Perfect Date

For the past couple of months I've been part of an Instagram book club with Megan Walker to read her books, Lakeshire Park and Miss Newbury's List, in preparation for her book, The Duke's Bargain, which comes out on May 5. It has been wonderful learning behind the scenes details from Megan as well as hearing experiences from other readers. Do you know how many of us have memories of berry picking from our youth?

When I found out Megan was coming to Utah to do an event at the Provo Library with Joanna Barker and Esther Hatch who both had books come out recently, as well as several other authors, I made sure to get a ticket. 

The event was a speed-dating/speed-friending kind of event. The authors each spent six minutes at a table with readers who got to ask questions and chat before they rotated to another table.

I loved how it was done because I got to chat with some authors I hadn't been able to chat with before.

Afterward was a Q&A session then book signing.

 

Before the event started, I met up with Amber from that same book club and we hung out the whole time, both got our hugs from Megan Walker, and got to be each other's picture takers with the authors (I didn't get pictures with all the authors but that's okay). It was fun.

Book Club Buddies!

I got a bunch of swag (not all pictured. Let's just say I have plenty of bookmarks to lose now), and got The Duke's Bargain (before release date) by Megan Walker, 

 

and If You'll Have Me by Esther Hatch, 

 

and A Love Most Daring by Joanna Barker. 

Those last two books I really got into when I read (or listened to) them earlier- see my March 30, 2026 post about A Love Most Daring.

 

I also got pictures with Jennifer Moore 

 

and Jentry Flint 

 

and Arlem Hawks.

 

It was a fun way to do an author event and I'm so glad I went.

I love events with the Provo Library.

 

P.S. That day was the perfect date to do this event since April 25 was Perfect Date Day. The speed-dating style fit right in with it.   

Jeremy took the kids out that morning for some birding. Their weather was not too hot and not too cold. It was also Celebrate Trails Day so they walked around the visitor's center at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge.

P.P.S. Since April 25 was also World Penguin Day, we ate fish sticks. Even though it was National Plumbers Day, I did not wear my Mario shirt to my event. I wore my Gentlemen's Gamble shirt. 

 

The Gentlemen's Gamble

You know I like when authors convince me (they don't have to try that hard) to read their books (if it's the type of book I would read). See my post from September 14, 2024.

I found out about a new series that came out this year written by multiple authors called The Gentlemen's Gamble series. The idea is that this group of friends make a wager when they're younger that whoever is the last to marry has to pay each of the others in the group 100 pounds. They kind of forget about it and then years later one friend writes to all the others that he has gotten married and reminds them all about the wager so it's a scramble for them all to get married.

A couple fun things about this series are: 1) the authors kept the release order of the books secret so we didn't know who was going to lose the wager. 2) each of the books have the same prologue but written from the hero of that book's point of view.

I haven't finished the series yet (I'm still two books away- I've listened to four on audiobook) but I do know the order of the books at this point. The series introduced me to a new author (and the last two books are from authors I have not previously read so I'm still waiting) and I got to read books from three authors who I have read books from before. One of them is Anneka R. Walker, who is one of my favorites, as you know.

In April, the authors held a Gentlemen's Gamble virtual event where they talked about the books and answered questions. It was pretty fun. Before the event they emailed BINGO cards so we could have fun catching little things that were mentioned throughout the event. 

They also did some giveaways and I won a tshirt. It says, "Team Gentlemen. Honor Intact. Hearts Compromised." 

I am enjoying this book series and I'm glad I found out about it.

 

 

The Day After Halloween Is NOT Christmas

Jr. Jr. joined in on the celebration of Vinegar Day, November 1, this year. He is not a fan of Christmas right after Halloween and he made his position known to me.

It was also National Author's Day on November 1, which is an appropriate beginning to NaNoWriMo. I wished a happy this holiday to Nichole.

Since it was also Dia de Los Muertos, Lucky created a mask at school, inspired by some things Dad likes.

Book Lovers Love Books

August 9 was National Rice Pudding Day. Nobody in the family cares for rice pudding so I made rice and pudding to go with dinner.

It was also Book Lovers Day so let me tell you about a reading challenge I took on in August.

In preparation for her book, So True a Love, that was coming out on September 3, Joanna Barker hosted a read-along for her book, A Heart Worth Stealing, which is the book that takes place before the new one. The read-along was simple, a chapter a day. I enjoyed it and there were definitely times I was excited to find out what would happen the next day/chapter.

Once school started, I did a lot of my reading in the van waiting to drop off or pick up kids.

I am looking forward to reading So True a Love, but I can't be in too much of a hurry because I also have several books to read for the Adult Reading Challenge at the Orem Library, including the Orem Reads book for October, Fahrenheit 451. I enjoyed reading Frankenstein with other readers for Orem Reads last year. 

Lemon Tart by Josi S. Kilpack came in at the library while I was reading the other two books. It's one that counts for the library reading challenge.

During this read-along, Joanna Barker also had some games and things online. One of them was to "describe a book badly." I described Esther Hatch's book, There Goes the Groom, this way (since I had recently finished it):

"A couple spends their engagement delivering packages."

I tagged both Joanna Barker and Esther Hatch on Instagram. Esther Hatch got a kick out of it and reached out to me about how the main character in her first book was "Lord Telford." Of course that immediately became my next book to read.

 

Then I shared this experience on Instagram and both those authors thought it was cute:

Too cute not to share.

My four year old couldn't find a little tiger eraser he was playing with. I told him, "I'm sorry. I don't know where it is."

He told me, "I dropped it in Mommy's bag."

Oh. I started pulling out items from my bag- shopping list, etc.

