It’s time for our Sunday morning chat. On Sundays, I ramble about what’s been going on, what the rest of the family and I have been reading and watching, and what I’ve been writing.

Bear with me on my thoughts this week…read to the end before getting offended! *wink*

I was going to make a comment this week about how I think it’s absolutely crazy when a Booktuber (someone who talks about books on YouTube) or book blogger comes out and says that they read 14 books in one month.

Sometimes I think that’s ridiculous (unless you’re retired) because that’s four books a week and I just can’t imagine fitting in four books a week with the rest of life.

But then I had to remind myself that books are all different sizes and some take less time than others. Then I had a fairly depressing end of my week and realized that disassociating by reading a lot of books is actually not the worst thing in the world and it’s a lot healthier than going out and committing crimes or drinking a bottle of whiskey to get through the hard time (neither of which I did, by the way. I drank herbal tea, ate some chocolate, cried, and read a book).

So it was a bit of a reality check for me that when I wanted to “criticize” somebody for saying they read a lot of books, I really should be telling myself to read more and disconnect from life more. I wasn’t really criticizing but questioning…originally that is.

Luckily, most of those who I watch who talk about how many books they read are not bragging or saying people have to read that many books. They’re simply sharing what they read and many times I like what they’ve read so I had them to my list of “need to read” books.

What I/We’ve Been Reading

Recently Finished

Murder, She Wrote:  A Slaying in Savannah by Donald Bain and “Jessica B. Fletcher”. I wasn’t sure I was going to like this one when I started it but I ended up liking it quite a bit.

In Progress

I am slow reading Stillmeadow Daybrook by Gladys Taber. Since each chapter is a month, I plan to read a chapter a month for the rest of 2026 and into 2027. I’m also reading Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis.

I am also reading The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain, and The Pink Motel by Carol Ryrie Brink, The Crime at Black Dudley by Margery Allingham. I’m reading whichever one I am in the mood for that day or night.

Up Soon

I will be starting Endless Night by Agatha Christie, The Two Mrs. Abbott’s by D.E. Stevenson, and Nancy Drew: The Mystery of the Moss Covered Mansion.

What The Family is Reading

Little Miss and I are reading Rascal by Sterling North and started The Pink Motel by Carol Ryrie Brink together.

New arrivals to my bookshelf

I added three more Tommy and Tuppence books to my shelves last week: Partners in Crime, N or M?, and the first book in their series, The Secret Adversary.

My husband also picked me up two newer Nancy Drew books at a local fair.

What I/We’ve Been Watching

This past week I watched a couple episodes of The Hardy Boys from the 1970s. This was after they dropped Nancy Drew from the show.

I also watched Son of Fury with George Sanders and Tyrone Power and started Cactus Flower with Walter Matthau, Ingrid Bergman, and Goldie Hawn but didn’t finish it before it went off Amazon Prime and now I’m not really sure I want to pay to rent it. It wasn’t really something I was enjoying that much.

I also enjoyed this short video that featured an interview with Miss Read (real name Dora Saint):

What I’ve Been Writing

Last week on the blog I shared:

• Weekend Traffic Jam Reboot
• Ten Books With Nationalities In The Title
• A Good Book & A Cup of Tea Monthly Bookish Blog Party Link Up for September

Some Housekeeping

Erin (Still Life, With Cracker Crumbs), Cat (Cat’s Wire) and I host a monthly bookish link party called A Good Book and A Cup of Tea.  This link-up is for book and reading posts or anything related to books and reading (even movies based on books!). Each link party will be open for a month. You can find that link up for this month here.

Each week, I host the Weekend Traffic Jam Reboot with some great hosts. It goes live Thursday night, but you can share any kind of blog posts (family-friendly) there until Tuesday of each week. You can check my recent posts on the sidebar to the right for the most recent link party.

Now It’s Your Turn

What have you been doing, watching, reading, listening to, or writing?

This post is linked up with The Sunday Post at  Kimba at Caffeinated Reviewer,  Deb at with Deb at Readerbuzz, and Book Date: It’s Monday! What are you reading hosted by Kathyrn at The Book Date and Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Reading Reality.

Hello! Welcome to my blog. I am a blogger, homeschool mom, and I write cozy mysteries.

You can find my Gladwynn Grant Mystery series HERE.

