Don't Bother Me...I'm Reading

Mail Call!

Got a package from the lovely and talented Miss Angie from My So-Called Chaos. She's also the co-hostess for CG Swaps so I knew I was in good hands.

I just love when everything is packaged all cute and comes with little cards!

Book She Loves: Two Kisses for Maddy: A Memoir of Loss and Love by Matthew Logelin

It's non-fiction. And it's incredibly sad. Those are normally two things I stay away from and the combination would send me running, but Miss Angie is fabulous so I will give it a try.

Book I Might Like: 1984 by George Orwell

I didn't read this one in high school. Since I've been on my dystopian kick, I hear a lot of references to this book, so I'm looking forward to finally being in the loop. And, hey, Miss Angie hasn't read it, either.

Book From My Wishlist: A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle
I read this forever ago. It's one of those books I want to share with my daughter, but can't remember enough about the storyline to get her interested. Soooo looking forward to opening this one. It will be like getting back in touch with an old friend.

And it wasn't just good reading goodness! Lookit!

Miss Angie obviously knows about my cupcake obsession. And I am loving the little notebook! It has already replaced a badly tattered one in my purse.

Thank you to Miss Angie and Beth for hosting yet another awesome swap! Just in case you were wondering, I sent books to That Spacey Chick at Ramblings of an Obsessive Compulsive.

Since the Groundhog saw his shadow, I think I will take a cue from him and curl up in bed with these books and not come out again until I'm finished. Or six weeks. Whichever comes last.

Happy Reading!

Two of my Favorite Things!

Books and Swaps!

Angie and Beth, the beauty and brains behind CG Swaps, are having another Books n' Bloggers Swap! Since I got such amazing books the last go around, I jumped right on this one.

But I'm always a little hesitant when swapping books with strangers. Since I read mainly dork books (i.e.: werewolves, ghosts, magic, etc. Dork stuff), I mainly like to receive dork books. While I like some mainstream fiction, I'm not a fan of non-fiction. And books where the plot revolves around the characters jumping in bed? Not my cup of tea. At. All. Send me Fifty Shades of Gray and I'll respond with fifty shades of puke. But Beth and Angie have given me great partners in all of their swaps so I'm just gonna have to trust them.

There's still time to sign up! Go here and read the instructions. And who knows? Maybe you'll get to send me a dork book! 

Is it Christmas yet?

I'm in denial that I'm required to prepare Thanksgiving dinner. In fact, I made a strong case for spending the holiday with our bosom buddies at the Cracker Barrel (because, seriously, have you herd of their special dessert?). Not to mention the fact that I am seriously behind on my NaNoWriMo word count. I've got a legacy to uphold!

So I've skipped over Thanksgiving and moved straight on to Christmas.

Because there's no better way to celebrate the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ then by joining a swap. And the swap's hosted by Chaotic Goddess Swaps, so you know it will be awesome.

This is Halloween!

It's been awhile since I've entered a swap and I was starting to get the shakes. That's when Chaotic Goddess Swaps announced their Halloween swap. Oh, yeah…that was perfect!

This time around, we were supposed to keep our partners secret. So there was no chatting about Halloween and our favorite parts about the holiday. No worries. I can handle this. And it was kinda cool not knowing…and then seeing the return address on my package.

Surprise! My partner was Beth from Living a Goddess Life!

And here's my loot:

Martha Stewart's Halloween Handbook

Anthology The Other Side - scary stories!

Window paint in Black and Orange - the kids are already begging to use this one.

Devil decal

Halloween socks - sweet!

Witch Finger candy

Skull bead earrings - these are very cool

Vampire and owl dip spreaders - possibly my favorite things from this package!

Creepy pez dispenser

Glow-in-the-dark bracelet

Glow-in-the-dark nailpolish

So the little spreaders were my favorite but checkout this little beauty:

Have you ever seen a creepier Pez dispenser?
Aren't they supposed to be cute and collectible and stuff? I feel like if I ask it for candy it would bite my face.
And I sent a package to Aubrey at High-Heeled Love.

