Still here {A Little of the Mom Life}

     Yesterday I had a newcomer to storytime. His name was Jacob and he'll be one at the end of this month. This is super important to the story of my day. It's the catalyst of all my thoughts and emotions. His older brother used to come to storytime. (He's now 6.) Jacob came into the room with his grandma and his grandma said I might remember his brother when he came with his mom. She mentioned their names and it all clicked - probably partially due to the fact that Jacob resembles his older brother a lot.

     And then she told me the news. How last April, the boys lost their mom due to a pulmonary embolism. I don't know this family other than them coming into the library from time to time. And they haven't been in on a regular basis for quite some time (even before the tragedy.) Life gets busy and other things take priority. But I had no clue that these boys' mother had passed away. She was 31. Jacob won't remember her. His brother will, at best, have snapshots of memories in his mind.

     All day long I kept thinking about them. About her, their mom. And how she's missing out on seeing all the wonderful, and not-so-wonderful, things her kids are going to do in their life. How she's not going to see so many firsts, so many smiles, so many tears. She's going to miss out on the laughter of life and the snuggly hugs and kisses and all the silly moments.And those boys. They are going to miss out mommy hugs, kisses, snuggles, advice, tears of happiness, tears of frustration, fun times, not-so-fun times...

     Needless to say I was a bit emotionally exhausted at the end of the day. I just wanted to go home and relish in the fact that I'm still here. Yes, bills are due. Yes, school is happening. Yes, work is demanding. Yes, I'm tired. Yes, I get frustrated. But I'm here. I get to hear "MOOMMMYYY!" when I go to pick up Zoe-bug from the sitter. I get to go hunt down Eli at the Boys and Girl's Club and make him upset that he doesn't get his turn on the X-box. I get to deal with first grade frustration from a boy because I "don't do homework like Daddy." I still get to pour that glass of wine while he's wailing in his room because I tried doing homework in the wrong order. I still get to be told by Zoe that "Mommy, you're yelling." Yes. Those types of moments can suck. And suck the life out of you. But I still have them. I also still get the night time story reading, the hugs and kisses, and the "I'm sorry we couldn't get along earlier" moments (for real, that was a sincere apology from Eli at bedtime).

     I'm still here. They're still here. Good. Bad. All the in-betweens.

How Do I Love Thee... ???

My daughter is two and a half. Can you guess what she's into? Yep... princesses. Which I don't mind as much as I thought I would. I guess I am girlier than I let myself believe. ;)

I went to look for her one day and found her here, reading "Ariel", aka, The Little Mermaid. :)

So we've been reading a *lot* of fairytales. Cinderella, Snow White, Aladdin, Sleeping Beauty, Beauty and the Beast... and watching some movies, as well (can anyone say Frozen?). But these stories have really got me thinking about my own taste in stories and the books I read. Specifically the love/romance part of stories.

Who doesn't like a good romance in a story? But how many times have we (in general) complained about the lack of buildup, the insta-love? As long as it feels real, is well done, I'm typically okay with it. But so many times, it's not. It's just there and it doesn't make sense. BUT... what do these fairytales have in common?



INSTA-LOVE! Seriously. Snow White's prince saw her at a well and fell in love, and when he kissed her to wake her up - wala! - she's in love with him. Princess Aurora/Briar Rose/Sleeping Beauty met Prince Philip in the woods and danced with him, falling in love without even knowing his name. Cinderella danced with the prince at the ball and they fell in love... apparently they never even spoke while dancing, since he didn't know her name, where she lived, or anything about her other than she wore glass slippers. And Jasmine? She falls REALLY quickly for a guy on a magic carpet. I gotta hand it to Belle, though... she, at least, took some time to fall for the Beast.

For real, though. These love-at-first-sight stories have been around for longer than any of us. It's just all about how well (or not) they're done. Apparently, given the time test, some of these can last forever. I just hope that my daughter grows up to understand that that's not typically how love works (not saying it can't happen, just that it's rarer than stories let on...)... and that it's not ALWAYS happily ever after, that it takes work, which equals LOTS of frustration along the way to happily ever after. It's a little more like this ~

Love & Choices ♥ A Memorable Monday Post

Memorable Monday is a meme hosted by Escape in a Good Book. I'm excited to join in on this one because I love quotes, which was the driving force behind the creation of Memorable Mondays. I thank the ladies at Escape in a Good Book.