You can also find me on Instagram and YouTube.

If you would like to be the first to get news about my books or just have access to special posts for supporters, you can do so here for $2.99 a month https://lisahoweler.com/support-my-writing/

It’s time for our Sunday morning chat. On Sundays, I ramble about what’s been going on, what the rest of the family and I have been reading and watching, and what I’ve been writing.

I’m not someone who follows a ton of celebrities closely but this week was quite a week for deaths so it was hard not to pay attention.

Dolly Parton, Tim Curry, and Peter Cullen are the three deaths I am referring to.

I’m sure almost all of you knew who Dolly Parton was and even Tim Curry (you might not have realized you knew Tim until you saw a list of the various movies he was in and roles he played), but you may be asking yourself … who was Peter Cullen?

You may not think you know who he is, but I bet you have heard his voice. He was the voice of Optimus Prime from the animated Transformer series for 40 years as well as the voice of Eeyore on The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh and many other animated or robot characters.

He was the voice of Kit, the car on Knight Rider, and Predator, the Red Skull…the list goes on.

 So when it came to which death hit this family harder this week, it was probably Peter Cullen, even though we were also fans of Tim Curry and somewhat of Dolly. No shade on Dolly because — wow — she was an amazing person who never slowed down, but Peter was tied tightly to my and my husband’s childhood and our son’s.

I cried over Dolly videos all week (her nephew’s announcement .. ooof… so classy and respectful and heartbreaking), but I didn’t have as much time to process Peter’s death because I was a little  busy the second half of the week. Friday night, though, I watched a video that used his voice talking about how his brother who was a Marine in Vietnam, inspired the voice of Optimus Prime, and then I was a bawling mess again.

I watched Transformers with some friends when we were kids back in the 1980s and then again with my son when he was a kid. Friday night we sat and watched a few old Transformer episodes in his honor. During them my son did have to point out how a new character was introduced every episode just so the toy company could release a new toy, but I put that out of my mind and focused on my and his childhood memories instead.

All of these celebrity deaths coupled with the death of my cat a couple of weeks ago and a friend cleaning out her mom’s apartment after her mom’s passing had me crying a lot BUT some of it felt good and necessary under the circumstances.

Please keep praying for my friend. If you are a regular on this blog I am sure you know who I am talking about. The grief doesn’t ever really go away and I pray for comfort for her in the days ahead.

What I/We’ve Been Reading

Recently Finished

I finished my Nancy Drew book last week and, well, it was not my favorite. I know they are kids books but The Mystery of The Brass Bound Trunk just was not very good.

It had so many plot holes and craziness in it. I wonder if the original (since this was a revised version) was better. I will have to look for it for my Nancy Drew November.

In Progress

I am slow reading Stillmeadow Daybrook by Gladys Taber. Since each chapter is a month, I plan to read a chapter a month for the rest of 2026 and into 2027. I’m also slow reading Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis.

I jumped into a Murder, She Wrote book — A Slaying in Savannah — by Donald Bain even before  I finished the Nancy Drew book and it’s okay but a little slow. The Murder, She Wrote books are usually a bit slow but this one seems even more drawn out, maybe because it is taking place in the south? I have no idea. It’s not bad, though, and I do like books that take a leisurely stroll at times so I would still recommend it.

I’m also reading The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain, which is a lot of fun. I haven’t read it since I was about 12.

I started The Crime at Black Dudley by Margery Allingham as well, to see how I liked it, and I think it will be interesting. It’s the first book in the Albert Campion series.

Up Soon

I’ve already made my list of hopefuls for Autumn 2026 and after these books I think I will start with The Pink Motel by Carol Ryrie Brink for September. It is a children’s mystery book and I will probably read it with Little Miss.

I also hope to read The Two Mrs. Abbotts by D.E. Stevenson in September and I will be reading three Agatha Christie books for the Christie reading challenge — Endless Night, Sleeping Murder, and The Secret Adversary.

What The Family is Reading

Little Miss and I finally finished Heidi and are starting Rascal by Sterling North this week.

The boy is listening to a Warhammer book.

The Husband is reading The Bridges of Toko-Ri by James Michener.

What I/We’ve Been Watching

This past week we watched some Transformers episodes in honor of Peter Cullen.

