In my post from yesterday, I mentioned that I went through a couple failed hobbies/attempted business ideas and failed miserably before starting my blog at Life with Rosie. I am so incredibly proud of myself for making it through almost an entire year of blogging, for actually seeing an income come off of it and for being more passionate and motivated than ever! As I sat down to plan for the new year, I wanted to look back and see what my most popular 7 posts were!
June Chapter Chats
I received one or more of these books to read for free in exchange for my honest review.
It’s been a while since I’ve done a reading round up and I was honestly putting it off because I was so ashamed of how little I read over the last couple of months! I’m so behind in my reading goal! However, I’ve received a few requests for some summer read recommendations, so I knew it was time to have a “June Chapter Chat.”
Winners:
Firecracker by David Iseron: ★★★★-4 stars. This book is written by the same guy who writes for New Girl and SNL, so, as you can expect, it’s funny. It’s not pee your pants funny, but it is highly entertaining. Astrid Kieger is the main character, a very rich girl who is also a huge trouble maker and who gets kicked out of private school and lands in public school. There she must navigate a whole new world while trying to figure out who set her up and got her kicked out. Anyone who liked e. Lockhart’s Frankie Landeau Banks book will love this.
Marcelo in the Real World by Fransisco Stork: ★★★★-4.5 Stars. This story is about a 17 year old boy named Marcelo who struggles with Aspergers. He currently attends a school for special needs children, but his father wants him to work the summer in the mail room at his law office. This book is quirky and does an amazing job explaining how a person with Aspergers processes things. It’s really easy to root for Marcelo, who is faced with complicated choices and social situations and to watch his character grow.
EH’s:
Where She Went by Gayle Forman: ★★★-3 Stars. This is the sequel to If I Stay and picks up several years after Mia’s accident. It’s from Adam’s point of view and while it has some really profound moments, I found some of it to be kind of unrealistic. The ending was a nice way to tie up the series. If you read the first one, it’s worth to read the second one.
Cookie Love by Mindy Segal: ★★★-3 Stars. c/o Blogging for Books. This is a cookbook that I got from blogging for books and I was so excited about it! The photography in here is drool-worthy and I loved that there were in depth explanations on how to create such divine cookies. The first section; drop cookies, made me really hopeful because all of the cookies looked relatively easy. I tried the snickerdoodle one and it was pretty dang good. However, the rest of the recipes increased in difficulty and in random ingredients that are hard to find, so that was pretty off-putting. The shortbread cookie section was my least favorite; I don’t like a lot of shortbread cookies to begin with, so I was disappointed that there were so many recipes specifically for that kind of cookie.
Kissing Ted Callahan by Amy Spaulding: ★★★-3 Stars. c/o Net Galley. Riley and Reid make a pact to help each other find others to date and write back and forth in a journal to keep each other up-to-date on their dating adventures. This story is summarized as “Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist meets Easy A” and many people said it was the funniest book they ever read. While it did have some moments that made me giggle, I didn’t find it that funny, and it definitely wasn’t as funny as Easy A. Not at the top of my recommendation list, but one I wouldn’t say no to, either.
Losers:
It’s Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini: ★★★ 3 Stars. This book follows a young high school student named Craig who has gotten into a prestigious business high school. The stress of the school starts to wear him down and he becomes depressed. After a near suicide attempt, Craig finds himself in an adult mental ward (the teenager one is closed for construction) and works through his issues. A lot of people raved about this book, but there was something off about it for me. While it was interesting to read from the point of view from someone who is depressed, I found Craig’s character a little annoying at times and the setting to be a little too good to be true.
Sweethearts by Sara Zarr: ★★ 2 Stars. Jennifer and Cameron were bffs in elementary school until one day, Cameron disappears. Years later, after Jennifer reinvents herself (popular, pretty, boyfriend) Cameron reappears and they work through their “issues.” Jennifer was whiney. There really wasn’t a plot. There wasn’t really a romance. Some good points about domestic abuse, but that’s about it.
Summary:
You should read: Firecracker or Marcelo in the Real World
You should avoid: Sweethearts.
What have you been reading lately? Any good recommendations? Have you read any of these books? Be my friend on Goodreads!
Food is for Sharing w/ Cat
I am so excited to have Cat from Oddly Lovely on Life with Rosie today! Cat is one of my all time favorite bloggers who I read for a while before I started Life with Rosie. I guess you can say she inspired me! Cat also has the cutest pup named Ru who would probably be Rosie’s best friend if they lived close one another. Be sure to stop by her blog and check out her other posts!
The best part about cooking as a hobby is that everyone needs to eat every day. Unlike snowboarding or horseback riding, food and cooking is always present. If you’re a good cook, you don’t need to rely on expensive dinners out for a satisfying meal. And there’s something so wonderfully fulfilling about baking cookies for your coworkers or whipping up enchiladas for friends.
Sharing food has long been a symbol of trust. In ancient Greco-Roman, the concept of hospitality was an important one and custom dictated that households should offer travelers a meal and safety. The expression “breaking bread” is found both in early Greek texts as well as some translations of the Bible, and it means to mean literally share a meal and metaphorically to cooperate. Meals required joint effort on the part of a multiple of people to harvest crops, raise cattle, and process items such as butter or oil. And you would only sit down to eat with an ally, never an enemy.
Even today, we have all heard studies about families who eat together are less likely to produce children who do drugs or participate in crime. And rarely do people get together over anything other than a girls brunch or a romantic dinner. Cooking for someone is the most primal expression of caring for them - you are literally fueling and nurturing their body. And the conversation that you have over bacon and eggs or a good bowl of soup is just as important as the actual food you are eating… although I’d say the food is pretty important too.
How confident of a cook are you? What kind of meals do you love to share with friends and family?
Pictured:
Friday Round Up v.1
Linking Up today at All the Joys to share the blogging love!
Me:
Yesterday, my 40 minute power nap turned into two and a half hours. Oops!
I took a break from my 30 Day Shred and did Jillian Michael’s ab workout instead. Ouch. So good but so painful. Did you know almost all of her workouts are on youtube for free?
Rosie was feeling a little neglected yesterday while I was working on blog stuff, so I took most of the day off from life in general to take her to play at the park with some new puppy friends. The fresh air felt so good.
Life with Rosie:
In case you needed a review on Stitch Fix, a method to get healthy, or a feel-good story about my dad, you can catch up now!
Blog Friends:
This week I really loved reading:
Oddly Lovely‘s post on Turning Jewelry Organization into Decoration. Totally inspired me to take my jewelry out of the little organizer in my closet and put it up in a creative way so I can actually SEE it and remember to WEAR it.
Forever Ashley’s post on Why She Reads Your Blog. I keep on reading all of these posts on why people stop reading blogs, and while I take away some valuable information from them, I really loved this positive take.
American Honey‘s review of The Night Circus. I know I have a million books on my to-read list, but I love finding more books to add!
A Touch of Teal’s post on the Four Things She Wish She Knew Before Blogging. She has great tips for newbie bloggers like myself!
The Princess and her Cowboy’s recipe for Homemade Mint Chip Oreos. These literally have my mouth watering and I am so making them this weekend. Dustin and I will only get to eat one or two and I’ll have to give the rest away so we don’t ruin our results on our 8 week health challenge, but it will be so worth it!
Happy Friday, friends. This weekend I plan on getting ahead in my reading, writing, and fitness! If the weather holds up, maybe Dustin and I will go shooting! What are you doing this weekend?