So... how do you participate? It's simple ~

1) Share a quote that has captured your interest lately in a Memorable Monday post on your blog.

2) Come back here and leave the link to your post in the comment box below. If you don't have a blog, I'd still love to hear read your quote. Leave it in the comment box instead of a link to a non-existent blog. :)

3) Visit other participants if you have time. It's always nice to have visitors. There's no overstaying your welcome this way, and they don't have to offer the obligatory drinks. Or clean.

4) If you tweet your posts, feel free to use the hashtag #MemorableMonday.

This week's choice(s):

“I fell in love with him. But I don't just stay with him by default as if there's no one else available to me. I stay with him because I choose to, every day that I wake up, every day that we fight or lie to each other or disappoint each other. I choose him over and over again, and he chooses me.”  


“I belong to the people I love, and they belong to me--they, and the love and loyalty I give them, form my identity far more than any word or group ever could.” 

~Allegiant by Veronica Roth

♥ Showing Some Author Love ♥

This is my final post for my Author Love series. Hopefully I'll be able to do it again sometime, with new-to-me authors to feature! :)

In case you missed it last week, I'm going to show some author love on this blog. To find out more, see my original post. :)

I've decided to do a series of posts about these amazing authors (in no particular order), one a week until I'm done, starting, well, today. :) To give each their due. I want highlight them for how much I love them. So share with me, love with me... feel free to post with me! :)

This week's featured author is:

Elizabeth Wein. Seriously. Did you read Code Name Verity? Do I need to elaborate? I jumped at the chance to read her next book, Rose Under Fire, and loved it just as much, for different reasons. I am super excited to read more from this author. I feel so connected to her characters. I *still* think about them. Still. I'm not a history buff, and in the past I've shied away from historical fiction. But these... these are amazing. She writes so beautifully. And everything in the books seems plausible, real. I am so glad I discovered her.

Smiles,
B

Find Elizabeth
Goodreads ~ Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook

♥ Showing Some Author Love ♥

In case you missed it last week, I'm going to show some author love on this blog. To find out more, see my original post. :)

I've decided to do a series of posts about these amazing authors (in no particular order), one a week until I'm done, starting, well, today. :) To give each their due. I want highlight them for how much I love them. So share with me, love with me... feel free to post with me! :)

 This week's featured author is:

Lauren Oliver. I have yet to read anything by her that I don't love. I know not everyone loved the ending to Requiem; some even hated it. But I didn't. I thought it was great. Her writing, her stories, the way she has qualms about breaking my heart into a gazillion pieces and doing a Mexican Hat Dance on them. I love that about her. I'd let her take me to the moon and back if she wanted to.

Smiles,
B

Find Lauren
Goodreads ~ Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook

Next Week's Author:
The final one!  Hint: She is best known for one book, in which she tears readers hearts out and explodes their minds. It's a great book club book. And while she has quite a few other books, I imagine it will be this one book that stands out for most people.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _    _ _ _ _
Any guesses?

♥ Showing Some Author Love ♥

In case you missed it last week, I'm going to show some author love on this blog. To find out more, see my original post. :)

I've decided to do a series of posts about these amazing authors (in no particular order), one a week until I'm done, starting, well, today. :) To give each their due. I want highlight them for how much I love them. So share with me, love with me... feel free to post with me! :)

 This week's featured author is:

AG Howard. Her Spintered series is nothing short of amazing. She can write chemistry like none other. The world comes alive while I'm reading and I have no problem feeling like I'm traveling right alongside Alyssa. I look forward to seeing what other worlds she has in store for us once she is done with Wonderland.

And she interacts so much with her fans. She seems to genuinely love hearing from us and finding out what we think about her stories. 

Smiles,
B

Find AG Howard
Goodreads ~ Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook

Next Week's Author:
Hint: She's written one series and a few stand alone novels. While I loved the end of the series, there were quite a few people who did not.
_ _ _ _ _ _   _ _ _ _ _ _
Any guesses?

