Mailbox Monday (late)

Mailbox Monday (started at The Printed Page and now a traveling meme) is at chaotic compendiums this month and is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came into their house last week (checked out library books don’t count, eBooks & audio books do). Warning: Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles and humongous wish lists.
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Here I go complaining again but I can't get rid of this damn snowy mailbox. It's snowing right now! It sure is great reading weather though. 

Last week was all about children's books and we are loving them already. There's nothing better than snuggling with the little ones and enjoying a story or two - or three! I hope you have some great reads and warm weather at your house!

*(I was having internet issues yesterday and couldn't post this so I'm doing it today.)

Lisa Loeb's Songs for Movin' & Shakin' by Lisa Loeb
For review and tour from Sterling Publishing

The Big Bad Wolf Goes on Vacation by Delphine Perret
For review from Sterling Publishing

Nighty-Night, Sleep Tight by Jennifer Berne
For review from Sterling Publishing

Itch by Simon Mayo
For review from Sterling Publishing (arc)

Twerp by Mark Goldblatt
For review from NetGalley (ebook)

Saturday Snapshot

 Saturday Snapshot is hosted by At Home with Books. To participate in this meme post a photo that you (or a friend or family member) have taken then leave a direct link to your post in the Mister Linky. Photos can be old or new, and be of any subject as long as they are clean and appropriate for all eyes to see. How much detail you give in the caption is entirely up to you. Please don't post random photos that you find online.
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 It's still cold here and we still have snow on the ground. Ugh. I hate to be a whiner, and the weather here can change in a heartbeat, but last year was a remarkably mild March and it spoiled me. We had a record high temp of 75 degrees on 3/18/12! I know spring will be here soon so in the meantime I'll post some of my photos from last year. These are the things that bring me so much happiness and I'm anxiously awaiting their arrival!

Finding the first flowers of spring

Putting up the humming bird feeder

Gardening

Moonlit nights at the lake for our annual family vacation

Watching our flag blow in the breeze

Walking our dogs

Playing in the yard with Princess and Monkey Boy

And of course - reading (& napping) in my hammock!

Finding a new feed reader

After reading about the changes to Google Reader (it's being retired 7/1/13) and not understanding a lot of it, I was fortunate enough to read some terrific and informative posts from WORDS for Teens, Parajunkee and Radiant Shadows. They explain things and list some options to try with plenty of pros and cons. They've already done a lot of the legwork and made things much easier for me. I'm not super tech savvy and I didn't even use Google Reader that much but I am a learner so I decided to give feedly and Bloglovin a try. How about you?


Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Mailbox Monday

Mailbox Monday (started at The Printed Page and now a traveling meme) is at chaotic compendiums this month and is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came into their house last week (checked out library books don’t count, eBooks & audio books do). Warning: Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles and humongous wish lists.
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It's still cold. And snowy. With more to come. Ick, ugh and yuck. Last year on this date my granddaughter was playing in the sandbox in her rainboots and underwear! (She was four) That balmy weather didn't last long but it didn't return to winter either. I haven't even seen a glimpse of spring yet this year! But I'm waiting patiently. Kind of.

In the meantime, I have plenty to read and I also got a few more goodies last week. I would much rather be reading in my hammock than near the fireplace but I can read anywhere! I hope you have lots of goodies to keep you happy and warm too!

Level 2 by Lenore Appelhans (of Presenting Lenore)
Won from Bermudaonion

Real Mermaids Don't Wear Toe Rings by Helene Boudeau
Won from In the Hammock

Real Mermaids Don't Hold Their Breath by Helene Boudeau
Won from In the Hammock

Real Mermaids Don't Need High Heels by Helene Boudeau
Won from In the Hammock

Driftless by David Rhodes
Free from B&N Free Friday (ebook)

Everybody's Daughter by Michael John Sullivan
Free from B&N Free Friday (ebook)

Happy St. Pat's!

Saturday Snapshots

 Saturday Snapshot is hosted by At Home with Books. To participate in this meme post a photo that you (or a friend or family member) have taken then leave a direct link to your post in the Mister Linky. Photos can be old or new, and be of any subject as long as they are clean and appropriate for all eyes to see. How much detail you give in the caption is entirely up to you. Please don't post random photos that you find online.
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My friend is a Harry Potter fiend and I had fun making her some recent Christmas crafts. The creative ideas are endless so I've had fun making some more. I've been wanting to try painting mugs and saw some terrific ideas on Pinterest that I modified a bit. My new Sharpie markers are so easy to use but not as effective as paint markers. I got one package of markers as a gift and bought another on sale and had a coupon so the total for 30 Sharpies was $1.00!! Each mug was also $1.00. Isn't that a terrific deal? And it's fun too! I'm still playing with the idea (there are a few kinks to work out) and have made two more since these.

I also made her an invitation to Hogwarts (Harry Potter's wizard school). I copied it from the book and typed it in an appropriate font, soaked the paper in tea to age it then pressed it between heavy books for several days to flatten it. I made the envelope from brown paper and added address labels that I also typed up on my laptop. The wax seal, owl, train ticket & ID card were designs I printed from various places on the internet then glued to stock card and trimmed. This was all made from materials I already had. I was very happy with the results and I left them at her house on two separate days. After some stressful weeks at work she loved them even more!

