The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimberly @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week, and showcase books and things we have received.
Don’t forget to look at my giveaways on the right sidebar.
Sunday, I was up a bit late reading. Today I did the blog visiting. I went down the rabbit hole as I decided to make a spreadsheet with the streaming services we have, the cost and if they are a trial with an end date – thanks to Jinjer for that idea. I didn’t want to take Lulu for a walk but I took her for a longer medium one anyway because she totally loves it. I just wanted to read and relax but the walking is good for me too.
Monday, I slept for long hours. I did my blog visiting. I made recommendations to First Quarter COYER book club of the fantasy books I own and haven’t managed to read, except one I read in 2015 and want to reread. I set up my tracking for COYER 2024. I tried to update my links for challenges but Goodreads was having a meltdown. I remembered at the last minute before I went to bed that some Chirp deals were ending, so I got a few there.
Tuesday, why do I always think of an item I need after the update time for the Walmart order? I was able to get my COYER links updating with Goodreads better this morning. I ran the errands to Walmart and then went to Papa Murphy’s since they have a great Tuesday deal. The gluten free pizzas aren’t extra and basically you get any medium pizza for $10.99 with any 5 toppings you choose. I read a bit, then tried to go to bed and couldn’t sleep. After an hour, I gave up and started reading again. I finished the book about 4:30am and then was tired enough to go to sleep.
Wednesday, today would not be my most productive with less than 5 hours of sleep. I did walk Lulu and Abby while my daughter took care of Kayla. The weather seemed nicer than I expected. I made our chiro appts for the next few months. I worked on updating the menus on the blog. I still have Features (Series on Saturday, Read-along, etc.) but now for Challenges there are tabs to show all the Thrifty Thursday and Library Love posts. There’s an SDB iris blooming in the yard. The broccoli I planted in September is finally getting to the point of it being edible.
Thursday, a busy day. I walked with the dogs. I hurried to some errands stopping at Food Lion, Costco and Harris Teeter. Then at home I was looking into things for medical plans. I made a crockpot of Chicken Tortilla Soup. I took some to both neighbors who we walk their dogs.
Friday, I’m trying to catch up and reorganize after the errands day. I’m trying to accomplish things but it’s going slowly. I walked Lulu and it was cold but it’s going to rain tomorrow. One of my daughter’s RX I went to pick up said it was not covered by insurance and would be $1200 for 90 days. After emails with her specialist who contacted the insurance company, it will be covered for a $15 copay for 90 days! I also got some posts set up and a review written.
Saturday, I am not moving fast enough. I finished some books and wrote reviews. I’m organizing a bit. I’ve been behind all week on responding to comments. It rained most of the day but cleared up in time for Lulu and I to get out before the dark.
2023 Reading: It was a good year where I read a lot and worked towards my goals. Total books: 323
- Goodreads Challenge: 323 / 250 HERE
- Audiobooks: 178 HERE
- Library: 91 /60 2023 Library Love Challenge
- COYER: 279 HERE
- Books I own: 79 / 36 HERE
- Freebies read 38 HERE
Hannah at Back Shelf Books included the My Year in Books in her last Sunday post.
Here’s the detail for My Year In Books.
Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Reading Reality. These are the exciting ARCs I received this week (If you click on the cover, it will take you to the Goodreads entry):
Thanks so much to Canelo,
(If you click on the cover, it will take you to the Goodreads entry)
I purchased all these at Chirp for less than $5.00 each.
Now the really scary one. This is all the Kindle and Audible freebies I grabbed this past week. You can see why I need to do Thrifty Thursday to be sure I read a few at least one each month.
I really meant to cut back on freebies BUT they are free so I guess that won’t be happening.
I’m not including things like reviews posted or upcoming as they are always in the right sidebar. And, my challenge status is also there.
Anne
I read all types of books but my favorites are urban fantasy and romantic suspense.I like some romance and some action / adventure / mystery in everything.I like sex in my books but please, only between TWO people.Intimate conversation is equally important to the sex in a book.It lets me see the characters.The other thing I enjoy is humor.
Friend or follow me at Goodreads.
- 🎧 The Paradise Problem by Christina Lauren @ChristinaLauren @PattiMurin #JonRoot @SimonAudio#LoveAudiobooks - May 7, 2024
- 🎧 Rich Justice by Robert Bailey @rbaileybooks @joeknezevich #BrillianceAudio #LoveAudiobooks#KindleUnlimited🎧 - May 5, 2024
- Sunday Post –5 May 2024 @kimbacaffeinate @readingreality - May 5, 2024
Sweet, sweet Lulu💜
Are those collards you’re growing? I see you got Tin God, a book I read years ago and started me on my love affair with Stacy Green’s writing. Hope you enjoy! Some really nice Chirp pickups, too.
