Chelle's bookshelf 2013 (Summer Edition)

Welcome to summer!
I'm about 3 months behind and life has been crazy! I've been around the threads a bit and I'll be trying to say hello to everyone soon

My previous thread was a little long so this is my summer attempt

Happy Summer everyone!





Currently Reading:

Novel




Audio


My Threads:
2013 Pyramid Challenge
Orange January/July
Booker Prize
1001 Books to Read Before I Die

Books Read in 2013

July
79) Silesian Station by David Downing (4*)
80) Stettin Station by David Downing (4*)
81) Storm Front by Jim Butcher (4.5*)
82) Cider House Rules by John Irving (4.5*)
83) Fool Moon by Jim Butcher (4*)
84) The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman (4*)
85) On Beauty by Zadie Smith (4*)
86) The Hypnotist by Lars Kepler (3.5*)

August
87) The Scorch Trials by James Dashner
88) Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor
89) Deeply Odd by Dean Koontz (2.5*)
90) I Suck at Girls by Justin Halpern (4*)
91) Orange is the New Black by Piper Kerman (3.5*)
92) Grave Peril by Jim Butcher (3*)
93) One Bird's Choice by Iain Reid (3*)
94) Bad Habits: Confessions of a Recovering Catholic by Jenny McCarthy (3*)
95) A Nation Worth Ranting About by Rick Mercer (3.5*)
96) Solar by Ian McEwan (3*)
97) The Road Home by Rose Tremain (4*)

January
1) The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson (4*)
2) Winter of the World by Ken Follet (3.5*)
3) The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon (3*)
4) Lure of the Labrador Wild by Dillon Wallace (4*)
5) Zoo Station by David Downing (3.5*)
6) Through Black Spruce by Joseph Boyden (5*)
7) A Certain Justice by PD James (4*)
8) The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller (4.5*)
9) The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood (4.5*)
10) The Maze Runner by James Dashner (3.5*)
11) Iron House by John Hart (4*)
12) Half Blood Blues (4*)
13) Disgrace by JM Coetzee (4*)
14) Aunt Dimity Digs In by Nancy Atherton (3.5*)
15) Thirty Three Teeth by Colin Cotteril (4*)

February
16) The Dog Stars by Peter Heller (4*)
17) Galore by Michael Crummey (4*)
18) Cover her Face by PD James (3.5*)
19) Beatrice and Virgil by Yann Martel (3.5*)
20) The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan (4*)
21) Old Filth by Jane Gardam (3.5*)
22) Born with a Tooth by Joseph Boyden (3*)
23) Fevre Dream by George R.R. Martin (4*)
24) The Magician's Nephew by CS Lewis (4*)
25) Tigana by Guy Gavriel Kay (5*)
26) At Bertram's Hotel by Agatha Christie (3*)
27) Beloved by Toni Morrison (4*)
28) A Mind to Murder by PD James (3.5*)
29) The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz (4*)
30) Another Year: An Essay by Ann Patchett
31) Snow White Must Die by Nele Neuhaus (4*)

March
32) The 7th Month by Lisa Gardner (3*) (Audio)
33) Carrion Comfort by Dan Simmons (3.75*)
34) American Vampire Volume 1 by Stephen King & Scott Snyder
35) Annabel by Lauren Oliver (short story - Delirium Trilogy)
36) Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver (3.5*) (audio)
37) Requiem by Lauren Oliver (3.5*) (audio)
38) Cabal by Clive Barker (3*)
39) The End of your Life Book Club by Will Schwalbe (5*)
40) Scarlet by Marissa Meyer (4*)
41) Raven by Lauren Oliver (short story - Delirium Trilogy)
42) Glitches by Marissa Meyer (short story - Lunar Chronicles)
43) The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (4*) (audio)
44) The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick (audio)
45) Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Book Store by Robin Sloan (5*)
46) The Killing Circle by Andrew Pyper (3*)
47) The Awakening by L. J. Smith (3.5*) (audio)
48) The Struggle by L.J. Smith (3.5*)(audio)
49) The Fury by L.J. Smith (3*) (Audio)
50) Orxy and Crake by Margaret Atwood (4.5*)

April
51) Pier 21: The Gateway that Changed Canada by Trudy Mitic (4*)
52) Aunt Dimity's Christmas by Nancy Atherton (3.5*)
53) Lover at Last by JR Ward (4*)
54) Dark Reunion by LJ Smith (2.5)
55) Interworld by Neil Gaiman (3*)
56) Get Shorty by Elmore Leonard (4*)
57) Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone by JK Rowling (4* Audio by Stephen Fry)
58) The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams (4*) (Audio)
59) The Shape of Water by Andrea Camilleri (3.5*)
60) How to be a Woman by Caitlin Moran
61) Behind the Scene at the Museum by Kate Atkinson (3*)
62) The Terra-Cotta Dog by Andrea Camilleri (3.5*)

May
63) One Good Turn by Kate Atkinson (4*)
64) Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia (4*)
65) Aunt Dimity Beats the Devil by Nancy Atherton (3.5*)
66) Life after Life by Kate Atkinson (4*)
67) Tempting Evil by Keri Arthur (3.5*)
68) Beautiful Darkness by Kami Garcia (3.5*)
69) Dream Dark by Kami Garcia
70) Beautiful Chaos by Kami Garcia (4*)
71) Beautiful Redemption by Kami Garcia (4*)

June
72) The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wrecker (4.5*)
73) The Rising by Kelley Armstrong (4*)
74) The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce (4*)
75) Inferno by Dan Brown (5*)
76) Joyland by Stephen King (4*)
77) A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith (5*)
78) Taking Charge of your Fertility by Toni Weschler

July
79) Silesian Station by David Downing (4*)
80) Stettin Station by David Downing (4*)
81) Storm Front by Jim Butcher (4.5*)
82) Cider House Rules by John Irving (4.5*)
83) Fool Moon by Jim Butcher (4*)
84) The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman (4*)
85) On Beauty by Zadie Smith (4*)
86) The Hypnotist by Lars Kepler (3.5*)

August
87) The Scorch Trials by James Dashner
88) Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor
89) Deeply Odd by Dean Koontz (2.5*)
90) I Suck at Girls by Justin Halpern (4*)
91) Orange is the New Black by Piper Kerman (3.5*)
92) Grave Peril by Jim Butcher (3*)
93) One Bird's Choice by Iain Reid (3*)
94) Bad Habits: Confessions of a Recovering Catholic by Jenny McCarthy (3*)
95) A Nation Worth Ranting About by Rick Mercer (3.5*)
96) Solar by Ian McEwan (3*)
97) The Road Home by Rose Tremain (4*)

In an effort to read off my own bookshelves I am keeping track of which books I read from my own shelves this year:
1) The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson
2) The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon
3) Lure of the Labrador Wild by Dillon Wallace
4) Through Black Spruce by Joseph Boyden
5) A Certain Justice by PD James
6) Half-Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan
7) The Maze Runner by James Dashner
8) Iron House by John Hart
9) Disgrace by JM Coetzee
10) Thirty-Three Teeth by Colin Cotterill
11) The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan
12) Fevre Dream by George R.R. Martin
13) The Magician's Nephew by CS Lewis
14) Beloved by Toni Morrison
15) Another Year: An Essay by Ann Patchett
16) Snow White Must Die by Nele Neuhaus
17) The 7th Month by Lisa Gardner (Audio)
18) Carrion Comfort by Dan Simmons
19) Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver
20 Requiem by Lauren Oliver
21) Cabal by Clive Barker
22) Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
23) Orxy and Crake by Margaret Atwood
24) Pier 21: The Gateway that Changed Canada by Trudy Mitic
25) Aunt Dimity's Christmas by Nancy Atherton
26) Get Shorty by Elmore Leonard
27) Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone by JK Rowling (audio)
28) Behind the Scene at the Museum by Kate Atkinson
29) One Good Turn by Kate Atkinson
30) Aunt Dimity Beats the Devil by Nancy Atherton
31) Life after Life by Kate Atkinson
32) Tempting Evil by Keri Arthur
33) Beautiful Redemption by Kami Garcia
34) The Rising by Kelley Armstrong
35) The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce
36) Inferno by Dan Brown
37) Joyland by Stephen King
38) A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
39) Taking Charge of your Fertility by Toni Weschler

These are the books I own and need to read at some point:

Books purchased prior to February 2013
Wolves of the Crescent Moon by Yousef Al-Mohaimeed
Emma by Jane Austen
Mansfield Park by Jane Austen
Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
Persuasion by Jane Austen
Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
No Time for Goodbye by Linwood Barclay
The Great and Secret Show by Clive Barker
Flashback by Nevada Barr
The Postmistress by Sarah Blake
A Red Herring Without Mustard by Alan Bradley
I am Half Sick of Shadows by Alan Bradley
The Angel of Darkness by Caleb Carr
Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carol
Echo Burning by Lee Child
Nothing to Lose by Lee Child
Coffin Dancer by Jeffrey Deaver
The Cold Moon by Jeffrey Deaver
Bleak House by Charles Dickens
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
David Copperfield by Charles Dickens
The Old Curiosity Shop by Charles Dickens
Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens
A Breath of Snow and Ashes by Diana Gabaldon
An Echo in the Bone by Diana Gabaldon
The Pursuit of Happyness by Chris Gardner
The Magician King by Lev Grossman
Ape House by Sarah Gruen
The Case of the Man who Died Laughing by Tarquin Hall
Horns by Joe hill
The Iliad by Homer
The Odyssey by Homer
Prince Caspian by C. S. Lewis
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C. S. Lewis
The Silver Chair by C. S. Lewis
The Horse and His Boy by C. S. Lewis
The Last Battle by C. S. Lewis
Pulse by John Lutz
Hunt the Wolf: A SEAL Team Six Novel by Don Mann
Life of Pi by Yann Martel
Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt
Solar by Ian McEwan
Moby Dick by Herman Melville
The Shimmer by David Morrell
Stones into Schools by Greg Mortenson
The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness
1984 by George Orwell
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert M Pirsig
Blackwood Farms by Anne Rice
Lasher by Anne Rice
Memnoch the Devil by Anne Rice
Merrick by Anne Rice
New Tales of the Vampires by Anne Rice
The Queen of the Damned by Anne Rive
Tale of the Body Thief by Anne Rice
Taltos by Anne Rice
The Witching Hour by Anne Rice
The Vampire Armand by Anne Rice
Dead Watch by John Sanford
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and other strange tales by Stevenson, Robert Louis
Lost Boy Lost Girl by Peter Straub
Angelology by Danielle Trussoni
The Art of War by Sun Tzu
The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells
Guardian of the Gate by Michelle Zink
Circle of Fire by Michelle Zink

And as ebooks I own:
Little Women by Louissa May Alcott
Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi
Jamrach's Menagerie by Carol Birch
The Sisters Brothers by Patrick DeWitt
Lord John and the Private Matter by Diana Gabaldon
When We Were Orphans by Kazuo Ishiguro
Pigeon English by Stephen Kelman
English Passengers by Matthew Kneale
Call of the Wild by Jack London
I Am Number Four: The Lost Files: Nine's Legacy by Pittacus Lore
I Am Number Four: The Lost Files: Six's Legacy by Pittacus Lore
Game of Thrones by George R Martin
Snowdrops by A.D. Miller
The New World by Patrick Ness
Sovereign by CJ Sansom
The Map of Love by Ahdaf Soueif
Red Pony by John Steinbeck
Torilla Flat by John Steinbeck
The Blackwater Lightship by Colm Toibin

Audio Books
The Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie
The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration by Isabel Wilkerson
Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky

Series on the go...

