April Showers....

Happy Monday!  Today I'm blog hoppin' with my pals from The Blended Blog for our new Spring Series. If you've landed here from Leslie's blog, thanks for stopping by today to get a peek into my world!


 The first prompt, April Showers can be a post about anything we like.  Today I thought I'd share my favorite rainy day activities.  And since it feels like it's been raining forever, this is just the perfect prompt for these days!  Now if I HAVE TO go out on rainy days I don't mind rocking my leggings and super cute rain boots...

but rainy days are just better when they are spent indoors!

Rainy days and no plans mean...pjs all day!!  If rainy days land on a Saturday or Sunday...this is a must!  And these are my top three favorite things to do...solitary life style!  And for a girl that doesn't drive I love using rainy days as an excuse to stay home and stay in.

Binge watch my favorite shows!
Isn't this just the best??  I love binging on episodes of my favorite shows or clearing out the DVR on rainy days!  I've watched full seasons of shows on rainy days. I am not ashamed to admit I spent a day re-watching the entire Sex and the City series one rainy weekend not too long ago!

Shop online!
I shop online all the time!  But I feel like rainy days give me the perfect excuse to to shop and purchase some of my favorite things online....and not feel guilty about it.  I mean...what else is there to do on rainy days!??!

This may have been the result of  a weekend of rainy day online shopping last Spring!!  

Read!
As a teacher-librarian, how could I not say reading is one of my favorite things to do.  There is NOTHING better than sitting on my couch with a hot chocolate,  all cozy under a blanket, spending hours reading a great book while the spring rain falls outside!  It's pretty much what I did this past Saturday!!

What are some of your favorite things to do on rainy days??  Let me know in the comments below!  And don't forget to hop on over to Sarah's blog at Foxy's Domestic Side to see what April fun she has in store for you!!  Check it out here!!  

Link up your April posts with us too!!

An InLinkz Link-up

Friday is for Favorites!

Happy Friday!  Who's excited?!?  We made it! I don't know why but since Wednesday I've been feeling like everyday shoulda been Friday...so that's how my week's been going!

 Some Fridays I share my fave favorite things on the blog!  Today's one of those days!  So let's get to it....

{The Magnolia Story}
I'm super excited that the hold I placed on The Magnolia Story by Fixer Upper's Chip and Joanna Gains came in from the Library.  And not only that, so did the hold I put on the audiobook.  I got the audiobook after I heard that Chip and Joanna themselves read it. I like to sometimes listen to and read along with the book!  Eager to get reading this weekend!  AFTER I finish All the Missing Girls.

{Almost a new bed}
This might be a silly favorite, but I'm just loving the new dust ruffle and sheets I got this week.  The sheets are so comfy!  And being a sheet set from Target, I'm super impressed....they are really soft and durable.  They fit my bed perfectly and were even on sale. Oh and my other favorite thing about them is that there was a tag on the fitted sheet that said top or bottom...Score!  Took me three seconds for put on!  Totally feels like I'm sleeping in a new bed!

{Finally some SUNSHINE!}
After what felt like days and days of neverending rain, the sun finally made an appearance on Wednesday and Thursday...and spring like temperatures came with it.  Sunshine this week was definitely a fave this week.  I'm just a happier person when the sun is out!

{The Arrangement and Sweet Home Oklahoma}
This week at the recommendation of my friend I started watching these two shows. She actually said she started watching The Arrangement because I was the one who told her about it, and then I just never ended up catching the premiere!!  But I caught up on the arrangement this past weekend and am really liking it.  Michael Vartan who I loved from Alias is in it and he is just creepy.  I liked the premise and where the story is going.
Sweet Home Oklahoma on Bravo is just hilarious.  The reality show about three best friends and their crazy adventures in their home state had my laughing out loud over and over!  I texted my friend and told her we had to make a trip out there!  Check it out on Mondays at 10 on Bravo!

via E!

{Game Night!}
I'm hosting my first ever game night tonight.  I can't wait.  After talking about it for so long, it's finally happening.  I've invited a bunch of friends and some family, who's actually coming is still a mystery.  But big or small, it's sure to be a fun night.  I'll let you know how it goes on Monday!