Have a great week, Anne!
Thank you Jonetta. Those are broccoli. I’ll look forward to that Stacy Green book more now!
Oh Gosh your daughter’s treatment costs a lot! I hope you’ll get some more money back from the insurance!
Thanks Sophie. The specialist got the insurance company to cover it so it was $15. But not all doctors are so helpful or quick to respond.
Goodreads is always over crowded on January 1st, I was struggling to use it too. I don’t use Story Graph but I hear it crashed because so many people visited it that day. I can’t figure out why Goodreads can’t get its act together and fix the site, I mean it is owned by Amazon, and often it doesn’t work very well. Oh well. Congrats on such a great reading year, Anne!
Thank you Tammy. yes i was weird for a couple days. I did better with the phone app but it doesn’t have all the features but enough to do my tracking.
I am just now starting to upload my Goodreads library into Storygraph, but they say it will take a while. I love their graphs, and Goodreads is not really moderated at all. It’s full of spammers, scammers, and the annoying guys looking for a date. I’m just there for books!
yes I’m just there for books. I have it set up to work really well for me so I’m staying there for now.
So busy! I had issues with StoryGraph the first few days of the year, at least the app. And then I had issues with Goodreads website not letting me update the progress I’d made on my books on those same days it seemed! I feel like Goodreads always has issues at the beginning of the year! Wow, oveer 300 books is awesome! I also decided to go ahead and do COYER too, added it to my Sign Up post from last week. Here’s hoping we have a good week!
Thank you Lisa. Goodreads was weird for a couple days but I was able to update progress on my phone app. It’s working normally again. I really look forward to seeing you around COYER. Don’t worry about trying to do everything. Just get used to it and pick things that interest you.
What a spectacular year of reading!
I think you deserve to take things slowly for a change, you are always so busy!
I’m glad you got the RX cost worked out.
Wishing you a wonderful reading week
Thank you ShelleyRae. That RX cost was a shocker and took a day of small efforts but I was worried. Something like that every week seems to come up. At least I have my books to enjoy.
Oh I’m so happy to see you got the Checquy series by Daniel O’Malley! I read the first book some time ago and I loved it, and I have been meaning to reread it so I can finish the rest of the series. You got such a great deal on them too! I hope you enjoy all your books!
yes the bundle deals at Chirp are very good. There’s one for Suzanne Palmer’s Finder series Graphic Audio that ends tomorrow and I’m think of that 3 audios for $13.xx I watch those Chirp deals every day. The series has been recommended to me a few times. I hope I can read it sooner than later.
Your broccoli and Iris look wonderful! My garden is now covered in snow. I’ve been looking at seeds to start indoors for the coming spring. Glad you got that prescription sorted! $1200 is a lot for 90 days!
I bought those two Nora Roberts audios from Chirp, too. I wonder how you got that “my year in books” thingy.
Thank you Rachel. The Home Depot has lettuce plants but I am sure it is too soon. Usually February is the earliest unless you have greenhouse. I may try to figure out a cover like that to have one bed be cool crops like lettuce or spinach in the winter. Chard and broccoli don’t even need covers. I saw the Year in books on someone’s post go here https://www.myyearinbooks.com/ and enter your goodreads URLs. I read the first WTZ this week and really liked it. Thank goodness since I set up the whole Read-along.
Yeah, I have garlic and lettuce in my garden beds. The garlic should be okay. We’ll see with the lettuce. I just ordered a bunch of seeds to start inside in February. I’ll check out that website! Thanks for the link! I need to start the first WTZ! Glad to hear you liked it since you’re hosting the read-along! That would’ve been a bummer if you didn’t like it, lol!
Way to go on your reading totals for 2023 and whew, that’s great your daughter’s doctor got the insurance company to cover. I was trying to fit my walks in around the rain and snow squalls this past week, but I do love that quiet and fresh air that inside activity can’t replace.
Have a great week, Anne!
Thank you Sophia! It was a stressful few days but things have worked out there. I am with you on the walks. Until we starting walking the neighbor’s dogs I never would have been so consistent or realized how nice it is.
Glad you got your daughter’s prescriptions price down! That was a lot!
yes that specialist is awesome and I really appreciate it.
I hate fighting with insurance. It is terrible that this seems to happen quite often. I rarely want to walk the dogs but they drive me nuts until we do it, and it is good for me to get moving. You have a fabulous year of reading, Anne! I hope that you have a great week!