What is your favorite thing about Halloween?

Get Ready to Par-tay!

There is much awesomeness to report.

First, I got in on a swap! It's been ages and this one is Halloween-themed. Also? The hostesses are two of my favorite bloggers, Miss Angie and Beth. Together, they formed Chaotic Goddess Swaps.


Remember the lovely and talented Derrolyn Anderson and her books about mermaids? After she finished Marina's Tales, she began a new series. The first book is out. Come back on Monday to see what it's all about and perhaps win a copy.

Also, next week begins my Birthday Week! Woot! I am putting together a special package of things that *I* would love to receive for one lucky winner. And I am still looking for ideas on how to celebrate…any suggestions?

Of Books and Swaps

Sooooo…I signed up for a book swap and was really excited about getting new books. Forget illegal drugs -- I just crave a good read!

Then Life decided to drop a bomb in my lap and it was all I could do to keep things normal for my kids. (Not gonna talk about it so don't ask, please.)

It wasn't until I got the email from co-hostess Beth that I remembered. I swear I am not a slacker when it comes to swaps so I was completely horrified that I forgot this one. In an effort to smooth over things with my partner, I made sure to include a little something special with her books.

But enough about my slacking! I had a really great partner is D from Born to Fly. Check out the lovelies she sent me:

Book #1 A Book My Partner Loves - The Nightspinners by Lucretia Grindle
This one is looks good! Not my usual genre but I am looking forward to this one. Go check it out on Goodreads. And I'm pretty sure the author is using a pen name.






Book #2 A Book My Partner Hasn't Read - House of Sand and Fog by Andre Dubus III
I remembered this movie coming out with Ben Kingsley and Jennifer Connelly. This one is also on a lot of book group lists.






Book #3 A Book From My Wishlist - Princess of the Midnight Ball by Jessica Day George
I've been waiting for this one for ages! It's a re-telling of the twelve dancing princesses. And just in case you're wondering, Grimms' version is nothing like the Barbie one.

Thanks, D! You are a gem!
And thank you, Beth and Miss Angie, for not giving up on me!

Books n' Bloggers Swap!

Hey, not being able to use my arm isn't going to stop me from missing out in a swap! And this one is hosted by two of my favorite bloggers, Beth from Living a Goddess Life and Miss Angie from My So-Called Chaos. And? The swap theme is BOOKS! Woot!





If you want to participate, you need to go to Miss Angie's post to get all the info and to sign up. And make sure you do it before May 26th! To give you an idea of what this fabulous swap is all about, here are the Three Books to send:

Book #1: A Book You Love

This is a book that you are particularly fond of.  Maybe it's your favorite, or your favorite lately, or just one you really think that everyone needs to read in order to survive this crazy little world.  Your choice-show them your tastes!

Book #2: A Book You Haven't Read

Maybe someone recommended this book to you, or you just saw it and though-that could be really good, but in any case you want to read it but haven't yet.  Create a potential shared favorite!

Book #3: A Book Your Partner Wants

This is where you're going to need to do a little research.  Follow up with your partner and find out what kind of books they like, check out their Amazon wishlist or Goodreads To Read list to see what they want to read but haven't yet!
*Books can be used, but must be in really good condition!

And these are the Requirements:

• You must be an active blogger located in the United States.
• You must be willing and able to follow the rules and participate.
• You must not be a flaker.  (None of my readers are flakers, right?)

Why are you still reading this post! Go and sign up! (Maybe we can be partners!)

Box Full of Sunshine

You might be expecting a Teaser Tuesday, but right now I'm reading 2012 Guide to Literary Agents. And I doubt you want to hear a teaser about some random agent located in New Jersey who does not accept unsolicited manuscripts. But go on over and see MizB and check out some of the featured teasers. (Or look through my archives.)

Instead, I have this:

It's been awhile since my last swap and I was starting to get the shakes. Just in time to feed my addiction, Mamarazzi posted about her Favorite Things Swap! And I was partnered with the lovely Kat from Measuring My Life. I got my package of springtime awesomeness.

