Deborah M. Hathaway
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Romantic, Cheesy, & Christmassy

11/27/2018

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Christmas just isn't Christmas unless cheesy (and clean) romance movies are involved! There are a few movies that are a bit too much even for myself to handle, so I've compiled a list of my favorites that I've watched over the years. Feel free to tell me your own favorites below!
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​Princess Switch - I just watched this the other night. I loved it! I laughed way too much at the horse scene. And Vanessa Hudgens was surprisingly loveable in this sweet, Parent trap - esque clean romance!
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​Everything You Want - Formally titled "Love Surreal," this movie is sweet and funny. I watch it every year, and it is a part of my holiday movie collection! 
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​A Golden Christmas 2
- I didn't really like the first "Golden Christmas," but this one was much better! Particularly because of the puppies. 
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​A Christmas Prince
- This one was cute, shamelessly plugged in "A Princess Switch," and has a sequel coming out soon, for which I cannot wait!
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12 Dates of Christmas - This has got to be one of my favorites. I watch it multiple times every year. I love "Zack Morris" being the main character, and the storyline is pretty clever. It's also "supes" romantic. So, win right there.
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​Dear Santa
 - This one is pretty cringe-worthy, but it's entertaining enough for me to watch it every year! It also has a nice message!
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​A Christmas Kiss 
- It took me a few tries to watch this one, but I liked the female character so much that I pushed passed the awful (in my humble opinion) acting of the hero of the movie. 
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​A Dogwalker's Christmas Tale - If you like dogs, you'll probably like this one a lot more. This one is super cheesy, but it served its purpose: a few moments of entertainment.
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​Holiday Engagement 
- This one is a little more risqué than the other ones. I like the growth of their relationship in this one, though!
A few other mentions: "Christmas Crush" was cute, but was a little too good at reminding me of high school, so pass on that. "The Spirit of Christmas" was fine, too, but it was too spooky for my taste. (I'm a coward, you see.) "How Sarah Got Her Wings" was ridiculous. I did NOT like that one. "Christmas in the Smokies" was really great until the end...it was kinda lackluster. 
I have a few others on my watch list this year, including "Christmas Wedding Planner," "Christmas with a View," and "Angels in the Snow."
So there you have it! What are some of your favorite cheesy, Christmas romances?? Did I miss any of your favorites?
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My List of Top Ten Period Dramas

9/25/2018

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When I write too often, my brain slowly stops working, so every once in a while, I take a little downtime by watching my favorite period dramas. So, here, for your reading (or should I say, "viewing"?) pleasure, is my top ten list. 
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​10. Downton Abbey - I used to love this show, and it would have made higher on my list, had (spoiler alert!) the main characters not left the show. Such a bummer.
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​9. Jane Eyre - I love all of the movie adaptations, but the one with Michael Fassbender is one of my favorites. It's told in such a unique way. 
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​8. Ever After - This is a period drama...isn't it? I watched this movie so often as a kid, and it's still just as sweet and romantic now!
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​7. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society - I'd be lying if I said I didn't have to look up that title to make sure I got it right. This is one of my new favorites!
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​6. Persuasion - I love this version. Sally Hawkins plays it so well, and Rupert Penry-Jones is my favorite Captain Wentworth.
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​5. Pride & Prejudice - I may ruffle some feathers with this one, but as the Kiera Knightley one was my first adaptation I saw, I tend to favor this one above the others. 
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​4. Emma - I LOVE this one. The characters are all spot on, and it's so fun to watch. I feel like it captures the humor of the book perfectly!
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​3. Anne of Green Gables - Oh, Anne. Oh, Gil. Their love. I can't even stand it. Is it weird that I aspire to be like her?
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​2. North & South - I don't know ANYONE who doesn't love that kiss scene at the end. Richard Armitage is perfection in this drama. Oh, and I guess whoever plays Margaret, too, or something...
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​1. Poldark - Did you even question that this would be my number one favorite period drama? I thought not. There is nothing better than Season 1, in my opinion! 
Another list of top ten favorites done. What are some of your favorite period dramas?
Sidenote: I just joined Instagram! Click HERE to follow me and see a fun array of photos about me, Cornwall, the Regency Era, and more! :) 
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My Long-Lasting Regency Kick

9/25/2018

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Recently, I've been on a Regency kick. And when I say recently, I mean the past twenty years. My family must know my love for the era (or I just talk about it incessantly), because I received some amazing, Regency-centered gifts for my birthday last week!
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My husband is the best gift-giver ever. Every year, he surprises me with thoughtful presents I always love. This year, among many other gifts, he got me this great little Pride and Prejudice card game.