I also watched The Maltese Falcon and I must have watched something else but I can’t remember right now! Ha! Gott a love thyroid brain fog.

What I’ve Been Writing

Last week on the blog I share:

• Classic Movie Impression: Without Love (1945)
• Weekend Traffic Jam Reboot August 28
• Book recommendation: By the Pricking of My Thumbs by Agatha Christie
• Five bookish places I’ve visited and five I want to

What I/We’ve Been Listening To

I am listening to The Maine Mutiny (A Murder, She Wrote book) by Donald Baine.

My son came home with a record of Englebert Humperdink from the local thrift store and, for some reason, was very excited about it, so we listened to one of his songs and then I made my son listen to Tom Jones. We watched Tom performing “It’s Not Unsual” on Ed Sullivan too and I still wonder why they let that man have a seizure on live TV and didn’t help him.

But luckily he survived it because have you seen this man sing lately? He’s a judge on The Voice UK and even at 85, he’s still got it. This aired this week but is probably from a few months ago.

Some Housekeeping

Erin (Still Life, With Cracker Crumbs), Cat (Cat’s Wire) and I host a monthly bookish link party called A Good Book and A Cup of Tea.  This link-up is for book and reading posts or anything related to books and reading (even movies based on books!). Each link party will be open for a month. You can find that link up for this month here.

Each week, I host the Weekend Traffic Jam Reboot with some great hosts. It goes live Thursday night, but you can share any kind of blog posts (family-friendly) there until Tuesday of each week. You can check my recent posts on the sidebar to the right for the most recent link party.

Now It’s Your Turn

What have you been doing, watching, reading, listening to, or writing?

This post is linked up with The Sunday Post at  Kimba at Caffeinated Reviewer,  Deb at with Deb at Readerbuzz, and Book Date: It’s Monday! What are you reading hosted by Kathyrn at The Book Date and Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Reading Reality.

Hello! Welcome to my blog. I am a blogger, homeschool mom, and I write cozy mysteries.

You can find my Gladwynn Grant Mystery series HERE.

You can also find me on Instagram and YouTube.

If you would like to be the first to get news about my books or just have access to special posts for supporters, you can do so here for $2.99 a month https://lisahoweler.com/support-my-writing/

It’s time for our Sunday morning chat. On Sundays, I ramble about what’s been going on, what the rest of the family and I have been reading and watching, and what I’ve been writing.

My mom turned 82 this past week and that morning I called to wish her a happy birthday. I did that but then my dad got on the phone to ask my something and let me know he and my mom had been up until 2:30 that morning watching Crocodile Dundee and cooking hamburgers.

My parents are not super active anymore since my mom is unable to get around well and mainly sits in her chair and Dad has Parkinson’s so hearing that they were partying all night and eating hamburgers at midnight just cracked me up.

On Mom’s birthday the kids and I went over for dinner, and Little Miss made her a watermelon and berry “cake” because Mom doesn’t eat sweets very much anymore (not diabetic) and never was a big fan of cake.

This week we were told our cat is dying – which seems to be something our vet didn’t make clear at the last visit. When we tried to get her an appointment Friday, they told us she was dying and there was nothing more they could do for her so refused to set one up until she needs to be euthanized. At first, I understood the conversation but as the days went on, I found myself pretty disgusted with the vet not wanting to help our cat as much as they could.

They gave us medicine for her before but this time wouldn’t even check her to see if it had helped at all. My son called to try to persuade them to see her one more time and they refused again. He said they spoke to him like he was 12 instead of almost 20. This sounds petty but if we do get to the point of having to euthanize her, I’ve decided I won’t give them money to do it. We will take her somewhere else, which is hard to do in this area where vets are limited.

(Edit: I contacted the vet the day after I wrote this and they offered to refill the medicine she was on before. To shorten the story, I’ll just say I received an apology for them not offering to refill her medicine before and they also said we could take her to a higher end clinic to have imaging done and determine why she is having liver issues. I don’t think we need to do that because her liver only became an issue after she contracted a virus. We worked things out, in other words. Also, we are not sure the medicine will work. It might be too late, but at least we gave it one last try.)

Before I move on, I do want to mention that my friend Erin from Still Life, With Cracker Crumbs lost her mom this past week. If you could remember her and her family in your prayers that would be appreciated.