Have a great weekend all!  Can't believe tomorrow's April 1st....but the teacher in me is happy that it fall's on a weekend!  And that's no April Fool's!


Linking up with Erika and the girls today for Friday Favorites and Tif and the girls for H54F!

March Book Reviews with TBB's Virtual Book Club

Today the girls of the TBB Virtual Book Club are sharing their book reviews for March.  This month's discussions in the Slack group are going strong and are super lively.

I hate to admit this but I'm behind.  Like still reading a February pick, behind!

Sadly, I've been reading  All the Missing Girls since February.  I just can't get to the end.  And I've heard that the end is AMAZING...so I want to get there!  I feel like the end for me will be this weekend, but I just couldn't finish it in time for posting!!

And I am really excited to read a few of the March books!  I have Behind Closed Doors on hold at my local library....looks super freaky but interesting.  Can't wait to read the reviews of it today!!


Still working on All the Missing Girls though doesn't mean I didn't read at all this month!! I actually read two whole books...each in one sitting!

The first was And Every Morning The Way Home Gets Longer and Longer.  This is a small novella by author Fredrik Backman, who also wrote TBB Book Club's February pick,  A Man Called Ove.  I have this too, and have yet to read it (shocking I know!).  But I ended up picking up this little book one day and reading it in about an hour!  I loved it.

It is about a young boy and his grandpa, who sadly, is falling into Alzheimer's.  But he's trying his best to hold on to his precious memories! Told on what I'd call a bridge between this life and heaven...where he goes and "visits" his wife,   It was a touching read that made me laugh and cry....more crying than laughing for sure!  This is a story I highly recommend and will read again and again.  Lots of take-a-ways and beautifully written.


Another book I read in one sitting was titled Milk and Honey by Rupi Kaur. It is her debut. Told in poetry and prose, the book is divided into 4 sections and deals with the authors life of abuse, loss, and ultimately the healing that makes her whole again....or just as whole as she can be after such heartache.

Very well done, and not my typical read but I enjoyed it. As a reader, I was vividly immersed in the author's world, however difficult that was. I found myself flagging the poems that spoke to me and those whose words I wanted to remember.   Though difficult it's subject matter, many poems are filled with hope... I was happy I purchased this book rather than borrowed it from the library, because it's another one I'll read again.

Has anyone else ever read this?  I would love to know what you thought in the comments below.







With my spring break coming up in two weeks I have high hopes that I can read a few more books in April.  Looking forward to doing nothing and have the time...like hours...to veg and read for a week and a half!

Hop on by the link-up at TBB today to post your book reviews! No blog? No problem!  Hashtag the books you read this month across all social media with #TBBReads #TBBVirtualBookClub , so we can check them out.

 And it's never too late to join us in the Virtual book club!!  Get all the details here!

Until Next Time!

My five favorite photos!

I'm finally joining up with Momfessionals Andrea today for my first Show and Tell Tuesday of 2017.  Today's prompt, five favorite photos is right up my alley.  I love photos.  I think I get that from my mom who has stacks and stacks of photo albums going back almost 40 years.  These days, she has stacks and stacks of Shutterfly books.  Me...I too, have a bunch of photo albums, boxes of photos, and document my life daily on Insta!  I've even posted about my five favorite photos of ME here!  Today, I'm just sharing some of my all time faves...of me and the people I love! It probably illustrates this solitary life!  (Explanations are above each pic)


This is the most recent picture in the bunch, but this is definitely one of my faves.  Quite simply, it's my family!  The freakin' wild, crazy, ridiculous crew that we are.  And, of course, me being the loner, with no family of my own, I'm smack-dab between my mom and dad!!  Ugh.....lolololol

November 2016

This is the best picture ever of the "original 6"!  We were celebrating Happy Heart Day for my dad, and doing our usual photo shoot thing, when Billy, my oldest nephew, hit us all with the super soaker!  We were all blindsided...and the fact that my brother-in-law-Sean got this action shot is classic!

August 2015

This one is a favorite of my bestie and I! Over 30 years of friendship has yielded thousands of photos.  But this past summer when we went to see Garth Brooks and sat in the rain for hours, we were getting punchy!  And this fun photo was the result. (this is our concert photo pose!)  Garth was a bucket list item for both of us!  So glad to have this girl to check things off the life list with!

