It is a chance to recap the previous week, share news, showcase books and/or bookish things we have received, and tell about what is coming up on our blog in the next week. You can view the guidelines, HERE.
On MONDAY I added a third, and final, challenge; THE RE-READ CHALLENGE. You can see the books I hope to re-read: HERE.
I tell you how I was doing with MORE HAPPY THAN NOT and UNWIND, and recap my three challenges.
Wednesday's WEIRD WORD was...
Christmas Eve there was a special holiday edition of KOOKIES & MILK with Kaylee & Mommy on my Children's blog TICKLING DRAGONS.
I had a holiday post all ready to go for Christmas Eve on Thursday, but my son was really making things challenging for our family traditions, so I scrapped it. One thing I uphold on this blog is being honest in my posts, so I couldn't say we decorated our Yule branch on Monday while snacking on fruit and candied nuts, and listening to the soundtrack of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone... because we didn't. He never goes anywhere on Mondays, but for some reason this particular Monday, it was more important to hang with friends than family. I could not say we had our traditional Chinese take-out on Christmas Eve, and played Scrabble because my son was supposed to be picking up the take-out, and also gelato from my favorite Italian place (for Christmas dessert), while I was at the mall getting last minute odds and ends... and he didn't.
Christmas Day went well. We exchanged gifts and stockings, and had our traditional meal of lasagna, green salad with: apple slices, black olives and my house dressing, and breadsticks made from pizza dough. This year we were going to start a new tradition of getting handmade gelato from my favorite Italian restaurant for dessert because I don't feel like fussing with making a cheesecake anymore, but as you know we didn't have any, so I just made do with chocolate from my stocking.
I was in a fabulous mood because his gifts were very thoughtful...
Sebastian gave me THE ILLUSTRATED HARRY POTTER AND THE SORCERER'S STONE, stuffed my stocking full of all my favorite chocolates, got my fave blackcurrant tea, and handed me an IOU for a bottle of vodka. He also helped make the meal this year and did a few dishes before leaving for his friends' place.
So I started putting together a Boxing Day post for Saturday, in good spirits, and intended to finish it up on Saturday morning. However, when my son didn't bother to call and say he wasn't coming home, and his cell was beeping busy every time I called on Saturday, from about noon to six pm, and he didn't answer any of the Facebook PMs I sent; I deleted that happy post too. I thought he was dead somewhere. He finally called me at seven-ish and said he would be home in an hour and now it is after ten pm. *UPDATE: He rolled in around 1:00am.
Anyway... there was a full moon for Christmas, and there was NO snow here in Upstate New York. It was 67°F (20°C) Christmas Eve and 55°F (13°C) on Christmas Day. People were wearing shorts.
LAST YEAR
THIS YEAR
I took all of the Children's picture books out of my Goodreads challenge and went one below my goal of 104 books, but after finding a few books that I rated and hadn't put a finished date on, I went back up to 106. I just finished MORE HAPPY THAN NOT, so I would have been okay anyway. I still plan to get ILLUMINAE and INKED read before the first, so it looks like I will end up with 109.
Cait from PAPER FURY made it into THE FINALS for EPIC READ'S BOOK SHIMMY AWARDS for Best Book Nerd. Like I said last week, Cait is representing us all as traditional book bloggers because the others are all booktubers, so go vote for our comrade of the printed word: HERE!
And I have to include this ultra-impressive bookmas tree I found while looking for bookish holiday greeting images!
I might be joining a fourth 2016 reading challenge. Hehe. I know I said I was not, but I liked another one that Pili, over at IN LOVE WITH HANDMADE, joined for Netgalley and Edelweiss ARCs. If I do decide to join, that post will be up sometime next week.
TELL ME TUESDAY will be happening as usual.
I am still working on both the ROCK MY TBR CHALLENGE post and my END OF THE YEAR SURVEY, and they will be posted at some point next week, too, along with a review of my top book of the year on New Years Day (hint, it is not a YA).
Here's to a brilliant New Year. Have a wonderful last week of 2015!
