Recently my family was going through their books, and I got texted pictures of some they were planning to donate/give away. Looking through them brought back such beautiful memories, and I chose my favorites to keep and share with my own family someday. The oldest book here is one I first experienced almost 20 years ago and the newest are some I read in ebook or from the library and couldn’t pass up the chance to own.
I know it was a lot of work for my mom to take these pictures then sort out what I wanted, so I’m very grateful she reached out. 💖
Here are the ones I chose…
The Elements of Style by Strunk and White, a smart, amusing, and helpful grammar guide
Daddy Long-Legsby Jean Webster, a newer copy and one I didn’t have in paperback (shocker, I know)
Word of Mouse by James Patterson and Chris Grabenstein, an adorable newer find
The Cats in the Doll Shopby Yona Zeldis McDonough, one of the sweetest WW2 books I’ve read from the library
Cherokee Run by Barbara Smucker, my first introduction to non-resistance but I’m conflicted about the land-grab history and will be looking at it more critically 😉
Structuring Your Novelby K.M. Weiland, aka a book my parents bought for the family but mostly to help me with my writing (it made Kiera possible!)
Twinepathyby C.B. Cook, one of the greatest superhero books of all time and a favorite indie
At the Foot of Windy Low by May Justus, a book my oldest sister read aloud to me before I could even read 💖
The Beautiful Culpeppers by Marion Upington, the most adorably unique book ever (a paper doll family?!)
If I had to choose three words to describe this year, they would be “sorting”, “softness”, and “new” memories. 💙
Year one of marriage has been great! We’ve had so much fun getting settled in our little house, bringing his dog Nugget into the mix, and becoming pros at grocery shopping and communication (almost). Also, hospitality makes us feel like really cool adults. 😎 My favorite new memories have been us sitting on the porch watching it rain and our very bookish vacation this summer.
My mental health journey has been a ride. Oh boy. 🥴 Lots of coping with comfort shows, a cute computer game, and amazing naps, lol. I feel like I lost a lot of time this year to survival mode, but I’m so grateful to be six months into treatment and feeling way better. And just this month I got answers and a plan for 3+ years of “mysterious” physical illness. 🙌😍
It’s been an amazing author year in ways I could have never expected when I dove back in! It’s been encouraging and fun to find you all stuck around, and growing my bookish Instagram community has been great too. 💙 I released the special second edition of Kiera, a literal dream come true, published Enjoy the Poodle Skirtin adorable tiny paperback form, and wrote Operation Robin and most of a novella. I’ve also been gaining confidence (and a low-key obsession) with cover design. 😎
So much more reading happened this year! And a huge percentage of it was indie, which makes me ridiculously happy. 😉 From debuts to short stories to years-in-the-making comebacks, I’ve been delighted to support my authors and discover new fictional worlds. I’ve also gotten to experience a couple buddy reads which is always quite fun. Check out my Goodreads “Year in Books” to see what I enjoyed.
My husband and I really bonded over movies while we were dating, and the fun has continued into our marriage. Thanks to him, I’ve seen a TON of really good movies this year, so I had trouble choosing my top 5. (That’s why there are six. 😂👀) If you have any questions about a movie/content, I’m happy to share my thoughts. 😉
I got to bake a lot more this season, and my favorite repeat recipe has got to be these cookies. So delicious and light. 🤤 I had to buy a new computer early this year, and collecting stickers on it makes my nerd heart so happy. 😍 As does my growing Funko Pop family and the book sleeve collection I accidentally started. 😊
It’s been quite a year, and I’m really, really grateful for it. 💚 I’ll be back next week (next year! :O ) with my nebulous goals for 2023.
The stockings I bought when we were still just dating now hang by rental-friendly hooks and are framed by twinkling Christmas lights.
Ornaments old (this one from pre-y2k) and new sparkle from our small Christmas tree.
The little touches are scattered throughout our house, a sleigh full of pinecones and a jolly hedgehog here, a nativity ornament hanging there, and my tiny Christmas trees for the squirrel shakers and my Funko Pops.
Cheerful packages have been showing up at our door (except one at the post office), and we decorated them together with cute and humorous messages.
Cozy beanies and happy selfies after an evening out with family made the season come even more alive.
Soon I’ll be feeling the joyful reality of Advent and adding Chanukah candles in the mix. I hope to make my first-ever gingerbread and some other goodies I’m sure will test my skills and my family’s tastebuds. 😉
Ahhhh, she seems like an amazing human, and I want to support her, and I’ll see the cover before anyone else.