♥Showing Some Author Love ♥

In case you missed it last week, I'm going to show some author love on this blog. To find out more, see my original post. :)

I've decided to do a series of posts about these amazing authors (in no particular order), one a week until I'm done, starting, well, today. :) To give each their due. I want highlight them for how much I love them. So share with me, love with me... feel free to post with me! :)

 This week's featured author is:

Tahereh Mafi. I've only read three books that Tahereh Mafi has written. With good reason. That's all she has. But the characters she has created? The world? I love it. And I love the writing style, and how I get a sense of the character based on the writing. It's awesome. I'm super excited about the rest of her Shatter Me series, and look forward to anything and everything else she may write. :)

Smiles,
B

Find Tahereh
Goodreads ~ Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook

Next week's author:
Another 'newbie' author... she's created a dark and creepy world filled with adventure, love, and tension.
_ _   _ _ _ _ _ _
Any guesses?

♥ Showing Some Author Love ♥

In case you missed it last week, I'm going to show some author love on this blog. To find out more, see my original post. :)

I've decided to do a series of posts about these amazing authors (in no particular order), one a week until I'm done, starting, well, today. :) To give each their due. I want highlight them for how much I love them. So share with me, love with me... feel free to post with me! :)

 This week's featured author is:

John Green. While I haven't loved all of his books, I have liked them. I enjoy his writing style and for the most part, his stories. My favorite, which is probably most people's, is The Fault in Our Stars. I'm uber nervous about the movie, but that's a different story. ;) I look forward to reading more by him. I realize that some people don't love his writing, or the way he writes his stories (I read a few reviews a while back (can't remember who, what, where, or when...) that claimed he was formulaic and predictable), but that doesn't make me like them less. Plus, he's a fellow Hoosier. :)

Smiles,
 B

Find John
Goodreads ~ Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook ~ YouTube

Next Week's Author:
Hint: She's a relatively new author, having only one partial series under her belt, but I already think she's awesome.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _   _ _ _ _
Any guesses?

♥ Showing Some Author Love ♥

In case you missed it last week, I'm going to show some author love on this blog. To find out more, see my original post. :)

I've decided to do a series of posts about these amazing authors (in no particular order), one a week until I'm done, starting, well, today. :) To give each their due. I want highlight them for how much I love them. So share with me, love with me... feel free to post with me! :)

 This week's featured author is:

Brenna Yovanoff. I bought The Replacement, simply because of the cover. It was Brenna's first book... I hadn't heard of her, obviously, but I didn't care. That cover, it was amazing. Dark, creepy. I read the book and didn't regret one word of it. I absolutely *loved* the story... *loved* the writing... I can't even begin to describe how much. It was just as dark and creepy as the cover, which, by the way, looks like this... 

 

(And, in comparison, the paperback cover... well, it just sucks.)

All that being said, I've loved every book since (there's been two).  She has another coming out in June 2014. I'll admit, I haven't liked the covers as much as the books go on, but the cover doesn't make the book. Obviously, just like any relationship, there has to be some instant attraction, but still. It's what's inside that really counts. ;)

Smiles,

B

Find Brenna

Goodreads ~ Website ~ Twitter 

Next week's author:
Hint: He's a local author to me, and according to Goodreads has only one series, featuring two books. :)

_ _ _ _  _ _ _ _ _

Any guesses?

♥ Showing Some Author Love ♥

In case you missed it last week, I'm going to show some author love on this blog. To find out more, see my original post. :)

I've decided to do a series of posts about these amazing authors (in no particular order), one a week until I'm done, starting, well, today. :) To give each their due. I want highlight them for how much I love them. So share with me, love with me... feel free to post with me! :)

 This week's featured author is:

Maggie Stiefvater. So far every book of Maggie Stievfater's that I've read I have absolutely loved. I love her writing, the characters she creates... how I just want to live in the book with my new-found friends. I can't wait to read more of her writing and delve into her worlds... I don't mind searching for the magical Glendower or riding mythical deadly horses. Sign me up!

As she is very active on Twitter, Facebook, and her blog, I've discovered that not only is she an awesome writer, she's a super cool and talented person. She let her fans paint her car. Did you read that? She let fans paint her car! How flippin' cool is that? She is now raising not only her children, but fainting goats as well. She plays multiple instruments. She races cars. She's an amazing artist. It's pretty awesome that we live in an age where she is able to share her awesomeness with others all over the world. Where she can interact with her readers, which she does regularly.  :)

If you haven't read Maggie's books yet, I strongly urge you to check them out... *nudge nudge nudge*

Happy Thursday!

