And what a busy year it's been! God, there's so much to cover! So I'm going to go through this in sections, starting with what's been going on with my life.
Life Update
I started the year off without a kitchen, and didn't have a complete kitchen until March. I quite literally had to live in a living room crammed with our dining room table, fridge, and microwave. Our hallway was filled with temporary shelving for our pantry items, and we had to use disposable plates and utensils because we had no kitchen sink to wash them in (trust me, it sucks to wash dishes in a bathroom sink).
We were also functioning with only one bathroom, and issues with incorrect cabinets coming in and back-ordered quartz countertops. Suffice it to say, we were super relieved when the project was finally finished at the end of March. It was an important day for us as first-time homeowners, when we could finally walk in to our kitchen and say, "it's finally done!"
March was an important month for other reasons too.
Remember that post I wrote on March 19th? The one about my miscarriage, and my ability to finally find closure?
Wellllll, I might have left one key thing out; one particular tiny little detail that helped me move on from the grief.
You ready? Here it is:
I'm pregnant again!!!!
On March 7th I found out I was pregnant again. It was a wonderful, and rather scary, moment for me. On the one hand, we finally managed to conceive another child! And chances were very good that this time we would have a healthy and successful pregnancy. On the other hand....I was terrified of miscarrying again.
On the day of our first ultrasound in April, I was so terrified that history would repeat itself that I kept bursting into tears at the slightest provocation. Thankfully, the technician recognized us from last time and went right down to business.
And the first things she said were:
"There's your baby"......
....."And there's it's heartbeat"
That was perhaps the happiest moment of my life. The joyous realization that this child was alive and healthy and growing inside of me.
I couldn't stop looking at it; it was so beautiful! It kept waving it's little arms like it was trying to say hello, and it's body kept wriggling like it was trying to dance the salsa. My tears changed from that of fear to that of relief and awe.
The second happiest moment in my life happened a few weeks ago when we got to actually hear the heartbeat. It perhaps wasn't as emotional for me as that first ultrasound, but it certainly was the most wonderful sound I've ever heard. It was the confirmation I needed that everything was fine and I needn't worry so much.
So now I'm about 16 weeks pregnant, with the due date being November 12th! Things are wonderful and happy now, and I finally got to buy maternity clothes! I've officially got a baby bump, and I'm currently experiencing stretching pains, mild posterior pelvic pain, trouble sleeping.....and I'm loving every minute of it!
To top it off, I've started feeling the baby kick. It's very slight, but it's noticeable!! *sigh* I'm so happy!
It's exciting times, and I'm doing everything I can to make it as positive an experience as possible. I got the go-ahead from my doctor to make running a regular part of my exercise, and recently I finished my first 5K run in 12 years (it was a fundraiser for the local library). Dave ran with me, and was constantly checking to make sure I wasn't overexerting myself. He set the pace, and encouraged me the entire time (what a sweetheart!).
I really enjoyed running the 5K; I felt so good afterwards! It really helped that I wasn't trying to run as fast as I could (I aimed for a 30-minute run, and I achieved a 30-minute run), but just running for the sake of running. It was so enjoyable that I want to do another one! Yup, I'm going to keep running 5Ks until I simply can't anymore!
Reading Update
Meanwhile, I'm reading a whole bunch. I feel like I'm on an excellent reading run right now, and I want to keep the momentum going! For a while it was mostly books that had been on my TBR, along with many BOTM reads, but lately I've been craving comfort books, so I've been re-reading a lot of old favorites.
My 2018 Goodreads Reading Challenge
Well, so far so good on my reading goals! According to Goodreads, I'm even ahead of schedule! I admit that I do have a secret reading goal of finishing 100 books, rather than just 80; I'll be happy enough if I can manage 80 books, but if I can make it all the way to the big 100, I'll be ecstatic!
Just to be thorough, here's a list of the books I've read so far this year. Of the 36 reads, 14 of them were re-reads, 9 were book club reads (BOTMs), and 8 were books that have been on my reading (TBR) list for ages.
Books I've Read So Far
Title: Oathbringer (Stormlight Archive #3)
Author: Brandon Sanderson
Date Finished: January 13
Rating: ★★★★★
Quick Review: A excellent installment in a great fantasy series.
