News:
We've had a lot of rainy weather this month, so the yard was starting to look like a jungle. It took me three days, but I finally finished all of the yard work. This is the first time we've had an actual backyard (apartments, a house in the city), and it was a challenge. Our house sits on a hill, so it was a lot of up and down with the mower, plus the gopher mounds--ugh. My arms are still aching. I also watched a YouTube video and taught myself how to change the line (whatever the plastic stuff is called) that goes inside a weed eater. I feel super accomplished this week, but also extremely exhausted.
My son is loving soccer, and he's preparing for a piano recital next month. All three of them have enjoyed playing in the rain and mud (they've been taking a lot of baths). The spring weather has been lovely, but we also had a few days in the 80s that were a touch too hot for my liking. I'm not looking forward to another Texas summer.
I'm completely caught up on comics! Yay! I stayed up late one night and tackled my stack. It helps that I haven't had anything pulled the last two weeks, and now I can hopefully stay on top of things. I'm also on schedule with the ARCs I have left, which is flipping fantastic! I'm working on reading backlogged books on NetGalley to improve my percentage. I was doing pretty well for awhile, but my finger was a little click-happy back in January (so many amazing books!).
Previous week on the blog:
Sunday: Repeat by Kylie Scott [Release Blitz + Excerpt + Review] ⋆⋆⋆⋆⋆
Monday: Nothing!
Tuesday: Lawrence in the Fall by Matthew Farina & Doug Salati (Illustrator) [Release Dat Blitz + Giveaway]
Thursday: Dance of Thieves (Dance of Thieves, #1) by Mary E. Pearson ⋆⋆⋆⋆⋆
Friday: Nothing!
Saturday: Nothing!
What I'm currently reading:
A Monster Like Me by Wendy S. Swore
Descendant of the Crane by Joan He
Tempests and Slaughter (The Numair Chronicles, #1) by Tamora Pierce
I'm undecided on A Monster Like Me at the moment. I like the overall vibe for the story, but some things were just too unrealistic. I've rolled my eyes aplenty. Descendant of the Crane has been wonderful so far! I'm really enjoying it. I only started Tempests and Slaughter last night, but it seems okay. I'm curious if they're going to remain young children throughout the book, or if there will be a time jump at some point.
What I plan on reading next:
This is Not a Love Scene by S.C. Megale
Every Last Breath (Final Hour, #1) by Juno Rushdan
Under the Moon: A Catwoman Tale by Lauren Myracle, Isaac Goodhart (Illustrator)
What I'm watching:
I recently finished The Umbrella Academy, so that was fun. It didn't end how I thought it would, and I'm curious what they would do with a second season. Vanya really surprised me! I have so many questions. However, Klaus is undoubtedly my favorite! I loved him and Ben. Does anyone know if Five has an actual name? Also, he really screwed up when he altered the timeline again, and I was super happy with the way things were progressing, too.
Challenge updates:
Audiobook Challenge: 18 / 30+
Beat the Backlist Challenge: 21 / 100
Discussion Challenge: 2 / 11-20
Goodreads Challenge: 120 / 500
Beat the Backlist Challenge: 21 / 100
Discussion Challenge: 2 / 11-20
Goodreads Challenge: 120 / 500
I'm behind on most of my challenges, but definitely making progress! What have you been reading? Are you participating in any challenges this year? Let's talk books!
Youtube videos are great to learn how to do something. I've fixed so many things by watching a video and then doing it.
ReplyDeleteRight?? I just Googled the type of weed eater it was, and someone had made a video for it!
DeleteMonster Like Me is on my radar. I saw a lot of good buzz for it. I am reading Love Scene this week. I hope we both like it.
ReplyDeleteSomething happens at the very beginning of A Monster Like Me that really bugged me. I've been trying to forget it happened and look past it, but ugh. If a kid a said it, maybe I would have been okay with it, but not coming from an adult. I hope we both love This Is Not a Love Scene, too!
DeleteI'm trying to get my Netgalley percentage up too. I was naughty. We'll get there though!