Active Series

Adam Dalgliesh by PD James (2/14)finished A Mind to Murder, next up Unnatural Causes
Anita Blake Vampire Hunter by Laurell K. Hamilton (1/21): Finished Guilty Pleasures, next up The Laughing Corpse
Aunt Dimity by Nancy Atherton (4/18): Finished Aunt Dimity Digs In , next up Aunt Dimity's Christmas
Camp Half-Blood by Rick Riordan (5/10): Finished The Last Olympian, next up The Demigod Files
Christopher Snow by Dean Koontz (2/3): Finished Seize the Night, next up Ride the Storm
The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis (2/7): Finished the Magician's Nephew, next up The Horse and His Boy
Delirium Trilogy by Lauren Oliver (1/3):Finished Delirium, next up Pandemonium
Dr. Siri Paiboun by Colin Cotterill (2/9): Finished Thirty-Three Teeth, next up Disco for the Departed
Fallen Angels by J.R. Ward (1/3): Finished Covet, next up Crave
Flavia de Luce by Alan Bradley (2/4) : Finished The Weed That Strings the Hangman's Bag, next up A Red Herring Without Mustard
Harry “Rabbit” Angstrom by John Updike (3/4): Finished Rabbit is Rich, Next up Rabbit at Rest
The Inheritance Cycle by Christopher Paolini (1/4): Finished Eragon, Next up Eldest
The Magicians by Lev Grossman (1/2): Finished The Magicians, next up The Magician King
Mallory Caine, Zombie at Law by K Bennett (1/3) Finished Pay me in Flesh, next up The Year of Eating Dangerously
Matthew Shardlake by CJ Sansom (3/5): Finished Dark Fire, Next up Sovereign
Nick Lupo by W.D. Gagliani (2/3): Finished Wolf’s Gambit, next up Wolf’s Bluff
The Night Trilogy by Elie Wiesel (1/3): Finished Night, next up Dawn
Nikki Heat by Richard Castle (1/4): Finished Heat Wave, next up Naked Heat
Outlander by Diana Gabaldon (5/7): Finished The Fiery Cross, next up A Breath of Snow and Ashes
Prophecy of the Sisters by Michelle Zink (1/3): Finished Prophecy of the Sisters, next up Guardian of the Gate
Riley Jenson Gaurdian Series by Keri Aurthor (2/9): Finished Kissing Sin, next up Tempting Evil
Vampire Chronicles by Anne Rice (2/9): Finished The Vampire Lestat, next up The Queen of the Damned

Series waiting for next installment to be written

Alex Cross by James Patterson (18/18)
All Souls Trilogy by Deborah Harkness (2/2)
Black Dagger Brotherhood by J.R. Ward (10/10)
The Century Trilogy by Ken Follett (2/2):
Chief Inspector Armand Gamache by Louise Penny (8/8):
The Darkest Powers by Kelley Armstrong (5/5): New release April 2013 The Rising
Divergent Trilogy by Veronica Roth (2/2)
Dustlands by Moira Young (2/2):
Gideon Crew by Preston & Child (2/2)
Harry Bosch by Michael Connelly (18/18):
Kay Scarpetta by Patricia Cornwell (20/20):
The Lorien Legacies by Pittacus Lore (3/3):
Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer (1/1): New release Scarlet (Feb 2013)
Michael Bennet Books by James Patterson (5/5):
Odd Thomas by Dean Koontz (5/5):
The Passage by Justin Cronin (2/2):
Robert Langton by Dan Brown (3/4): New release Inferno (March 2013)
Temperance Brennan by Kathy Reichs (15/15):
Women’s Murder Club by James Patterson (11/11)
Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel (2/2):

Series that I own a book and haven’t started yet:


Angelology by Danielle Trussoni
Anna Pigeon Mysteries by Nevada Barr (Own #11 flashback)
The Book of Art by Clive Barker Own The Great and Secret Show
Chaos Walking by Patrick Ness (Own #2 The Knife of Never Letting Go)
Lincoln Rhyme by Jeffery Deaver (Own #7 The Cold Moon)
Lives of the Mayfair Witches by Anne Rice (Own all 5)
Lord John by Diana Gabaldon (Own #1 & #2)
The Maze Runner by James Dashner (Own #1 The Maze Runner)
Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi (Own #1 Ship Breaker)
Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin (Own #1 A Game of Thrones)
Vish Puri by Tarquin Hall (Own #2 Case of the Man Who died Laughing)

Books purchased in 2013
1) Aunt Dimity Digs In by Nancy Atherton
2) Silesian Station by David Downing
3) Stettin Station by David Downing
4) Aunt Dimity's Christmas by Nancy Atherton
5) Aunt Dimity Beats The Devil by Nancy Atherton
6) Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
7) The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz by Mordecai Richler
8) Hide and Seek by Ian Rankin
9) At Bertram's Hotel by Agatha Christie
10) Get Shorty by Elmore Leonard
11) Live wire by Harlan Coben
12) Hold Tight by Harlan Coben
13) Missing by Karin Alvtegen
14) Cat's Eye by Margaret Atwood
15) In the Skin of a Lion by Michael Ondaatje
16) Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire
17) The Devil's Code by John Sandford
18) The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan
19) Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver (audio) (audible membership)
20) Requiem by Lauren Oliver (audio) (audible membership)
21) Disco for the Departed by Colin Cotterill
22) Beautiful Redemption by Kami Garcia
23) A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
24) The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce
25) Storm Front by Jim Butcher
26) Fool Moon by Jim BUtcher
27) The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman
28) Grave Peril by Jim BUtcher
29) Summer Knight by Jim Butcher
30) NOS4A2 by Joe Hill
31) And the Mountain Echoed by Khaled Hosseini
32) Killing Floor by Lee Child
33) Die Trying by Lee Child
34) Echo Burning by Lee Child
35) Running Blind by Lee Child
36) Watership Down by Richard Adams
37) The Last Policeman by Ben Winters
38) Aunt Dimity: Detective by Nancy Atherton
39) Potsdam Station by David Downing
40) The Scorch Trials by James Dashner
41) Dangerous Games by Keri Arthur
42) Deeply Odd by Dean Koontz

Hi, Chelle! Congrats on the new thread. Nice pics, and fun quote from Alan Rickman. Happy Summer!

Hi Chelle, nice to see your new thread and I see that even though you have been away from LT your reading is going great guns (77 books read) good going my dear.

Hi Chelle! Nice to see you back around here again :)
Love those coastal pictures, I swear, you live in paradise. Your area is on my must visit list.

Congratulations for getting to 75!! And more....I have A Tree Grows in Brooklyn awaiting my attention, perhaps I need to put it on my July list?

Gorgeous thread topper! And we are so very happy to see you! I love how you have your series section ordered, and I may have to totally steal that. Congrats on attaining and surpassing 75!

Lovely new thread, and good to see you here again!! Congratulations on passing the 75 book mark, too.

Chelle - lovely to see you back with a new thread. Hope New Scotland gets less crazy over the remaining summer months.

One more NS photo to get you all drooling. This is my view from work for the summer!



Happy Summer Joe!

Thanks John! I've been finally able to get into a few great books lately :)

Hi Megan! Sometimes I feel like I live in paradise too! Nate's parents were visiting for the last week and we had a 3 day weekend off work and explored the area with them. Unfortunately we had lots of rain but we still managed to see some great sights and eat lots of seafood! :)
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn was wonderful! I listened to the anniversary audio edition and it was great1

Steal away Mamie :)

Thanks Roni!

HI Paul! We have a few visitors coming over the summer months and Nate and I are determined to travel the area more this summer since we were limited last summer due to our wedding. Naxt set of days off may be a trip to Dartmouth for some shopping and exploring

Hello stranger! You have been missed. Love the gorgeous new thread, with the beautiful toppers. I see you are still reading. Yah! And I can't believe you have read both The Golem and the Jinni & Joyland, both of which, are high on my To-Read list!

Congratulations on 75!

Hi Chelle, Lovely new thread and congratulations on passing 75 right by!!

Hi Chelle - nice to see you back!

Good to see you back Chelle. Congratulations on the 75.

So here you are! Well then, that's good. Lovely, lovely NS.

Great to see you back!

So happy to see you back into the LT swing of things, Chelle! Love the pics and wishing we can see this beautiful corner of the world some day.

>12 ChelleBearss: Your view from work?! Beautiful! I wouldn't get any work done, but I'd be a happy guy if I was looking at that every day.

Hi Chelle, I'm glad to see you here. I love that you are showing us the beauty of Nova Scotia. It's hard to stay inside at the computer when there's so much to do and see outside!

That picture of your work view is amazing. I also would get very little work done gazing at that scene!

Yay, here's Chelle! Love the NS pics! Where are you working? Gorgeous.

Wish I had your work view.

Good to see you, Chelle!

13 Hi Mark! Both books were wonderful! And one of the best parts of Joyland is that it wasn't King's normal 14000000 pages long! lol It was not typical King but it was a good read.
Have you been watching Under the Dome? Nate and I have been watching it and I think it's got potential to be a good summer show

14 & 15 Thanks Nora and Reba!

16 Hi Rhian! I'm going to try and stay consistent ... wish me luck lol

17 Thanks Calm :)

18 When are you coming to visit Kath?

19 Nice to be back Morphy!

20 Thanks Lynda! Hopefully you will be able to visit here someday. It really is amazing

21 Yep Joe! Isn't that a rough life eh? I'm still doing home care for elderly folks and one of my clients is at his cottage for the summer. It's a tiny 3 room cottage so when the cleaning is finished we sit on the deck and enjoy the view or watch baseball. I've actually gotten into watching the Blue Jays for the first season in a loooong time!

22 HI Judy! Thankfully I get to take my client on walks every day so I get to see that view quite a lot. I'm really enjoying the summer so far!

23 HI Nancy! I'm working at the shore in the small town of Harbourville.

24 Ha John, I think most people would be happier in their jobs if they had a wonderful view out their windows!

25 Thanks Katie!

Happy to see your shinny new thread, Chelle! I hope you had a lovely Canada Day. Like Mark, I am really looking forward to reading The Golem and the Jinni.

Morning Chelle- No I have not started the Under the Dome TV series, although I have heard good things. I still have not read the book, which might be the main reason.
Congrats on hitting 75!!

Hi friends! Today has been my day off and it's a hot one! 31c and so sunny! I'm not complaining at all since it rained for the last two weeks so I'll take all the sun I can get!
I've been puttering around today. A little LT, some laundry on the clothes line, some gardening and playing with the dogs.

Some of you might know that last year when we moved here I really wanted a vegetable garden but with our landscaping woes and the wedding plans the garden didn't happen. This year for my birthday Nate helped me dig in a somewhat small-ish beginner garden. A month later we expanded it by a few feet. So far we have harvested lettuce, spinach, radishes and stevia! The rest of the garden is growing like mad! I spent a couple hours out there today weeding and thinning out some crowded plants as the rain has made everything grow in leaps and bounds this week!



Hi Lori! Yes we had a great Canada Day! I had to work but I watched the Blue Jays game with my client and then came home and hung out with the hubby and his parents as it was their last day visiting. Hope you enjoyed it too!

Hi Mark! From what I understand the series is not 100% true to the book. King kind of gave them free reign to change things to adapt it to tv. It's been pretty good so far

I'm not quite sure how to work the social media functions here on LT but if anyone wants to add me on facebook or instagram you can find me here
https://www.facebook.com/chellebearss

and here
http://instagram.com/chellebearss

I sent you a friend request. My initials are LHL.

I sent a request as well -- initials are similar to my LT name:)

Congrats on a terrific reading year! I love the idea of listening to A Tree Grows in Brooklyn on audio -- I just love that book.

Such beautiful photos of Nova Scotia -- wow! We're planning a trip to Canada later this month, but we won't go as far as NS -- another tip, perhaps.

Wow, lots of catching up to do. First, adorable garden. Second, congrats on reaching the magic number already. Third, welcome back! Missed your (virtual) face around here. :)

Nice to be friends with ya Morphy! :)

Hi Anne! I loved the audio of A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. I don't know what it is but I love the brooklyn accent!
Where are you planning on heading for your Canadian trip?

Thanks Micky! I am happy to be back and am going to try and dedicate at least one hour each day to LT. Getting behind sucks


79) Silesian Station by David Downing (4*)
Read for:
75 Books Challenge for 2013,
2013 Category Challenge:books off my shelves

Another great instalment by Downing! I enjoyed this one very much and have started the next in the series right away!

I think you can see from the outpouring of posts that New Scotland has been sorely missed as a getaway destination in the group for a number of weeks and it is great to see you back and energised. Love exploring places and it looks like Nate and your goodself will have plenty of fun in your locale.

Hi Chelle!
Love your pictures (as always)! NS is so beautiful and I am determined to finished the vacation I started last year.

Congrats on 75+ books done!

Cute starter garden!
I have two tomato plants (each in its own pot on the deck). Hoping for something... ;-)

Woo Hoo! Chelle's back! You have been missed. Thanks for some more gorgeous scenery shots from Paradise. And congrats on surpassing the 75-book milestone. Well done.

Hi Chelle,
Look for my friend request on FB. Us Bluenose transplants ought to stick together.
Dee

Hi Chelle, I think I lost you somewhere along the way. I love your photos!! Such a beautiful place to live!

35 Thanks Paul! It was hard to be away but sometimes cutting some things out is necessary to be able to keep one's sanity! I'm back now, even if it's only for an hour a day. Trying to be here a little instead of not at all

36 Hi Cee! Hopefully you WILL come back! Nate and I would love to meet up with you again :) How is your shoulder doing these days? Completely healed without issues I hope!

37 Thanks Donna! My goal was a double 75 this year but I don't think the back half of the year will have enough reading in it. We shall see

38 Got'cha Dee! :)

39 HA Joanne, I think I lost myself somewhere along the way as well! Thanks, I am growing very fond of living in NS (Even if my allergies are trying to kill me this week!)

Srsly, Chelle.. if you have a spare bedroom, maybe you should consider renting it out to visitors from LT. It might be a great way to make a wee bit extra, and become the meet up queen?

Sign me up for a stay at Hotel Chelle!

Ooh, Chelle's B & B? I'm there!

We're going to Quebec City and Montreal -- two places I've always wanted to visit. Can't wait!

Oooo, Hubby was saying just the other day that he would like to go back to N.S. -- me too!! Put us on the wait-list :-)

See? Get yourself an appointment book, and lay in some oatmeal....

HA I guess we are taking bookings now? Kath that's a great idea! I told Nate and he pulled out a SNORK worthy of Amber and said " I guess you'll have to clean the house first eh..." Hmmm. That wasn't a no per se ...

