The Bucket List Tag

Evie at A Period Drama Fangirl tagged me in The Bucket List Tag that was originally created by Elizabethany at An Accomplished Young Lady. I thought this was fun, especially as it is my birthday today and I'm thinking of all the things I still want to do someday.

Tag Rules:

• List 10 or more items from you bucket list.
• Tag 5 other people.

I Tag:

Melody

Miss Dashwood

Hamlette

Miss Elizabeth Bennet

Kiri Liz

and anyone else who would like to do this tag!

My Bucket List 

(well, some items from it!)

That means you my blogging buddy!

Visit Jane Auste's House in Chawton. I'd actually love to visit all the Jane Austen related places in England one day! Bath and Lyme Regis would be grand!

Guest Post at In Sunshine & Shadows

My blogging friend Little Lady invited me to guest post on her blog In Sunshine & Shadows. I had lots of fun writing about my latest fandom BBC Merlin. You can read Guest Post: His Name...Merlin and find out about what I enjoy about the show - favorite characters, costumes and more. 

Little Lady, thanks so much for inviting me to guest post! It was great having this chance to write about Merlin, Arthur, Guinevere and the rest! :-)

Any other BBC Merlin fans out there?

Good-bye 2012, Welcome 2013!

It hardly seems that another year has gone by already! This time of year I always like to take a few moments to ponder what has taken place before and what may come hereafter - a sort of out with the old, in with the new. 

"...it was a quick succession of busy nothings..." 

- Mansfield Park, Jane Austen

2012 In Review:

(interesting happenings in 2012)

~ My family adopted two new kitties in. They have turned out to be the sweetest boys and a special part of our family.

~ I hosted the Charles Dickens Birthday Week from February 5-11 in honor of his 200th birthday.

~ I was interviewed by Eva at Ramblings Of A Janeite (then called Elinor and Emma).

~ Watched my first episode of Doctor Who in March and became a full fledged Whovian!

~ Watched and listened to the 10th & 25th Anniversary Les Miserables concerts and became an instant fan.

~ Collaborated on Persuasion Comparisons at Austenitis in June.

~ My dad applied for a job with Answers in Genesis (AiG) in February and began a long interview process.

~ My dad was offered a job with AiG toward the end of April and accepted.

~ I ended my job caring for my elderly lady in June. She passed away in December.

~ May and June were spent in packing boxes, holding garage sales, loading a truck, saying good-bye to old friends, visiting with family, traveling to our new home, unloading the truck, unpacking and settling into our New Kentucky Home!

~ Went to AiG's Creation Museum for the first time.

~ Celebrated my 25th birthday by attending the Jane Austen Festival in Louisville, KY.

~ Collaborated on Pride & Prejudice Comparisons at Ramblings Of A Janeite in August.

~ A family of friends from Maine stayed with my family for a week in September. It was such fun taking them to the Creation Museum!

~ September 4th marked my fourth year of blogging at OFC.

~ I reached over 400 followers in 2012!

~ In late September, started attending a young people's Bible Study on Tuesday nights and have met a great group of friends.

~ October marked a year of me posting a new period drama or history related game every week (with a couple exceptions). 

~ Had a blast in December caring for some our friends' three boys while they had their baby girl.

~ So many other blessings that it's difficult to count them all! God is so good!

2013 Comes In:

It's difficult to know what lies ahead in the new year. It will probably bring new work, new friends, new achievements and new interests. But how these things will come about is a complete mystery. 

One thing is sure, God has great things in store for me and for you! 

And I'll still be blogging about  here at Old-Fashioned Charm about "Everything Old-Fashioned Under The Sun!"

 Happy New Year!

What has been awesome about your 2012?

Is there anything you are particularly looking forward to in 2013?

December Letters

A series of short letters to different people, experiences and things that are making up my world at the moment. I've seen this style of posting done on several blogs recently so am giving it a try.

