Winter Bucket List Update

Hello sweet friends! Hope you're all doing well! I'm back with some Winter Bucket List updates today. I completed all but 1 of them! Honestly I didn't realize until now that these were mmostly centered around the holidays, but that's okay. I'm hoping to finish that last one next month and be hold myself more accountable for the one below it- you'll know it when you see it. So without further ado...

Deck the halls- completed! Below is my little tree, but I also decorated my bar cabinet and wrapped a lit garland on my porch railing outside. 

Have a holiday movie night, with hot cocoa and footie pajamas- completed, but unfortunately no pics!

Read some cozy Christmas-themed stories- completed, I read 7! I read The Twelve Dates of Christmas by Jenny Bayliss, 10 Blind Dates by Ashley Elston, Blue Christmas Balls by Nick Spalding, You Better Not Cry by Augusten Burroughs, (my reviews of those here!), This Time Next Year by Sophie Cousens, Mind the Gap, Dash and Lily by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan, and In A Holidaze by Christina Lauren (my review of those here!). 

Set some New Year/monthly goals- completed! You can see my list here! 

Start a new holiday tradition- completed! We decided to start the Icelandic tradition called "jolabokaflod" of giving (and reading!) new books on Christmas Eve. I love it! You can learn more about it here! 

Drive around looking at Christmas lights - completed! Found a whole street right in my town! 

Read a self-help book- no. I started several but couldn't get into them. Maybe this month! 

Accomplish 5 to-do items I've been avoiding- in process? I probably did but now I can't remember! 

"Home Edit" my apartment and Blue's kitchen- (this will probably forever be) in process! But I'm having a lot of fun with this one! Here's the latest- I 2 reorganized Blue's kitchen cabinets!

Create a 2020 recap of GOOD things- completed, but not yet posted! 

Did you make a Winter Bucket List? How are you doing?

Linking up with Leslie! 

10 on the 10th: Questions About Love

Hello again sweet friends! Phew, posting two days in a row after nearly a month of silence- who am I even?! But I couldn't miss an opportunity to join my friend Leslie and answer some questions about love! So without further ado...

How romantic are you? What is a romantic gesture you have made in the past?

Oooh I'm not very romantic! I suppose I do little things, like picking up her favorite candy when I'm at the store, doing the dishes when she cooks, leaving love notes in random spots... one Valentine's Day I made a Reese's bouquet out of Reese's individually wrapped peanut butter cups and dollar store flowers that I ripped the flowers off to use the stems... that one was a real winner! 

What’s the best relationship advice? Is it something you’ve learned or advice that was given to you?

Give each other some space, especially when angry. Relatedly, always have 2 bedrooms or an extra room for that space! Personally I like and need some space, so I learned that one (or rather taught the other person!). 

When did you give your first kiss? How did you feel about it? At what age did you begin dating?

I think I was about 10? I kissed a guy friend in his treehouse and he was so shocked that I was never invited back! I had my first "real" boyfriend in high school, so about 16? 

We're in the top right, our friend was jokingly strangling him!

What makes a relationship healthy?

Communication, compromise, shared responsibilities, honesty, trust, and mutual respect. 

What’s your love language? What is your partner’s or best friends? You can find out here.

Mine is acts of service and quality time. Blue is quality time and physical touch. Though I think we both don't mind presents, especially random ones not holiday/birthday/anniversary specific. I was overjoyed when Blue presented me with The Home Edit and The Home Edit Life books the other day! 

Who is one couple you know that you admire in terms of love?

My friends Jenn and Dave, because he is a handful and she has so much patience... and she can talk SO MUCH and HE has patience! Also they are both remarried and interact with their former spouses because of their kids, so being able to do so with grace is pretty admirable. 

Who is your favorite celebrity or fictional couple?

Michelle and Barack Obama and Franky Doyle and Bridget Westfall (from the Australian show Wentworth) 4eva <3

Name a flavor or food you love. A scent you love. An activity you love doing?

I love chicken parmesan and Italian food in general... and Mexican... and Indian! I'm a savory over sweets person. My favorite scents are rose, clean linen, and BBW Mahogany Teakwood. I love reading, organizing, reading about organizing (lol!), traveling (HA), and checking out new restaurants and breweries.

Do you believe in love at first sight? Do you think people are made for each other as in soul mates?

I believe in lust at first sight, but not love. Love needs to grow. I somewhat believe in soulmates, but more so that a person could have more than one soulmate. 

In a Covid-free world where money is no object, what would you like to do for Valentine’s Day weekend?

A getaway, preferably somewhere warm but really anywhere I don't have to wear a mask or be afraid to breathe in the wrong direction! Especially since it's a 3-day weekend with President's Day. 

Are you a romantic? What's your love language?

Linking up with Leslie!

