October Book Review

Slow month.  I only read 2 books this month.  They were both good, but definitely not my favourite.  And I got distracted by fall TV shows and The Haunting of Hill House on Netflix.  Oops!

Every Note Played by Lisa Genova
Lisa Genova writes stories about people who are diagnosed with neurological diseases.  They are always different diseases, but I find they give such great insight into the disease itself.  This one is about a man who was a famous concert pianist who is diagnosed with ALS.  His ex-wife helps him out as his disease progresses.  It's about his experience, her experience, and their relationship.

What I didn't love was that I found Richard slightly unlikeable.  I felt for him, and I felt for how terrible the disease would be, but he just didn't seem like that great of a person.  I think that the purpose was to see his progression and understand him better and see how the disease changes him.  

It wasn't my favourite Lisa Genova book but it was still good and definitely was an interesting read.

Educated by Tara Westover
You may have heard of this one as it's at the top of everyone's reading lists!  This book is a memoir about a girl who is raised by survivalist parents.  This means they are very religious and they believe that the end of the world is coming.  They fear the government and so the kids don't go to school and although they are supposed to be homeschooled they really aren't.  Eventually a few of them, including Tara, study hard enough to pass the tests to get into University.  Tara ends up getting a PhD as well.

I did find portions of this book slightly unbelievable.  Whether they were fabricated or her life and her mind were truly that messed up, I don't know.  She has an extremely abusive brother and her parents consistently take his side.  There are so many injuries that should of killed them in the family that they "heal" with essential oils as they don't believe in doctors that I just found that a bit unrealistic.  You know how much I love my oils, but severe whole body burns, falling 20 feet onto your hear...my oils don't do that!  I did of course though find it interesting that her family owns a very successful essential oil company.  

Her family is messed.  That part is interesting and it's crazy that people live that way. This is similar to The Great Alone, which I absolutely loved.  So I definitely recommend this book as it is an interesting read.  

September Book Review

I have officially read my 30 books that I wanted to read for the year!  Anything now is bonus.  

The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah

This might be one of my top books for the year so far.  It wasn't the one that I read the quickest, it maybe wasn't the most "enjoyable" (I did enjoy it, but I mean in comparison to a light and fluffy chick lit book).  But as a real literary book that has a bunch of depth but is still readable, this book is it.

Leni and her parents move to Alaska to homestead in the 70's.  It's a turbulent time, and her dad has changed since being released as a POW from the Vietnam war.  Leni finds herself in Alaska and this novel is an exploration of that, her family, the friends she makes.  

For me, I love watching Alaska shows, so that's what drew me to this book in the first place.  (Alaska: The Last Frontier anyone?)  But I felt like this book had some great character development, it was thought provoking and educational.  

The Death of Mrs. Westaway by Ruth Ware

This book is about Hal, a young woman who is living day by day and has loan sharks after her.  When she gets a letter telling her that her grandmother has died and she will get an inheritance, it seems too good to be true.  Especially since she knows that this woman couldn't possibly be her grandmother.  She is desperate so plans to deceive this family in order to come into the money anyways.  Unfortunately things begin to unravel once she gets to the estate that belonged to Mrs. Westaway.  

I did enjoy this book, but not as much as some of Ruth Ware's books.  I loved In a Dark, Dark Wood and the Lying Game.  This one was more along the lines of the Woman in Cabin 10.  Left me wanting a bit more from it.

I've Got My Eyes on You by Mary Higgins Clark

What can I say about this besides the fact that it's classic Mary Higgins Clark.  A young girl is murdered, the book takes on the perspective of her family, a couple suspects and the detective.  I found it slightly predictable and a few parts surprised me as being unrealistic, but this was a shorter book and an easy read.

August Book Review

This month started off so strong, and then I just stopped reading. I read three books in the first week as I was on holidays, and then I only read one other book the entire rest of the month!  But four books isn't too bad either.

The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton

This was my book club book for this month.  So it's outside the norm of what I would usually read.  It's set in the 1600's and is about a young girl who marries a rich merchant.  She moves into his house with his controlling sister.  He gives her a miniature house that is a replica of the house they live in and then secrets begin to be revealed.  I don't like giving too much away! 