Found on Pinterst

Dear M., K. and A., 
It was so much fun taking care of you boys for three days while your parent were at the hospital with your new baby sister!
A., what a wonderful thing it is to be six- years old! You are so sweet and full of funny remarks. Your love or music and musical instruments is infectious!
K., your funny faces and voices crack me up every time! You're so comical and independent most of the time that it surprises me that you would be the one who feels more deeply than your brothers, is the most excited to visit us and never wants to leave!
M., being eleven-years-old and the oldest brother is rough stuff but you're doing it right. Your concern for your siblings and parents is so sweet, but I'm so glad you still enjoy playing, being a kid and letting us take care of you. You three boys are going to be the best older brothers to your adorable new sister! Your are so right M., she is "an angel" and a Christmas miracle!  Dear Arabella Faith, you are such a cute little bugga-boo and we're so glad you are here!

 *sings* "Dear Jane Austen, what's my problem? I wish I lived in those simple olden days!" (never mind my horrible singing, go watch the music video)
I've had so much fun celebrating your 237th birthday! But it's also been a tad hectic these last few days and I'm kinda glad it's over now so I can focus on enjoying Christmas with my family. Dear Melody and Lizzy, thank you both so much for your awesome help with JABA! You ladies are such good friends and I love ya!

{Via Pinterest}

Dear Taco Dip, 
I'd never made you before but I've loved eating you at parties for years. Thank you so much for being such a simple recipe and coming out as scrumptious as I could wish! Everyone at the Christmas party thought you were terrific! (Skinny Taco Dip Recipe on Pinterest)

Our White Elephant Gifts

Dear Bible Study Christmas Party, 
My siblings and I were so excited for you to come and we had a blast!!! The food was delicious (homemade cheesecake and handmade truffles!), the scripture reading made me teary-eyed, the carol singing was amazing, the board games were silly and the conversations were terrific! But best of all was the White Elephant gift exchange! We all laughed so hard and had so much fun stealing gifts from each other! My face hurt for a long time after laughing and smiling so much! :-D

My Christmas on Amazon

Dear My Christmas - Andrea Bocelli CD, 
I'm so glad my turn to open a gift came toward the end of the gift exchange so that I got to keep you for my very own! Oh how the other girls "ooh-ed" and "aww-ed" and begged to trade, but I wouldn't have given you up for the world! I look forward to listening to you over and over again!

Dear UMass Doo Whop Shop, 

You guys have amazing voices and I've been watching videos from your school concerts non-stop! I'm particularly obsessed with your Disney Medley video (watch above or on YouTube so you can see all their funny faces)!

 Dear Star Trek, 
You are truly a blast from the past but it's been fun watching some episodes of four different of your shows on Netflix. My favorite series is still Star Trek: Voyager with its story of the amazing crew trying to get home.

Dear Muppets, 
Somehow Christmas wouldn't be Christmas without ya'll! Muppet Christmas Carol, A Muppet Family Christmas and Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas are such classic in my house and not matter how many times we watch you we always sing along!

Dear Christmas Tree Sellers, 
From the first moment of stepping out of our car your trees smelled wonderful! I forgot how much I missed the comforting smell of pine woods that were all around in Maine. You guys were so helpful in picking out our tree and the whole experience was just like being given a piece of "home"!  If there had been snow on the ground it would have been just perfect.

Buy It Here

Dear Focus on The Family Radio Theater, 
I so love your radio play version of A Christmas Carol! It's wonderful how you take scenes right from the book and I don't mind in the least the extra scenes with wonderful Christian messages. One winter I listened to you nonstop and now as I listen again so many years later I can hear all the voices in my head. *happy sigh*

Dear Tiny Tim, 
No matter how many times I read or listen to your part of the story I always cry. Even though I know you don't die, or maybe because I know you get to live, I cry for you and your sweet family!

This moment is going to be amazing!

Dear Les Miz 2012, 
So many tantalizing clips, trailers and behind the scenes videos are out and I've watched them all at least ten times! I really would love to see you in cinemas but I still don't know if I'll be able to. All these clips have even gotten my sister interested. I think she's already a Hugh Jackman as Valjean fan and likely to stay that way.

Dear BBC Merlin, 
My sister and I have finished watching the first four seasons and we can't wait for the fifth season to come to USA! We waited a while to watch the last two episodes so that it would last longer. So glad season four ends on a really happy not but looking forward to the inevitable Mordred and Morgana team up.

