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hiya peeps. spring is dawning! the sun is shining! spring always holds for me a lot of plans, and plans long-awaited now possible. this is especially true this year.

i've decided to take a hiatus from blogging. now, i know that i don't post a whole bunch in the first place. however even when i'm not posting i am thinking about posting. it has me not blogging to the best of my ability and half doing other things.

i'm working on finishing up my sophmore year of high school, among other things, that take a good deal of time.

don't take this as good-bye or anything. this is simply me taking a little break, which i've mulled over for awhile. working on time management.

i hope to be back somewhere around the end of spring/beginning of summer.

i'm thankful for all of you who follow along. see you soon!

xo hj

pssttt. while i'm gone you can see pics on my instagram, see what books i'm reading on goodreads, and check out my pins here.

the messy, the beautiful

I just got back this weekend from a youth camp/retreat.
These are some pictues of my room today before I cleaned it up, unpacked my suitcase, and did laundry.
But sometimes messy is beautiful.

books, books, etc.

If you all didn't know...I really like reading. I'm constantly finding new books I want to read. I thought I'd share some new books/series are that new or old-time favorites. (I use Goodreads to keep track of books I've read, want to read, or have read. It's pretty handy and I'd recommend it! See my account here.)

First off, I'm currently reading Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain, and The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien. I was reading Tom Sawyer (which I must say was rather surprising) when I found Pride and Prejudice in a box in our house. So I'm kind of in limbo between reading both here and there (whichever is closest). I seem to be making habit of reading more than one book at a time lately. I'm reading The Hobbit aloud to my sister.

For books I've read, I started keeping track of them with this chart last year. It's fun because at the end of the year you can count up the number of books you've read.

The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis >> My grandpa loaned these to me recently and I loved them.

The Anne of Green Gables Novels by L.M. Montgomery >> I read these sometime last year and am hoping to re-read them this summer.

The Love Comes Softly Series by Janette Oke

Little Women by Lousia May Alcott

Across Five Aprils by Irene Hunt >> I read this book a few years ago and remember really enjoying it, I'm looking forward to re-reading it sometime.

The Viking Quest Series by Lois Walfrid Johnson >> One of my favorite series. (I've read them, like, three or four times. Seriously.)

Seasons of the Heart Series by Janette Oke

Millie Keith, A Life of Faith by Martha Finely >> Another one of my very favorites and one I hope to read again soon.

Books I want to read would be...

The River of Time Series by Lisa T. Bergren

The Lord of the Rings Series by J.R.R. Tolkien

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë >> This one was mutually liked by you all when I asked for classic book recommendations.

The Elsie Dinsmore Series (the orignial ones) by Martha Finely

The Milred Keith Series (the orignial ones) by Martha Finely

Ivanhoe by Walter Scott

Pligrim's Progress by John Bunyan

The Song of Acadia Series by Janette Oke

The Bonnets and Bugles Series by Gilbert Morris

The Story Girl Books by L.M. Montgomery

Emma by Jane Austen

...

What are your favorite books? Happy weekend. xo.

april showers bring may flowers....

"Oh, Mummy, hasn't the world got its face washed nice and clean?" cried Di, on the morning the sunshine returned." 

The Anne of Green Gables series || L.M. Montgomery

Today it rained just a little, but the sky has been holding it in for days; staying gray and expressionless. But after it rained there was that certain look to the landscape that comes after it rains, when it truly looks like the world has got its face washed nice and clean. The trees are a little darker and the light a little glow-ier and the air not so humid.

And after all this, I went outside and took some pictures, just snapping away. Eventually I realized it was rather cold. (Snow is expected for tomorrow after 70-some degree weather for the last week. Hmmmmm....) But you can see signs of spring if you look closely. There's a little, yellow forsythia bloom next to the porch in the bare flower bed. There's leafy blooms on the trees. And there's grass all over the ground -- some sprouting just now, and some gather tall in funny little tufts.

I'm glad spring is pretty much here.

a new chapter | haley jane

"Even in literature and art, no man who bothers about originality will ever be original whereas if you simply try to tell the truth (without caring twopence how often it has been told before) you will, nine times out of ten, become original without ever having noticed it."

-C.S. Lewis

"I read once in a book that a rose by any other name would smell as sweet, but I've never been able to believe it. I don't believe a rose would smell as sweet if it was called a thistle or a skunk cabbage."