Nora I think the spare bedroom comes with puppies sleeping in the bed with you ... hope that's ok. It's included in the room price ;)

Anne that will be a great trip! I love visiting Quebec! Make sure you take a jaunt into the historic sections. Walking along the cobblestone roads is so fun

Let me know when you are coming Reba! We will do a meet up :)

>41 mckait: great idea!!
But surely the spare room will be needed soon....after all they are still newlyweds :0

HI chelle!! I love your garden, and the photos of your lovely area. I am dying to visit - one day. But it is just so far away! So what were you doing while you were off LT? Working heaps? (reading heaps too I see)

No plans at present, I'm afraid, just a thought of something we'd like to do again.

A mini B & B for dog loving LTers is a great way to earn money for any planned expansion of family, home or vacations ? I think it sounds pretty simple :) Tell Nate LTers will pitch in to vac and do dishes. All baking, however, should be yours Chelle! lol

Hi Chelle- Just popping in. I am glad you enjoyed Silesian Station. I've been meaning to get to that one for months. It's not available on audio, (Sad Mark), so I'll have to just add it to the print book mix, which incredibly crowded.

FINALLY found you, Chelle! *whew* Hi to Nate, *smooch* for you.

Hi Chelle,
I've only read the first in the David Downing series. I would like to get back to reading that series at some point.

Hi friends! Last afternoon working and then I have Saturday and Sunday off! Whoot! Too bad that Nate has to work though :( I have a local youth coming on Saturday afternoon to spend the day picking rocks. We had so many rocks on our property and in the landscaping fill that cutting our lawn is a hazard to passing cars! Nate and I have picked a few wheelbarrows full but there are still too many so I talked Nate into hiring a kid that needs summer money to do the rest for us. My poor back can't take that much bending over!

Nate and I have a 3 day weekend coming up at the end of month and we are trying to make some camping plans. He will be coming off nightshift the night before so I think we are going to try and stay somewhat close to home in case he is tired and cranky the first day. I've been looking at Kejimkujik National Park and I'd love to do some camping in the interior but I'm not sure how great we would be with a portage with two dogs and our gear. We might stay in the campground and then just go hiking. Decisions, decisions!

47 HA Megan, wouldn't that be nice to have a use for that room. Until that lucky day comes that my lady parts decide to start doing their job I guess we can just rent the room to LT travellers :)
While I was away from LT I was doing a combination of working, reading, watching baseball, gardening, doctor appointments and general loafing around.

48 Do you have any summer travel plans Reba?

49 Thanks Kath! I've actually been lazy about baking lately. I made a cake for Nate's mom when they visited as she retired and other than that it has been a while. One of my clients turns 90 at the end of the month and he is a HUGE BlueJays fan so I might make him a baseball cake.
I'm sure the dogs would love to have us open a B&B! More people to lick and cuddle :)

50 Hi Mark! Where do you buy your audiobooks from? Audible has Silesian Station in audio. I was thinking about stopping my audible account, I'm undecided at the moment.

51 Hi Richard! Smooches back. Hope you are enjoying your summer!

52 Hi Ellen! I had read the first one last year and for some reason decided not to start the second one right away even though I had bought the second and third. I think it was because of the WW2 theme, I had read a whole bunch with that theme and had gotten war'ed out. I read the second and third this year and plan on buying the rest. I'm really enjoying a couple of the characters

What a great way to employ some neighbor kid, AND make sure he/she spends some time outside and gets some exercise!

I lost you, Chelle, but I'm glad to have found you again and to see your gorgeous pictures of Nova Scotia. Someday ...

Enjoy your weekend!

Hi Chelle, good to "see" you : ). A three day camping break sounds wonderful.

As long as the camping is in a cottage, and has a shower, and flush toilet.... it sounds great!
*getting soft in my old age*

I'm with Kath on the camping, but I hope you have fun with it, Chelle.

I agree. Great idea to hire a teen! I remember as a high schooler that a teacher would hire a student each summer to weed the condominium grounds. One summer I was the lucky (?) student. While I appreciated the money, dang that was a lot of hard work!

Hi Chelle, seems you have been busy of late, nice to see you back on here.

Chelae, enjoy your week end off. I can just see you reclining with a book while the young man you hired does the rock picking. Win, win - he makes money and you save your back!

Hi Chelle- " Where do you buy your audiobooks from?" Actually, I buy very few. I receive most of them from the library and a few from a "free" online site, I know, but don't tell anyone. It's very hush hush. I think Audible is a rip-off. I did try it for two months but I would spend way to much money over there.
Enjoy your weekend!

Enjoy your three day weekend camping trip, Chelle! Good idea, employing a local lad to deal with the rock situation on your lawn. Like Nora said, a great way for a kid to be outdoors, exercising and earning some money. ;-)

I LOVE camping. Have fun, Chelle!

Thanks Nora! I felt bad for the poor kid as he showed up here at 1pm and worked until 5 and it was HOT yesterday! He should have come in the morning instead. He filled two wheelbarrows full and only got 1/3 of the lawn done. I guess I will be out there this week picking more :(

Glad to have you back Julia! :)

Hi Nancy! I am looking forward to going! We can't decide if we can't to camp in a private campground that has oceanside lots or go to the National park where we can hike and swim in the lake. It's a hard decision!

Ha Kath! The campgrounds usually have flush toilets and showers but we always sleep in tents instead of cottages. Maybe when we have more money we can do a cottage trip

Thanks Joe! It will be our first time camping with Tempe. Jackson is a good camping dog but I have no idea what it will be like with hyper Tempe

Ya Morphy I remember being a teenager and needing cash so I thought this kid would like it. I think he was using the money to go golfing today :)

Hi John! Life has been quite busy but I am trying to make time for LT every day! I think I have visited almost everyone now.

Hi Donna! Actually we ended up leaving for a while yesterday while the fella was working. Nate was given the day off so we took the top off his jeep and went for a joy ride along the ocean roads. It was such a beautiful day but of course we forgot to use sunscreen and now I have a sunburn :(

Hi Mark! I have been debating off and on about cancelling my audible membership as it's $15 every month for one book. A lot of my books are available at the library and my sister lets me use her online library account for the city she lives in and they have even more audiobooks available. I also get some "free" as well ;-)

Hi Lori! Kids have so much energy that I figured he could do it in half the time that I could. I try and pick some rocks every time I take the dogs out. It's like an endless chore!

Thanks Ellen! I'll be sure to take lots of photos! :)

Chelle, if I remember correctly, 1:00 pm is often first thing in the morning for many teens! Sorry to hear of the sunburn, but the camping trip sounds like a lot of fun.

>66 DeltaQueen50: My mom used to say that my brother woke at the crack of noon:)

>53 ChelleBearss: We had so many rocks on our property...
I have hauled rocks form a paddock (field) before. I did 2 wheel barrows before I decided that it was (excuse my French) bloody hard work! Turns out rocks are heavy ay?!

re: your spare room, and the reason its still available for rent?
LOL

Hi Chelle - I have a never-ending project like your rocks at the moment, but it isn't rocks, fortunately. Just never-ending.

I have a student sitting with me at the moment. This morning she commented that working office hours was very tiring :-)

Hmm yes I agree with others re: darn teenagers sleeping too late. Maybe this will teach him to get up early and drink a gallon of coffee like the rest of us! *shakes fist*

Hi Chelle! I hope the camping trip is lovely! Good luck with Tempe.

I put my Audible membership on hold last year and haven't gone back, as I have such a large backlog of audiobooks to listen to, and, quite frankly, my library system has a lot of what I want anyway (although not everything, so I may go back to Audible some day.)

82) Cider House Rules by John Irving
Read for:
75 Books Challenge for 2013,
2013 Category Challenge: 1001 Books to read before you die
1001 Books to read before you die

This was an excellent read. Once I started it I didn't want to put it down. I am very surprised that it took my so many years to finally read a John Irving novel!

66 Ha Judy, that does sound about right! As I recall before I started working straight dayshift I used to be able to sleep that late as well!

67 Crack of noon, I like that! :)

68 Yep, rocks are heavy! Like really stupid heavy. And I'm lazy. I picked half a wheel barrow over the last couple days. Every time I took the dogs out I'd pick a few more. At this pace I should be still picking come winter!

69 Hi Susan! It feels like our landscaping is a permanent ongoing project. If it's not rocks or grass that won't grow then it's weeds! If only I was rich and could afford to have a gardener-slash-pool boy ;)

70 Nora, maybe if I drank more coffee it would help me be a better morning person

71 Hi Kerri! I ended up cancelling my audible account yesterday. I wish I could just pay per use instead of having a membership. Sometime the books I want are only $10-$12 and the credits were $15 a month. I wonder if I can just buy books from there without having to have the membership?

I have Cider House Rules in the stacks, so good to know that you thought it was a worthy read. I have yet to read any Irving, but I have several by him waiting patiently. And the rocks - UGH! You have my sympathies - that sounds like back breaking work. Which means you shouldn't be doing it - because you NEED your back, right?!

I don't know how Audible works in Canada, but I buy stuff from them all the time, and I have never had a membership. I usually just buy the stuff I can get for cheap.

*Back to add that when I buy from them I just use my Amazon info - you can have an Audible account or an Amazon account, and I have an Amazon account. DOn't know if that makes a difference or not.

I'm glad you liked Cider House Rules. I read it a long time ago and it's not my favorite John Irving but that's okay.

I keep thinking about camping and the fun of sleeping in a tent. It sounds lovely.

I saw the movie from Cider House Rules several years ago and really enjoyed that. Probably should read the book too ... but that TBR stack is really high right now!!

Happy Weekend Friends!


I only work 3 hours today and I got to sleep in this morning so I am super happy today! I do work all weekend but it's with a client I really like and he always wants me to sit and watch baseball with him so I doubt I'll be terribly overworked this weekend :)

Nate is hoping the rain will stop very soon as he is itching to get outside and ride his new motorcycle! He is like a kid at Christmas waiting to get into presents. It's cute and funny!
This is him when he brought it home from the store yesterday after riding it around the valley for a few hours while I was working


73 HI Mamie! That was the first Irving I have read and I will be looking for more to read now! I've owner that book in my stacks since 2009! I wish I had read it sooner

Thanks for the audible info! I'll keep an eye out for sales there now but I don't think I'll renew my membership again

74 Hi Ellen! Which was your favourite Irving?
We booked a site at Thomas Raddall Provincial park. We decided against doing to the hike out campsites because of taking both dogs with us but when we looked at the campgrounds at Keji almost every site was booked already. I don't find camping relaxing when the campgrounds are so full! So we found a campground that has walkout sites instead. The campsites are only a 5 minute walk from the car and they are oceanside. Sold! :) lol

75 Tell me about it Reba! Seems like the TBR is a never ending stack!

>76 ChelleBearss: Look at his cute little face! He's so happy!

I'm talking about Nate, of course.

You need to buy some leather chaps and matching leather jacket, Chelle, so you can ride with Nate in style! He does look adorable on his new bike. :)

My parents ride (two up) and love it. Are you going to ride as well, Chelle?

Nate looks like one happy camper (pun intended) : ). Sounds like you have a relatively easy weekend ahead, Chelle ... perfect lead-up to your camping trip.

77 Oh he is super happy, and cute too :) He is looking for excuses to ride it now! Need to go to the hardware store, lets ride the bike! Doesn't seem to matter that there is no room to carry anything on the bike!

78 Amber we still have our leathers from before we moved when we both had bikes. I need leather pants though if I'm going to ride with him this fall. It's too hot to wear anything more than jeans right now

79 Hi Micky! We used to each have a bike and I'm so used to having my own I think I will struggle with riding two up. I'm going to give it a shot after he gets used to this bike as it's a lot bigger than his old one and I'd like him to be sure of it's power before I get on the back! He is already planning bike trips for us though so I imagine I will have to suck it up and ride with him lol

80 Thanks Nancy! It was a rough day so far, I had to work 3 whole hours and go with my client to a coffee shop because he wanted a muffin. Rough life I lead ;-)

Sounds like a great campsite, and I'll bet the dogs will love it, Chelle!

>81 ChelleBearss:: Wait, you're a biker lady?! That's so awesome.

Thanks Roni I'll be sure to post some pictures afterwards! We were packing up our camping gear tonight and trying to figure out what we actually need and what can be left at home. Trying to pack extra light this time around!

Sure am Amber! This was me with my bike a few years ago. We sold the bikes before we moved because we figured it would be too difficult to deal with getting the bikes shipped out here but we regretted it as soon as we got here and realized how beautiful bike trips would be

(I look very serious in this photo but I was actually smiling but it's hard too see lol)

83) Fool Moon by Jim Butcher (4*)
Read for:
75 Books Challenge for 2013,
2013 Category Challenge: Off my shelves!!


I am loving this series! The main character Dresden is a smart ass wizard and I love his attitude! I'll be keeping with this series!

Chelle- I am so glad you enjoyed The Cider House Rules. It might be my second favorite Irving after Garp. I love the motorcycle photos. I was never a bike rider myself but always liked the idea of it.
I am listening to an audio, I know you will LOVE: NOS4A2. This is my 3rd book by Hill and they've all been highly enjoyable.
I think I read the first 3 Dresden books. They might be just a tad light for me. I prefer darker & edgier.

Love your Alan Rickman foto! Enjoy your camping trip!

