Drinking Your Greens

In the spirit of St. Patrick's Day and all things green, I decided to talk about drinking your greens today.

Do you drink green smoothies or juices?
I had my very first green juices and smoothies just this year when I did the Whole Living Cleanse in January. Before then, I always made my smoothies with fruit and yogurt... but the cleanse taught me how delicious and nutritious green smoothies and juice can be and now I'm hooked!

Why drink your greens?
There are lots of reasons, but the main reasons I've recently started drinking my greens are:
1. Drinking your greens is a super easy way to get several servings of raw fruits and vegetables under your belt. Literally!
2. Green juices and smoothies are nutritious, low calorie and delicious!
3. All the wonderful vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and fiber you get from leafy greens are more easily digested and absorbed into your body when in liquid form!

Wheatgrass juice served in a shot glass

Wheatgrass* Juice
Before January of this year, I had never heard of wheatgrass juice. Then just days before I planned on starting the Whole Living detox and cleanse, my friend Marie mentioned going to a local juice bar for a shot of wheatgrass with a friend of hers who is battling cancer, and then proceeded to tell me all about the purported health benefits of wheatgrass. I was impressed, and even if the healing, restorative properties are not as comprehensive as proponents claim, there's no denying wheatgrass has incredible nutritional value, so why not try it?

My friend Marie decided straightaway to do the cleanse diet with me and on our first day, we went to the juice bar to celebrate the start of our cleanse with a wheatgrass shot. The wheatgrass juice was served in a shot glass with wedge of orange to chase and actually tasted much more pleasant than I expected.

Wheat grass is a whole food and complete protein rich in enzymes and minerals. One ounce of wheatgrass juice contains the nutritional value of 2.2 lbs. of leafy greens. Wow!

*fyi wheatgrass contains no wheat gluten.

Green Juice

Green Juices 
During my cleanse, I took a bag of vegetables to a friend's house and used her juicer to make this awesome green juice. We used collard greens, romaine lettuce, carrots, celery, apple, ginger and lemon. The juice had a very fresh, bright taste to it--I honestly really liked it! We had enough for both of us to have a generous glass full and I took home a mason jar with the remainder to have the next day. Juice is best the day it is made--better for you and better tasting, with which I agree, but I also say leftover green juice is better than NO green juice.

Green Smoothies
This is the easiest way for me [and probably most people] to drink my greens because I can make it at home anytime I want using fresh greens, fresh or frozen fruit and my blender. Easy peasy.

Green Tropical Smoothie

Green Tropical Smoothie 
1 cup very packed fresh baby spinach
1 cup coconut water or unsweetened soymilk*
1/2 cup cubed mango, frozen if possible
1/2 cup cubed pineapple, frozen if possible
1/2 cup chopped ice, if your fruit is not frozen

Add all ingredients to blender and blend until smooth.

*I like to buy organic, unsweetened soymilk for which the only ingredients are filtered water and organic soybeans.

Morning Green Smoothie

Morning Green Smoothie
1 cup very packed fresh baby spinach
1 cup pineapple chunks, frozen if possible
1 fresh orange, juiced
1/2 banana, cut into chunks, frozen if possible
1/2 cup carrot juice

Add all ingredients to blender and blend until smooth.



What about you? Do you drink your greens? 



Have I inspired you to make a green smoothie?

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Added on March 18, 2012:

Want to learn more about drinking your greens? 

Visit my favorite website for smoothies, juices and healthy, clean eating and living: Green Lemonade. I encourage you to visit this site even if you're a little bit interested in making your own healthy smoothies.. green or any other color of the rainbow! I think you'll find some great inspiration there. Here are some links to get you started:

All About Green Lemonade

Why Are Green Smoothies Good For You? 

How to Make a Green Smoothie (Without Bananas)

5 Easy Green Smoothie Recipes

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Weekend Cooking, a weekly blog event hosted by Beth Fish Reads. Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food related post to share--a food related book review (fiction or nonfiction), cookbook review, movie review, a recipe, random thoughts, gadgets, food quotations, photographs, etc. Please visit Beth's blog for more information and join the fun! 