I found this book interesting and it gave a good perspective of life back then, although some parts seemed a bit unrealistic.  The general consensus at book club was that this was a good book!  

My Oxford Year by Julia Whelan

I picked up this book because it had been described as being similar to "The Royal We" which I absolutely loved!  This book isn't about royalty, but it is about an American girl who goes to school at Oxford and falls for her young professor.  Again, I don't like to give away main story lines when they are something that aren't straight up described in the book description.  But if you like chick lit and Nicholas Sparks I think you would like this book.



All We Ever Wanted by Emily Giffin

This book is oh so relevant these days.  Nina is married into Nashville elite.  Her son goes to a private school and their life is basically a combination of Wisteria Lane and Stepford wives.  But then one drunken night her son makes a huge mistake on social media and everything begins to unravel.  Told from the perspective of Nina, the girl involved in the snapchat picture, and the girl's father.  I thought this book was great.  Written in classic Emily Giffin style, but the topic was different and enthralling.

When Life Gives You Lululemons by Lauren Weisberger

I kept picking up books and not wanting to read them, and realized I just needed some good chick lit.  Enter Lauren Weisberger.  You may know her as the author of The Devil Wears Prada.  This book is actually about Emily, the bitchy senior assistant from the Devil Wears Prada.  She has her own business that is falling apart, until an old friend connects her with a Senator's wife who has been charged with a DUI and whose life is unravelling.  (Emily's business is basically to clean up publicity messes for celebrities.) Loved this book.  Emily is still a bitch but totally endearing in this book.  I loved Miriam who was a partner at a law firm but quit to move to Connecticut and raise her children, but is feeling out of place among the Stepford wives.  And Karolina, the Senator's wife who was a model is totally lovable.  

I'm not even sure what my favourite book was this month.  I think it was probably All We Ever Wanted, but they were all truly good reads!  I'm at 27 out of 30 books for my goal for the year so I think it's time I set myself a new goal!

July Book Review

I set a goal at the beginning of the year to read 30 books.  At first I wanted to go for more, but thought it was unrealistic.  Well apparently I should of aimed higher because by the end of July I was at 23 books and thanks to summer holidays by the time this post is being written I'm actually at 26! 

I usually write about the books in here as I read them, because I tend to totally forget what a book is about after I finish it.  So hopefully I can figure out what each of these books were about!

Now That You Mention It by Kristan Higgins

Nora is hit by a car and then while she thinks she is dying she hears her boyfriend hitting on another doctor.  After breaking up with him she goes back to the small island she grew up on that she hasn't been to in years. Throw in some family drama and some romance.  This is a typical Kristan Higgins, a light and easy read.

First Comes Love by Emily Giffin

Usually I read Emily Giffin books shortly after they come out.  (My sister buys them immediately and then I read them.)  But I couldn't find my sister's copy of this book and eventually just got it from the library.  This book is about family dynamics.  Josie and Meredith's brother died 15 years ago, this book talks about their struggles within their own relationship with each other and how their brother's death has affected them.

First off, I found it so funny because Meredith reminded me of myself and Josie was my sister.  But to the extremes.  Then I got annoyed because I really hated Meredith!  She was whiny and miserable and mean to her sister.  

Overall I liked the book despite not liking one of the main characters, but it definitely wasn't my favourite Emily Giffin book.

The Marriage Pact by Michelle Richmond

Wow, this book made me think.  Alice and Jake are newlyweds and are given an unusual gift at their wedding.  It's a membership into a marriage club, designed to ensure that your marriage works.  But it is basically a cult. I found this fascinating because it gave so much insight into how someone could basically be tricked into a cult, especially one that really has the strength to control you.  

I feel that this book wouldn't be for everyone.  I'm not sure what category of books it would even fit into.  But I really enjoyed it.  It was super thought provoking and made me think about it even after I had finished it.



A Stranger in the House by Shari Lapena

I brought this book to a cottage with me, my mother in law started reading my copy while we were there and then took it while I was done and my sister in law read it immediately after.  So we basically all finished it within a few days of each other!

This book is by the same author as The Couple Next Door which I read in June.  Karen and Tom are happily married, until one day Tom comes home and Karen is gone.  She had been in a car accident, but doesn't remember what happened or how she got there.  Things start to unravel as they try to figure out what happened and why Karen had gone somewhere that she typically wouldn't.

