So Many Books, So Little Time

#FitReaders is hosted by Geeky Bloggers Book Blog and That's What I'm Talking About . I didn't check in last week because I had a bad week so I decided I should probably try to post this week.  I only was able to work out three days last week and I worked out four days this week.  Of those 7 workouts, 4 were Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred and 3 were running on the treadmill for 30 minutes.  Exercise-wise, I didn't do too bad, however my eating has been awful. Work has been super stressful and my daughter has been struggling with sleep so I'm just eating my feelings over here.   My first small goal was to lose three pounds by my birthday (today).  I didn't get on the scale today but I'm pretty sure by the way my clothes fit that I did not hit that goal.  I'm sad but not too sad.  This month, I have made it a priority to exercise regularly so that's a great start.  I'm hoping to get back to watching what I eat over the next few weeks.  

Silver Shadows by Richelle Mead Okay, let me start by saying I really love this series and the Vampire Academy series.  I did enjoy this book but I don't think it was as good as the previous ones in the series.  I know the whole point of this books is to set the stage for the final book so I'm cutting it some slack.  The story was really slow for the first three quarters of the book and then it felt like a million things were shoved into the last bit of the book.  There were some big surprises that I was pretty excited about so that helped my opinion of it a lot.  Of course, there was a very crazy cliffhanger so now I have to read the last book!  Silver Shadows is definitely the weakest of the series but still a must-read for fans.  3 stars.   You'd Be So Pretty If...Teaching Our Daughters to Love Their Bodies-Even When We Don't Love Our Own by Dara Chadwick I have had a lot of body issues over the years and I'm terrified of passing them on to J

Hello!!  I'm linking up with Mailbox Monday again this week though I really need to slow down a bit.  I have way more books to read than I have time!  I only got one this week thankfully. From the Library: Duct Tape Parenting by Vicki  Hoefle So now that Julia is getting older, I should probably learn how to raise her properly.  I saw this book mentioned on a blog somewhere and thought I should check it out. You'll probably be seeing more parenting books on here in the future. Hope you all have a great week!

I'm linking up with Bookishly Boisterous' Bookish (and Not So Bookish) Thoughts.  Check it out here ! 1.) I need to speed up my reading.  Right now I'm reading Prince Lestat by Anne Rice and I'm struggling.  I love the Vampire Chronicles but this book is very different than the others and I'm not sure exactly where the story is going to go.  I'm going to power through it but I'm ready to be done (and not just because I have to return it to the library on Wednesday). 2.) Speaking of the library, I hate having overdue books.  I know I'm probably going to have one this week but it makes me feel so bad to turn them in late.  Especially if I know there are people waiting for them. 3.) I've been trying to find the perfect white cake recipe for the wedding cake I'm making in May.  I have been trying out different recipes every weekend.  I think I may have found one but I'm not sure yet.  I'm going to try it with frosting this week t

It's time for another Mailbox Monday post!  You can link up with it here ! I am kind of overwhelmed with all of the books I want to read right now.  I want to read everything!  I got a couple of books this week but things will probably slow down over the next few weeks so I can catch up. From the Library: The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel I also picked up the movie version of this book at the library and can't wait to watch it! From Kindle First Reads: Flirting with Felicity by Gerri Russell Miramont's Ghost by Elizabeth Hall What books did you get this week?

  #FitReaders is hosted by Geeky Bloggers Book Blog and That's What I'm Talking About . This was a crazy week!  My daughter was sick and the hubs started working 2nd shift (3pm to 11pm) again and it totally changed up our routine so I was definitely off my game.  I did okay at eating healthy (no vending machine) but we had a couple of work breakfasts and lunches this week so that completely messed up my eating on those days. I did meet my goal of exercising 4 days this week.  I did two days of Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred and two days of running on the treadmill.  It actually felt good to get those workouts in since I was pretty stressed.  I really like the 30 Day Shred but it is only a 20 minute workout so I'm looking for a slightly longer workout DVD to try. I'm shooting for completing 4 workouts again this week; if I can get in 5 that's great but I'm not going to feel terrible if I don't.  I also want to continue to make good choices d

I had absolutely no intention of ever reading these books.  I really enjoyed Maggie Stiefvater's 'The Wolves of Mercy Falls' series but when The Raven Boys first came out, it did not appeal to me at all.  I heard nothing but good things about and still I didn't want to read it.  I'm always the person who reads something that is super hyped up and doesn't like it and I figured that would happen this time. No matter how much hype I heard about the series, I just wasn't interested...until this Fall.  I don't know what made me do it but finally after years of hearing about this series, I finally gave in and decided to try it.  Why didn't I read it sooner???  The Raven Cycle is weird and creepy and awesome.  I don't really know how to describe it; there are all kinds of unusual things that just boggle my mind but are so cool at the same time.  Maggie Stiefvater is some sort of uber creative evil genius for coming up with this story.  It has hist

It's time for another Mailbox Monday post! This week I picked up a lot of library books and my new Kindle Fire arrived!  I don't have a picture of it but I'm slowly learning how to use it and it's pretty fun.  I'm reading so slowly right now but I want to read everything!  Hopefully I can get out of my reading funk soon. From the Library: The Beast in the Red Forest by Sam Eastland The Confessor by Daniel Silva The Family Romanov by Candace Fleming What books did you get this week?

