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, the holiday week is upon us. I don’t know if I’m ready but I suppose I should get on wrapping things. I’ve been doing Sunday visiting, writing a review. I spent time working on the menu plan and grocery lists for the next couple of weeks. My daughter was feeling too nauseous so I walked Lulu on my own.
Monday, I had lots of chores to handle today. There was bill paying and a few end of year tax things to do. I mailed winners of the giveaways for Risk and the Mageri Grand Prize. I’ve been sharing the Top 10 posts. I set up review shells for the new ARCs I downloaded. In the late afternoon, we went to Harris Teeter for RX and things which were out of stock on the Walmart order, then to pickup the Walmart order, and finally to my daughter’s doc appt about her toe which is still infected, her nausea, and two RX which she needs new scripts. We got home about 7:30 and it was a rush for me to put away the groceries, fix some dinner and eat before Abbey arrived at 8:30. Lulu ran right up to her to greet her. Then they promptly tried out each others’ beds.
Tuesday, I woke before the alarm. I was wary that Abbey would bark and wake my daughter. I had taken a bunch of bread heels and soaked them overnight in egg mix to make French toast this morning which was delicious. Lulu and Abbey thought so too. They were so cute when I took them out and then they sat in a very small dog bed together. Abbey still tried to eat Lulu’s food but I avoided almost all of the barking. My daughter told me she was almost out of GasX which I could have gotten yesterday if I had known. So I did a same day order on Amazon. I also got a harness for Abbey. She doesn’t usually wear one but it will be easier. I did my computer stuff, wrote a review, and then at 11:30 I walked them. We have poop stations in the neighborhood but many of them are out of bags. It makes me wonder how often they check them. I worked on some Series on Saturday themes. Then I took the dogs for an afternoon walk. I wrapped all the Christmas gifts. The rest of the evening we watched more Vera.
Wednesday, Merry Christmas! I’m happy to say I’ve managed to keep the morning barking to minimum with some strategy. The dogs and I went out and had breakfast. I did a bit of computer visiting. They were whining about a half hour before the normal walk time but rather than letting them move on to barking, we went out to walk. When we got back, my daughter was up and opened gifts. Then I made pancakes and bacon for a later breakfast. We watched some Vera, more computer work, and then an afternoon walk.
Thursday, another cold day but sunny. I did more work on various things in the blog. I walked the dogs twice. We finished cleaning up the guest room and made up the bed with clean sheets. We watched a lot of Vera and ate up some leftovers.
Friday, there may be some rain today, still chilly. I’m still loving the warm socks. I spent a bunch of time zipping some of my Audio ARC files which weren’t zipped which were from iTunes. My newer ones I just leave zipped because my Audio Player loads them up as a zip file. My daughter couldn’t find her antibiotic cream so I had to run to Harris Teeter to get another tube. When I got back the dogs rushed me; my daughter says they were unhappy I was gone. I made a big supper but my ex didn’t make it with the bad traffic until 10pm. I went to bed quickly because I didn’t want to change the schedule for the dogs. That would just mean lots of barking.
Saturday, another successful morning of getting Abbey and Lulu out, fed and napping without barking. We started organizing for projects. The weather is so nice 68F/ 20C. We have a couple days to do this outdoor stuff. The camellia is blooming which I planted in September 2020! We walked again in the late afternoon. Then I had time to write a review before dinner while my daughter and her father went to Harris Teeter for some things.
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):
My sincere thanks to St. Martin’s Press, Berkley Romance,
(If you click on the cover, it will take you to the Goodreads entry)
NONE.
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
- 🎧 Emily Wilde’s Compendium of Lost Tales by Heather Fawcett #HeatherFawcett @Pottell @DoddsAndEnds @DelReyBooks @penguinaudio.bsky.social @PRHAudio #LOVEAudiobooks - February 13, 2025
- 🎧 Nemesis by Gregg Hurwitz @gregghurwitzbooks.bsky.social @ScottBrick @macmillanaudio.bsky.social @stmartinspress.bsky.social #LoveAudiobooks @GreggHurwitz@MinotaurBooks @StMartinsPress @MacmillanAudio - February 11, 2025
- Sunday Post – 9 February 2025 @caffeinatedreviewer.com @kimbacaffeinate @readingreality - February 9, 2025
A menu plan! Aaah, one of these days I might do that. As of now, I follow the cooking shows that let chefs show their inventive selves, using what’s available in the fridge to make a meal! Happy New Year.
Yes! We watch those cooking shows too. But with various health issues I have to plan carefully to have what my daughter needs. So I make a plan and a shopping list. It’s complicated by the fact that I can go to any store to buy for example bread. For the gluten free bread that is tasty and reasonably priced (?) we get at Trader Joes for $5 a loaf. Other brands can run up to $8-9 a loaf. Each GF food is like that or only available at 1 of the 4-5 stores where we shop regularly. Produce and meats and some dairy we can get at most places, though. Happy Reading!
Sounds like a busy week. I’m glad you figured out ways to manage the dogs. Luckily they seem to get along really well😁 Hope you have a nice New Year’s! And how awesome that your camellia bloomed. We had red and white camellias at our last house and I loved them.
Thank you Tammy! They do get along great, even when Abbey eats Lulu’s food. But the barking is not our favorite so we manage the routine to reduce that issue. I’m always excited to have my perennials bloom. But especially the winter ones like camellia for the first time after planted or the hellebores which are winter beauties.
French toast sounds so good right now! Glad that the dogs are quieting in the morning. Hopefully they’ll start to develop that habit.
I did not post my individual freebies this week because I downloaded about 100. I don’t know when I’ll ever read them.