ReplyDeleteI'm hating having a big back garden and having to cut the grass... I've been without gardens for so long that moving into this house has been an adjustment.
We will! Good luck to us both. ;)
DeleteSame! We've had small yards before, but this yard is huge and requires massive amounts of maintenance. My poor body, haha. I'm going to die when it's summer and I have to mow. :(
Yard work is hard work 😂 (or so I suppose! I've never had a yard and I don't want one thanks. I can't keep up with the house as it is). So you have gophers? I take it you defeated the giant ants at least, since you haven't mentioned them in a while?
ReplyDeleteWatch that finger! LOL. And I have mine crossed for your NG percentage.
I love having a yard for the dogs and kids, because it's not always easy to take a walk or go to the dog park. The yard is large enough for fetch and frisbee, so it lessens how many days we have to travel for doggy exercise. There's also a lot of land for us to walk/explore, which the kids love! Keeping up with everything is tough, though. Phew! I haven't seen the giant ants in awhile (leaf cutter ants, I think), but the gophers are making massive holes in the yard. We also have bats! That was terrifying. I was unlocking the front door one night and one swooped down, haha.
DeleteYes, I gave my finger the finger. ;)
Texas summers would kill me. Heck, Michigan summers kill me, we get humid but i know they're nothing like Texas probably! Speaking of weather, can you believe we have SNOW today? It's supposed to be in the 60's by Tuesday, but today- it's like 32 and SLEETING.
ReplyDeleteI keep hearing about The Umbrella academy!
It's sooo hot here during the summer. If you want to do something, it has to be before 10 AM and after 6 PM. I would love to live somewhere where it snows, even though everyone who lives with snow says I wouldn't like it after awhile, haha. Enjoy your snow! My son desperately wants to make a snow angel. The other day he was playing in the dirt and said a dirt angel would have to do. ;)
DeleteDid you know The Umbrella Academy is based off a comic?? It's good!
Glad you had a week of accomplishments, even if you were a bit tired by the end!
ReplyDeleteNicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction
One five-year old and twins that are two... I'm always tired at the end, haha. They have an insane amount of energy, and there's no way for me to keep up. I think they've figured out a way to siphon my reserves. ;)
DeleteIsn't that always the way with kids? It really isn't fair that they have so much more energy than we do!
DeleteIt really isn't! There's three of them and only one of me. The odds will never be in my favor. ;)
DeleteThe kids in my neighborhood came over to play while I was at work, and they were drenched in mud when I got back- absolutely covered within an inch of their lives!
ReplyDeleteI remember making mud pies with my brother when we were kids. Mud just doesn't hold the same appeal that it used to, haha. However, I do love that my kids aren't afraid to get dirty, even if that means they get two baths every day, haha. <3
DeleteYoutube is the best for learning things! How did people ever survive before that?! Or even the internet!?!
ReplyDeleteNo idea! Instruction manuals? Hah!
DeleteI still need to watch The Umbrella Academy. I'm so curious about that Catwoman graphic novel. Hope you love it.
ReplyDelete-Lauren
www.shootingstarsmag.net
Have you read anything else by the author? I read Shine years ago and remember really enjoying it, but it's been ages since I've seen her name pop up on something new. Maybe I'm out of the loop? The Umbrella Academy was interesting! :)
DeleteI'm not very fond of high temperatures. I'm not sure if I could survive to a summer in Texas. It's difficult not to go a little click-happy on Netgalley. ;) I started watching The Umbrella Academy and so far I'm enjoying it. In the two episodes I watched, Five has always been called by Five. Maybe he doesn't have another name?
ReplyDeleteHappy readings! ;)
Tânia @MyLovelySecret
I Googled the cast of The Umbrella Academy, and he's just listed as Five. I guess he doesn't have another name! Odd. I really liked Klaus. He grew on me more and more every episode. I think he showed the most growth, too. It is very difficult not to click, click, click when perusing NetGalley. ;)
DeleteI’ve been catching up this week too, I have several books queued from before my unplanned hiatus that I’m working my way through. The problem is trying to post them without crowding the blog.