What I/We’ve Been Reading

Just Finished

I finished Celia’s House by D.E. Stevenson this past week and wasn’t a big fan. It was okay and after talking to a friend about it, I understand the style more but still didn’t enjoy it as much as the Miss Buncle series I am in the  middle of now.

In Progress

I am slow reading Stillmeadow Daybrook by Gladys Taber. Since each chapter is a month, I plan to read a chapter a month for the rest of 2026 and into 2027. I’m also reading Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis.

I’m still reading Miss Buncle Married by D.E. Stevenson. I’m liking this one a lot.

I’m also reading a Nancy Drew book — Mystery of the Brassbound Trunk by Carolyn Keene.

Up Soon

Later this week I hope to start By The Pricking of My Thumbs by Agatha Christie for the Christie Reading Challenge.

I’m not really sure what I will read the rest of the month, but would love to squeeze The Adventures of Tom Sawyer in before the end of the summer.

What I/We’ve Been Watching

This past week I watched The Big Sleep, A Scandal in Paris, and Footsteps in the Dark.

I also started watching the episodes of Mary Berry’s show about her 90^th birthday, which was last year.

Because I have watched so many Jack Lemmon films lately, and have watched more over the last year than I realized, I will probably be switching things up and doing an Autumn of Jack for Fall and moving Jimmy Stewart movies to winter.

What I’ve Been Writing

I made some progress and a major decision this week for my fourth Gladwynn Grant book. It will help me move forward on the story.

On the blog I shared:

• Classic movie impression: Witness to Murder (1954)
• Weekend Traffic Jam Reboot August 7
• Book Recommendation: Travels with Charley in Search of America by John Steinbeck
• Sunday Bookends: The Husband’s acting bug continues, watched a lot of movies, and …will my daughter and I ever finish reading Heidi?

Some Housekeeping

Erin (Still Life, With Cracker Crumbs), Cat (Cat’s Wire) and I host a monthly bookish link party called A Good Book and A Cup of Tea.  This link-up is for book and reading posts or anything related to books and reading (even movies based on books!). Each link party will be open for a month. You can find that link up for this month here.

Each week, I host the Weekend Traffic Jam Reboot with some great hosts. It goes live Thursday night, but you can share any kind of blog posts (family-friendly) there until Tuesday of each week. You can check my recent posts on the sidebar to the right for the most recent link party.

Now It’s Your Turn

What have you been doing, watching, reading, listening to, or writing?

This post is linked up with The Sunday Post at  Kimba at Caffeinated Reviewer,  Deb at with Deb at Readerbuzz, and Book Date: It’s Monday! What are you reading hosted by Kathyrn at The Book Date and Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Reading Reality.

Hello! Welcome to my blog. I am a blogger, homeschool mom, and I write cozy mysteries.

You can find my Gladwynn Grant Mystery series HERE.

You can also find me on Instagram and YouTube.

If you would like to be the first to get news about my books or just have access to special posts for supporters, you can do so here for $2.99 a month https://lisahoweler.com/support-my-writing/

It’s time for our Sunday morning chat. On Sundays, I ramble about what’s been going on, what the rest of the family and I have been reading and watching, and what I’ve been writing.

With cooler weather coming in this week, it almost feels like autumn in summer, which stinks for some, but has been so welcome for me. When it is super warm out I like to turn the AC up high for a while and get a blanket and pretend it is autumn already.

The week before last the heat wave, combined with wildfire smoke from Canada, plus some life stress, made me very sick, which is why the cooler temps are such a welcome respite for me.

Luckily it  has been still warm enough during the day that we can take our daughter swimming at the YMCA, which is about a half an hour north.

Last Sunday I took her to their outside pool for the first time. I don’t do super well in direct sunlight but they had thin fabric covers over the tables and it was very nice. The Husband has taken her before, but I had never been there. It’s a nice set up and I’m shocked I’ve lived my whole life in the area and never been there. This is one of those old concrete pools and is probably 60 years old.

Little Miss and her friend both took a test to allow them to swim in the deeper part of the pool and were very proud of themselves. I was too.

It wasn’t a super warm day so the pool wasn’t overly crowded either.

The rest of this past week was fairly uneventful.

I started planning for Little Miss’s upcoming school year, visited my parents a couple of times, and picked up groceries from the Aldi pick up on Friday.