French toast does sound good. Thanks Carla. I try to be pretty selective about freebies and I have a meme to challenge myself so I read them. Having a whole lot is a luxury because it allows an odd mood read when I feel like it, either a freebie or library options.
French toast sounds so good now! I still haven’t found a gluten free bread I like. They are all okay. But, when you soak it in egg, milk, and cinnamon, it helps!! Have a wonderful week!
Thanks Samantha. We like the Trader Joes green wrapper multigrain best now but the slices are small. The best was LaBrea and they stopped making it this year! I use a bit of vanilla in my egg mix, sometimes a dollop of maple syrup. That’s what a recipe I have uses.
At one point in my life, I had 4 dogs, and the barking was constant. I never figured out how to make them stop. I hope you have a great week!
Thanks AJ. They are good dogs but both are having a routine upset because Abbey is only visiting. But mostly it has gone well; better than the week around Thanksgiving. Two is really my limit.
LOL, sounds like you’ve got the dogs’ barking figured out. I try very hard to avoid making the lab next door bark, but sometimes there’s no avoiding it. Glad you had a good Christmas and late breakfast. We were really busy leading up to Christmas, but had some lovely calm days after- plus I caught a cold from someone at my MILs. Haha, ’tis the season.
Have a Happy New Year, Anne!
Thanks Sophia. I hope you are over the cold now or soon. We really have had a nice week. Happy reading!
Sounds like it wasn’t too bad of a holiday week. Busy though! It’s nice when you can get the dogs figured out when there’s an extra one staying with you. The flower is so pretty! Hope you have a nice week coming up!
Thank you Lisa. It was pretty quiet and the dogs did well until last night and this morning. Not sure what set them off. I love all my flowers when they bloom
Some fun looking freebies there! Hope you enjoy, and happy new year!
Thank you Nicky. I try to be very selective about my freebies.
I hope your daughter is feeling better. Lulu looks cute standing up. I’ve only ever used a harness on Otis and got him 2 sizes so he can fit one with his winter coat on and the other without. The pink flowers are pretty. Happy New Year!
Thank you Naida. We like the harness so we don’t feel like we are pulling the collar off their neck if they pull. Lulu has the two sizes also. I love all my flowers and it’s nice to have a couple that bloom in what is technically winter.
You are becoming very gifted at avoiding barking Anne!
IKR? My daughter said I have an amazing talent for reducing the barking. It’s because they know I am the leader of the pack! lol
Your freebies look really good. Enjoy your books. Happy New Year!
Thanks Yvonne. There was a stuff your reader day for freebies but I tried to be selective.
I’m sorry your daughter hasn’t been feeling well. Menu planning is such a great idea. I hope you have a wonderful 2025!
Thanks Jodie! The menu planning means I have a better chance of having the ingredients I need to make something that week, and that I don’t let ingredients rot in the fridge or freezer.
I hope your daughter is feeling better. I’m trying to talk my husband into avoiding the uber eats app and getting Blue apron 2x a month. I like the Blue Apron offerings and when you do the math its a bit cheaper than him getting some crappy fast food via uber eats.
Thank you Victoria. We’ve never tried Blue Apron or Uber Eats. We have done Factor. I have a coupon to get a free box if you want to try them. They are gluten free which was important to us. The box is free but you have to pay shipping I think. I can either give you a code or give them your email.
LOL I wonder if you have the dogs trained not to bark, or they have you trained to take them for walks 😉
The camellias look lovely.
Have a great reading week and wishing you a happy new year 🥳
Thank you! yes the dogs and I are training each other. I love having perennial flowers / shrubs in the yard.
My grandmother’s elderly dog passed away just before Hurricane Helene hit and she was so desperate for a new little dog, she got a 1 year old. The local shelters evacuated all their animals so there weren’t many small dogs to be found anywhere. My mom feels like she’s helping Granny train the dog not to bark (and not to eat the cat’s food, and how to walk on a leash…) and also training Granny how to train the dog. It’s been at least 10 years since Granny had a new dog and that one was an older rescue. Granny has slowed down a lot herself since then. They’re making progress though.
Your camellia is beautiful! It’s so nice that they bloom when everything else is dormant.
Happy New Year!
yes we are only doing small dogs that aren’t puppies. We know we don’t have the energy for one that needs all the training. Although my daughter did a lot to train Lulu. I love the perennial flowers.
Glad your pups gave you some more peaceful mornings! Hope that continues!
Thank you! Abbey went home last night and Lulu is rarely a barker so peace reigns here.
Cute Lulu💜
I’m trying to wrap up the year, too. I’m reluctant because I know it will be hard. Have a wonderful New Year’s Anne!
Thank you ! I hope you have a very happy new year.
Merry Christmas and now… Happy New Year! Sounds like a pretty decent week, but I hope your daughter is feeling better. Our neighbor has two little dogs that bark all the time if they see anything, so now I’m just used it.
We are heading over to their home later for our annual get together for NYE. We play games, eat, watch the ball drop, etc. Wearing our PJs of course!
Thank you! It was a good holiday week but plenty to do. Happy New Year to you! Now it’s just Lulu and there may be some whining (for attention, walks or food) but very little barking.
Nice collection!!
Thank you.
I hope you’re having a wonderful start to the new year! And I have Ilona Andrews on my authors I must read in 2025 list because of your recommendations!
Thank you Katherine. I love everything Ilona Andrews but you may want to pick the series which best fits your genre preferences.
Happy New Year! Hope you had a wonderful Christmas. And I hope you love all your new books.
Thank you! Happy New Year to you and your family.