Finally Snow

I was skeptical, but I did indeed wake up to snow this morning. It's not a lot, maybe an inch, and will be gone in a day or so. But for a little while, the ground is white and just as it should be at this time of year. 

The world seems to be a complete sh**show right now, which is nothing new and it's been that way for a year now. I'm trying to remember that God already knows how everything ends, but sometimes it's hard to keep hope, when I want everything right now. :)  I'm trying though.

I made some really excellent chicken and sour cream enchiladas this week and have been keeping low lights and cozy going in the evening. I decided this was the year to finally read the complete Chronicles of Narnia and I'm halfway through. I've got 3 books left and it's been fun and will be nice to get that off the list early. Yep, I think tasty leftovers and a book are on the agenda tonight for sure. 

Micro-Adventure #1

I had a really fun day today exploring in my own state. Me and my sister and the twins went to Draper haha. Our first stop was an indie bookstore I’d never heard of until I searched for a bunch in Utah last year. It’s called The Book Box and it was a cute little store. Not huge, and not tons of books in stock, but a lot of newer stuff and I did buy one book. Then we just basically drove down 123000 S and went to a garden center called Cactus & Tropicals. I gave myself a new pot that looks like a stack of books for Christmas and so I needed a plant to fill it. 

The next stop was to the Draper location of Gourmandise and we picked up some dessert to go. I got a slice of chocolate raspberry cake, which I ate for dinner and it was excellent.  After the dessert stop, we went to a Mediterranean place for some wraps and falafel with hummus. It was an excellent choice. 

Then we went to IKEA where we got the kids some food in their food court. By that time we decided not to do the showroom and went straight to the bottom section of the store. I ended up with way too many impulse items: duvet cover, organizer for my bathroom drawer, a new lamp and some small glass vases. I did not need any of it! I definitely need to clean out some stuff to donate now. 

And on our way home, we stopped for milk tea. It was a very fun day and I got to cross another indie bookstore off my list. I can’t say I’m going to make a big day of all of them, but I really would like to try buying my books at local bookstores this year and then Barnes and Noble as the backup choice. I’m going to try to limit the books I get from Amazon to only kindle, and I don’t really need any of those. 

Now I’m ready for bed. I have church at noon this year and while I don’t love it that late, I also won’t mind for a few weeks that I will have slow mornings on Sunday.

Random

This morning on IG the algorithm showed me a random reel of a symphony and choral song and I looked it up on YouTube. It’s called Waloyo Yamoni and talks about letting it rain and rejoicing and it made me cry; it’s so joyful and the voices are so beautiful. I think the title means Overcome the Wind.  Anyway, that’s a great start to the new year, for sure. I need more wonderful music in my life.

I’ve also been coming across the idea that January shouldn’t be a time of new beginnings. It’s still deep in winter and darkness and we should still be embracing the slowness, especially after the busy Christmas season. Renewal is for spring. I absolutely love this idea.I don’t want to be all busy and suddenly decide to exercise just because the calendar changed over. That never works for me anyway. I prefer a more constant flow to life, a steady climb instead of jumping off a cliff.  

So yes, I’m still celebrating the darkness and coziness of winter. I had my tree and other decorations down on the 27th, but I left out candles, my little box with glowing fireplace, and even the snow globe depicting a winter scene. We’ve had rain for the last 24 hours and it’s been so nice. Yesterday, I made chili in the slow cooker and baked some cornbread to go with it.I still want to eat a lot of soup. I welcomed the new year by sitting in my library reading and being generally lazy.

Since I’m trying to read books I already own, I decided this was the year to actually read the entire Narnia series. I’ve had the full series on my shelf for close to 20 years now. I’ve only ever read The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe when I was a kid. I finished that one and Prince Caspian yesterday. I’m surprised by how short they actually are. I shouldn’t have any issues finishing the rest of them, although I don’t want that to be the only thing I read in January so I’ll mix it up a bit.

Best Books of 2025

Here we are again at the end of the year and I’m listing my favorite books. It has been a good year for them. I finished 83 books. My top 5 genres were Historical Mystery, Fantasy/Sci-Fi, Urban Fantasy/PNR, Fantasy Romance, and Nonfiction. The majority of the books were purchased but I did also borrow from the library and from KU.  Fifty of the books were paper, which is not surprising since I love the look and feel of an actual book, and I do purchase more books that I borrow. 

My only real reading goal was to read 12 books purchased before the year started (and even better if they have been on my shelf for more than a year) and I divided it between 8 paper copies and 4 kindle copies. It was nice to finally read some of the older ones so I think I’ll do 12 more in 2026, but maybe mostly paper and not worry about the ebooks. 

The books I own paper copies of

Here they are in the order I read them: 

Agony in Amethyst - AM Stuart - The final book in the Harriet Gordon series did not disappoint. I’ll be re-reading my favorite parts of the whole series for sure.

How to Steal a Galaxy - Beth Revis -This was book 2 in the series and I loved it. Book 3 was good but not as good as the first 2, IMO.

Challenger - Adam Higginbotham - Really enjoyed this nonfiction. I want to read another of his books in 2026.

Any Way the Wind Blows - Rainbow Rowell - The 3 books series was wonderful, and I read the whole thing in a few days. So glad I finally picked these up off my shelf. 

Everything is Tuberculosis - John Green - Another nonfiction that was just so good.

