Reads of 2013

Goodreads does a spectacular job of tracking my books; however it's fun to list them on my blog, too.  I'm pretty confident this is the most of I have read so far.  It is for sure the most/best that I have kept track.  I set a goal to read 35 books, and I exceeded my goal by 29% by reading 45 books, which should actually be 46.  (I didn't add a reread of a book on the site.)  I should mention that some books were audiobooks, but reading is reading.  I have indicated audiobooks with an asterisk* after the title.

Here are my Reads of 2013, listed in the order I finished them this year:

1. The Girl of Fire and Thorns (Fire and Thorns, book 1) by Rae Carson 

2. Of Poseidon (The Syrena Legacy, book 1) by Anna Banks

3. All She Ever Wanted by Barbara Freethy

4. More Like Her by Liz Palmer

5. The Almost Moon by Alice Sebold

6. Coming Home: A Story of Undying Hope by Karen Kingsbury

7. The Casual Vacancy* by J.K. Rowling

8. Eve (Eve, book 1) by Anna Carey

9. Safe Haven by Nicholas Sparks

10. Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver

11. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

12. The Shadow Cats (Fire and Thorns, book 0.5) by Rae Carson

13. Shatter Me (Shatter Me, book 1) by Tahereh Mafi

14. Walking Disaster (Beautiful, book 2) by Jamie McGuire

15. Dark Places by Gillian Flynn

16. Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn

17. Destroy Me (Shatter Me, book 1.5) by Tahereh Mafi

18. The Shattered Mountain (Fire and Thorns, book 0.6) by Rae Carson

19. 10th Anniversary* (Women's Murder Club, book 10) by James Patterson

20. 11th Hour* (Women's Murder Club, book 11) by James Patterson

21. The Crown of Embers (Fire and Thorns, book 2) by Rae Carson

22. Guilty Wives* by James Patterson

23. Speak* by Laurie Halse Anderson

24. Once (Eve, book 2) by Anna Carey

25. Of Triton (The Syrena Legacy, book 2) by Anna Banks

26. The Prince (The Selection, book 0.5) by Kiera Cass

27. The Elite (The Selection, book 2) by Kiera Cass

28. Dangerous Voices by Rae Carson

29. Don't Turn Around (Persefone, book 1) by Michelle Gagnon

30. Shadow and Bone (The Grisha, book 1) by Leigh Bardugo (reread)

31. No Escape (Persefone, book 0.5) by Michelle Gagnon

32. Siege and Storm (The Grisha, book 2) by Leigh Bardugo

33. Clockwork Angel (The Infernal Devices, book 1) by Cassandra Clare

34. Defending Jacob* by William Landay

35. Clockwork Prince (The Infernal Devices, book 2) by Cassandra Clare

36. The Language of Flowers* by Vanessa Diffenbaugh

37. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

38. Allegiant (Divergent, book 3) by Veronica Roth

39. The King's Guard (Fire and Thorns, book 0.7) by Rae Carson

40. Along Came a Spider* (Alex Cross, book 1) by James Patterson 

41. Now You See Her* by James Patterson

42. The Bitter Kingdom (Fire and Thorns, book 3) by Rae Carson

43. Sail* by James Patterson

44. Mercy by Jodi Picoult

45. Unlocked by Karen Kingsbury

46. (unsure of finish date) Catching Fire* (Hunger Games, book 2) by Suzanne Collins

My absolute favorite books this year were Rae Carson's Fire and Thorns.  These books are ABSOLUTE MUST READS.  They're not what I would have thought I would enjoy, but I loved them!!!

Do NOT waste your time on Unlocked by Karen Kingsbury.

Add me as a friend on Goodreads if you would like to read my book reviews.  According to this site, I read 14,886 pages, but this does not include my reread of Catching Fire.

I think I'll set a goal of 40 books for next year.  I would also like to read more by Cassandra Clare - recommended by my niece Shelby.  In addition, I have a few trilogies to complete with upcoming release dates.  Happy Reading!  :)

becky

Good Riddance 2013

While I try to remain a positive person, 2013 has not been the greatest year for us.  At the risk of sounding whiny, I'm going to use this post to document all of the ridiculous happenings.