Here's what she sent:

• A gorgeous yellow scarf that as soft as it is pretty.
• Dishtowels with cute little chicks dancing across the bottom (Baby tried to take them to bed with her).
• Easter egg banner, which I regrettably cut off in the picture.
• Butterfly cards with envelopes.
• Spring wreath that is already hanging in my entryway.
• Ceramic owl plant stake, which is so completely adorable that I really hope the houseplant I put it in survives longer than they usually do.
• Yummy smelling candle that Boo insisted we light immediately and then sat over sniffing until she nearly singed her hair.
• Dove spray that has disappeared since the picture was taken so I can't tell you the fragrance until after I search Boo's bed for it.
• EOS lipblam in Sweet Mint. I had one of these when they first came out and I thought they were so cool. Glad to have another one!
• Dove dark chocolate because Kat is awesome.
• Pink shimmering nailpolish. (Also something I'm going to have to keep hidden so Boo doesn't steal it.)
• Laffy Taffy eggs. There were three of them, but since both of the girls were watching me unwrap the package, you can guess what happened to the other two.

The spring colors and decorations, combined with the unseasonably warm weather today had me looking forward to Spring. I love a good swap! And my favorite part is meeting other bloggers and seeing just how many things I have in common with other people who I'd never meet otherwise.

Thanks, Mamarazzi, for hosting a fabulous swap! And thanks to Kat for putting together a lil box o' sunshine!

When The Bees Sting...

You know how I'm addicted to these things! Besides this one is all about *my* favorite stuff. And I like anything that is about me, right?

So I've got my favorite gum, pen, magazine, chocolate-covered something, jewelry…probably some nail polish. But I'm looking for some new ideas. I'd include Baby ('cuz she's my favorite…don't tell the other two) but I think there are laws against that sort of thing. Also, I've started including a CD with my current favorite songs, which is fun, unless someone doesn't like the same kind of music. Maybe a favorite book? I read lots of different things so that might be doable, depending on how dork-tolerant my partner is…Any suggestions?

What are some of your favorite things?

Autumn Awesomeness

If you've read my blog for any amount of time, then you've probably seen a post or two about swaps. What can I say? I am pretty addicted! And Mamarazzi put together another fun one; this one with an autumn theme.




It's my favorite time of year! And with my favorite swap hostess. I think Mamarazzi has a crystal ball, chicken bones, or some other sort of divination in order to make such great matches. She hooked me with with becca from Everyday Life. And becca took everything I said in our conversation and managed to turn words into an awesome package.

See, what I love most about this season is the cooler weather. It's too cold to go anywhere so I just curl up with a mug of hot chocolate and a good book. And when I'm not reading, I'm baking. Or eating chocolate. So here is what she sent:

• Drinking Chocolate - Thicker, richer than your average hot chocolate
• Holly by Jude Deveraux - Oooo…this one looks good!
• Pumpkin Bread Kit - This is my favorite snack when the leaves turn colors.
• Hot Pads - For when the bread is done baking!
• Autumn dishtowel - Already hanging on the oven handle.
• Chocolates - Need I say more?
• Mug - It's too girly for any of the guys to use so it's perfect for me. (Sorry…I left it out of the picture!)

I love swapping! Not just for the fun of receiving presents in the mail but also because I get to meet really great people. Thanks, becca and Mamarazzi!

What's your favorite part of Autumn?

The Envelope, Please...

Thanks to everyone the entered to win the books by Derrolyn Anderson! Using Random.org, I selected a winner:

Comment #4 from Miss Angie from My So-Called Chaos!

Congrats, Angie! I'll pass along your info to Derrolyn and she'll tell you how to access those books. If you didn't win but still want to take a look at Marina's Tales, check out her listings on Smashwords.

And one more thing…

I entered another swap! It's one hosted by the absolutely fabulous Mamarazzi from Dandelion Wishes. She's a got a lot of rules to follow but I've yet to be disappointed with the partners I've gotten. The lady knows her stuff! Also? Autumn is my favorite time year.

What would you include in an Autumn package?