Phew, what a busy month March was! We kept getting slammed with snow storms… One storm gave us two feet of snow. It took me over an hour to shovel out… I was sore from shoveling for days after that! I’m really hoping that spring is actually here to stay now.
I had a bit of a rough reading month. I wasn’t in a slump, exactly, but I was pretty close. I was so busy with work, wedding planning, and such that I felt myself burning out. Luckily, I had a weekend where I sat around doing nothing but reading, which did wonders for me! I’m hoping to have more weekends like that soon ๐
Let’s dive in to my monthly wrap-up!
My Reading Breakdown for March:
- 5 Stars- 3
- The Bear and the Nightingale (Winternight Trilogy #1) by Katherine Arden
- Tales of the Lost by Richard Howard
- The Woman in the Window by A.J. Finn
- 4 Stars- 1
- 3 Stars- 1
- 2 Stars- 2
- 1 Star- 0
- DNF- 0
Monthly Musings:
- Watching:
- A&E’s Award Winning Series: Amelia Earhart (2005 Film)
- This was wicked short, just 45 minutes! While I didn’t learn much from this one, it was still interesting. Overall worth the watch, but there are certainly other documentaries about Amelia out there that I would recommend over this one. 2/5
- Driver (2011 Film)
- Alex and I started watching this movie one night with the agreement that we would stop after we finished eating dinner… but we were hooked! We watched the whole thing straight through. Honestly, quite a bit of this film was pretty boring to me, but phew! When the darker bits come into play… I really enjoyed it! And what a cast! 3.5/5
- Thor Ragnarok (2017 Film)
- When Alex and I saw this on sale, we grabbed it immediately! I’m so sad I missed this one while it was in theaters, but I was thankfully able to avoid most spoilers. I did unfortunately see one the DAY before we bought the movie… so that was a bit of a bummer. I loved this movie! It’s definitely in my top favorites when it comes to Marvel movies! The soundtrack was awesome and I loved the level of humor. Of course, all the time Loki was on screen was also a huge hit with me. 5/5
- I Am Number Four (2011 Film)
- This one wasn’t really for me. I loved the side character, Sam played by Callan McAuliffe. He was by far the best thing about the movie. I thought the overall plot was semi-interesting. But the “bad guys” were super lame. There were many scenes that I couldn’t really follow on our TV because they were too dark, so that ruined some of it. Many of the special effects looked pretty bad and a lot of the acting was also pretty lame. And the pacing was horrible. Right in the middle of an intense situation, they have the time to develop a whole reel of film AND print each of the images?! Yeah, okay… I should have stopped watching this one, but I stuck with it just because of Sam’s character. 2/5
- Playing:
- At Dave and Busters, Alex and I played an awesome Jurassic Park game! I’m not sure what it was called, but I had so much fun! New life goal: purchase that game for the home… when we have a house! ๐
- I’ve been horribly addicted to Marvel Strike Force. Alex had me download it on my phone and I’m pretty sure I played for a full 8 hours one day… It’s so much fun!
- Drinking:
- At Dave & Busters I had a few delicious Frosรฉs! They were SO tasty! It was a frozen blend of Absolut Citron vodka, rosรฉ wine, strawberry Bacardi, and sweet ‘n’ sour topped with a mini bottle of Barefoot Rosรฉ.
- I’ve been drinking far too many Spindrift sparkling waters! I’m obsessed. These sparkling waters are wonderfully tart! The Raspberry Lime is my favorite. But I also really enjoy the Blackberry and the Lemon. On March 12th, I saw that there was a rebate for them at Target, so Alex and I took a little trip to stock up…
- On Saint Patrick’s Day, our crew went out and had half-priced mimosas at a local coffee shop.
- Listening to:
- In the bookish community:
- Amy of A Magical World of Words gave me a shout-out in her Weekly Whats Up on March 11th.
- We got a new trailer for Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald!
- My favorite podcast ladies answered a few of my questions on Episode 12 of Books in the Freezer.
- I got to read the first ten chapters of a rough draft for an author. I cannot wait to see where the story goes from there when it is ready!
- Looking forward to:
- My grandma’s birthday bash! We’re headed to Maine to celebrate with family and I can’t wait to see everyone. We haven’t made a trip up since before Christmas.
In Case You Missed It
- Honest Review Requests Gone Wrong
- [Book Blogger Hop] My Book Clubs
- 6 April Book Releases I Canโt Wait To Read
- 4 Choice Driven Mobile Phone Games
- My Blogging Accomplishments for the Spring Bloggiesta | 2018
- Happy National Tolkien Reading Day
- April Spring into Horror Readathon | My Intro Post
- My Blogging Goals for the Spring Bloggiesta | 2018
- 4 More Things In The Book World That I Am Tired Of
- 6 March Book Releases I Canโt Wait To Read
- [Wrap-Up] February 2018
Thanks for reading!
How was your month? Have any special plans for April? I’d love to hear about them in the comments section below!
SaveSave
SaveSave
SaveSave
I thought we were done with snow, and then we got a random 6 inches today! And of course, my husband was already at work when the majority of it fell, so I had to shovel all by myself. It was so wet and heavy!
OMG, those Froses sound soo good!
I hope April is a better reading month for you!
WHAT?! Oh goodness. We got snow today, but it was just a dusting. 6 inches?! I hope you're not too sore from shoveling tomorrow!!
Yay, I'm so glad you liked The Bear and the Nightingale! It was such a good read! I also didn't like the Hazel Wood ๐
How is Bird Box? I read the book and found it super creepy but I never listened to the audio version!
It sounds like you had an impressive month!
