Top Ten Tuesday: Bookish Candles I Would Make

On September 16, 2025September 14, 2025 By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn Uncategorized36 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

This week’s topic: Literary/Bookish Candles I’d Make (Pick a book and assign it a fragrance or fragrance combo that would make a nice candle.) (Submitted by Heather @ The Frozen Library)

Ok, this sounds super cool but also like really hard. I am hoping I can do this! I will light one of my candles (Mythologie, Alchemist because I LOVE it) as inspiration, and settle in with it and my tea. I am also going to use the website Bramble Berry to help me with scent profiles. I love to make soap and they have an awesome selection of scents and molds and whatever for making soap and candles. My combos might make for wild and weird candles, I have no idea. It would be sort of neat to try them out though!

The Honey Witch: Honey, marigold, and rose, with maybe a touch of vanilla. Light scents, reminiscent of the florals used in the book, and of course honey.

Wormwood Abbey: This one feels very earthy to me, which are my own favorite scents to wear and use. Amber, sandalwood, and a little bit of bonfire would be perfect.

Of Salt and Shore: Obviously this one is of the sea. Sea salt, sea moss, with a drop of thyme to make it a bit more earthy.

Emily Wilde’s Encyclopedia of Faeries: I think of cold freezing weather and breads and stews and food when I try to capture this book into scents. So maybe Silver Fir, rosemary, and almond.

The Spellshop: Again, more baking and of course fruity jam! Let’s say raspberry jam and cinnamon, a touch of citrus?

The Woodsmoke Women’s Book of Spells: This is another cold book, mountain air, smokey. Hmm. How about spruce, palo santo, and cedar.

How many do I have left? Four. I can do this.

Other Birds: This book is set on Mallow Island, where it is said it smells of its history and sugar and confectionaries. So a candle would need to embody this as well. So sugar and marshmallow of course!

The Berry Pickers: Blueberry jam. Done.

The Easy Life in Kamusari: Cedar and green tea.

A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking: Gingerbread obviously. And cinnamon and a bit of cranberry as well? Nah. Let’s leave it at the gingerbread smells, the ginger and vanilla and cinnamon and cloves. Yum. I want this candle! Maybe I will try to make it. Or try to make it into soap. Or just make gingerbread and eat it.

And with that I am done!

I can’t wait to see what you all came up with!

Sunday Morning Coffee Catch Up

On September 14, 2025September 14, 2025 By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn Uncategorized15 Comments

Hello everyone! I think we can all agree that last week was a long week, and I hope that you are all taking care of yourselves and guarding your peace.

In the midst of all this upheaval going on around us, I had a mixed bag of a week myself. I will get the yucky over with first here, because I do have lots of good stuff to share as well. So my mom. I had just finally sighed a breath of relief that she was safe and taken care of – but, I guess I exhaled too soon. On Thursday my brother went over to visit our mom and found blood in her apartment and on her pillow. After searching for the source, and asking my mom what the heck, he discovered the source, which was a small cut on the back of her head. It was small but persistent with bleeding, so the two of us whisked her off to the ER for scans and probably a stitch. We were there only about two hours which is record time around here, and her scans came back good and they put two staples in her head. She is doing well but dang, mom! Lol.

Ok now on to the good stuff!!

It’s been a hot minute I think since I updated here like this. Since then, Wyatt has been seriously kicking butt. He has started back to therapy, and this kid is such a hard worker. It blows my mind sometimes how tough he is. At home, he is a little more… wanting me and Billy to do more for him, but now that I have seen what he is capable of, and getting the all clear from the PT, he will not be getting the kid gloves any longer.