January Reads

I started the year off with a bang reading 8 books and one novella! That's the most I've read in any given month since last April! I mentioned last month that I have a few reading goals, so I'll be keeping those stats at the bottom of these posts going forward. Those marked with an asterisk count towards Lauren and Lindsi's Read The Alphabet Book Challenge, where every month you read a book (or more!) starting with a letter of the alphabet. This month I read 3 books that started with A-B. Here's what else I read in January.

The Home Edit: A Guide to Organizing and Realizing Your House Goals - Clea Shearer and Joanna Tilpin: 5 stars

library hardback

I don't give out 5-star rating very often but if I want to own a book it certainly deserves it, so here is the first 5-star read of 2021! I had post-it bookmarks all over this one in every room that I currently have, and even some that I don't (like a mud room- still some good takeaways in that section!). I enjoyed the mini quizzes too (I'm more Clea!), the overall tone, and the understanding that not everything will work for every room or every family. I also used it for org inspo and while I may not have been purchasing everything at The Container Store, I was able to find something similar on Amazon or even my local dollar store. Looking forward to sharing some of those purchases and org pics in the ear future! (UPDATE: Blue purchased this for me as a surprise- woot!)

Bird Box - Josh Malerman: 4.5 Stars*
own, paperback

I'd watched the movie adaptation when it first came out and while I remembered most of it, I was curious to see if the movie stayed true to the book. I don't normally like reading the book after seeing the movie either, but figured it had been a long enough time between the two. This was a quick, fast-paced read with quite a twisted ending! Loses half a star because the "big baddie" was never really explained. I'm curious to see what the author does in Malorie, the more recent follow up! 

In A Holidaze - Christina Lauren: 4 Stars

borrowed from my niece, hardback

I was hesitant to even want to read this book because I haven't enjoyed Christina Lauren's latest works and I don't really like the idea of time travel/reliving time, but couldn't resist the urge when I saw it on my niece's bookshelf. Though it was "Groundhog Day-esque," I liked that there weren't too many restarts- I think starting from the beginning each time would have been boring and made the story overly long. I liked that each time our protagonist passed a point in the timeline where before she had been sent back, it's like "Level: Unlocked!" and she learns from whatever mistake she had previously made. There were a lot of characters to try to keep track of but once I stopped trying and just enjoyed the setting and all the holiday/family  warm fuzzy feelings, it got much better! 

The Main I Fell In Love With - Kate Field: 4 Stars

Netgalley

I thought this would be a predictable rom-com-esque story and while I wasn’t wrong, it definitely held a lot of secrets and betrayals that threw me for a loop... in a good way! I was honestly so mad at Mary for the majority of the book- the way she let her ex-husband take credit for all of her work- and the fact that even 75% in she still hadn't learned- AARGGHH!!  I felt no need for one of the male characters if only to serve as a point of contention between her and her "best friend," which also brought up the pint of why did this woman not have any real friendships except with her ex-mother-in-law? Also the entire plot point with her mom's "lover" was over the top ridiculous. There was just- a LOT going on. I found the most interesting people to be Mrs. Archer and Bridie, who were side characters at best, but had one of the more interest storylines. But our protagonist gets herself together, rebuts everyone else's opinions and learns that she can make it on her own eventually, and I do love a solid HEA.


Mind the Gap, Dash and Lily - Rachel Cohn and David Levithan: 3.5 Stars
library e-book

I very rarely read series (as in, I think I only read 2 trilogies, maybe), but I was eager to jump back into the Dash and Lily world. They're just so cute and squueee-worthy (I know, barf, but I needed a bit of squee after Astrid, rated below)! This time we find both Dash and Lily floundering in their respective countries. They are complete lost as they try to navigate Oxford (Dash) and a gap year with a dog-walking/dog-crafting business (Lily). They try to be better for each other, they miscommunicate a lot, and they eventually figure out what they want/need. I think my favorite of the series was still The Twelve Days of Dash and Lily (which I mistakenly read before Dash and Lily's Book of Dares), but this comes in close second- even if the ending was a tad overdrawn.

This Time Next Year - Sophie Cousens: 3 Stars
library e-book

I read this because of hype, and I was still in "holiday mode" when I finally got it off my holds list. It was... fine? I appreciated the realism of the female friendship and the relationship between the bf's boyfriend and Minnie. The whole "I'm-no-good-for-you" trope got old fast though. In fact, I think my favorite relationship was between Minnie and Quinn's moms (and Minnie's parents, and Minnie and her dad - they were both very sweet). I'm glad the characters figured their shit out, but it took too long to get there and involved too much longing. I was delighted by the recipes at the end though - I copied them down and hope to try out this year. 

Wayward Son - Rainbow Rowell (Simon Snow #2): 3 Stars

own, hardback

Ohhh Rainbow, how you've let me down! I've been singing Rainbow's praise ever since Attachments and I knew  that this wouldn't be as fast-paced and adventurous as it's prequel and was ready for that. But wow, these characters that I was happy to road trip through America with felt so depressing and flat. And BORING! Where was the spark that had me rooting for Simon AND Baz in Carry On?! I'll continue with this series but with much less anticipation than I had for this one. 