I enjoyed this book but liked The Couple Next Door more.  Similarly, this book goes from the perspective of both the couple and the police.  I'm not sure I love this combination, I like it to be one or the other for some reason.  But that being said, it was a good read and I did read it very quickly!

So that's it for this month.  August is shaping up to be a good month considering that I'm 3 books in already!  

Sleeping in the Trees

A bit delayed but I really wanted to write this post in case others who are planning a trip come across it.  We recently crossed a major bucket list item off our list and went to Costa Rica.  I've been wanting to go here for years!  We considered it for our honeymoon, but they had no adults only resorts at that point so we decided on Jamaica.  We were going to go in 2013, but had a destination wedding in Punta Cana instead.  We really lucked out that this time there was a destination wedding, it was in Costa Rica!

 We decided to go all out for this trip.  I really wanted to actually see Costa Rica.  So we changed out flight to 3 days earlier and went down with another couple.  I really want to share this part of the trip because when I was planning it I was constantly looking online for what other people had done, what worked and what they recommended.  Planning trips is my jam.  I love it and it has definitely given me something to do for the 9 months before the trip.

First up, I'm going to talk about where we stayed.

When we decided to go to Costa Rica a few days before everyone, I knew that it was important that we really see the country.  So we had to decide where to go!  I had looked up Costa Rica before and had come across these Treehouses that I thought looked really neat.  I didn't know much about the area that they were in.  There were some in La Fortuna, and I also found some in Monteverde.  When I looked into it a bit more, the prices of the Treehouses by La Fortuna were great, and the Arenal Volcano is considered one of the must see areas of Costa Rica.  (Monteverde is too, I've also heard great things about Manuel Antonio.  But for us I felt that Arenal had more to do than Monteverde.)

The view from the front of our treehosue

I had fairly low expectations before we got there.  All of the reviews said it was a great experience, but I figured it would be kind of dirty, there would be bugs.  I figured it would be a 3 star, but a neat thing to do.  But this place was so great!  (Probably still considered a 3 star, but if you embrace it, it's beyond a 5 star!)  It was so clean, the only bug was a cicada that flew into our room.  The shower took a bit to figure out how to get hot, but it was possible.  And you are in a treehouse...so what do you expect!  The fact that they have indoor plumbing is amazing.

When we arrived we were greeted by Yiandra, who works there.  We had spoken to her by email and she was just as helpful in person.  After that the on site managers, Jess and Carolina were there.  All of them were very welcoming and helpful.  They would order food for you that was delivered right to your treehouse.  They would call and book excursions for you and inquire about availability.  

Every morning when we woke up there was a thermos of coffee sitting on our porch for us.  Then they served breakfast at the outdoor breakfast area at 7:30 every morning.

We also took part in a night hike.  Rolando was very enthusiastic about the animals.  We saw a snake, baby hummingbirds, sleeping birds (they just sit on the tree branch, who knew), an armadillo, a sloth, poisonous frogs, tree frogs and a big iguana.  It was so helpful to have this hike because we wouldn't of seen anything without Rolando.  Because sloths don't move very far or very fast, the next morning we were able to go back and see the sloth in the day light.  He was still very high up in the trees, and I wish I had seen one closer.  But at least we saw one!

The treehouse itself was very nice.   It was all made of wood.   There was air conditioning, a mini fridge and a bathroom with a toilet and a shower.  The shower was screened in so it was open to the forest.  It wasn't quiet here by any means!  The jungle is noisy!  But after a day we got so used to it.  It's like having a noise machine on.

We did rent a car for this portion of the trip, and although you don't have to in order to stay at the treehouses I think it made life easier.  They are about 40 minutes from La Fortuna, so we just drove in every day.  But the experience was worth the distance.  We also ordered pizza in one night and there are restaurants near by too.  I wish we had of had one more day here to just relax at the Treehouses and enjoy!  We did a hike to a waterfalls and river on the property.  We thought it would be a relaxing morning hike before breakfast and brought a coffee.  Although it wasn't strenuous it was longer than expected and coffee was a bad idea!  So I wish we had of had more time to hike down there and enjoy the area.

