Tuesday, August 25, 2015

3rd Annual Beat the Heat Readathon - Week 1 Updates

Beat the Heat Readathon

I love finding new readathons! I am just coming out of Bout of Books 14 and want to continue my streak of getting some reading done. My book list is going to remain the same for this Beat the Heat Readathon hosted by Jessi of Novel Heartbeat and Reanna of Phantasmic Reads. My goal is to basically finish 1 book each week - and possibly finish off some series. For more info and to sign up, go here.

[Possible Reads]
  • Girl of Nightmares by Kendare Blake
  • Double Fudge Brownie Murder by Joanne Fluke
  • Top Secret Twenty-One by Janet Evanovich
  • Night of Cake and Puppets/Dreams of Gods and Monsters by Laini Taylor
  • The Heir by Kiera Cass
  • The Blood of Olympus by Rick Riordan
  • Origin/Opposition by Jennifer L. Armentrout
  • Spell Bound by Rachel Hawkins
  • Isla and the Happily Ever After by 
  • Homecoming by Kass Morgan
Girl of Nightmares (Anna, #2)Double Fudge Brownie Murder (Hannah Swensen, #18)Top Secret Twenty-One (Stephanie Plum #21)Night of Cake & Puppets (Daughter of Smoke & Bone, #2.5)Dreams of Gods & Monsters (Daughter of Smoke & Bone, #3)The Heir (The Selection, #4)
The Blood of Olympus (The Heroes of Olympus, #5)Origin (Lux, #4)Opposition (Lux, #5)Spell Bound (Hex Hall, #3)Isla and the Happily Ever After (Anna and the French Kiss, #3)Homecoming (The Hundred, #3) 

Wednesday, August 19, 2015

Bout of Books Challenge: MASH + $10 Amazon Gift Card Giveaway

Hello, Bout of Bookers!! Today's challenge is a throwback to childhood, especially for those of you that are 90s kids...it's a MASH challenge. That's right - we're doing a book edition of Mansion, Apartment, Shack, House game. The prize? A $10 giftcard to Amazon :)


MASH is a fun little game where you write up options for your future and then after getting a number, go through until you have one choice for each category - and have your future right there in front of you!

How to play:
  • Create a MASH game. My go-to categories as a kid were significant other, car, city (I would live in), # of kids, job, and pet, but you can choose what categories you want - this is just for fun. Don't forget to put MASH at the top!
  • Fill in your categories with choices - I always did 4 per category. You can do 3 or 5 or how ever many you want. Here's where you can get creative! I chose to pull my s/o's from books (Braden from LA Candy, Daemon from Lux series, Adrian from VA/Bloodlines, and Jason from Heroes of Olympus), however, you can choose to live in fictional places or have fictional pets, etc. Pull from your favorite books as much as you want.
  • Now you need a number...draw a spiral and fill in the spaces. Make tally marks and stop randomly. Use a random number generator. It's up to you. Once you have your number, it's time to officially play.
  • You can start at MASH or at your first category. I always did the first category. Count your number. Mine was 8. I crossed out the 8th item. Then I continued through the categories and the letters in MASH until one option from each category was left. Once a category only has one, you skip it when counting.


And here are my results:

Now it's your turn! Make your MASH game, play it out, and share your results either on your blog or below in a comment. You don't have to take pictures - just share your future! No need to follow or tweet or any of that mess. Just be a Bout of Books participant and play MASH!


a Rafflecopter giveaway


Fine print:
  • No purchase necessary.
  • Void where prohibited by law.
  • You must be 18 y/o or older to enter.
  • Begins 8/19/15 at 1am EST and ends 8/20/15 at 12:00am EST. Winner will be announced during the day on 8/20/15 on the blog and Twitter.
  • One winner will win an Amazon gift card valued at 10 USD.
  • All entries will be verified and the number of entries received determines the odds of winning.
  • The winner will be contacted via email and has 48 hours to claim the prize or a new winner will be drawn.
  • The gift card will be emailed to the winner after their response.
  • This sweepstakes is in no way associated with Amazon, any of the social media sites used for entries, or any other entity unless specifically stated.
  • Rocky Top Real Talk is not liable for any damages, lost, or stolen prizes.


Monday, August 17, 2015

Bout of Books 14 [Daily Updates]

Bout of Books

Good morning afternoon, y'all! I've had a bit of a rough start this Monday morning, but I'm ready to get going with the readathon....kind of. It's 2pm and I've been working on multiple things, plus went grocery shopping and I have an hour before it's time to pick the big kids up from school. We have a parent information night tonight though and that means I have to prep dinner before we leave at 6 - and we'll either have to chow down before or after we go. Add Mason being a little clingy (teething is no fun) and I am not sure how much reading I will get done today...but let's hope for the best!

Here is a link to my book list and goals post: here. I'm going low again...read a little every day, finish one book, participate in some challenges. So here we go!