#FitReaders is hosted by Geeky Bloggers Book Blog and That's What I'm Talking About . This year I'm participating in #FitReaders.  It's a great way to work on my health and fitness goals and have a way to stay accountable.  I don't know if I will post a check-in every week but I will try to post updates on my progress regularly. I really want to lose 10 pounds over the next couple of months.  I'm not making any huge drastic changes right now so I know it will be slow.  My first mini-goal is to lose 3 pounds by my birthday on January 30. I want to get back into a regular exercise routine (5-6 days a week) and hopefully run a half-marathon again this Fall.  I also want to start eating better: better quality food, more fruits and vegetables and less sweets.   This week I ran on the treadmill for 30-35 minutes on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.  I really wanted to get in another workout but with it being the first week back to work after break, I was

Synopsis:  Sofia is trained in secret as a painter in her father’s workshop during a time when women did not paint openly. She loves her work, but her restless spirit leads her to betray her extraordinary gifts to marry a man who comes to despise her for not producing a son. After Sofia’s father is crushed by his own fresco during an attack motivated by a vendetta, Sofia realizes she must escape her loveless marriage. She flees to Siena, where, disguised as a boy, she paints again. When her work attracts the notice of a nobleman who discovers the woman under the dirty smock, Sofia is faced with a choice that nearly destroys her. Meticulously researched settings and compelling characters are united with a strong heroine in this rich portrait of medieval Italy. My Thoughts:  The Towers of Tuscany is a fascinating read.  I am not familiar with Italian history at all but I was enthralled by the descriptions of life in medieval Italy and work of artists living there. I re

 Happy Wednesday everyone!  I'm linking up with Bookish (and Not So Bookish Thoughts) at Bookishly Boisterous.  You can check it out here . 1.) I have only read one book so far this month.  One.  I have had zero motivation to read despite having a million things I want to read.  I hope I get out of the funk soon. 2.) Have you seen this article? It basically says that reading on a screen before bed can seriously affect your sleep.  After reading it, I'm not super surprised because I do think that when I read on my nook using the glowlight, I have a harder time going to sleep.  I  kind of got the impression that it backlit screens were causing the problem so I'm hoping to just continue using my nook but use book light instead of the glowlight.  It also motivates me to cut back on playing with my phone at night (I need to become less attached to that anyway). 3.)  I am making a wedding cake for some friends of ours who are getting married in May.  I had pla

It's my first Mailbox Monday of the new year!  I hope everyone's year is off to a great start!  I got some great books this week and can't wait to see what everyone else got! From the Library: Prince Lestat by Anne Rice Purchased:   Bellagrand by Paullina Simons Like Chaff in the Wind by Anna Belfrage For Review (from HFVBT): The Towers of Tuscany by Carol M. Cram What books did you get this week?

I have a lot of reading goals for the 2015!  I love the prospect of a new year and new things to work on.  This year instead of setting personal resolutions, I decided to create a 'to do' list for the year.  It will mostly be a work in progress throughout 2015 but will not have the pressure of an actual resolution.  I always think of resolutions in that if you screw up then it's over for the year.  I anticipate that I won't be perfect in regards to my 'to do' list but I definitely want to work on it through out the year. Here are my bookish/reading goals for the year: 1.) Read 80 books -I've read approximately 80 books per year for the last two years so I think this is doable.  I would love to read 100 books this year but I'm not sure if that's going to happen.  I will have more time to read since I won't be taking a class this Spring (and maybe not the whole year) so we'll see how things pan out. 2.) Read 20 books I own- I really need

Synopsis:  Selah Kilbrid may descend from the goddess Brigid, but her heart beats—and breaks—the same as any human. Yet enduring the scorn of London’s most noble lords and ladies is a small price to pay for a chance at true happiness. Selah would endure much more for love, and her betrothed, Lord Henry Fitzalan, is prepared to challenge anyone foolish enough to stand in their way—even another goddess born. But when a captivating young gentleman draws Selah into a world shadowed by secrets, she is forced to confront her darkest fears. What if some differences are too great to overcome and a future with Henry is doomed from the start? With these doubts threatening her impending marriage and the very last of Brigid’s fire draining from her soul, a violent attack on an innocent child pushes Selah to the very edge of her power. She must find a way to cross into the Otherworld and regain her strength—or forfeit the streets of London to death and disease. My Thoughts:  A G

Happy New Year everyone!! I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season.  December was an absolutely insane month.  I had some serious work deadlines to meet and I was finishing up my Russian class (got an A-!) on top of getting ready for Christmas.  Julia got really sick during the week of Christmas but she has enjoyed her presents and my house looks like a Toys R Us now.  Because of everything going on, I didn't read as much as I expected to this month though I didn't do too terrible.  I read a total of 7 books this month which got me to a total of 82 books for the year.  Not too shabby! Here is what I read in December: 1.) The Girl Who Came Home by Hazel Gaynor 2.) Whither Thou Goest by Anna Belfrage 3.) Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater 4.) The King's Curse by Philippa Gregory 5.) The Secret Place by Tana French 6.) A Grave Inheritance by Kari Edgren 7.) The Virgin Widow by Anne O' Brien I just looked back at my bookish goals for 2014 and I m