“Yes!”
“Do you do beta-reading?”
I love helping out newer authors, and it’s so rewarding to encourage and critique at such a critical stage.
“Yes!”
“I’m having a [sale, party, social media team, Instagram challenge, blog tag, etc.] and I thought of you, would you like to join?”
Aw, they thought of me. I absolutely love getting to interact with so many other bookish people… This could help grow my audience too.
“Yes! Thanks for the invite!”
*notices they need help with something*
“I am available, and yes, I am going to help you.”
I’m obsessed with saying “yes” to things. Mostly because I love my indie authors and my bookish humans, and I want to support everyone in every way possible.👏👏 Also, a tiny bit because I miscalculate my schedule and am a mess at boundaries and feel guilty saying “no”.
I’ve been reallocating my energy lately. Taking a good long look at what I actually *want* and can do with the time I have. Leaving space to pour into people, in big ways and small, but also taking time to read, to write, to work, to be human Kate.
I’m learning to give an honest answer immediately or eat humble-pie and apologize when I can’t follow through on something I previously agreed to.
It’s been nice. 🧡
(P.S. — Don’t ever feel guilty for asking me to do something/something I’ve done for you in the past. I love working with you, and it’s on me to honestly evaluate what I can do.)
Fall is my absolute favorite season, and since I missed out on a lot of it last year due to Covid, I’m extra excited to celebrate this year. 🧡
J and I pulled out our tote of fall decorations, many leftover from our wedding, some old items I’ve owned forever, and got to work decorating our apartment.
One of my favorite things is our little welcome sign paired with the “H” pumpkin my sister just gave us. It’s like we’re a little family and it’s so cute. ☺️
We keep our blanket basket out year-round, but I had to add one of the largest pumpkins on top for maximum cozy vibes.
I’m obsessed with this tea tray we set up on the chair we never use unless there’s company. Aren’t the sweater pumpkins from my wedding adorable? 🧡
My absolute favorite decoration is the bread bowl full of pumpkins, large and small, twig and sweater, with my hedgehog figurine nestled happily in them.
J filled in this empty spot next to the (dusty) candle with his boutonniere from the wedding, and it’s officially the perfect touch. 😉
And speaking of perfect, his letter board sarcasm is unmatched. 😂
The mixture of memories, small pumpkin figurines that used to live atop my desk years ago, sweater pumpkins from our dating years and wedding, and now fresh pie pumpkins I’ll definitely be baking into something scrumptious…
I feel so at home in our little apartment, and decorating for a new season always brings such joy. 🧡
Hello everyone, and happy Five Fall Favorites! Before we get started, I just wanted to say I’m so happy you’re here, and I know our fabulous bloggers have some really good book recs to share with you. 😉 Have fun browsing and don’t forget to check out the giveaway and daily FREE ebooks!
I also wanted to be clear that anything I link out to is not an across-the-board endorsement from me. 😉 Each blogger is responsible for their own recommendations.
All right, all that housekeeping out of the way… PARTY TIME!
Fall is my favorite season. Something about the melancholy lighting, cooler temperatures, earthy foods, and cozy, cozy sweaters just bring my creativity and bookishness alive, and I’m never happier than when this happens. 🧡
Today we’re all sharing our top 5 books that have inspired us, feel like home, and make us who we are today.
I’ve mentioned this book a couple times here on my blog, but it’s always one I come back to. The copy I grew up on was so worn it didn’t even have a dust jacket anymore, but eleven-year-old me was obsessed with the medieval setting, loyal characters, hope in a hopeless place, and platonic but absolutely shippable main characters. 😉 It pretty much became a core part of my personality (and teenage crushes, oops) and is the reason I still adore writing medieval stories. 🧡 (Read my review.)
If you’ve been here a while, you might recognize this one too. *smile sheepishly at my predictability* This book was incredibly inspiring to me as a teen. The strong Christian love shown in the Moravian Anabaptist community, their strength and trust in God as they were asked to go completely against their nonviolent convictions, and the way God used their trials to spread the Gospel. 🧡 I *believe* this is based on true events, but whether or not it is, it’s still definitely worth the read.
This book (the first edition, that is) was one of the first ever indie books I experienced, and I’ve been in love with the genre and the creativity it allows ever since. I’m so excited to see the series rebooted and continued this year, and I can’t wait to read more about these compelling characters and their complicated world. 👏👏
I experienced the movie first and fell completely and utterly in love with the setting, characters, message, and ultimately just the bookish vibes. 🧡 I bought the book without knowing much about it, and when I read a (censored for language) it just brought all the tears, sank into my soul, and both broke me and inspired me. (Yes, I have made it part of my personality. Yes, I adore Max. 🥺) Truly one of the most beautiful books ever, and the writing style showed me how there really are no limits to creativity. (Read my review.)
