Rewind and Fast Forward: December 2014

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

Oh my gosh. It's officially 2015. Another year come and gone. Every year seems to go by faster than the last. I think I've done a lot of growing up this year. I've realized a few things:

1. Being selective when it comes to your friends is a good thing. You don't need people in your life that are going to make you feel like crap, cause drama, let you down, etc. I would rather have one or two really good friends (looking at you Ana & Michelle), then 15 friends who constantly disappoint me. 

2. Do what you love no matter what other people think. I was on the receiving end of quite a lot of YA and reading in general hate this year. But I was able to take it in stride, basically throw one finger up in the air, and say this is me, if you don't like it, too bad. Reading YA is what I love. I'm never going to stop, no matter what people say or think about me. 

3. Living away from home sucks. And I miss my family very much. But it's also something I'm extremely proud of. Phil and I are making it work. We took the leap 3 years ago and although I never stop missing my family, I do enjoy how independent I feel. I also enjoy having my family come to visit and going to visit my family in Chicago. 

4. Read, read, and read some more. I can't get enough books. Or enough blogging. It's so important to me to make the time to read. Reading allows you to escape from reality. It introduces you to new worlds, characters, and situations you would never know otherwise. It increases your vocabulary. I truly believe that reading can make you a better person. 

And now for a recap of December on the blog! 

Reviews:

Top Ten Clues You're Clueless by Liz Czukas: 3.5 Stars

No Place to Fall by Jaye Robin Brown: 3.5 Stars

Rebels by Accident by Patricia Dunn: 2 Stars

Suspicion by Alexandra Monir: 2.5 Stars

Zodiac by Romina Russell: 2.5 Stars

Princess of Thorns by Stacey Jay: 4.5 Stars

Love and Other Theories by Alexis Bass: 4 Stars

I didn't really have a great month for books. Maybe that's why I only read 7? As opposed to my usual 9-13. I did kind of feel like I was in a slump for a while there. But I just assumed it was the holidays. No matter, it got better towards the end of the month! 

Other Posts:

I talked about tagging authors on Twitter, wanting to know if they thought it was annoying, showed you my before Christmas book haul (that's right...I said before...watch for post-Christmas haul coming soon), and I told you about my favorite books I read in 2014. I also completed Jamie's End of Year Book Survey which was so fun, but super hard to fill out! 

I know I didn't do too many fun posts in December, but with Christmas it was just so busy. I promise more discussions next month!! 

In My Real Life:

December was busy as I'm sure it was for all of you. Phil and I attended my company holiday gala and let me tell you guys, it was awesome. We drove up to New Jersey (about a 4.5 hour drive), had a hotel (company paid for), cocktail hour, full dinner, desserts, late night snacks, BREAKFAST SANDWICHES...oh and did I mention the open bar all night? Yeah, my company is awesome. It was really cool to meet people from the other offices that I email with regularly and spend some more time with my co-workers outside of the work setting.

One week later, Phil and I left for Chicago for a week. We got to see my cousins who came down from Minnesota the first day we arrived. It was nice to spend some time with them, although I was sad they weren't there for actual Christmas. Better than nothing though right? Phil went to his parents house for a few days and I stayed with my mom and sister and just hung out. Then on the 23rd, Phil came back to my mom's house. We baked Christmas cookies (SO MANY COOKIES!!) that night and the next morning we made over 200 homemade pierogis!! Polish Christmas tradition for my family.

(In case you don't know what a pierogi is...we make them with potato and onion filling)


After spending two and half hours making pierogis (it is quite the process), we got ready to go to my Aunt's house. My family does their big Christmas celebration on Christmas Eve and we always get dressed up for the occasion.

(My younger sister, Allie, couldn't make it home from Arizona, sad day. Which is why my older sister and I took the picture in the lower right-hand corner. Allie loves Snoopy!)

On Christmas day we opened presents with my family, then headed out to Phil's parents house. His mom made lasagna which was to die for and we passed out our presents, drank wine and watched Christmas movies.

On our last day there, we went to a Transiberian Orchestra concert which was absolutely incredible!! If you don't know who they are, go Youtube them. And if you haven't seen them live and you ever have the opportunity, take it. It is life altering. Seriously. Incredible.

The next day we headed to the airport to say goodbye and come back home. :'(

Phil's birthday is on the 30th so after work we went out to dinner and then I took him to the mall to get an Auntie Anne's pretzel. (They're his favorite.) Then we went back home and opened presents and just kind of hung out. It was quiet, but nice.

And last night (or I guess, right now technically since this is posting at midnight...) we went to a friend's house to ring in the New Year!

Fast-Forward:

The Darkest Part of the Forest by Holly Black: January 13, 2015 - This book sounds deliciously creepy. Fairies and magic. Count me in!
Golden Son by Pierce Brown: January 6, 2015 - I really enjoyed Red Rising and am definitely looking forward to jumping back onto Mars with these characters.
Polaris by Mindee Arnett: January 20, 2015 - Avalon was so good!! Space thieves! How much better can it get?
The Conspiracy of Us by Maggie Hall: January 13, 2015 - The fashionista and Gossip Girl lover in me is craving this book. Rich people. Conspiracies. Secret Societies.
Fairest by Marissa Meyer: January 27, 2015 - Do I really need to say anything about this one?

Phew...that was a lot. Hope you guys had an awesome December and had a great time ringing in the New Year! Stick with me for new exciting stuff on the blog in 2015!