Dear Kentucky Weather,
How I wish that you would snow for Christmas! I know the hail storm the other day was incredible and looked an awful lot like snow but...it just wasn't! A real snow that sticks around a bit would be so nice!
And if you don't snow, I'll!...I'll...hmm...Oh! I know!  I'll keep singing "I'm dreaming of a White Christmas,  just like the ones I used to knoooooooow!" until it does snow!

Dear Friends & Readers, 
I hope that you ate having a wonderful December and are enjoying the delights of the season! Christmas is fast approaching! Have you got your shopping done yet?

How I Met Jane Austen - JABA

I can't quite place when it was that I first heard the name "Jane Austen". Perhaps it was when I was nine-years-old and my parents first brought home a VHS copy of Sense & Sensibility (1995) - and that's why the name Emma Thompson was was often synonymous in my mind with Jane Austen. Perhaps it was at age ten after watching the BBC's Pride & Prejudice (1980) with my mom late at night or at age twelve while watching Pride & Prejudice (1995) on A&E with my family. Whenever it was that I first heard The Authoress's name it was quite a while before even I picked up one of her books.

Sense & Sensibility (1995)

My Austen Introduction: Yes, I am one of that great number of Janeites who was first introduced to the works of Jane Austen through the film adaptations of her books. It really all started with my parents who went to see Sense & Sensibility (1995) in cinemas for their anniversary and then quickly snatched up a VHS copy when it went to video. I was nine years old when I first watched Emma Thompson's adaptation come to life and though I didn't understand the story (or even all of what the characters were saying) I did love the costumes, houses and carriages and since my parents were laughing and crying over it I knew one day I would to! Not too long after that I remember my parents finding other Jane Austen adaptations such as P&P 1980, P&P 1995 and Emma 1997 (A&E) all of those becoming instant favorites with them and classics to be watched over and over.

Pride & Prejudice (1980)

My Interest Grew: Shortly after seeing some film adaptations, my mom started reading some of the novels. I remember lovely paperback copies of Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice and Northanger Abbey lying around the house and me desperately wanting to know what wonders those books contained. But my mom told me then that the style of writing was sometimes as difficult for her to understand as Shakespeare! I tried reading Northanger Abbey once when I was thirteen years old but didn't quite make it past the first chapter.

Emma (1997, A&E)

And Grew...: From age 12-13 I not only watched several Austen adaptations but I also found a cassette tape that was part of a BBC Radio Play of Emma. I listened to that tape over and over again loving every bit of the fragment of that story and pondering how the story might end. I remember how much it was like a mystery solved when I watched Emma 1997 (A&E) for the first time and found out which couples actually end up together! Later I was given the complete set of that Emma Radio Play and I enjoyed listening to the story in it's entirety.

Mansfield Park (1983)

And Grew!: When I was nearing age fourteen my family made friends with a young lady who owned several Jane Austen film adaptations which I begged to borrow from her. My family and I watched the whole of P&P 1995 in almost one day. We also devoured other films such as Mansfield Park 1983, Persuasion 1995, Mansfield Park 1999 and we even endured watching Northanger Abbey 1987, even though our friend had warned that it wasn't very good.

C.E. Brock Illustration

Reading My First Austen Novel: For my fifteenth birthday I had one wish: an unabridged audio book of Northanger Abbey. Those six cassette tapes were my prized possession! To me actress Anna Massey who read the book sounded like the voice of Jane Austen herself reading the tale to me. Catherine Morland was not too much older than me and I loved her sweetness and her adventures. John and Isabella Thorpe were vexing but still entertaining. Eleanor Tilney was the most elegant lady and the kindest friend to Catherine. And at fifteen I fell head-over-heals for Henry Tilney with his lively wit, good sense and gentlemanly manners! As soon as I'd finished listening to it once I would start listening all over again, immersing myself in the language and culture of Regency England.

