Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

Today’s Prompt: Bookish Places I’ve Visited (Share all the cool places you’ve been that are bookish or tied to books! This includes neat libraries, book stores, places featured in books, places inspired by books, author homes/places they’ve stayed, etc. You can also share your bucket list of the bookish places you’d like to visit someday.) (submitted by Susan @Bloggin’ ’bout Books)

I thought maybe I didn’t have anything for this post, but as I puzzled it out, I found I had more than I first thought!

Thanks to a trip out to the east coast, I visited three all pretty much at once. Salem, MA (The Crucible), and then we toured The House of the Seven Gables while we were there. The next day we meandered over to Walden.

And now let’s look at another classic writer, Hemingway. I have been to the Keys a few times, and of course visited Hemingway’s house there. And saw all the kitties! I can’t find any of my own photos from that trip, but visiting his house was one of my favorite parts of visiting the Keys. That and breakfast outside at the Banana Cafe. I have also visited Petoskey Michigan, which was an old stomping ground of Hemingway’s, and have stayed at the Perry Hotel, which he had also stayed at as well. There is a statue of him in the park there; he is the one in bronze, the other guy is my dad.

But let’s stay in Florida a minute, this time further north. My dad and I once took a trip to visit a favorite author, Connie May Fowler, who was having a small seminar for would be writers, in her home! It was seriously an amazing trip. We got to visit St. Augustine, and then we spent a day with Ms. Fowler and her husband in their beach home, learning about writing. Her husband made us all lunch, and it was just a once in a lifetime vacation. She is probably most well known for Before Women Had Wings, but my favorite is her book Remembering Blue. The picture with the pig and the bottles is from her deck. I felt like it would be weird to take a fan girl photo with her in the situation, but I did have her sign my copies of her books. Lol.

Let’s stay in the South.

I have been to Savannah a few times, and of course while I was there I had to visit the house from Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, The Mercer House.

I do not have a photo of when I visited the Mark Twain Caves from Tom Sawyer. I was a kid then though, so that is not my fault.

Ok, I am at 8 books. What do I have left?

Oh duh. Anne Rice! I was obsessed with New Orleans for a long time, and had to visit Anne Rice’s house. We couldn’t of course go in, she lived there, but I did have my picture taken in front of her house – that other person is my little brother.

And then, let’s just stay here in New Orleans, shall we? We can talk about Tennessee Williams while we are at it. I saw places there that he stayed, where he ate, the streetcars that were the inspiration for Streetcar Named Desire, places where he wrote. His stamp was all over that city, with good reason. I unfortunately do not have the photos for these places but I do have these memories. New Orleans inspires creativity and writing and I am sure we could all list books that we have read that are set there.

And with that my friends, I am ending here. I can’t wait to see what you all wrote about.

Autumn is just around the corner, and I am seeing small signs here in Michigan that it is on the way. Last night I sat outside drinking tea, and the evening was that perfect cool evening I crave all summer. I wanted a bonfire, cider, a cozy book, conversation… all the fall things. Leaves are on the ground, and I come home from walks with pocketsful of acorns and chestnuts. I am making banana bread this afternoon, and I know I will soon be making sourdough for the week and loads of chocolate chip cookies throughout fall and winter. School will be starting for us soon, and while we homeschool and have a different rhythm to our days, I am looking forward to it. It has been a hard summer and I am looking forward to the gentle peace of fall. And with this gentle peace, I will need some cozy books, and not all of them spooky either. I made a list of books, a mix of both old and new, and they give me romance-y, Hallmark vibes, heartwarming, some spicy some not. I have a few on my TBR but not all of them, because as I told my son, as much as we want to read all the books, we just can’t; but we can make a list of them all. Lol.

I am trying to keep this list romance and women’s fiction. I will have future lists for books with fantasy elements, horror, and of course cozy mysteries!