Note: your post does not have to be posted on the weekend, but do visit Beth's blog over the weekend to link up your post. 

Dear Blogger Friends,

If you blog with Blogger, please consider changing your comment settings to Embedded comments [if you don't already do so].

In case you haven't noticed, blogger changed the format of blogger comments about three weeks ago and now you can ONLY subscribe to replies by email IF AND ONLY IF the blog on which you are leaving a comment uses embedded comments. If comments are formatted on your blog any other way.. you [the blog owner] will get still receive replies by email, but your commenters won't. This means that people will not be seeing your reply comment or any other comments made on that post in their email inbox. The only way they will see any comments on that post is IF they come back and look at the comment section of that post again. I don't know about you, but I barely have time to visit a fraction of the blogs I follow every day, let alone have the time to click back to every post I've commented on in a day! I need to receive replies in my inbox so I can read what you or other commenters have said.. and to know if and when to come back and comment again on that post. I think this is likely the case for most people leaving comments on blogs.

This blogger change is very frustrating, making it really difficult to follow a comment thread on so many of the wonderful blogs I visit--like YOURS! We all love the sense of community we establish through the exchange of blog comments with our readers. Let's face it.. community interaction is a HUGE reason why we are all blogging in the first place. Let's not lose that meaningful connection to each other. Please consider setting the format of comments on your blog to embedded comments. Thank you!

Warm regards!


How to do it:
In the NEW Blogger Interface:
From your blogger home, go to your blog's Overview page by clicking on your blog name.
Select >>Settings on left column [wrench icon]
Select >>Posts and comments Under Comments,
Set comment location to Embedded.
Select >>Save settings [in upper right hand corner]

In the OLD Blogger Interface:
Go to Dashboard to Manage Blogs
Under your blog's name, select >>Settings
At top menu bar, select >>Comments
Next to Comment Form Placement, select Embedded below post.
At bottom of page, click on >>Save Settings

Winner of A Lady's Lesson in Scandal by Meredith Duran

Thanks to everyone who entered the giveaway! Without further ado, the winner the signed copy of A Lady's Lesson in Scandal by Meredith Duran is ....

BRANDY! 

Congratulations!
I hope you enjoy the book as much as I did.



List Randomizer 

There were 11 items in your list. Here they are in random order:

 1.   brandy
 2.   joy weese moll
 3.   samantha.1020
 4.   orannia
 5.   alex
 6.   kim
 7.   rebe
 8.   shelley munro
 9.   little_alys
10.  brie
11.  azteclady

Timestamp: 2012-03-16 21:27:02 UTC

March Madness for Romance & A Giveaway!

Basketball isn't the only place where you can find some March madness! DABWAHA is a bracket tournament for romance novels created and hosted by Jane from Dear Author and Sarah from Smart Bitches Trashy Books. It's a tournament of books in which 64 books published in 2011 among 8 different categories are put up against each other bracket-style and voted on by readers over approximately 2 weeks until a single champion is crowned.

Visit the DABWAHA site to learn how the tournament works, which books are competing, the rules and prizes. Of course, while you're there, fill out your own bracket and join the fun. You have until Wednesday 11:59 am EST to submit your picks.

I submitted my bracket today and was faced with some tough decisions! I struggled with quite a few of my choices--even for the books with which I'm familiar. In fact, the hardest part was when some of my favorite books ended up facing off against each other and I had to choose! Like Dragon Bound by Thea Harrison up against Kiss of Snow by Nalini Singh?! Gah! Can both win? In the end, I simply tried to take my preferences out of the thought process and just speculated which book voters would more likely choose.

But speaking of my favorites. .. Meredith Duran is an historical romance author who wrote one of my all time favorite romances, The Duke of Shadows, published in 2008. I have read and thoroughly enjoyed all of her books to date, including A Lady's Lesson in Scandal which I was pleased to discover is the readers nomination for the historical romance category in this year's DABWAHA tournament!

