This week’s Throwback Thursday post features the #1 person in my life. My kid. She’s growing up faster and faster with each passing day and soon, she’ll be 18. When I say soon, I mean in a manner of months. In exactly one month from tomorrow, Brenna will turn 18. I can’t even…
In my head, she’ll always be this small little girl with the silly facial expressions and heart of gold:
Wasn’t she adorable?
2016 is slowly ticking down and as always, I’m reflecting on the year. The ups and the downs, because let’s face it, there were a lot of downs but personally, there were a lot of ups too. My family was blessed with a new addition in my nephew Rocky. My niece Chloe married her Prince Charming. Chance and RJ returned from their missions safe and with honor. The girls are all doing well in basketball. I turned 36 and this blog turned 1. I’m blessed and a huge part of the reason I’m blessed are these guys pictured to the left.
To close out the year, my niece Chach has put together a list of activities that she wants to do as a family before she leaves on her mission next month. First up, we went to see the temple Christmas lights and we watched some videos in the Visitors Center where Chach bore her testimony and made everyone cry. This week, we’re going to our town’s Candy Cane Lane where we’ll see more Christmas lights, drink more hot chocolate and take more pictures with Santa and just be together. The kids will love it and I’m sure us adults will too. It’s always a good time with Team Wilson Gang.
I’m looking forward to all of the family activities we’ll do to wrap up the year but here’s a list of things that I’m looking forward to in the new year.
Getting skinny from all the dieting and exercising I plan on doing in the new year. Ha! Don’t laugh, I’m for reals going to do it. Or, I’m like, 80% sure this is the year I actually do it. Haha.
Chach leaving for her Mission in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The people of Brazil are lucky to be getting one of my favorite kids. There is no one more genuine and likable than Chaylene and she’ll be leaving us to go and do work. I’m proud of that kid!
Brenna graduates from High School. I’m low key freaking out about June 2017 hitting me because my daughter will be graduating from high school and starting the rest of her life as an adult. She’s the same age I was when I had her. Someone hold me. But even with how much freaking out I’m doing, I’m looking forward to celebrating her hard work.
Becoming a Great Aunt. Chloe is pregnant and will be having her baby in March (I think) so I’m ready for a new baby to love and cherish!
There are quite a few movies coming out that I’m looking forward to but here’s a short glimpse into that madness…
My boo thangs Jax Teller Charlie Hunnam and Dylan O’Brien (I know, Cougar Alert! Ha!) have movies coming out next year that I’m super excited about. My favorite Dylan O’Brien character will probably always be Stiles Stilinksy on Teen Wolf but after seeing the pictures coming out of him in American Assassins, I can really get behind supporting him and going to see this movie. You know, because the story looks so interesting. 😉
But I’m also looking forward to all of the other movies listed. Justice League, Logan, Table 19 looks really funny, the trailer for Gifted made me cry so I’m on board for that one and Beauty and the Beast, anybody??? Of COURSE I’m going to see that one.
And though I haven’t read the book for Before I Fall, that’s not going to stop me from seeing the movie. Looks good.
Taken (NBC): This one looks really good and holy cow, I just noticed that it’s Rolo from Vikings as the main character. Lovin’ it! I’m so going to watch this.
Chicago Justice (NBC): I adore the other Chicago shows so I’m really looking forward to watching this one. Especially because Antonio is now a part of this show. I can’t wait!
Sense8 (Netflix): I feel like we’ve been waiting such a long time for this show and umm..I’m right, we HAVE waited a long time for this damn second season but we only a little while longer to wait (fingers crossed) so woo freaking hoo!
Riverdale (The CW): With Vampire Diaries ending after this season, I’m going to need a new show to take its place. This one looks like it because…LUKE PERRY! Team Dylan McKay is back in the house! Yay!
Famous in Love (Freeform): This is a book and it’s being turned into a TV Show. This book nerd is definitely watching it. I hope it’s better than Pretty Little Liars and Shadowhunters. I wasn’t a fan of either of those shows.
Alright, there you have it…some of the stuff that I’m looking forward to in 2017. This post is already long enough so I’ll probably do a list of Books that I’m looking forward to on my book blog, Book Binge. I’ll let you guys know when that goes live.
What movies and TV shows are you looking forward to next year? Anything good that I’m missing?? Let me know!
Guys! We’re almost done with 2016. In a matter of months, my daughter will be a high school graduate. I just can’t even deal right now.