Persuasion (1995)

Reading More Austen: When I started high school my father was my teacher and his love for English literature inspired me to read. He put Persuasion and Sense and Sensibility on my reading list for my sophomore year and I loved it! My dad read the books before I did and in doing so he discovered his own favorite Austen book is Persuasion (my parents met in the Navy and love the story of constant love, they are also big fans of Persuasion 1995).

From Pinterest

Discovering Other Fans: After reading my first Austen novels I was hooked and wanted to know more about The Authoress behind the books. On an internet search of Jane Austen, to my surprise I found site after site dedicated to information about her life, novels and the film adaptations of her books. One of my favorites of the fans out there was Margaret Sullivan "Mags" who not only penned the amazing Austenblog but also had put together Tilneys and Trap-doors a site dedicated to my beloved Northanger Abbey and The Cult of Da Man about my favorite hero Henry Tilney! Because these folks all know so much more about Jane Austen than I did I spent countless ours eating up tons of information and reading other people's opinions but didn't reach out and comment at all.

Pride & Prejudice (2005)

Beginning To Reach Out To Fellow Janeites: In 2005 my father, a computer programmer, asked me if I'd like to have a webpage of my own dedicated to Persuasion and all things Jane Austen so that is when my website Kellynch.com was born. It's been neglected for a while but there is a great deal of information there that I still use myself. When news that Pride & Prejudice (2005) was being made I hung on every piece of news and watched the trailers and clips hundreds of times. Seeing the film in a local cinema was a surprise Christmas gift from my parents and, even though it is one of my least favorite Austen adaptations now, the memory of sitting in a darkened cinema and tears springing to my eyes at the mere sight of "Jane Austen" on the huge screen is one that I will always cherish. The three 2007 ITV adaptations brought even more interest and tons of news which I kept up with on a daily basis at my website Austen Efforts (now converted into a new blog version). By this point I had read Pride and Prejudice, Emma, all of Jane's Juvenilia and short works and called myself a devoted Janeite!

Blogging About Jane: Up to this point I had tried to introduce a few of my friends to Jane Austen but had no one in my real life, besides my parents, who really understood my obsession. September 4, 2008 I began a wild journey by starting up this blog, Old-Fashioned Charm, with the idea in mind that I would post about everything old-fashioned but especially about Jane Austen. I started meeting other Janeites who had similar stories to mine, young ladies who loved Jane's books with a passion and also enjoyed discussing the film adaptations and other period dramas. 

Jane Austen Festival 2012

Recent Jane Austen Adventures: In the last four years of blogging I've had numerous opportunities in recent years to be interviewed, receive a few comments actors in Jane Austen adaptations (or even their parents!), get recognition from some of the Austen expects I admire and learn so much. My cherished memory of this summer is attending the Jane Austen Festival in Louisville, KY for my birthday. It was exhilarating just being around so many other Janeites with all the events and conversations having to do with Jane and her Regency era! 

Between last year and this year I've also read Mansfield Park from cover to cover for the first time (I'd listed to abridged audio books before) and had so much fun discussing the book with my dear friend Melody. The greatest thing about OFC for me is getting to me and befriend so many amazing people and hear their stories of how they met Jane. 

How Has Jane Austen Influenced My Life? Reading, listening, watching Jane Austen and writing about her has influenced almost every aspect of my life. Her novels are very entertaining but I believe they have also influenced, for the better, how I think and how I view the world. My ideas of friendship and romance have certainly been influenced by stories. I've learned from the heroine's mistakes and successes, been encouraged to emulate their virtues and avoid their faults.
Thank dearest Jane!

To conclude this rambling post I'd like to echo my favorite words about The Authoress:

"Jane lies in Winchester -- blessed be her shade! 

Praise the Lord for making her, and her for all she made! 

And while the stones of Winchester, or Milsom Street, remain, 

Glory, love, and honor unto England's Jane! " 

- Rudyard Kipling, Epigraph to "The Janeites"

What about you? How did you meet Jane Austen?

Did you start with her books or the films?

How has Jane Austen influenced your life?

Another Fandom Heard From...

