Book Club Friday!!

Heeeeyyyyy!  

Thank you for the comments last week.  I have a horrible habit of reading comments via my email and then saving them to respond to at a later date...that later date is usually weeks later.  Sorrrry!! I will get back to you though!

This week I read:

  Here is the description from Amazon:

“There is really no better indicator you’re a mother than acquiring the ability to catch throw-up in a plastic bag, disinfect your hands, and immediately ask your friend to pass the beef jerky as you put on another Taylor Swift song and act as if nothing has happened.”

This is the type of insight Melanie Shankle offers in this quirky memoir of motherhood.

Written in the familiar, stream-of-consciousness style of her blog, Big Mama, Sparkly Green Earrings is a heartwarming and hilarious look at motherhood from someone who is still trying to figure it all out. Filled with personal stories—from the decision to become a mother to the heartbreak of miscarriage and ultimately, to the joy of raising a baby and living to tell about it—Sparkly Green Earrings will make you feel like you’re sitting across the table from your best friend. A must-read for anyone who’s ever had a child or even thought about it.

I saw this book on someone's Instagram the other day.  Before that, I had never heard of Melanie Shankle or her blog Big Mama .This book has a 5 out of 5 star rating on Amazon so I was really excited about reading it and had high expectations that it would be really funny.  While I did laugh a few times, it wasn't as funny as I thought it was going to be...  It was just an okay book.  I'd give it a 3 out of 5.  Not the greatest thing I've ever read nor the worst thing.  Anyone else read it?  What'd you think?  

Hope y'all have a great weekend!

Don't forget to link up here or here!

Erika

Random Thursday

Heeeeey.

Sooo...have you heard of the app called Endorse ?

 Every Thursday they have new items that you can get money back on.  Pretty much every other week, I have gotten 100% back on coffee (I think it's up to $3)...any coffee...which means I high-tail my butt over to Starbucks and get an almost free tall mocha! All you have to do is upload the receipt and they'll credit you at some point during the day.  You can use receipts within the last 6 days (save them!!) so this morning when the new items popped up, I had 10% on fast food and laundry detergent (any brand) which I had just purchased a couple of days ago so I was able to get money back on both of them.

If you go to Target, Old Navy, American Eagle, or Best Buy, etc.  you should also check out shopkick. You get points whenever you walk into certain stores which you can eventually trade in for gift cards.  Stores that don't have points for walking in sometimes have items that you can scan for points too.

Anyways...

My niece (below) has been doing some Spring Lookbook modeling for The TuTu Cute Bowtique in GA.

 More pictures on their full website here

Most of their items seem to be under $50 so check out them out!

I found a group of guys that play roller hockey around here so I decided after a 12-13 year hiatus, I am going to get back into playing hockey.

My equipment had been in storage for years so it was pretty gross, but I have gotten everything cleaned up (and smelling somewhat good)...  I've also been putting on gear (and maybe skating around the house) to make sure everything fits...

 Trying my pads on...with Sperrys...

I'm going to play this weekend, so wish me luck!

I hope I don't embarrass myself!! :P

Hope y'all are having a great day!

Erika

Book Club Friday

This week I finished Catherine the Great.  

Here is the description from Amazon.com:

"The Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Peter the Great, Nicholas and Alexandra, and The Romanovs returns with another masterpiece of narrative biography, the extraordinary story of an obscure German princess who became one of the most remarkable, powerful, and captivating women in history. Born into a minor noble family, Catherine transformed herself into empress of Russia by sheer determination. For thirty-four years, the government, foreign policy, cultural development, and welfare of the Russian people were in her hands. She dealt with domestic rebellion, foreign wars, and the tidal wave of political change and violence churned up by the French Revolution. Catherine’s family, friends, ministers, generals, lovers, and enemies—all are here, vividly brought to life. History offers few stories richer than that of Catherine the Great. In this book, an eternally fascinating woman is returned to life."

I really enjoyed this book.  I have always loved Russian History and even taught myself Russian before studying it in college.  This book was named one of the Best Books of the Year by numerous publications when it came out.  I can understand why, but I don't think it would be of interest to someone who didn't enjoy history or biographies.  I thought it was very well written, but there were a few things that were mentioned but never explained (such as Catherine's son Paul was eventually assassinated when he was Tsar but no further info given). 

Look forward to seeing what everyone else has been reading!

Have a great weekend y'all!

Erika

Linkup here and here

It's been a long week

On Sunday night my sweet dog Sandy, who was adopted by my Dad and stepmom when I moved, was having difficulty breathing.

On Monday she was seen by the vet who diagnosed her with a possible tumor on her lungs.  Sandy was an old girl so we didn't want to do anything invasive...by Tuesday evening, she had died :(

 My daughter was really upset...and my son just doesn't get it...although he has told everyone we see that "Sandy died".  We are so lucky to have found Sandy (at a shelter in TX)...she was the sweetest, most laid back dog I've ever been around.  I am so thankful that she has been a part of our family.