Last year, I had the wonderful opportunity to meet Meredith Duran in New York City after the literacy signing at the RWA National convention in June. She wasn't participating in the signing event, but she so graciously offered to meet up with me anyway and signed two copies of A Lady's Lesson in Scandal for me! Did I mention she's super cool as well as immensely talented? I kept one copy and the other was meant for a giveaway on my blog, but I never got around to it, so I'm doing it now. :)

To celebrate the nomination of A Lady's Lesson in Scandal in DABWAHA and the upcoming release of Meredith's next novel, At Your Pleasure on March 27, 2012... I'm giving away a new copy of A Lady's Lesson in Scandal by Meredith Duran, autographed by the author! 

Giveaway Rules: 
To enter for a chance to win, you must have left at least one comment on my blog in the past, leave a comment in this post about anything related to DABWAHA or Meredith Duran's books.

Giveaway ends on Friday, March 16, 2012 at 5:00 pm EST. Open in US only. Winners have one week to claim their prize or another winner will be chosen. Please leave an email address in your comment if it is not easily found on your blog or profile page.

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At Your Pleasure by Meredith Duran will be released on March 27, 2012.

Glittering court socialites and underworld cutpurses alike know that Adrian Ferrers, Earl of Rivenham, is the most dangerous man in London. Rivenham will let nothing—not the deepening shadow of war, nor the growing darkness within him—interfere with his ambition to restore his family to its former glory. But when tasked by the king to uncover a traitor, he discovers instead a conspiracy—and a woman whose courage awakens terrible temptations. To save her is to risk everything. To love her might cost his life. 

Lady Leonora knows that Rivenham is the devil in beautiful disguise—and that the irresistible tension between them is as unpredictable as the dilemma in which Nora finds herself: held hostage on her own estate by Rivenham and the king’s men. But when war breaks out, Nora has no choice but to place her trust in her dearest enemy—and pray that love does not become the weapon that destroys them both...

Visit Meredith Duran on her website at www.meredithduran.com for information about her books including excerpts, stories behind the story, research, reviews and where to purchase her books.

Meredith Duran also blogs with fellow historical romance author Sherry Thomas at Plotters & Manipulators Unite.


 p.s. In case you were wondering... DABWAHA = Dear Author Bitchery Writing Award for Hellagood Authors

Library Loot XLVIII [Used Book Sale]

Not the a typical 'books I borrowed from the library' type of library loot post, but I managed to raid the used book sale at my local library today which definitely feels like looting! I had today's used book sale on my calendar and hoped to get there on the first night when the book selection is at its best, but I just couldn't get there on time. Instead, I went today--the last day of the sale when the deal of the day is all the books you can fit in a bag for $8. What a steal!               [**books I've already read]

Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marillier

Magic or Madness by Justine Larbalestier

The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón

The Prince of Mist by Carlos Ruiz Zafón

The Foretelling by Alice Hoffman

**Sunshine by Robin McKinley

The Princess and the Hound by Mette Ivie Harrison

Falling Boy by Alison McGhee

**The Wedding by Julie Garwood

The Promise in a Kiss by Stephanie Laurens

The Indiscretion by Judith Ivory

The Spy Who Came for Christmas by David Morrell

Fantasy in Death by J.D. Robb

Promises in Death by J.D. Robb

At Last Comes Love by Mary Balogh

**The Story of Beautiful Girl by Rachel Simon

Tiny Sunbirds Far Away by Christie Watson

Vaclav & Lena by Haley Tanner

The Secret Lives of the Sushi Club by Christy Yorke

The Pleasure of My Company by Steve Martin 

The Christmas Cooke Club by Ann Pearlman

The Baker's Apprentice by Judith Ryan Hendricks

**The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows

The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver 

The Orchard by Theresa Weir

One Thousand White Women by Jim Fergus

Peony in Love by Lisa See

Shanghai Girls by Lisa See

I got all of 28 these books for $8... can you believe it?! Not only do I now have my own copies of some favorite books, but several other books have been on my list to read for a while, so I'm excited to have scored my own copies at such a bargain. All the others caught my attention for one reason or another.. Honestly I can't wait to read all of them!

