Tag: writing

Books, Screens, and In-Betweens

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn Uncategorized41 Comments

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

Hello everyone! I am writing today from inside the Arctic circle, which is now known as Michigan. It has been soo cold here. It is awful. Extreme temperatures are really tough on Wyatt, so we have been inside for most of the past week, and it looks like this week ahead will be more of the same. We are maybe going a little stir crazy!

Books:

Did I tell you I finished Stillmeadow and Sugarbridge? I did, and I miss the ladies chatter already. I need to go find another of their books ASAP. I also finished While the Earth Holds Its Breath. I wasn’t overwowed by it, but it was still a pretty relaxing, calm read.

I have read so far this year four nonfiction books already. Who am I? I do need a break though from it though, and I have two books on deck. I don’t know which one I will end up reading, but I am going to start them both and see which one sticks. I may end up reading them both, who knows? We are stuck inside after all.

Screens:

Billy and I haven’t been watching too much lately! You would think we would be. We have been watching the news a lot more than anything. And the kittens and Miso. They are bringing us happiness in a dark time honestly. Maybe that book “We’ll Prescribe You a Cat” has the right idea. I haven’t read it yet but maybe I will next month. And I know some of you aren’t cat people, so there are other things, dogs, fish, plants. Really just find something that brings you joy right now. Painting, a pen pal. Walks in nature. A good book. A funny movie. Today I think we are going to watch A Night at the Museum with Wyatt. I love that movie and he has not seen it yet. We may end up watching all three this week, who knows? Anyone else have any ideas for kids movies like Paddington, A Night at the Museum, etc, that you really loved?

I did manage to write some posts last week!

Books I Read I in 2025 with Cats on the Cover

Our Cozy Little Life – Wintering

In-Betweens:

We had some really great things happen here last week. When you have a kid with special needs, milestones are often inchstones, and Wyatt was kicking butt last week. He is really coming along in reading, and not just reading but SAYING THE WORD out loud to me. I know this guy is understanding so much more than I realize but the fact that he doesn’t verbalize everything usually makes it really difficult for me to measure how much. Last week though he was just blowing me away with actually reading words out loud to me.

He also took his first steps post surgery last week!!!! It was a lot of work and a few months coming and I am so very proud of him. And he was very proud of himself too, which he should have been. I will post my Instagram reel of it, but I am not sure if it ever works when I do this.

And that is about it from around here. Making cookies, eating cookies, playing with kittens, cuddling Miso, writing our pen pals, homeschool.

I hope that whatever you do today, you do something that makes you smile. I know that I am hoping that the snow (an expected 9 inches here) will have enough a break so that I can run up to Starbucks for my Self-Care Sunday routine of matcha latte with oatmilk and 1 pump of vanilla. We will see though.

And here are some random photos!

Our Cozy Little Life – Wintering

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn Uncategorized15 Comments

Hello everyone! It is crazy weather here in the States isn’t it? I am worried about you all in the south! Stay safe and warm, wear layers, lots of natural fabrics that breathe, build your blanket forts and hunker down. We have been in this house for far too long here, and we just have a few more days of it, although I am taking Wyatt to therapy today at least. We will have a feels like above a negative number so I am going for it, because later tonight our temps really get bad, and we could reach temps of -35. Not fun!

While Billy has been out and about for work this week (poor guy), Wyatt and I have been inside. I did go to the pet store last night to just get out but that has been it. We have been really working hard at school, and Wyatt is doing fantastic. He is really coming along with reading and I am so proud of him. We are also covering the Lewis and Clark expedition in history, learning about boreal forests in science, and we are about to start a whole architecture unit for art, which I am super excited about. I just need to get to the library to pick up some books for it- maybe Saturday I can venture out.