Smiles,
B

Find Maggie
Goodreads ~ Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook

Next Week's Author:
Hint: She writes some creeptastic novels, but has only written three.
_ _ _ _ _ _   _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Any guesses? :)

♥ Showing Some Author Love ♥

Okay. Raise your hand if you fangirl over books. Yeah... that's what I thought. I'd count the hands up but I don't have time. (Not to mention that I can't see you... ) How many fangirl over certain authors? Again? Wow. Okay, not really surprised. 

I have so many books I love. And I have a few authors authors that I would read no matter what. For real, no matter what. They could write a sci-fi book and I would read it. (In case you didn't pick up my meaning there, I don't read sci-fi... I've tried. I have yet to be able to get into it. I don't typically watch sci-fi movies/shows, either. Supernatural/paranormal, yeah. Sci-fi? Not so much. Anyway. I digress.) These are authors that I have yet to dislike a book, who's writing style I adore, worlds I don't want to leave...

I've decided to do a series of posts about these amazing authors (in no particular order), one a week until I'm done, starting, well, today. :) To give each their due. I want highlight them for how much I love them. So share with me, love with me... feel free to post with me! :)

I'm going to start with... 

Jodi Picoult. I know I feature mostly YA here, since that's what I'm really into right now. But my first love affair with an author's books was Jodi Picoult's. I discovered her by chance one day in the library. I had always loved to read, but when I checked out Vanishing Acts, I fell irrevocably in love with her writing, her story telling. And I devoured her books; all the ones up to that date, and I've bought them ever since (although, I hate to admit this, despite owning them, I haven't read the last few books she's published... Eventually I'll get to them. They're not going anywhere.)

It was also the first time ever I reached out to contact a celebrity of any kind. When I was a kid the 'in' thing, the 'cool' thing, to do was to write fan letters to your favorite celebrity. I never did it. I never felt the urge, really. But then I discovered a contact place on Jodi Picoult's website. And it said that she responded. I was skeptical, sure, but I did it anyway. And you know what? She responded. In like a day. Keep in mind, this was prior to My Sister's Keeper taking the literary nation by storm, and I can't say for certain (obviously) if she would respond that quickly today. But still. Just the fact that she responded blew my mind. I mean, I'm nobody to her. And I didn't ask anything, just told her how much I loved her books. It was so exciting.

And the coolest thing about author interaction? It never gets less exciting than that first time! :)  I've tweeted and emailed with a few authors that will make this list and, let me tell ya, it never gets old. Never.

Okay. I'm going to stop rambling. :)

Happy Thursday!

Smiles,
B

Find Jodi:
Goodreads ~ Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook

Next Week's Author:
Hint: She's multi-talented and has written/is writing three series and one standalone, as well as contributed to anthologies.
_ _ _ _ _ _   _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 

Any guesses? :)

How Do I Love Thee?

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Each week they provide a Top Ten topic for you to create your list, then you share it on their post so others can find you. :)

♥ Top Ten Favorite Romances ♥

In no particular order...

Sean & Puck ~ The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater

 

Hazel & Augustus ~ The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

 

Clary & Jace ~ Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare

 

Dash & Lily ~ Dash & Lily's Book of Dares by David Levithan & Rachel Cohn

 

Lena & Alex ~ Delirium series by Lauren Oliver

 

Annabel & Owen ~ Just Listen by Sarah Dessen

 

Katniss & Peeta ~ Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins

Remy & Dexter ~ This Lullaby by Sarah Dessen

 

Gansey & Blue ~ The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

So, yeah. That's nine. For some reason that's all I got. I have wracked my brain into submission and it refuses to think of more. I keep telling it that it will be okay if it thinks more, but it's balking at the idea of more work, apparently. So I guess I'm ending it at nine, not ten. And I imagine there are tons more out there that I've read and fallen in love with so it's kind of depressing that I'm ending it. :(  Such is life. 

What romances have you loved? I'm sure as I'm visiting others I'll see some I wish I had added. So to those couples I left off, I apologize. Please forgive and know that I don't love you any less simply because I forgot about you. I promise.

Smiles,
B