Saturday Snapshot- Royalty in the house!

Saturday Snapshot

is hosted by Alyce of At Home With Books

It's easy to participate- just post a picture that was taken by

you, a friend, or a family member, and add your link

on Alyce's site. (no pictures from the internet!)

Last night was Homecoming at Cros-Lex! The students, staff, and community had fun all week participating in Spirit events which eventually culminated in our Homecoming parade, the football game, and the crowning of the new 2012 King and Queen. Our football team easily took care of the competition, so we brought home another win for the Pioneers. During halftime the King and Queen were announced. On Thursday the high school student body voted and the winners were.......Marcus and his beautiful girlfriend Shelby!!!! It was a wonderful way to end the evening!!! 

Cros-Lex Homecoming King and Queen

Reading Slump of the Century!

I have never experienced a reading slump quite like the one that I'm currently in. It doesn't help that the last two review books I've read have been disappointing. I was really looking forward to one of the review book because I read the author's work a few years ago and loved it. I tried to get into this book but it just wasn't working for me. I spent days with it and couldn't get past page one hundred. Finally after a bit of soul searching I just emailed the publicist and stated that the book was not for me and that I would NOT be reviewing it, nor would I be spotlighting it on my blog. I apologized profusely and then clicked send. I never received a response. Oh well. The other book was one that many have loved on Goodreads and many of my blogging friends loved the author's debut work. As for me, I ended up feeling ambivalent about it. Not looking forward to that review!! I have read two books over the course of twenty-four days. Obviously something is off with me and with the books that I spent time reading.

It doesn't help that I'm starting to experience 'empty nest syndrome' and I don't like it one damn bit. This is my youngest son's Senior year and I'm honestly having a hard time with all of it. It's hard for me to accept that come this time next year Marc will be away at college and I will be home alone most of the time. No more football games, no more school plays, no more Prom or school dances, no more morning hugs goodbye and words of 'love you, Mom. Have a good day.' I recognize that I may be a "bit" depressed and I'm sure that is contributing to my overall slump in the reading area. I'm working hard on focusing on all the great things that do come with Senior Year and staying positive. I'm proud of the young man that Marc has become so I need to buck up and look forward to the next phase in both of our lives.

But there has been one positive out of all of this, and that is I've finally realized that I am tired of doing review books. I'm seriously burnt out with having to read on a schedule and have decided to throw the schedule out the window.....for real this time!! I have a few reviews left for the year and I'm okay with those. I even enjoy the TLC tours and the occasional author requests. So I'm going to continue to participate when opportunity arises, but with limitations. I have a TON of books on my Kindle to read, not to mention the crazy amount upstairs in my book room. I'm embracing the new freedom that comes with no expectations of my time,nor the fear of upsetting someone when I find that their book was just a 'meh' read. I'm in the beginning stages of planning 2013 and what I want that to look like in regards to my reading. I'm pretty sure that alone will get me excited about reading again and will draw me out of my slump.


If you've made it this far, I want to THANK YOU!
This will be the end of my pity party!!

Happy Reading,
Staci

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Mailbox Monday and It's Monday..What Are You Reading?

Mailbox Monday 

is a gathering place for readers to share the books that

came into their house last week and explore great book blogs. 

Warning: Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles and humongous wish lists.

Our September host is: Kristen @ BookNAround 

The Secret Keeper by Kate Morton- courtesy of Atria Galley Grab

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hosted by

 Sheila @ One Person's Journey Through a World of Books

We discuss the books that we've read 

and what we're planning to read for the week.

Read and reviewed last week: 

Another week where it took me forever to get through one  book. 

Bookish Thoughts I will be sharing this week:

Instant Temptation- Bookish Thoughts and yes, it's another Shalvis book.

The Salt God's Daughter

In my Book Box:

Glory in Death

Saturday Snapshot...Hey Coach, Can I run the ball?

Saturday Snapshot

is hosted by Alyce of At Home With Books

It's easy to participate- just post a picture that was taken by

you, a friend, or a family member, and add your link

on Alyce's site. (no pictures from the internet!)