1. Lady Saxons Kick Off Potluck: Basketball season is under way and November kicked it all off. Every year, our North High Lady Saxons basketball program kicks their basketball season with a team potluck where the official rosters for all levels of basketball are introduced, meeting and greeting the newbies and being social with the oldies takes place and this year, between Brenna and Cheridan, we brought like 20 people with us. It was a good time and I’m excited for our season.
2. Lady Seahawks Kick Off Luau: Makenna’s annual fundraising luau was on the same day as our Lady Saxons Kick Off Potluck so our day started at Redondo. Makenna’s a senior this year so she did the senior siva Samoa and she did a great job. I wasn’t even mad that I had to make up a dance for her to do in less than a week. We pulled it out and she did great.
3. I turned 36: November 13th was my birthday and I turned 36. My bestie made me dinner and we hung out, laughed it up with my girls Bren and Ken. It was a low key event and I was glad. I’m a homebody so low key is how I roll. It was a good birthday so yay for another year!
4. Weendizzle turned 1: November was also my blog anniversary. I started this blog last year and have kept it up for the most part of a year. It’s grown and went through some face lifts but I’m happy with what I’m doing here (it’s more personal than anything else I’m doing right now) and I plan to keep it up in the new year.
Moana: My review for Moana is here and I really enjoyed it. From beginning to end, it was cute!
Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life: I’ve been looking forward to this ever since I found out we were getting it and while I enjoyed it as a whole, I was disappointed too. I’ll be writing up a review of it that will go up next week so be on the look out for that. 🙂
Teen Wolf: It’s the last season for my favorite TV werewolves and supernatural friends and they’re really packing a punch with everything going on. I’m probably loving the hell out of everything because my ship is finally sailing loud and proud!! I have been in Stydia heaven for three weeks now. Ha!
Started from the bottom, now we here. 🙂
This is me right now:
I’m Beyonce, of course. Ha! I’ve waited 6 seasons for Lydia Martin to stop messing around and get her man. Looks like it’s our turn. Yay!!
Moana Soundtrack: I’ve been listening to this one mostly because of my 7 year old nephew Luke (who I’ve been spending a lot of time with lately) and Brenna. Luke came to work with me last week and wanted to listen to it for 3 hours and we did. He sang his bootleg version (wrong lyrics) of every song at the top of his lungs…AT MY OFFICE! He’s lucky everyone thought he was cute. Ha!
Bruno Mars’ 24K Magic Album: This album dropped a couple of weeks ago and I haven’t listened to much else since. I’m loving every song, the feel good vibe and just Bruno Mars in general. Luke has also been heard singing the following lyrics from Versace of the Floor, “Let’s just kiss til we’re naked, baby” Ummm…yikes. Ha!
1. The Other Sister by Dianne Dixon | 2.5 out of 5
2. Love Irresistibly (Oxford #1) by Lauren Layne (re-read) | 4.5 out of 5
3. I Wish You Were Mine (Oxford #2) by Lauren Layne (re-read) | 4.5 out of 5
4. Fighting for Devlin (Lost Boys #1) by Jessica Lemmon | 4.25 out of 5
5. Shut Up and Kiss Me (Lost Boys #2) by Jessica Lemmon | 4 out of 5
6. Downed (Gridiron #3) by Jen Frederick | 4.75 out of 5
7. Idol (VIP #1) by Kristen Callihan | 3.5 out of 5
8. Managed (VIP #2) by Kristen Callihan | 4 out of 5
9. First Step Forward (Grand Valley #1) by Liora Blake | 4 out of 5
10. Size Matters by Alison Bliss | 3.5 out of 5
Keepsake by Sarina Bowen
Twisted Palace by Erin Watt (Buddy review with Ames)
Ruled by Elle Kennedy
The Goal by Elle Kennedy
Irresistibly Yours by Lauren Layne
I Wish You Were Mine by Lauren Layne
The Viscount and the Vixen by Lorraine Heath
One Snowy Night by Jill Shalvis
Planner Stickers. The entire month of November was filled with me trying to find my happy place again with all things Happy Planner. Toward the end of the month, I started getting into the bullet journal videos. I am completely inspired for next year. Since I’m now much of an artist (I can’t draw a straight line with a ruler), I’m drawn to the sticker sets that are just too cute for words. I’ve browsed Etsy more in the last month than anything else, except probably YouTube and I’ve bought so many stickers and stickers sets that I’m going to starve since I’m spending all of my lunch money but I can’t help it. I love this crap.