Have you read any of these books? Anything catch your eye? 

Organic Goodness in this week's box

It's been a long time since I made a post about the organic co-op [I describe how my co-op works in this post.] to which I belong. In fact, I didn't post about it at all in 2011. Since I've been participating now and then in the Weekend Cooking meme hosted by Beth Fish Reads, I've chatting about food and recipes more and more with other bloggers, which got me thinking it was a good time and place to share what came in this week's co-op box and look to my readers for some new recipe inspiration. That would be you! So take a look at what I have carefully stuffed in my refrigerator right now, pick an item or two and tell me you're favorite way to eat it.

Romaine lettuce, broccoli, bok choi

celery

bananas, tomatoes, kiwi, Jonagold apples

onions, garlic, parsnips, carrots, sweet potato and navel oranges

As you can see, we didn't get anything very interesting or exotic in this week's share. Not that I don't appreciate and savor this colorful and healthful bounty. I do! I think I'm just in a creative rut. I make the same things over and over again and I'm getting bored! Salad with apples and nuts, roasted broccoli, greens sauteed in garlic and olive oil, parsnip fries, carrots and celery in soup or stew... all on auto repeat. Help! I need some inspiration! 

If you came home with this box of vegetables, what would you do with it? 

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Weekend Cooking, a weekly blog event hosted by Beth Fish Reads. Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food related post to share--a food related book review (fiction or nonfiction), cookbook review, movie review, a recipe, random thoughts, gadgets, food quotations, photographs, etc. Please visit Beth's blog for more information and join the fun! 


Note: your post does not have to be posted on the weekend, but do visit Beth's blog over the weekend to link up your post. 

The Best Homemade Pizza Dough

Why make your own pizza dough? 
Store bought pizza dough--whether you buy pre-made packaged pizza dough or so called 'fresh' pizza dough in the refrigerator case is loaded with preservatives and other wacky ingredients like 'dough conditioners' and other stuff you can't recognize. Read the ingredients on one of those packages and ask yourself if you really want to put things of which you don't know the origins inside your body or inside the bodies of your beautiful children. Plus it tastes SOooo good!

Why not buy fresh pizza dough from the pizzeria down the street? 
... You can control the quality and variety of the ingredients used, such as organic, sea salt, extra virgin olive oil and so on.
... It costs less making it at home.
... Making something from scratch is rewarding.
... It impresses your family and friends. When they take that first bite and look up at you with awe in their eyes and say "Wow, mom.." around a mouthful of wholesome pizza... you'll never buy pizza dough again. ;)

About the recipe.
This recipe is not my own creation, but one I use from the March 2010 issue of EveryDay Food Magazine and I just can't keep it to myself. It's incredibly easy to make--mix up the dough ingredients, let it rise for one hour, knead it a few times and then make your pizza! The dough can also be used for focaccia, sticky buns, sweet soft pretzels and individual cinnamon-apple tarts. For the original basic pizza dough recipe and other recipes using the dough, click on Everyday Food Basic Pizza Dough.

The original recipe calls for all-purpose flour, but I always substitute some of the regular flour with stone ground whole wheat flavor for added nutrients and flavor. You can use all white flour if you like.

Best Homemade Pizza Dough
Makes 2 lbs. of dough, enough to make 8 or more individual pizzas.

pesto pizza with mushrooms

2 packets (1/4 ounce each) active dry yeast
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup olive oil, plus more for bowl and brushing
2 teaspoons coarse salt
1 1/2 cups stone ground whole wheat flour
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for work surface

1. Pour 1 1/2 cups warm water (110-115 F) into a large bowl; sprinkle with yeast and let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes.

2. Whisk sugar, oil, and salt into yeast mixture. Add flour and stir until a stick dough forms. Transfer dough to an oiled bowl and brush top with oil. Cover bowl with plastic wrap or a thin kitchen towel and set aside in a warm, draft-free place until the dough as doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.

