The Story Of Us

I read a total of 17 books last year.. a few less than last year which is a bit disappointing. Here are the last few books I read since my last post 3rd Degree by James Patterson      Synopsis  The Women's Murder Club returns in a shockingly suspenseful thriller. Plunging into a burning town house, Detective Lindsay Boxer discovers three dead bodies...and a mysterious message at the scene. When more corpses turn up, Lindsay asks her friends Claire Washburn of the medical examiner's office, Assistant D.A. Jill Bernhardt, and San Francisco Chronicle reporter Cindy Thomas to help her find a murderer who vows to kill every three days. Even more terrifying, he has targeted one of the four friends. Which one will it be? Thoughts As the name suggests this is the third book in the Women's Murder Club series and I am enjoying them a lot. I like all the characters; all strong women. The books are all quick reads, page turners and thankfully not too predictable. I al

Hope everyone had a great holiday season. We spent 5 wonderfully warm days in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. We had a rocky start with delayed flights and almost missed connections.. but we made it. We took my parents with us, we hadn't seen my dad in over three years and the kids and I had to emotionally blackmail him to make him join us on the trip. It was a great little getaway.. we stayed at Majestic Colonial All Inclusive Resort. The food was fantastic, a great beach and pool and plenty of activities for kids and adults alike. H had a rough time, he had a fever for the first two days and was a real cranky pants for the other three.. M and I were feeling quite burned out these last few months and decided to skip exploration of the island and never left the resort.. Get ready for a photo dump                    Etsy             Instagram             Twitter             Bloglovin   

December is a busy month.. so many activities, an upcoming vacation to somewhere warm. My parents are flying in at the end of the week for the holidays. I don't think I'll be posting this month. I wanted to wish you all a very happy holiday and a very happy new year from my family to yours. source   source source                       Etsy             Instagram             Twitter             Bloglovin   

Happy December everyone.. yup we say it every year and so I'll say it again.. how is it December already?? Seriously! We had a fantastic Thanksgiving.. it was very nontraditional.. there was no turkey or pie but there was a lot of fun. We started off Wednesday with a Rangers vs Hurricanes hockey game. M gets these amazing club seat tickets from work every year and we all look forward to going every year. And the fact that the Rangers won 3-2 was just the icing on the cake. We arrived in the city a few hours in advance and wandered around for a bit.. and spotted this big fella in a store. On Thanksgiving Day we headed to Staten Island to the Lantern Festival.. we had been to one before  many years ago in Montreal  when D was little. It was absolutely beautiful..  On Friday we had tickets to see Sponge Bob the Musical at the NJ State Theater. But before the show we stopped at our favorite hot dog place, Destination Dogs. I had the Bangkok Do

So I don't generally talk about my recent purchases... but I am so very pleased with some of my latest ones I feel the need to share. The first one is a pour over coffee maker. I purchased this one  and we are so pleased with it. The coffee is simple to make and simple to clean. I can easily just make one cup just for myself. Now what we are working on is finding the coffee we like the best.. we have tried the common brands, Folgers and Maxwell. Preferred Maxwell. We are currently drinking Wegmans in store brand.. on the fence about that one.. what coffee brand do you drink? We don't do flavors and drink a medium roast. I'd love to hear from you guys so we can try different brands.. yay coffee :) source My second favorite purchase was an Air Fryer. Got this one on a great deal! Love it so much bought another one as a gift. I use it so often.. especially for the kids lunches.. no more using oil.. no more paper towels to blot the oil.. did you know you can even

Red and Blue - A beautiful old red and blue building found in the streets of Victoria on Vancouver Island, Canada  here You can buy this print here . Get Free Shipping with code BLOGGER Prints also available in larger sizes. Contact for more information and special requests. I am open to wholesale and licensing opportunities. Get in touch for more information.                           Etsy             Instagram             Twitter             Bloglovin   

It has been busy.. the boys had two days off for the New Jersey teachers convention and now they have the next four days of half days which I loath.. by the time they leave it's just time for them to come back again.. Many moons ago I had mentioned a powder room remodel.. I never got around to sharing the after pictures with you.. the bathroom is very narrow and taking decent pictures was such a challenge.  the before I hand painted the floor.. you can read about it here A few of the poorly shot afters.. the bathroom shelves are still a little bare.. but I don't want to just go to Home Goods and buy a bunch of stuff.. we like it when the things in our home mean something.. have a story. The faucet we bought in Morocco. The frames on the wall are two of my own photographs.. Frustration and Laughing The little glass bottle on the top shelf was bought in Venice as was the mask.. the little turtles we got in Mexico and the dried citrus wreath w