I am having a lot of fun finding pen pals! Lol. When I was younger, I had a pen pal who lived in England and it was a lot of fun. I remember she mailed me the Adrian Mole books which were hilarious. It is sort of neat to revisit this as an adult. I shall call it my correspondence and pretend I am a Lady having my morning tea and writing my letters, when I will really be listening to Wyatt chattering on, the kittens running all over around me, Miso sleeping on my lap, etc. I have been browsing blank cards and stationery sets online, and can’t decide. There are so many different types and designs!

I also finished up my book, Stillmeadow and Sugarbridge, which was so quaint and lovely. It was a nice read for this time of year, slow and easy, and I miss their stories now. I will have to read the other books as well, if my library has them. When I was reading about the women themselves online, it seemed they had very fascinating lives!

In kitten news, we had a little surprise. Mabel is really a Max! Our two sisters are really sister and brother. It happens, kittens are so hard to tell when they are really little. And Max looks like he is going to be a big cat – his paws are enormous! They have been cracking us up. We have a new little routine: when I get up, I feed Miso, who is generally waiting next to me on the bed, or rather, pawing my face for her breakfast, then I get Wyatt’s breakfast, and fetch the kittens. Wyatt and I sit in my bedroom with the kittens while they play, and after an hour or so, I put them back into the office, feed them, and then they take a nap. Only a few more days or so and I should be able to just let them have free run of the house. Miso seems to be handling their presence ok – when Max escaped yesterday she found him and they gently sniffed each other’s faces. We are going slow because she is such a gentle animal and I don’t want to overwhelm her and the kittens are a lot.

I have also had a lot of time to plan things! I lined up a skating event for our Blackbirds at a place called the Ribbon in Toledo. We have a cabana, a fire pit, and skating aids at our disposal, including a sled with two runners that Wyatt can use on the ice. We rented the place for two hours, and even if our kids spend most of their time drinking hot chocolate by the fire, it is right by the ice and can be part of the scene in whatever way they choose and are comfortable. I am really excited.

I also formed a teeny book club for Wyatt and two of his friends! Our goals are pretty simple, just to have them say maybe what they liked and didn’t like at first, and then we will have a themed snack and craft, because that is how I roll and these three will love it. We are planning our first club meeting all the way out in March, which is crazy to think about. It’s hard to believe Christmas was already a month ago!

I have been doing a lot of journaling, list making, letter writing lately, and will probably start a sewing project or two this weekend. We have our first Crafternoon of the year Saturday and that will be a nice way to break up this inside time!

And that is it for me today – if you are in the States and in the path of this storm, stay safe and warm! I know that our Southern Hemisphere friends have been experiencing the opposite weather, very hot days, so I hope you are all staying cool! Wish me luck, I need to go snowblow so Wyatt can get to therapy!

Updated to add: I remembered while I was out snowblowing that we have also been watching the adventures of Josh and Jase, two Brits that are touring through Michigan right now. I was sorry to hear they had encountered mishaps on their visit here, but are on the mend and in the U.P. now! They are hilarious, and I love how they are representing my state! You can check them out here!

My Year in Books – Meme

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn Uncategorized12 Comments

I saw this over on Anne at Head Full of Books blog and it sounded so fun I needed to do it too!

My Year in Books

Rules?

  • Answer the questions with titles from books you read in 2025. (Some may end up being silly, others may seem overly serious.)   
  • The goal is to have fun. 
  • Participate by copying the questions below. Erasing my answers and inserting you own.  
  • Once you’ve created your post, link it below so others can see it, then visit others’ posts to see how they answered the questions.
  • Spread the word. Let’s see if we can make this a thing again this year!

Anne says to just have fun and not take these too seriously so that is my plan!