My tip: I use my oven as the warm, draft-free place. I turn on my oven to warm (200 F) for just a few minutes during step 1 so that my oven will be warm enough for rising the dough. Just make sure you turn off the oven after a few minutes. You don't want it too hot. Then I put the dough in the oven for the rising period.

3. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured work surface and gently knead 1 or 2 times before using.

Cook's Note: To freeze, you can wrap the dough in plastic and freeze in a resealable freezer bag for up to 3 months. If you plan to use it in a recipe that calls for half a batch, divide it before freezing.


I did this and it worked well, but the dough is really best used immediately after preparing.

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To make pizzas: 
We like to make individual pizzas at our house. This way everyone gets to make theirs just the way they like.

1. Preheat oven to 425 F.
2. Use a sharp kitchen knife to score and cut the dough into eight equal portions.
3. If you have a pizza stone, by all means use it to make these pizzas and go to step 3. If you do not have a pizza stone, lightly brush a cookie sheet or pizza pan with olive oil and set aside.
4. To shape the pizzas, take a portion of dough into your hands and gently shape into a pancake. Then hold the edge of the dough between your fingers of both hands. Turn the dough around and around in your fingers, gently stretching the edges. The center of the dough will naturally get thinner as you turn the dough. When you get to the point where the dough is stretched thin enough to your liking, place it on the oiled cookie sheet. Using the tips of your fingers, press the dough some more around the edges to thin it some more, if you like.
5. Top your pizza with desired sauce, cheese, vegetables and meats.

Tip: Be careful not use too much tomato sauce on your pizza. A little bit goes a long way and too much makes your pizza way too soggy!

6. Bake for 10-15 minutes, or until cheese is melted and edges of crust are lightly browned.

Serve hot!

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Some of our favorite pizzas:

Pizza Margherita
Topped with tomato sauce, fresh mozzarella and fresh basil. Add diced peppers, red onions, thinly sliced mushrooms, if desired.

Pesto Pizza
Topped with pesto and fresh mozzarella. Add thinly sliced mushrooms, if desired.

White Pizza
Topped with dollops of ricotta cheese, fresh mozzarella, and steamed or roasted broccoli florets.

Barbecue Chicken Pizza
Top with barbecue sauce, grilled chicken, fresh mozzarella or Monterrey jack cheese, diced red onion, thinly sliced zucchini and cilantro.

Enjoy! :)

Weekend Cooking, a weekly blog event hosted by Beth Fish Reads. Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food related post to share--a food related book review (fiction or nonfiction), cookbook review, movie review, a recipe, random thoughts, gadgets, food quotations, photographs, etc. Please visit Beth's blog for more information and join the fun! 


Note: your post does not have to be posted on the weekend, but do visit Beth's blog over the weekend to link up your post. 

REVIEW: Capturing the Silken Thief by Jeannie Lin

Note: This book was given to me by the author in exchange for an honest review.

Capturing the Silken Thief is an historical romance novella set in the infamous North Hamlet of Changan during the Tang Dynasty in China 823 A.D. It is in this infamous entertainment district where scholars studied during the day and indulged in wine, courtesans and brothels in the night.

Yang Jia-jing is a poor song girl trained to play the pipa in The North Hamlet. She is essentially in eternal debt to her troupe master unless she finds the means to buy her freedom. Jia believes the means to her freedom lies in a valuable book of poems that has been stolen by young scholar in the district. If she can only get her hands on the treasured book, she can finally buy her freedom.

Luo Cheng is a farm boy from an outlying province who is diligently studying for the imperial exams. He has already failed them once, so this is his last chance to prove himself and earn the title of a ranking official.

When Jia mistakes Cheng for the scholar who is in possession of the treasured book, the two end up searching for the book together. Their escapade sparks a passion between them that could either lead to defeat or a path to a new life for one or both of them.