Yesterday was a mostly relaxing day with some worrying about aforementioned homeschool year, overthinking the fact that young people today are reading less and therefore not being exposed to the more eloquent and poetic writing of classic literature, watching The Mark of Zorro, reading a bit of my John Steinbeck book, and cooking a self-created combination dish of turkey bacon, brussels sprouts, onions, and sweet peppers.

Rain is being called for almost every day this upcoming week. We do not have any grand plans for the week other than watching Warren (yes, that is The Husband’s real name) in a community play version of Little Shop of Horrors this weekend. After reminding myself of the difference between the play and the 1986 movie, I think I’ll probably leave Little Miss with her friend or my parents.

What I/We’ve Been Reading

Just Finished

Last week I finished Sad Cypress by Agatha Christie for the July book for the Christie Reading Challenge for 2026. It was very good and I’ll share a review of it soon.

I was supposed to read The Rose and the Yew Tree by Mary Westmacott, which was Christie’s pen name, but I just couldn’t get through it. I was terribly dull. I feel like I want to know the ending (as I mentioned last week) so I think I might pick it up again in August and just finish it up.

In Progress

I am slow reading Stillmeadow Daybrook by Gladys Taber. Since each chapter is a month, I plan to read a chapter a month for the rest of 2026 and into 2027. I’m also reading Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis.

Right now I am reading Travels with Charley by John Steinbeck. It is a non-fiction about his traveling across the country in a camper in 1961 with his dog to learn more about the people of the United States. I’m enjoying it and will finish it this week.

I am also reading  Celia’s House by D.E. Stevenson before bed. It’s a very relaxed, gentle read so far. It is the story of a woman named Celia who is in her 90s, getting ready to pass, and tells her nephew she wants him to have her house and pass it on to a future daughter of his that she wants him to name Celia.

Up Soon

I will be reading By The Pricking of My Thumbs by Agatha Christie for the August read for the Christie Reading Challenge.

I ordered a copy of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain because I have been determined to read it again for the first time since I was a kid.

I’ve also ordered a copy of Mrs. Buncle Married by D.E. Stevenson, which his a sequel to Miss Buncle’s Book.

What The Family is Reading

The Boy is listening to False Gods by Graham McNeal.

Little Miss and I are going to finish Heidi this week.

Warren is reading The Committee Chairs by James Mishner.

New arrivals to my bookshelf

no new arrivals

What I/We’ve Been Watching

This past week, I watched the movies The Mark of Zorro (with Tyrone Powers), Without Love (Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy), Witness to Murder (with Barbara Stanwyck and George Sanders), and Singing in the Rain (which I watched with my daughter for the first time. The first for her, not me, of course).

What I’ve Been Writing

This week on the blog I shared very little actually!

• Classic Movie Impressions: Singing In The Rain
• Weekend Traffic Jam Reboot July 24

What I/We’ve Been Listening To

Murder, She Wrote: Maine Mutiny by Donald Bain and Jessica Fletcher.

Recent Blog Posts I Enjoyed

I enjoyed this post from Marsha about her thinning hair  because I know a lot of women deal with this as they get older or have medical conditions.

Cat writes about silent movies and I love that and this time she’s writing about the king of silent movies — Charlie Chaplin.

https://catswire.blogspot.com/2026/07/silent-movies-dogs-life.html

I enjoyed reading about The Farm Wife Reads’ garden, tomatoes, and North Carolina summer.

Erin caught us up on her life in this one, some of it more difficult to read, but some of it also happy.

Some Housekeeping

Erin (Still Life, With Cracker Crumbs), Cat (Cat’s Wire) and I host a monthly bookish link party called A Good Book and A Cup of Tea.  This link-up is for book and reading posts or anything related to books and reading (even movies based on books!). Each link party will be open for a month. You can find that link up for this month here.

Each week, I host the Weekend Traffic Jam Reboot with some great hosts. It goes live Thursday night, but you can share any kind of blog posts (family-friendly) there until Tuesday of each week. You can check my recent posts on the sidebar to the right for the most recent link party.

Now It’s Your Turn

What have you been doing, watching, reading, listening to, or writing?

This post is linked up with The Sunday Post at  Kimba at Caffeinated Reviewer,  Deb at with Deb at Readerbuzz, and Book Date: It’s Monday! What are you reading hosted by Kathyrn at The Book Date and Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Reading Reality.

