Welcome to Small Victories Sunday! This bi-weekly/weekly post will recap for you the reading I’ve done during the week, the food I’ve cooked, the posts I’ve written and the small victories I’ve celebrated in my personal life. When I started this blog over a year ago, I wanted a place where I could focus on those accomplishments in my life, both big and small. It’s helped me to focus and gain a healthier, more positive attitude as I juggle my 3 boys and the physical impairment of Rheumatoid Arthritis (a chronic and incurable illness). I thought Sunday would be a perfect day to reflect on the week that passed and look forward to the week ahead.
This Past Week I:
WAS READING
I finished Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie for my book club. I loved the main character, 11 year-old Flavia. The youngest of 3 girls, she was spunky, clever, determined and independent. Totally reminded me of my little Daredevil, let’s hope he doesn’t use his incredible intellect for chemistry to torture his older brothers like Flavia does! 4*
I finished and reviewed Morning Light. I gave it a 2.5 stars, although the ending was exciting and unexpected, I couldn’t emotionally connect to the characters.
I breezed through Monsoon Memories, a story of an Indian family torn about by a dark secret. Will they be able to recover and reunite? I was mesmerized by the intriguing story and could not put it down. I drooled over the descriptions of the food, nostalgic of my last trip to India 20 years ago and sad when the book was over. A 5* in my book but full review coming soon.
WAS LISTENING TO
I finished listening to Bright Lights, Big Ass is the second installment in Jen Lancaster’s humorous nonfiction. I really enjoyed listening to the first book, Bitter is the New Black, on audio. It sounds like the same narrator and while humorous, I did not enjoy it as much as the first. 3*
I started One Year to an Organized Life before and had gotten half way through it. Now that I am staying home and can dedicate more time to getting organized, I borrowed it again on audiobook and the hard copy so that I can take better notes. Month 1 is the kitchen, I have a large kitchen but the cabinets are full of stuff. It’s gonna take me longer than a month to reorganize it! The audiobook is narrated by the author who calls herself a “Zen Organizer” and she has the perfect soothing voice to keep me sane while I undertake the monstrous task of getting my house organized.
COOKED
* Homemade Nutella and Strawberry Toaster Pastries
* Fruity Pebbles and Greek Yogurt Parfaits
* Cooking Classy’s Buttermilk Waffles 5*
* Allrecipes’ Fluffy Pancakes
* Chorizo and Egg Tacos
* Skinnytaste’s Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore 5*
* Cooking Classy’s Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala 5* Tastes like my mom’s but easier since it’s in the slow cooker!
* Aayi’s Recipes’ Batate Talasani (Sauteed Potato Straws) 4* I love these garlicky, fragrant Indian potato side dish to the Chicken Tikka Masala.
* Cate’s World Kitchen’s Revolutionary Mac and Cheese, the easiest homemade and only way I mac and cheese anymore. Goodbye to the boxed, powdery stuff!
* Taste of Home’s Baked Spaghetti. 4* This makes a ton of spaghetti, I usually end up freezing half even though oldest took it for lunch in his thermos every day. He loves it and needs the extra carbs!
* Skinnytaste’s Mexican Slow Cooked Pork Carnitas with Rice and Pigeon Peas (recipe off the Goya can). 5* Eat as a burrito bowl, in a pulled pork sandwich, ncahos or in a quesdilla, there are lots of ways to use the leftover meat.
I’ve been cooking up a storm since my last Small Victories post, be sure to follow my Pinterest page where I normally pin the recipes I want to try and move them to my Favorite Recipes board once it’s family approved!
BLOGGED
* The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People book review
* Free Weekly Planner Printable based on the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People book
* If you could only read one book for the rest of your life, what would it be? Mine: Feature & Follow 6: The Book Thief Stole My Heart
Next Week I Plan To:
READ
and read Catching Fire before the movie comes out!
COOK
* Figure it out tomorrow, it’s triple coupons starting Wednesday. I usually try to do a pasta dish, a slow cooker dish and one of hubby’s favorites for dinners.
* Around the kitchen, I also used baking soda and peroxide to clean my toaster oven. It took some heavy duty soaking and scrubbing to clean off the grates and pan but it almost looks like new!
WORK ON THE BLOG
* Continue updating book reviews in the Ultimate book blogger plugin
* See where I will be talking about the organizing tools I use for my blog
* Share my favorite blogging resources
This post is linked up to Sunday Post with Caffeinated Book Reviewer, It’s Monday, What Are You Reading with BookJourney and Little Things Thursdays with A Beautiful Ruckus.
Grab my button if you’d like to share on your blog or a Small Victories Sunday post to share it with me. Need inspiration? Click here for Small Victories writing prompts, but the sky is the limit so share whichever Small Victories you want to celebrate!
What are you reading, cooking or blogging about? What are you planning to do next week? What accomplishments are you proud of this week? Be sure to leave me a comment and a link to your Small Victories Sunday post for the week! I’d love to hear from you and cheer you on in those small victories you are celebrating!
Are you aware of Bloggiesta, Tanya? You must be! I’m sure you’ll take part (I’m too busy, this time around, very much unfortunately). I have a copy of Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie. Look forward to reading it. It’s a whole series, so if it’s good, there is a lot more of it. 🙂
Hi there Judith. Yes, I hope to participate in Bloggiesta but I know that with the way that I have been feeling and the busy weekend ahead, I probably won’t get much done.
Wow! Just reading about all you’ve done makes me tired. You go, girl! I wonder what my list would look like if I tracked it. Hm. Maybe.
Thanks for sharing. Happy Sharefest.
You are so organized with all of your plans! You are so very awesome.