We haven't had the chance to play it yet, but you better believe I'm going to play Elizabeth, and I'm going to win. (Either that, or I'll be sorely disappointed with myself...and be a sore loser.)
My sister knows me quite well, also, as she gifted me a beautiful feather fountain pen. I use it when I want to feel like I'm Jane Austen writing a story. Then I realize it's much faster to use a laptop...so I use the feather pen then to practice my signature, and that works much better. 
Who knows if I'll ever get over this regency obsession. That's a lie. I know I won't. But I'm more than okay with that because nothing makes me quite as happy as living vicariously through my characters as they experience the Regency Era firsthand.
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My Top Ten Disney Movies (Animated or Almost-Animated)

8/14/2018

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First. I LOVE movies. LOVE THEM. Second, I tried to make a simple list of my top ten favorite movies, but as my list grew and grew, I realized that was near impossible. So I’m simplifying things and doing my list of favorite Disney movies, animated or almost-animated. (If I start to add in Star Wars or Marvel or everything else Disney has done or owns or will own, things will be too complicated again.) So. Here’s my list, number one being my favorite! 
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​10. Emperor’s New Groove – My sister and I watched this constantly as children, and without fail, we would laugh until we couldn’t breathe and tears were rolling down our cheeks every time that cat falls and screams and then launches into the air and screams again. We loved it!

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​9. Lady and the Tramp – I mostly loved this because of the cute little puppies at the end of the movie. 

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​8.) Robin Hood – My sister and I had the biggest crush on that manly fox.

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​7.) Enchanted – This counts as half-animated and is the funniest show! I hope the upcoming sequel doesn’t disappoint...

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​6.) Toy Story – I’m not choosing which one is the best. They’re all great! Love Tom Hanks’ and Tim Allen’s voices in them.​

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​5.) Pocahontas – She was my favorite Disney Princess growing up. I watched it recently for the first time since I was a child and was surprised at the heart-wrenching ending. The wind tells her to go!! Horrible.

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​4.) Mary Poppins – I love Julie Andrews. Everything about this film is perfection. So funny and timeless.

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​3.) Cinderella (Live-Action) – That dress. What I wouldn’t give to wear that dress.

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​2.) Tangled – Still a favorite. So romantic. So sweet. Flynn Ryder is the best. 

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1.) Moana – This is still a surprise to me that this is my favorite. For some reason, this movie speaks to me. Her love of the ocean, being torn between her home and the wide open waters. I absolutely love it. And you better believe that I sing along to every word each time my kids “make” me listen to the music!

There you have it! What is your list of top ten favorite animated (or almost) Disney movies? I’d love to know!
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Books From My Past

8/14/2018

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I think most of us have read books that have had significant impacts on our lives, whether for good or bad, especially the books we read when we were younger.

Today, I decided to compile a small (and I mean small) list of books that I loved when I was younger, as well as books that were most definitely not for me.

​The first book that always comes to mind when I think of what I read as a child would have to be “Charlotte’s Rose” by A. E. Cannon. I loved that book so much that I based a small book I had to write in my history class off of it. I loved the cute main character and how strong she was throughout the book. I also remember this as one of the first novels I read that had a taste of romance to it. I’m afraid my obsession for romance novels only increased from that point on. Side note, I wrote the author an email once, telling her I loved her book and that I loved to write, and she wrote me back, telling me to never give up on writing. I have never forgotten her advice, nor how I felt to have an actual author write me back!

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When I grew older, I read “Pride & Prejudice.” As you may know due to my Regency romance novels, this book had a huge impact on me. I watched the first adaptation of the novel (the one with Laurence Olivier) when I was maybe nine. Though I still enjoy the movie, I later came to discover how inaccurate it is in relation to the novel and the history of the Regency Era. They had a great, annoying Mrs. Bennett, though so that was spot on, at least! Nothing compares to Jane Austen’s writing, though, no matter how accurate the film adaptation!  

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I also remember really enjoying “This Just In” by Kerry Blair. At the time, I had a crush on my math teacher who reminded me of the hero of the novel, so that may have been why I enjoyed the book so much… You know how that goes! I laughed and sighed with the romance all the way throughout the book, and I renewed it multiple times from the library (because, you know, eBooks didn’t really exist then).  
 
And then there were the books I cringed while reading. They aren’t horrible books, many of my friends actually enjoyed them, but they were just not for me. Maybe it was because I was forced--sorry, required to read them in school. Or maybe it was because I love happy endings and happy middles (not ALL happy. Just enough to keep me motivated), and these books were not happy. In my opinion, anyway.

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being"1984". That book. Did I already mention I like happy endings? Because I like happy endings. And this book is not happy. For that reason, and many others, it was very difficult for me to get through, and if I’m being honest, I skimmed, if not skipped, more than half of it. (Sorry, Miss Merrell!) However, I did manage to pass my AP Lit test thanks to a question that applied perfectly to the book, so I suppose it wasn’t totally worthless, my reading it, after all.

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"Watership Down" was another novel I wasn’t too thrilled with while reading it. I read it so long ago that I don’t remember much, but I DO remember it took me all summer to read (“required” again to read it for the coming school year), and it was rather depressing. They had us watch a clip of the movie, as well, and that scarred me forever.
 
So there you have it! Now I want to hear from you! What are your favorite or not-so-favorite novels that changed you as a person? Comment below or shoot me an email!

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