>84 ChelleBearss:: Very cool! My best friend's brother owns a custom paint shop in Indiana, and he does mostly bikes. He posts photos of his work on his FB page; here it is, in case you're interested (in looking, I mean - I'm not trying to promote the shop!). He does a lot of skulls and stuff, which I don't necessarily care for, but I still recognize that the work is pretty amazing and the bikes look cool:

https://www.facebook.com/Krambos1?ref=ts&fref=ts

John Irving writes good books. I've read several of them in the past.
Bikes! Gah! scary :P Some of our local bikers do some really crazy things ...Be safe!

Chelle, I'm glad to see you wore a helmet in your biking days. It is so scary to me to see someone on a motorcycle without one! I'm glad you liked your first Irving book. I think A Prayer for Owen Meany is my favorite one of his. He wrote a couple of stinkers (more recent ones like The Fourth Hand) so be careful choosing your next one. Of course, this is my opinion only. My apologies to fans of The Fourth Hand, a book that I barely got started in before I put it down.

The Cider House Rules was a long-ago favorite of mine, so I'm glad it's got a punch even now for y'all young'uns.

*smooch*

86 HI Mark! Thanks for mentioning Garp as I hadn't heard of that one yet. I'll add that to my wishlist! I got a copy of NOS4A2 after you mentioned it. I have Horns in my TBR stack and I really should get to it soon!

87 Thanks Katie! 5 more sleeps :)

88 Thanks Amber I'll show that link to Nate ... although maybe that would give him expensive ideas so maybe I'll just look by myself lol

89 Don't worry Kath, we are safe riders. Nothing foolish here :)

90 We don't have a choice here Donna, helmets are mandatory here. I would have anyway though as I kind of like my head still in one piece :)
I have Owen Meany in my book stacks and I think I should read it sooner than later!

Hi Chelle, just trying to catch up. How neat that you and Nate are motorcycle riders. Love the pictures. And you must read A Prayer for Owen Meany soon. It's a wonderful book.

Oh, I too, loved The Cider House Rules! Garp and The Hotel New Hampshire are also excellent

Chelle, you know that you have free access to OverDrive from your library to download titles too?
Also, I camped at Thomas Raddall a couple of weekends ago. It was lovely, except the bugs. I swear the mosquitos picked me up to carry me away at one point.

Sigh, I went and googled the parks. I have picked out my dream campsite, which is #76 at Porter's Lake National Park. Now, what a pity that I'm several hundred miles away. And that I don't drive. And haven't been camping since the age of 13.

Wow you used to be /are a biker! So many strings to your bow....
Helmets are compulsory here too, even on push bikes. I actually think it puts people off riding push bikes and wish they would change that law. But you def need one on a motorbike!

Hello friends! It was a hot day here today! 28c in some spots and the ocean breeze wasn't all that cool today :( I came home from work and washed my car and let the dogs frolic in the yard and now everyone is in need of a nap!

I will be spending my night watching some TV with Nate (Under the Dome and Get out Alive with Bear Grylls is on tonight) and then after Nate heads to bed I'll be watching the Blue Jays try and do something other than lose. I'll also be trying to read some more of On Beauty (which I am really enjoying so far!)
I'm about halfway through the audio of Ocean at the End of the Lane and I am loving it. I could listen to Neil Gaiman read a shopping list, I just adore his voice!
Hope everyone enjoyed the start of their week! Stay cool friends! (And I guess for those of you that are currently in your winter, stay warm!)

93 Hi Pat! I think I lost your thread somewhere along the line, I'll fix that!
We loved riding together, although to be honest I was never 100% comfortable with it because I still struggle with changing gears and have to think about it. If motorcycles came in automatic I'd be Alllllll over that (I know, true bikers will cringe at that comment!)
I'll try and dig out my copy of Owen Meany and add it to my "sooner than later" pile!

94 Hi Joanne! Looks like John Irving has lots of love here on LT!

95 Hi Dee! I do use overdrive quite a bit but I dislike how overdrive doesn't save my place very well when I use it through iTunes. I sometimes use the overdrive app on my phone but not always.
Which part of Thomas Raddall were you camping in? I was surprised to see that Keji was almost completely booked up! I knew it would be popular in the summer but I was surprised to see just how popular. We booked in the walkin sites by the ocean side sites, hopefully the bugs will be less there? I'll bring extra bug spray and citronella candles! Thanks for the heads up!

96 Oh Suz that site is perfect! I will have to mark that one for next time! We are camping here, #47. The pictures don't show much but the description said it was oceanside, so I am crossing my fingers!

97 Hi Megan! Yes I am a complex creature lol. My friends say I'm a bit odd ;)
I had to google what a push bike was, that's basically a childs bike right? Helmets are mandatory for kids riding bicycles here too. I don't think for adults though. But on all motorcycles and dirt bikes though.

Sounds like a great day, Chelle. While it's not super warm outside (only 21C here today), it is pretty warm in my apartment. :P

Sigh, I remember the glory days of the Blue Jays -- including having to be at Les Miz with my father & stepmother when half the audience was listening to a game on their headphones, and then trying to get to work through the big parade.

That site looks good -- is that your parking place by the picnic table, or where they expect you to put up your tent?? There will be shade, at any rate...

Consider me yr unofficial remote researcher of suitable camping sites...

Joanne is right, Irving is really good, I liked all of those, too :)

Catching up after being way behind... love the Alan Rickman photo / quote up top!

Love your garden pictures ~~ sounds like your first try is going extremely well! Yay!

Ooooh, I'm only 3 books in to the Dresden series, but I also love Harry's kick-butt attitude! :)

Chelle, the park sounds beautiful. 11.2 km of wilderness trail. Oh, and ocean-side. Yay!

I do wish I liked camping more but my idea of roughing it is no room service.

The one time we did go camping we used a huge pop up with king-sized pull out beds, propane refrigerator, etc. I went totally OCD with the lists of camping supplies and basically drove my husband up the wall.

Hi Chelle! Cooler here today, with drizzle-down rain...this, my friend, this is what summer can do to make me happy.

Reading a fantasy novel.

99 Hi Micky! Hope your apt cools down! I always hated sleeping in a warm apt/house. We have been frozen at night here as the temps have dropped quite a bit overnight. We keep forgetting to shut our windows before bed and I wake up in the morning shivering! It's about 20c here today and has been raining all day.

100 Blue Jays have not been doing well this year. They got their butt handed to them last night like 14-5 or something equally stupid.
That is probably where we are suggested to put our tent as there is no parking on site. I imagine we will try and find a grassy spot for the tent instead as sleeping on gravel isn't my idea of a good time!

101 Kath, Irving seems to have quite a few fans here on LT. I'll be trying to fit in at least one more this year

102 Hi Tina! Gardening is going ok. I may have planted a little too much in a small space though. I will be making it bigger for next year. Everything is a little crowded and the pumpkins have decided that they own the whole garden. My pumpkins and cucumbers have been pulled into the grass so that everything else can have a chance to grow.
I love how sarcastic Dresden is. And the fella that reads the audio has the perfect voice for the sarcasm!

103 Hi Nancy! Yes we are excited! The walk in sites look like there is only one other site booked out of the possible 15 so it should be nice and quiet for us!
I am looking forward to spending some time walking the ocean sand as the ocean near my house is all rock beach but the campground is supposed to have sandy beaches

104 Morphy a pop-up tent sounds like a good way to travel too! I told Nate that he should get a small one that he can tow behind his bike lol. He didn't really think that was a good idea, dunno why ;-P

105 Hi RD! Hope you are enjoying your cooler temps, although I believe I saw that you are still in the 90's now? We have rain here today too which is great for my garden, but not so great on the wet dog smell!
Enjoy your fantasy read! I'm going to be finishing On Beauty & Ocean at the End of the Lane tonight!

>106 ChelleBearss: I live in a high rise so it gets warm and because it's concrete and I can't cross-vent it retains the heat. My apartment was around 29C when I left this morning. Basically, my oscillating fan is my best friend. :P

Getting any reading in at all right now, or is it all motorcycles and dogs and gardens right now? :)

84) The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman (4*)
Read for:
75 Books Challenge for 2013,
2013 Category Challenge: LT Recommended books


Another great novel by Gaiman! I listened to the audio version which he narrated himself and it was wonderful to listen to. Gaiman is fast becoming one of my favourite authors.

107 Hi Micky! 29 is fricking hot! Hope your fan is industrial sized!
No motorcycling today since it's raining. We went out last night for my first experience riding on back of his. It was ok but I was nervous!
I'm going to try and finish On Beauty tonight

>108 ChelleBearss: Keep in mind, that 29C is without all the humidity you get on your side of the country. So it's warm but I won't die. :)

Gaiman has the best reading voice ever. There's a Doctor Who Confidential for one of the episodes he wrote and parts of it they just have him read the script and it's loverly. :)

I am having a pissy day and a pouty night. It seems like everyone around me is pregnant right now or just having babies and since my lady parts have decided not to work properly I'm NOT pregnant, still.
My two best friends from high school just had babies, one of my ex boyfriends is having a baby with his wife, two of my close friends just told me they are pregnant and three other people that are in our lives are pregnant. And of course the Royal Baby arrived yesterday.
So ya, I'm pissy today. Doesn't help that today was my 10th day in a row of working. One more shift and then we are going camping. I sooooooooooooo need to get out of my head for a few days!

Sorry guys, rant over. Back to books, shall we! I finished two books last night and they were both wonderful! I've started a new audiobook Daughter of Smoke and Bone and a new novel The Hypnotist, neither of which has grabbed me yet but hopefully soon!

Hope everyone is having a happy night.

109 Ahhh you are lucky that you don't get humidity like we do! It's been thick here for the last few days. I've given up doing anything with my hair as it's a lost cause right now!


85) On Beauty by Zadie Smith (4*)
Read for:
75 Books Challenge for 2013,
2013 Category Challenge: Prize winners (Booker or Orange Prizes)


This was my first novel by Zadie Smith and I found it very enjoyable and really easy to get into. I will be grabbing White Teeth as soon as possible.

Hugs for you, Chelle. Sounds like you need some.

I now measure humidity levels by what my hair was like while I was in London (my curly hair went a little nuts over there). So it's a bit humid here today (based on curliness) but not at London levels. :P

Hello Chelle - new to your thread but some interesting book choices and I LOVE that you live in Nova Scotia! How fantastic. What kind of work do you actually do?

Hi Chelle- Sorry about the "pissy & the pouty"! Your time will come, my friend. I am glad you enjoyed the new Gaiman. He is a wonderful narrator.
BTW- You used the Gaiman book cover image for the Smith cover too!

Thanks Micky, I needed that hug! I've been a cranky mess the last couple days. At least Nate baked cookies yesterday, that cheered me up :)
My Bangs will NOT stay straight in this weather. They have a kink to them and fly all over. It's a lost cause and I think this weekend will be the Weekend of Hat!

Hi Prue! Thanks for visiting :) I love that I live in Nova Scotia too! lol
I am a home care worker for seniors. I help them stay in their home by cleaning and cooking for them and taking them to appointments or just hanging out with them.

Thanks for the catch Mark! Covers have been changed :)
I think my next Gaiman will be Anansi Boys as that seems to be a LT favourite as well

Embrace the bangs and the curl. I did, and it took me too long to do so. If you give in, I promise you will be glad :)

I'm sorry that a baby hasn't come to you yet... I hope a little one is in your very very near future!

I'm sorry your lady parts are arguing with you. It must be so unimaginably frustrating. What does the doctor say, if you've seen one?

Sorry Kath, I just can't do it! Lol. The bangs get a kink halfway down, they don't even curl properly! I have them pinned back today as it's been raining for two days and the air is so thick you can taste it! I can't wait to go to the ocean tomorrow! Thanks for the support!

Morphy the general feeling with gynos and doctors around here is to not be concerned until it's been over a year. If I'm not pregnant by fall they will start running tests to see which of the lady parts is broken. Nate will have to be tested too which makes him blush lol
I think I wouldn't be quite so frustrated if I wasn't surrounded by pregnant people all of a sudden! It's like a frickin epidemic recently

Well, here's to hoping that the lady bits stop arguing or at the very least it's something easily fixable! (Maybe Nate has slow swimmers, lol!)

Thanks for the reminder on Zadie Smith. Chelle. I need to read one of hers. On Beauty sounds good.

>114 ChelleBearss: Cookies are a great pick-me-up. And way to go to Nate for baking! As for the weekend of the hat, that is always an acceptable choice when dealing with wayward hair. Hope you have a great time with the ocean! And also Nate. ;)

*smooch*

It's difficult wanting a baby and having it not happen. I waited about 5 years to get pregnant with my son and I remember (almost) physically feeling the emptiness in my arms when I was around babies. BUT it did happen and I have a wonderful son ... I'll hold the faith for you too. Meanwhile, here's a hug.