Total cost for both projects:
2 mugs = $2.00
Hogwarts invitation & extras = $0

Harry Potter references on the front

Fun designs on the back

More fun on the bottom

Front of the envelope I made (delivered by owl, of course)

Back with "wax" seal

Train ticket & Gryffindor ID card

Invitation and school supply list

All the goodies from the envelope

Literary Cakes

Here's a few samples from 30 great literary cakes found on Flavorwire (3/12/13)

Where the Wild Things Are

The works of Roald Dahl

Harry Potter

A highly literary wedding cake

Aren't these amazing?

Teaser Tuesdays

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly meme hosted by Miz B of Should Be Reading and asks you to :
1. Grab your current read
2. Open to a random page
3 . Share 2 "teaser" sentences also citing the title of the book and the author and in that way people can have great recommendations if they like the "teaser".
4. Please avoid spoilers!
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(Scary stuff!!)

Starting in 2009, the FBI began using facial  recognition software to scour the driver's license photos taken by the DMV, searching features that match those of known fugitives.
~page 13

As a patrol vehicle cruises down a street full of parked cars, the reader runs every plate it sees, and sounds an alarm if an outstanding warrant or other report comes up.
~page 26

In 2007, major U.S. phone carriers admitted to granting unprecedented access to intelligence agencies, to assist in their surveillance and data gathering.
~page 52

In the United States, it's estimated that as many as 140,000 children per year are victims of identity theft.
~page 109

Who's Spying On You? by Erik Sofge & Davin Coburn

Mailbox Monday

Mailbox Monday (started at The Printed Page and now a traveling meme) is at chaotic compendiums this month and is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came into their house last week (checked out library books don’t count, eBooks & audio books do). Warning: Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles and humongous wish lists.
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It's March and still cold and snowy here but I had to change my blog background to make it more springy and colorful. I did keep the snowy mailbox photo though because that's exactly how it looks. Ugh. I am ready to come out of my winter coma and play in the sunshine! Until then (and it could be months still) I've got my books to keep me warm. I've been cutting back to try to catch up but we all know how that goes! I've been trying to stay away from my library for the same reason, although I do have to stop there today... I have a box of books to give away too. I'm always happy to share I just need to get a giveaway put together. Stay tuned. Anyway, here are the goodies that made their way to my house last week. I hope you had a great (and warm) week at your house!

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum
Free from Amazon (ebook)

The Taken by Vicki Pettersson
Free from B&N (ebook)

The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer
For review from Simon & Schuster (special edition paperback)

Saturday Snapshot

 Saturday Snapshot is hosted by At Home with Books. To participate in this meme post a photo that you (or a friend or family member) have taken then leave a direct link to your post in the Mister Linky. Photos can be old or new, and be of any subject as long as they are clean and appropriate for all eyes to see. How much detail you give in the caption is entirely up to you. Please don't post random photos that you find online.
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I was going to use some photos of beautiful flowers from last summer since I am so anxious to see them again. But I decided to use these instead. Here are my adorable puppy dogs and exactly how I found them one recent morning when I woke up. Allie, the golden retriever, sleeps in such odd positions it makes my back hurt just looking at her. Cassy, the chocolate lab, can sleep anywhere. They are both so spoiled and are way too comfy on the furniture. Sadly, this is also how I've been feeling lately and I'm just as lazy as they are. We really need spring!

Allie the lazy dog.

She can sleep like this for hours.

I finally got my son to sort through some clothes and Cassy made a nest of them!

Review: Getting Over Mr. Right by Chrissie Manby

BEEN DUMPED? 
GET MAD. 
BUT NOT THIS MAD.

 




Have you ever had your heart broken? How did you get over it? If a pint of ice cream cheered you up and you were able to delete his number and start again then . . .
You’re a weirdo and this book is not for you.
 
But if you reacted with denial, begging, or a spot of casual witchcraft, then you’ve come to the right place. This is one woman’s journey from love to lunacy and back again. If you ever recall past heartbreaks with acute embarrassment and an urge to go into hiding, this will make you feel better. Sure, you may have sent his new girlfriend a bunch of dead roses, but did you spend a grand on psychic hot-lines and a voodoo curse?
(Goodreads.com)
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Review
This was a fun book with plenty of humor. Most people have been dumped at some point in their lives and can identify with what Ashleigh is going through. How awful to find out on Facebook that your two year romance is over! What a schmuck! The story is well written and easy to read. The characters are interesting but eventually grow annoying. At first I was sympathetic to Ashleigh's pain, as were her family and friends. As time went by and she became obsessed with Michael, her lost love, I wanted her to snap out of it. I realize that was the intent and her downward spiral did provide some comedy and entertaining moments but for me it lasted too long. I did like the later progression and the satisfying ending.

All in all it was worth the read and I do look forward to more from this author.  

Author
Publisher
Thank you to LibraryThing Early Reviewers for a copy of this book to review.

Release date: 7/10/12
Publisher: Bantom
Pages: 304 paperback
Type: Womens fiction, contemporary romance