• Technically in 2012, but the event that seemed to start it all - some punks threw a rock thru the back window of Tim's car while we were down in Cape Girardeau to visit Tim's grandmother. (police report #1)
• Also in 2012, we lost two of Tim's grandparents within 6 weeks of each other.  Great-Grandpa Werder and Great-Grandma Seabaugh will forever be in our hearts.  We miss them both dearly...
• Tim's red Pathfinder was renamed to "Titanic" after it backed into an iceberg at the end of the driveway.
• My Rogue was hit - unknown to me - in the rear bumper.  Gotta love it when people don't stick around in a parking lot to tell you they hit your new car.
• The sump pump in our new basement failed and we had water coming in.  Buh-bye carpet.  Hello insurance claim and an entire summer of chaos and restoration appointments.
• Ordering new doors to our garage and backyard turned into a fiasco that lasted nearly 6 months long.
• Some punk used a pellet gun to shoot a hole through a window pane in our kitchen. (police report #2)
• Yet another punk stole Tim's wallet right out of his back pocket at Six Flags Great America. (police report #3)
• The spring on our garage door broke.

I get that it can always be worse.  We are very blessed that we have all been kept safe and healthy during this past year, and I certainly pray that continues into 2014.  As I said before I don't want to sound whiny, but my blog is a good place to document all of the things that happen in our lives.

My prayers are for a HEALTHY and SAFE 2014.  Life is full of frustrations, but in the end everything works out the way God intends.  We're good with that.  :)

So as I look back at 2013, I smile.  I smile because Isaiah - Autism and all - is doing great at his new school for 1st grade.  Mallory is thriving in 4K.  Tim and I enjoy watching our kids learn and grow so much.  (Love him!) AND we added to our family with the cutest, best behaved cat in the world that we adopted for the Fox Valley Humane Association.  Savannah is the sweetest kitty ever.

- becky

1st Day of 1st Grade

     I can't believe that our little guy is in 1st Grade already!  Isaiah started at Sunrise Elementary School in Kimberly this year, and he is loving it!  It is so wonderful to know that he gets on and off the bus every day with a HUGE smile on his face.  :D  (And as an added bonus, Isaiah does a GREAT job working on his homework in the evenings.)

- becky

First Day of 4K!

Today was Mallory's first day of preschool.  We're so proud of her, and we can't believe that this day is already here.  We all dropped her off, and Isaiah and I stayed for chapel.  She looked so cute sitting with the other kids!  Mallory, I now know that you can sit still and upright for what is very nearly the length of a regular Sunday worship service.  And Isaiah, you were quiet the ENTIRE time.  Thanks for showing me what you are capable of, kids!  Ha!

Isaiah and I have been lost all day.  (We don't start school for a few more days.)  We've just been wondering aimlessly around the house, not really accomplishing much of anything.  We can't wait to pick her up and see how her first day of school went!

Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo

Siege and Storm

The Grisha Trilogy, book 2

written by Leigh Bardugo

Well done, Ms. Bardugo.  This book is ridiculously amazing. Bardugo succeeded in improving my vocabulary, that's for sure. Her word choice was excellent! Good thing I read on an eReader because it made looking up words to see what they mean a lot easier - ha! I'm having trouble deciding if I like this installment better than Shadow and Bone. I definitely liked it - at least - as much as book one in the Grisha trilogy, but maybe even more. 

The suspense throughout the book makes it an emotional page turner. Alina is such a lovable heroine. She reminds me of Elisa in The Girl of Fire and Thorns trilogy. Siege and Storm shows Alina coming to terms with the responsibility her gift as the Sun Summoner gives her. She's learning to lead, and it is impressive yet realistically written how she gives commands, and is met with some resistance. I also loved how Bardugo was able to write the Darkling into the book, even though he wasn't actually present...oh, but was he?! He is most definitely a villain that you want to read more of... ;) I'm super confused which team I'm on, though because of Nickolai. Team Mal? Team Darkling? Or Team Nickolai?!?! *swoons*

I can't believe I have to wait an entire year for book 3. *sobs hysterically*

- becky

Hulk! SMASH!!!

Our kids L.O.V.E. the Avengers.  We are super excited that there is a new Marvel's Avengers Assemble cartoon on the Disney Channel.  And did you hear about the Phineas and Ferb Mission Marvel special coming out in August?!  Isaiah insisted we set the DVR for it.  Of course, we did.

This video of Mallory's "Hulk! SMASH!!!" is too cute.  I'll try to get Isaiah on video and post his later.

Avengers Assemble!
becky

When I grow up...

I love talking with my kids about what they want to do when they grow up. Mallory tells us that she wants to be a teacher like Mommy. *proud* Isaiah says that he would like to be a worker and build big buildings. I think that would be a perfect fit for him. (Over the past few months, he has gotten into that little boy stage where he tries to take things apart or unplug stuff.) Tim always tells me that he wants to retire on a lake where there is fishing-a-plenty.  I know. #shocker

But what about me? What do I want to do when I grow up? And when is my next grown up stage? I don't think I want to wait all the way until retirement. 

Don't get me wrong; I really do love teaching. I enjoy watching my students faces as concepts click in their minds. The smiles on their little faces as the come into each day make my heart smile. But I just feel like I somehow, ever so slightly, missed something.  And then it hit me.  A ton of books hit me.

