It's Monday! What Are You Reading? & Mailbox Monday - Jan 26

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are, and about to be reading over the week. It's a great post to organize yourself. It's an opportunity to visit, comment, and add to that ever-growing TBR pile! So welcome, everyone. This meme started with J Kaye's Blog and was then taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date.

Happy snowy Monday--at least for us anyway. Mother Nature dumped between 17 and 20 inches on us yesterday. It's snowing again. We are expecting a couple more inches or so before it ends tonight. I rescheduled my appointments for today, so I have been working from home the last two days. Here are a few photos from this weekend:

Snowfall last night at about 7 pm

Chili and cornbread for supper

Added some Valentine's Day cheer

to the mantle

I continued reading the Christian short story collection Chapters and Second Chances by Evelyn Grace Berry this week. 

I did not read I Heard the Bells. Though I wanted to finish it this month, it will likely be February before it is done. 

I read some of Hooked by Cailtin Rother last week. I need to finish this one soon.  

Mailbox Monday is a gathering place for readers to share the books they added to their shelves the previous week. This weekly meme is now hosted by Vicki at I'd Rather Be At The Beach. 

A Saltwater Christmas by Laurie Beach is a newsletter freebie.

Marianne: A Sense and Sensibility Sequel by Alice McVeigh is a Booktrovert selection. 

Upcoming Events

Hooked by Catilin Rother - January (Review)

Tender Dreams, Harsh Reality by John Beilharz - Jan 26 (Interview)

Artsy Rambler by Evy and Rich Journey - Feb 3 (Spotlight)

Evan's Gift by Karen Charles - Feb 6 (Review at TC&TBC)

Winter's Season by R. J. Koreto - Feb 13 (Spotlight)

I Heard the Bells by Darlene L. Turner et al - February (Review)

Chapters and Second Chances by Evelyn Grace Berry - February (Review)

Hook, Line, and Murder by GG Calpo - Mar 2 (Interview)

Agatha Christie, She Watched by Teresa Peschel - Apr 15 (Review)

Christmas Year Round

Christmas Year Round's latest "Journey through Christmases Past" discusses the influence of World War II on Christmas decor. You can find it here. 

The Children's and Teens' Book Connection

I shared my 2026 writing goals and my holistic approach. You can find that here. It is similar to this Tuesday's post on this blog. 

Laura's Little Houses

I am looking for feedback on what readers of Laura's Little Houses would like to see. You can read and comment here.

Hope you have a great week! 

Coming in June! The Eyes of River by Cindy K. Sproles

 

In the shadowed hollers of the early-twentieth-century Appalachian Mountains, Lizzy Haney is on the run. 

She’s been falsely accused of murder and is desperate to reunite with her brother, River, whose unforgettable green eyes haunt her. The secret in her past is a stinging wound, but it motivates her toward her goal: freedom. 

But nine-year-old River, sent through the US Post Office to his late mother's friend in Knoxville, never arrived. Lizzy’s dream of finding him and starting a new life away from their alcoholic and abusive father is ripped away. 

Her hope rekindles as she finds an unexpected confidant to help her dodge the law and save the missing youngin'. As she finds herself trusting him, she discovers the truth of the old adage her momma repeated: And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Kregel Publications
• Publication date ‏ : ‎ June 23, 2026
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Print length ‏ : ‎ 288 pages
• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 082545316X
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0825453168

Pre-order from Amazon!

Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge: Humorous Book Titles Gen Xers Might Appreciate

 

The Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge is hosted by Long and Short Reviews. They offer this blog hop as a weekly prompt to help you gain new friends and visitors. You don't have to participate every week, but if you decide to post and join the blog hop for a week, Long and Short Reviews asks that you share your link on their weekly post on their website (it will be the top post on the home page each Wednesday morning). The link list remains open for new links for 48 hours. Visit the other bloggers participating to see what they discuss that week. Comments are appreciated. 

