candy coated rose petals

Just finished The Nine Rooms of Happiness: Loving Yourself, Finding Your Purpose, and Getting Over Life’s Little Imperfections by Lucy Danziger and Catherine Birndorf. Danziger is the editor of Self magazine, Birndorf, a magazine contributor. The book is based on the premise that our emotional house is built similarly to a real house. Issues with family happen in the family room. Tension with casual acquaintances occur in the living room. Problems with self esteem mean you’re hanging out in the bathroom. There’s 10 rooms—basement, kitchen, family room, living room, office, bedroom, bathroom, kid’s room, attic and the 10th room, an oasis where you take time for yourself.   [ Read more ]

In preparing for the release of the two-part movie, I reread Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. After watching Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince last summer, I realized how much I have forgotten from the books. Those smaller details that the book fans adore have escaped me over time. It sure didn’t help that I read most of the books in a matter of days—speed reading myself to the end in much haste.   [ Read more ]

Took me a little longer to read, but I finished another book. Weekend in Paris by Robyn Sisman was a pretty decent read. Light and fun, the characters and plot were relate-able. It’s been awhile since I’ve read a light read. The Friday Night Knitting Club series was good, but emotionally heavy, as was Memoirs of a Geisha. It was a nice pace from the heavier reads too, like LOTR. I look forward to reading other “light” books from my shelf.   [ Read more ]

Last week, I finished The Penny Pinchers Club by Sarah Strohmeyer. I was surprised by how much I liked this book. I initially thought the book would highlight penny-pinching techniques, but the main plot surrounding a married couple became far more intriguing. The story was easy to read and interesting; the author opened with a flash forward, offering the reader a nugget of what was to come. The technique definitely encouraged me to read the story quickly. Oh and I did pick up a few penny pinching ideas too!   [ Read more ]

Reading Memoirs of a Geisha was a real delight. I had seen the movie before, so I was looking forward to reading the original story. I enjoyed it as much as I had expected to. Some of the abrupt scenes in the movie made a lot more sense with the full story laid out. As always, a story in full detail is better than one missing some key points. Memoirs book versus movie was just that way.   [ Read more ]

My first book of 2010 is a cookbook! I know, it sounds a little silly, but with the exception of reading the steps in each recipe in detail, I really did flip through The Pioneer Woman Cooks from cover to cover. Received as a birthday gift, I spent some time over the Christmas holiday experimenting with some of the breakfast items. Then I wanted to read all of Ree Drummond’s anecdotes, stories and recipe explanations. I made my way through the whole book, lightly skimming the recipe instructions, enjoying stories similar to those I have read on her blog.   [ Read more ]

taking a look back

Last year I set out to have realistic and attainable goals I could track. Although I didn’t cross everything off my list, the long-term goals were accomplished, including reading at least 12 books, running in a 5k and knitting at least 52 projects..   [ Read more ]

• Take digital photos of all the valuable in each room for insurance purposes. This is mostly done.
• Create a “best of 2008″ tally. Whoops, forgot to do this altogether.

Knit the Season, the last edition to the Friday Night Knitting Club series is probably my favorite of the lot, although I enjoyed each book. The story interlaces friends, family, life and knitting into one overlapping string of plots. I love each and every character and love how Kate Jacobs weaves them together. I don’t want to say too much in case my knitterly friends are interested in reading the series. I give it a hearty thumbs up.   [ Read more ]

I zipped through Knit Two, by Kate Jacobs. The second in The Friday Night Knitting Club series, I enjoyed checking in with the characters I fell in love with. The sequel was well crafted, weaving in the main characters lives and the impact of the events from the first book and how they lingered on. I don’t want to divulge too much for anyone interested in reading the series.   [ Read more ]

I got some really cool stuff this year for my birthday. I got a Knit Picks lace sampler (not pictured), two skeins of Classic Elite Yarns Alpaca Sox, a knitting mug and woolwash, Pints & Purls, knitterly notecards and some mix CDs.

Melissa got me this awesome project bag with owls donning knitwear!

  [ Read more ]