Capturing the Silken Thief is adventurous albeit brief romp through an ancient city where lies and theft bring together two similar souls who cannot help but be drawn to one another. Jia is a determined young woman who creatively uses her wiles to do what's necessary to achieve her goals, but is taken off guard by this honest, young scholar whose aspirations for freedom are really not much different from her own. Cheng is an equally determined individual, whose mischievous side is brought out by this intriguing thief who has easily slipped into his heart. Jia and Cheng compliment each other in an easy, natural way, but with a bit of delicious tension-- perfect for bringing these two together in this short tale of love and adventure.

The story is well written and perfectly paced, but unfortunately too short! While Jia and Cheng's story never felt rushed, I would have loved more page time and consequently more character development with these two lively, well-matched characters. Capturing the Silken Thief is a charming tale for fans of historical romance, one that should not be missed for its unique setting and time period.

GRADE: B+

Visit author Jeannie Lin on her website at jeannielin.com for more information about her books.

Ms. Lin's next book will be My Fair Concubine, also set during the Tang Dynasty China and is scheduled for release on May 22, 2012 in print and on June 1, 2012 in ebook format.

Haruki Murakami Reading Challenge 2012

I forgot to post this one in January! I joined this challenge last year and barely met the challenge, having read After the Quake in the last days of December. After the Quake is a collection of four short stories by Haruki Murakami which I did enjoy. This year, I'd like to read one of Murakami's full length novels. I'm leaning towards Sputnik Sweetheart, although the year is young and I may change my mind a few times before I finally decide.

The Haruki Murakami Reading Challenge 2012 is hosted yet again by tanabata.

To learn more about this challenge and the works of Haruki Murakami, visit the Haruki Murakami Reading Challenge blog.

You can also browse Murakami's books and reader reviews for said books on goodreads

Have you read a Haruki Murakami novel before? If yes, which one(s)? 

Do you think you might be interested in reading one of his novels? 

My February Adventures

Happy Leap Day!

There's just something really special and fun about February 29, don't you think? For most of us it's like a freebie day, but for some... it's the birthday that only comes around once every four years! Can you imagine? I remember a few leap years ago, an elderly woman with whom I was acquainted was so excited to be throwing a Sweet 16 party for one of her girlfriends [64th] birthday? How cute is that? Sixty four years old and your true birthday only came around 16 times! That's special all right! :)

German Chocolate Ganache Cake 

Speaking of birthdays ... my husband celebrated another one earlier this month and for the third year in a row, I made him his favorite cake ever... the amazing German Chocolate Ganache Cake pictured above. Fortunately for me, his birthday was on the first day after I was liberated from the cleanse diet I was following. Very serendipitous, don't you think?

Health & fitness adventures :
I finished the Whole Living Action Plan detox cleanse diet thing earlier this month. Yay!!! I learned so much doing that cleanse and felt so good in the last week or two, but it was hard work. A couple of weeks later, I have to confess that I haven't been as good at sticking to the healthy eating since then as I had hoped. I did develop some new habits that I've been very good at keeping up, such as no caffeine [can you believe it?], hot water with lemon first thing every morning, drinking more water, eating more vegetables and nuts, but I also resorted to some of the old not so good habits. In the form of cookies. :-/ It's not that I'm eating whole sleeves of girl scout cookies or anything. Honest! They haven't come in yet. But a cookie here and a cookie there every day.. it adds up. :/

This week my 16 year old and I started a "healthy eating diet" to help us get on track with healthy eating. We're going [mostly*] vegan and gluten free for two weeks, eating lots of fruit, vegetables, beans, soy, nuts and seeds, with moderate servings of oats and rice. We're starting every morning with a mug of warm water with fresh squeezed lemon to stimulate our liver followed by a fruit and soy smoothie for breakfast. I haven't made us a green smoothie yet.. wonder how that will go over. No processed foods and no refined sugars. My daughter's looking to simply eat healthier, more vegetables and fewer chips and snacks, and also hoping eating better will boost her moods. Yes, please. Minefields. Seriously. I'm looking to improve how I feel digestively again--I really did feel SO much better when I wasn't eating as many gluten foods on the cleanse. I wouldn't be disappointed I got back on track losing some extra pounds, too!

