November Book Reviews

So....you may or may not of noticed that there wasn't a book review for October.  Unfortunately I read no books in October, but it wasn't for lack of trying!  I spent 3 weeks trying to read Seeing Red by Sandra Brown.  Usually I like Sandra Brown, and this was her newest and the librarian talked me into borrowing it because it had just come back in.  I could not get into it!  Now it has decent reviews on Goodreads, so maybe I'm the only one who felt this way.  But I just found that it went on and on about nothing for too long.  And I HATED the way the man talked to the woman in it.  I found him crude and vulgar and yet she was interested in him.  It sounded like the book was written by a man because I couldn't imagine a woman actually writing those parts.  So anyways, this was one of the first books in a very long time that I didn't finish!

Luckily November has been better.  I'm back to work so I don't have as much time to read, but I'm often reading on my lunch since I have an hour.  So we just have a couple of reviews this month, and here they are.

The Rumour by Elin Hilderbrand

I knew that this was a good choice after the Sandra Brown fail because although I don't find Elin Hilderbrand's books hugely thrilling, and they are somewhat predictable, they are a nice light read.  It's easy to get into them and enjoy them. 

This book is about a couple of friends in Nantucket.  There is one who is having an affair with her gardener, one who is writing a book about it, and then all of the rumours that are going on about both of them an their husbands because Nantucket is a small place, and that's what happens.

The Lying Game by Ruth Ware

I loved this book.  How much I love a book is just based on the feeling I get.  I couldn't put this one down but I also didn't want it to end.  I liked it much more than The Woman in Cabin 10, which was Ruth Ware's last book.  I'm also definitely looking forward to reading her other novel "In a Dark Dark Wood" now.  

This book is about 4 girls who were friends in high school.  While there, they had a "lying game" where the goal was to tell the biggest lies and make people believe them basically.  Of course something terrible happened as well and now 15 years later it is coming back to haunt them.  I liked that this book was about girlfriends, it made it different than so many other books.  I found it interesting the differences between the girls, the length of time that had passed and yet they could still pick up where they left off.  There were some plot holes as we got further in, which kind of bugs me.  I think that's what bugged me most about The Woman in Cabin 10 as well.  But overall this has been one of my favourite books in awhile!

Maybe in Another Life by Taylor Jenkins Reid

This is a super late addition (like I'm adding it on December 21 and originally posted this at the beginning of the month).  I'm not really sure how I missed this book!

This book is based on the idea that every time we make a decision, the two decisions create a new life line and our lives run in parallel in two separate dimensions...if that makes sense.  I know there's a more eloquent way to state that, but I can't figure out how right now.  So this book is based on Hannah's life and two very different ways it could of gone based solely on the a decision she makes one night.  I did like the book, I found it interesting that I wasn't cheering for one story line more than the other, I liked them both.  But I'm not sure I buy into this idea that we have parallel lives. 

The book was a good read, like all of the other Taylor Jenkins Reid books I've read have been, but it wasn't one of my favourites.

Moms Make the Magic

I love Christmas.  I love the day, I love the season.  It's magical.  But that magic has really changed since I became a mom.

When you are a kid, Christmas just happens.  You get to enjoy every second of it, stress free.  All these presents just appear, a meal is put on the table in front of you.  You come down on Christmas morning and the tree is pure magic.  As a mom though, it's now my responsibility to make that happen.  

I have been shopping for months.  December is full of all my usual responsibilities, plus extra parties, decorating the house, visits to Santa, cooking extra special meals, parades, wrapping presents, making sure that everyone on your list has a gift.  (It's not just Santa who makes his list and checks it twice.)  Moms have to make all of this happen, and it's a lot of pressure.  But I gladly do it, because I want Christmas to be a magical time for my kids, just like it was for me.  

Christmas is the one occasion that I think that all of the extra stress and pressure is worth it.  I love all of the traditions, even if it means that every weekend is packed from mid November until the end of December.  

So here's to all of the moms out there who are making Christmas magical for their entire families.  And here's to a relaxing January, with maybe a spa day thrown in there somewhere...

Cooper at 1 Year

So pictures this month were interesting.  It didn't help that because I'm back to work, I couldn't choose the best time of day.  We took them after dinner, and Cooper was getting a bit nuts.  (Before dinner he wasn't having it at all.)  But he's happy!  He just didn't want to sit still and wanted to hug his fox the whole time!

Weight: 22lbs 8 oz

Height: 30 inches

Sleeping: What a difference a month makes.  And my inability to nurse him...  Because I was going back to work, I weaned Cooper.  I also was leaving him for a weekend 3 days after I went back to work, and was hopeful that he would get used to not nursing himself back to sleep.  It worked!  Because I wasn't around to feed him, he had to go back to sleep on his own.  Overall he has been sleeping really well ever since.  He sometimes wakes in the night, but most of the time can go back to sleep on his own.

He naps twice a day, in the morning for less than an hour and in the afternoon for a couple hours.

Eating: As I said, no more nursing!  He's drinking milk from a cup now and eating like a regular boy.  He will eat anything that we put in front of him and doesn't ever seem to get full!  When he wakes up in the morning he's pretty cranky if I don't feed him immediately, which is the total opposite of Parker who wants nothing to do with food for at least an hour.

Favourite foods...it's hard to pick a favourite with Cooper.  He likes grapes and bananas, pasta, meatballs.  Those are some of the things he gobbles right up.  But I'm not sure I've found anything that he refuses to eat.

Milestones:
-climbing stairs
-cruising
-first night away from mommy
-started daycare

Likes:
-playing in Parker's room
-wrestling with his brother
-toys with wheels
-food
-the bath

Dislikes:
-not a huge fan of dogs
-not getting food fast enough

He has adapted so well this month to his new routines.  The first few days he was very sucky when I picked him up from daycare, but he had been totally fine all day without me.  But now he's completely back to his regular self.  He never cries when I drop him off.  I think it definitely helps that Parker stays with him.

A One Year Old

And poof, he's one.

This kids growing up thing is something that I'm still not used to.  It's crazy how much they change.  They go from this little teeny tiny baby, to this big boy who loves to eat and crawl and climb on top of his brother whenever he gets a chance.  And it all happens in a year!

Right after I had Cooper, I couldn't imagine going through birth again.  It hurt.  But I knew I would forget, and I have.  I also couldn't imagine going through pregnancy again.  But everything that you have to go through, makes this time so worth it.  I want all the babies if I'm able to watch them grow, because it's really so much fun.

I was so relieved when I went into labour with Cooper at just over 36 weeks.  That's something that not many people say!  But I was ready to meet this guy.  I was ready for him to make our family just a bit more complete.  

And brothers!  Oh boy, it's been fun.  I was unsure of what life would be like with two boys.  And it is a bit crazier than I had pictured my life.  And I think it will be a bit more expensive than I had hope, because Cooper eats everything in site, and Parker makes me open everything and then says "I don't like that."  But I love watching them together, and I love that they have each other.

Cooper has been such a joyful, easy going baby.  I hope he has those qualities for the rest of his life.  I hope he grows into a kind, hardworking, generous person.

We have done a lot this year.  Life has been crazy busy.  But that's the way we've wanted it to a point.  We have these kids, who want to see the world that they live in.  So I love to take them places, watch them as they see something for the first time.  Parker has also grown up this year and understands so much more, and so I know exactly what I have to look forward to with Cooper.  But if he could stay a baby for a bit longer that would be fine by me.

Ok enough of my rambling.  All of this is just to say, Happy Birthday Coop!  We love you more than you will every know (until you have babies of your own).