Books (and Friends) in the Spotlight

I thought my little 30 some odd books were good. Let me introduce you to my friend Rum, who's currently up to 120 books this year. She's currently hosting a seriously awesome contest on her blog, Books in the Spotlight.

I asked her to write a little something to you guys:

Hi, my name is Rummanah, but most people call me Rum. I met Debbie aka Cranberry Fries/Sprtygal on the Twilight Lexicon and ever since then we've been online pals. I started my blog, "Books In the Spotlight" for two main reasons: One, I wanted to keep up with my reading where I can keep track of what I've read, what I thought about it, and more importantly discuss it with others. My reading goal for this year is to read 200 books. So far I'm on 120 so 80 more to go. Two, I work as a teacher-librarian in a high school setting and I'm constantly asked by parents and teachers on what books are appropriate for their kids/students, so I wanted to give them a place where they can find that info on my blog.

My blog has challenged me to go beyond my YA boundaries, which is why I also review contemporary Adult literature, children literature, and graphic novels/manga. It also challenges me to state why I don't like a particular book. I love my blog and am continually learning on how to make it better. I hope you all stop by and participate in my first giveaway!

Go check it out! Mockingjay and Clockwork Angel Giveaway

(If you haven't read these authors before, let me tell ya, they're both AMAZING!)

Wordless Wednesday: Too Hot to Move

(This image was taken by me in Summer of 2010.)

Summer Favorites: #4 Time to Burn

Along with the school year comes the small window of free time for my kids. Meaning that anything that involves my kids (playing with friends, doctor appointments, sports, music lessons, seeing extended family, etc) has to be scheduled between after school and bedtime. Not a lot of time.

I love having the entire day to play, schedule activities and appointments or do nothing at all. Lots of easy breezy time.

Wordless Wednesday: Natures Colors

(This image was taken by me in Spring of 2010.)

Summer Favorites #3 Daisies of the Pushing Variety

I caught an episode of this while it was actually on the air, but I just found it again and now I'm able to watch the whole thing. Hubby and I have been watching Pushing Daises on Netflix as our own little date night and this show is funny. (Plus I LOVE when we find a show we both enjoy.) I enjoy the writing, acting and cinematography. I think we have about 5 episodes until we're done with season 2 but luckily for me I just found Veronica Mars so now I'll have another show to try.

Bustin' Nerves & Crayons

Yesterday I was sitting on the couch watching a little of that Michael Jackson movie "This is It" (kinda fascinating) when out of nowhere a nerve in my neck freaked out. I tried to adjust and sit differently but any movement just made me cry. Literally. I was on the floor, on my back, no moving, crying. I made my daughter stand next to me and wipe the tears before they fell into my ears (that sounds so pathetic). I still dont know what it was, but it hasn't really gone away. I loaded up on some pain meds and tried to not move at all (which is crazy hard with three kids and a husband on a weekend). Ugh what is the deal.

*****

I found this fun blog that gives you FREE and fun things to color. I printed off the alphabet ice cream cones and had a good time with my kids matching up the letters (which was a perfect addition to our light summer school for my preschoolers).

Go check Bust Out Your Crayons

*****

My 'baby' turns three this week. He gets his first ever friend birthday party and I haven't even started planning it. I'm not terribly stressed though seeing as how he is only having three little friends over. I have a few ideas swirling around in my head, but this is my first ever little boy party that I'm throwing and I want it to be good. Any suggestions?

Summer Favorites: #2 Crunch

First of all, I whole heartedly agree!

I sampled these about a year ago and have since looked everywhere for these tasty little treats and the only place I've been able to locate them is Costco. Honestly I hardly ever buy another kind of chip anymore. When I need the crunch factor it's these babies I turn to. A cracker. A chip. A delicious amount of flavor. I've only ever tried MultiGrain but I know they come in a bunch of flavors

Multigrain chips are yum and Food Should Taste Good knows how to make an all natural product work for this picky girls tastes buds. I was kind of surprised to see how simple the ingredient list was. Seriously check it out: Stone Ground Corn, High Oleic Sunlower Oil and/or Saflower Oil, Brown Rice Flour, Flax Sees, Evaporated Cane Juice, Oat Fiber, Sesame Seeds, Sunflower Seeds, Quinoa, Soy Flour, Sea Salt.

Summer Favorites: #1 A little something I call Pomegrago

My friend Rachel is doing an installment of some current favorites and I thought it'd be fun to list a few things that I currently like.

I'm thinking I'll try to come up with around 10 favorites (since c'mon, it is my favorite number afterall) but we'll see what happens.

I came across this little gem in the store this year, taking a chance on something I'd never tried before. I picked up hand soap and body wash and if I could have, I would have gotten a candle and room spray too.

I'm madly in love with it. Pomegranate & Mango euphoria folks. Euphoria!

A Lofty Commitment

Earlier this summer I joined a writing group and figured I'd give it a few months and see if this was a fleeting hobby or a serious interest. I thought I'd have plenty of time to write over the summer and was crazy excited to get started. However after I wrote my first few scenes I had rolling around in my head I got stuck. No plot, no ideas, just these characters that I am still trying to figure out. Plus it's obvious I'm the weakest link in my group, which for me makes it hard to want to keep trying at something I am not feeling I'm that great at.

My friend Amber Lynae told me about Sarah's 50,000 in 50 day challenge.

So here we go. I need a kick in the pants. I'm signing up with Sarah's challenge and giving it a real good effort. 1000 words a day is pretty daunting considering I've only been able to pull that about twice since I started a few weeks ago. And depending on the flow, could take upwards of an hour or two to peck out.

Wish me luck! A lot.

0 / 50000 words. 0% done!