There you have it, folks. The month that was November 2016 for me. How was your month? What are you watching, listening and loving these days?
I can’t believe it’s already November 1st. Where did the freaking time go? I remember starting a fresh spreadsheet for 2016 and I’ve already filled it up with everything I’ve read, watched and did this year. Holy cow, it’s almost 2017.
October was the month of funerals. There were so many and my family made appearances at all of them. There was my friend’s grandson Joseph (he was a premie that didn’t make it :(), my Great Aunt and then a woman I knew since I was a baby, having gone to Church with her family for many years.
Brenna got her senior portraits and those came out really well. I’m super stoked to get some that I can share without getting sued so stay tuned for those.
The highlight of October was probably Brenna’s Homecoming Dance. She was asked by her friend Maxwell right after practice so she was surprised, but happily so and then Homecoming night was a lot of fun as she was able to spend some quality time with her girls, all glammed up and she told me that they danced the night away then finished off the night with Chick-Fil-A and non-stop laughs with all of her friends. I’m really glad that I don’t have to worry about underage drinking with Brenna and her friends.
Pitch: I started this show on the recommendation from Ames and I’m not at all sorry that I tried this one out. I’m already shipping Lawson and Baker hard and I’ve grown quite fond of everyone in the cast. It’s a lot of fun seeing the ins and outs of the MLB and seeing the main character Ginny try to figure things out is great…and holy cow, that last episode?? Ginny’s reaction to the news of her agent and Lawson dating? Gah. My heart can’t take it!!
This is Us: I’m still going strong with this show. It’s good stuff and I am really loving all of the little cliffhangers with each episode. Every single episode has dropped some bombs that have me so anxious for the next one. Gah, this is such a good show.
All of the Hallmark Movies: The month of October was for Hallmark movies for me. I spent quite a bit of the month watching a different Hallmark movie and enjoying the cheesiness of them all. My favorite of the bunch that I watched was with Jackson from The Originals and Italia Ricci-Amell. That was a fun one!
The Usuals: I’ve also stayed on top of my usual TV shows since they’re all back. Chicago PD, Med and Fire, The Vampire Diaries (are we seriously getting a June wedding???? YAY!), and Jane the Virgin. So far, so good on all my shows so I’ll be continuing watching them.
So I got really into my Happy Planner stuff this month so I spent a huge chunk of my work day listening and watching a bunch of Planner Videos. Some of my favorites are:
These YouTubers did a great job of inspiring me to work on my own planner and I’ve gotten a lot of tips and ideas from these videos. My planner has never looked prettier. LOL.
The Viscount and the Vixen (Hellions of Havisham #4) by Lorraine Heath | 4 out of 5
Results May Vary by Bethany Chase | 4 out of 5
The Goal (Off-Campus #4) by Elle Kennedy | 4 out of 5
P.S. I Like You by Kasie West | 4 out of 5
The Hating Game by Sally Thorne | 4 out of 5
Addicted (Outlaws #2) by Elle Kennedy | 3.5 out of 5
Keepsake (True North #3) by Sarina Bowen | 4.5 out of 5
Shadow Rider (Shadows #1) by Christine Feehan | 2.5 out of 5
Twisted Palace (Royals #3) by Erin Watt | 2.5 out of 5
Someone Like You (Oxford #3) by Lauren Layne | 5 out of 5
Ruled (Outlaws #3) by Elle Kennedy | 3 out of 5
One Snowy Night (Heartbreaker Bay #2.5) by Jill Shalvis | 4 out of 5
My favorite read of the month goes to Someone Like You by Lauren Layne. Is anyone surprised that Lauren Layne won my favorite read of the month award? Cause I’m not. She writing a lot of my favorite books this year. I’m in love with pretty much all of her stuff and Lincoln’s book was everything that I hoped it would be. Probably more. I just loved it to pieces!
My least favorite book was tied between Twisted Palace by Erin Watt and Shadow Rider by Christine Feehan. The craziness that I loved about the Royals was missing in Twisted Palace and I just could not even deal with everything going on. I spent most of that book pissed off and the same thing happened with Shadow Rider. The controlling nature of the hero pissed me off way too often in that book so my enjoyment suffered because of it.