Pizza delivered to our treehouse door - And the Costa Rican pineapple...I'm drooling thinking about it

If you are heading to Costa Rica, specifically the La Fortuna area, I can't recommend this place enough!  The treehouses also had lofts with beds, so if you had kids or teenagers, they would love it and it's very economical for a family.  You have to book in advance because it fills up, so get on it!

The breakfast room

June Book Review

Wow!  What a month for books.  I read 7 books this month and they were all amazing!  How did I read 7 books?  I picked good ones.  Books that I wasn't able to put down.  And I read all the time.  We had a rainy camping weekend, I read in the trailer, I read outside, I read on the drive there and home.  I didn't watch TV, I read.  I didn't take care of my kids, I read.  Just kidding...kind of.  

The Couple Next Door by Shari Lapena

I loved this book!  It got me intrigued from the get go and I basically read the whole thing on a Sunday morning.  This is a thriller/mystery type, but is more detective based than Girl on the Train type of thing.

It's about a couple who go to a dinner party next door (in a semi-detached house) and leave their baby sleeping at home.  When they get home their baby is gone.  This book follows the mystery of what happened and who took the baby.

My first thought when I read the premise of this book was "who leaves their baby home alone?"  but luckily they dealt with that right from the beginning.  They did leave their baby home alone but also acknowledged that it was a stupid thing to do...so at least that didn't annoy me throughout the entire book.

The Sleeping Beauty Killer by Mary Higgins Clark and Alafair Burke

I have read these books out of order, which isn't ideal, but it still works.  These books follow Laurie Moran as she is a creating a reality tv show that is essentially about a cold case.  It's always nice to have characters that you like and get to know and I like when they are carried on throughout a series.  I would say I liked this book more than I have liked some of the other books in the series. 

I was also curious about Mary Higgins Clark's co-writer and how that worked.  So I will share that knowledge!   From what I have gathered, the two writers meet to discuss the book.  Alafair Burke then actually writes the book, and after every version, Mary Higgins Clark goes over it and makes notes and adjustments.  Mary Higgins Clark is 90 years old!  So the fact that she's still involved in these books at all is amazing!  I find the books follow her style, but feel a bit more updated and would bring in more modern aspects (like Uber in this case) that Mary Higgins Clark might not have brought in if she was writing it on her own.

In a Dark, Dark Wood by Ruth Ware

Another book that I loved!  This is actually Ruth Ware's first book, but I had read The Woman in Cabin 10 and The Lying Game first.  I read this book very quickly as well.  It's about a girl who is invited to her old best friend's "hen" night (or a bachelorette party for us Canadians).  She hadn't spoken to her friend in 10 years so was a bit confused about the invite but went anyways.  They go to a glass house in the woods and from there some weird things start to happen.  I think that Ruth Ware develops her characters really well which makes the books so great.

Let's all just take a minute to thank Gone Girl for bringing to our attention this genre of book, because they are great reads!

Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand

I read this book for a new book club that I've joined.  I was actually quite happy to read it as it has been sitting on my book shelf for a few years but it always just seemed to be too heavy to get into.  This is an amazing book!  It's heavy and depressing, but eye opening and educational.  I think it's especially great for Canadians to read because they never seemed to touch on the Pacific war during World War 2 in our history classes.  (Maybe if I hadn't dropped Grade 11 history...) I really didn't know that there was this big war with Japan despite knowing about Pearl Harbour and Hiroshima.  I knew that those events happened but never questioned why. 


For those who don't know, this book is the true story of Louie Zamperini.  He was an Olympic runner who then became a soldier.  His plane crashed over the pacific and he was stranded on a life raft.  I don't want to give the rest away if you don't know it yet.  But this is truly a remarkable story.

The Family Next Door by Sally Hepworth

I read this book in a day.  So....it was good.  This book is about a new neighbour who moves onto Pleasant Court.  A street where everything is clearly pleasant but there isn't much depth.  It's told from the perspective of this mysterious new neighbour and three other women who live on the street who all have their own issues going on.  It kind of reminded me of Wisteria Lane.  If you like Liane Moriarty I found this book to be very similar but actually easier to read as you get a few more details throughout the book than Liane Moriarty sometimes gives.