Thank you Carole. I sometimes don’t want to do it but once I’m out walking I’m usually happy. Unless the wind is strong and cold. It has been a very good year of reading.
Prescriptions can be so expensive. I hope you’re having a great start to 2024 though. It feels so weird saying that!
I love that cover for The Gathering Storm!
Thank you Greg. Well this week is off with a lot to handle. But that’s my life and I have the skills. I feel overloaded and I hate when I am behind on responding to comments and Sunday visiting (which I am) I hope to progress on several fronts today. I am very excited about A Gathering Storm as it is 4th in a series and I LOVED the previous 3 books.
I’m so glad you got the cost down to a $15 copay! As usual, you have a very productive week!
Thank you Victoria. Productive is the story of my life but I’d prefer a bi more downtime. I guess that’s all my reading which I do love. My daughter has an awesome specialist plus I worked in a pharmacy so I know a few things.
You had a great reading year, Anne. Sounds like you are ready for 2024! I am glad you were able to get the insurance snafu sorted. I have been hearing stories like that happening regarding medication costs more often lately. I hope you have a great week and happy reading!
Thank you Wendy. Medical issues with insurance and doctors are so difficult. When you find a good doctor it’s gold.
I should make a spreadsheet with my streaming services. That’s a great idea.
The Gathering Storm looks good. I hope you enjoy your books and have a great week!
Thank you Yvonne. Be sure to include expiration or renewal dates on that spreadsheet. I include monthly or annual cost as well.
Sounds like you got so much done. We had rain and thus mud all weekend and I’d almost have rather had snow. The boys didn’t even make it out to walk which is rare but it was cold and pouring most of the day. I was late getting a Farm News post up but did one this morning before work – better late than never huh? I am more than half done with the WTZ book and am loving it. Hope you have a great week!
I am so happy you are enjoying WTZ. I really liked it. It’s a little scary to support a whole Read-along when you haven’t read any of the books. We have days which are rainy like today but we find pockets to get out on walks.
Sounds like a busy week! And wow, a nice book haul. Enjoy!
I have been unable to find a slow week. I am fortunate to get most of the ARCs I want and I even read many of the freebies I one-click. Thanks for visiting.
Sweet Lulu just wants her walkies! I always remember something for the groceries after I get home and put everything away. Lol.
She does love to walk. The grocery store thing is especially bad because I go to like 5 stores not including Costco or Sam’s Club and space them over a couple weeks because only certain stores carry certain GF products. If I forget it can end up being another trip or changing the menu.
How many times have I come home from the grocery store and later that day one of my kids will tell me “oh we need this.” In fact, it happened just this past Saturday.
Glad your daughter’s Rx is covered! I started a new medication and it’s cover by my insurance but was still going to be $100+ per month. But the pharmaceutical company has a copay card which (for right now) is covering the rest!
We had a foot of snow Sunday and now we are getting 1-2″ of rain tonight. They are talking power outages and flooding. My daughter is hoping for no school. LOL!
Thank you Jen. There was strong winds and rain here yesterday also some power outages but we’ve been fine. That wind is cold though! They cancelled a lot of stuff here. They are complete wimps compared to Minnesota.
There never seems to be enough time to do everything, does there? But you had a fantastic reading year in 2023—wow! I’m glad you were able to work things out with the insurance company. I hope you got through today’s (Tuesday’s) rain and wind OK, and that it didn’t harm your garden.
Thank you Kara. Some people had issues, that wind was and is strong, but we’ve been fine. I was out in it all afternoon. Insurance is tough as they want to not cover things. It takes a good doctor to fight for you to get it covered.
Thank goodness your insurance copay got sorted!
yes that only happens when you have good doctors to fight your case but I’m shocked it could happen so fast. Our gastro specialist is really good.
So glad you were able to get your daughter’s prescription dealt with. I bet that was a bit terrifying at first. I hate making grocery orders for that exact reason! I always remember something that I can’t do without right after it’s too late. I hope you are having a great week and enjoying your reading!
Thank you Katherine. It’s been downs and ups this week. The medical stuff just seems to keep getting more complicated. The hardest thing is that some gluten-free items are only available at one store. So I rotate our shopping but it’s even longer until I get back to a store because there are others which have other things.
We’re you shocked at the results of your streaming spreadsheet or was it about what you expected?
I am ALWAYS thinking of one last thing I need AFTER the online grocery order cutoff! This week it was a bloody onion!! I went a couple weeks without NEEDING the onion in the cabinet, but now everything I’m eating needs an onion and I don’t have one. Oh well…I’m learning to enjoy a bowl of chili or a burrito without chopped onion as a garnish I guess.