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: Our Souls At Night
Author: Kent Haruf
Date Finished: January 14
Rating: ★★★★
Quick Review: A BOTM that turned out to be rather good, in a bittersweet kind of way
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: Rebecca
Author: Daphne Du Maurier
Date Finished: January 20
Rating: ★★★
Quick Review: A BOTM that I had a hard time getting through. The ending made up for the rest of the novel though
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: Elantris
Author: Brandon Sanderson
Date Finished: January 23
Rating: ★★★★★
Quick Review: A really good fantasy debut from one of my favorite fantasy authors
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: The Emperor's Soul (Elantris Universe)
Author: Brandon Sanderson
Date Finished: January 28
Rating: ★★★★★
Quick Review: A really good fantasy novella that stands well all by itself.
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: The Hope Of Elantris (Elantris #1.5)
Author: Brandon Sanderson
Date Finished: January 29
Rating: ★★★★
Quick Review: A nice little short story that fleshed out a specific part of the novel Elantris
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: A Murder In Time (Kendra Donovan #1)
Author: Julie McElwain
Date Finished: January 30
Rating: ★★★★
Quick Review: A BOTM that I ended up enjoying quite a bit, much to my surprise. Good strong female character
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: Mistborn: The Final Empire (Mistborn #1)
Author: Brandon Sanderson
Date Finished: February 3
Rating: ★★★★★
Quick Review: Yet another fantastic fantasy novel by Sanderson, and one that has been one my TBR for a while.
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: Heat And Light
Author: Jennifer Haigh
Date Finished: February 20
Rating: ★★★★★
Quick Review: A BOTM that I really enjoyed. It was very well written and I'm looking forward to reading it again at a later time
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: The Well Of Ascension (Mistborn #2)
Author: Brandon Sanderson
Date Finished: February 22
Rating: ★★★★★
Quick Review: Another one off my TBR. I'm not the type of person who loves middle installments in trilogies, but this one was very good. Sanderson is a fantasy master
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: Pride And Prejudice
Author: Jane Austen
Date Finished: February 26
Rating: ★★★★★
Quick Review: My top favorite classic. I craved this story after reading A Murder In Time, and I still love it
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: The Hero Of Ages (Mistborn #3)
Author: Brandon Sanderson
Date Finished: March 13
Rating: ★★★★★
Quick Review: An excellent conclusion to this fantasy trilogy. Fantasy lovers need to read this series. Glad to take this off my TBR.
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: How To Read Literature Like A Professor
Author: Thomas C. Foster
Date Finished: March 15
Rating: ★★★★★
Quick Review: Something that's been on my TBR list since high school. Really loved this guy's sense of humor.
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: The Eleventh Metal (Mistborn #.5)
Author: Brandon Sanderson
Date Finished: March 15
Rating: ★★★
Quick Review: A decent short story prequel to the Mistborn trilogy. Not Sanderson's best, but it was okay.
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: Allomancer Jak and the Pits of Eltania (Mistborn Universe)
Author: Brandon Sanderson
Date Finished: March 16
Rating: ★★★
Quick Review: A amusing little short story that makes a fun add-on to the Mistborn Universe
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: My Mrs. Brown
Author: William Norwich
Date Finished: March 18
Rating: ★★★★
Quick Review: A very sweet and short BOTM read that made me cry at the end. A Cinderella story for older women.
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: The Alloy Of Law (Mistborn #4, Wax and Wayne #1)
Author: Brandon Sanderson
Date Finished: March 24
Rating: ★★★★★
Quick Review: A fun new fantasy trilogy that builds on a previous trilogy. Another TBR read.
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: The One And Only Ivan
Author: Katherine Applegate
Date Finished: April 8
Rating: ★★★★★
Quick Review: A re-read for me on audiobook. A very sweet sad story about a gorilla living at a mall
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: Shadows Of Self (Mistborn #5, Wax And Wayne #2)
Author: Brandon Sanderson
Date Finished: April 11
Rating: ★★★★★
Quick Review: A good second installment in this fantasy trilogy, although Sanderson is not afraid of psychologically messing up his protagonists. TBR is getting smaller one book at a time!
