How is it August already??? Time is moving both slow and hurtling past me. It makes no sense but that’s the way it feels.
I had a staycation 2 weeks ago and it was great. We went to Cannon Beach in OR. It’s one of my favorite places out here and I haven’t been since Christmas time last year. It’s not really a lay out or swim kind of beach so it’s easy to go walking around and stay socially distanced. We took Kai and Ripley and they did great.
My farmers market is in full swing so I’m getting all the berries and veggies I can eat right now.
It’s been HOT though – almost 100 a few days, which is rare out here, but thankfully we get breaks of cooler days in between.
The puppies are growing fast! I FINALLY got them housebroken. They were the toughest dogs I have ever housebroken so it’s a huge relief and now I don’t have to invest in a paper towel company.
JULY READING WRAP-UP
A Sweet Mess by Jaci Lee – was just a mess and not a sweet one for me lol DNF
Finding joy by Adriana Herrera – Sweet story/romance between two men (a humanitarian aid worker and his driver) against the backdrop of Ethiopia.
The author's passion for the country, food and its people shines through on every page and she touches on the difficulties of being LGBQT there.
This was a way more low key story than I'm used to from the author and if you're looking for a gentle romance - this is it.
My one issue is that I thought Elias's (who lives as a closeted gay man in Ethiopia) story was far more interesting than Desta's (which was good - don't get me wrong) but we never got his POV.
Tiny House by Olivia Dade - The characters were super sweet, romance slow burn and the tiny home reality show search funny but I didn't love this one as much as I usually like dates Dade's books.
It was maybe too slow burn and despite the couple being life long friends, there was so much they didn't seem to know about each other.
A cute, fast read though if you like slow burn romances.
Boyfriend Material by Alexis Hall – This started off so fun but by hour 3 (on audio) I could barely stand listening to Luc whine anymore. Sticking with the British theme for the book – he was a wanker to everyone around him. How they managed to put up with him is beyond me.
However, his love interest Oliver, and the opposites attract/fake boyfriend part was done so well that I stuck it out. The romance itself was A+ even if I had other issues – including every supporting character being over-the-top quirky.
Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates - Excellent and powerful (quick thoughts)
You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson – Loved! Favorite read of the month. (quick thoughts)
R&R
It’s the first time the tide has been so low and we could go exploring all the tide pools and check out the critters. And of course, we still had to wear masks and stay safe!
PUPPIES
The rare two-headed sheltie
Ripley is chewing on a bone and Kai is chewing on her tail lol
Ripley is almost too big to do this now
*I started an IG account for them if you'd like to follow their adventures @ripley_kai_yay
What have you all been up to? Any book, tv, movie rec's?
I think I'll be watching the latest season of Umbrella Academy soon and getting back to my TBR cart for reading.
"They were the toughest dogs I have ever housebroken so it’s a huge relief and now I don’t have to invest in a paper towel company."
ReplyDelete😂
What do you mean, you had a staycation? I didn't think you had a job in WA...
Yay for the beach! It does look wonderful, and at least you could go there safely.
Those little rascal are as adorable as ever. I was missing your dog pics - they're always uplifting.
I mean more like actually getting out and doing things while not really being able to go on vacation lol But Kevint ook time off from work.
DeleteI was just starting to look for a job when all this started. Now, the only places hiring are supermarkets and I'm less than thrilled with their protections for workers.
Ooh what a fun staycation - love the photos. And yay for the dogs being house trained. They are so adorable. I love seeing their photos, and I'm totally following them on Instagram now, just FYI. I really loved Boyfriend Material. Granted, I read it and didn't listen to it, so that might have helped with not getting annoyed with Luc, etc. LOL I think it would make a wonderful sequel though - now that they are established and all that.
ReplyDeleteI finally finished iZombie (all seasons on Netflix) which I loved, so if you haven't seen it, I recommend. My mom and I also watched the first season of Sweet Magnolias which was good - big cliffhanger though, just FYI!
-Lauren
www.shootingstarsmag.net
I think with BM - I had to listen in 30-45 minute segments so it felt like Luc was whining for weeks lol I loved them as a couple though.
DeleteWe started Umbrella Academy S2 last night and like ti so far. Do you watch that?
Love the pics of the beach...so pretty! Makes me wish I lived near the coast at times. Looks like you were able to pick up some good books. I have been curious about Boyfriend Material, good to know about Luc though.
ReplyDeleteHope August is a good month for you
It's really nice out her at the beaches. Most aren't really for swimming or lying out - they're too rough and rocky but it makes for great walking during a pandemic. They're huge and you can stay far away from people.
DeleteThe pic from the beach is gorgeous! I can see why it's one of the top rated beaches.
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear that your issues with Luc didn't get any better. I guess he didn't bother me. I mean, yeah he tended to wallow, but it didn't annoy me and I enjoyed seeing the changes happen in him.
That's not even the best picture from the beach. They have huge rocks (where puffins live) in the water and it's just an awe inspiring place.
DeleteOh & I really think my Luc problem was more about the way I listened to it. I could only listen 30-45 minutes at a time so it felt like all he did was whine for weeks lol
DeleteI really wish I had waiting to listen all at once or read it.
Love 💗 a good staycation, and love your pictures! Hugs RO
ReplyDeleteThanks Ro. I hope you're having a good summer.
DeletePuppies are cute!!!! The one where they are laying on each other melted my heart. And I love the beach picture in the lower right. Beautiful! YEAH!! So glad You Should See Me in a Crown was your fave. It was definitely one of my July favorites as well.
ReplyDeleteThat beach is my favorite. It's breathtaking and calming. Loads of nature. They even have puffins.
DeleteOmg the pups are soooo cute!!! I love the handle you chose for them on IG. So excited to follow along and yay on getting them housebroken!