Bring Me Back by B.A. Paris


The librarian warned me that this was a 7 day borrow.  I told her that wouldn't be a problem and read it in 2 days.  This book is about a man whose girlfriend went missing 12 years ago.  He is now engaged to her sister, but then signs that his girlfriend is still alive appear. 


I liked this book, but like other B.A. Paris books I found there were a few plot holes and things that were a bit unbelievable.  But if you can overlook those things then it's still a great read!

If I had to pick a favourite book for this month it would probably be In a Dark, Dark Wood.  But that's a tough choice.  I truly enjoyed every single one of these books. 

April Book Review

I brought 5 books with me to Costa Rica.  A bit ambitious?  Definitely!  But you always want to be prepared!  We were super busy the first few days, and crashed as soon as we got back to our treehouse.  No time for reading!  And then when you are with a big group of people not much reading happens.  I didn't spend time on the beach like I usually do and so I only got through a book and a half.

Waiting on You by Kristan Higgins

This is another book in the Blue Heron series.  I enjoy the series because it brings back characters that I have met before, but it's getting a little bit boring.  I don't love the girls.  They are a bit too edgy for me.  And by edgy, I mean rude.  Not sure how to describe it but that they just speak to people in a way that I don't think they would in real life, a bit too harshly.  The books are getting too predictable.  That being said I will likely finish the series...haha.  I only rated this one 3 out of 5 stars as it was definitely my least favourite of the series so far.

Odd Child Out by Gilly MacMillan

As I was reading this book it kept talking about a previous case and I wondered, is this the second in a series?  It is, and I have the first one sitting on my shelf...so hopefully I haven't ruined that one for myself!

I didn't love this book.  It was kind of a mystery, but also very political.  It's about two friends, a boy with cancer and a Somalian refugee in England.  There is an accident one night and their families and the police are trying to figure out what actually happened.  

I just didn't find it overly thrilling, and I found the basis of the story more political in nature an being about the lives of Somalian immigrants.  Which can be an interesting perspective, but it's just not what I thought I was getting into.

Three Wishes by Liane Moriarty

So what I've learnt from Liane Moriarty books is that it's more about the characters than the story and the ending.  I don't remember that being the base with the first few I read, but it's been the case with the most recent ones.  That being said, I enjoyed this book more than Truly Madly Guilty.  I think I liked the characters and just liked to see where they were going and wasn't overly worried about a big exciting ending.

This book is about triplet sisters.  Lyn is all about living the perfect life and checking everything off her list.  Cat has found trouble in her marriage.  Gemma is the single one who lives day to day and can't seem to find a lasting relationship.  I found the characters compelling and really just wanted to see where the book took them.  

Have Oils, Will Travel

We recently returned from Costa Rica, and of course I took a whole bunch of my oils with me!  I wanted to share what I took, and what I used.

I got a fair bit of flack for the oils.  It is what it is, and all I can do is shrug it off because I know they aren't for everyone.  (Well they are for everyone, but there are some people that I know aren't looking for the change.)

Another interesting story, is that while on our night hike, our guide was talking about a type of plant that he said is good for cancer.  He didn't say it cured cancer, and he didn't go into detail about what the benefits were, but all I could think about is how similar this is to the use of oils. Other cultures are using all types of natural remedies against common ailments.  And then our culture is up here rolling their eyes.  

So here is what I brought and why:

Terrashield spray - 20-30 drops Terrashield in a 4oz glass bottle, topped with distilled water.  This was what I used as bug spray.  We used it when we were in the jungle and I didn't find that I needed it when we were at the resort.  I don't think I got any bites, so it must of worked ok!  (You can buy this premade as well.)

Headache Roller - because it's always with me!

Deep Blue Roller - for the headaches that just won't quit!

Lavender Roller - bug bites & sun burns (took a burn on my hairline away within a day!)

ZenGest Roller - because you always need help with your tummy in a different country!

Immunity Roller - because your immune system takes a beating

Small vials in my doTerra key chain case:

Frankincense - behind the ears during take off and landing on the plane.  It's anti-inflammatory so I found it helped a lot.  