-L.M. Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables

Here it is. Haley Jane is up and running and I am so excited to share it with you all. It was time for some "sprucing up" around here. And not just a new design. A new look, a new feel, and a new name. I think blog names are important. My own name seemed to be the obvious choice, because, well, it will always be relevant to this blog. Because there is no exact theme to it. It is a little sad to be saying good-bye to Chapter Thirteen., but I am oh-so-excited for this change. 

I hope to "break the mold" as far as posts go, though it will be gradual. I'm looking forward to incorporating some new things (don't worry -- there will still be the same ol' things here, as well). I'm hoping to explore some more sorts of things I can put on here, and really just be better at documenting, being open and realistic.

I'm looking forward to this new chapter.

simple little pleasures

“After all," Anne had said to Marilla once, "I believe the nicest and sweetest days are not those on which anything very splendid or wonderful or exciting happens but just those that bring simple little pleasures, following one another softly, like pearls slipping off a string.”

L.M. Montgomery | Anne of Avonlea

Hey there. Remember me? Though this is only the ninth day since I last posted (and have gone far longer than that before), I feel like it's been a very long break.

The flu has been in going through our house lately. So, we've haven't been going many places, or doing many things -- but that's not all bad. I've been reading the hobbit to Addy. We're on chapter six now. After going to see the movie, we both really wanted to read the book. Our grandpa loaned us his copy and we've enjoyed reading through it and seeing what is like the movie, and what's different.

While going woodcutting with dad the other day, I found these two (above) slates of wood lying around. So, I took them home and painting quotes on them. One's on top of my dresser, the other is on my bedside table.

Speaking of quotes, I've really been liking them lately. So, I painted the outside of a notebook with some gold metallic paint, covered the spine in pretty tape, and painted black lettering on it. Now I keep little quotes I find, and like, taped inside.

So lately, though the weather's been cold and there's not been a whole lot going on, there's still simple little pleasures like these.

xo.

things to smile about

THINGS TO SMILE ABOUT | January 15, 2013

• vanilla flavored iced coffee
• stacks of journals, books, et cetera on my desk
• golden hour light and shadows in my room
• learning spanish
• kittens
• sunshine-y weather
• instagraming (@imhaleyjane)
• jars of paintbrushes
• reading
• mom's homemade chocolate chip cookies
• waking up when the sun has just started rising
• taking photos just for fun
• smash booking (a birthday present!)
• getting seed catalogs in the mail
• painting

chapter fifteen.

I seem to recall when you were small
All of a sudden, you're tall
It didn't happen overnight
That you've become a wonderful sight
And I know it's going to be all right

Because this is the way it was meant to be
First born in your family tree,
A picture of responsibility

But don't you worry
And don't you fret
Remember the good times
You're not old yet!

poem written by my grandpa. given to me on my 13th birthday.

Today is my fifteenth birthday. It's funny how quickly fourteen went by. I feel like I just sat down to write about my last birthday. It's also funny how much older fifteen sounds, than fourteen. But even though it seems like the year went by quickly, I know I'm older.

Right now I could go into how there are hardships -- trials and temptations. But that's a given. And today I want to tell you all how thankful I am. Thankful for God's grace. For Salvation. For forgiveness. For my family. For life. I don't deserve it. 

Fifteen years ago today, at 2:04 pm, I was born. I'm happy to be fifteen.

the christmas tree, christmas, and the end of the year.

Our Christmas tree this year was a fraiser fir from Home Depot. It was eight and a half feet tall and was purchased, when it was still tolerable outside, at the beginning of December. One Sunday, after church, we loaded up and headed to get the tree. We picked it out and strapped it to the top of the van, took it home, trimmed it, and set in the stand. Then we tried to get the Christmas music station on Pandora to work as we pulled out the boxes of Christmas decorations. When it was finished, decorated and sparkling, we waited in a flurry of getting things done, for Christmas day.

After going to the Christmas Eve candlelight service and having dinner with family on the 24th, Christmas day dawned. Addy and I woke up at seven o'clock am, in unbelief that we had slept in that long. We did the traditional rush downstairs, look at the glittering sight before us, and rush back upstairs to wake Mom and Dad. After opening presents and eating waffles and ham for breakfast, the rest of the morning was spent painting, reading, playing on the Wii, and watching the movie Little Women. In the afternoon, we headed to grandparents' houses to visit family and eat dinner.

That night I crawled into bed, thinking how fast Christmas day goes.

And now, here it is. December 29th. The end of the year. It's kind of a funny thing, how fast the year goes by -- yet how slow some days, weeks, and months seem to pass. Twenty twelve was full to the top. I'm looking forward to 2013.

Happy New Year!