If you know me at all, you know what my passions are. I love Jesus. I love my family. And I love to read. 

I know. You think I'm going to say that I want to write a book. WRONG. I want to read books. And I want to tell you what I think of them. So, it looks like Avid Reader Becky wants to become Book Critic Becky. So, as soon as I can find some time - ha! - I'm going to grow up and get right to it. 

- becky

One Day...

I'm thinking that these pictures will come in handy for a slide show one day.  

Oh, and look.  She finished a pear.  

- becky

Help Has Arrived!

When we put our house on the market, my mom came to help get it ready for Open Houses and showings.  (You can read about that visit here and here.)  This past summer, she was gracious enough to come help us pack and get ready for the move.  While she was here, we took some time out for fun stuff, too.  I've promised her ONLY fun, and NO WORK when she comes back this summer.  

Love a photo bomb, especially by such a cutie!

 We were sad to leave the pear tree in our back yard.  We couldn't resist a little fun - and picking it dry - in the days before our move.

Fun with the kite

- becky

SOLD!

It took nearly 11 months, but we finally sold our house on Kensington.  No more Open Houses.  No more showings.  No more frustration with having to constantly keep things spotlessly clean.  (We're fairly clean people, but showing clean and every day clean are two entirely different things.)

 Isaiah had some anxiety about the sale of the house.  He was excited, but I think he wasn't understanding the time in between we sold the house and we're moving to a new house.  Nearly every night in August, I woke up to find Isaiah had moved all of his blankets and was camping out on the floor of our room.

Packing was fun.  Not.  The fun part was finding things that we hadn't seen in a long time.  She Ra dolls?!  Haven't seen those in YEARS! Mallory is the new #PrincessofPower.

 When shopping for new TVs, one should always check out the 3D glasses.  Especially since we're not buying a 3D TV.  Try it at the store while you have the chance, kids.

Unpacking entertainment - fishing at the lockers :)

How does one reach the outlet to plug in the bar fridge?  Send in the 3 year old, of course!  Good thing she is a good listener helper.

I should be looking a the sign the other direction because the house in the background belongs to the neighbor.  HA!

I know all in God's time, and I don't mean to sound like I am complaining, but it was really hard to have 3 months off, move into a new house, and go back to work full time 2 days later.  Sigh.  I guess that explains why I'm so far behind in my blog.  :)

- becky

Have a Six Flags Day!

If I want to start a Book Blog, then I had best get better at this blogging thing.  Though, it is kind of nice to remember last summer while everything outside is covered in snow.

Just after our family vaca, we rode a charter bus down to Six Flags Great America with the youth group.  We had such a fantastic time, despite the very scary thunderstorms we drove through on the way home.  The worst part of the day was running through a deluge with kids, chicken nuggets, dipping sauce, and french fries back to the bus.  The bag ripped in the process and we were forced to eat our chicken nuggets without sweet and sour or barbeque sauce.  Boo.

But before the super scary thunderstorm, it really was a beautiful hot day.  As longs as you avoid the Fiddler's Fling.  #IthinkIneedtothrowup

This picture cracks me up.  I'm pretty sure we will not look nearly this calm when the kids start driving us around for real.

We had a great family day.  The kids were just at the right height to ride most of the rides that we wanted to!  Six Flags is super accommodating for Autistic children, too.  #bonus

My special treat, though, was seeing one of my students from the school year there with his family!  His mom and I exchanged numbers so we could meet up, and it was great to ride the Whizzer with Alex.  :)

- becky

Missouri Fun

I am a bad, bad, blogger...  I promise I will be caught up one of these days.

We spent some time in Missouri visiting Tim's family and our friends Aaron, Julie, and Wesley AKA Baby Brubby.

The kids' fave spot at Aunt Rachel's?  The dog bed.

Isaiah and Mallory were thrilled to ride on a train while we were in Missouri!  It was hotter than hot, and I didn't care for the acted out robbery, but we still had a good time.

Daily chore with Uncle Terry - feed the fish! Put your fishing pole away, Tim.  These fish aren't for catching!

Vacation has been fun, but we're pooped.

Let's go home, pack up our house, and find somewhere new to live!  It was quite a challenge selling our home while we were on vacation.  We were able to continue having a good time, but we were quite anxious to get back to Appleton and start looking for a new house!  We'd waited sooooo looooong for this!

- becky

Down on the Farm

It was a hot, hot day, and the bees were everywhere...but we still enjoyed a day out fishing at Aaron's farm. (I think Mallory had more fun than anyone!)  We - the kids and I - didn't last too long because of the heat (and bees), but Tim and Aaron lasted all day...and then part of the next day, too!

- becky