Giveaway Friday...

This contest is for the whole OWL package. Owls fluttered into

ThE LoVE BoXes SHoP

some time ago.. you can find them HeRe and HERe

Enter your name just once one the comments below and I will draw a name Monday Midnight EST. Spread the word. :)

The randomly picked number is: 4

IAMLOw Wins! Congratulations! Please e-mail me @

love.boxes@att.net with address info! :)

Be sure to come back this Friday for another

Giveaway day!

Belong to Me...

This is a book about how people become yours simply because you choose to love them. The characters are real individuals... so unique that their 3 dimensional qualities remind me of the writing of Charles Dickens. There isn't a sentence that comes out of the mouth of any of the characters that doesn't truly belong to them.

Marisa de los Santos is so talented in her ability to express emotion and especially the elusive emotion of love that her writing made me want to weep and cheer at the same time.

"When he looked up, he said, 'Clare told me about Christmas.' And I swear the boy's face began to shine. I recognized what I saw there; that a person's name could be infinitely precious, that just saying it could make you feel singled out for glory."

My favorite passage is about when one of the characters is six years old. Everyone is swimming at the community pool, but she is afraid of the water and cannot join in. Her eight year old future husband comes up to her and says kindly, "you're missing the whole point of summer," and offers to teach her to swim. And, she talks about how his touch made her feel safe and how she learns to swim and then she says, "When I was no longer six years old, when I was a grown woman whose belief the possibility of safety, while far from shattered had suffered the inevitable hard hit or two, Teo's touch did not displace fear as absolutely as it once had. But it was still true that his skin on mine worked a kind of instant, inexplicable possibly chemical magic. When he touched me, the world fell into alignment -- a laying on of hands, a chiropractic of the soul-- the threat of drowning evaporated, and hope cast its light. I know this sounds dramatic, but what would you have me do about it? Some things are dramatic. Put it this way if you prefer; under Teo's touch, I could believe in happy endings. Or middles. Or beginnings."

There are so many good books, but one of the qualities of great book, in my opinion, is one where the great beauty of the language and the truth of it makes you want to open your heart a little wider and be just a little better. So, if you're looking.. this is one of those rare books.

Good Manners Thursday...

It's just rude to be late, or as our current President has put it, "late is rude." So, I apologize. Good manners Thursday is late again. We will try to do better next week ... again.

Did you know that at an English wedding.. "hats are aways worn," according to Debrett's? My English friends will be shocked to hear that I own 1 pink and 1 red beret.. and no wedding appropriate hats. Hats are really not worn in America since the Kennedy's were in the White House.

But, it is important to wear a lovely hat to an English wedding and it can be "as fanciful and extravagant as the wearer wishes."

However, if you are sporting a very large hat, it is appropriate "to keep social kissing to the bare minimum." Imagine the disasters that could occur.

In addition to this small bit of hat wisdom. I wanted to share something really helpful and one of the most violated rules of etiquette in modern society. Circe explains it like this...

RSVP means call if you can't come to thank me for inviting you, and call if you can come to ask what you can bring!

In addition to what Circe said, Alexandra Stoddard suggests that you make your decision about whether or not you will be attending said function in a timely way.. meaning within a day or two and get back to the hostess who may need to make other arrangements to complete her party if you are not attending, but who needs to know quickly either way (I will try to find the reference on that).

On a funny personal note. When little c was about 3-4 years old, she was addicted to "Martha Stewart Living" and she called Martha by this full title every time she referred to her, "Martha Stewart Living says, ..." etc and watched her program faithfully everyday. One day my mother was getting ready for a fancy girlfriends luncheon at her home. c was thrilled to see all the fancy little treats and pretty tableware... and was trying to finagle a way to help set the table. In her tiny little voice she said, "Nammy, how many guests will you be expecting at your party?"

I don't see much of that little social secretary these days, she is interested in Nancy Drew, super heroes and dogs, but I'm hoping that underneath the latest layer of playground dust that little person is still in there somewhere.