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We are also all the way back to school and that is going really well too. We were exhausted from a full week of school, two days of PT, a huge list of home therapy activities to do everyday, and then just everyday things (and some emergencies), but we managed. We also had our first Blackbirds meeting on Thursday! We had such a good time, and the kids were all so happy to be back together. We started the meeting explaining the name change from Cub Scouts to Blackbirds, as we decided to just have our own club, and talked about our new mission statement, motto, and learned the sign for Blackbirds from one of our kids. We passed out the new shirts which my MIL and I had made, and had the kids make a banner for us to hang every meeting. It was a great first meeting back. And for me, the icing on the cake was Wyatt saying “Bye Zane!” to his friend. This is huge. Wyatt doesn’t say hi or bye generally, or any names. However, since this one surprise, he has gone on to say the name of one of his cousins, little wild child, and his uncle Devin. It was an amazing moment for Billy and I.

Yesterday we had a great day of time with family. My dad came to visit and we went out for dinner, and after that I had my two little nieces over for a short time while Devin and Chrissy went out for a quick drink to celebrate Chrissy’s birthday. We had a good time with the girls. We painted nails, played with tons of toys, and played a board game all within an hour and some change.

We also did a little shopping at our city wide garage sale yesterday. One of the animal rescues in our city has a mammoth sale and we headed up there to shop their sale. Wyatt got a book, I got a book, and then I also picked up two mugs as well, because they were so cute! They were also apparently made in Spain. I love them but now I really really do need to go through my mug collection and pick some to have in the cupboard and some to put away for a minute.

And that is it from me!!

Let’s move through this week with grace and peace, for ourselves and for others. Be less quick to reply in anger, to be helpers when we can be. And take of your own self as well. As I say, try to do one thing today that makes you smile.

Bookish, Artsy, Slice of Life YouTube Channels I Love

On September 9, 2025September 9, 2025 By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn Uncategorized14 Comments

Hello everybody!! Does anyone else like to watch YouTube? I feel like I can find anything on there. I do have favorites though, that I like to watch, especially in that calm down zone that we have with Wyatt. Usually Billy will be in the shower, and Wyatt and I watch half an hour of YouTube together. He has his favorites of our nighttime ‘Tubers as well, which I think is so cute. After that, we read a bit of his book and he goes to bed. It’s a nice way to wind down. I also like to put them on as background when I am doing things around the house as well. These YouTube people are all pretty different, from all walks of life, and different lifestyles and beliefs.

Anyway, here are some of my favorites lately! I’m also linking recent videos that I enjoyed.

First, in no particular order besides the order they were in as I scrolled through my subscriptions, is Harm’s Honey. Her full name is Harmony but I guess her shortened name people call her is Harm. I just love her vibe and style and energy, although I don’t always agree with some of the things she says or her exact views.

Next, Real Vintage Dollhouse! I love her vintage style from the 1940s, and her channel always includes detailed historical videos of different aspects of life in Britain in the 40s. I feel like her channel gave me the courage to embrace bold color lipstick! Plus, she is awesome because she rescued a pigeon! It is a crazy story, the pigeon actually came up to her at a pub and just wanted to stay with her. So she kept her. The pigeon was injured and had been kicked around at the pub and it was all very sad for a minute. But that pigeon went to the right woman!

Liv’s Library is our favorite book channel. Wyatt loves watching her and calls her the book lady, Liv. When he was in the hospital after surgery in a lot of pain, I put her channel on for him and he was able to relax a bit. I actually sent her an email thanking her for her work and told her about Wyatt and she wrote us back. She was so gracious and sincere! She also reads a lot of fantasy and cozy books, which I also like to read, which is of course why we first started watching her.

I also really like A Moment of Wonder. These are captioned, with music playing, and they are so relaxing and mesmerizing a bit. It is all book talk paired with a delicious looking food dish, usually dessert and a special drink. She acts like the viewer has just come in off the street into her bakery/cafe and they are just so atmospheric.

The Plant Based Bride is next up. I feel like her channel makes me smarter, in that it has challenged me to read my books a bit closer, and to investigate the themes and subtext and remember my Lit Minor roots from college.

We all love Alexis Dahl! This is one we watch with Billy too. Alexis shares history and science pertaining to Michigan, and it is always educational and interesting!

The Wild Pencil is a channel that doesn’t have a ton of video but the videos that are there, are quality.