The audio version is fantastic!! Even better than the book in my opinion, because you're forced to sit and patiently listen to all of the drama without being able to skim ahead!! ๐
Oh gosh, I hope the snow is done for you too. I had a little today but nowhere near what others have gotten! I hope you have a really great reading month in April, but yay for three five star reads this past month. I hope you are enjoying Bird Box. I really loved that one, and I'm so curious about Unbury Carol from him. It sounds quite different! You know…I've never been to Dave & Busters, but I really DO want to go. I finally have one not too far from where I live.
-Lauren
http://www.shootingstarsmag.net
I LOVE Bird Box!! I've read the book and listened on audio. Each experience was so different! And Dave & Busters is fun! I recommend going on a night during the week if possible so it's less busy than the weekend ๐
Yes, Thor: Ragnarok is one of my favorite Marvel movies for sure! ๐
๐
I really need to read The Bear and the Nightingale already – everyone raves about it so much!! And I hope the snow blows over ASAP. As a Californian who used to live in Colorado and Chicago, I can sympathize!
Yes! It's SO good!! I hope you love it when you get the chance to pick it up!
Shoveling snow sounds awful. But your weekend of reading sounds lovely!
Oh gosh, those Jurassic Park arcade games are too stressful for me lol. That drink sounds delicious though!
Ugh yes, I hate the snow! haha
What a wonderful month – minus the snow. It's so nice to finally see Mr. Erica. I'll have to check out that water. I also like the sounds of that drink. I hope you have a wonderful time visiting your Grandma! Be Safe.
๐ Thank you so much! <3
Hopefully spring is finally here. I still need to read The Bear and the Nightingale, so itโs good to know you liked it. Enjoy your time with your family at the birthday bash. Have a great April!
Aj @ Read All The Things!
Thank you! You as well!!
You had a busy month, it's understandable that you wouldn't be in the mood for reading! Also I'm slow, YOU'RE GETTING MARRIED?
How old is your grandma turning? I hope it's a parrtttty.
And I'm so happy you got to see Thor, that was the best of his movies by far!
And lastly, I'm the weird one who still hasn't seen the Fantastic Beasts trailer. One of these days.
๐ Yes!!! I cannot wait! I may hate the wedding planning, but I'm so pumped to be married to my guy!! Our wedding is in September of this year!
She's turning 70! The spread that my mom and step-dad are creating sounds amazing, so it's definitely going to be a great time!! My step-dad is a great cook!
Totally agree about Thor! I need to watch it again soon!! I LOVED Loki and he was like "I HAVE BEEN FALLING. FOR THIRTY MINUTES!" haha!
Sorry about the snow. I think weโre done with it here…hopefully. Looks like your reading and watching is going good. Hereโs to a great April!
Fingers crossed we're all done with snow! Bring on spring (even if I have allergies!) haha I'm sick of being cold!
Wow you read a lot this month! I've had such a slow reading month because EXAMS!! *crying* I'm glad you enjoyed Bear and the Nightingale! I'm gonna be reading it soon ๐ Have an awesome April <3
Ugh, exams are never fun! I hope you got great marks on them all! ๐
I've been looking at Truly Devious, but haven't picked it up. Maybe I'll skip over that one. ๐
Finally saw 'Thor' last month too, and LOVED it! I so admire that these films (Thor's individual) can balance humor with a good amount of white-knuckle action. Makes them seem really well "rounded." Plus, it's a nice break from the darker themes (*sad face*) the MCU seems to be heading towards.
I have a few friends that LOVED Truly Devious! While I didn't, I think I would recommend waiting until the others are out so you can read through them all rather than being stuck with a cliffhanger.
Wahoo!! Right?! The humor is done SO well! I just watched Justice League… you could tell they were trying to add in humor like the marvel movies, but it just didn't work well.
Hello! !
Celebrate this Easter with a heart filled with peace, joy and cheer! Have a happy Easter!
I am always impressed with a nice message.
In this season, Japan is stained with cherry color.
It is a very favorite season for Japanese people.
Sakura in Washington DC is also a present from Japan.
I am enjoying 70 kilometers on a road bike in cherry blossoms.
Ryoma.
That sounds so lovely!! Happy (belated) Easter!
Sounds like you had an amazing month!! I still need to see Thor: Ragnorok, it looks so funny! I liked I Am Number Four when I saw it years ago but it's been some time since then. I even read some of the books but it kind of fell off my radar after the third or fourth one. I am not a huge Drive fan but Matt loves that movie! ๐
๐ You're going to LOVE it!! Def one to snag right on DVD if you guys can! ๐
I've been trying to avoid spoilers for Thor Ragnarok, too! I'm happy you enjoyed it so much. We've been meaning to rent the movie, but it's never there! I might just buy it, lol. It's nice you were able to find it on sale.
Do You Dog-ear?
For sure!! It's one that I'm so glad we bought! It's so much fun. Definitely in my top favorite Marvel movies of all time! ๐
Looks like you read some pretty great books this month. I've been meaning to get to the Bear and the Nightingale and the Woman in the Window as well as the Hazel Wood. They all sound like books I'd enjoy. Hope you have a good reading month in March as well.
๐ Thank you! You as well!
Gah, the snow sounds horrible! Y'all should come down to my country–it's pretty much summer all year here (which isn't that great, either). And I totally agree about I Am Number Four!!! Sam was the movie's only saving grace. Have an awesome April, Erica!
– Aimee @ Aimee, Always
Yeah, I'm so over the snow! haha I hope you have a lovely month as well! ๐
I hope the snow is letting up for you! What's the word for being not quite in a slump because I'm kind of experiencing that right now. A slump-tangent? I just watched the new Thor movie and was laughing pretty much nonstop. I loved it. Happy April!
Luckily the storm we were supposed to get this week has turned to rain! Fingers crossed it stays that way! ๐ And right?! Oye…