The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins
Three Amazing Things about You by Jill Mansell
Bedmates by Nichole Chase
Four Letter Word by J. Daniels
P.S. I Like You by Kasie West & The Hating Game by Sally Thorne
The Boy is Back by Meg Cabot
To Love and to Cherish by Lauren Layne
Addicted by Elle Kennedy & Results May Vary by Bethany Chase
The Billionaire Next Door by Jessica Lemmon
Shadow Rider by Christine Feehan & Undecided by Julianna Keyes
I got a lot more reviewed this month than previous months and that’s got a lot to do with me deciding to review books here on this blog as well. I need to stay on top of my reviews so reviewing on both blogs works for me.
There is a lot of stuff in this month’s haul that I’m super excited to get to. The review books, books that I purchased because of reviews I read on different blogs, books that were gifted to me from my blog bestie Ames, just so much goodness. I’m super happy with everything that I got.
I bought a Kindle Paperwhite this month and I have been getting acquainted with it. I really like it. I like that it’s light and easy on my wrists but I also like that I can read out in the sunlight without glare issues. I love that it’s an e-reader because I get easily distracted from reading on my iPad with notifications from Facebook, Instagram, etc…so having this lets me focus on reading and reading alone. I also like that I didn’t get a cover for it but a bag. A really great looking bag that fits my Kindle Paperwhite so nicely. Thanks to my niece Chelsea on the hook up on that.
Brenna came home for the weekend to play in a co-ed basketball tournament (for fun) that we committed to and then forgot about. Here’s our team picture from that. We didn’t do too bad. We went 2-1 (we were short a guy in the first game so we lost that one) and our MVP of the tournament would have gone to Mister Take 100 shots in a game, Jonathan Hong (bottom left).
It was really good to have Brenna home for the weekend. I miss her heaps when she’s away but we need breaks from each other. It’s always just the two of us and we can definitely get sick of each other so we need the break. This tournament was a good one for the girls because they were finally able to play with each other instead of against each other. Heads up family, North (Bren & Cher) will play against Redondo (Kenna) on January 3rd so mark your calendars and save the date!
One more piece of news before I move onto the books is…SETH GOT HIS MISSION CALL! He’ll be serving in the Mexico City mission and he reports for his mission on 11/15 which is exactly 8 days before his brother RJ comes home. Four years will have passed before they’re able to see each other again. Seth hurt my heart when he teared up reading his report date but I know that he’ll do amazing things for Mexico City. They’re lucky to get him for two years. Love that kid!
The Trouble with Mistletoe (Heartbreaker Bay #2 ) by Jill Shalvis.
If she has her way . . .
Willa Davis is wrangling puppies when Keane Winters stalks into her pet shop with frustration in his chocolate-brown eyes and a pink bedazzled cat carrier in his hand. He needs a kitty sitter, stat. But the last thing Willa needs is to rescue a guy who doesn’t even remember her . . .
He’ll get nothing but coal in his stocking.
Saddled with his great-aunt’s Feline from Hell, Keane is desperate to leave her in someone else’s capable hands. But in spite of the fact that he’s sure he’s never seen the drop-dead-gorgeous pet shop owner before, she seems to be mad at him . . .
Unless he tempers “naughty” with a special kind of nice . . .
Willa can’t deny that Keane’s changed since high school: he’s less arrogant, for one thing—but can she trust him not to break her heart again? It’s time to throw a coin in the fountain, make a Christmas wish—and let the mistletoe do its work . . .
I didn’t get any reading done this weekend except to finish my re-read of The Year We Fell Down by Sarina Bowen for my book club meeting today so my plan is to start this book after book club tonight. Wish me luck on that.
Rookie Move (Brooklyn Bruisers #1) by Sarina Bowen | 4 out of 5
Who’s That Girl? by Mhairi McFarlane | 2.75 out of 5
The Year We Fell Down (Ivy Years #1) by Sarina Bowen (re-read) | 4.25 out of 5
Leo Trevi from Rookie Move (Brooklyn Bruisers #1) by Sarina Bowen.
She tasted like his.
This guy was everything in this book. I had some frustration with Georgia and with her father but never with Leo. Leo was everything that I love in a romance novel hero and he was my absolute favorite thing about this book. The way that he loved Georgia (and how absolute he was in his feelings) made me melt at every turn and seeing what he went through, what he continued to struggle with when he finally got to the NHL made me love him all the more. He was such a freaking great hero and I loved the hell out of him.
I’ve been so focused on other things, including my review pile that I haven’t looked at what’s out that I need to buy. That will probably change next week…maybe.
Just One Week by Alice Gaines
Four Letter Words (Dirty Deeds #1) by J. Daniels
There you have it, my week in books. How did your week go?