With Love, Kristina is a vlogger I have shared before. I just really appreciate her honesty, and the realness of her life. It is not all an aesthetic for show and views. She is a real mom, who lives a real life, with ups and downs and struggles and happiness. She also just wrote a book, The Devil and the Midwife.

Finally, I want to mention Drew Binsky. This is another channel we watch with Billy too. Drew travels the world, reporting on “inspiring people, hidden cultures, and wild adventures in faraway places”. It is pretty fascinating!

Do you watch any of these channels? Who do you like? I would love to hear!

Top Ten Tuesday: Villains

On September 9, 2025 By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn Uncategorized39 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

This week’s topic: Villains!

Ooo villains! We all love to hate them. Or love to love them. It all depends on the villain, right? This is my list of villains I both love and hate.

Dead Witch Walking || Small Spaces || Harry Potter

The first villain to pop into my head was Algaliarept, from The Hollows series by Kim Harrison. I have met this author many times at book signings, as her hometown is near my own, and I once told her how much that I loved Al. He is just a loveable bad guy, and I always picture him like Gary Oldman in Dracula, this version of course.

Next was the Smiling Man from the Small Spaces series by Katherine Arden. This is a more recent villain in my reading which is one reason I thought of him so quickly. He is also super creepy and if I were a kid I would be pretty terrified. He scared me enough as an adult!

And of course Professor Umbridge. What a jerk! She was just awful. I guess I could have said Voldemort but, naw, I am going with Umbridge.

Now let’s talk Stephen King. Because he is the master.

Misery || It || Apt Pupil

Annie Wilkes is crazy pants. Like literally. She has hidden depths of scary!

This list wouldn’t be complete without Pennywise, one of the worst villains ever, in my opinion. He absolutely freaked me out when I was a kid, when I first read it.

Apt Pupil is one of those stories that have stuck with me. Todd Bowden and Dussander are the most bone chilling duo. I still think about this story, and it still scares me, just the evilness of these characters.

Sharp Objects || The Hundred and One Dalmations || We Have Always Lived in the Castle

Sharp Objects had a few villains that were frightening. And if you haven’t read this one, and don’t want a spoiler, then stop reading here. Lol. But both Adora and Amma are just the stuff of nightmares.

One of the earliest villains in my memory is Cruella De Ville! I read this book as a child, I distinctly remember my copy was yellow, and I was horrified that this woman wanted to make a coat out of puppies!

So. Let’s talk We Have Always Lived in the Castle. I would like to nominate the town as the villain, and I think Shirley Jackson would agree.

And finally, General Woundwort from Watership Down. I love a rabbit, I love hares, but not General Woundwort. He has no redeeming qualities and is terrifying.

And that is my ten! I am looking forward to reading everyone else’s list!

My Sunday-Monday Post

On September 7, 2025 By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn Uncategorized35 Comments

My Sunday Post is hosted by Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer

Sunday Salon is hosted by Deb at Readerbuzz

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date

Hello everyone! It was a crazy muddled up week but a good one! Wyatt and I even had a “book date” at Barnes and Noble, where we got books and treats from the cafe and hung out. He loved it, my little book boy.

Read Last Week:

It was a sad reading week for me. I had a hard time settling down with a book after Cat’s People, and I floundered around while also waiting for my library holds to come in. I ended up reading an old middle grade from the 90s by Betty Ren Wright. Still good, still scary, after all these years.

Reading This Week:

I had one book finally come in from the library, and I am waiting on one more that I am going to buddy read with Lisa at Boondock Ramblings.

I am starting Isabella Nagg today, and hopefully The Antique Hunter’s Guide to Murder comes in within the next few days. I am sure it will. Lisa and I are reading that one together.

Posted Last Week:

Welcome September!

Top Ten Tuesday: Books with Occupations in the Title

Watching:

We have been sort of floundering around in tv land. I need to find some shows. We started Joe Pickett, and then halfway through the first season decided we weren’t all that interested in it. Now we are watching Renegade Nell, and Billy likes it but I sort of don’t. But it is only one season so I can handle watching a few episodes to make him happy. Lol.

