I love that smile.....what a cutie!

I finished spelling Chen Cao for February’s Detective spelling challenge a couple of hours ago. I always enjoy these challenges because I get to read books that are someplace on my lists that happen to have the right letters! I gave up readin Kellerman’s Alex Delaware series a couple of new releases ago but recently received a Goodread’s email from Kellermam about his latest book and am excited about reading the new one. As a series reader this means I HAVE to read a couple that I had skipped so I read Heartbreak Hotel for my needed H. I really liked this book so I am glad I returned to this series! Not sure why I gave up on it because my kindle indicated that I started it at some point. The first murder victim was a sweet 99 yo woman looking forward to her 100th birthday which I suspect had something to do with it, after I got past that I enjoyed the investigation of her early life. I also read a book from a new to me cozy series for a N. I ended up really liking the characters in The Novel Art of Murder by VM Burns but gave up reading the side cozy mystery that the main character was writing. I am looking forward to the release of the next one in this series as I continued reading the preview of the next book, then discovered it has an April release date. Looking forward to finding out what happens next! C......The Cat Who Moved a Mountain by Lillian Jackson Braun H......Heartbreak Hotel by Jonathan Kellerman E......Etched in Bone by Anne Bishop N.....The Novel Art of Murder by VM Burns C.....The Sunday Philosophy Club by Alexander McCall Smith A.....The Golden Tresses of the Dead by Alan Bradley O.....Of Blood and Bone by Nora Roberts

Welcome! The Clockmaker’s Daughter is on my list so I am glad to know you are enjoying it.

Thrilled to read you update!

Sending prayers........

Just WOW!!! Never heard this one either. I remember when JD wrote for Presents and had a book each month in the late 70’s and 80’s as my mom subscribed. I think she wrote a book set in all 50 states and I probably read them all...... hers were my absolute favorite for a while. At some point (maybe late 80’s early 90’s) I quit reading her books and I still read Nora Roberts fairly faithfully. I still read most of my mom’s book subscriptions until she died so I certainly didn’t quit the genre. Many of the old days romance authors who have got more mainstream I read at least occasionally........haven’t read a JD in at least a dozen years and probably many more...... I’ve just been going through my lists that I made back in December of books for my 10 category’s. I checked out a couple of my choices because I had room in Overdrive. I now have The Day before Forever https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27246439-the-day-before-forever which is the last in the Seventh Mrs Hatfield series that I loved a couple of years ago. Looking forward to revisiting and finding out how it ends......time travel romance would be the best description of the series I think. I also need to work on my Brexit Express category so I checked out the second Pieter Aspe set in Bruges. I loved the first last year....https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3552525-de- Still listening to Gamache......I will be so ready for March! Planning to read the new book sometime in March!

I think you need to start foundation issues.

@Mothersweets Your painting is wonderful!

FYI......not super helpful but this might help someone’s memory. I seem to remember someone’s Dd was going to major in Arabic about 3 years ago and there were a large number of posts about her college visits etc. I think she ended up at Ole Miss........there was a school around DC that was seriously looked at also I believe.

Quoting myself with a Twinkie update.....the mom next door ate all the Twinkies herself! 😂She tried them before the kids got home and hid them in her room.......I just gave her kids a Twinkie each so they could try them!

🤣I just bought two boxes of Twinkies today at Costco because they were so cheap. I gave a box to our neighbor kids (via their mom so no lectures 😉). because they will never have had them and put a couple in the freezer for my kids who had one to try when they were small. The rest will probably go to the kid’s friends unless they really love them. I may have one bite to see if they are what I remember......I wasn’t a huge fan but did like the chocolate ones with the cream in the middle, looked like a cupcake...... In general my tastes have changed but I still enjoy macaroni and cheese which I adored as a kid.

I also wonder if he asked Quill because her Dd is a similar age, therefore Quill should know..........

Trying to remember but I think I had roughly 6 changes for both summer and winter (so 12 suits w/ blouses)so that something could be at the dry cleaners......accountant so suits. I I had maybe 3 dressy casual type outfits that could occasionally be worn to the office.....casual Friday’s started about the time I stopped working in an office.

Dd didn’t manage to read The Martian this trip but will probably read it in the next month so I will post her opinion then. We both watched movies.......Crazy Rich Asians was enjoyed by both of us. Never thought I would watch it after all the hype. I haven’t read the books but now want to. I am curious about what happens next! 😉 I did finish the Cat who Moved the Mountain which definitely is not one of my favorites in The Cat Who......series. I much prefer it when the books are set in the normal location. Too many new characters made this one a bit hard to follow. I think my other travel reads have been abandoned for now.........