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: Kitchens Of The Great Midwest
Author: J. Ryan Stradal
Date Finished: April 14
Rating: ★★★★★
Quick Review: Another great BOTM read! It's a rags to riches story, where you follow the protagonist through the perspectives of others
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: The Color Purple
Author: Alice Walker
Date Finished: April 15
Rating: ★★★★★
Quick Review: A BOTM read that I had been meaning to read for years. A deeply poignant novel that affects you deeply, told in the form of letters by the protagonist
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix (Harry Potter #5)
Author: J.K. Rowling
Date Finished: April 17
Rating: ★★★★★
Quick Review: A forever favorite that I just felt like re-reading (again) for comfort's sake (I blame my pregnancy).
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince (Harry Potter #6)
Author: J.K. Rowling
Date Finished: April 23
Rating: ★★★★★
Quick Review: Another favorite re-read....because you can't just stop with only one Harry Potter book!
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows (Harry Potter #7)
Author: J.K. Rowling
Date Finished: April26
Rating: ★★★★★
Quick Review: This re-read always makes me cry. All-time favorite line: "Not my daughter, you bitch!"
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: The Martian
Author: Andy Weir
Date Finished: April 27
Rating: ★★★★★
Quick Review: Yet another re-read, because this book is freaking hilarious!
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: The Amulet Of Samarkand (The Bartimaeus Trilogy #1)
Author: Jonathan Stroud
Date Finished: May 6
Rating: ★★★★★
Quick Review: A BOTM read that's also a re-read for me. I just love the sardonic humor in this children's fantasy.
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: The Golem's Eye (The Bartimaeus Trilogy #2)
Author: Jonathan Stroud
Date Finished: May 8
Rating: ★★★★★
Quick Review: The sequel to the The Amulet Of Samarkand. I re-read this one, because I just love Bartimaeus.
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: Ptolemy's Gate (The Bartimaeus Trilogy #3)
Author: Jonathan Stroud
Date Finished: May 10
Rating: ★★★★★
Quick Review: A good conclusion to this children's fantasy trilogy. If you re-read the first two books, you have to re-read the last one too.
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: The Bands Of Mourning (Mistborn #6, Wax and Wayne #3)
Author: Brandon Sanderson
Date Finished: May 12
Rating: ★★★★★
Quick Review: This series is clearly not over, but I'm glad I read this and had a chance to take this book off my TBR.
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: Watchers
Author: Dean Koontz
Date Finished: May 15
Rating:★★★★★
Quick Review: I think I really wanted to re-read this book, because one of the characters becomes pregnant. Plus there's a super-smart golden retriever, sooo can't go wrong!
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: Lily And The Octopus
Author: Steven Rowley
Date Finished: May 15
Rating: ★★★ 1/2
Quick Review: From the very first page, you know what the octopus is, and you know how the book ends. The book is on the cusp of magical realism without it actually being magical realism. It's a little weird, but it's a good LGBT/dog lovers/dealing with loss read that I read for a book club, and the end is extremely sad (I cried).
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: Garden Spells (The Waverley Family #1)
Author: Sarah Addison Allen
Date Finished: May 17
Rating: ★★★★★
Quick Review: Another re-read that I just felt like reading, because it makes me happy :)
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: First Frost (The Waverley Family #2)
Author: Sarah Addison Allen
Date Finished: May 21
Rating: ★★★★★
Quick Review: The sequel to Garden Spells, so of course I had to re-read this one too.
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore
Author: Robin Sloan
Date Finished: May 23
Rating: ★★★★★
Quick Review: Yet another re-read, but I absolutely love this story! It reads like fantasy, when it isn't fantasy, and you end it feeling happy and hopeful about the future.
Goodreads Link: click here
Title: Ready Player One
Author: Ernest Cline
Date Finished: May 30
Rating: ★★★★ (although I might have to upgrade to 5 stars, becuase I've read it 3 times)
Quick Review: Another re-read, because I'm tempted to see the movie when it's available to rent.
Goodreads Link: click here
So, overall not too bad! I'm hoping to hit 40 books within the next two weeks. I better stop blogging and get back to reading! Have a good day everyone!
No comments:
Post a Comment