On Guard

Lemon

Copaiba - for anxiety and also anti-inflammatory

Terrashield - in case I ran out of our bottle

Balance - because I love it, a bit on the wrist, feet, or behind the ears

ZenGest - for if the roller wasn't doing the trick, my friend also used some for congestion

Deep Blue Rub - we were hiking, rapelling and ziplining for 3 days straight, loved putting some of this on at night

I used every single roller blend that I brought and a few of the small vials.  We also brought Pepto, Gravol and Advil.  Oils are great, but sometimes you need more.  And that's ok!  Modern medicine is amazing, but I always like to turn to my oils first now and see if they can fix the problem.  (By the way, I do find that ZenGest fixes most stomach problems.  However when you are down south, I find your whole system is off.  I took a Pepto pill every day for the last 4 days just to try to get myself back on track.)

As for taking the oils on the plane, it was easy peasy.  They are all under 100mL so they can go in your carry on if they fit in the liquid bag.  Once we were through security, I made sure the lids of my rollers were on tightly and put them in individual ziplock bags as I had heard sometimes they leak due to plane pressure.  None of mine ended up leaking, but it was nice to know that they wouldn't leak all over themselves if they did.

March Book Review

I've definitely slowed down my reading a bit as I've been busy with other things, but I still got through 3 books this month.  Here's what I read!

Vanishing Girls by Lauren Oliver

This is a young adult book.  I really enjoyed Lauren Oliver's Delirium series and I didn't read Before I Fall, but I thought the movie was good.  So I figured I would throw this one into the mix.

I thought that this book was decent.  I read it in about 4 days. It's about two sister's Dara and Nick.  They were in a car accident about a year before and haven't been speaking since.  Then a little girl from their town goes missing, and then Dara goes missing.  I enjoyed this book well enough, but unless you are a big young adult fan, it might not be fore you.  (Delirium on the other hand, if you like dystopian teen novels, was awesome!)

Every Breath You Take by Mary Higgins Clark & Alafair Burke

I really enjoyed this book.  To be honest, I've felt like Mary Higgins Clark books have been lacking a bit recently.  This might be because the woman is 90... Anyways, I got into this book quickly and read it in a couple of days.  

This book is part of the Under Suspicion series, which is about a woman, Laurie, who produces a reality TV show that looks into cold cases.  I like when authors have series like this because you really get to know the characters.  Definitely a worthwhile read for Mary Higgins Clark fans!

The Choices we Make by Karma Brown

This book is about Hannah and Kate, best friends since Grade 5.  Kate has been blessed with two beautiful children, but Hannah has been unable to get pregnant for 6 years.  This book deals with friendship, infertility and surrogacy.  It makes these issues feel real (and I mean they are real, to so many people).  It deals with the legal aspects and emotional aspects.

This book made me think hard about what I would do.  What if my best friend or my sister was unable to carry a child, would I donate my own eggs and do it for them?  Could I separate myself from that child, knowing that it was going to belong to someone else?  I don't have the answers, I don't think I would have them until I was in that situation.  I know that this is the greatest gift you could give someone and I applaud the people who do it.

This was an emotional read, but I really loved this book for bringing truth to what so many people are experiencing.  (Maybe not the actual surrogacy aspect as I think that's a bit more rare, but the infertility is so common.)

Tag, You're It!

Parker was running around the house one night saying tag, you're it!  Where does he come up with this stuff?  Preschool.

My kids have a pretty crazy weekly schedule, they are with one Grandma two days a week, one Grandma one day a week and at a home daycare the other two days a week.  On top of that, I enrolled Parker in half a day of preschool per week.  At the time I kind of questioned whether it was necessary, but I figured we would see how it went. 

Well, I think it's been amazing.  Parker is a shy kid, I would say he's slightly introverted and takes a while to warm up to a situation.  He loves playing with his brother, and his brother goes everywhere else with him.  We absolutely love the  home daycare, but home daycare is regulated as to the max number of kids they can have, which is 5.  So there are only maximum 3 other kids with them at daycare and only one of them is Parker's age.

Preschool gives him the opportunity to interact with more kids who are in his age group, and not have his little brother to fall back on.  After he started at preschool I saw such huge improvements in his vocabulary.  He would come home singing songs.  I asked him who he played with and he told me "Joshua".  I had no way of knowing if this was true until I was talking to Joshua's mom, not knowing who she was, and she said that Joshua always talked about Parker.  Ok, I guess they are friends!

