Sunday Stills

New projects just waiting to be crocheted.

Bookworm: What I was reading in 2014

I set a goal of reading at least twenty books cover to cover in 2014. I only made it to book number nineteen. I’ve set the same goal this year, and I really hope to accomplish the task. I thought I might share what I read with you, and see if you read some of the same books too.

Here are all of the books that I read (in no particular order):

Quiet by Susan Cain
UnSouled by Neal Shusterman
Me Before You by Jojo Moyes
Dark Places by Gillian Flynn
Where’d You Go Bernadette by Maria Semple
The Girl You Left Behind by Jojo Moyes
Orfeo by Richard Powers
The Ocean At The End Of The Lane by Neil Gaiman
The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
A Dance With Dragons by George R.R. Martin
Four by Veronica Roth
Divergent by Veronica Roth
Insurgent by Veronica Roth
Allegiant by Veronica Roth
Tell The Wolves I’m Home by Carol Rifka Brunt
The Witch’s Daughter by Paula Brackston
The Fault In Our Stars by John Green
The Eye Of Minds by James Dashner
Pandora’s Star by Peter F. Hamilton (I actually just finished reading this last night)

I have to say that I really enjoyed every single book that I read last year. I do have a few favorites though…

Favorite Horror/Suspense: Dark Places by Gillian Flynn- I have read all of Gillian’s books, and I have enjoyed them all.
Favorite Sci-fi: Orfeo by Richard Powers- The story was absolutely fascinating, and I can’t wait to read more of Richard’s novels.
Most Helpful: Quiet by Susan Cain- Introverts unite!!!
Guilty Pleasure/Best Dystopian: UnSouled by Neal Shusterman- I’ve read the entire UnWind series, and I’ve loved every single story.
Little Did I know I couldn’t live without: Me Before You, and The Girl You left behind, both by Jojo Moyes- Must have all of her books now!!!
Best Comedy: Where’d You Go Bernadette by Maria Semple- Fun, fantastic read, that I couldn’t put down.
Favorite Novel: The Ocean At The End Of The Lane by Neil Gaiman- Absolutely beautiful, this was another page-turner for me.

My very favorite book that I read in 2014 was…

The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt was my very favorite. From the very first page I was hooked. It isn’t a happy tale, but it is beautifully written, and impossible to put down. The tragic tale of loss, theft, addiction, and growing up. Absolutely fantastic!

I can’t wait to get started on this year’s books! What about you… Do you have a reading goal for 2015? Have you read any of the same books that I read in 2014? What did you think of them?

Jan 8

This Week

This week we are trying to get back on the school schedule. The kids are doing pretty good about it, but I’m not. I’m having a rough time waking up early, and getting going. Hopefully this will pass. I think it is partially due to the dark and cold mornings.

I’ve been cleaning up around the house, and organizing a bit here and there. I’ve been taking it a bit easy this week. Christmas break was loud, crazy, and messy. I’m doing my best to enjoy the little bits of quiet when I’ve got them.

Agnes is happy to be back at preschool, but she isn’t a fan of the cold weather either. I really hope we see some warmer temps soon.

Time to get back to it.

Jan 7

Monthly Crochet Review: December

One thing that I really love about the cold weather is that it is a great reason to stay indoors and work on my many crochet projects. Last night’s count I had three upstairs, two downstairs, and I was starting another one for a very kind teacher who helped out my boys on Monday.

This year I’ve decided to get started extra early on Christmas projects. I have a goal in mind to crochet a throw, blanket, or afghan for each of my family members. I’ll need to make six to gift.

One is getting closer to being done…

I crocheted lots of grannysquares for this big blanket.

I stitch them together on Sunday afternoon during the Football games.

I also started another throw for our bedroom. I really loved the color of James’ scarf that I made for him. I decided to start another one, and turn in into a throw.