Well friends I am pretty much packed and ready to go! I have to pack the car in the morning and present a sleepy nightshift Nate with lots of coffee and then we will be hitting the road for camping. We are planning on having a technology free weekend and leaving our phones off so I won't be on LT at all but I do plan on reading while we are away! I'll be taking The Hypnotist and The Scorch Trials with me and hoping to do some reading while the dogs swim or when Nate fishes. (I'll fish too but I'll get bored eventually and switch to my book)

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

118 Thanks Morphy! I told Nate that if we are not pregnant by next summer he is buying me another dog and my own motorcycle. My luck I would get the new motorcycle and get pregnant the next month and not get to ride anymore ;-p

119 No problem Joe! Always glad to spread the good book love :)

120 Micky I was shocked that Nate baked cookies as I wasn't aware that he knew how! Apparently he was staring at the back of the peanut butter jar while waiting for his toast to pop and noticed a recipe on the back, so he baked it. I'm going to start sticking random recipes on food containers and see if he will bake more! lol

121 Smooches to you and your little dog too! Hope you and your fur friend are keeping cool!

122 Oh Reba, 5 years is a looong time! I doubt I have the patience for that. Luckily I am not surrounded by babies, just pregnant people. I may go into hiding sometime in the next 9 months though ;)

Chelle- Have a great camping trip! Hopefully you'll get in plenty of R & R!

Just tell yourself it's demographics. A lot of your friends are in your age group, right? So it's fairly logical that this is the time they're starting to get pregnant. And -- I hate to say, but it's true -- the more stress you're under, the harder it appears to be for everything to work the way it should. One friend of mine was finally so stressed out that she ended up adopting. The week before she flew down to pick up her new son, she discovered she was pregnant. And then she was offered the chance to adopt her son's biological sister. So she ended up with three babies under the age of two when a year earlier she had been fretting about having no children. I know countless stories of this kind, including ones of friends in their 40s getting pregnant against the odds. (My sis in law didn't get started until her late 30s and popped out three in four years.) I'm sure it's incredibly stressful, but if you refocus and think of all the expertise and help you'll have in a year or two's time from all the now-pregnant friends, that might help get you over the hump. I know the fact that the docs are almost certainly right is no consolation, but unless you're surreally lucky and surreally fertile, less than a year of trying feels far more frustrating than it is significant. Hang in there...

Oh, Chelle, have a fabulous weekend camping with Nate in beautiful NS : ).

Chelle, it has taken me a while to get back to you about John Irving but.....
I still think The World According to Garp was absolutely wonderful and perhaps his best work. I read it twice at a time during my life when re-reads were almost unheard of (well, that hasn't changed much, but still). I also liked A Prayer for Owen Meany a great deal; it's probably my second-favorite. I have but have not yet read In One Person and I didn't read his last couple of novels.

Have a great time camping!!

>98 ChelleBearss: push bike = a bike with pedals as opposed to a motor :)

Im so sorry you are having trouble getting pregnant. Sorry also for teasing you earlier about your spare room :(
It is really hard seeing everyone else going in the direction you want to be. Frustrating. I had trouble staying pregnant before the boys finally arrived, and it was gut-wrenching. I hope you have luck soon! It will happen when it's meant to.

Oh, gosh, Chelle. I hope the camping trip is lovely and helps with the recent stress. Take care.

I love that Nate decided to make the cookies because he saw the recipe on the jar of peanut butter! My other half is not that surprising in the kitchen (he is not a baker) but I can rely on him to take over the prepartion and cooking of any meat or fish that we are having for dinner.... he makes the best breaded veal, IMO anyways. ;-)

Have a wonderful stress-free camping trip!

Hi Chelle! Hope you and Nate are nestled under a cozy tent about now and will have a rain free weekend. You both look so cute on your bikes, such an adorable couple. Sending Baby vibes your way and crossing all my crossables.

Sometimes posts make me laugh and laugh.....

I love the dogs having fun video...
I hope you were having just as much fun and more...

Chelle - Hope your weekend is going well my dear and that stress levels are under control.
btw I thought Suz's note up above was both sensitive and wise.

Hope you are having a great time camping!

Hi Friends! We are home and oh so tired! It was an amazing weekend away and we hardly had any rain after all! We spent all day Saturday hiking the shore and walking the beach. I think we hiked around 9-10km total. We will definitely be going back there again and hopefully soon! It was one of the most beautiful beaches that we have ever been to! White sand and the ocean was an incredible blue. I could have sat on the beach all day long! Some photos are here if you would like to check them out at all.

Tonight I made a cake for one of my clients that is turning 90 on Tuesday. He is a big Blue Jays fan so I made him a baseball cake to give him during my shift with him tomorrow afternoon.
It will be an early night for me tonight!


124 Thanks Mark! We did lots of relaxing, hiking and I even got some reading in too!

125 Thanks for that Suz! I have also heard lots of stories of people adopting and then finding out they are pregnant shortly after. I'm trying not to think about it and relax a little more but it's so hard to not think about. I am going to try and give myself some more "me" time each day to try and ensure I am not stressing out. Spending less time on facebook would probably help too lol

126 Thanks Nancy! It turned out to be a great weekend

127 Hi Ellen! I have added Garp to my wishlist, thanks! I am hoping that my local library has it or else I might have to give some business to book depository ;)

128 Oh no worries Megan, that didn't bother me. Sorry to see you had trouble with your first pregnancies too. Glad it all worked out for you in the end and you have some beautiful babes in your life now!

129 Thanks Kerri! It was a very stress free weekend!

130 Hi Lori! Up until this year Nate wouldn't step into the kitchen unless forced! The last few months he has been trying to learn to cook some healthy meals. He was so cute when he baked the cookies as he was so happy that they turned out yummy!

131 Thanks Lynda! We had a small amount of rain during the evenings but not enough to make much difference. We woke up the first night quite damp and cold and wished we had an extra blanket but the second night was much nicer. We need to upgrade to a better quality sleeping bag I think.

132 HI Kath! The dogs were having so much fun running in the waves! They were actually pretty cute! Tempe really wanted to catch a seagull that kept flying over her head.

133 HI Paul! Yes our weekend was delightfully stress free!
You are right, Suz is both sensitive and wise! ;)

134 Thanks Roni, we did!!

135 Love the photo Ellen!

Sounds like a fabulous trip!!! & I love the cake. It's probably the best looking cake he's ever gotten.

Welcome home, Chelle et al.
Glad you had good weather and a wonderful time. The pictures are great :)

Tell Kath how much you like Aunt Dimity books... she was contemplating reading one.
I liked the one you got me!

86) The Hypnotist by Lars Kepler (3.5*)
Read for:
75 Books Challenge for 2013,


Very interesting triller that I was happy to see myself surprised with the "who dun it"! Always a good book when I haven't figured out the plot by the end!

137 Thanks Katie! He keeps saying that he feels like this will be his last birthday as he is ready to join his wife in whatever comes next so I wanted to help him celebrate. 90 is a big one in my young eyes! My other client turns 95 in the fall so I will need to find a cool cake idea for him

138 Thanks Cee! When you come back to visit NS again you should stop at this park! The beach is a short walk from a parking lot and it's a beauty! You would love it!
I will have to stop by Kath's thread and persuade her :)

Hi Chelle , the cake looks great. Hope you and Nate and the dogs are fine, you are very busy these days but still charging along with the reading.

How sweet of you to make Al a baseball-themed cake! Glad you had fun and also that you got in a little reading time. So necessary for a healthy mind.

Your clients are very lucky to have such a kind and caring person ...good on you sweet Chell!
Glad you had such a good time!

Chelle- Glad you had a great weekend! Love the camping photos! The weather does look perfect.

Wow! Beautiful cake!

Love the cake. You should come to Minnesota and make one for me for my 50th. Something book themed!

Glad you had a good weekend away, Chelle. :) Hope your work week reading is enjoyable.

140 Thanks John! Nate and the dogs are doing well and we are enjoying our summer. Hope you are doing well. I'll have to pop by your thread tonight

141 Thanks Richard! Al loved the cake and even gave me a hug and a kiss on the cheek for it.
This weekend was great for my sanity! We are looking forward to another weekend away soon

142 Thanks Kath! It helps that I like my clients :)

143 Hiya Mark! We got very lucky with the weather considering the forecast was for rain all weekend! The tent was a bit cool and damp at night but the days were wonderful

144 Thanks Amber!

145 Oh Morphy I would love to come visit you but probably not anytime soon unfortunately. To be honest I actually had to google map Minnesota as I had no idea where it was. I was surprised to see you were quite close to the Ontario border.

146 Thanks Micky! I'm reading a bit of fluff right now (The Scorch Trials) but I start some non-fiction later this week that I have great hopes for.

LOL. I'm so Ameri-centric. Of course, I assumed you knew where Minnesota was. You are in Canada and we are RIGHT THERE! Hee hee.

HA well if I had paid any attention in geography class I would have known where Minnesota was. I would also know how many states there are too and maybe even their capitals ;-p

Heck. *I* don't know the capitals! Though I do know how many states. :D

Morning friends!
Today Nate and I have our last day off together until next week we both go back to work tomorrow. We have some cleaning and errands to do today and then we are going to a surprise 90th birthday party for one of my clients today. I gave him his cake yesterday and he loved it! He kept saying how he wished I could come visit him today on his birthday and I felt so bad lying to him but I didn't want to spoil his daughters surprise!

It's been a great start to our day today! We both slept in until 10am and then we have been sitting at the kitchen table together for the last hour drinking coffee, chatting and playing on our computers. It's been a long time since we have done this!

I raided my garden today and I harvested some spinach, lettuce and one lonely carrot. Apparently I didn't dig my garden down deep enough as only one carrot grew longer than an inch. I will have to work on that better for next year.

Hope everyone enjoys their Tuesday!

150 Morphy I think there are 52? Is that right? I only know American geography when it comes to places I have travelled or want to travel, the rest hasn't sunk in.

Nope, 50. :D

Crap, I was close. I get half points for knowing there was a 5 in it ;)

Sounds like a lovely day off for the two of you, Chelle. Hope it continues to remain awesome. :D

Chelle, is Nunavut a province or a territory?

Hi Chelle, I have always purchased books from a wide range of places, bookshops, secondhand and antiquarian bookshops, charity shops and supermarkets but since getting to know Paul my purchasing has increased but not to his scale. I have now bought as many books this year as I did in the whole of 2012.

In September I will be going to the PBFA book fair at York Racecourse to add to my collection of Cricket books, mainly Wisdens, Yorkshire CCC yearbooks and Playfair cricket annuals. This is the biggest book fair in the UK with over 200 Antiquarian book dealers in one place with books to suit all ages.

154 Thanks Micky! It got better when Nate decided to cook spicy tilapia for dinner! Mmmm a delicious dinner and I didn't even have to cook it :)
Enjoy your Tuesday!

155 RD it's a territory. It used to be part of Northwest Territories until sometime in the 90's and then it seperated (I'm not sure why though). It's on my list of Canadian places to visit, along with the other two territories and all of the west coast. I have the east coast covered :)

156 Wow John that sounds like a antique book lovers heaven!
I have bought about 40something books this year which is a lean year for me so far. I'm trying to be a financially responsible girl so far but I can't see it lasting too much longer ;-p

The book fair is my sort of heaven and I will have an enjoyable day there but will not have the amount of cash that I really would like, got to be financially responsible and at the prices I am now having to pay for collectable old books I have to be prudent.

Chelle, I agree with others that your clients are very lucky. It's a beautiful cake.

I hope you and Nate had a wonderful last day off together before heading back to RL and work. It sounds like you've had a good respite.

I once found a fishing lodge in Nunavut where I could go fishing all day, then go back to the lodge for a massage before a gourmet dinner. Now that's *my* kind of fishing! :)

My book buying has dropped dramatically since getting this job... and since I am giving away my books.. well over 2,000 over the last few years... that's a good thing. ( Hard in some ways, I admit)

I think perhaps we have a lot of LT peeps who hear voices like this!

162 --- LOL!!! That's fantastic!! :)

Sorry to hear your lady parts are being finicky. I've heard the same stories about *trying* and then deciding to adopt then suddenly becoming preggo. Have faith, dear one. :)

I had to giggle on "The Weekend of the Hat". I often have to resort to "The Weekend of the Scrunchie" for similar reasons. I fight my curls regularly. Like you, I haven't joined Kath in giving in just yet.

Your cake is beautiful!! Great job! I hope your client knows how lucky he is to have you!

162 - We need more children like that, I say.

What Ellen said. :-)

#162 Ha! Good one, Chelle : ).

Chelle, sympathising with your pregnancy woes. But don't get too despondent - I think a lot more people have problems than is generally realised. In our case, we had completely given up and then J came along after 8 years of trying, to our great surprise!

Hi Friends!

Tonight I am happily lazing about with the fur kids. Nate works days tomorrow so he has already gone to bed. Blue Jays won, I've had a relaxing bubble bath and now I've got a hot tea and a good book. I intend to finish my current book TONIGHT so I can mark it as a July book. I had a great start to the year but each month I've been reading less and less. At this rate I won't make my double 75 that I had intended. So trying to motivate myself tonight and get my monthly numbers back up where they should be :) Hope everyone had a great hump day!

158 John that sounds like a fun place to spend some time even if you can only buy a select few. I wouldn't even begin to know what a collector edition novel would even be worth!

159 Thanks Ellen! I got to have a piece of cake with Al today and we chatted for a while about his party yesterday. He had an amazing turnout and he loved meeting Nathen. Al and his family are pretty hilarious and just as sarcastic as Nate and I so we mesh well!