The Last Page Cafe || Autumn at the Cat Cafe || A Fall to Remember

The Last Page Cafe sounds so wonderful, with a cafe and a book club, imperfect characters, and healing. It is also a story of friendship and second chances. Definitely a book worth getting cozy with. It releases on Sept. 29.

Autumn at the Cat Cafe looks simply adorable! Cats and books and coffee!! Small towns, fall shenanigans! This one is definitely on my own fall hopefuls list.

A Fall to Remember‘s publisher blurb says “If you love cozy small-town settings, swoon-worthy autumn vibes, second-chance romance, and The Gilmore Girls, pour yourself a pumpkin spice latte, and curl up with A Fall to Remember.” And that cover is very autumnal, I could see myself picking this one up and doing just what it says, curling up with it. I reader review calls it a clean read, but I can’t say if it is for certain as I have not read it yet. Publish date is Sept. 1.

Shortbread in the Highlands has been on my radar and it is definitely on my hopefuls list. This author also wrote Tea with Elephants, which is a book I meant to read this summer and didn’t. So maybe I will just dive into the series with this one. It takes place in Scotland in the fall and is about midlife adventures and family.

At Home in Mitford is one of my favorite reads and I always feel the pull of it in the fall. I think it is all the cozy small town feels, the generous and kind townspeople, and of course Father Tim and Barnabas.

The Treasure House is one I have seen around. I think it sounds so good for curling up with this fall. I don’t think it is one I will pick up this fall, but I am keeping it on my list for next year. It just sounds very homey, about finding your home, a place in the world and what better time to read about that with a cup of tea than autumn? This will be available Sept. 2.

Sunflower Season is waiting on my Kindle right now! I love love sunflowers so much and this one just sounds fun. It is a second chance romance with a sunflower farm setting and I am looking forward to it. This one comes out Nov. 3 which will be a great way to start the month, post Halloween festivities and spooky season.

Comfort Read got my attention with this teaser: “Kit Forrest is officially the saddest man in Cedar Falls. A year after his boyfriend turned down his proposal and left town, Kit’s beloved bookstore is falling down around him. The old brick firehouse has overstuffed shelves, a resident orange cat with an attitude problem… and repairs Kit can’t begin to afford.” He is the saddest man in Cedar Falls AND he has an orange cat with an attitude. It just sounds like it will be a great read, set in a cozy bookstore and fake dating tropes.

And since love is in the air, let’s look at The Matchmaker’s Cottage with this fabulous cover!! It is all small town charm, autumn vibes, a bed and breakfast, and forced proximity.

I think we made it to the spiciest of the reads!

Fall Me Maybe looks like a cute lighthearted fall read about a woman who thinks she is falling for her ride share driver, who literally drives her to all her potential dates. This actually sounds hilarious and adorable. It does say it is pretty steamy in the descriptions I have read, just an FYI. This one is scheduled to be published Sept. 15.

Falling Slowly is another in the Cozy Creek series, along with Fall Me Maybe. This steamy spicy romance centers on two coworkers at a luxury art retreat, which is such a cool unique setting!

Fall Too Well is for those cowboy fans out there – a more western style fall that includes a reformed bad boy and second chance romance.

Bonfire and Bliss Bookstore: This looks so cute and apparently is also pretty spicy. This is a friends to lovers trope, with small town and big fall feels!

Finally, the Pumpkin Pie Book Nook. This cover is so autumnal and I love the cat! This one is already out so if you are ready for a spicy fall read, you can grab this one now! The publisher describes this one as “A high-flying bookaholic with big dreams who can’t stick around. A protective, sexy single dad whose life is in Maple Falls. Right person, wrong timing… or the best plot twist ever? An utterly addictive autumn romance. Gilmore Girls + spice = “

And phew! That is it from me today! I will be back soon with with another Fall Reading suggestions list with for books with a witchier vibe!

Linking up with A Good Book & Cup of Tea Linky!

I am linking up with Deb at Readerbuzz,  Kathryn at Book Date, and  Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer.

