Finally figured it out!

So, I finally added some links for your perusal :)

Narrowly avoiding calling in the troops (aka Lauren)
to help me navigate my way through blogging basics, I have added some links for you at left.

A quick summary of some of the things you'll find...
Sites:
cooking (contessa), shopping (mahar), local artistry (sorry, it's not a site full of nudes on canvas),
the best stationer in birmingham (LG Designs), local restaurant menus and virtual tours of their atmosphere! (b'ham menus/restaurants), great writing on social justice (burnside), the best site (IMHO) for helping the people of God develop discernment in engaging the culture (ransom)...

Friends' Blogs:
writings from some folks I dearly love...the rest of you out there need to join us :)

Books:
A collection of some of the books that have impacted me the most, have gotten me thinking in a different and refreshing way and that have opened my eyes...in addition to some of the best fiction literature out there.
They are listed alphabetically, but I highly recommend reading Searching For God Knows What if you haven't already. It along with Blue Like Jazz have done more for my heart and soul in changing my perspective in this walk of faith than anything I've read in a long time.
Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis. One of the best thinkers of all time and one of my favorite authors. Read this apologetic classic!
A few others on the list are:
Till We Have Faces is also by Lewis and is a page turning re-telling of the mythological story of Cupid and Psyche.

The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver. This may very well be my favorite modern work of fiction. She is an amazing writer. This book will make you cry, laugh out loud and angry all at the same time. It is the story of of a Baptist missionary who takes his wife and four daughters to the 1950's congo. The daughters as well as the wife tell their story over the span of 30 years from each of their perspectives.

The Red Tent is a fictional extension of the biblical story of Jacob and his family. I could not put this book down. It is told from the perspective of his only daughter, Dinah. The author gives an illuminating look inside the culture and lives of these women in Canaan and Egypt.

The Working Poor still reading this along with the hubby. A synopsis from amazon.com: The Working Poor examines the "forgotten America" where "millions live in the shadow of prosperity, in the twilight between poverty and well-being." These are citizens for whom the American Dream is out of reach despite their willingness to work hard. Struggling to simply survive, they live so close to the edge of poverty that a minor obstacle, such as a car breakdown or a temporary illness, can lead to a downward financial spiral that can prove impossible to reverse.

Happy Reading Everyone!