Questions:


In high school I was: Greenwild (Pari Thomson)


People might be surprised: What Moves the Dead (T. Kingfisher)

I will never be: The God of the Woods (Liz Moore)


My fantasy job is: The Baby Dragon Cafe (A. T. Qureshi)


At the end of a long day I need: Goblin Mode (McKayla Coyle)


I hate it: [when people don’t] Play Nice (Rachel Harrison)


Wish I had:  The Jewel of the Isle (Kerry Rea)


My family reunions are: A Fellowship of Games and Fables (J. Penner)


At a party you’d find me:  In the Company of Witches (Auralee Wallace)

I’ve never been to: Watership Down (Richard Adams)


A happy day includes: Beaches, Bungalows, and Burglaries (Tonya Kappes) (lol – not the burglaries part really, obviously)


Motto I live by: Home Before Dark (Riley Sager)


On my bucket list is: [learning] How to Talk to Your Succulent (Zoe Persico)


In my next life, I want to have: A Fellowship of Librarians and Dragons (J. Penner]

Books, Screens, and In-Betweens

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn Uncategorized31 Comments

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

Hello everyone!! We made it all the back around to Sunday. Besides the news this week, I had sort of a personally crazy week full of bodily mishaps. Lol. I busted my knee against the car transferring Wyatt from his chair to the car, and it got all huge and bruised for a night, then I got the pneumonia shot which made me all achy for 24 hours, and my arm still hurts! I put that shot off for two years because the first pneumonia shot I got was rough, so I figured this one would be too. However after having the flu followed by pneumonia in my late twenties and remembering how crap that felt, I decided to suck it up for the 24 hours and get it done.

Books:

I am currently reading the newest Royal Street Novel, The Lady on Esplanade. I love New Orleans and I love this series set there for its historic preservation and ghostly vibes. So fun!

I am also slowboating my way through Stillmeadow and Sugarbridge because it is s such a wonderful calm read. I like to read it in small bits when I need uplifting.

Screens:

We finally started the newest season of Stranger Things, and it really is so good, despite all the actors being so much older now! It is cute though when they do flashbacks and they are all just tiny – it is crazy they were so young when the show started! We are close to the end now, maybe just one more episode I think? Then I think we might move on to Yellowjackets again, which we were saving for winter.

As for the blog, I posted only a few times last week.

Mini Book Review: The Bewitching, Dinner for Vampires, and Moon of the Crusted Snow

A Cozy Little Life: Small Things that Make Me Smile

In-Betweens:

It was a crazy week, as I mentioned above. We also started back to homeschool last week, back to physical therapy at the clinic, and had our Blackbirds Kids Club meeting. It is always so hectic getting back to the routine after break!

And I will leave you with just a few photos from the camera roll!

I hope that whatever you do this week, you do something that makes you smile!

Small Things That Make Me Smile

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn Uncategorized29 Comments

So life lately feels heavy, this week in particular. Watching the news breaks my heart and gives me panic attacks and in our world of 24 hour news coverage we can never quite get away from it, unless we make the effort. Put the phone down. Turn off the tv. I find it easy to lose myself in projects, but I don’t always have the time to do those. There are days, like every weekday, when we have homeschool and home therapy and all the other things, and it is so easy to pick up my phone and scroll in those quick in between moments. On those days, I need to rely on small things to lift my spirits. A great cup of coffee or tea. Five minutes with a good book. A long stretch.

There are some small things I am loving lately, that make me smile.

Orange is one thing. Actual oranges to eat – I love peeling one and getting hit with that fresh sharp citrus scent. So much so that I have included orange scents into my shower routine. My body wash is orange scented, and oh my shampoo and conditioner smells so much like driving through an orange grove I just stand in there enveloped in the scent for a few extra minutes. I am using The Earthling Co. shampoo and conditioning bars in Citrus Sun and it does my sun deprived self so much good. I also bought a citrus tinged perfume as well, but it doesn’t quite smack me in the face with an orange scent as much as I want so I am going to keep looking.

Also, waiting on our little orange kitten. Not much longer now!

