Autumn Bucket List

It's finally Fall!  I LOVE fall.  It is definitely my favorite season.  I love the changing weather, the changing leaves, the football, the pumpkin stuff, the clothes (sweaters!  Boots!).  I feel like I missed it last year though.  We moved mid-July and the first six months after our move were just a blur.  So this year I made a list of 10 things I want to do this fall.  Some of them are practical, some of them are just fun.

1.  Read a mystery/thriller.  This should be easy.  I have many to choose from on my shelves.

2.  Buy new sweaters.  I NEED some new sweaters.  I want to get at least two.

3.  Make pumpkin bread.  I'm not talking about from scratch or anything (ha ha ha ha!).  But Trader Joe's has a really good box mix of pumpkin bread.  It's a treat.

4.  Get some mini pumpkins/gourds.  I also get these at Trader Joe's.  I'll put them in our bowl on our table in the sunroom (where we eat most of our meals).  It's just a little festive.

5.  Make lots of chili and soup.  Of course.

6.  Get some fall candles.  I've done this already!  I picked these two up at Home Goods:

7.  Put together a puzzle.  I haven't done a puzzle since after my surgery, because I find them a bit addictive and hard to stop working on.  However, as I was strolling the aisles of Target, this one spotted my eye:

It's called 'Canals in Bruges'.  And....hello!  We were there 3 years ago!  In a boat!  In the canals of Bruges!

And then, while strolling the aisles of Barnes and Noble, I spotted this one:

It's charming.  So maybe I'll get both of them done, we'll see.

8.  Read a book in my home library.  I don't mean read a book FROM my library, I mean read a book IN my library.  Like, actually sit down on the chair in there and read.  And maybe turn on my faux fireplace.

9.  Take fall photos of our house and surroundings.  We live 2 blocks from a golf course with actual trees that actually change colors in the fall.  I want to take more pictures of the tress there and also on our street and *maybe* in our yard, although they turn REALLY quickly and sometimes I miss it.

10.  Knit a scarf.  I'm thinking this is something I can do while watching football.  Or listening to an audiobook (which is more likely).

And that's it!  I hope to actually NOTICE fall this year now that we're a bit more settled.

September Book Haul

I know it’s only the 12^th, but I’m posting this because I am not buying any more books this month!!

My parents came to visit, which ALWAYS means that we go to lots of bookstores.  Multiple times.

So, obviously, my book haul was huge.

Now, keep in mind, these are USED BOOKS!!!!!  Which saves a fortune.

I got 27:

I’ve already DNF’d one of them (The Year of Fog).  Couldn’t get into it.  AND…I’ve already read 3 of them, but wanted them for my collection.  One is ‘I’d Rather Be Reading’ by Anne Bogel. 

And the other two are ‘This Must Be the Place’ by Maggie O’Farrell and ‘High Tide in Tucson’ by Barbara Kingsolver.  

I have ‘This Must Be the Place’ on my Kindle, but as you can see from the photo below, there are pictures in this book and it’s much easier to read the REAL copy:

And if you haven’t read This Must Be the Place, please read it.

I got 5 non-fictions (again...2 of these I've already read):

These two I’m excited about…I’ve heard good things.  One is a sequel, so I was excited to find them both (for $1.50 each).

These two are new-ish.  But I got them for CHEAP!!!

And, I’ve realized how many of Barbara Kingsolver’s books that I HAVEN’T read.  How can I tell people she’s one of my favorite authors without having read most of her books?  So I stocked up on the ones I haven’t read.

I had so much fun cataloging my new books.  Which involves adding them to my book book (my little notebook that holds all of my lists), adding them to my Book Buddy app, tearing off the price stickers and all other labels, and shelving them.  Which was no small feat.

It was fun!

Les Parents

My parents came to visit last week.  We had a nice time!  They are low-maintenance and we never really do anything ‘touristy’ (unless they come during balloon fiesta).  But we DO go to bookstores.  And eat.  Ha ha.

They arrived Wednesday and I made dinner and we just relaxed.  I also made my mom a little book book.  We had a little pocket sized moleskin notebook around and I took her book list and put it in alphabetical order (one letter per page) for her fiction, then made a non-fiction section and categorized her non-fiction reads so she can easily search for them (essays, biographies, memoirs, etc.).

Thursday we went to the bookshop downtown (the infamous bookshop!) and then to Page One Books (an independent bookstore that sells new and used books).  Then dad took us all out to Thai Spice for dinner.  YUM.

Friday we went to Ross, then lunch, then back to Page One ha ha.  Oh and Barnes and Noble.

Saturday we went to meeting, then to the book sale downtown (ha ha!) and then finally back home to watch the Husker game.  I wore my Husker socks that my Grandma sent along.  :)  She also sent popcorn from Colby Ridge and Husker can cozies!  So sweet.

Sunday was a lazy morning, breakfast, more book talk and then mom and dad packed up and headed home.

I’m not sure what we would do if my parents didn’t like to read hee hee.  It was so nice to spend time with them!