160 Wow Jim that would be amazing! I bet fishing up there would be quite an experience as I'm sure the scenery would be just beautiful!

161 Holy crap Kath, you had 2000 books to give away? That's quite a collection you must of had! I'm a big keeper of books and can't imagine giving mine away. I hardly even like lending them! lol

163 Hi Tina! It was definitely weekend of the hat, especially since we didn't have a shower close by. My hair would have been very interesting! I think I look cute in a hat though so I don't mind having to resort to wearing one :)
We for sure can't afford to adopt so we will just keep practicing until we get it right ;-p.

164/5/6 Ha yes we do! I thought that was a cute one so I needed to share :)

167 Hi Rhian! 8 years eh! Whew that's a long time! My parents also waited 8 years but I don't think they were trying to have kids but instead the opposite! I may or may not have been a happy accident.

I am feeling better this week about the whole issue. I was thinking of the bright side that if we can't get pregnant I will be getting a motorcycle next summer and a winter trip haha. Nate laughs at my bright side but I think he is just happy that I'm not sad and angry all the time. My friend "L" lost a friendship with one of her friends when she got pregnant. Her friend had been trying to have a baby for many years and after L got married and pregnant instantly her friend told her that seeing her pregnant made her depressed so she couldn't hang out with her any longer. I thought that was pretty extreme. I find it depressing to be surrounded by so many pregnant chicks but I am happy for all my friends.

87) The Scorch Trials by James Dashner
Read for:
75 Books Challenge for 2013,


I will finish this tonight!!!

ETA
Not finished until August 2nd :(
Book was pretty good but definitely not as good as the first. However it left me with about a million questions that are going to bother me until I read the next instalment. (Which I guess is a sign that it was a good enough book to get under my skin.)

Hi Chelle- I have been dragging my feet on starting the Scorch Trials. I really enjoyed the Maze Runner but after hearing a couple lukewarm reviews on the 2nd, I've hesitated. Maybe, you'll change my mind?
Have you read Little Brother? I just started it on audio. I think this might be your cuppa.

Blue Jays won, I've had a relaxing bubble bath and now I've got a hot tea and a good book.

That sounds like a lovely evening.

Hi Chelle- your camping trip sounded great, I had a look at the facebook pics, and saw a snake??@!? Do you come across them often where you are? I'm not a fan, and probably have an irrational fear considering we have none here.

Whenever I see you mention Nate, I always think of a cafe owner that my old workmate and me had a secret crush on....we decided to refer to him as Nate, for some reason. It was a long standing joke between us, every day at work talking about who was going to go and see Nate...whether Nate made me or her a better coffee....we used to flirt like crazy with him! haha, it was so funny. We never did find out his actual name though, so you can see where all my flirting got me! (I was already with my lovely other then, and it was just harmless fun....he thought so too, Im sure!!))

Well I suck. In post #169 I had planned that I was going to finish The Scorch Trials that evening and did I? Noooo I feel asleep on the couch with my book on my chest. I can't remember the last time I fell asleep reading! I finally finished tonight though and my thoughts have been added to post #169.

I've been very tired this week which is my own fault because I forgot to take my medications camping with me and went about 4 days without my thyroid pills. It's amazing to see how different I can feel after only a few days. I few loooong sleep-ins and early to bed nights and I am feeling back on track.

I spent a large portion of the last few days (after work) painting my linen closet that Nate built me. I wanted something a little different so I painted the shelves and side walls an off white, almost grey colour. Then I painted the back wall a red paprika type colour. I have one more coat of white and then I'll do some touch ups (I don't have a very steady hand!) and then I will be able to start using the closet! (Which will get all the closet type crap out of my spare bedroom yay!)

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

170 Sorry Mark but I can't change your mind :( I enjoyed The Scorch Trials but it wasn't as good as the first. I will read the third because the second left too many questions unanswered so I feel I have to finish the trilogy. If there were many more books I would probably abandon it at this point but with only one book left it's worth it for me to finish it.

171 Thanks Ellen, it was a good evening (minus the falling asleep on the couch part!)

172 HI Megan! It was actually hilarious when we saw the snake as both my dogs and Nate walked right over it and didn't notice it! Clearly my dogs need their sniffer cleaned out! It was just a Maritime garter snake which is a harmless snake. I don't think we have any poisonous snakes around here. Nate HATES snakes and threatened to run away if I picked it up, so after making fun of him a ton I left the snake on the ground and just took it's picture instead ;-p
I love your Nate story! That's so awesome that you chose Nate as his name

It is pretty amazing how much our medicines help that we don't realize until we go off... I've done that with my asthma meds before (not on purpose) and wondered why suddenly I couldn't breathe worth a crap. ;)

Falling asleep with a book is something I do all of the time! How wonderful that Nate built you a linen closet. Love the idea of painting the back wall a contrasting colour.

HAPPY THINGAVERSARY to me!! It's been two years since I found this amazing website to catalogue my books and I had no idea at the time that I would be meeting some amazing people and making such great friendships here! Thanks to all of you for making this website such a great place to visit daily!

I recently bought 5 books from chapters and I have two pre-orders coming this month so I won't be buying anymore books for my Thingaversary. Recently purchase (I can't remember if I listed them here yet):
Aunt Dimity: Detective by Nancy Atherton
Potsdam Station by David Downing
The Scorch Trials by James Dashner
Dangerous Games by Keri Arthur
Deeply Odd by Dean Koontz

And my pre-orders for later this month are:
Bones of the Lost by Kathy Reichs
Maddaddam by Margaret Atwood

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

174 It was very stupid of me Tina but I will know now that I need to continue to be regular with my meds. I've had days where I've forgotten and not noticed a difference but in the long term it really does show

175 Thanks Lori! I'm not the best with decorating or painting, not imaginative enough really, but I saw someone else online do the linen closet paint like that and I thought it looked pretty neat

You have inspired me.. maybe I will paint my linen closet soon! I love your idea! Maybe a white back and shelves and blue side walls!

Happy Thingaversary, Chelle! Love your linen closet project. Post some pics for us, please ...

Happy Thingaversary!

Shaking my head in dismay at the lack of geographical knowledge on the part of today's young Canadians, however *cue cantankerous geriatric grumbling...*

Nunavut is a territory, and it was created as part of a land claims settlement with the Inuit. The talks that led up to it go all the way back to 1976, and the carving out of Nunavut was finally completed in either 92 or 93. Capital is Iqaliut (sp??).

Lotsa purchases! Wish I had known you were getting into the Aunt Dimity series; I would have set aside all of mine to send you. Alas, they were discarded before my move.

Happy second Thingaversary! *smooch*

So I met an author today, how cool is that?! I worked today and one of my client's neighbour's kids came to visit, Christy Ann Conlin. We were introduced and she chatted with my client for a little while and after she left my client told me that she is a published author. Apparently her book is pretty good but not too well known Heave. She is staying at a cottage a couple doors down from my client so I am hoping she will stop by again tomorrow and I can pick her brain about her book a bit. I've put a hold on the book at the library so I am hoping to read it in the next couple of weeks for my last Canadian spot on my category challenge.
After work I came home and finished my painting job and then cleaned up my mess and my messy kitchen. I plan on sitting on my butt and reading and watching a bit of baseball before bed. I feel it might be an early night!
Hope everyone is having a great weekend!

Hi Kath! This is how it turned out

I love it. I was worried when I started painting the red that it might not be what I had imagined but it turned out pretty good. Now I only wish I had managed to finished the project without knocking over the ladder that had the bucket of paint on it! OY! Now I have to paint a white closet door white again because I couldn't wash all the red paint off it LoL! My life, really

Thanks Nancy! I think this forum is amazing and I am so happy that I started using it two years ago!

Suz, I know! I was a terrible student and I have a horrible memory. The only thing I say in my defence is I am a very curious adult and frequently look up things when I start to think about them. After I wrote about Nunavut to Richard I then went to look up more information. Thanks for sharing that though!
Oh thanks for offering to send those if you had them still. I've been buying one at a time whenever I place a book order so that I always have a fluff book lying around for when my brain hurts ;-p

Thanks Richard!

Beautiful! Sorry about the oops with the paint :( not good that...

88) Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor (4*)
Read for:
75 Books Challenge for 2013,


I feel that someone recommended this one to me and I can't remember who, but thank you whoever you are. I listened to the audio version of this and really enjoyed it. I actually found myself trying to find things to do that would allow me to listen to the audio at the same time. I only wish this hadn't been yet another series as now I feel like I need to rush out to grab the next one!

Happy thingamebobby Chelle. You started a little after I and with the same thinking that it would be a spot to log all books owned, read and desired which the site is. It is this group, I think you'll find that adds a different dimension to one's expectations.

Great job with your linen closet, Chelle : ).

Love the red paint behind white shelves!

Why, Happy Thingaversary, Chelle. I usually forget mine, perhaps because it's in December.
I think.

I'm having trouble getting into my reading this year, too. Every time I think I'm on a roll, it collapses. Too many other things to think about.

It's easy for me to say don't worry about the baby issue, but I'm sure it's no fun waiting and hoping every month. Hope your successful soon

I'll keep an eye open for any that escaped the pre-move purge(s), but I don't think many, if any, did. I'll probably do another purge before the end of the year, so keep an eye on my thread. If possible, I'll note that I'm disposing of books and offer to e-mail people the lists. Richard snaffled some books from me that way last year, as did some other folks.

Happy 2nd Thingaversary Chelle, so glad I found this site, had a very enjoyable 18 months already.

Chelle, happy Thingaversary to you!

Love your linen closet. I started painting the insides of my closets awhile back, too. A fun way to play with color without "risking" a wall:) I love how yours turned out!

Love the closet, Chelle, and Happy Thingaversary! Glad to see you celebrated it so well.

Happy Thingaversary, Chelle!
Nice linen closet. :-)

Happy thingaversary Chelle! And congratulations on your lovely closet.

I **like** that red!

Happy belated Thingaversary, Chelle! Only 2 years, seems like I've known you for longer than that. I spose sharing good books and good times makes the time go so quickly.
I love the red closet too! Really makes a statement.

That closet looks great! I would never want to close the door!

Happy Thingaversary!

Belated happy thingaversary, Chelle! The closet looks fab. :)

Looks like you've had some decent YA reads recently as well. Daughter of Smoke and Bone has been on The List for a while. One of these days...

Lovely closet, Chelle and Happy belated Thingaversary!

Happy Thingaversary and agree - the closet looks great. Not surprisingly, it seems that Christy Ann Conlin must be friendly with another NS author - Lyn Coady. I am guessing this, because the author picture of Lyn is attributed to Christy. Maybe you can kill two authors with one stone? (so to speak..)

Hi friends! Nate is on vacation this week and taking up a huge amount of my reading/LT time. He is very lucky that he is cute and I love him or else he would be in trouble! ;-p
We are having friends over tonight for a BBQ and campfire. First time this summer that we have had anyone over. We decided to stop being antisocial I guess
Hope everyone is having a great week!

182 Hi Kath! No it wasn't good, at all! I haven't had a chance to paint it yet either so my hallway closet door has a big red patch :(

184 Hi Paul! Yes I think you are right that it's mostly this group that makes LT so amazing. I joined other groups but I haven't really been social in them at all

185 Thanks Nancy! It's full to the max now! I was able to take out the big ugly portable shelf that was in my bathroom with all my towels. The bathroom seems so huge now without it!

186 Thanks Reba!

187 Hi Gail! I was on a great roll earlier this year when I was working security as I sat on my butt at work for up to 8 hours reading. Now that I have a better job I actually have stuff to do and rarely get to read at all. I guess this is what happens to most people, work gets in the way of reading time!

188 Thanks Suz! That's so nice of you to offer to send books to people. That must be quite an expense though!

189 Thanks John! It's great that you joined this group! Best group on here!

190 Thanks Anne! I am a terrible painter and really need to practice making straight lines! I would like to paint my bathroom next but I am worried about making a mess!

191 Thanks Roni! Any excuse to get new books ;-0

192/193/194 Thanks Ellen, Nora & Richard!

195 HI Lynda! I know how you mean, it feels like I know you and others so well that I can't believe it's only been two years! I guess it could be that we share so much information about our lives on here. Some of you know more about my home life than friends that I actually see in person!

196 Thanks Katie! I'm actually pretty happy with the way it turned out so I'm going to make an effort to keep that closet clean and organized!

197 Hi Micky! Daughter of Smoke and Bones was one that I owned for quite a while and never bothered to put it on my phone. I'm glad that I finally listened to it! I need to buy #2 but I don't think that will happen anytime soon

198 Thanks Lori!

199 Hi Prue! I didn't get a chance to talk to Conlin as she was only at the cottage for the one day. I will try and chat with her if I see her there again. I've gotten some negative reviews about her book now though so I'm not 100% sure if I will read it or not.
I'm sure that Conlin and Coady probably know each other as I can't imagine that authors in Halifax are a big group of people. You never know though

A very Happy Thingaversary to you!!! Yay!!

Your closet looks fantastic! You did a great job -- really... I don't know that I'd put the door back up! :)

Chelle, I say go for it. Only one way to get better, right?

Hope your campfire night was fun :) and that you have more good evenings before summers end.