Last night was a wonderful night for this lady! Mitchell is home from Okinawa for two weeks and he drove up to our house to stay a few nights. And of course, Friday night is Football night so we piled in the car to drive to the away game. It was a beautiful night weather wise (to begin with) and Marc started off the game with a great tackle. It only got better from there as the Pioneers went on to dominate the opposition and Marcus turned in another solid game of defense. The clock was ticking down and we had 51 seconds left in the game, when we noticed Marc going out on the field. The only problem was that we were on offense. Marc doesn't play offense.....we were baffled. And then the most amazing thing happened. The QB gets the ball and hands it off to Marc who ran that puppy down the field like he was born to be a running back. Defenders were coming at him and he did a little fake move, moving around them to the right. He then turned on the speed and was cruising down the field until he met about four other defenders. He then tried out a spin move but alas, it didn't work and his run was ended about twenty yards short of the endzone. The Pioneers on the field, sideline, and in the stands went wild with laughter and cheers. Marc did it for his brother. He wanted to score that touchdown for Mitch!! And the coaches were generous enough to give the boy a chance to do it!! This photo means the world to me. It was a great night indeed!!

How I was suckered in by a pretty cover.....

Just recently I spent a few hours in a Barnes and Noble browsing the shelves and of course, adding a few books to my little stack that I felt compelled to purchase. Now, if you've been reading my blog over the past couple of months, you may have noticed that I've been on a bit of a romance kick. One of my authors that I'm currently infatuated with is Nora Roberts, so when I came across a title that I wasn't familiar with but a cover style that I was, I immediately put it in my stack of books to buy. My heart was racing because I got the very last copy and I was secretly doing that little happy Snoopy dance because it was in my possession. I looked it all over and said outloud, "Wow, how come I didn't know that she had a new series that was just released?? How did I miss that?" And then I shrugged and figured who cares, I have a copy now!! On the ride home I was so excited and like all book geeks out there couldn't wait to get on my iPad to add this title to my Goodreads account! My fingers were racing on the keyboard entering the title of the book and then the page appears but the cover doesn't look anything like mine. What? This isn't the one that I just bought. But then I glanced again at the information in front of me and I swear these words popped off the screen and SLAPPED me in the face...first published in 1996! WTH?????

Who would buy this one?

I just paid 15 bucks for a book that was published over 16 years ago? A book that is probably sitting on my library's shelf and without a wait list??? What??? You mean this isn't a brand new book in a new series?? You mean that I really didn't get one over on the other person who wanted this book too??? GAAH!!! And that's when I realized I had been suckered by the publishing company.

Those evil genius bastards got me! I'm THAT person who they targeted when they reprinted this book with the cover style (Bride Quartet and Inn Boonsboro) that is currently a hot commodity for Roberts. They knew I would fall for their marketing tactics, they knew I had SUCKER written all over my face.

But I did end up with a book that has a beautiful cover and I'm sure that it will bring me a few hours of reading pleasure. I have learned my lesson though, I need to quit being a cover snob!!

Has this ever happened to you???

Posted with Blogsy

Mailbox Monday and It's Monday...What Are You Reading?

Mailbox Monday 

is a gathering place for readers to share the books that

came into their house last week and explore great book blogs. 

Warning: Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles and humongous wish lists.

Our September host is: Kristen @ BookNAround 

The Unconquered by Scott Wallace- I won this from Ryan@Wordsmithsonia and I don't read a lot of non-fiction, but after his awesome review I knew this was one that I needed to learn more about!!

---------------------------------------------------------------

Hosted by

 Sheila @ One Person's Journey Through a World of Books

We discuss the books that we've read 

and what we're planning to read for the week.

Read and reviewed last week: 

Not a darn book...reading slump continues.....

Bookish Thoughts I will be sharing this week:

Instant Temptation- Bookish Thoughts and yes, it's another Shalvis book.

Hopefully one more this week????

How I got suckered into buying a book that I thought was new but wasn't!

In my Book Box:

Buttercream Bump Off- cozy choice

Glory in Death

Saturday Snapshot- First Game of Senior Year

Saturday Snapshot

is hosted by Alyce of At Home With Books

It's easy to participate- just post a picture that was taken by

you, a friend, or a family member, and add your link

on Alyce's site. (no pictures from the internet!)

Marc is in the middle of the picture and is the highlighted player. He is down on the line and you can see his left arm on the field and a hint of the #4..... plus, the arrow is pointing to him!! :D

August 23rd started the football season for Marc and for the craziness of it to invade our home! This is his Senior year and I must admit that it is very bittersweet already. For over six years I have been his biggest fan and watched him grow not only as an athlete, but also as a leader on the field. He's always risen to the challenges that the coaches give him and quite honestly has made his position on the field his own. For those that don't know much about football (me included) he plays Nose on the defensive line. Usually the offensive player right across from him is one of the biggest guys on the team. Marc is only 5'8" and weighs 155 pounds. So he never outweighs his opponent, but what he brings is his speed and smarts to the position! Last night was their fourth game and Marc keeps adding to his stats of QB sacks, QB pressures, and tackles. He's fun to watch and I'm pretty proud of him, on and off the field!!