Bonus April Photos

We loved the photos Katherine O'Brien took of my preggers belly and Abby's newborn days, so we recently asked Katherine to come back and capture Abby at 1 year old.

Katherine picked a few of her favorite 1-year shots and posted them to her blog—check 'em out!

April Photos Posted

April was an exciting month in parenthood as we watched Abby develop her organizational skills! Oh yeah, she also learned how to walk.

 

And So It Begins...

Review: The Uncommon Reader

Title: The Uncommon Reader
Author: Alan Bennett
Category: Fiction, Adult
Rating: 3/5
Summary: A mobile library van visits Buckingham Palace, where the Queen stumbles upon it and feels obligated to check out a book, even though she doesn't really read books.

Review: Cute book. It reminded me of the movie The Queen. You know, because they're both about the Queen.

I don't know that this book was my exact cup of tea, but I enjoyed it. And at 120 pages, it was a super-quick read.

If you love books and the monarchy, you'll adore this little lovely.

March Photos Posted

March is over, and Abby's not yet walking or talking (without her hands, that is). But she's so, so close! Any day now, we're going to be wishing we hadn't been so anxious for these next steps...

 

February Photos Posted

February brought Abby a birthday, fashion accessories, and yes, more cuteness.

 

Abby by the Month

We're still deciding what will make the cut for the February album, but in the meantime enjoy a year's worth of red chair photos!

 

Birthday Traditions

Abby turns 1 on Monday. Every day, she seems a little more grown up. Like yesterday, she would not let me hold her cup for her. She insisted on holding it herself. A year ago, she couldn't even hold up her own head!

This weekend, we're having a party for her with a few friends. But what do you do at a 1-year-old's birthday party? Are there games to play? Do you all sit around and drink beer while she crawls around and around like she's training to be a whirling dervish?

Aside from the party, one tradition we want to try is writing a letter to Abby every year, sealing them up, then giving them to her when she's 18.

What birthday traditions do you have?

January Photos Posted

After you take a swing through January, check out the latest addition to Abby by the Month.

 

A New Outlet for My Geekdom

I've been studiously posting book reviews here for every book I read. But I've also been holding back. In a review, I don't always go into detail about what I liked or didn't like because I know people like Anne-Marie and Yvette and even Lacy probably just read the rating, if that, and get on with their lives.

There are other things I'm holding back. Like cool writing exercises I come across. And why I started but didn't finish a certain book. And how do you possibly decide what to read next when your to-read list is almost a thousand books long?

Adding to that, I know there must be other people out there like me—wannabe young adult writers who devour the latest, hottest YA creation hoping to learn from it, or just to be close to what we so desperately want.

So for the other YA wannabes, but also as an outlet for myself, I've created...

YAnnabe

I can geek out to my heart's content on reading and writing for YA, and you don't have to wade through book review after book review when all you really want is just a cute picture of Abby every now and then.

Still, I will probably post a monthly roundup of book ratings here because I will always want to spread the word about good books. And you won't be free from my non-YA book reviews.

But if you like all those YA book reviews, or if you just can't get enough of me and my opinions, I'll totally understand if you want to sneak over to YAnnabe and subscribe by email or feed reader.