And while I am waiting for her, I am of course getting all the cuddles from Miso. Billy and my bestie Kelly are trying to talk me into two kittens, but I think that might be hard for Miso. Or easier, if they play with each other and give Miso a break? Ugh. I don’t know. Anyway, Wyatt got a little pop up indoor tent from my dad that turned out to be big enough for Wyatt and I to sort of lay in and read. We like to climb in there and read some of his books for school, and then after that, just hang out for a bit. I love when we are in there and Miso pokes her little head in, like “Hey what are you all doing?” and then saunters in and lays on me, like she does. It is super cozy for all of us, I guess.

Tea is another thing that has been making me smile. Peppermint tea, ginger orange turmeric, lemon ginger, are all flavors that perk me up these days. And if I get a chance to go to Starbucks, I love their Honey Citrus Mint Tea. I feel like I am going to be picking one of those up today, now that I mentioned it. They are just so good!

I am also enjoying winter fruit salad. It has apples, pears, kiwi, clementines or oranges, and pomegrante seeds and I could eat it all day. It just wakes me up!

Finally, one of the books I am reading is a collection of letters between two friends, sent to each other in 1953. It is perfect to just pick up and read a few letters, spend five to ten minutes in their calm little worlds of dogs and rural life.

These are just a few small things that make me smile and pick me up when I need a little pick me up.

I hope that whatever you do today, you find something, no matter how small, to make you smile.

Books, Screens, and In-Betweens

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn Uncategorized40 Comments

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

Hello everyone!! We have had the most chill week ever, and it has been so nice! We are deeply wintering over here, I guess. It has just been so cold, and Michigan is one big virus out there, and we are content and happy and aren’t feeling the need to go anywhere, so… we didn’t. Billy has been off work for almost two weeks and it has been so good to just be together, having all of this family time.

Books:

I have been working on three different reads over break! I am slow reading Stillmeadow and Sugarbridge, which is a book from 1953, and is a collection of letters between the two authors about their rural lives. I love it and pretty soon it will be my main read.

I am also halfway through Moon of the Crusted Snow, a book I have wanted to read forever, and that I received from Dini from Dinipandareads. It was so sweet of her to send it to me, and I am finding it a fast, compelling, scary read! I am enjoying it very much.

I also listened to Dinner for Vampires, which ended up being my first book finished in the new year, and since it is a memoir, I get to check that off my challenge list. Lenz, known for her One Tree Hill fame, lived for almost a decade under the control of a cult called the Big House Family. The audiobook is read by Lenz, and it made the book feel so much more real, to hear her story in her own voice. I am glad that she has since been able to find happiness and independence.

Screens:

I told you we have been watching a lot of movies! The Paddington series of movies was adorable; I am pretty sure they are a family favorite for all three of us. I think we might actually make orange marmalade today even.

Wonka was the perfect Christmas break movie! Over the top, beautiful, musical, heartwarming – I absolutely adored it.

Hot Fuzz and The Big Year are old favorites. The Big Year is a movie that we watch every year, since maybe 2012? It just kicks off our year. And Hot Fuzz is our favorite of the Simon Pegg/Nick Frost movies.

We couldn’t believe how many actors we kept seeing pop up in the different movies. It became a game, like let’s see, is Olivia Colman in this one too? Hugh Grant? Just so many. We were definitely in a groove.

In-Betweens:

In between all of this, we have been organizing and cleaning, and working on our own little projects. I have been fun creating embroidery pieces that are personalized to my friends and myself. I have only made 2.5 so far, I am still working on mine, but I love this new phase of my embroidery.

The first two have very long stories behind them. Also, rest assured that none of us think ferals are trashy. I can’t do them freehand yet, and I am still working on my lettering skills, but I am really enjoying this. The rabbit with the Watership Down quote is for me. And ignore the shoddy print job, my printer doesn’t like the transfer paper.

Posted Last Week:

Comfy Cozy Christmas: Our Christmas Celebrations

Top Ten Tuesday: My Favorite Reads of 2025

Hello January and 2026!

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

Hello January and 2026!

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn Uncategorized26 Comments

Happy New Year everyone!! It’s a fresh new year out there, full of first sips of coffee to be had, new books to flip through, blank journals to scribble in.

