Sunday Bookends: Warmer weather and my socially introverted family

March 16, 2025March 16, 2025 / Lisa R. Howeler / 20 Comments

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. Some weeks I share what I am listening to.

I took Little Miss to the little playground in our little town twice this week thanks to higher temperatures. They were high for us anyhow after coming out of a very arctic winter.

The first day it was close to 60 degrees Fahrenheit and the second day it was about 55 degrees. Friday it was over 60 degrees. Yesterday it was about 55 but still sunny and we took another trip to the playground with a friend of Little Miss’s.

Today it is pouring rain, and we are supposed to get some nasty storms.

I do like when it is warmer and sunny but still miss chilly days where I have an excuse to stay home. What I like most about the warmer weather, though, is being able to sit outside and not feel chilled to the bone.

That first day we went to the playground she made me smile by being brave and approaching a little girl she didn’t know and asking her if they could play together. She was nervous to approach the little girl because she said she is used to texting people not talking, which was weird for me to hear but also understandable in this modern age.

Some people think that homeschooled children are shy because they don’t interact with other children. My child does interact with other children through local homeschool activities, library activities, the local 4-H, a Bible program at a church near us, her friends, and Vacation Bible School. She’s still shy.

I attended public school all the way from Kindergarten to twelfth grade. I was shy all the way through and still am.

I know that public school can afford more opportunities to interact with peers but it isn’t always a positive interaction. I was able to interact with my peers and I hated it. I was an introvert through and through. Not a recluse but an introvert. Little Miss has a similar personality. She likes to socialize but when her meter is filled, which sometimes can happen fairly fast, she prefers to go off on her own and participate in quiet activities. My son is the same.

It cracks me up when we come back from an event or a friend goes home and she flops in her chair and says, “Whew! That’s enough social interaction for the week. I need some alone time.”

After she introduced herself to the little girl at the playground earlier this week, and they had played for a bit, she came over to me and said, “She wanted to add me to a group chat on her Messenger Kids (which is a Facebook app monitored by parents) but I’m not ready for that.”

As a GenXer, it is crazy for me to hear that a 10-year-old is being invited to an online group chat by an 8-year-old. We did not exchange contact information with the little girl but if we had I would have had to contact her parents on Facebook, and we would both have to give permission for our children to talk. Then I would have had to be the one to be social with strangers. I was so relieved when Little Miss said she wasn’t ready for that level of interaction. Ha!

Little Miss and I have been attending 4-H cooking classes once a week for the last two weeks. Well, Little Miss has been doing the cooking, and I have been reading a book in the hallway. She really enjoys cooking and has been enjoying attending the class with a little girl who also goes to the church program o.

We attended the first class with my 81-year-old dad who, of course, immediately found someone to talk to while we waited for her. I had been worried he would be bored but he was not at all. He enjoyed talking to a young man there about local history as they looked at a mural on the wall in the building we were at. The Mural is beautiful and showcases history of the small town and county we were/are in.

Dad always seems to find someone to talk to no matter where we go.

I finished The Magician’s Nephew by C.S. Lewis last week.

I am reading the biography of James Herriot by his son Jim Wight very slowly because it is rather dull in many parts. I have had to skim a lot of unnecessary information about his time in veterinary school. It truly was unnecessary in my mind, but some readers may enjoy it.

Most of the time this week I have been reading The Case of the Careless Kitten by Erle Stanley Gardner. It’s a Perry Mason mystery and I am really enjoying it. I love Gardner’s style of writing and the banter between Lieutenant Tagg and Perry.

I am slowly reading The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien.

I hope to start Emily of New Moon by L.M. Montgomery this week for Middle Grade March.

After that I will be starting Between the Sound and Sea by Amanda Cox.

The Husband is between books.

The Boy is also between books.

Little Miss is reading Harry Potter: The Prisoner of Azkaban.

This week I watched more Edwardian Farm, two episodes of Castle, my farmer on YouTube, and a Booktuber who was designing her reading journal.

I also started an old movie with Cary Grant that I did not enjoy at all, so I am going to be looking for another old movie this week.

I started writing book four of the Gladwynn Grant Mysteries last week.

Last week on the blog I shared:

Now it’s Your Turn!

What have you been doing, watching, reading, listening to or writing? Let me know in the comments or leave a blog post link if you also write a weekly update like this.