We also watched Lisa Frankenstein last night and it was such a weird, fun movie! I loved the 80s vibes, which were immaculate. It had all the tropes of 80s movies, and the costumes and music were fantastic. It was silly and the horror/gore level was probably reminiscent of The Santa Clarita Diet or my Best Friend’s Exorcism, if you watched either of those. And there are fun little Easter Eggs throughout, from the name Frances Owen (Practical Magic) on a headstone in the opening, to Lisa exclaiming “Damn it, Janet” (Rocky Horror) to the end which is a nod to Notting Hill and also to director Zelda Williams’ father, Robin Williams.

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

Welcome September!

On September 4, 2025September 4, 2025 By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn Uncategorized21 Comments

A few months ago, I was thinking to myself, I just need to get through summer to fall, then we would be on the other side of Wyatt’s surgery. And then, it seemed so far away. And now here we are. The other side. A new season, a new journey.

I have been reading here and there on the internet about people who prefer fall and winter to summer, how we like these months because there isn’t the pressure to feel busy, to feel like we are soaking up every single second in activity and making the most of the sunshine and hot weather. There is probably some truth to that. I do like to embrace fall for the coziness. It does seem more acceptable for some reason to work on my embroidery in the autumn, to spend more time reading, to fiddle around with all of our little creative projects. But I also just love the weather, the cool crisp days, the chill in the morning. I love wearing jeans and sweaters and boots, I love the crunch of the leaves underfoot. I love fall baking and making soup, bopping around my kitchen listening to Stevie Nicks and Van Morrison and Taylor Swift (especially her Folklore album). I love that mosquitoes die and tea can be hot again. I love wearing darker lip colors in the fall, something new for me. I love scary stories, and bonfires, and fall hikes, owl prowls right on the cusp of winter.

I am actually busier in the fall than I am in the summer. We have back to school, and now Scouts-turned-Blackbirds. Our calendar for September and October is filling up, with field trips and get togethers, a special date night at the end of the month, a baseball game, festivals. I would like to take Wyatt to a high school football game this year, to hear the crowds and the band, because I know my kid is not going to care much about the actual game. He is more like me, and gets wrapped up in the atmosphere.

This fall I want to learn how to make cinnamon rolls, really good cinnamon rolls, and apple pie. I also want to make oatmeal cookies, maple cookies, peanut butter cookies. Some sort of baked good every week, like my grandma used to make, every week in the very same kitchen. My grandpa had a sweet tooth and my grandma baked everyday, whether it was a sweet treat or a chicken pot pie or a meat pie. And pancakes on the Blackstone every Saturday morning, while we eat outside on the deck in our pajamas, our coffee steaming, the birds singing.

(I got these images on Pinterest and I am working on finding the artists so I credit. Once I find them all I will update here!)

Fall is afoot in my online life as well! Lisa from Boondock Ramblings and I are hosting two opportunities to link up together – one for Comfy Cozy Cinema, and the other is a monthly bookish link party for anything bookish at all! Share your bookstore shopping moments, book reviews, fashion inspired by book covers, whatever bookish posts you post. We also host drop-in crafternoons, which are monthly zooms where we just sit around and chat and work on whatever projects we feel like. I have embroidered and colored and once I painted my son’s little free library. So whatever floats your boat! We always have a good group and a good time! If you are interested send me an email!

Comfy Cozy Cinema posts go up on September 25th. We went for comedic, cozy, and then took some liberties near Halloween with some spookier movies.

And here is the linky for the bookish link party for September!

And with that, I think I am going to get moving. I have a small child here waiting for me to take him on our “book date” at Barnes and Noble. I hope that whatever you do today, you do something that makes you smile!

Top Ten Tuesday: Books with Occupations in the Title

On September 2, 2025September 1, 2025 By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn Uncategorized15 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday Prompt: Books with Occupations in the Title

This was fun!!! I wrote this up when Billy, Wyatt, and I were just chilling and being lazy, and we were laughing as I ran different book titles by them to be accepted or rejected (Example of a rejected title: My Sister, the Serial Killer) I am looking forward to seeing what everyone else found!