I wasn’t lucky enough to grow up with this book, but I decided to try it as an adult when I heard all my Goodreads friends raving about it. I could not have enjoyed it more. 👏👏 The brilliant puns and puzzles, the wonderful, dear characters, and hopeful themes just wrapped me up and felt like home. 🧡
I also rarely relate to fictional characters, but I felt a kinship with Reynie, and I loved watching his growth. I also got to buddy read the rest of the series with Mikayla and then buddy watch the show too, so I like to think it’s been a big, important part of our friendship. 🧡 (Read my review.)
Grand Prize giveaway!
The Five Fall Favorites giveaway includes…
Decorative fall items (pumpkins, gnomes, and blanket scarf)
A fall mug (there will be tea!)
Annie’s Life in Lists by Kristin Mahoney
Hedgehog journal
Kiera by Kate Willis (hardcover)
Brothers and Betrayal by Sarah Holman (paperback)
Should We Tell Her? by Lillian Keith (paperback)
The Road to Bremen by Kelsey Bryant (paperback)
Anthology including a story by Abigail Harris (paperback)
Most books are contributions by participating authors. Ships to contiguous US only. Winner will have 48 hours to respond after being contacted.
J and I drove down to the post office to get it, and I couldn’t have been more excited. I’ve been tracking this box like you wouldn’t believe. 😅
I don’t buy from Book Outlet very often just because their stock changes so much I can’t always find something I want, but this time there were a few I’ve been dying to read…
The sight that greeted me when I opened the box. 😊
All my book babies stacked up! 🤩😁
I’m most excited about So Many Beginningsby Bethany C Morrow (a race-swapped Little Women reimagining) and A Duet for Home by Karina Yan Glaser (the author of Vanderbeekers standalone release) since they’ve been on my to-buy-but-too-expensive list for forever. 😁
I’m also happy to complete our collection of The Giver series, add a paperback of The Last Voyage of Poe Blythe by Ally Condie to my shelves (mwaha), browse the children’s nonfiction book (#research), and experience The Shape of Ideas by Grant Snyder.
(Annie’s Life in Lists is just because the price was too good and I love that book. 😂)
This was such a fun splurge for me, and now I gotta free up some shelf room. 👀🧡
It’s been raining a bit more here lately, and autumn decorations are coming into stores, so I’m beginning to feel a little extra bookish. 😉
I’ve recently been getting into Agatha Christie novels, and I finished my second (and a new favorite!!) late last night/early this morning. It was so mind-blowingly good!
Even before I finished it, I snagged another of her mysteries on our vacation thrifting because I’m now officially a fan. 😂
Yes, I also got a DW novel. (TenRose are life. 😍😍)
Speaking of vacation, I toted my books around in the most adorable red polka book sleeves The Very Awesome Mikayla made for me. I love how safe it kept them, and it was really, really cute. I’ll definitely have to share a picture sometime.
My notebooks weren’t *quite* as fortunate, getting a little bent out of shape, so when a favorite small business had a sale, I decided to splurge and get a big book sleeve that will hopefully fit a notebook or two. 😎
Last month, Joshua and I had a really fun vacation. It was one part staycation, one part drive-up-north-where-its-twenty-degrees-cooler, and fifty-seven parts visit every bookstore and Goodwill we came across. Absolute vacation #goals.
The first bookstore we went to was an underground, hole-in-the-wall beauty, absolutely packed with books on the older side, which made J super happy and he snagged one for his collection.
The next one, aka my absolute favorite was really, really inviting and had that perfect indie bookstore feel. J treated me to an Agatha Christie book, and we added the fourth Giver book to our series. 😉
The store was mostly about books, as all good stores should be, but I was delighted with this typewriter and the absolutely TINY chairs in the children’s section. I should have taken a picture with something for scale, but that “big” chair is actually a mini armchair and the other one is even tinier. So wholesome. 🥰
The last bookstore was delightfully personable, and even though they didn’t have books for me, I could feel the sense of community and love of reading. I also adored their ginormous purple Squishmallow mascot. 😉
All in all, it was a really fun vacation and the books were just one of the many highlights. 😉 ❤
Once Upon An Ordinary 