WEEKLY UPDATES: A WEEK OF READING, BLOGGING, & ORGANIZING…

On By Laurel-Rain SnowIn weekly updates

Good morning! Today’s post will link up to The Sunday Salon, The Sunday Post and Stacking the Shelves, for weekly updates.

**Mailbox Monday is hosted at the home site: Mailbox Monday.

And let’s join Kathryn, our leader in It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?, at Book Date.

Another great week!  During this one, we celebrated First Book of the Year on New Year’s Day, and while I was getting ready for that event, I read another book on New Year’s Eve.  By the end of January 1, I had two books read and reviewed…which when added to the book I read earlier in the week, brought my total to three books.  Nine blog posts, too.

I’ve been finishing up some projects in my apartment…shredding the last bag of stuff.  And then I brought an old chest of drawers from my previous place, since my closet and other set of drawers were overflowing.  It looks a bit battered, in my vintage style of distressed furnishings.  But it serves its purpose, and now I can tuck things away easily.

So…today will bring more errands and tasks to organize some things.  Let’s grab some coffee and take a closer look at the past week.

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LAST WEEK ON THE BLOGS:

Sunday Potpourri:  Savoring My Favorite Things…

Tuesday Excerpts:  “All the Flowers in Paris”

Goodbye to December and Hello to January 2020…

Curling up with New Year Tasks…

In a New Year, A Look Back…

First Book of the Year:  2020

Coffee Chat:  A New Year for All of Us!

Bookish Friday:  “Normal People”

Curling up with 2019 Books…

Review:  All the Flowers in Paris, by Sarah JioReview:  Kiss the Girls and Make Them Cry, by Mary Higgins Clark (First Book)Review:  The Look-Alike, by Erica Spindler (NG – 1/28/20)

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INCOMING BOOKS:

Empty mailbox!  I did purchase three books: two e-books and one hardcover.

Downloads:

The Playground by Jane Shemilt

Such a Perfect Wife, by Kate White

Hardcover:

Christmas Shopaholic, by Sophie Kinsella

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CURRENTLY READING:  Normal People, by Sally Rooney

Now that the New Year has begun, I will also be participating in a Nonfiction Reading Challenge, hosted by Shelleyrae at Book’d Out.  Here are a stack of books coming to my reading list soon.

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That was my week.  What did yours look like?  After such a great week, I rewarded myself with tonight’s strawberry rhubarb pie.

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76 thoughts on “WEEKLY UPDATES: A WEEK OF READING, BLOGGING, & ORGANIZING…”

  1. Literary Feline

    Sounds like your year has gotten off to a good start, Laurel-Rain. It sounds like you’ve been productive! My mom and her dog left for their home today, and I have my house back. I really need to do some major cleaning, but instead I am catching up on blogging and blog visits. I haven’t been able to do much in recent weeks.

    I hope you enjoy your new books! I love the cover for Such a Perfect Wife. Good look with the nonfiction challenge!

    I hope you have a wonderful weekend, Laurel-Rain. Happy New Year!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Thanks, Wendy, I have enjoyed my recent activities and feeling productive. I especially loved weeding out the paperwork that needed shredding. Finally bringing my extra little dresser into the mix has made a big difference already.

      I hope you enjoy getting back into your routines.

      Have a great week.

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    1. Thanks, Mary, when I discovered that the green chest was still available to me, I went a little nuts texting my daughter and arranging to have it again, lol.

      I think the strawberry-rhubarb pie is my all-time favorite lately, even more than apple pie. Pumpkin pie is competing with it, mainly because it is hard to get now at local restaurants, since Marie Callender’s left the area, sigh.

      Enjoy your week.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  16. I love to see your beautiful arranging. I’m glad you were able to make use of that nice chest of drawers. We have a small house, and we always have trouble with storage.

    I enjoyed Normal People very much. I hope you do, too.

    I signed up for the Nonfiction Challenge, too. I am trying to see if I can try to read a little more fiction this year, though, as I have tended in recent years to focus too heavily on nonfiction.

    Have a great week!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Thanks, Deb, I have already been buying a lot of nonfiction, so I’m eager to participate in this challenge.

      I’m glad to have the additional storage and enjoy being surrounded by my familiar things.

      Enjoy your week.

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  18. Wow, such a productive start to 2020!! I’ll be curious to hear what you think of Normal People. I ended up listening to it. The audio production was amazing and added so much to the experience. But it’s one of those books I’m not sure what my reaction would have been if I’d read it in print. Would I have liked it as much? Almost considering a reread just to find out… but will read her earlier novel, Conversations with Friends, first. Have a good week!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Thanks, Cheryl, I’m glad you got to visit some First Read posts. I always enjoy participating, but I can see how time and other activities can take priority.

      I haven’t read a Shopaholic book for a while, so I’m looking forward to this one.

      Enjoy your week.

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    1. Thanks, Kathy, and yes, ha-ha! I would be a disaster at organizing others, I’m sure. I did read a good book about a character who organized people…it was actually a mystery, by Hallie Ephron: Careful What You Wish For.

      Enjoy your books and your week, and I do hope to like Christmas Shopaholic.

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  27. Kathy Martin

    Organizing is always a good thing. I’ve been looking at my TBR mountain and trying to build up the ambition to finally get rid of books I have no intention of ever reading. There are so many books there that I wonder why I ever got them in the first place. Come see my week here and Happy New Year!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. As I go through my lists of books purchased over the past couple of years, I do have to wonder about some of the books I added. I think I’m doing better lately, though, as my 2019 purchases were mostly read…25 of 101 still to go.

      Enjoy your week, and thanks for stopping by, Kathy. Happy New Year to you, too.

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    1. Thanks, Elizabeth, I am finally feeling at home in my apartment, and with each little thing I add, I am more content.

      I had almost forgotten about Such a Perfect Wife, which I wanted to add a while ago. I had copied the book cover to my image files, and when I was scrolling through them the other day, I thought: wait, that book must be out already! And yes, it was. I love Kate White’s books, and the cover is great, isn’t it?

      Enjoy your week, too.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

    1. Thanks, Tina, I just keep reading Normal People, not knowing what will happen to the characters. They seem to be full of ups and downs, going back and forth in their relationships. Like real life, I think. I will keep turning the pages until the end, I’m sure.

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  32. Yay for organizing! I need to start doing that too – and in all parts of the apart, but especially books!

    Such a Perfect Wife looks like a lot of fun! Lately I am into thriller and I cannot stop reading. They seem like my go-to genre for winter.

    Have a lovely reading week!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  33. Seems like you had a great start for 2020! That chest of drawers is lovely, I would have wanted it with me too! I want to read Normal People too. I hope you enjoy it and your other books. Happy reading and Happy New Year!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Thanks, Kay, I am really enjoying the extra space afforded by that little chest of drawers.

      My books are keeping me engaged, although Normal People wasn’t a favorite. Interesting, though.

      Enjoy your week and your New Year.

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  34. That little chest of drawers is adorable! And seriously just my style. Lol. I love making a space work for me – I am glad that you are diving in and making your space yours.

    It looks like you have a great list of books lined up for the Nonfiction Challenge!

    Have a great week Laurel!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  36. The Cue Card

    I’m glad you’re off to a good reading start in 2020! That’s interesting that you’re doing a nonfiction challenge this year. You’ll like Michelle Obama’s Becoming for sure. I need to get to the Just Mercy memoir sometime soon … to weave it in with the upcoming movie.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Thanks, Susan, I started reading Becoming when it first came out, and loved it…but set it aside because of how many other books were calling to me. Glad I can now finish it in this Nonfiction Challenge.

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