Dear Readers,
I've gone back and forth on my decision to post about my Doctor Who fandom here at Old-Fashioned Charm. Well, I can't be totally old-fashioned all the time, this blog is about things I like, period drama actors are abundant in the new series and there are many historical references in Doctor Who that are just plain fun. So, if you're not at all interested in Doctor Who feel free to totally ignore this post, I probably won't be mentioning it again.


Okay, so you're interested are you? Yes, I do call myself a Whovian (that is a fan of Doctor Who). I don't recommend the show for everyone but it is a lot of fun and I'm discovering the older the episode is the more fun it usually is too!
Natasha Marie of Day By Day and Ashely of Bramblewood Fashion have teamed up to bring us Whovians The Doctor Who Blog Party, a completely Brilliant and Fantastic week long event celebrating all things Doctor Who related! They have many interesting posts, a couple of giveaways and this super fun tag to which I had fun suggesting questions. Thanks ladies!
Warning: Lots and lots of photos!! :D

1| If you decided to name your first born child after any Doctor Who character, male or female, who would it be? 
Well, probably after Amelia Pond but purely because I love the name Amelia "Amy". Maybe Rose, that's pretty too.

 2| What is your favourite colour of the Doctor's shoes? 
Hmm...well I liked the converse shoes David Tennant wore and not really any particular color, I liked all of them.

 3| Look around yourself and name the one thing that is TARDIS blue in your house! 
There's a couple DVD cases, a hoodie and I have an iPod cover because it's name is definitely TARDIS! :)

 

 4| If you could pick who plays the Twelfth Doctor which actor would you choose and why? 
First choice would be Tom Hiddleston because he's clever and quirky and oh so adorable! But it would be great if the next Doctor could be ginger haired, and then instead of the "still not ginger" quote he couple go around saying "Look! I'm ginger!" heehee :)  Or...maybe Andrew Buchan, he's be just Fantastic!

 5| The Doctor is going back in time again, which historical era should he visit? 
Regency England, yes, aliens and Jane Austen! Maybe it was the Doctor who was the mysterious gentleman Jane met on the seaside at Lyme! :)

 6| Would you REALLY go with the Doctor in the TARDIS? 
Yes! Well, at least for one adventure. I don't think I could spend a long time traveling with the Doctor (but that might depend what he looks like or his current personality).

 7| Who's your favorite Doctor and why? 
The Tenth Doctor is my absolute favorite! Why? David Tennant. And that's enough! ;)  I love the quirkiness of David Tennant's Doctor, his hair, his adorableness, his always doing what is best, his catch phrases, his kindness and his wonderful group of friends.

 8| Would you be afraid to spend Christmas in London?
No, not really. If aliens attack there's always the Doctor to take care of them.

 9| Do you look at an ordinary screwdriver and think 'this could be a bit more sonic?' 
Hmm...I never have before but

 10| Angel statues, plastic mannequins, Christmas trees - what ordinary everyday object would you love to make an object of terror to Whovians were you Steven Moffat? 
Snowmen! haha

 11| The TARDIS lands in your garden and the Doctor steps out. What is the first thing you say to him? 
"Where have you been?" or maybe "The angels are coming!" or even "Hello! My name is Alonso!" or what about "Oi! Watch it Spaceman!"

 12| Who is your favorite actor who has played the Doctor so far and why? 
David Tennant. That is all. :)

 13| Have you seen any Classic Doctor Who? If so, which Doctor/episode(s) is your favorite? 
I recently watched a bunch of older episodes because I'd only seen the newer series and I felt it was high time that I knew a bit more about the history of the Doctor. My grandmother was a huge Doctor Who fan and her favorite was Tom Baker as the Fourth Doctor. I've seen at least once episode of each of the older Doctors (except for Six and Eight) and my favorite is definitely Tom Baker. I've seen nine of the adventures with him and so far my favorite is The Ark In Space, but mostly because that one had Sarah Jane in it and I liked her a lot.

 14| Which are the creepiest, scariest and all-out meanest baddies in all the Who-niverse? 
Daleks are definitely up there but the baddies who always scare me to death are the Weeping Angels. Funny enough Blink is one of my favorite episodes though. Oh, and the Master is very creepy!