July 2016

There are so many wonderful pictures of each of my sisters and I, but this one is just had to share today!  This picture is one of my favorites simply because it's irreplaceable.  And one of the best days. This is me and my oldest sister Tara, on top of the World Trade Center, about 2 weeks before the towers fell in 2001.  Read more about our trip and this picture here!

August 2001

And last but not least... a favorite of all my nieces and nephews! How can I not include them...they have my heart.   Love them all and the wonderful humans they are becoming.  Nothing in the world makes me happier than being Aunt Katie (sometimes Aunt Beastie) to these littles...and the bonus kiddos in my life!!

Choosing 5 was just too hard ....

Thanks for stopping by to take a peek into my little world!  Have a great Tuesday!!

A Rainy Monday Musings Post

Happy Monday!  Are Mondays really ever HAPPY!?!  The last Monday in March calls for a little Monday Musings...a late night post about the randomness that was my Monday!

Rainy, Foogy, Gross Mondays should just be banned.  We should be able to stop life and never get out of bed!  LOL
I kid, I kid....

I'm just tired today.  I think the more sleep I get, the more tired I feel.  I mean, I was legit in bed by nine o'clock last night...disconnected, light off,  the works.

I have been sleeping so much better though.  I think this is thanks to my new dew drop diffuser I got for my room.  I add a few drops of lavender in each night and let it go.  I'm still waking up early, but not over and over throughout the night!  And lately, when the alarm goes off, I'm snoozing less!  GO ME!

Maybe I'm just bitter because I'm still living in my leggings, boots and scarves for work! Partly because this weather still sucks and partly because it's colder in my library than it is outside!!!  Brrrrr.... I'm just not excited to get up and get dressed!  Where's SPRING???

This weekend I lived on tuna and hard boiled eggs!  I think I am making up for the fact that I ate meat (chicken) on Friday!  But Pasta Diana at a place I hadn't been to in YEARS-and probably won't be back to for YEARS- was SO WORTH it! #godforgives

After this weekend's games, I'm still #2 on The Blended Blog's March Madness Bracket.  That's pretty cool!!  It's totally just for fun but it's exciting to have some stock in the game and teams to root for.  My dad was pretty impressed with my picks!  Who knows, if things go my way, maybe next year, I'll go big and wager!

I guess I can't be unhappy on a Monday when I come into work and see this!!

The Six Word Memoirs I did with my 7th and 8th grade students last week was probably my most favorite lesson ever.  It was the final activity in our Pay It Forward novel study, we've been working on ALL YEAR.  The kids LOVED this...and I was proud of them that they really took the time to think about their own 6 Word memoirs.  They then were able to illustrate them to go outside on the library bulletin board.  I'm really excited for the parents to come see them during conferences next week.


Actually today, I asked my 7th graders why they were making me mad on a Monday!! Then we all laughed...so at least on Mondays we still laugh.

I payed some bills today and ended up using my cashback bonus for some of it.  Not sure yet, if this was a good idea or not but the funds were immediately withdrawn. I decided to pay bills after I bought a dress online this morning...that I probably really didn't need, BUT already know where I'm wearing it!  And have the accessories and shoes picked out to go with it!!  At 50% off with free shipping, they had it in petite and in my size too, so I thought I couldn't pass it up!  With lots of returns in the works, money is coming back to me...See how I rationalize these things!!

After that impulse buy, I've now made it a goal in April to NOT SHOP AT ALL and eat out less!  So anyone wanna come over on Friday nights, hang with me, eat peanut butter sandwiches and drink wine?  Just let me know!!


Mondays are my 4 o'clock day, so I got home early and actually got lots accomplished!  Made trips to the garbage (I only go on Mondays because I know it's been cleaned out!) and mailbox.  Put my lounge chair back out in the back and my rocking chair and little table on the front "porch", getting things spring-ready.  Because shockingly, at 5 p.m. the sun decided to make an appearance.