Being at work with nothing to do is DEADLY. And we aren't supposed to read at work... we are supposed to work. Which is difficult when there is no one there and nothing to do. GAH

Good for Nate to have vacation time but it does seem like he could leave you alone for a tiny bit of your usual reading time! Of course, I'm planning the books to take on our mini-moon and that is probably just silly of me.

Hi Chelle!
Nice closet... I'm inspired. First though I have to do the living room which will be a big project this winter. Maybe I should do a closet first to get warmed up! Hmmmmm. That could be fun.

I used to be so good at painting straight - back when my close eyesight was super stupendous. Now things seem to waver a bit :(
I really don't think people notice it so much (if at all).

HAPPY THINGAVERSARY! A bit late, but full of happy. So glad you are here spreading your joy and that I got to meet you for real ;-)

>173 ChelleBearss: I love your Nate story! That's so awesome that you chose Nate as his name
I could be wrong, but there aren't many "Nate's" around in NZ....Nathan/Nathaniel is shortened to Nat or Nath but even then rarely. Nate, to me, sounds very fancy, sophisticated and smooth! lol

I had a thyroid thingy a while back which they thought was stopping me staying pregnant, I was medicated for it while pregnant. But I stopped taking the pills pretty soon after a safe delivery, and have felt no difference. Yours is obviously different, glad the sleep ins and early nights have restored your balances!

Nice job on the cupboard painting too! There's a door on that thing right? Or is it recessed shelves. My linen cupboard really REALLY needs a door, so I can shove all the stuff in then close that thing off from all sight!

*smooch* for a happy weekend!

Hi Friends! Hope everyone is having a sunny weekend! It's been raining for two days here so Nate and I decided to scrap our camping plans for this weekend and stay closer to home. The forecast looks like sun later today and for tomorrow so we might head to the beach with some friends tomorrow. Today looks like it might be a right off!

I'm having a book funk right now. I've been reading Deeply Odd by Dean Koontz and not enjoying it at all. I loved the first few Odd Thomas books but this edition just isn't up to par for me. I debated putting it down last night but I'm over halfway now. I would really like to finish it today so I can get on to something else! Ten days into the month and I've only finished two books so far :-(

201 Thanks Tina! I need to keep the door closed though to try and keep the floor of the closet dog hair free!

202 Good point Anne! I think I will wait until life slows down in the fall or winter and paint the bathroom. I'm also trying to talk Nate into painting an accent wall on our main floor. I can't do it myself because we have open concept cathedral ceilings and I won't climb a ladder that high!

203 Hi Kath! Our campfire night was great! We ended up with 4 friends over for dinner and a few more showed up for the campfire. It was a late night and I was feeling it at work the next day!
Part of my job is companionship so when our main cleaning and cooking chores are done we are encouraged to just hang out with the clients and go for walks or whatever the client feels like doing. One of my clients really likes to go out for coffee so we go over to a little coffee shop by his house and have muffins and coffee. My other client is on an exercise program to keep his knees strong so we go for small walks with his dog or watch sports on TV. I like watching baseball with him and I'm starting to learn about tennis (although I still think it's pretty boring!)

204 Hi Ellen! Nate has given me some down time today as he is playing some stupid video game that he likes. I don't really get the point of it, but at least he is quiet and leaving me alone for a while ;-p

205 Hi Cee! I wish I could say that my lines were ever straight but even with young eyesight my lines still waiver! lol.
So when are you planning your return trip to NS??

206 HA I'll tell Nate that is he lived in NZ that his name would be considered sophisticated! HA!
Yep there is a door on that closet. Other wise the dogs would be nosing around in there and knocking stuff off shelves! They are VERY nosey!

207 Smooch Sir Richard!

Hi Chelle, I'm finally all caught up here. Sounds like you are having a pretty nice summer with camping trips and cook-outs. I think I have joined you in that small book funk as I can't seem to settle for any one book for very long. I have also only completed a couple of books for the month so far which is really slow for me.

89) Deeply Odd by Dean Koontz (2.5*)
Read for:
75 Books Challenge for 2013,


This was not to the level of the previous Odd Thomas books. It took me way too long to finish this book because it was incredibly boring for at least half of the book. Odd Thomas is supposed to be a different sort of character and a deep thinking and feeling character but the amount of "deep thought" jibber jabber in this book was over the top. I ended up skipping over multiple pages at a time (multiple times!) and don't feel I missed anything thing at all. The only good thing about this book was the last 40 pages or so.
I think this series has seen better days and probably should come to an end very soon!

Hi Chelle, So sorry to hear about the lady parts. However keep trying. I have been there and completely understand the frustration though. I never did have kids of my own but others have. Stress makes it even harder to get prego so try not to stress over it to much. I know that is hard not to also. Best of luck on that front.

Looks like you had fun camping. :) I also love all the pics you put on here and FB too. I have been super busy lately and have been having trouble getting on LT at work when I do hae a little time to get on here once in a while. Finally today LT works at work. So I am def catching up. :)

I love your little garden too :)

Sorry to hear about the bum book. Hope your next one is better.

Ah, I'm not at all surprised to hear your comments about Deeply Odd, Chelle, as I think this series took a wrong turn somewhere, but it sure is too bad. The first couple of Odd Thomas books were fresh and fun.

I'm slowly working my way (veeeery sloooooowly) through Koontz' bibliography so I'll keep your review in mind when I finally get to this one.

209 Hi Judy! My book funk seems to be completed now that I finished the terrible Koontz that I was working on. I started an autobiography I Suck at Girls, written by the guy who wrote Shit My Dad Says and it's pretty hilarious. I was reading Nate a few paragraphs and he was chuckling and might actually want to read it!

211 Hi Monica! Hope you are enjoying your summer too! We might head out to the Exibition today which I think is a big farming event here in NS. I've never been so if the rain holds off we might head over
Thanks for your kind words. I'm trying not to think about it any longer. Trying to be all Zen about it ;-p

212 Thanks Micky! The one I'm on now is great and I'm almost finished it

213 Hi Joe! I seem to remember that Odd Apocalypse wasn't as good as the previous ones either. I'm not sure what happened but I don't remember Odd Thomas to be so "In his head" in the first books as he is in the last. Koontz filled entire pages of Thomas thinking about what has happened and what could happen and the spirit world. It just didn't work and I found it very boring. Hopefully you enjoy it more than I did!
I think the series is supposed to end after the next one and if that's correct then I will finish the series off but if it keeps going and going then I think I'm done. I don't like the idea of leaving a series with just one book left but I just can't keep going if there are going to be many more. It's gotten too boring.

214 HI Morphy! I tried reading lots of Koontz in my 20's and I did end up reading quite a few of them but after I joined LT I stopped enjoy them. I stuck with the Odd Thomas series because I really enjoyed the first few books but I haven't really enjoyed many of his other recent books. I think I've grown out of Koontz. I'm so glad that I didn't grow out of Stephen King!!

I'm with you on the Odd series, Chelle. Boring is not good, and I thought Odd Apocalypse was a disappointment. If the series ends with the next one, then I'll finish it out, but if not, I'll join you on the sidelines.

90) I Suck at Girls by Justin Halpern (4*)
Read for:
75 Books Challenge for 2013,
2013 Category Challenge: non-fiction or biography


This was incredibly funny! I stayed up very late last night reading a huge chunk and then I finished it over breakfast this morning. I love when a book is so funny that I feel the need to poke my husband while he is sleeping and read him portions of it (although I doubt my husband likes that!)
I would really like to look into Shit my Dad Says now because I think the dad is the best character in this book! Just about every great quote include a lot of curse words though which for me makes it funnier but for some people might be a turn off!

"This is stick-shift," I said.
"Well done."
'But I don't know how to drive a stick. I learned on an automatic," I said, as he aggressively shifted gears.
"You remember when you were six or seven and we went to visit Aunt Naomi? We went to that pool with all the diving boards and you wanted to jump off of it, but you were too scared?"
"Yes."
"You remember what I did?"
"Yes. You carried me to the highest diving board in the entire place, grabbed me by the back of my swim trunks, and hurled me into the water."
"I tossed you off that thing that a sack of fuckin' potatoes," he chuckled as he stared out the window, reminiscing.
"What's your point?" I said.
"After that you went apeshit, jumping off every board in the place You learn stick shift with me, you won't give two shits when you take the test in an automatic with some asshole in a lab coat. Make sense?"
"No."
"Too fucking bad."

#181 - That is a nice closet. I'm on stay-cation this week and am considering cleaning out a particularly problematic closet, but it hasn't happened yet.

Glad to hear that you're over your reading funk!

Caught up with you again, Chelle. Happy Belated Thingaversary! Has it only been two years? My goodness, you've gotten married and moved to Nova Scotia in that time. Not to mention all the books you've read. I think you've been too busy to get pregnant. It will happen when the time is right. In the meantime, enjoy your camping trips because you may not be doing that for awhile after a baby enters your lives.

Hump Day *smooch* for a swift glide into the weekend!

keeping up with Chelle..

Hi Chelle. I, too, am glad that you're over your reading funk. It sounds like you enjoyed the last one quite a bit!

91) Orange is the New Black by Piper Kerman (3.5*)
Read for:
75 Books Challenge for 2013,
2013 Category Challenge: LT Recommended books


Big thanks to Kerri (DorsVenabili) for recommending this one! An entertaining read for sure! Quite different than the TV show but I enjoyed the book quite a bit!

Hi Friends!
I am having a lazy day off! Nate woke up and took the dogs out and let me sleep in and then stay in bed and read. Then he surprised me with breakfast in bed! I'm still trying to figure out what his game is ;-p Kidding, he was being very sweet today!
Tonight we are heading down to the south shore to go whale watching and I am very excited!! Hopefully we will actually see some and be able to get some good photos! Wish us luck :)

216 Joe I wish I could put my finger on exactly where Koontz went wrong with that series. I think the first one was the only great one and the rest have been ok. He seriously needs to end this series though!

218 HI Kerri! Hope enjoyed your stay-cation and didn't do any housework!!

219 Hi Donna! Yes it's hard to imagine that it's only been two years on LT and so much has happened in that time! We are usually pretty good at slowing down during the winter so maybe this winter will be our chance! Oh well, we are having fun trying ;-p

220 Thanks RD! Smooches to you and your little dog too!

221 HI Kath! Thanks for keeping us. I'll have to make an attempt to get caught up with you as well! Nate's vacation has thrown me off the routine that I was poorly attempting!

222 Thanks Ellen! The reading funk seems to be over and as always a million library holds all came in at once! I'm trying to finish off my category challenge and I only have 15 books left! I am hoping to finish it off in the next couple months

Oh, Chelle, a leisurely morning lolly gag, breakfast in bed, and whale watching ... does it get any better? Enjoy!

92) Grave Peril by Jim Butcher (3*)
Read for:
75 Books Challenge for 2013


Not as good as the previous two but still an entertaining audiobook. Dresden is a great character that I am growing very fond of. He needs to take a day off though! How many near death experiences can one wizard have?!

225 I agree Nancy! This was a great day off and should only get better as the night goes on! It's going to be COLD on the water tonight though as it's only 24c right now and super windy and we aren't going out until after 6pm. I'm wearing jeans and a sweater tonight and hopefully that will be warm enough!

>226 ChelleBearss: How many near death experiences can one wizard have?!

Having read the entire series, all I can say to this without spoilers is, "Urp?"

I'm all caught up here, Chelle! Glad that the camping trip was a success. The cake that you baked for your client was beautiful - I bet he really loved it. How did the surprise go off? I am not big on surprises myself unless they are very small ones. Character quirk, I know!

I loved how you painted your linen closet - what a colorful treat every time that you open it. I'm going to show it to the girls because they would love doing that with their closets, I am thinking.

Glad that you liked Daughter of Smoke and Bone - I think I might be the one who recommended it. I read it last year and loved it.

I was glad to see that you got over your reading funk, and sorry that I missed your two year thingaversary. Happy Thingaversary, very belated, from me!

That quote from I Suck at Girls had me laughing out loud, so I am going to have to hunt down that book. And Joe had just warned me that the third Dresden Files book was not as good as the first two, so I see that you are in agreement with him. I just listened to the first two books, so I am all set for the third one - they are great on audiobook. The narrator nails it. Have you read The Rivers of London books? I am thinking that you would like them. They are in a similar vein to the Dresden books.

Hi Chelle! Just checking in! The Dresden books kind of petered out for me. I think I read the 1st 3. Maybe, I'll return to them one of these days. I WISH my wife would watch the 1st episode of "Orange is the New Black", so we could start watching them together. Could you send her a threatening text? She might listen to someone else. My son quickly watched them all and my daughter plowed through most of them too!

ETA- I LOVED Joyland. Mr. King just keeps on surprising us!

I had put Joyland on hold at the library.. but took it off today. Feeling like fluff right now. I may give it a go later. I still have one person ahead of me for Inferno which I expect to like... regardless of the groans of others .. so :P~~~~~

I need a new book, I just finished one.

How many near death experiences can one wizard have?! Ha ha! It's on author's job to make their characters' lives difficult. I haven't read Butcher. I need to get hooked into another series like I need ... I don't want to finish that thought. It's getting unpleasant. But I've heard lots of people rave about him, so just maybe.