The past few years, my word of the year has been “community”. I wanted to build a bigger community for myself, for Wyatt, for our family. And I feel like I have really done that! Through new blogging friends, our Scout/Blackbirds group, new friendships here, church, and all of our relationships built at our favorite destinations, I feel like we have a nice little community out there for us. As a very shy person, this was actually difficult for me. I had to push past my nerves and learn to find my voice. To engage with other people, to initiate. Sometimes this can be very scary for me, and it is easier for me to stay in my nice cocoon of comfort at home. Which if it was just me, that might be ok. But it is not just me. I mean, Billy is able to do all this for himself, and he is an extremely outgoing and extroverted person so he does, but as Wyatt’s parent at home and the parent who spends the most time with him, I can’t keep him in this cocoon. He needs to do things, experience things, have friends, see all he can. So, I made it my goal to make sure that happens, even if it gave me butterflies. And the more I did it, the easier it became for me. And so this year, my word is “connection”. I want to connect more deeply with what we are doing. I can move past the nerves now, and really experience what we are doing, and who we are with.

I also want to reconnect with nature. This is a part of my life that has been neglected for a few years. Billy and I used to be out in the woods all the time, and that is one area that we haven’t quite figured out yet, accessibility for Wyatt. I did find a front wheel that we can add and remove from his wheelchair and I am going to try to apply for a grant for it this year, but until then, it is tough unless it is paved. But, now with our new deck and ramp in the yard, we can turn our yard into an outdoors area that is accessible right here. Billy is putting in a pond this spring, and we are laying pavers in part of the yard to place wheelchair accessible raised garden beds, and a space for his outdoor toys. Billy and I are also hoping to get some flowers in this year. I dream of adding trees but I have been saying that for years now. Maybe this will be the year!

2025 had it’s challenges – the biggest one being Wyatt’s surgery, which all of you know about it if you read here regularly. That was a difficult time, and I honestly didn’t know before the surgery how we would make it through. And then it happened, and the support we received from people blew me away. We had neighbors send meals for days, friends drop by with food or sending gifts in the mail to make Wyatt’s days easier (and mine), grandparents who stepped in when Billy had to go to back to work and spent the entire day with Wyatt and I, helping me through the hard stuff. Cards and e-cards, comments of support here on the blog. There was just so much love and kindness and encouragement. And that was honestly my biggest takeaway from 2025. Not the hard stuff, but the love.

And we did do some really great, fun things too last year. Wyatt was on a bowling league, and went to music camp. It was a year of bookstores, and dragons. Of milestones – Wyatt turned 10, Billy and I turned 50, and our marriage turned 25. I got my mom’s insurance and medical help all settled, and I know that she is safe and taken care of where she is. It was a year where I found the perfect chocolate chip cookie recipe, and the perfect lipstick color.

This year, one thing I want to do is keep reconnecting with myself as well. Somewhere in parenthood I lost a bit of me, which I think is normal. You live for your child. But there are places I can still be me, Erin, not “Wyatt’s mom”, which is what I am known as most of the time when I go places. I used to love getting cute outfits together, and now that I am no longer in my 30s (wahhh) and just didn’t bother much in my 40s, I want to reclaim that part of me now. Maybe not on an everyday basis, but I want to find my style now. One that works for my lifestyle but also is more than a tshirt and yoga pants on the daily. I’ve been on that quest for a while, and I have steps one and two conquered, now I am on to the harder part.