On Tuesday, I also had a doctor's appointment for lower back pain. I may have been putting this appointment off for some time...like a year.  I had an x-ray which, according to the tech, looked fine.  Then was ordered to go to physical therapy.  

I went to that yesterday...wearing my super cute ThomasKelly Pandaro pants (see here )

Wearing the pants was probably the highlight of that... basically my back is tight and I need to stretch it more...which is good news, but I feel like I wasted my time and money to find that out.  I probably should have just gone and gotten a massage. 

I am so glad it is the weekend.  Two days off of not waking up at 6:20!!!  Wooohoo.  

I hope y'all have a great weekend!

e

 

Book Club Friday

Hey y'all! Happy Friday!

I have read 3 books since my last link-up:

The description from Amazon:

Hot on the heels of Richard Castle's #1 New York Times bestseller Heat Rises comes the fourth novel in the Nikki Heat series, Frozen Heat. Nikki Heat and Jameson Rook are together again, facing an unsolved murder mystery that has haunted Nikki for ten years.

NYPD Homicide Detective Nikki Heat arrives at her latest crime scene to find an unidentified woman stabbed to death and stuffed inside a suitcase left on a Manhattan street. Nikki is in for a big shock when this new homicide connects to the unsolved murder of her own mother. Paired once again with her romantic and investigative partner, top journalist Jameson Rook, Heat works to solve the mystery of the body in the suitcase while she is forced to confront unexplored areas of her mother's background.

Facing relentless danger as someone targets her for the next kill, Nikki's search will unearth painful family truths, expose a startling hidden life, and cause Nikki to reexamine her own past. Heat's passionate quest takes her and Rook from the back alleys of Manhattan to the avenues of Paris, trying to catch a ruthless killer. The question is, now that her mother's cold case has unexpectedly thawed, will Nikki Heat finally be able to solve the dark mystery that has been her demon for ten years?

 

Richard Castle, for those who do not know, is the fictional character on the ABC show Castle.  If you like the show, you will like the books, plain and simple! I enjoyed this one and am looking forward to the next one. They come out at the beginning of every fall TV season.

 

Next up:

I don't think I need to give the description of this book since it's movie counterpart is currently out in theaters.  I saw the previews and think Julianne Hough is adorable so I decided to read the book.  It took less than a day...couldn't put it down. Great read.  Now if I could just find time to get to the theater!!

 

Btw, does anyone else out there have to read the book before they see the movie like me??! :)

 

Tonight is Book Club and we were supposed to read:

 

 The Amazon description:

A Story of Love That Won't Let Go - No Matter What!

California’s gold country, 1850. A time when men sold their souls for a bag of gold and women sold their bodies for a place to sleep. 

Angel expects nothing from men but betrayal. Sold into prostitution as a child, she survives by keeping her hatred alive. And what she hates most are the men who use her, leaving her empty and dead inside. 

Then she meets Michael Hosea, a man who seeks his Father’s heart in everything. Michael obeys God’s call to marry Angel and to love her unconditionally. Slowly, day by day, he defies Angel’s every bitter expectation, until despite her resistance, her frozen heart begins to thaw. 

But with her unexpected softening comes overwhelming feelings of unworthiness and fear. And so Angel runs. Back to the darkness, away from her husband’s pursuing love, terrified of the truth she no longer can deny: Her final healing must come from the One who loves her even more than Michael does…the One who will never let her go. 

A powerful retelling of the story of Gomer and Hosea, Redeeming Love is a life-changing story of God’s unconditional, redemptive, all-consuming love

 

I actually bought this book over a year ago when ladies in my old Bible study said it was their favorite book.  Then I never read it and ended up giving it to my Mom when she said she wanted some books to read.  She didn't read it either until I told her it had been chosen as the Book Club book.  She read it in two days and told me it was amazing and dropped it in the mail so I could read it. 

 

She was right...I couldn't put it down.  This book is excellent and definitely deserves the 5 out of 5 stars it has on Amazon.  

 

Anyone else read it?  I can't wait to hear what people think of it tonight at Book Club.  I think I will be immediately suspicious of those who hated it!! :)

 

Hope you all have an amazing weekend!

 

Erika

 

Don't forget to linkup here or here!

Blush of Charleston fashion show

A couple of weeks ago, my daughter and I did a fashion show for Mt. Pleasant, SC boutique Blush of Charleston (SC).  The show was at the Charleston Women's Show.

Here are a few pics:

 Me and my daughter

 I loved this dress...especially the pockets!

I also tried on these dresses:

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These dresses looked sooo cute on! I wish I could have worn all of them in the show (and brought them home with me)!

-e-

Olivia Lately

Just wanted to do a quick post since I haven't posted in weeks (laaazzzy).

Here's what OP has been wearing during NYFW...

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I try to keep my Olivia Palermo board up to date on Pinterest so if you'd like you can follow here

Also...be sure to enter the awesome giveaway going on at Sadie +Stella 

Lindsay is giving away a print from 

 If I win, I am definitely picking this one:

If you're not interested in entering, but want to check out the other fabulous prints by Jessica Rowe, check them out here.

Have a great weekend y'all!

Erika