I did, however, learn how to poach an egg to make Eggs Benedict, as well as learned how to make French Toast. It helps when of my AF besties has a husband who is also a professional chef. If said professional chef creates a cooking club, which he has, you know I'm already an earnest student!
Elle (Lynn) from WishinGoodLuck, sent me a book care package as part of a swap that I participated in, and it was fabulous. It was part of the Sip, Read, Swap book swap (sorry, that gets a little redundant) and I had a great time. Lynn is an awesome blogger and I highly encourage readers out there to check out her posts. She was kind enough not only to send me a Tervis Tumbler mug, but also TWO books. I scored with an awesome swap buddy. #wootwoot
Last weekend I came across this really amazing church that I've just fallen madly in love with. In my past, there has only been one other church to create such an emotional reaction from me that was even remotely close to what I felt last Easter Sunday. I really want to dedicate an entire post to this feeling of strong faith, so who knows I may end up doing several posts this Sunday.
I've also become really enamored with the idea of physically writing more in my life, whether it's through cards, letters, journaling, etc. My friend Karla shared with me an organization called Operation Write Home that makes cards to send to our deployed military members. This gives the men and women of our armed services the chance to send home decorative cards for special occasions. Since I'm all about crafts, you know that I loved this opportunity! I wrote in and received a special stamp to add their logo to the back of the cards that I make. I'll share a few of them on here once I get to making them. When my husband was deployed, receiving letters and cards from him made my entire week so I know that making these cards will truly bring joy to so many families.
To celebrate the art of writing beautiful letters, I recently became a member of the Letter Writers Alliance, based out of Chicago, IL.
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| Source and Photorights: Letter Writers Alliance |
It's an organization that celebrate the art of writing letters. Totally up my alley, I signed up for the membership which was really inexpensive at $5. I received a welcome letter, badge (which I plan to put on a cardigan), membership card, and instructions as a member on their website. They put together letter writing socials and have fun benefits for those who become members. It reminds me of old school cereal box memberships...kinda like getting a decoder ring ;)
A dear friend, who also was a sorority advisor of mine while I was in college, sent me a copy of a book in the mail. It was a good week for mail folks! I love receiving mail and packages so I'm all about being the sender and recipient of fun things through postage. Regina sent me a copy of a novel written by a friend and I received Saturday. I'm so excited to read it and pass it forward to another friend who may feel inspired by it.
In speaking with my sister Dwana for hours the other day, she filled me on the novel she is writing and I am so excited for her! I may or may not have peer pressured her into publishing it- even if it's in an eBook format on Amazon. I really want to read it and after hearing the entire plot thus far, I think it's going to be incredibly successful. Talking to her inspired me to at least get to writing a couple short stories and I'm debating on sharing them here. Maybe I'll make it into a biweekly sharing opportunity on my blog.
The other day I spent a solid two hours in Barnes and Noble contemplating books, as well as journals. I've become fascinated with the concept of doing a line-a-day type of journal. The idea is to reflect on your day in one sentence and these books focus on the process spanning five years. Barnes and Noble didn't have any that I liked and in Kim fashion, I opened my Amazon app to read the reviews. That's when I saw this beauty:
A Jane-a-Day, 5-year journal and I quickly added it to my virtual cart. I received it this week and am excited to start participating in daily sentences. I'm trying to do more in "living life" and recording memories, whether it's through Project Life scrapbooking, a line-a-day journal, or simply writing letters.
This week I also received my pre-ordered copy of Bloom by Kelle Hampton. It's a bestseller so I'm sure many of you have heard of it. Kelle is a blogger over at Enjoying the Simple Things and so far I'm really enjoying the book. She received a lot of heat when it came to the Amazon reviews so I'm excited to put together a post talking about how I felt about the book and maybe some of the risks you take being a blogger who is consistently in the public eye and then putting together a memoir.
I've saved the best for last because tomorrow we, as in my awesome team, are announcing the giveaway for Preview to Summer: A Blogger Book Swap! I have spent probably two months planning this swap with the help of five other fantastic bloggers. Registration will start Sunday, April 14th but if you're impatient like me, the giveaway will provide you with all the more reason to come back for more. By "blog-hopping" you have the chance to win five different books. I'll be giving away an eBook copy of The Great Gatsby. It's one of my favorite books and with the movie coming out soon, you'll definitely want to read it before setting eyes on Leo DiCaprio as the notorious Gatsby. This Blogger Book Swap is going to be incredible and we're implementing ways to make sure that you make the most out of your experience and meet other great bloggers. I am so excited about this and I know y'all will just love my team of kick-a bloggers!