I also joined a movement from Little Truths Studio, the Analog Life Project. I’ve been listening and reading a lot about this new move back to life before all social media all the time. Like life in the 90s, the early 2000s, when we had access to the internet and social media but it wasn’t what it is now. I don’t want to give up social media and the internet, I believe it is important for access to all sorts of things, but I want to reclaim that space. I don’t want it to be a place I retreat to in order to doomscroll because I am bored or need to decompress or whatever. I want to put that energy or lack of energy in some cases, into other things. My journaling, reading, game nights, art nights, daydreaming. Puzzles and crafts. Learning to draw and paint. Pen pals and snail mail. I just don’t want to aimlessly scroll anymore. I also did a crazy thing and bought a book that is written in French. Do I speak French? No. Do I read French? No. I took French in high school, I took Latin for four years, and I took Russian in college, and I have always been pretty good at picking up languages when I try them. So, this will be something I do to decompress. Slowly, slowly translating this book. It might take me a very long time but I will do it!

I am also attempting two different reading challenges this year. The Nonfiction Reading Challenge hosted by Shelleyrae at Book’d Out, and the Books in Translation challenge hosted by Jennifer at Introverted Reader. I think I can manage probably the smallest level of each. Maybe more! We will see. I am excited about both. I am already working on a memoir for the Nonfiction Challenge, Dinner for Vampires by Bethany Joy Lenz.

And that is it from me this morning my friends. I will leave you with some random photos, and as always, I hope that you do something today that makes you smile!

Comfy Cozy Christmas: Christmas Celebrations

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn Uncategorized12 Comments

Hello everyone!! It is a super windy day here today as I type this up. It is whipping past the house, causing the windows to rattle, or something to rattle on the house, but we are all cozied up in blankets and warm inside. A big thank you to the workers out there delivering stuff today!

We had a bit of a mixed up Christmas but it it ended up a good one. The Friday before Christmas my niece tested positive for flu b and then my brother and his wife did as well. Thankfully they didn’t have it bad, Mermaid Girl had a cough and was tired, while my brother and SIL had very bad headaches for three days. However, since Christmas day we were going to celebrate with other family members who are more compromised, like my mother and my MIL, and Mermaid Girl was still tired, we at the last minute shifted plans. They were going to stay home, as it was day 7 and the contagious period says 5-7 days, and then we would celebrate with them on the upcoming Saturday at my dad’s. However, we had all planned a dinner together, with everyone supplying something. So, we decided to stick with that plan, and just made enough for each other and my brother came and picked it up and dropped off.

But ack I get ahead of myself!! The week of Christmas I was still recovering from whatever I had, which I wonder now if it was flu b as well. I never felt terrible, just run down and coughing, with laryngitis. By the week of Christmas I was good, just still hoarse and raspy. Wyatt and I spent the week baking together, which was really fun. He was a good little helper! We made four dozen chocolate chip cookies (these are a family favorite!), gingerbread, and my grandma’s coconut tarts. I felt like I never stopped baking.

Christmas Eve we were supposed to go to my BIL’s, Billy’s brother’s house, but there was going to be a lot of kids there, my nieces and some of their friends, and I got nervous about my own lingering illness and so Billy went on his own for a bit, and wore a mask. When he got home, we simply ordered a pizza and watched A Muppet Christmas Carol. It was one of the most relaxed Christmas Eves I have had, and it didn’t feel too much like Christmas Eve until after Wyatt went to bed and Billy and I did our Santa duties. Then I couldn’t wait for Christmas morning to watch Wyatt and Billy open their gifts!

Christmas morning started early, and hallelujah, I woke up finally without laryngitis. We bumbled our way into the living room and Wyatt was beside himself with excitement. But, he didn’t want to open his presents right away – I was stunned. He wanted Billy and I to open a few of ours. So I opened one and we had Billy open one as well, the one I was super excited about, his tiny baby bonsai. I wanted a picture of Billy and his baby bonsai and he turned it into a model photoshoot. Lol. Billy was very happy about his new baby and after opening gifts watched multiple videos on how to care for them.

Then Wyatt ripped into his gifts. We got him the usual type kid things, and then for his big gift this year, we got him a phone. All of his friends got them for their birthdays, and I think he felt left out. It wasn’t very much actually to add him to the plan so .. a phone it was. And he loves it. We also got him an instant camera and he has been taking photos of us all that low key look like they belong in a horror movie.