Hello everyone! I hope you guys are all doing ok. I am enjoying this morning, it is actually chilly! We will have more hot days before autumn is truly here but I am loving this teaser. I am ready to move on to fall weather and cozy time.

Books:

Speaking of cozy, last week I read two cozy mysteries and part of the Stillmeadow book I got from the library. And I guess I was feeling a bit country last week!

Pattern of Betrayal was ok, I wasn’t overwowed by it, but I love the Zen Goat Mysteries! This one is the second in the series and I just find them so cute and fun, and I love the characters and premise. I am planning on reading the third book in October.

I am also still reading Stillmeadow Calendar, very slowly at night. I just love Gladys Taber.

It’s our last week before we start school and I plan on having lots of slow days this week since we will be off to the races next week. I do have a few things I want to get done, and some projects I want to start, but I also have a few books I want to read. Dilemmas. Lol.

I don’t think Books, Iced Coffee & a Side of Dragons will take too long, and it just seems like a perfect book to end the summer with. And then I hope to start Sunflower Season. I love sunflowers and I think this looks adorable.

I have Sunflower Season on my cozy fall reading suggestions post, that will be up tomorrow with at least 9 other cozy not spooky fall reads!

Screens:

This past week Billy and I have visited an old comfort show, Tales from the Green Valley. I just love to watch people farm, dressed in historically authentic clothes, living as it was back in that era.

And Mouse and Max like watching it as well I guess.

We also continued our Kevin Bacon Movie Binge, this time watching The River Wild. Meryl Streep was so good in it; honestly all of the actors were. Kevin Bacon does smug jerk so well! I feel like even though this movie came out in 1994, it stood the test of time and was still very tension filled. Next week we will probably watch White Water Summer with Kevin Bacon where he again plays a jerk while navigating rapids.

In-Betweens:

Yesterday I volunteered at my church in the morning, and took my guys with me. We helped pack 120 bag lunches for people to pick up and take, and also 50 backpacks full of school supplies to hand out to kids who needed them.

Afterwards we went little free library-ing. We picked an area near us, and just tried to visit as many as we could before the impending rain came. We managed to visit all but one of the map, and I was even getting rained on at our last stop. I did pick up some good books and left behind good ones as well, I hope. Wyatt ended up with two, and I found four. We left more than we took though, and that always makes me happy.

And when I finish reading them, I will just stash them in my own LFL.

And that is it for me today!

I hope that whatever you do today, you do something that makes you smile.

Hello everyone! I have a few mini reviews today, two scary books and one very much not.

First up, The Haunting of Paynes Hollow. This book was a surprise. I got it from Book of the Month last Octoberish and didn’t read it. Then this summer when I was having a hard time reading, I picked it up and could not put it down! I was sucked right in to this story that is part Sleepy Hollow, part folklore, and is full of family secrets. It was the perfect read for summer or end of summer, set at a lake cabin with lots of scary things happening. I absolutely loved it!

I got this one from NetGalley and it is another creepy can’t put it down read. This book sunk its teeth in me and did not let go. I had to keep reading. Two sisters with a dark secret find themselves back in the same situation, ten years later. It was dark, dank, ugly, filled with family secrets. A book of loyalty and love and sisterhood. It was desperate, feral, violent, humid and hot. The perfect Southern Gothic thriller for the end of summer.

Look for it Sept. 8th!

Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for chance to read and review!

It does come with a few trigger warnings:

Domestic Violence
Brief violence toward animals

And finally, one that is not scary, but uplifting and joyful.

The Smallest of Joys is just so lovely and delightful. I read it in the mornings with my coffee and took in Shiffer’s words. If you are not familiar, Diane Shiffer has a successful Instagram that is full of vintage linens and fashions, where she presents herself as a Nana figure to her audience and offers encouragement and acceptance. This book gave me peace at a time I needed some. She talks about setting happy traps for yourself, things that will make future you smile. Or allowing yourself time to sit and just be with your thoughts. (which coincidentally, Gladys Taber wrote about as well in her book Stillmeadow Calendar. I just read that passage last night). If you need a hug in book form, try The Smallest of Joys.

