One Last Challenge -

 Ok, ok, one more challenge. I was going to limit my challenges this year, but this one will just be an overlap to the others in the way that I will be using my library to obtain books, instead of purchasing them or borrowing from friends.

I kept track of where I got books for 2014, and I borrowed 27 from the library. So I am going to sign up at the Going Pro Level - 28+ checkouts in 2015.  I will show my progress in a page tab at the top of my blog.

Last year I participated in the First Book of the Year that Sheila hosted also.

 I will do that too in 2015. I hated my picture from last year, so I will probably try a different way to take my picture. :(.



Until next time
Stay Busy and Stay Happy

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? 12/15/14 Blackberry Winter & Unbroken

This Monday meme is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey.  Join us by grabbing her button and linking up your own What Are You Reading post.

  

Last week I started reading Blackberry Winter by Sarah Jio. 

I am loving it. 

From Goodreads:

From acclaimed novelist Sarah Jio, a new "mystery-slash-love story [that] will have you racing to the end"
Seattle, 1933. Vera Ray kisses her three-year-old son, Daniel, goodnight and reluctantly leaves for work. She hates the nightshift, but it's the only way she can earn enough to keep destitution at bay. In the morning--even though it's the second of May--a heavy snow is falling. Vera rushes to wake Daniel, but his bed is empty. His teddy bear lies outside in the snow.
Seattle, present day. On the second of May, Seattle Times reporter, Claire Hanson, awakens to another late-season snowstorm. Assigned to cover this "blackberry winter" and its predecessor decades earlier, Claire learns of Daniel's unsolved abduction and vows to unearth the truth--only to discover that she and Vera are linked in unexpected ways. 

On my kindle:  I will start soon I hope, Unbroken by Laura Hildebrand. 

I have had this one on my list for awhile. A friend recommended it, and now the movie opens on Christmas Day, so I wanted to get the story read. 

This evening, Monday, I have one last Christmas celebration. I play bunco with 7 other women once a month. Tomorrow our hostess extraordinaire, Linette, will open her home so we can visit, nibble and sip and enjoy a quick game. Her home will probably be extraordinarily decorated too. She has such talent. I hope I will be able to get some good snapshots. 

Until next time

Stay Busy and Stay Happy

Saturday Snapshots - Some Christmas Traditions

Saturday Snapshots is hosted by Melinda at West Metro Mommy Reads. Come join the fun. Visit Melinda's blog, grab the button, read the rules, post your photos and link up at West Metro Mommy Reads.

 I have another amaryllis this year. This one was a gift from my DIL's mother, when she left SD and moved to Arizona. It wanted to bloom early, so I put it in my front window. We are watching it change every day. This is from above on Tuesday!(edited the 2nd of Dec)

 Two days later,Thursday,(the 4th) one bloom is open and the other is ready to bloom.

 Today( Dec 5th) it looks like this.

A close up of  "Scarlet Joy"....my name, not the grower. Isn't it stunning.

Ready for a Christmas read and my favorite NOEL ( do you get it?) mug with tea. It is sitting on a Quilt As You Go place mat I made several years ago.

Are you taking time for yourself this holiday season? Hope you are!

Until next time,
Stay Busy and Stay Happy

ps: this is the post I forgot to post last Saturday the 5th. Today all four blooms are open, in fact the first one is starting to fade. There is another bloom stem on this bulb, so I should get another couple of blooms before Christmas. They are fun to watch grow and bloom, but they don't stay around very long.

Busy Busy- It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

I think I might be losing it!  Seriously, I wrote a post on Friday night, ready to post on Saturday morning and "poof" that  was that. I never posted it and never linked it up to Saturday Snapshots either.

Last week was a whirlwind of "goings on" as my grandma used to say. I made two cheesecakes, attended Christmas gatherings for 4 organizations that I (or we) belong to, did some laundry and some cleaning, had a date night with DH and some friends. Also attended another local craft show and watched 2 movies ( DH finally signed us up for Netflix) and managed to read a little.

So that being said, you will understand that I am still reading Making Spirits Bright. Fern Michaels contribution, Making Spirits Bright was very fun. It is set in Colorado and tells the story of young entrepreneur Melanie McLaughlin and the fact that she is beginning to hear her biological clock ticking. As she explores the option of adoption, she makes two discoveries. One, the agency she chose is not what she envisioned and and she was sort of forced into spending some time with Bryce, her friend's younger brother. They meet on the ski slope for a friendly afternoon on the slopes and you can guess the rest.
The second story, Runaway Christmas by Elizabeth Bass, is a story about 13 year old Erica, who lives in Texas with her father, step-mother and new baby step-sister. Erica decides she would much rather spend Christmas with her Aunt Heidi in New York City than with her father and his family in Texas. So when the opportunity arrives, she makes a decision to fly by herself to NYC, without calling her aunt. But it ends well, so don't worry.
 I am just about finished with Home for Christmas by Rosalind Noonan. It is my favorite so far. Jo Truman, single mom of 5 yo Ava, and her cousin Molly run a Christmas Shop in the town she grew up in. She is happy  and thankful for all the blessing of having her family close by. Cousins Christmas Shop is doing very well and she is making piece with her past. Enter, high school friend and best friend of her daughter's father, back from Afghanistan.  Sam was injured in an explosion of an IED and won't let her see his face, but there is definitely electricity when they are in the same room. There are 40 more pages to see where this goes. Do you have any guesses?
 I have the last of the collection, Christmas on Cape Cod by Nan Rossiter to read. I'll let you know about that one.