[*My daughter is being strict about the vegan part, but I'm allowing some Greek yogurt, fish and lean chicken or beef because I feel I need it to fuel or refuel my workouts.]

I'm finally working out every day-ish again after a bad head cold took me out of the gym and landed me on the sofa for a almost a week! Needless to say, my fitness hours reflect some of that downtime, but at least I still got my body moving when I could! Here's a look at what I did in February:

Bike . . . . . . . . . 2.5 hours [34.3 miles]
Run . . . . . . . . .  2.5 hours [14.34 miles]
TRX. . . . . . . . . 4.0 hours
Kickbox . . . .  . 3.75 hours
Spin . . . . . . . . .  2.5 hours
Powercuts . . . . . 2.0 hours

Total fitness challenge 'miles' . . . 72.34 miles

[My monthly goal is 100 miles where 1 fitness challenge mile = 15 min of cardio or strength training = 1 mile run.]

That's 17.25 hours biking running kicking spinning lifting TRX-ing.

All of a sudden it doesn't seem like a whole heck of a lot of activity...

What did you do in February to keep moving?

Adventures in reading :
After a very slow start in January, February proved to be quite productive with 14 books read! Possibly a new record for me, but in truth, some books were pretty short--three graphic novels and two novellas, so it's not that crazy. I did read a long one, though--Eon Dragoneye Reborn by Alison Goodman, which is one of the books I chose for The Big Book Challenge [500+ pages]. I loved it and am going to start the sequel Eona tonight! Here's a list of the books I read in February:

1. Born in Death by J.D. Robb C+
2. The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien, graphic novel B
3. Innocent in Death by J.D. Robb A
4. Wicked Intentions by Elizabeth Hoyt B+
5. Dragon Bound by Thea Harrison [re-read] A
6. The Bro-Magnet by Lauren Baratz-Logsted Thanks, Brie! :) B
7. King Lear by Gareth Hinds, Shakespeare graphic novel, original text B+
8. Eon Dragoneye Reborn by Alison Goodman A
9. Conor's Way by Laura Lee Guhrke A
10. "Thicker Than Blood" by Meljean Brook, novella A
11. Archangel's Consort by Nalini Singh B+
12. Archangel's Blade by Nalini Singh A
13. Anya's Ghost by Vera Brogsol, graphic novel B
14. Forever Mine by Delilah Marvelle, novella C-

Unfortunately, I was horrible at writing reviews or even mini reviews on goodreads for most of these books. I really need to get into the habit of writing at least a few lines, but once I move on to the next book, I lose reviewing momentum rather rapidly.

Are there any books listed above that you'd like to hear about?
Maybe I'll try to write up a few.

What great books did you read in February?

Other projects and adventures :
Guess what? I've been keeping up with the Project 366 [leap year ;)] photogrpahy project to take a photo every day of the year. I think I'm finally going to pull this project off after three prior failed attempts! Wahoo!! *knock on wood!*

I'm still thinking of a way to make a monthly collage to post here, but in the meantime, to see my photos click on My Project 366. All photos are taken with my iPhone 4S. Lots of pictures of cats and food.

Traveling adventures :
I met up with blogging friends Hilcia, Mariana and Natalie on Saturday afternoon. We met at a cool fondue restaurant in Hoboken called The Melting Pot where we ate fondue of course! Cheese fondue [with bread, apples and vegetables], Seasoned broth fondue [with meat, fish and vegetables] and of course.... chocolate fondue! We had a milk chocolate and white chocolate yin yang fondue with fresh strawberries, marshmallows, red velvet cake, brownies, cheesecake and rice krispie treats. Wow. Pictures of fondue on my Project 366 link above! And while the food was delicious and fun. .. the best part was hanging out with these lovely ladies chatting about books, jobs, family and life. Hilcia came with a generous bag of books to share with us [Thank you, Hils! xo] and we had the loveliest of afternoons. I can't wait to do it again soon.

Do you ever meet blogging friends you've met online in person?


That's about it for my February adventures. Thanks for reading all about it and I wish you a marvelous March! xo