“But even on our worst days, there’s also joy and beauty and humor, amusement and love. They can coexist like two currents in a river. Pain insists we pay attention to her while beauty waits quietly until we notice her. Joy waits until we call her in. But that doesn’t mean that heartache is more important than joy. Sadness doesn’t make beauty less beautiful. In the midst of your hardest days, look for beauty.”

I have been doing this, and it is isn’t always easy. But it is there. Yesterday morning I woke up and remembered my mom, and had a little cry. Then I wiped my tears and still feeling sad, wandered out to the front of the house, looking out at the street and the day. And noticed something on my porch. A vase of beautiful flowers and a handmade card from a neighbor, giving me love and encouragement. A bit of kindness on a hard morning. And even if we don’t have that, there are small things. The way a butterfly floats through a ray of sun, or a purring cat on your lap. They are there.

And with that, I leave you my friends. I hope you all find something that makes you smile today!

August Link Up

Hello everyone. I hope you are all doing well! As for me, I am a bit of a mess at times but I am managing. I even read books last week! Two very wildly different books, but I am a mood reader so maybe that makes sense for right now, that I needed two crazy different reads.

Books:

The Smallest of Joys by Diane Shiffer: I found a lot of peace in this read. It is definitely a book to be read in bits and spurts, not cover to cover. I read it mainly in the mornings while drinking my coffee and underlined and marked passages throughout the whole book. It will be interesting to read again maybe in a year or so from now, to see what calls to me then. For now though, it was like a peaceful read during a time of such huge emotions.

We Already Dug the Grave by Emma C. Wells was wild. It is a Southern Gothic thriller and it was riveting. Nothing peaceful in these pages, that is for sure. I needed something that just grabbed me and this did the trick. I will post reviews later this week.

As for this week, I am not sure what I will end up reading. I do have plans to read Gladys Taber, this time Stillmeadow Calendar, as I love her Stillmeadow books.

Screens:

We started our Kevin Bacon Movie Binge this past weekend, and of course we started with the “classic” Tremors. It was just the silly campy movie we needed. It pays homage to the creature features of the 1950s, with giant monsters that live under the ground that can sense movement on the surface. And the cast is such a throwback too! Besides Kevin Bacon, this 1990 movie boasts a cast consisting of Reba McEntire, Michael Gross (both occupying roles you would never expect which makes it even better), Fred Ward (yep Remo Williams!), and the little girl from Jurassic Park. This is obviously where she sharpened those screaming skills!

In-Betweens:

On Saturday, a new bookstore near us opened its door, holding their grand opening, so of course we had to go and check it out.

They are off to a bit of a rough start. They had a power outage the day of the grand opening, and the store was so dark and black inside; I had to use my cell phone flashlight to read some of the book titles, especially in the children’s area. They don’t seem to have all of their stock in yet so they had a lot of empty shelves still as well. However, I am pulling for them! They have some good ideas. They want to turn the store into a third place, somewhere people can take a seat in front of the fire and read, where families can play board games, or just drink some coffee and play chess with a friend. Hopefully things come together for them, the community can use some additional third places.

And that is it from me! I wish you all peace and love today, and in your upcoming week.

Hello everyone. I have been keeping busy over here, but with plenty of quiet times in between too.

I find I get really anxious antsy around dinner and afterwards, because that was when I went to my mom’s almost everyday. So last week Billy kept me busy, taking us on rides. One ride in particular was beautiful, the metropark at twilight. It was all muggy out and everything was just so overgrown and lush and green. Wading birds and deer were in the marshes eating, swallows were winging their way through the air catching their dinner, and it was just peaceful.