ReplyDeleteI am in the middle of a book that I’m really enjoying but it’s taking me forever to finish. It’s called If I Never Met You by Mhairi McFarland/ have you heard of it? Very cute but I’m the slowest reader lately!
Yay for farmers markets and finding areas where you can safely socially distance! Your beach pics are beautiful.
If I must navigate a pandemic this is a great place to be I guess. You can get out without interacting with people.
DeleteI don't think I've heard of that book but my mind is awful when ti comes to books these days. I retain nothing lol
Housebroken yay
ReplyDeleteAlso wtf August?!?!? HOW???????????????
I know right??? How is time going both exhaustively slow and mind blowingly fast??
DeleteI can't believe it is already August. This year is flying by way too fast! We've now both been working from home since March, so we are really wanting to take a vacation somewhere. A staycation doesn't really seem like a good fit for us since we've been at home already all this time haha. I'm looking at maybe doing an airbnb somewhere soon, just for a change of scenery.
ReplyDeleteOn another note, all this time at home means I have time to train a new puppy. I've got the approval from my BF, so now the puppy hunt begins!
A staycation here is easy. There are so many local drives we can take and still socially distance. And more things are opening like wineries, farm stands so we could go somewhere new every week.
DeleteYay puppy!!! My husband and I being home has made the training go really fast. And given us something fun to focus on.
Cannon beach sounds awesome. I love all the pics I've seen of the coast out there. It looks so wild and natural if that makes sense. Glad you guys had a goods staycation. Sometimes those are the best! And yay for the housebreaking lol. Bet you're glad that's done!
ReplyDeleteI saw a trailer for Umbrella and I think I'm gonna try it.
The beaches are wild out here!! There are a few that are just these little coves, surrounded by rock and you actually have to climb down into them. And most aren't safe for swimming because logs float around because they're right next to forests.
DeleteYou haven't seen Umbrella Academy?? I don't know why, but that surprises me lol S2 has been great so far. I think we'll be done tonight.
I feel you on how time is passing, it's going so slow but at the same time I feel like I blinked and missed all of July. And yay for finally getting the pups house trained, I know they've been tough but it must feel like such an achievement finally getting them sorted.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad I'm not the only one who struggled with A Sweet Mess, I was a few chapters in and just couldn't get into it all which was sad. I mean, cake! I did enjoy Finding Joy, it was such a quiet romance and was very relaxing to read as there was no major drama, I would have liked an Elias POV though. I'm waiting for a copy of Boyfriend Material to arrive so hopefully I won't be bothered as much as you were with the whining, I suppose reading might be easier to skim over the whining, right?
Those puppies! So stinkin' cute!! And, I'm in Cali, but have visited Oregon TONS of times--but I've NEVER been to Cannon Beach! I know! It's awful! Next time I go, I'm checking out that beach!
ReplyDeleteOh you MUST go!!! It's truly stunning. That picture doesn't even do it justice or show how vast and varied it is.
DeleteWe just got back from a week with my family, so now it's get back into a routine. Low key in a "quarantine" for the next couple weeks. My girl and I started Umbrella Academy season 2 - but we'll finish that either today or tomorrow. She's rewatching Stranger Things season 3. I got an ARC of Emerald Blaze - fabulous as expected.
ReplyDeletewe're almost done with Umbrella Academy. 2 eps left. How are you liking it?
DeleteWe finished it last night, and I really enjoyed it. I liked it more than the first season. What about you? We'll have to chat offline. There were some good twists and I look forward to another season!
DeleteBased on your pictures, I assume Cannon Beach isn't a loungey beach. It's really pretty though!
ReplyDeleteTwo-headed puppies!
No. Most beaches out here are for walking and exploring. It's chilly, really rough and usually surrounded my mountains or woods.
DeleteThis one is a cool coastal community, and there are giant rocks and tide pools in the water.
So glad you were able to get away for a few days Karen, house training can be absolutely maddening but the puppies are adorable! I can't believe how quickly they're growing! We used the puppy pads when our beautiful Jessie was a puppy but he used to collect the clean ones and take them under our bed to chew up. He knew we couldn't reach him under there so it was his go-to hiding place. Those tide pools look lovely! We don't have any at our local beaches but up in tropical Australia, they have some magnificent ones. I hope you'll have a few more upcoming adventures, we've just entered another six weeks of hard lockdown, so looks like I'll be housebound for a while.
ReplyDeleteUGH that's so frustrating. TBH - we probably need another lockdown but it will never happen and the last one seems wasted with no cohesive plan for when it ended.
DeleteThe puppers came to us with bad housebreaking habits - including missing the pads so we just stuck with the outdoor training. I taught them to use a bell and we just really had to hunker down and keep on them every second and it finally clicked.
Such beautiful dogs-the cutest wee faces! I couldn't resist those cuties! Lots of hard work but you'll be getting a lot of satisfaction out of your achievements and seeing their progress!
ReplyDeleteThey're both such sweet puppies and are coming along so much faster than I expected (except for the housebreaking lol)
DeleteStaycations for the win! Glad you had a good break and I'm SUPER glad the puppies are housebroken! That takes a load off you. :)
ReplyDeleteSix books wasn't bad for July especially considering you had your hands full with the puppers. Sucks that they were such a mixed bag though.
I really enjoyed the Umbrella Academy s2! I think I liked it more than the first, actually. Klaus and Five are my favs.
The puppies are so cute! Glad you got them housebroken. That beach sounds like a great way to get out of the house while still staying safe. The pics are pretty!
ReplyDeleteI love exp!oring tide pools, too. 🐙
ReplyDeleteI love the puppy IG account. 🐾🐾✨