Thanks so much for linking up with us again this week. I love seeing you week after week!
I have to check out the Organized Life Book. It sounds like a perfect read while I am recuperating from foot surgery. I’ve been reading my way through Terry Tempest Wiliams, she has a way of making me want to read more. I also discovered Ryszard Kapuscinski.
As to cooking I’ve never had much luck with the slow cooker. My vegetables never seem to get done, but your recipes sound awesome.
Hope you had a great week.
Wow! It looks like you’ve been busy! Blogging is a great way to keep yourself accountable, isn’t it!
I agree, Blogging is a good way to stay accountable! Thanks for stopping by Rabia.
Nice week…I enjoyed Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie.
Happy Reading!!
I am out of town and not getting too much reading done, but I am having fun. Went to a Hachette book event and received 9 books. The event was FABULOUS. I am still here visiting my son…heading home tomorrow.
Elizabeth
Silver’s Reviews
My It’s Monday, What Are You Reading
I am nominating you for a Liebster, and I hope that you will accept the nomination. You are very deserving of it. To find out the details, go to http://www.transitiontovictory.blogspot.com
Trinity
I am so glad I found your blog! Reading, family life, cooking…a one stop blog 🙂 I would like Monsoon Memories I believe, and One Year to an Organized Life (I’m thinking the audio is better than the book because you can listen to her telling you what to do while you actually do it!) Thanks for sharing all this. Will check out your recipes too.
(On a personal note, I have struggled the past three years with severe fibromyalgia, and also osteoarthritis of the spine, hands and feet. I started my symptoms at age 51, which is considered kind of young for those disabilities. I am an 18/18 on the fibro. point test and though some days are better than others, I take medicine that has some side effects but it’s better than non-stop pain and depression. I applaud your drive and ability to manage all that you do with rheumatoid arthritis!! My sis-in-law has that and she does manage to work also. I didn’t mean to ramble on, but it gives me some inspiration to see those who have everyday pain and still enjoy their lives to the fullest!)
I look forward to stopping by often to visit you.
Thanks so much Rita for stopping by and it’s comments like yours that inspire me to keep on blogging and sharing my story. Every day is different and unpredictable with RA and 3 little boys, I have to do what I can, when I can and pay attention to my body’s signs that it’s had enough. I am sorry you are dealing with fibro and osteo of the spine. I am glad that the meds help you and yes, anything is better than non-stop pain and depression. I used to work outside the home until June, the stress from the nature of the job was causing me more RA pain, flares and daily fevers. It didn’t help that I worked at a desk job so didn’t move much during the day either. I didn’t realize how much the job was impacting my health until I quit. I feel healthier and happier being able to dedicate more of the energy I have to my boys, they need me and I realize I need more of their sweetness too. Thanks for sharing your situation with me, though it’s tough to deal with chronic illnesses and I wouldn’t wish it on anyone, it’s nice to know we are not alone too.
I agree that the audio of Organized Life helps keep me motivated. I’m usually doing housework other than what she’s telling me to do while I listen, so I need the written version so when I actually get around to it, I remember what she said. I wanna say there’s a workbook that went along with it in the store, might have to pick it up. I always have lots of random ideas about how I’d like to organize and fix up my home, it’d be good to jot them down in one place.
Thanks for stopping by and hope to hear from you again soon. Wishing you sunny and pain-free days ahead.
As far as the Organized Life Book, I will think about getting maybe both audio and book. I don’t do housework per se, my husband does the basic chores we need done to get by and I do the cooking and load the dishwasher 🙂
But…he is very disorganized–sadly to say, so am I, but at least the chaos bugs me, not so much him, haha–and so I need some direction to get our house back on track. Thanks for a title I would not have found on my own. And thanks for the warm welcome to your blog–I will be a frequent visitor here.
Thanks Rita, both versions of Organized Life were available from my library 🙂 I downloaded the audiobook to my Overdrive app on my Android. If you have a smartphone, I love that app!
The chaos really bugs me too. Of course, my hubby and boys all love when stuff is organized so when they ask, “honey/mom, where is the…?”, I have an answer for them. The trick is training them to put it back where they found it!! 🙂 one day….
Great logo! Morning Light looks like a book I should explore. Enjoy your week!
Here’s MY WEEKLY SUNDAY/MONDAY UPDATES
Thanks Laurel-Rain!
Hmmm – more than a month to organize your kitchen cabinets – what do you have in them!!! Lol – I love your choices of non-fiction books – always helpful.
That is the essential question, what’s in my cabinets? They are packed with small appliances, platters for entertaining and things I don’t really use anymore. I just need to better organize and I am including the time it will take me to give it a deep clean and decorate the kitchen to the room I want it be, at least painting, hanging new curtains and making top shelves more accessible if I can’t replace countertops and floors yet. It’s definitely the most used room in the house and it needs some TLC….and it’s white so any crumbs and grimy fingerprints really shows.
I liked the Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie and have read all the book in the series and looking forward to any new ones. You are quite a cook and must be busy with books and cooking 🙂
Cooking does take up a good portion of my day since it includes time to buy groceries and cleaning up! It’s quite an endeavor but it saves us a ton of money to eat in. Just wish my picky eaters liked to eat as much as I do 🙂
I look forward to reading the rest of the Sweetness series. Thanks for stopping by Harvee!
I totally need to re-read Catching Fire, too. I want to be ready for the midnight opening of the movie!! :)-Ashley
Love the meme photo! Looks like the pier at Wrightsville, although I’m sure most piers look the same…
Good eye Allison, though many piers look the same, it IS the pier in Wrightsville on a cloudless Carolina Blue Sky day in January! 🙂