Happy Wednesday! How is your week going so far? Mine is good. Not as much reading time as I want, but I'm still reading chapters here and there. 

This week's Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge asks us to share humorous book titles. I've shared some before (check out this humorous book titles post from last year here, this hilarious historical book titles from 2022 here, and this top ten funny book titles post from 2021 here). So, for this week's Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge, I am sharing...

Humorous Book Titles

Gen Xers Might Appreciate

X Saves the World: How Generation X Got the Shaft but Can Still Keep Everything from Sucking by Jeff Gordinier

My Best Friend's Exorcism by Grady Hendrix

You're Never Weird on the Internet (almost) by Felicia Day

You're Not Doing It Right by Michael Ian Black

Have you read any of these?

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Promises for 2026 & Tell Me Something Tuesday: What Are Your Favorite Snow/Winter-themed Books?

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together. 

Tuesday is back, and with it is our Top Ten Tuesday meme. This week, we're discussing our goals, or as I prefer to call them, promises. Before I get there, though, I want to share my Word of the Year, which will complement my promises.

Last year, I was as close to burnout as I've ever been. You probably felt it in my weekly posts, and I certainly felt it throughout my daily life. As 2026 arrived, I promised myself that change would come. Balance in life is my focus for the entire year. To create more balance, here are my...

Top Ten Promises for 2026

1. Create a calendar that works for me: I am not a time blocker, a lover of planners, or anything else that could keep me organized. All my appointments and blog events are kept in my digital calendar on my iPhone, but the rest of my life is up in the air. I'm open to your ideas, but for now, I maintain a monthly calendar board in my office. I'm writing in appointments, the times to sit down and make calls, and my days off. My plan is for one day off a week, working up to two days off each week. 
2. Set firmer boundaries: I didn't grow up in a family that set firm boundaries. I am not good at setting them now. That's why my days off go out the window when I get busy. That's why my vacations are working ones. In 2026, I'm committed to protecting my day off. More days off will allow for more writing, reading, and blogging, which bring me joy.
3. Increase self-care: Self-care also falls through the cracks. In January, I dedicated myself to starting and ending the day in Scripture. Then each morning, I do 20 squats, 10 arm circles, 10 standing oblique twists, and 10 arm stretches. I've also set a more regular bedtime, which helps me get up with enough time to perform these exercises.
4. Listen more: I do a lot of talking, but God gave me one mouth and two ears, so I should use them accordingly. I've begun asking more questions this year, which puts me in a position to listen more. I'm slipping my phone into my bag at meetings. I'm trying to keep my laptop off the table to decrease the temptation to multitask when meeting topics don't apply to me. I'm taking more notes.
5. Maintain my goal weight: I hit my goal weight in December. It's taken years, but in the immortal words of London Tipton, "Yay me!" Drinking more water and less soda, meal planning, and healthier snacks did the trick for me. I'm still a junk food junkie at heart, and when I get busy, fast food on the road calls my name. Luckily, the fast food often makes me sick now, so I don't crave it as much.
6. Complete my Goodreads Challenge: The only challenge I participate in is set for 60 books this year. I missed the mark last year for the first time in forever. I plan to complete the challenge this year, and already have great books from my TBR pile and the six (2 full-length, 1 middle grade, 2 picture books) I requested to review to give me a good start.
7. Read more books from my TBR pile: Always on my list, but it is happening this year because I will reduce virtual book tour reviews, not use my next Audible credits until I've read the first six books I downloaded, and will only pre-order books from authors I know really well. Honestly, I don't feel the need to own many physical copies these days. 
8. Finish Sheltered Hearts: Through the first week of February, I am plotting the rest of the chapters. After that is done, I will dedicate part of my day off to writing... unless I am spending time with loved ones. 
9. Work with NEPM for branding ideas: This applies to two areas of my life--real estate and writing. Up until 2023, my tagline was "Faith-filled journeys for kids." That doesn't encompass all that I write now. The new website was a start. I need to flesh this out more fully for both of my careers. 
10. Connect with more authors: Attending two writing conferences in 2025 made me realize how much I miss spending regular time in the writing world. The author event that I participated in last year left me yearning for author-to-author connections. I've signed up for newsletters and plan to keep an eye out in our local news for author events and new releases.