We also had dinner that night at the A&W near the metropark. I don’t know if this is just a Michigan place, but it’s a drive up restaurant like in old movies, and honestly I don’t think the restaurants have changed much here since they were built 50 + years ago. It is a bit of nostalgia every time we go and is always a summer bucket list item. This time Wyatt tried his first frosty mug of root beer too, which was an experience. He wasn’t sure if he liked it or not at first, but ended up really liking it. These mugs were huge and Wyatt and I didn’t finish ours but it was the perfect cold drink needed for the humid evening.

My friend Kelly has also been telling me for months that I needed to go to the reptile show that is held every month nearby. I felt like it was finally time. She goes every month, and while I don’t think I will do that, I may go again. I was very proud of myself for not bringing home a new friend! I think had we not been going all the way out to my dad’s right after (he lives 90 minutes away) for the day I may have but, I am giving myself credit here. So many adorable babies there! Vietnamese Mossy frogs, Dumpy frogs, DORMICE – these almost got me but I was unprepared for them and I had no idea what they needed. Baby turtles and albino garter snakes. Jumping spiders, dart frogs. Seriously, there was so much there.

Wyatt and I finally ventured back to the library. I knew it would be tough. I just have so many memories there with my mom when I was younger, with Wyatt and my mom. But, I needed a few books and so did Wyatt so I went. And I was right, I did cry but I am learning that it is ok.

Since I am having a hard time finding a book that is grabbing me, I did a book walk browse through the stacks, just grabbing everything that looked interesting. And if these don’t work, I will try again. I will say though, that like 80% (completely random made up statistic) of the books I picked up the blurb started with “After her mother passed away” or some variation. I think it goes to show just how important our moms are, that this is a topic in so many books. Middle grade, YA, adult fiction. It didn’t matter.

Last night I started Grief is Love, and I thought I would cry but I didn’t. So far I am finding the content to be soothing and validating. I also started That Which Feeds, but only read the author’s note at the beginning, which was fascinating and led me to wanting to read more. The author is native Hawaiian, and shares how there is a diaspora of Native Hawaiians due to being priced out of their homes. Billy’s grandmother, Malecca Kane, was Native Hawaiian, and so I try to read different histories, nonfiction and fiction, so that I can share it with Wyatt and have that lore for him.

Speaking of books, one of my friends dropped off a gift she rescued for me, along with some gooseberry jello, which was delicious. Aren’t these gorgeous? I also like that the writing style is unstuffy and stilted, and has almost poetic moments. “Sometimes in Turtle Mountain, in dead calm moonlight nights, each coyote gets up on his singing perch and pours out his loudest and finest notes.” These are also nice to flip through and a read a bit from at night.

I also got to take a nature walk alone the other day, and I feel like my mom was pebbling me with little trinkets along the way. I spotted a lone thistle, then a blue jay feather on the ground right in front of me, which I gathered up to bring home. I went off the path at one point, down a dry creek bed, and stumbled upon a rock someone had left on a mossy log, which I also pocketed. And finally, a weird mass of mushrooms that was not attractive but was very interesting. It could have been chicken of the woods but I left it alone.

I’ve also been working hard on school things, on planning for our upcoming Blackbirds meetings again, and working on other house related business. I want to paint our room without a name before school starts, I need to move one of my crested geckos to a new enclosure. We moved one already and she loves her new home. Unfortunately, now my two furry menaces love her in it too, as they can now see her more clearly. They have woken me up every night now around 2 am because I hear them trying to climb her terrarium, and I have to go chase them away. Applejack seems unfazed, and maybe even a bit taunting, as sometimes I find her at the bottom, on the glass within perfect eyesight of the cats. She doesn’t seem to care as they paw at the pane of glass separating them. Maybe she thinks they are friends. It won’t be as bad once I trim their claws and add more plants that hide Applejack this weekend.

And that is it from me today. I wish you all peace and love.

Talk to you all soon!