Hello! Welcome to my blog. I am a blogger, homeschool mom, and I write cozy mysteries.

You can find my Gladwynn Grant Mystery series HERE.

You can also find me on Instagram and YouTube.

If you would like to be the first to get news about my books or just have access to special posts for supporters, you can do so here for $2.99 a month https://lisahoweler.com/support-my-writing/

It’s time for our Sunday morning chat. On Sundays, I ramble about what’s been going on, what the rest of the family and I have been reading and watching, and what I’ve been writing.

Last week was a miserable week healthwise and in other ways, and I’m glad it is behind me.

What I/We’ve Been Reading

Just Finished

I didn’t finish any books this past week.

In Progress

I am slow reading Stillmeadow Daybrook by Gladys Taber. Since each chapter is a month, I plan to read a chapter a month for the rest of 2026 and into 2027. I’m also reading Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis.

I put The Rose and The Yew Tree by Mary Westmacott (Agatha Christie’s pseudonym for her romantic suspense books) aside for now because, I will be very frank, the book was not very interesting and was pretty depressing. I know the murder mysteries that she usually wrote aren’t always happy, but the people in this book are just not likable and are miserable all  of the time.

I do sort of want  to know what happens so I will probably pick it back up this week.

I had some stress this week so I didn’t get as much reading as I wanted done but I am still enjoying Travels with Charley by John Steinbeck. This is the only book I’ve read by Steinbeck other than Of Mice and Men. It was a much-needed distraction from all the weather issues, my health issues, and some older parent-related stress.

I started Sad Cypress by Agatha Christie to get my Agatha read in for July for the Christie Reading Challenge and am enjoying it much more than the Westmacott.

Up Soon

I am in the mood for a Nancy Drew book so I will be finding one to read soon. I also have an original Hardy Boys book I want to read.

What The Family is Reading

The Husband is reading Valor by Amanda Yanul.

Little Miss and I did not really read together at all this week. We were just hot, miserable, and had cabin fever/

New arrivals to my bookshelf

No new arrivals this week.

What I/We’ve Been Watching

This past week I watched a few episodes of As Time Goes By, an episode of The Dick Van Dyke Show, a few episodes of Murder, She Wrote, and an old movie called The Reluctant Debutante with Rex Harrison, some other lady, and Angela Lansbury (it was weird).

What I’ve Been Writing

Last week on the blog I shared:

Weekend Traffic Jam Reboot July 17th!

Ten books I want to read by New To Me Authors

What I/We’ve Been Listening To

I am listening to The Maine Mutiny by Donald Baine on Audible when I drive somewhere, which means I haven’t listened to it a ton lately. I am hoping to listen more this week when I do housework.

Some Housekeeping

Erin (Still Life, With Cracker Crumbs), Cat (Cat’s Wire) and I host a monthly bookish link party called A Good Book and A Cup of Tea.  This link-up is for book and reading posts or anything related to books and reading (even movies based on books!). Each link party will be open for a month. You can find that link up for this month here.

Each week, I host the Weekend Traffic Jam Reboot with some great hosts. It goes live Thursday night, but you can share any kind of blog posts (family-friendly) there until Tuesday of each week. You can check my recent posts on the sidebar to the right for the most recent link party.

Now It’s Your Turn

What have you been doing, watching, reading, listening to, or writing?

This post is linked up with The Sunday Post at  Kimba at Caffeinated Reviewer,  Deb at with Deb at Readerbuzz, and Book Date: It’s Monday! What are you reading hosted by Kathyrn at The Book Date and Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Reading Reality.

Hello! Welcome to my blog. I am a blogger, homeschool mom, and I write cozy mysteries.

You can find my Gladwynn Grant Mystery series HERE.

You can also find me on Instagram and YouTube.

If you would like to be the first to get news about my books or just have access to special posts for supporters, you can do so here for $2.99 a month https://lisahoweler.com/support-my-writing/

It’s time for our Sunday morning chat. On Sundays, I ramble about what’s been going on, what the rest of the family and I have been reading and watching, and what I’ve been writing.

Do you ever get over stimulated when you are on social media? It isn’t that something or anything is negative, but it is just … too much?

I was there this past week, and I had to shut it down.