 15| Who is/are your favorite Companion(s) and why? 
My favorite companion is Rose Tyler, she's so sweet and smart and helps the Doctor be an even better man than he already is. A close second now is Donna Noble - I just finished watching the episodes in her season and I love her witty remarks, spunk and the compassionate nature that comes out in her. Love her grandfather Wilf to pieces too! I love that Donna is really just an ordinary person but she really becomes the most important person in the universe. Sarah Jane is a new favorite of mine too, I've seen two adventures (not counting the newer episodes) with her but I'd love to see more - she has such elegance, smarts and sweetness.

 16| Did you cry more watching Doomsday or The Angels Take Manhattan? 
Well, as I haven't seen The Angels Take Manhattan yet I'll have to say Doomsday. The episode I cried most over really was The End Of Time: Part Two. Oh my goodness I absolutely bawled over watching that and I've watched it twice.

 17| What is your favorite quote from the show? 
"Alons-y!" I have lots of favorites but that one is my favorite. That and "Multa Bene!" Oh and I do love the "Don't Blink" quote from Blink. :)

 18| Which Doctor (including all previous regenerations) would you most like to be the companion of, and why? 
Ten, Four and Nine - in that order. Ten-nant first of course! Tom Baker's Fourth is so clever, witty and kind. And then I do think Christopher Eccleston's Ninth was quite fun.

19| Which of the following are you more scared of, the Daleks, Cybermen, or the Weeping Angles? 
Weeping Angels definitely. They kill you kindly but are still the scariest to me.

 20| Who are some of your favorite guest stars in the series? 
Oh, too many to name! Carey Mulligan as Sally Sparrow might be my favorite. Penelope Wilton as Harriet Jones, former Prime Minister. Anna Maxwell Martin, Hugh Bonneville, Harry Lloyd, Elisabeth Sladen, Sophia Myles, David Morrissey, Bernard Cribbins (though he's sort of becomes a regular character), Clive Swift, Bill Paterson, Bill Nighy, Felicity Jones, Felicity Kendall and many many others. I want to see the Michael Gambon and Katherine Jenkins Christmas episode very soon. That's one great thing about the newer Doctor Who series is that you get to see so many of your favorite actors popping up all the time! :)

 21| What was your first experience with Doctor Who and how did you hear about the series? 
Well, my grandmother was a huge fan of the older Doctor Who series so she knitted my dad a Tom Baker scarf and I've always had an interested in the story because of her. I'd heard some things about the new series and was quite interested in all of the actors who were in it. March 2012 I got Netflix and having finished watching BBC TV series Robin Hood I decided to take the plunge with Season One of the new series. I wasn't sure if I liked it at first, some of the Christopher Eccleston episodes are quite cheesy, but I enjoyed it and held out for David Tennant's seasons and I was not disappointed! I finished all six available seasons by early April. Crazy? Obsessed? YES!

 22| The Ninth Doctor said, 'Fantastic!', Ten said, 'Allons-y', and Eleven says, 'Geronimo'; what would you like to be the signature exclamation of the Twelfth Doctor? 
"I'm late! I'm late!" haha, yeah a little too much like the White Rabbit from Alice In Wonderland. Maybe bringing back a catch phrase could be fun like randomly exclaiming "Jelly Babies!", haha. :)

 23| If you were trapped in an episode, which one would it be? 
Oh, maybe The Unicorn And The Wasp. I love Agatha Christie and the fact that that episode doesn't have a really dangerous baddie makes it more appealing too.

 24| Which is your favorite episode with each Doctor (Nine, Ten and Eleven)? 
For Nine, either Rose the first episode or Father's Day with Rose's father. Favorite Ten would have to be his first, The Christmas Invasion, because it's just such fun! I love lots of his episodes including Blink and The Unicorn And The Wasp. For Eleven, not sure, I've watched the Fifth and Sixth seasons once and have a hard time choosing a favorite - maybe The Eleventh Hour or The Curse Of The Black Spot.

 25| After watching a certain Doctor Who episode, did you summon up the courage to try fish sticks and custard?
Never! I wouldn't mind the custard but I really dislike fish fingers (or fish sticks).