ReplyDeleteHave a great reading week and enjoy your garden.
I know the feeling! When I get behind and need to post more than one to catch up, I typically do a Mini Reviews post and squeeze them all in. :)
DeleteGo you with all the yard work! There are few things I loathe more so I am more than happy to write that check to the landscaper guy every month. LOL Sounds like kids are staying busy and having fun, too. :) I feel you on the warm weather. It was 87 here yesterday. I am so not ready for it!
ReplyDeleteI actually considered paying someone to do our yard work when it took me three days to finish ours, haha. There are still kids in high school that like to make some extra money mowing yards, right? They definitely have more energy than I do! Plus, they're not trying to watch three kids while they do it, haha.
DeleteWe try to stay busy! It helps when it's nap/bed time. They fall asleep more easily when they've had busy day, even if it's just going to the library for an hour or two.
We've had a TON of storms this month. It gets cool the day before, then there's a storm, and then it's hot for the next couple of days, ugh. Summer is going to be unbearable.
Aw watching littles play their soccer games is so much fun! Our soccer isn't until the fall, since we have baseball right now. I'm hoping for warmer weather asap because I've been freezing watching their games while snow flurries are blowing around us eeks.
ReplyDeleteJen @ Star-Crossed Book Blog
I think he wants to play soccer in the fall, too. I know he's mentioned basketball, but he hasn't shown an interest in baseball. My parents forced me to play softball long after I'd lost interest, and I promised myself I would never make him play something he didn't want to. When he expressed an interest in something, we pursue it. Right now that's piano, soccer, and jiu-jitsu. :) Freezing and snow flurries? That has never happened here at one of our games, haha!
DeleteWe are in a more rainy period now also and it might hit 80 this week. But mostly we are still around 70.
ReplyDeleteI liked Every Last Breat. I hope you enjoy it!
Anne - Books of My Heart Here is my Sunday Post
We've had a lot of rain, too! It's cooler for a few days, but then it gets really hot after a storm. April showers, right? I'm really looking forward to Every Last Breath! I requested it on a whim, and it's a genre I don't typically read. Glad to hear you liked it! <3
DeleteWhat did you end up thinking of A MONSTER LIKE ME? I LOVED it. I've heard lots of good things about DESCENDANT OF THE CRANE. I need to make time for it sometime soon.
ReplyDeleteI'm still in the middle of A Monster Like Me! I'm reading it to the kids before bed. I didn't like the one comment a mother made while they were at the store (it didn't seem like something an adult would do to a child), but other than that it's good. The salting of the mechanic's shop was hilarious. Don't flirt with her mother! ;) Descendant of the Crane is amazing! I highly recommend it just based on what I've read so far. <3
DeleteIf you read the Author's Note, you'll see that the comment that adult made in the story was ACTUALLY made to the author when she was a child. Crazy that anyone -- especially an adult -- could be that cruel!
DeleteReally?? That's insane! I had a hard time believing an adult would say that to a child, even in fiction, and I'm struggling to wrap my head around the fact that it actually happened to the author. I typically read an Author's Note at the end of the book, just so I don't give myself any extra details going into it (intentional or not). I like to be surprised. Thanks for letting me know! It makes me hate the mother in the book even more, but now it feels less unbelievable. I probably would have punched that woman right in the face!
DeleteI will gladly take your 80 degree weather! I'm counting down until June and we have that here. We're in the mid 70s today but at night we drop down into the 30s, so we're getting closer to beach weather....only 7 more weeks to go lol! And here's hoping you find a new favorite book in your backlog of netgalley books. :)
ReplyDeleteThat sounds lovely! I would really like to have cool days and cold nights. If it's already this hot in April, I'm afraid to see what this summer will look like. I foresee many days spent inside, unless we want to melt. Thanks! I can't wait to be caught up on my NetGalley backlog! ;)
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