Hope the whale watching expedition was successful. Have a great weekend, Chelle!

Hi Chelle,
I like your review of Orange is the New Black. I am putting it on hold at the library (now that both you and Kerri have recommended it). P and I are also determined to learn how to stream video so we can watch the first season of the show.

Have a great weekend!

Hi Chelle - I'm glad you enjoyed the book version of Orange is the New Black! I heard a rumor that Alex Vause will not be a regular character on the second season. How is that possible?! I hope it's not true.

Were you swallowed by the whale, Chelle? ;)

Hi Friends
I didn't get swallowed by a whale, in fact we didn't even see any (Sad face!) We saw some seals and bald eagles and had a nice relaxing boat ride through St Margaret's Bay. I can't complain since the trip was free ( a groupon gift certificate).

I'm back in a reading funk. I'm halfway through A Prayer for Owen Meany and rapidly losing interest. I started A Beautiful Mind and found it boring so I put it down, and now I've started The Road Home by Rose Tremain (can't seem to get the touchtone to work) which seems interesting.
I think part of my attention span issues might be the fact that WE ARE PREGNANT!!! :):):)
We just found out but it looks like we are about 8 weeks. I should find out soon as I need to see my Doc. YAY! All that whinging for nothing eh :) Or maybe it was all the supportive LT vibes that made it happen!

(NOT for facebook yet though for those of you that are on my FB as our families don't know yet)

I've got to run to work but I'll respond to the previous posts when I get home for lunch.

Yeah, wippee, woo hooo! Your secrets safe with me!!!! I'm so excited for you and Nate but although they're helpful LT vibes aren't the only things to make it happen. ;0)

!!! Both of you?!?!?!

*kidding

Congratulations!!!

WOOHOO!!! Congrats! I'm so excited for you!!

Fantastic!! Good vibes for an easy, comfortable time.

Ah, yes. Good old baby brain! I'm very happy for you! Whoo hoo!

Congratulations, Chelle!

Congratulations Chelle. Great news!

Wow, congrats, Chelle!

Yay! I'm delighted for both of you, Chelle : ).

Wonderful news, Chelle! No wonder you can't concentrate on reading right now.

Huzzah, huzzah! Super psyched for you and Nate! :D

Sounds like the books you're tackling are all on the heavier end of the spectrum. Maybe something fluffy to cleanse the palate?

227 Morphy, Urp indeed! After that latest installment Grave Peril I think I'll take some time off from Mr Dresden so that I don't get bored of him. I have the next two books to listen to at some point

228 Mamie we have that in common. I very much dislike being surprised and I especially despise being sung to in restaurants on my birthday! Nate knows that this is a divorce-able offence! Kidding, kinda lol
Is the River of London books another series? I'm getting bored of the millions of series out there. Doesn't anyone write stand alone books anymore?? Oy ;-p

229 Hi Mark! Did you finish Joyland? Did you LOVE it?
Did you manage to talk your wife into watching Orange is the New Black with you? Nate and I finished the first season and are impatiently waiting for the next

230 Hi Kath!
Despite the groans from others I did enjoy Inferno! And I think you would like Joy Land as it's not really too horror like or too dark.

231 Hi Katie! Yes I can see how one would think that but at the same time it's always his life that is in danger, maybe he could save someone else instead? I dunno.

232/235 Hi Micky! It was a relaxing and nice boat ride but no whales :-( We are going to take a tour out of Brier Island sometime in the future as the whale watching is great from there. Our friend just went and the whales came right over to visit their boat! How cool would that be!

233 Hi Ellen! We watched it on Netflix. Best $8 ever! Nate uses it almost every day.

234 Oh Kerri, Nooooooo! I like the tension between Alex and Piper. I can't see it being as successful a show without that.

Congratulations Chelle and Nate, you will make great parents my dear. I love my two to bits and now I have a darling Granddaughter to dote on.

237 HAHA Lynda, wellll something else might have helped make it happen! But I think the LT vibes helped too! Thanks :)

238 Thanks Kath! I always thought it was weird when people said "we", but now I have done it! DOH!

239 Thanks Amber! Hope mine is as cute as Charlie!

240 Thanks Reba! The symptoms are starting already so I am crossing my fingers for them to go easy on me!

241 HA Morphy, baby brain is clumsy! I dropped about 6 things today! I think my client thought there was something wrong with me!

242/3/4/5 Thanks Katie, Rhian, Joe & Nancy!

246 Thanks Judy! I'm trying to finish A Prayer for Owen Meany. My kobo says I am 60% done. It's putting me to sleep though!

247 Thanks Micky! And you are right! I need some fluff right now! Maybe a good old murder mystery or something YA

Congratulations! That is such wonderful news!

I'm very happy for you both :)
Being a mom is the best thing ever.

I am not ashamed to like Dan Brown. I can;t wait to read inferno... I should be able to get my hands on it in about two weeks.. sigh.

^Hugs to my friend! And yes, I finished and loved "Joyland".

I'm so excited for you, Chelle! Congrats to both you and Nate - what lovely news!

So so happy for you and Nate!

Thanks Everyone!!
I'm feeling good and not too nauseous, just a bit. Very tired and still having trouble finishing any sort of book with substance. I finished One Bird's Choice today but it was an easy read about a lazy, unambitious guy who moves back in with his parents and then writes a book about being lazy and unambitious and moving back in with his parents. So ya, not a lot of substance there but at least it's a book read ;)

We have slowly started to tell people. We sent photo frames in the mail to our parents and hopefully they will have them next week. The frames have a grandparent theme to them and I put a picture of scrabble tiles spelling out congratulations Gramma and Grampa. I'm waiting for the screaming phone calls saying they got the packages :)

249 Thanks John! Nate and I were talking about raising kids and trying not to screw them up too bad lol. Hopefully we can manage that!

251 Thanks Lori! We are quite excited!

252 Thanks Kath! I've heard a rumour that the labour part hurts though ;-p
I've always enjoyed Dan Brown's books. Nothing wrong there! Two weeks wait sucks though. Hopefully someone returns them early for you!

253 Thanks Mark! Glad you enjoyed JoyLand! Did you read The Shining? Doctor Sleep comes out very soon. I think a reread of The Shining is in order first

254 Thanks Mamie! Hopefully we are lucky to have great kids like yours!

255 Thanks RD!!

Chelle, love the idea of the Grandparent frames/scrabble photos you've mailed off. You are SO wonderfully creative. Can't wait to hear about the phone calls.

Chelle, how wonderful!!! I am so thrilled and excited for you. I can't wait to hear the reactions of the lucky grandparents-to-be -- how very creative!!

Chelle, that is wonderful news. You and Nate must be on Cloud Nine....better make that cloud #7 as it sounds like it might be a March baby?

I'm glad you are feeling fairly well. The tiredness should pass soon and, hopefully, the book fatigue will go away with it. I imagine you will be reading some baby books in the next few months.

Finally catching up on threads...

Congrats!

Chelle, congratulations to you and Nate! Hooray!!!!!

You mentioned that A Prayer for Owen Meany is putting you to sleep. I hope that's the baby's influence. It's been a while since I read it but my memory is that it was delightful (and perhaps a tad too long...).

Congrats, Chelle!! That is such wonderful news!!! I love the frames idea.

Hi friends
Unfortunately last night Nate had to take me to the hospital as I lost the baby.
We are incredibly sad and frustrated. Please understand that I probably won't be on LT that much while I deal with this.
I appreciate all the love and support here and I'll be back as soon as my head is clear again. XO Chelle

Oh, Chelle, I'm so sorry for you and Nate. My thoughts are with you. Take care.

Oh, how hard for you. We're thinking of you, Chelle.

Darling Chelle, there are no words. I'm so sad with you and Nate. Sending love and hugs to you both.

Ah, Chelle, how sad. Sending you and Nate all possible good thoughts.

OH Chelle, I do know how that feels. I have been there myself. I will keep the two of you in my thoughts and prayers. Hoping you have a speedy physical recovery and take the rest one day at a time honey. Big ((Hugs)) to you and Nate.

I am so very sorry, Chelle dear.. please feel hugged and surrounded by light and healing....and gentle journey to the little spirit that just wasn't quite ready. *sad* for all of you :(

I am heartbroken for you. Richard is right - there are no words. Sending my thoughts and prayers your way. I'm just so very sorry.

Oh, Chelle, thoughts, prayers and ((hugs)) for you and Nate.

Mine too.

Chelle - I am so sorry for you and Nate - I have been through that as well - thinking of you.

Hi Chelle, so sorry to hear your news, sending lots of love and hugs from Karen and I, our thoughts are with you both at this sad time.

So sorry to hear your sad news Chelle. Rest up and take care of yourself.

Oh Chelle. I'll be praying for you and Nate. I am so sorry for your loss.

Dear Chelle and Nate -
This is such sad news. Ron and I have you both in our thoughts and prayers. Please take good care. Hugs xoxo

Chelle- I am so sorry, my friend! My heart goes out to you and Nate! Stop back, when you are ready.

Adding my thoughts with the others here, Chelle.

My thoughts and prayers are with you and Nate. Take care of yourself.

Oh, Chelle, I am so sorry to hear this! As everyone is saying, please take good care of yourself and know that you are in my thoughts and prayers.

I'm so sorry. Take care of yourself. *hugs*

So sorry Chelle. {{{hugs}}}

Ugh, Chelle, I'm so saddened by your news. I know it must be a shock to you and Nate as it was to me and my husband 19 years ago when we were going through the same thing. I wish I could have you over for a cup of tea and a shot of tequila, talk it over and give you a big hug but all I can do is tell you that you'll never forget this little who but you'll heal in time, honestly.

Oh Chelle - how heartbreaking for both of you. {{{hugs}}} Take time to grieve; this is no less a life for not being born. You will be in my thoughts.

Thanks to everyone for your supportive and lovely comments. It's been a hard few days but I'm incredibly lucky to have such a supportive husband to share the grief with. He has been so great and is taking great care of me.

Today is our first wedding anniversary. I woke up to find notes all over the house from Nate. He is on dayshift today and we will celebrate by going out for dinner tonight. Because we are saving for a few things (nursery and a couple trips) we decided to skip presents and just give each other something paper (since paper is the traditional first gift). So I woke up to paper all over the house. He really takes things to the next level lol.

I won't be responding to everyone's kind thoughts individually or else I'll spend my whole day crying. Just know that I appreciate every single word you all wrote and I'm incredibly thankful for all of you! xo

What a sweet way to wake up!1 Nate does indeed sound like a wonderful, supportive husband. I'm so sorry for your pain. (((((Chelle)))). Many cyber hugs will be coming your way as you recover.

93) One Bird's Choice by Iain Reid (3*)
94) Bad Habits: Confessions of a Recovering Catholic by Jenny McCarthy (3*)
95) A Nation Worth Ranting About by Rick Mercer (3.5*)

Each book was light and fluffy enough for my sore, tired brain.
A Nation Worth Ranting About was the best of the three. I love Rick Mercer and his little rants. He is such a character. While I don't enjoy politics some of his thoughts made sense to me. I prefer his rants that are about anything other than politics though. His rant about snow tires had me laughing out loud at 1am.

Happy Anniversary, Chelle. Nate's notes are sweet!

Happy anniversary, Chelle!

I do love Rick Mercer's brain. I really need to pick up this book as I've enjoyed everything else I've read by him. And the Rick Mercer Report, of course. :)

Happy first wedding anniversary my dear, Nate sounds like one in a million and together you will get through this awful time. We have had times of stress and upset through the last twenty-nine years of married life but together we are strong and we get through to the sunshine. Marriage is like life, it's a journey where you are constantly learning and you get out of it what you both contribute, we are strong because we are one and you and Nate are the same. Love to you both from John and Karen.

Happy Anniversary, Chelle! What an incredibly thoughtful gift from Nate - that was just so lovely. We are keeping the both of you in our thoughts and prayers. I love what John said up there.

Go Nate! He's a shining example for the brotherhood of husbands. Happy Anniversary, Chelle. Ditto to Mamie re what John said. We're thinking of you and your hubby.

96) Solar by Ian McEwan (3*)
I disliked this book and I think the reason why is that I disliked the main character. There are many main characters that the reader is meant to dislike and it makes for great interest in the book but this character I didn't care what happened to him.


97) The Road Home by Rose Tremain (4*)
Read for:
75 Books Challenge for 2013,
2013 Category Challenge: Prize Winners
This was a book that I had a bit of trouble getting into for the first 40 pages but once I got in I didn't want to put it down. Lev is a wonderful character and I didn't want to put the book down because I needed to find out what happens to him in the end. I can see why Tremain won prizes with this novel.

So sorry about the baby. :( I'm glad to see you're well enough to be back and reviewing. & Congrats on your wedding anniversary!!!

I've heard so many raves for Rose Tremain, I'll have to look into it.

I just don't think that Ian McEwan is capable of writing characters I can like.. lol. Personality clash.. I can't like a book if I can't find a friend in it. Someone to care about. Better yet if there is more than one.

I have The Road Home, but haven't gotten there yet. I too picked it up a time or two but then, put it back. Oh well, it isn't going anywhere.

Take care, Chelle ...