I pulled out The Roses of Feldstone by Esther Hatch because she told me one of the main characters has my surname so of course I have to read it. By the way, her most recent novel, A Proper Facade, released recently.

As you do with four year olds, I held up the book and asked, "Is this your tiger?"

"No," he replied.

"What is it?"

"It's a book."

Next I held up A Heart Worth Stealing by Joanna Barker whose next novel, So True a Love (sequel to this one), comes out September 3.

Again I asked, "Is this your tiger?" to which he replied, "No. That's Mommy's chapter."

I am participating in a read-along of that book with Joanna Barker this month, a chapter a day. My son hears daily, "I need to read my chapter," or "I read/finished my chapter," always referring to that book.

I think it's adorable that he picked up on that and associated the book with my "chapter."

In case you're wondering, we did find that tiger eraser at the bottom of my bag.

August was a good reading month.

More October Holidays

October 15 was National Grouch Day. I couldn't get the words right to Oscar the Grouch's song, "I Love Trash." This is how I sang it. "Oh, I love trash. Anything dirty or dusty or dingy. Anything rotten or rusty or ringy." Those are not the words.

It was also P.G. Wodehouse's Birthday. We made stroganoff using Worcestershire sauce. Jr. commented that ingredient is Jeeves speaking with a lisp. "Wooster, sir." "Wooster, shir."

 

October 22 was National Color Day. We had an at-home potluck of different colors.

 

October 26 was National Pumpkin Day. I told author Joanna Barker that I would read her book, Miss Adeline's Match, when I got some pumpkin spice hot chocolate. The book takes place in the Fall. That's why it works. I used to get Stephen's pumpkin spice hot cocoa mix every Fall. We couldn't find any this year. We couldn't find any pumpkin spice hot cocoa mix in the stores. My husband got creative. He bought me a pumpkin spice frosty and I put some in my hot chocolate. It totally worked. So, I drank my pumpkin spice hot chocolate and read her book. Although, now that I've read the book, I would recommend drinking spiced apple cider while reading it because there is a whole apple harvesting section in the book. So if you're looking for a way to celebrate Fall (you know... next Fall because it's practically Winter here now, although there is also a scene in a snowstorm so I guess it fits both), I recommend reading Miss Adeline's Match and drinking apple cider. But then take a break and read later in the book with hot chocolate (it doesn't have to be pumpkin spice) during the part with the snowstorm. There. That's how to celebrate. Of course I also used my Provo City Library cocoa mug. Very appropriate.

October 27 was National Breadstick Day.

Me Time

I wanted to do something for myself (as much as I love doing things for my family) so the beginning of August, I went to an event at the Provo Library- a panel and book signing with 20 or so clean romance authors. 

I got to chat with some great people, got some books, got some book recommendations, and even got a picture with Josi Kilpack and Nancy Campbell Allen.

It was a nice evening.

Romance Con

Orem Library is holding events for Orem Reads. The theme of it this time is Romance.

Their kickoff event was an all day Romance Con with panels and presentations from several artists/authors.

I'm a fan of "clean" romance so it was nice to be able to go for a few hours to hear from and meet some authors of books I would actually read.

It was like when I went to hear from Sarah M. Eden the beginning of September at the Provo Library.

I even made a new friend at Romance Con. Author Kate Condie also grew up in Oregon so she and I spent some time chatting about "back home." It was fun to hear her use the term "the coast" when some other people would use the term "the beach." Western Oregonians know what I'm talking about. And her books are clean.

The keynote speaker was Josi Kilpack. She shared some great words of wisdom about how to find and hold on to what makes us better, not just in our writing, but in our lives as well. I took some good notes.

I'm glad I went to this event. I learned some pretty cool things.

 

Not So Lazy, Am I?

September 2 was National Lazy Mom's Day.

It's also Shelftember and I told my kids I wasn't going to buy bread at the store this month. So I took our crystallized honey and uncrystallized it (decrystallized it?) by putting the honey container in a pot of hot water until it was the consistency I wanted. I then took that honey and used it to make wheat bread (with some help from my baking buddy).

I did a few dishes (Bosch, etc.), only a few, because I burned my hand on the oven door the night before while putting the pizza in and soaking my hand in hot soapy water would not be a good idea.

I did do laundry, though. I fed myself and my two-year old, watered plants, got kids to and from school.

Oh, and I got some grossness off our counter before accidentally spilling oatmeal on it (the counter) while getting it (the oats) out of the cupboard (and I had just refilled the container the other day so it was full). So I cleaned up the oats as well. 

And I cleaned up the flour Jet dumped on the table. That's one of his favorite things to do while being my baking buddy. If there is a measuring cup or other container on the table with flour in it, it must be for dumping out. I mean that's what I do, sprinkle a little on the table to help with kneading, so why not the whole thing?

 

I wasn't so lazy but in the evening I did something for myself. I went to the Provo Library for a launch event for the newest book from Sarah M. Eden. It was so nice and she is so entertaining, both speaking and in her writing. I used some birthday money and got myself that book and got it signed.

I'm glad I took that time for myself.

Dragonwatch Launch Party!

Brandon Mull's new book, Dragonwatch: Champion of the Titan Games, came out October 13. We attended a virtual launch party for it. I'm sure you know by now we're Brandon Mull fans with book signings and book reports and closing windows on Midsummer's Eve. I've blogged about how we've listened to his books on CD on car trips and we've even done Halloween costumes based on characters from his books.

The launch party was so fun. They showed favorite moments from past launch parties. They had a contest to see who was the biggest fan. They had questions and answers with Brandon Mull. It was fun for our whole family to watch.

And earlier in the day, Jeremy picked up a poster and bookmarks from the Orem Library.