The other night I asked who he played tag with and he listed off four of the boys that go to preschool with him.  

It's strange to send your kids somewhere and not know what they are doing.  But I also love that he has somewhere that he can go independently and grow and learn.  

February Book Review

I didn't read a ton this month as I was busy with other things.  But I still got a few books in and they were a bit different from what I often read.  

The Magnolia Story by Chip & Joanna Gaines

I have never watched even one single episode of Fixer Upper.  I know who Chip and Joanna Gaines are, but really knew nothing about them.  And I loved this book.  So if you watch their show, you will probably really love this book!

This book is just their story, how they met, their marriage and how the show came to be.  They seem so down to earth and like they just have a very solid marriage and family life.  My only complaint is that it took me awhile to like Chip's portions of the book.  Joanna wrote the majority of it and then every so often Chip would throw something in.  It became more substantial as time went on, but in the beginning I didn't like the style of it.  I did come around eventually though.

Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline

This book has been on my list for awhile, but I kept putting it off because I wanted fluffier reads.  But this was actually a really easy read and I found myself into the story from the very beginning. 

This book is about a 9 year old girl who is orphaned and rides the orphan train to Minnesota in 1929, where they are "adopted" out.  Some kids find good families who want a child, some find homes where they just want someone to work.  The other side of the story is in 2011 and involves Molly, a foster child, who is doing community service with a 91 year old woman named Vivian and is going through all her memories stored in her attic.  

Although I can in now way relate to the children on the orphan train, this book made the situation real and what it must have been like for these poor children back in 1929.  

My One and Only by Kristan Higgins

I guess you can say I'm a Kristan Higgins fan.  Her books aren't classic novels, but they are light and easy to read romances.  I always enjoy them.  Plus she has a ton of books, so there is usually something available from the library when I'm looking for something to read.

Harper thinks she has life all figured out.  She has her boyfriend Dennis and she's thought it through and thinks it's time they get married.  Dennis isn't so sure.  Then they go to her sister's spur of the moment wedding but her sister is marrying her ex-husband's brother.  She hasn't seen her ex in 12 years.  

These books are always a bit predictable, but there are a few twists and turns along the way.  They are definitely a nice option to have when you either just need something to read, or want something light.  

So it was a light month for reading, but I still got a few books read!  I went to the library yesterday and got 3 books out, so that always keeps me busy as I know I have to get them read before they are due!  I've read 7 of my goal of 30 books for the year, so I'm on track!

Is Cold Season Over Yet?

Today I wanted to share the oils that I used to support my body and my immune system during my recent cold.  I know a lot of people don't necessarily know how to use their oils and so they aren't as beneficial to them as they could be when they are actually needed.  I used to be that person.  I find that colds have gotten so much worse as I get older, is that just me?  They used to not bother me, but now that I'm older, I'm not sure if it's the age or the fact that I still have to function, but I find them so draining.  I utilized oils when I started to feel myself getting sick and during my actual illness.  By no means am I saying that oils can cure a cold.  However, I was amazed by how I felt they supported my body and immune system during the cold.  

One thing I've noticed since using oils is that I'm so much more aware of what's going on with my body.  I have felt more energized and just felt better physically lately, and so when I start to feel tired and run down, and get a little scratch in my throat, I know that I'm getting sick.  So that's when the cold protocol starts!

Ideally I would use an immunity blend on a daily basis, and maybe I would fight off sickness better.  But I'm terrible at actually doing this.  So when my throat starts to hurt, I roll on my immunity roller a few times a day.  With a sore throat I put it directly on my neck, but you could put it on your chest, the bottoms of your feet or down your spine.  My immunity roller is in a 10mL roller bottle and contains 7 drops each of Frankincense, On Guard, Tea Tree and Lemon oil.  If you are missing any of those though, you can do it without.  And really, just on guard would be fine too!

I started making sure I was drinking a lot of water with a drop of lemon in it to soothe my throat.