Astrid Sees All - Natalie Standiford: 2 Stars*
Netgalley

I am in the minority it seems with not liking this book. I didn't like the writing, I still don't know what the plot was, and even though I grew up at the same time as the protagonist I couldn't relate to any of the characters. I also kept waiting for some big reveal that was never realized. Even the relationship and subsequent consequences of the one romantic relationship Phoebe had seemed completely underwhelming and under-developed. I found myself rushing to finish it just so I could be done with it.   

Butterball - Brit Bennett: 2 Stars*

Kindle Unlimited

I randomly came across this while browsing Kindle Unlimited and decided to give it a shot because I enjoyed The Mothers- a novel by the same author. What a terrible short story. There was nothing positive in all... 28 pages! It was about this young woman who works at a call center that handles turkey tips- literally. She recounts some of the more odd questions/situations she's been called about, she lies to all of her callers (a different lie every time) about her life if they ask, and she goes home to her empty apartment. Oh, she's also in love with her married best friend. The end. If it wasn't so short this would have been a DNF- don't bother! 

Book Stats 
Total number read: 9
Netgalley: 2
Owned: 2
Non-Fiction: 1
WOC: 1
Given Away: 20 (book drive)

Currently reading: The Push - Ashley Audain

What are you currently reading?

Linking up with Steph and Jana!

Currently: February

Hi friends! Thought this space was getting a bit lonely, so I want to share what's currently going on over here with Anne and all the others! 

I am... okay. That's all I got and I'm ok with that since last month was pretty rough, especially work-wise.  I still don't go anywhere unless absolutely necessary or to go to Blue's on the weekend. Last week I literally did not leave my apartment- my mom bought me a few groceries (like milk for my coffee, tomatoes, lettuce, bread, and cold cuts), so I had no reason to leave. 

This week it was back to the office which was a nice switch because I got to see my coworkers whom I didn't really realize I missed until today, and just got outside in general- love that Vitamin D! But it was also refreshing to "shut off" work as soon as I left the office- too often I stay online working late when I'm working remote. I've gotten better at it more recently, but I don't even set up my computer when I get home from going to the office (besides now to type this!). Thankfully we're only scheduled to be in 3x a week, but even that makes me nervous since I was already exposed (and subsequently quarantined) in October because of a customer. 

I still get weekly Covid testing to go to work. I would like to get the vaccine, but can't get an appt in my area. Blue and all of the Mountain Mamas have gotten Round 1 and have round 2 scheduled, so I'll be able to hang out with them more freely very soon and I'm excited about that!  So that's where I'm at in general- now back to our regularly scheduled post! 

Reading: I'm in a bit of a reading paralysis as 4 books that I was on the holds list for all showed up within 2 days of each other! Why does this always happen?? I'm working my way through Outlawed by Anna North now (ehhh...), with The Push by Ashley Audrain, Concrete Rose by Angie Thomas, and Hot Dog Girl by Jennifer Dugan on deck (and of course none of these are for the reading challenge ::facepalm::)!

Watching: WandaVision on Disney+ and this weekend Firefly Lane on Netflix! I am SOOO psyched for the TV adaptation- it is one of my favorite books! I also recently watched Ma (Wow. Love Octavia Spencer, even as a psychopath!), Everything Must Go (possibly my least favorite Will Ferrell movie ever), Run (somewhat predictable but pretty good twist!), and King of Staten Island (meh, def glad I didn't pay real cash money to see this) - all available on Hulu. 

Listening To: my "happy" playlist, aka US Summer Hits of the 90's! 

Loving: The snow! We got our first serious snowfall Sun-Tues, leaving us under two feet of snow and giving us two more days of working remote. I love watching the snow fall- it's so peaceful! And I live in an apartment and don't own a car, so I never have to worry about digging myself out afterwards! 

Remembering: our last fly-away vacation in December 2019 in Jamaica. (We did drive up to Vermont in September and stayed at a friend's house for a long weekend which was also nice but REALLY F*N COLD!) I really miss going...anywhere (but particularly AWAY, vacation mode activated!), especially with friends! 

Sharing: Superbowl foods! We used to have a Superbowl party every year but alas, not this year. We're still celebrating with food though! There will definitely be chicken wings and these taco puffs (with a dollop of sour cream, omg soooo good!) and probably pretzels (as pictured), but other ideas we had were Air Fryer twice loaded baked potatoes, chili cheese pigs in a blanket (drool), and a Philly cheesesteak french bread we've made in the past- so delicious!

Wishlisting: While I wasn't able to get my act together for Tanya's Prime Purchases, I did browse some of the posts and Cici shared this Tiffany lamp. It's expensive but isn't it so purty?! I think it would look quite nice in my living room! 

How are you doing?