's almost greater than the amazing, incredible, fantastic trip I went on this past summer. Guess what?  Seriously, before you read more, guess in the comments!

Hello, my lovely readers!  Happy Tuesday morning!  A week ago a writer friend of mine from the Go Teen Writers Facebook group dropped by here and left a few notes for me, including a nomination for the Liebster award !  Thanks Sarah ! This was actually my first time hearing about this award.  It's a very nice-looking award, and of course it's always fun to hear you've won something!  It reminds me of the Game of Elevens I played a while back.  The old-me writing and messed-up font/highlight settings make me cringe, but I thought I ought to mention it anyway. The Liebster award is given by winning bloggers to the blogs they follow that have 200 or fewer followers.  The main purpose of this blog is to connect with new bloggers and find new blogs - any niche or kind of blog is eligible.

Week Eleven: Handmade Photo Key Chains, Part One {all photos linked to source} This was a particularly long project, which in turn means this is a particularly long post with a lot of photos.  It might slow down your computer or take a while to load. The Pin: mod podge photo key chains