FINAL UPDATE
Books read:
Sweet Little Lies (L.A. Candy, #2)Sugar and Spice (L.A. Candy, #3)
Books finished: 1
Pages read: 256
Thoughts: Overall, I am really happy with how much I read. I didn't participate in any challenges unfortunately, but other than that, I met all my goals!

Monday, August 10, 2015

Bout of Books 14 [Goals and Book List]

Bout of Books

Bout of Books 14 - it's almost here...and my 11th time participating. Last time, it was a bit rough and I hardly read at all...a whopping 47 pages total. This go-around I am reading a little more daily anyways, so I hope that it works well for me and I can finish at least 1 book. Plus, momma's down two kids during the day - oh yeahhhhh! School starts today for my oldest two and lil man is now taking longer naps.

My Goals:
  • Finish 1 book
  • Read a little every day
  • Participate in a few challenges
This time I am making a list of possible reads instead of set books...I am desperately hoping to finish some series in this Bout of Books. Even if it's just one, that would be awesome!

Possible Reads:
  • Girl of Nightmares by Kendare Blake
  • Double Fudge Brownie Murder by Joanne Fluke
  • Top Secret Twenty-One by Janet Evanovich
  • Night of Cake and Puppets/Dreams of Gods and Monsters by Laini Taylor
  • The Heir by Kiera Cass
  • The Blood of Olympus by Rick Riordan
  • Origin/Opposition by Jennifer L. Armentrout
  • Spell Bound by Rachel Hawkins
  • Isla and the Happily Ever After by 
  • Homecoming by Kass Morgan
Girl of Nightmares (Anna, #2)Double Fudge Brownie Murder (Hannah Swensen, #18)Top Secret Twenty-One (Stephanie Plum #21)Night of Cake & Puppets (Daughter of Smoke & Bone, #2.5)Dreams of Gods & Monsters (Daughter of Smoke & Bone, #3)The Heir (The Selection, #4)
The Blood of Olympus (The Heroes of Olympus, #5)Origin (Lux, #4)Opposition (Lux, #5)Spell Bound (Hex Hall, #3)Isla and the Happily Ever After (Anna and the French Kiss, #3)Homecoming (The Hundred, #3)

Thursday, August 6, 2015

July Photo-a-Day: my month in pictures


One week later...I finally get this post up. Whoops! I've been swamped lately and trying to play catch up and oof! This week is our last week of summer break. Then begins the new school year and me having to work around less baby naps to do the pick up and drop off of the older two. It's going to be very interesting to say the least. Add in the allergy shots twice a week and probably the beginning of extra curricular activities and I can say that I am going to feel like a soccer mom, for sure! Plus Nick started a new job last week, so that's fun.

Last month, I didn't do so hot taking pictures. I'm missing 6 days here. Oops.

Jul 1: Nick's mom brought these over...so cute! // Jul 2: Mason LOVES when Nick plays guitar // Jul 3: He smiles all the time // Jul 4: Rolling over! He does this all the time now.

Wednesday, August 5, 2015

Books I Read in July

Guys, I did it! I finished more than one book this month - granted it was only 3, but my goal is 4 per month. I'm getting my groove back!

Dorothy Must Die (Dorothy Must Die #1)Buzz Books 2015: Young Adult Fall/WinterBloodlines (Bloodlines, #1)


Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige - 4.5 stars (finished 7/7)
The first installment in the Dorothy Must Die series. About midway through the book, I started looking at the reviews for DMD and was kind of disappointed. It's half boycotting and half "this book is awful". That's not how I felt at all. I'm not really one to boycott authors/books based on scandals they are involved in. I'm not the biggest fan of Stephen King as a person, but I've read a few of his books (that are a hit or miss, not because of him as a person, but him as an author). So with that out of the way...

Monday, August 3, 2015

It's time for Bout of Books 14!

Bout of Books

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, August 17th and runs through Sunday, August 23rd in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 14 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

---------------

Bout of Books is my favorite read-a-thon. This go-about I am hosting a challenge and I'm very excited about that :)

Saturday, August 1, 2015

My August TBR List + Upcoming Releases


I'm starting to get back on a good reading schedule due to having problems going to sleep at night. Nice Catch 22 - I'm reading more because it helps me fall asleep, but I'm sleeping less. I did read 3 books last month which is almost my goal of 4. GO ME! This month, Bout of Books happens and I am hosting a challenge. And hoping to read a bunch :)

Possible August Reads:
  • Remember Me by Christopher Pike
  • Bloodsucking Fiends by Christopher Moore
  • The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
  • Married with Zombies by Jesse Peterson [new series]
  • Reboot by Amy Tintera [new series]
  • Sinner by Maggie Stiefvater


After the Red RainWhat You Left BehindSchool for SidekicksThe Accident SeasonCourt of Fives (Court of Fives, #1)The CreepingLegacy of Kings (Blood of Gods and Royals, #1)

What books do you hope to read this month?
What releases are you excited for?