The guys got me gifts that are all for my little projects – crafting and drawing and sewing things. I am so excited!! And of course, my orange kitten. Only a few more weeks until I can bring her home! Until then she will be with her mama at our friend’s house.

And then we just proceeded to play around with our gifts! We had a pretty lazy day ahead, as our Christmas Day was reduced to hosting three people, Billy’s parents and my mom. They all came over later, and we did the normal things, and it was a great time. My mom, who has been struggling a bit, did fantastic. I was so proud of her and so glad that she came!

Saturday was Christmas at my dad and stepmom’s and it was another fantastic day. Lots of food, kids playing and laughing, presents and Christmas crackers with crowns. We had so much fun, and I think Wyatt fell asleep pretty early that night.

And here are a few random photos from the camera roll..and one of a very fancy baby Wyatt a few Christmas’ ago. Like ten Christmas’ ago.

And that was Christmas!

I hope that you all have had a wonderful holiday season doing what it is you love and being with those you love. I hope as well, that you stay healthy and do something that makes you smile today!

My Favorite Quotes From Every Book I Read This Year: Part 3

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn Uncategorized8 Comments

In case you missed Part 1 and Part 2: So, on November 22, 2024 I started a little book book, as I call it, but it is a journal of the books I have read with a few jotted thoughts, quotes I like, and stickers. I am an archivist and chronicler at heart, and I have been having so much fun journaling my reading experience this way. I thought it would be neat to share my favorite quotes from all the books I have read – in different parts of course.

We have made it into May!

“Life, I know is written on our faces. I lifted my right hand and involuntarily stroked my own cheek, wondering what stories life would have written there when I reached the end of my days.”

“One belief does not negate the other. They can exist at the same time.”

‘Every time someone wants to throw away a book, a little bit of my soul dies.’

“The girl knows, though, that remembering can be difficult. She always has so much inside her head: songs, stories, things she has to learn, things she wants to forget but that keep coming back. When she needs to remember something, she often forgets it, but she always remembers whatever she wants to forget.”

“…’ the guy wears a tweed coat, Edwards! Willingly! That’s super shady in my book. And he says he’s an archaeologist but I don’t think that’s even a real job. It’s a job that people have in movies, like pumpkin farmer or professional Christmas tree stylist.”

“How many times in her life has she said yes to a boy or a man just because it was the easiest thing to do? How many times has she let a man take what he wanted, instead of taking something for herself?”

“I’m not good at staying mad at people.”

I read this right after Wyatt’s surgery and I wasn’t working on my book book. I will tell you that I wrote down in my two lines of notes that my favorite part was Fifi.

Same as above. I wrote that my favorite part was the descriptions of fall in the Daniel Boone National Forest.

Same. Lol. My favorite parts were the reunion she had with someone special and the cozy snowy vibes.

Same, and last of the survival reading mode. I also decided after this one I wasn’t reading anymore in this series. I didn’t really enjoy it.

“Outside it was the coldest of winters. Cold stars shone over the icy bay and the cold hit you as you turned the corners. Then it was delicious to settle down in a warm kitchen. Pelle beamed and filled the stove with wood; this was all just as it should be, with everyone sitting together, warm and cosy, singing and talking.”

And that is it for today! Have you read any of these?

Friday Morning Coffee Catch Up

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn Uncategorized10 Comments

Hello everyone!! I hope that you are all doing well! As for me, well I caught the cold that Billy and Wyatt had. Yay. Thanks for sharing guys. I’ve been laying low the past few days, trying to get that rest in. We canceled our Blackbirds Troop meeting last night and it hurt me to do it, but I didn’t feel well, Billy and I both have laryngitis, and we don’t want to share our germs with our friends for the holidays most importantly.