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

In addition to my blog, I write fiction, and you can learn more about my books here: https://lisahoweler.com/my-books-2/

I also have a Substack where I share about my writing journey or books.

Sunday Bookends: Grandma Ruth, Middle Earth, and Middle Grade March

March 9, 2025 / Lisa R. Howeler / 18 Comments

I finished Grandma Ruth Doesn’t Go To Funerals by Sharon Mondragon last week and really enjoyed it. I could see this one being a movie. I will write a longer review later but I loved the characters and the story overall.

In case you are curious about it, here is a description:

In a small town where gossip flows like sweet tea, bedridden Mary Ruth McCready reigns supreme, doling out wisdom and meddling in everyone’s business with a fervor that would make a matchmaker blush. When her best friend, Charlotte Harrington, has her world rocked by a scandalous revelation from her dying husband P. B., Mary Ruth kicks into high gear, commandeering the help of her favorite granddaughter, Sarah Elizabeth, in tracking down the truth. Finding clues in funeral condolence cards and decades-old gossip dredged up at the Blue Moon Beauty Emporium, the two stir up trouble faster than you can say “pecan pie.”

And just when things are starting to look up, in waltzes Camilla “Millie” Holtgrew, a blast from P. B.’s past, with a grown son and an outrageous claim to Charlotte’s inheritance. But as Grandma Ruth always says when things get tough, “God is too big.” With him, nothing is impossible–even bringing long-held secrets to light. Grandma Ruth and Sarah just might have to ruffle a whole mess of feathers to do it.

Next up I am continuing The Real James Herriot: A Memoir of My Father by Jim Wight. So far it is very dry and dull so I may toss it aside but I’d love to get to the years where he worked as a vet and some of the behind the scenes stories first. We will see how it goes.

I also started The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien, which will be my slow read for the next couple of months. I am loving it so far, even if we lost one of the team on the first page. *sniff*

I started The Magician’s Nephew by C.S. Lewis the other night for my Middle Grade March read. I also hope to read Emily of New Moon by L.M. Montgomery for Middle Grade March. Little Miss and I are reading Miracles on Maple Hill by Virginia Sorenson for school, which is a re-read for me.

Once those are done, I hope to start Whose Body? By Dorothy L. Sayers. I’ve never read anything by her so we will see how I like her.

The Husband is on his 25^th book of the year. Sigh. He reads fast but has also had some extra time to read this year so that’s cool for him. Or whatever. *wink*

He is reading Always Outnumbered, Always Outgunned by Walter Mosley.

I have been watching more historical farming shows this past week and not a ton else. I actually read more than watched things.

This upcoming week I hope to watch more Murder She Wrote and a couple of old movies.

I started writing book four of the Gladwynn Grant series this past week.

On the blog I shared:

Now it’s Your Turn!

What have you been doing, watching, reading, listening to or writing? Let me know in the comments or leave a blog post link if you also write a weekly update like this.

In addition to my blog, I write fiction, and you can learn more about my books here: https://lisahoweler.com/my-books-2/

I also have a Substack where I share about my writing journey or books.

Sunday Bookends: Finally an outing and finished a couple of books (also finally)

March 1, 2025March 2, 2025 / Lisa R. Howeler / 18 Comments

Saturday, the family and I got out of the house for an outing for the first time in months.

We drove about an hour south to attend a gathering at a pottery studio with the local homeschooling group.

The group leader had set up a chance for our students to visit the studio and paint pottery. It was a gloomy day to travel on, but it was still nice to get out. We didn’t stay as long at the studio as I hoped, with Little Miss declaring she was done and over it all within a half hour of arriving.

I had gone to the car to get a drink of water and The Husband and she had stayed back to finish her project, which was very small and not terribly exciting to me, and when I looked back up after a few minutes of being in the car they were walking toward me.

They were done and ready to get lunch, The Husband said.

Little Miss chose a small paw print to paint. If that’s what she wanted, that was okay, of course, and it was one of the cheaper items available so it worked out well but I still thought she’d really want to paint a larger piece of pottery.

I thought she might choose something larger which would give us longer to interact with the other children there. Unfortunately only four families showed up and there were only about six kids there, including mine, and three of them were boys and Little Miss had no interest in talking to them.

I had these grand visions of introducing Little Miss to the fellow homeschooled children casually by asking the children what they were working on and then telling them what Little Miss was working on and how old she was, etc. etc. but Little Miss has a mind of her own and when she’s done with her art or project, she simply likes to leave.