The King’s Messenger - Susannah Kearsley - I re-read my favorite parts twice already, it really ticked all the boxes and is exactly the kind of historical fiction I like.

The Enchanted Greenhouse - Sarah Beth Durst - I dipped into “romantasy” this year, even though that name is dumb. This was a follow up to The Spellshop, which I read last year and loved as well.

Chained Knight - Lilith Saintcrow - The surprise of the year. I bought this on a whim and absolutely adored it. I’ve even re-read it a few times. 

Legends and Lattes - Travis Baldree - I had wanted to give this series a try and it was such a fantastic cozy read. I read the prequel Bookshops & Bonedust as well.

All of Us Murderers - KJ Charles - A wonderful gothic mystery with a gay romance. It was so good and has such a fantastic cover. 

Turns of Fate - Anne Bishop - I was excited to read this, even though it’s a new series and not part of The Others. It was really good. Definitely feels like The Others, but it’s own story too.

The Gales of November: The Untold Story of the Edmund Fitzgerald - John Bacon - This one got in at the last second, but it was very good and I couldn't put it down at the end.

Honorable Mentions:

Emily Wilde’s Compendium of Lost Tales - Heather Fawcett - Really wonderful ending to the series.

Into the Ice - Mark Synott - another nonfiction that was really interesting. I do love his books.

Unselected Journals of Emma M Lion Vol 8 - Beth Brower - This is one of my favorite series and it was a bit heart wrenching and I can’t wait to see what’s next.

A Woman in the Polar Night - Christianne Ritter - Another nonfiction! About living on Svalbard in the early 1900s. I had so many questions about all kinds of things she didn't include. 

Replaceable You - Mary Roach - I always laugh and learn from MR. I love her writing.

Night Shift - Charlaine Harris - Started this series on a whim because of something I saw on GoodReads and the library had all 3. I devoured them right before my trip and then borrowed them again after my trip. Book 3 was my favorite.

At the moment, I have a list of older books on my shelves that I want to read in 2026. We'll see what I'm in the mood for once the calendar actually turns over. Goodbye to 2025 and hello 2026! 

Holidays

It's that in-between time of Christmas and New Years. Lots of people off work, if they work in an office. I went into the office today and there are actually more people than I expected. But most of them are here because they are moving around offices so there's a lot of activity. And its weird to walk into the office when the plant isn't running. They are on a maintenance shutdown and you don't realize how much noise the production building generates until there isn't any. 

I spent the morning cleaning off my desk and rearranging a few things and getting out my new calendars. I'm not super busy, but I work this week because I feel like I have to. I can do some testing for others on my team though so that's what I will spend my afternoon on. It's not like I have anything to do at home. The reason I'm at work is so I can get out of my house. I'll be working from home on Wednesday and Friday anyway.

I'm trying to finish up one more book before the year closes out. For some reason, my brain doesn't like to be in the middle of a book when we change years, so I always finish and then start new. Usually, I'm finished before now and just re-reading, but this year I started a nonfiction book I'd like to finish up, even if it means 100 pages a night. I can do it. 

No real new year's eve plans. I never do anything and I'm happy that way. My nephew may come over for some anime watching and I'm happy with that idea. Ha ha... I might be trying to finish a book. 

Merry Christmas

Here we are at the end of the year. Hard to believe it’s another Christmas. I woke up this morning at 5:00 am with a lot of rain and wind. I didn’t mind it. I listened for a bit and went back to sleep for a few hours. It’s going to be a cloudy, but mild day. It’s ok. At least we are getting some rain. 

Spent yesterday evening at my brother’s house and we ate and played games and did presents. It was a really nice time. I was doing ok yesterday until I put on my mom’s apron to cook and then I really missed her. We are doing ok, but it’s a weird life with both parents gone. 

The rest of the day I’m taking it easy. Last year I did a movie marathon and so I decided to make it a tradition and continue this year. This year I’m doing unrelated musicals. I’m starting with White Christmas because I haven’t watched it yet this year. Then I’m moving to Thoroughly Modern Millie, Summer Stock, and Summer Magic. We’ll see how far that takes me. I have a few others picked out as well. 

I’m going to make soup a little later, do a puzzle, read some books. It will be a nice, relaxing day. I’ve been very blessed in my life with my family, friends, neighbors, and co-workers. I’m truly grateful for my abundant life. 

Smells Cozy

I made up a simmer pot today and my house smells so delicious right now. 

We had a little rain last night, but the clouds have moved on and it’s a sunny, blue sky. Not even truly coat weather. I put my coat on to go to the grocery store and was way too warm. We will be having record warmth this week and it’s definitely not going to be a white Christmas. I’m kind of bummed about the mild winter, so I’m making up for it by making my house cozy. Spicy smells, lights, candles, fireplace on my tv…whatever it takes. I’m enjoying lighting up the dark as we get to the shortest day of the year. 

I did what is hopefully my last grocery shopping before the holidays and picked up some books from the library. I will be going to work on Monday and Tuesday and then I’m off for 2 days for Christmas. Then I’m working from home the last week of the year. I don’t know why I think I’m going to have time to read, but that’s kind of what I’m planning when I’m not with my family. A little readathon by myself. Plus, I have puzzles and plans to make soup. And I’d like to take some time on the 26th and 27th to clean out my closets and bookshelves. Just seems like a good thing to do at the end of the year. Ha ha ok, I may not get as much reading done as I tell myself I want to do. But that’s ok.