My mom passed away last Tuesday. She was calm and peaceful, and I was holding her hand. And my heart broke into a million pieces.

The night before, my brother and I spent the night in her room with her, mom in her bed, and Devin and I squished onto our own individual loveseats. Feet to feet, and we would sit up and talk and it was like we were in a boat. As I lay there, I thought about how the three of us were always together, and it seemed fitting that we were that night as well, all three of us together. I wondered as well when the last time the three of us had slept like that. A vacation when we were kids, maybe? My brother and I would try to sleep, and then we would talk, and then laugh at times because of something one of us would do, because if Billy calls me Calamity because of what I get myself into sometimes, then my brother is Calamity 2.0. I would say only my brother and I could have mishaps on such a night, but we apparently have followed in the footsteps of my mom and aunt Barb, who were also Calamity and Calamity 2.0.

And I am rambling.

I can’t say too much else, because I am made of tears right now. I do laundry, I cry. I make dinner, I cry. I cry in the shower. I cry in stores while shopping.

I will say everyone in my life has been very supportive and kind, and even those who I haven’t talked to in years and years having been sharing bits and pieces with me, small memories of my mom, things I didn’t remember or sometimes didn’t know. And it has been helping me, hearing these stories. I am also overwhelmed by the number of people who have commented and messaged me; my mother touched so many lives, in her quiet ways. So even while I am crying enough to fill the Great Lakes over again, I am also being buoyed up by those around me and online. I have very good friends and family, near and far. I am blessed in that way.

And I can’t write anymore today, but I will be back when I have healed a little. Thank you to all of you too, for your kind comments of support over the past few weeks.

I am linking up with Deb at Readerbuzz,  Kathryn at Book Date, and  Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer.

Hello everyone! I hope that you all had a good week last week, full of books and movies and nature walks or whatever it is that makes you smile! We had a pretty ok week – Friday we even took a little road trip to the largest pet store in Michigan, which was amazing. I needed a little break and it was the perfect antidote.

Books:

Last week I read these two. I had no idea what I was going to read this time last week, and I plucked this one off the shelf where it has been sitting since October. I was immediately sucked in! Sleepy Hollow meets a summer camp vibe, with a family mystery and scandal too. I loved this book. I think it was a good example of the perfect book at the perfect time.

The Kindle Magic and Mystery series is out! I had been waiting for it because there are quite a few authors that I love who have short stories in this collection. I started of course with Sarah Beth Durst’s story, The Wednesday Witches Book Club. I loved it, and I really hope she uses this to start a new series with this premise. This story took about 20 minutes to read, it is just a shortie as I am sure they all are.

This week I have two I am thinking about.

And yeah, they look totally crazy right next to each other. They are both NetGalley reads and I am determined to do better this time around!! I even found my Kindle and dusted it all off and charged it and everything. Lol. I am also reading this one.

Screens:

Billy and I had been watching The Artful Dodger, but then season 2 wasn’t as good as season 1, so we switched over to Murdoch. Sometimes you just need some Murdoch in your life. I am sure we will finish The Artful Dodger but we needed a break.

We are also watching nostalgic 80s/90s movies with Wyatt this summer and last week we watched Camp Nowhere, which is a funny little movie! I am not sure what we are watching tonight yet but I had better pick one because Wyatt has been asking all weekend. Lol.

I also posted a few times last week.

Top Ten Tuesday: Books Set in Cape Cod

Wednesday Morning Coffee Catch Up

Mini Book Reviews: A Cozy Mystery Series, The Haunting of Ashburn House and Sad Cypress

July Wrap Up

And remember, I am cohosts with Lisa at Boondock Ramblings and Cat at Cat’s Wire, of the linkup A Good Book and a Cup of Tea for all things books -not just books read or reviews, but bookstore visits or author visits or whatever else bookish you can think of! You can find the link up for August here!