(I am editing my original post here to make it clear that I love Little Miss has a mind of her own so this isn’t a complaint. As the comments came in I realized I hadn’t really clarified that.

It just cracks me up that I always have these plans to try to encourage her to step out of her comfort zone and she’s like, “nope. This is how it’s going to be..” and is not swayed one bit. I think it’s going to really pay off as she gets older to be that aware of what she wants and not compromise…. Though it would be nice if she stepped out just a bit so she can meet some new people but that will come organically over time.)

At lunch at a local restaurant we found online, Little Miss also said she thought my plan sounded creepy.

“Hey, little girl,” she said in a creepy voice, I guess pretending to be me. “How old are you?”

The Husband and The Boy thought her impression was pretty funny, but that is not how I was going to ask. I was going to attempt to engage them in conversation so Little Miss could also engage them in conversation. These attempts of mine pretty much fail every time. We will have other opportunities with events going on with the local 4-H and homeschool groups this spring as well.

The hamburger I ordered was the largest I have ever seen circumference-wise!

Yesterday Little Miss and The Husband went to see Paddington 3 and The Boy and I stayed at home and did our own thing. He played a video game (Skyrim) and I doodled in my reading journal, colored in some Nancy Drew illustrations, worked on blog posts (including this one), snuck a couple spoonfuls of some ice cream we’d picked up the day before, and watched some YouTubers.

This week we don’t much planned, other than me going to my parents at least once or twice to help clean.

I finished Every Living Thing by James Herriot and Nancy Drew: The Sign of the Twisted Candles by Carolyn Keene this past week.

Now I’m reading Grandma Ruth Doesn’t Go To Funerals by Sarah Mondragon and really enjoying it. I found it for free on Hoopla and I can only read it on my phone, which is terribly annoying. Hoopla doesn’t allow it to be sent to a Kindle and I don’t have a notebook to read it on. It can be read on my laptop but that isn’t very comfortable for me. I don’t want to pay full price for it until I am sure I like it and it released in February so..this is my only option at the moment.

Little Miss and I are reading Miracles on Maple Hill for school after finishing The Sign of the Beaver last week. I’ve read Miracles on Maple Hill before but wanted to read it with Little Miss this time of year (maple season in Pennsylvania) and it will fit with Middle Grade March.

I’ll also be reading The Moffats by Eleanor Estes and Violet Jenkins Saves The Day by Stacey Faubion for Middle Grade March. I may try to squeeze in Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry but that might have to wait until March.

The Husband is reading The Maltese Iguana by Tim Dorsey.

The Boy is reading Frankenstein.

This past week I watched All Creatures Great and Small’s season finale and cried through it. I also watched Edwardian Farm, which was more of a rewatch because I watched it before but missed a ton of it because I kept wandering out of the room or family members talked through it. Ha. Family. I tell ya.

I also watched The Rise of Catherine the Great as part of my Winter of Douglas Fairbanks Jr., which finishes up this week.

In April and May, Erin from Still Life, With Cracker Crumbs and I will be watching movies that take place in Paris. We will update you more on that and our choices when it gets closer to the start date.

I am working on making all of my ebooks of my fiction books available for purchase through my site so you can “own” the ebook (or the license to read it) and read it where you want to.

I started brainstorming more of book four of the Gladwynn Grant Mystery series as well.

Last week on the blog I shared:

|| Glimpses of February by The Farm Wife Reads ||

|| Fridays Fave Five by Stray Thoughts ||

|| Late Snack by Words From Anneli ||

|| Grief Journey Day 197 by A Little Bit of Everything With Love ||

|| Review: Pioneer Girl, The Annotated Autobiography of Laura Ingalls Wilder by Impressions in Ink ||

Now It’s Your Turn!

What have you been doing, watching, reading, listening to or writing? Let me know in the comments or leave a blog post link if you also write a weekly update like this.

Sunday Bookends: The Get Rid of Hiccups Trick, what I thought of the Miss Marple Short Stories, and a Paris movie marathon being planned

February 23, 2025February 23, 2025 / Lisa R. Howeler / 13 Comments

Throughout my childhood and teenage years my family and I would visit my mom’s side of the family in Jacksonville, N.C. for Christmas at my grandmother and aunt’s house.

One day when I was about 18 or so, my parents told me we were going to drive a couple hours west to see my mom’s aunt and uncle and cousins in a little town called Farmville.