Came home today to a package with two bathing suits inside.  I bought them on sale and was really excited about them.  Then I tried them on....and realized this body is not at all ready for bathing suit season!  I need to get my ass in gear!! YUCK...It's only right that they arrived on a Monday, am I right??!! I need a tan!

Well now that Monday is almost in the rear view, I'm off to finish checking off today's to-do list and  then read 50 pages in my book....wrapped in my blardigan, with wine in hand!

Hope your Monday's been more than bearable!  Thanks for reading my randoms!!
See you back here tomorrow...

Throwback Thursday Jams!

I was so excited to see this post come up in my Time Hop this week!  I was reminded of how much I loved it and thought it would be just perfect for today's Throwback!  Seriously this is one of my all time favorite posts!  So enjoy the old school jams of my childhood on this Throwback Thursday!

Spring 2017 Bucket List

Joining my blog buddy Leslie to share my Spring Bucket List today!  When she first brought this up I didn't think I'd be ready to share a Spring list.  Summer for sure, but Spring...not so much!!  But then something happened!  Yesterday Spring came, I read a bunch of bucket lists on blogs and I got all excited for what Spring has to offer!!  And I thought, "Hey, there is a bunch of "stuff" I'd like to do this spring!!  So today I'm sharing with you my own bucket list, that I envision taking me from Spring through mid June!   Then it's...School's Out for SUMMER!!

Get My Feet Spring and Summer Ready!!
I am embarrassed to admit how long it's been since these feet have gotten a pedicure...but it is WAY OVER DUE...I'm pretty sure when I go and get it done, I'll be THAT Girl that they talk about!

Goodbye Winter!
At the moment it doesn't exactly feel like spring outside but I am super excited to be rid of my boots, blanket scarves and bulky sweaters.  I'm going to do a good clean out of all the clothes I'm "over and donated them this Spring!  I donated to my friends clothing room for Veterans and am always so excited when she tells me her clients rave about my donations.  It make me feel great and I know they are going where they are so needed!!

Spending Spring in town!
For four years now, I've passed the community garden and never actually went in.  I've always wanted to but never had.  And it's so cute.  There's benches, a gazebo, even chess!  In the Spring when the flowers are blooming it's beautiful!  I am making it a goal to get there this Spring.  With a book...two birds...one stone!

I go out to eat a lot in town, but in the Spring and Summer lots of the restaurants on Main Street have outdoor seating.  It's always fun to enjoy a meal in the bright sunshine and people watch. I'd also like to head down there for more Sundays Fundays when it's nice too!

I like just getting out and walking more when the winter melts away.  Winter is a time I feel so cooped up!!  I'm also going to do more yoga! A while ago when my foot was in THE BOOT my doctor suggested I try yoga...because there's even a beginners course called "Yoga for inflexible people!"  For ten bucks I picked it up and did it faithfully for a while, then it kinda got lost in the shuffle.  I didn't make it a lifestyle!  LOL  But I did enjoy it, so I want to do it more regularly!

A New 'do!
Another thing I seem to be overdue for is a cut and color of my hair.  Part of me has not been because a- it's expensive and b- I've been trying to hold out and wait for some big things I have going on this spring that I want good hair for!  I will probably go on my Spring Break in three weeks!

SAVE! SAVE! SAVE!!
I know I'm talking about spending money on my hair and pedicure, but I really hope to save some money!  I have two super fun trips to look forward to this Spring!  So I really, really need to SAVE!! So I can spend on the trips!!  LOL

Rainy Days and Sun Daze
So the saying goes, April Showers Bring May Flowers, so I fully intend to be rocking my rain boots this spring.  But I also look forward to sunny days rocking on my rocking chair on my front porch, getting a tan!!  My motto is :Everybody looks better with a tan!!

The Dreaded Guest Room
Isn't a little Spring Cleaning on everybody's bucket list?  My biggest job has bot to be my guest room.  Right now it is beyond disastrous!  I have bar stools and lounge chairs in there!  Boxes and bins galore!  I dread doing it but I know it has got to get done!  So then maybe I can have guest over this Spring!

I totally enjoyed doing this!  And think it's very do-able!  Here's to a wonderful Spring ahead for all!!!

After further research, I remembered that I did share a Spring Break Bucket List on the blog last year!  Head here to see how it compares!!