There are some fun posts and some cool things that I was seeing, but it was just too much. It was like mental overload. Some of it was definitely negative. I find that social media is an outlet for people to complain and run others down.

But even when I was on positive accounts or was scrolling through people talking about their favorite books or movies, I just felt like my brain was overloaded. This happens to me from time to time, but seems to be happening more and more lately. What I had to do was mute social media for a few days or at least part of the day and watch some movies, do some junk journaling, anything that didn’t require a lot of noise, a lot of images, and any kind of scrolling, which tends to make me have vertigo anyhow.

Tomorrow is my husband’s and my 24^th wedding anniversary. I’m hoping to make it without getting injured again. Right now, I have a bruise on my arm from the cat when she dug her claw into my arm while I was trying to give her her medicine, a scratch on the back of my foot from when I dropped a knife last night, and my chronic neck issues. The Husband isn’t feeling too great either. Maybe we can just sit in the house with ice and heated rice packs on our shoulders, knees, and everything in between and have some dinner and watch a movie. Ha!

What I/We’ve Been Reading

Just Finished

Last week I finished Miss Buncle’s Book by D.E. Stevenson and really enjoyed it. I shared a review of it here.

In Progress

I am slow reading Stillmeadow Daybrook by Gladys Taber. Since each chapter is a month, I plan to read a chapter a month for the rest of 2026 and into 2027. I’m also reading Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis.

I am also currently reading The Rose and the Yew Tree by Mary Westcott (Agatha Christie) for the Christie Reading Challenge and Travels with Charley by John Steinbeck

Up Soon

Books I have lined up for the remainder of the summer include: The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Murder, She Wrote: Slaying in Savannah, By the Pricking of My Thumbs, and Mystery Mile.

What The Family is Reading

Little Miss and I have been goofing off and not reading from Heidi but I think we will finish it this week.

The Husband is reading The Land of Lost Things by John Connelly.

New arrivals to my bookshelf

My new arrival this week was Travels with Charley, which I bought new because I had an old copy that smelled funny and the new copy was on sale. It smelled amazing, by the way.

What I/We’ve Been Watching

I watched two episodes of Sons of Liberty from the History Channel that ran in 2015. Interesting but not where you go for historical accuracy.

A hot, young Assassin’s Creed look-alike Samuel Adams about the same as John Hancock instead of ten years his senior like in reality? Hmmm…. Okay…Dr. Joseph Warren having some sexy time with General Gage’s wife? Good Lord. Who wrote this? The staff writers at TMZ??

Yeah … it was a nice reimagining (lie) and sensationalized poppycock as General Gage might have said.

I also watched The Apartment with Jack Lemmon and Shirley MacClain, Mr. Blandings Builds a Dream House, and Andy Hardy Meets A Debutante.

What I’ve Been Writing

This week I worked on Gladwynn Grant Goes Back to School.

On the blog I shared:

• Weekend Traffic Jam Reboot July 10
• Book recommendation: Miss Buncle’s Book by D.E. Stevenson
• Top Ten Books with the word secret in the title
• Book review/recommendation: The Ivory Dagger by Patricia Wentworth
• Sunday Bookends: Happy Fourth weekend, heatwave finally broke, and yay for “interesting” old movies

Recent Blog Posts I Enjoyed

Some Housekeeping

Erin (Still Life, With Cracker Crumbs), Cat (Cat’s Wire) and I host a monthly bookish link party called A Good Book and A Cup of Tea.  This link-up is for book and reading posts or anything related to books and reading (even movies based on books!). Each link party will be open for a month. You can find that link up for this month here.

Each week, I host the Weekend Traffic Jam Reboot with some great hosts. It goes live Thursday night, but you can share any kind of blog posts (family-friendly) there until Tuesday of each week. You can check my recent posts on the sidebar to the right for the most recent link party.

Now It’s Your Turn

What have you been doing, watching, reading, listening to, or writing?

This post is linked up with The Sunday Post at  Kimba at Caffeinated Reviewer,  Deb at with Deb at Readerbuzz, and Book Date: It’s Monday! What are you reading hosted by Kathyrn at The Book Date and Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Reading Reality.

Hello! Welcome to my blog. I am a blogger, homeschool mom, and I write cozy mysteries.

You can find my Gladwynn Grant Mystery series HERE.

You can also find me on Instagram and YouTube.

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