I just glanced at this post http://frame.bloglovin.com/?post=6795110409&blog=14225869&frame_type=none is the Tea and Biscuits blog that I very recently started following. The romances on the list that I know I have read are good. ETA.....I just Edited out my question. I looked around on other reviews of this book and think I know. I won’t be reading it.......sorry for the blushes, I thought it was similar to YA. 🤣

We called my kids the Bicker Twins for years.........our major rule was no fists(a friend’s 3 threw serious punches) and that parents should not have to listen while trying to drive. It could be pretty dreadful. They grew out of it. They are still highly competitive but generallly don’t get really nasty......now it’s sort of a check your facts comment as both are going into the same field.

Last night I finished Aunt Dimity Detective https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/511257.Aunt_Dimity which is part of a huge cozy series that I have been reading in order. This issue was addressed in the book so I plan to read the next one but...........she keeps getting overly involved with men other than her husband. I don't think I will continue if the trend continues because these are cozies! The mystery was good. In my travel virtual stack I have The Cat who Climbed a Mountain, James Rollins Black Order, and Some Like It Scottish a quilting cozy.

For inquiring minds.......Dd ended up choosing The Martian. Leviathan Wakes did show up so she has that. We also downloaded The Historian and On Basilisk Station as emergency reads. She is a very happy girl! Thanks Robin and Kareni......we also have several hold’s and wish listed for the return trip. eta...She also picked Windswept by Adam Rakunas which was on a recent Sci Fi list.

For inquiring minds.......Dd ended up choosing The Martian. Leviathan Wakes did show up so she has that. We also downloaded The Historian and On Basilisk Station as emergency reads. She is a very happy girl! Thanks Robin and Kareni......we also have several hold’s and wish listed for the return trip.

@Kareni Thank you! Leviathan Wakes just became availiable! She is closer to finished than I realized so will need at least one more book for travel and will need books again in a couple of weeks so maybe some of the hold’s will appear. Maybe Soulwood...... She just finished Goblin Emperor and loved it! Not sure that she feels the need to reread Anne Bishop or Hearne. Wrede and Wynn’s Jones are great ideas because she loved their YA back in the day. The Martian is also a good possibility and availiable. Uprooted is on hold, so are some of Robin’s.

Thank you! I sort of struck out again with these except for Soulwood. These could work but they are quick, my girl reads fast .......I calmed down enough to come up with a couple of others. She is still finishing a paper so we will find her books tomorrow. If anybody has any other ideas I would love to hear them.......

Sci Fi and Fantasy readers HELP ME PLEASE!!! We are in transit for a couple of days (I will have internet for most of tomorrow btw) Dd had to give up her half read copy of Leviathan Wakes in the library drop off and I have had it on reserve at two Overdrive sources all week. She is next in line twice which does me no good. She is also next in for a couple of others.......We are discouraged and out of ideas..........Give me some titles please! I feel like my mommy pixie dust just crashed. Dd is 20...........

My brother worked for years as a men’s hairstylist. He was located right by the headquarters of a major corporation in the 70’s and 80’s. He did all that top guy’s hair and many of them also had their hair dyed. He was very very good with mixing colors etc and did make a lot of money keeping those guys looking young. This is not a new thing..........

No experience with a stutter but both Dh and I saw speech therapists through our schools as children and hugely disliked the experience. I actually quit rather spectacularly on my own......my parents backed me up! 🥰 We were both in agreement not to send Ds, never even considered it. His letters were a combo of ours.which we found interesting....he self corrected over time and has no embarrassment at all. For that matter neither does Dh, give the guy a group and he is happy speaking. I used to speak to large groups frequently and have gotten out of the habit. I do have nerves about it now and am afraid that no one will understand me but I also have the lack of the local accent.......not sure if I would have had anxiety reappear if I had stayed in the Midwest. 😉 One of the dc’s friend’s stutters. According to them he has spent a whole lot of time with speech therapists during his childhood. He is in his early 20’s and we have known him roughly 6 years. When we first knew him it was frequent, now it only under stress. Unfortunately his career desires require public speaking so we will see how it goes. At the same time he is willingly steering himself towards a career that requires a great deal of public speaking so his self confidence is just fine.

I can relate quite well although my kids are in College. So this is been there.....My daughter is mathy and has always been so but I learned with her that we did not want to hit a bump in the road where she was not up and running with a new concept within two days. Because of that I always ran two math curriculums.......my choices were Singapore and ABeka. Sometimes we would concentrate on one but move to the other frequently. The other book taught things differently and we always moved through the second appearance of that concept quickly. Sometimes after a week or so I would pull the problem section back out and off she would go. I never ever said something was hard. Just quietly moved to the other book. This also slowed things down. Did the same with DS. Both have math degrees now.....going into Cybersecurity. Just read @mathnerd CWP are great. I ran these one year behind where we were in Singapore.