Thanks to Freepik for the image

Tell Me Something Tuesday (TMST) is hosted by Jen Twimom at That's What I'm Talking About. TMST is a weekly discussion post where bloggers discuss a wide range of topics from books and blogging to life in general. Participation is optional, and you can leave your comments in the weekly post when you participate. Check it out if you're interested in joining.

Tell Me Something Tuesday is asking us to share our favorite snow/winter-themed books. Take a peek at my choices:

Little Snowman Stan by Guido van Genechten

The Rabbit and the Snowman by Sally O Lee

The Long Winter by Laura Ingalls Wilder

The Beautiful Snow: 

The Ingalls Family, the Railroads, and the Hard Winter of 1880-81

 by Cindy Wilson

Have you read any of these? 

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? & Mailbox Monday - Jan 19

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are, and about to be reading over the week. It's a great post to organize yourself. It's an opportunity to visit, comment, and add to that ever-growing TBR pile! So welcome, everyone. This meme started with J Kaye's Blog and was then taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date.

Welcome to the middle of January. See how quickly that happened? Hope you had a great week. My schedule last week and this coming week is full, but I managed to take two half days off this weekend, and today I only have one appointment. 

Our Christmas decorations are officially packed away for the season... much to the dismay of Travis. I guess he will need to find something else to play with instead of ornaments. 

Snow arrived overnight on Friday and continued through part of Saturday. We had another coating or so on Sunday morning. 

I've taken to enjoying auctions over the last few months. I snagged this clipper ship table that is in the room where my office will eventually be.

After Christmas, Modern Prairie ran its annual mystery sale. You purchase from select categories at discounted prices. Well, my mystery gifts arrived yesterday: a sewing kit and cloth napkins. 

As far as reading goes, I've been loving the Christian short story collection, Chapters and Second Chances by Evelyn Grace Berry. 

I did not read I Heard the Bells, but I want to finish it this month. 

I read some of Hooked by Cailtin Rother last week. I need to finish this one soon.  

Mailbox Monday is a gathering place for readers to share the books they added to their shelves the previous week. This weekly meme is now hosted by Vicki at I'd Rather Be At The Beach. 

Two of these new books, Arthur's Cat by Johan Leynaud and The Curious Life of Cecilia Payne: Discovering the Stuff of Stars by Laura Alary, arrived on Sunday from Eerdmans Publishing. 

I Really Want to Be a Cat by Helen Hancocks (Sourcebooks Jabberwocky) and Creepy Kid by Caleb Roehrig are NetGalley downloads.

I grabbed It Shouldn't Be You by Jessica Wakefield during a promotion for newsletter subscribers.

Upcoming Events

Hooked by Catilin Rother - January (Review)

Tender Dreams, Harsh Reality by John Beilharz - Jan 26 (Interview)

Artsy Rambler by Evy and Rich Journey - Feb 3 (Spotlight)

Winter's Season by R. J. Koreto - Feb 13 (Spotlight)

Hook, Line, and Murder by GG Calpo - Mar 2 (Interview)

Agatha Christie, She Watched by Teresa Peschel - Apr 15 (Review)

Christmas Year Round

Christmas Year Round's latest "Journey through Christmases Past" finds us in 1982. You can read that post here.

The Children's and Teens' Book Connection

I shared the new children's books that I mentioned above, so not sharing a link here today. 

Laura's Little Houses

The sixth chapter in my Season 9 "Times Are Changing" rewrite is now available. I posted a link here.

I have a morning appointment, so I will be checking in with you throughout the day. Thanks for visiting!