In-Betweens:

Wyatt starts an online art camp this week, called Camp Cryptid. He is pretty excited about it, as the little art and spooky things lover that he is. Tomorrow is our first day, and the project is about the Loch Ness Monster. Today I need to make sure I have all of our supplies together for the week, and double check the details. We have never participated in anything like this before! They do have replays available too, which I like just in case anything comes up during the time it is supposed to happen. It also has a story element to it as well. I will keep you all posted!

And that is for me today! I hope that whatever you do today, you do something that makes you smile!

Hello everyone! I hope you are doing well. We are continuing our simple summer over here, although I am beginning to look ahead to the fall and specifically, our next homeschool year. It’s time to get organized and ready, so I have been working on plans here and there this past week. I have our history mapped out until December, and purchased the curriculum for science, nature, and art. Next week I will have my husband print all 714 pages out at work (he works for an industrial printer) and then I will dive in, reading it all over and seeing what I need to collect. Anyway, let us get to the wrap up!

The Books:

The Breakdown: I read six books and one short story. We were inside for a few weeks this month, due to weather warnings and air quality warnings, so I managed to read more than usual. I read a mix of cozy mysteries, classic mystery, horror, and cozy fantasy. July is summerween season, so I leaned into the scarier side of summer. I have also been in a place mentally where it is hard to read cozy gentle books. When I am feeling upset or anxious, I need books that are as jagged as my thoughts. The book settings took me a few places – a tourist town in Michigan next to Lake Michigan, upstate NY along Lake Ontario, England, and Long Island. Unfortunately, no nonfiction or translated fiction this month, so I didn’t add to my challenge numbers.

My favorite of the bunch ended up being The Haunting in Paynes Hollow by Kelley Armstrong, which I enjoyed way more than I thought I would! I got this one back in October from Book of the Month, and felt sort of ambivalent about it when I got it. Now though? Loved it!! It was the perfect summer creepy read though. A cabin by the lake, a family mystery, and Sleepy Hollow vibes? I am so glad that I read it in the summer, it just made it all the better.

The Screens:

This summer we have been introducing Wyatt to old nostalgic favorites from the 80s and 90s, and this month his favorite was The Goonies. Of course. Although he did really enjoy The Great Outdoors as well! Billy and I revisited I Know What You Did Last Summer and dang that was still a good scary movie!

As for television, Billy and I watched Only Murders in the Building, The Artful Dodger, and Murdoch Mysteries. The Artful Dodger season 1 was awesome, season 2 is not as good, but it is like they forgot the show is about Jack! Jack Dawkins was like a minor character almost and it just wasn’t as good. I will still watch a season 3 though if there is one, and I will hope that it gets back on track!

A Good Book and a Cup of Tea favorites:

I am cohosts with Lisa at Boondock Ramblings and Cat at Cat’s Wire, of the linkup A Good Book and a Cup of Tea for all things books -not just books read or reviews, but bookstore visits or author visits or whatever else bookish you can think of! You can find the link up for August here!

We have decided we will be featuring our favorite posts from the month here. I do read all the posts even if I don’t comment. I only like to comment from my actual laptop and not from my phone, which is a problem sometimes when I read the post on my phone. ( I am working on more time to read and comment though. )

My favorites this month:

From My Children’s Book Cabinet by Cat – she always has the coolest old books in that cabinet! I feel like it would be magical to look through

Recommendations Across Genres by Lisa Notes – I am a big fan of reading alllll the genres

Book Recommendations: Miss Buncle’s Book by D.E. Stevenson by Lisa – I have seen this book everywhere lately and I loved this review. Lisa is always so thorough!

And for some non-book related faves this month….

Moments with my mom, even if most of them are sad I am treasuring them

kites

seeing the Freedom Plane exhibit

long lazy days of reading

ice cream with friends

painting tutorials by Andrea Nelson

iced matcha lattes with vanilla and oatmilk

Wyatt doing so much walking with his gait trainer

art and books in general

And that is it from me today. Peace and love to all of you.