I diffuse On Guard in the house as well to kill germs.  The best oil to diffuse when you have a cold though is Easy Air or Breathe.  It's a respiratory blend and so it clears you up.  It was amazing, I put about 4 drops of Easy Air and 2 drops of Lavender in my diffuser before bed and it cleared me right up.  I had no trouble sleeping.  A drop of Easy Air in the shower so that it steams up is also amazing.

You can make a congestion roller as well with Easy Air, but what I did was put a drop of ZenGest (or DigestZen) on the tip of my nose.  Guys.  Seriously.  It was amazing.  It cleared up so much congestion! 

The key with oils is frequent use.  You can't run a diffuser once with Easy Air or use ZenGest once and expect your cold to disappear.  But every few hours I would reapply/diffuse and it would help.  Your body metabolizes oils quickly, so you can use less oils more frequently. 

To be honest, my cold never got that bad, I think because I was doing all of these things and because I started fighting it off from the beginning.  So next time you get a cold, give a few of these things a try.  (These oils are all in the starter kit, so if you have that you are seriously prepared!)

Those Family Pictures

Disclaimer: I received this product for my honest review.  All opinions are my own.

Back in October, we had my brother-in-law take some family pictures of us.  I had this great plan to get them done once both boys were old enough to look like themselves and then I was going to put the picture over our fireplace in the basement.  It was a great idea, we got the pictures done, and then I just wasn't getting around to ordering the actual print.  

Well I finally did it. Yay! Photowall has all these amazing wall murals and wallpaper options, but they also do canvas prints.  So I sent in our family picture and had a 16x20 canvas print made.  I was kind of curious how it would turn out because the company is actually shipping from Europe.  

First of all, it was fast!  I got the print in less than a week!  The canvas came rolled up with all of the wooden pieces to put it together.  This is a bit overwhelming for me because I'm a spaz and am always afraid I will screw things up.  So I had Ryan help me put it together, but it was honestly so easy I think I could of done it myself.  I was worried the canvas wouldn't end up tight but it turned out perfect!  I honestly don't think you could really screw it up!

The completed frame is actually the sturdiest canvas wrapped print that I have ever seen.  I'm so impressed with this product, it's quality and just the whole process!  

So if you are looking for a canvas print, or a wall mural, check out Photo Wall.  They have amazing options, you can make your own picture on canvas or they also have so many image options on there if you are just looking for some beautiful artwork. 

Photowall is offering my readers 20% off with the code TheOsbottSpotCampaign2018  This code will be available for the next 30 days!

Beating the Winter Blues

Is anyone else's kids going a bit stir crazy?  All this cold weather is getting to Parker I think.  He doesn't get outside much, and I know I should take him out more but I hate the snow and the cold! But when he is inside, he just wants to watch Paw Patrol all the time, which I hate!  So here are a few things that I do to try to keep Parker occupied.

Change Location
He often plays upstairs, so just by saying let's play downstairs, it sometimes gets him excited to play with different toys. 

Put Toys Out of Reach
Certain toys I put away and only get out when he needs a suggestion for an activity.  I do this with puzzles, games and his Melissa & Doug fishing set.  Then, he doesn't lose all of the pieces amongst his other toys and he's excited to play with it when I do get them out.

Get Creative
I like to get Parker's paint set out or a colouring book when he's bored.  To be honest it's not a long activity usually, but it gives him something different to do.  And because it's not something he does a lot he really enjoys it.  As he gets older we will likely start doing more specific creative activities and crafts!

Learning Activities
I love getting out the paint set or some other learning activity for him to occupy his time. Education.com is a great website to find a variety of worksheets that will keep your kids occupied while they are learning something!  They have so many worksheets, games, colouring pages.  I find that if I give Parker something productive to do he is entertained and so much happier.  I think some of their items might be too tricky for Parker yet, but there were also a ton of preschool worksheets that could get him started with tracing shapes, colouring and writing letters.  

Education.com has provided my readers with a free word search that you can get my clicking the link below.  The answer key is there too in case you can't figure it out!  You can find more resources that help with specific things such as spelling here.  I was a huge nerd in school and I think I would of loved if my mom had of printed out worksheets like this.  There are still kids out there like me, right?

Word Search 

Answer Key

Do you have any other ideas for fun ways to keep kids occupied when it's cold outside?