Author: Suz

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Everything Else

My To-Be-Read Pile

This is a picture of my current TBR pile. The top two books, The Castaways by Elin Hilderbrand & You: Having a Baby by Michael Roizen & Mehmet Oz, I’m reading simultaneously.
I enjoyed Barefoot and requested the two other books by Elin Hilderbrand from the library which both came very quickly. This one is a little less “beachy fun” but I’m enjoying it so far.
I found You at a discount at Walmart & picked it up last week. As a planner & someone who likes to be on top of what’s going on (I’d been looking at wedding magazines/books/websites years before actually wedding planning), I thought it might be a guide for what we hope is to come fairly soon. So far I’ve found You easy to read & a great planning guide. It has good pictures & has given me a heads up what to expect if/when we do become pregnant. I want Jason to read it next (I think he actually might too!).
Next up is An Echo in the Bone which I’ve been waiting a year to read! I plan to start it as soon as I finish The Castaways (hopefully tonight or tomorrow).
Midwives & The Killer’s Wife are upcoming book club reads. Picture Perfect & The Yada Yada Prayer Group are PBS finds (with waiting lists so I hope to read those in between some of the others so I can re-post them & get others on my waiting list)

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Everything Else

2009 Books


I use this blog for many things, but one of them is to keep track of what books I’ve read through out the year. I think my favorites from 09 were A Breath of Snow & Ashes & The Glass Castle. I made the goal in 2009 to read 50 books. I believe I was 7 books short. 43 is certainly not bad at all, but I’ve re-made the 50 book goal for 2010.

  • The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon
  • Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling
  • The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
  • Lord John and the Hand of Devils by Diana Gabaldon
  • Lord John and the Brotherhood of the Blade by Diana Gabaldon
  • The Outlandish Companion by Diana Gabaldon
  • Lord John and the Private Matter by Diana Gabaldon
  • The Richest Season by Maryann McFadden
  • Harry Pottery and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling
  • The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer & Annie Barrows
  • The Fixer Upper by Mary Kay Andrews
  • The Lucky One by Nicholas Sparks
  • Bobbie Faye’s (kinda, sorta, not exactly) Family Jewels by Toni McGee Causey
  • Julie & Julia by Julie Powell
  • Best Friends by Jennifer Weiner
  • The Crowning Glory of Calla Lily Ponder by Rebecca Wells
  • One Fifth Avenue by Candace Bushnell
  • Twenties Girl by Sofie Kinsella
  • American Wife by Curtis Satterfield
  • Skinny Bitch by Rory Freedman & Kim Barnouin
  • While My Sister Sleeps by Barbara Delinsky
  • The Secret Between Us by Barbara Delinsky
  • Alphabet Weekends by Elizabeth Noble
  • Bright Lights Big Ass by Jen Lancaster
  • Memiors of a Geisha by Arthur Golden
  • Picture Perfect by Jodi Picoult
  • Pretty in Plaid by Jen Lancaster
  • Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer
  • Marley & Me by John Grogan
  • Multiple Bles8ing by Jon & Kate Gosslin
  • Election by Ton Perrotta
  • The Catcher In the Rye by J D Salinger
  • Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer
  • New Moon by Stephenie Meyer
  • Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
  • Handle With Care by Jodi Picoult
  • A Breath of Snow & Ashes by Diana Gabaldon
  • Crow Lake by Mary Lawson
  • The View From Mount Joy by Lorna Landvik
  • Swimming Pool Sunday by Madeleine Wickham
  • The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd
  • Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer
  • Here’s The Story by Maureen McCormick
  • Lamb by Christopher Moore
Categories
Everything Else

Favorite Ornaments

I’d forgotten I’d taken these (so I could make a post) until I just saw them when I downloaded the pictures from my camera. I thought I’d share a few of our favorite ornaments & their history.This owl ornament was a birthday gift this year from my parents. I love that it’s made of real feathers.This frame (the tassel says 2009) was given to Jason & I the Christmas after our Sept wedding.Jason says this is his favorite of our NCSU ornaments. Its a bell & the ringer is a lil NCSU football player.
I found the wedding cake ornamnet on sale day after Christmas 07. It makes me smile every time I see it.My friend Brooke gave me this tree ornament a couple of years ago. I think its fun & a lil funky.I got this ornament after we brought Moe into our family in 2005.
We bought this ornament on our honeymoon. There were iganas everywhere in Aruba!

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Everything Else

30 Day Shred & Work Out Tunes

After hearing about Jillian’s 30 Day Shred its seemed like everywhere, I decided to buy it from Walmart last weekend, especially since its only $9 there. Well I tried to get it Monday night, sold out. I went back to Wally World Wed after work, still sold out but somehow I spent $70 on other things (but that’s another subject…). Finally went tonight and it was in stock!!! I’m not sure that I’ll do it the 30 days in a row but I’m looking forward to adding it to my work out routine & mix it up with my regular gym work outs.
Speaking of gym work out, I need new work out music! The same things keep coming up on shuffle and its not working for me. So blog readers (is there anyone out there?!), what are your favorites? I need pretty fast paced music, but not hard rock or too hard core rap. I think the occasionally Mo Money Mo Problems (which actually came up on shuffle at the gym this week) but not much more than what’s played on G105. I usually listen to country (I love running to Sugarland) and anything my Fergie helps motivate me also. Thanks in advance!

Categories
Food

Banana Bread Muffins

Thanks to my new twittering obsession, I found out that Alethea was making these today. She linked the recipe from allrecipes.com. Jason & I both love banana bread & we had 3 old bananas that either needed to be thrown out or turned into something yummy! I changed a few little things based on comments from other people.
Sarah’s Banana Bread Muffins
Ingredients
1 c white sugar
1 egg
1/2 c vegetable oil
3 ripe bananas
1/4 c chopped walnuts
1/2 t vanilla
pinch cinnamon
1 t baking soda
2 c flour
1/2 t salt

Directions
Preheat oven to 350. Place muffin cups or grease muffin pan.
Mix sugar, oil & egg until creamy & light yellow. Add vanilla, mashed bananas, walnuts. Add flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Mix until combined & smooth. Spoon batter into muffin cups. Allrecipes said would make 12. I made 19. 🙂
Recipe said bake for 30-40 mins. I took out at 25 and I think they were perfect~ fork put into muffin came out clean.