So until next time
Stay Busy and Stay Happy

My newest Amaryllis, blooming its heart out. I am Happy!!!!!

Wondrous Words Wednesday - Words from books and blogs

Wondrous Words Wednesday is hosted each week by Kathy at Bermuda Onion's Weblog. It is place to highlight words you have discovered in your reading or feature words that you like. Feel free to get creative. If you want to play along, grab the button, write a post and go to Kathy's blog and link up.



Earlier this week I was reading the review of The Pocket Wife by Susan Crawford on Laurel-Rain's blog. I read this sentence and did not know this word, I am ashamed to say.


" I had my suspicions about the person who was charged with the murder, but the denouement was definitely stunning. And worth the wait."


de·noue·ment
noun \ˌdā-ˌnü-ˈmäⁿ, dā-ˈnü-ˌ\

: the final part of something (such as a book, a play, or a series of events)

Full Definition of DENOUEMENT

: the final outcome of the main dramatic complication in a literary work

: the outcome of a complex sequence of events




From Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver

Having served enough time in Altanta, with her volunteer work, Mother has moved to the Georgia coast, to a hamlet of hoary little brick houses on Sanderling Island.

I had seen hoary before, but always thought it meant gray or white haired. However, that description did not seem to fit this sentence. So I looked it up.
hoary
adjective \ˈhȯr-ē\
: very old
: not interesting, funny, etc., because of being used too often : not fresh or original
: having gray or white hair

Until next time

Stay Busy and Stay Happy

First Chapter First Paragraph Truesday Intros -

 Diane at Bibliophile By The Sea hosts this Tuesday meme as a place the share the first paragraph (or a few) of the book you are currently reading or hope to start soon. Join us to get a glimpse into what some other book lovers are reading.

Placerville Colorado
November 2011

Melanie McLaughlin positioned her cursor in the SEND icon, double-clicked, and waited for the window telling her that her mail had bent sent to pop up. She signed off her e-mail account, then moved her mouse to exit the complicated graphics program she'd help design last year. It was her biggest job to date, and she was happy to be finished. She did want to work during the upcoming Christmas season. Fortunately, she was her own boss, so she make the rules. She just wanted to enjoy the  holidays without any professional commitments, no last-minute, all-night projects to finish. She'd worked diligently through the Thanksgiving holiday to make sure her schedule was completely  clear until after the new year.

This is a compilation of 4 "sparkling tales" of the "seasons's most joyous presents". I have read Fern Michaels before and enjoyed her storytelling. The other authors are new to me. So I am looking forward to some light, hopefully happy reading for the next couple of days. Would you continue to read this collection of stories?

It's a busy week for me. Some holiday gatherings to prep for, some presents to wrap, some cheesecakes to bake.


Until next time,
Stay Busy and Stay Happy

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? Dec 1st

This Monday meme is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey.  Join us by grabbing her button and linking up your own What Are You Reading post.



December 1st - and counting!  Happy Birthday to my sister!!  This week is very busy, I have 4 Christmas parties to attend before next Monday. Also, I will be starting some Christmas Themed reading.
On my nightstand:

Secret wishes, sweet surprises, and gifts straight from the heart. Delight in this season's most joyous presents with these four sparkling tales. . .

"Making Spirits Bright" by Fern Michaels

Melanie McLaughlin desperately wants to adopt two orphaned siblings and give them a real home for Christmas. A just-for-the-holiday marriage to Bryce Landry fits her plan perfectly. . .until unexpected sparks have Melanie dreaming of forever by his side. . .

"Runaway Christmas" by Elizabeth Bass

A glass of wine, lounging in pajamas, and catching up on movies—that's Heidi Bogue's idea of a perfect Christmas. Until her thirteen-year-old niece makes a surprise visit—and a snowstorm turns Heidi's café into a community refuge. Now one handsome cop is giving Heidi plenty more reasons to celebrate. . .

"Home For Christmas" by Rosalind Noonan

Jo Truman needs a replacement Santa for her gift shop's Christmas Eve party. She'll do whatever it takes to convince lonely soldier Sam Norwood that he's perfect for the part...and that the season for love is always. . .

"Christmas On Cape Cod" by Nan Rossiter

Maddie Carlson would do anything for her best friend. And helping Asa Coleman babysit a rambunctious puppy Christmas Eve night is her one chance to help the troubled teacher put his past to rest. . .and give the sweetest gift of all.

And on my Kindle:

I don't think this one is particularly Christmas reading , but the cover makes me think Christmas.  And maybe it is a story of the real meaning of family. We will see. 

When Christine Blacksworth's larger-than-life father is killed on an icy road in Magdalena, New York, a hundred miles from the 'getaway' cabin he visited every month, she discovers a secret that threatens everything she's always held to be true. Her father has another family which includes a mistress and a daughter. Determined to uncover the truth behind her father's secret life, Christine heads to Magdalena, prepared to hate the people who have caused her to question everything she thought she knew about her father. But what she finds is a woman who understands her, a half sister who cherishes her, and a man who could love her if she'll let him. The longer she's around them, the more she questions which family is the real one...

That should get me in the spirit.  I started decorating a little today too. You all know that I also quilt, so I have a few quilted or fabric type decorations. This one is on the entertainment center in our living room. 

The stitchery banner is from Shabby Fabrics. It was a block of the month in 2012, the table runner is appliqued funky santa and  a snowman. I'll show a better picture later in the week. The candle is hand make by my sister.  It's a start!. 

Until next time

Stay Busy and Stay Happy