The Monday after Thanksgiving, Wyatt and I took a little road trip to my dad’s. We had a secret mission to get Billy’s Christmas present, and there is a store there that sells them – bonsai! I am telling Billy not to read this post too, I obviously don’t want to spoil the surprise. He has wanted one forever, and we found a great nursery called Green Witch Gardens. My dad and stepmom went with us, and my stepmom is babysitting the bonsai until I get it closer to Christmas. It is the coolest store, with a tortoise and cats and a ton of bonsai. However, they only had teeny ones or huge ones, and the huge ones were very pricey. So, Billy is getting a tiny baby bonsai. He will be happy though. Then I realized I needed to come home from our shopping trip with Shellie, that I told Billy we were doing, with something at least. So I picked up a teeny little baby cactus.

Two days later though, Wyatt was congested. No runny nose, just all in his head, I could hear it in his voice. Then a few days later, had a cough at night and that was it. Then Billy caught it, and he had the same. Now, my turn. Blah. I have drainage and laryngitis and it is no fun at all. I have way too much to do but I want to get this out of my system before Sunday so I am resting. Lol. Billy and Wyatt were doing much better after like four days so I am hoping I will too. And enough about this, blah!

Before all the sickness, or in between, we masked up and went to a local event at the River Raisin National Battlefield. It was so cool! It was called Echoes of a French Noel, and I thought there would be more Christmas stuff (there was none lol) but we still had a lot of fun. There were re-enactors, interactive displays, and a huge longhouse to walk through. They had a candle making station, which Wyatt really loved and it cracked me up that he was so excited over it but he is my child so it tracks, a cannon that we could load (obviously not a working one), madeline cookies which we love, and it was just really neat inside. We found an opportunity for our Blackbirds to try archery there, which I need to follow up on.

I of course had to look around the gift shop – they always have unique items and Christmas is coming! However, I was excited that they had a section of used books, and I bought two, and paid a total of $5.00 for them!

We then popped over to the Conservatory, one of my favorite shops in SE Michigan. I am usually successful at finding a plant as a gift for my MIL there, but this time they were low in stock. I will check back closer to the holiday to see if they restocked. It was super pretty though, decorated for the holidays. Wyatt kept telling me he was happy too, so that made me happy. We didn’t find anything for my MIL but we did buy another cactus. I am going to just blame homeschool for this new interest. Wyatt is learning about deserts and desert life, the things that live and grow there, and we did a whole section just on the Saguaro.

I mentioned that Wyatt is studying deserts and one thing that I thought make it more fun this December is filling out the paperwork to get another junior ranger badge online. We are doing the steps for the Sonoran Desert National Park junior range badge, and I was just going to skip over the nature center scavenger hunt, when I realized we had a lot of the items on the list here in our house.

Sunday morning I got up early and drove my friends and I through a winter weather advisory to the Annual Potter’s Market that we have been going to every year. I wore my mask and I am glad that I did, since my family is sick and I was maybe coming down with it. We all poked around, putting stuff in our baskets, taking it out, adding new things. I just love it, and we saw such cool items! I bought more tiny things. I am obsessed for some reason (I’m a goblin, that is why). I did buy a small turtle for Wyatt’s stocking, and I think he will like it.

I had a great time with Chrissy and Kelly. It is hard to carve out these moments but they are always special when we do.

Later that night, we watched Emmet Otter’s Jug Band Christmas, and I wanted to make it seem happy and magical, so I rearranged things and changed the lighting and added some treats.

Then we had the rest of the week. Mainly all of us trying to not feel yucky, resting, and that sort of thing. I did make scones before I went down, and they are fantastic! I have been adding different family recipes or recipes that I have found and that turn out well to a journal and using it as a cookbook. This scone recipe is my stepmom’s and they are so good. Wyatt doesn’t usually eat baked goods, except cookies, and he loves these!

And that was the last interesting thing that I did this week. I am super bummed can you tell? I had so much fun planned! Now I just need to wait this out a bit but it is hard! Send me all your good healing vibes friends!

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