1. Pork roast and sauerkrautfor New Years (it’s a Pennsylvania Dutch/German-thing)
2. Snuggling my pretty girl
3. First snow of 2012 … stuck in traffic waiting for a train.
4. Letterbox (Day 4 of #JANphotoaday)
5. Something I Wore – ModCloth dress with We Love Colors tights (Day 5 of #JANphotoaday)
6. New laptop for Proper Dog Media!
It’s the first Thursday of the new year already! Here’s what I’m lovin’ so far in 2012…
My friend Cindy posted this on her Pinterest account the other day. Hehe.
(I wonder if I’m dating myself by saying I understand the reference?)
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Another Pinterest-find, this time via BelleRenee – Don’t these banana oatmeal smoothies look yummy?! (I’m thinking of stopping after work tomorrow to get some bananas to make these.)
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Another yummy thing: Nutella frosting via HelloVanny has to be pretty much the most brilliant thing EVER.
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I learned about the Photo-A-Day challenge via Amy Morby’s post about it. I wish I’d seen it sooner, as I’m already several days behind … but maybe I’ll participate anyway. I’m enjoying seeing what others are posting at least! Are you participating?
At the end of last year, I was doing a lot of reading but then the holiday season crept up and I didn’t have enough time. Now I have a backlog of books that I’ve either purchased or had loaned to me, and I need to get caught up! Here’s what’s on the shelf (and Kindle) awaiting my attention:
Creative, Inc.
by Meg Mateo Ilasco and Joy Deangdeelert Cho
I bought this book after I saw some high praise for it on some fellow bloggers’ sites. I finished reading it last weekend but I really want to go back through it and make some notes.
The Sookie Stackhouse Companion
by Charlaine Harris
Another guilty-pleasure for me has been the Charlaine Harris series that the TV show True Blood was based on. My mom loaned me her copy of this book. If you’re like me, you read the books over a long period of time and then watched the TV show, and the storylines are all muddled together — this book recaps everything and also contains a new novella. I need to get this read so I can return it to my mother!
Steve Jobs
by Walter Isaacson
I’m not typically a biography-reader, and though I love my Apple products, I don’t necessarily worship at the altar of Steve Jobs like some people do. However, I heard great things about this book and was happy to receive a copy from my hunny as a Christmas gift. I started reading it while waiting at the dentist office on Monday (I know, I know – shouldn’t have started another book) and now I’m completely sucked into it. I actually can’t wait to finish this because it’s THAT interesting. (To me, anyway.)
Ruthless (Pretty Little Liars, Book #10)
by Sara Shepard
Young-adult ficition, I know. (Shut up.) I got hopelessly sucked into the TV series during the first season and devoured the series of books. (They’re super-fast reads.) This latest book came out December 6th and has been waiting on my Kindle for me to read it. Now that the TV series started up for the 3rd season, I’m all the more interested in getting back to this series.
All Wound Up: The Yarn Harlot Writes for a Spin
by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee
I love Stephanie Pearl-McPhee. She writes hilarious and heartwarming knitting essays. (Yes, you read that correctly.) This was another book that I pre-ordered and have been slowly reading through. This book seems to have a slightly different tone than her past books — a little less laugh-out-loud humorous — so I think it’s been slowing me down a little because it’s not what I typically expect. (Don’t get me wrong though, it is still well worth the read if you’re a knitter or fiber-artist!)
Room: A Novel
by Emma Donoghue
I downloaded the sample chapter of this on my Kindle last year and read it. It was unique (written from a child’s perspective) and really fantastic, but at the same time a little upsetting. (Read the synopsis to see what I mean.) I had to digest what I read and think about whether it was too upsetting to want to finish. In the end, I decided that it was too fascinating to pass up.
Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
by Stieg Larsson
This one has been on my Kindle since last year too. I started reading it and found myself really struggling to keep the characters’ names strait (Does anyone else have the issue that if they can’t pronounce the name, they can’t remember it? Maybe it’s just me.) and as a result, I got really lost in the plot. Since then I’ve talked to a few friends who said they experienced the same issue with the characters/plot but they said if you push through the first 30-50 pages, it gets MUCH better. So I really want to go back and read this.
Damned
by Chuck Palahniuk
I’ve only read one Chuck Palahniuk book before (can’t remember which, but I remember I liked it) and for some reason this one appealed to me.
It’s been sitting quietly on my Amazon wishlist waiting for me to finish some of these other books! (Ha!)
Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children
by Ransom Riggs
I was browsing the new paperbacks section at Barnes and Noble when I spotted this book. Something about the cover really, really caught my eye and piqued my curiousity.
This is another one that’s on my wishlist to read some time soon as well.
What’s on YOUR to-read list?
Do you prefer reading on an e-reader/tablet or from a good ol’ paperback?
Inspired by Alycia at The Curious Pug, I decided to share my own year-in-review …
January:
I started my year of right with my two favorite guys. I discovered the wonder that is Nutella. We celebrated Gracie’s 4th birthday.
February:
We had lots of snow and I got stuck in the driveway. I turned 29 and acquired a new piercing.
March:
I took a ukulele workshop, spent some time at the laundromat and apparently didn’t blog much.
April:
I got my hair cut like Tinkerbell, got rid of some credit cards, and allowed myself to get caught up in the royal wedding like everyone else.
May:
Mom surprised me with an iPad 2. We celebrated Mother’s Day. In a real “fairytale-come-true” moment, Mike proposed to me over Memorial Day weekend!
June:
I started sharing our love story (part 1, part 2), discovered the fun of bowling with my dad, and got into a dishcloth-knitting rut.
July:
I scored my first Bag of Crap from Woot!, wrapped up the last chapter of our love story, and I shared my recipe for chili-rubbed pork chops.
August:
We moved and I attempted to get our family settled in to our new place. Oh! And I got my first Gussy!
September:
Benny turned 3 years old. We had fun at the fair. Mike and I set our wedding date: 8-10-12. We went to Uproar Fest (where I met the guys from Seether!), we got a new fridge, I poked some creepy mold with a stick, and I finally achieved the perfect Hipster bangs. HA!
October:
I crocheted a very special project. Erica and I made a whirlwind trip to Nashville and I fell in love with Butch Walker. I also fell in love with collecting vinyl and began formulating plans to launch my own freelance business. I met Norman Reedus and Brian O’Halloran. I remembered my Great Gram.
November:
I almost completed NaNoBloPoMo. My vintage Pyrex obsession began. I found out that my home-away-from-home, the Neighborhood Knit Shop, was closing.
December:
My aloe plant committed suicide. Life In Beta had it’s first sponsor-feature post. I had the best Christmas EVER, got my first tattoo, and shared my goals for 2012.