I had never met this part of the family before so I didn’t know what to think of them. The house was full of chatter as soon as we arrived. Chatter and offers of food.

“Y’all come on in here and get yourself some food,” Cousin Joyce said from the kitchen.

Conversations began to take the path they usually do in Mom’s family — several of them being held at once all at the same time, back and forth between each other. I did my best to keep track. The conversations were mainly between my grandmother, mom, aunt Dianne, Cousin Joyce, Cousin Janet and Aunt Mattie.

Uncle Ray — full name Ashley Ray Waignwright (isn’t the quentissintial Southern name?!), a short man with very little hair, wearing a pair of small, wire-rimmed glasses, and looking a bit somber, was sitting in a little rocking chair. He was participating in some of the conversations but not much. Mainly he was observing.

At some point I developed the hiccups. They were painful and wouldn’t stop.

Mom suggested I drink some water. Aunt Dianne said a spoonful of sugar. Someone else suggested holding my breath.

Uncle Ray narrowed his eyes.

“Heard what you been saying about me, girl.”

I was startled. Was he looking at me? I looked behind me. There was no one there. It had to be me he was talking to.

“I—I’m sorry?”

He frowned. “You. I heard what you been saying about me.”

“I-I – know I haven’t said anything.”

Mom hadn’t mentioned her uncle Ray was going senile but this conversation was getting weirder by the moment.

“You sure did,” he said. “You know it and I know it so you just need to apologize.”

“I—I .. but…”

His grim expression didn’t crack. “Where those hiccups gone?”

“What? What do you mean?”

A small smile tipped the corner of his mouth upward. “Your hiccups. They’re gone, aren’t they?”

I dragged in a ragged breath and let it out again.

The rest of the conversations had stopped during this exchange and I heard my mom laugh.

It was beginning to hit me now.

“He got you, didn’t he?” Mom asked.

Uncle Ray was smiling more now. Yes, he’d got me, and the panic I’d felt at thinking he thought I’d said something awful about him had been enough to stop the hiccups

I am juggling a few books right now – I know that sounds weird, but I do that because I read one during the day and one at night sometimes.

I prefer to read my mysteries during the day and more relaxing or light books before bed. I’ve found if I read mysteries before bed, I dream about people dying or chasing me. Even with cozier mysteries. Not always, but sometimes. If the mystery is too good, I still read it at night and just put up with the weird dreams.

Anyhow, I just finished The Tuesday Night Club (Miss Marple short stories) by Agatha Christie and ended up liking it more as I continued it. It is a series of short stories involving several familiar characters from Miss Marple books all gathered together discussing mysterious cases they’d heard of or investigated and asking if everyone listening could figure out what really happened.

There was a lot of subtle humor in the book that ended up making the repetitiveness of how almost each story ended with Miss Marple solving the case presented by each person and then that person, who previously said they didn’t know the solution, or someone else in the room, saying that they suddenly had remembered she was right and they had heard what had really happened. It was a bit tedious but not every story ended that way, luckily. I mean, Miss Marple did solve it every time, but there wasn’t always a sudden realization from someone else in the room knew what really happened.

I will finish Every Living Thing by James Herriot this week, as far as I know anyhow.

I’ve already started The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman and I’m not sure what I think so far. POV’s keep changing and there is a lot more detail about a lot of characters than I think is needed so….we will see if I can make it through or not. I’ve heard good things about it, so I’m sure I will end up liking it.

I will need a slightly lighter read for nights later this week so I will be picking up Little Men again or finishing up Nancy Drew: The Sign of the Twisted Candles.

Little Miss and I have almost finished Sign of the Beaver for history.

The Boy and I are still pushing through Frankenstein. I don’t want to talk about it. I just can’t wait to graduate him this year. We are starting Romeo and Juliet in March. Lord, be with us.

He’s also listening to No Country For Old Men by Cormac McCarthy

The Husband is reading Hot Property by Mike Lupica.

This week I watched Murder She Wrote, Victorian Farm, All Creatures Great and Small, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 with the kids (let’s be honest. I didn’t pay much attention to it.), my farmer on YouTube (Just a Few Acres), and Sinbad the Sailor.

Upcoming in April: Erin from Still Life, With Cracker Crumbs, and I are planning on a Paris themed movie marathon. We will keep you updated.

I’ll be starting book four in the Gladwynn Grant series soon and have decided I’ll probably only write six books in this series and, yes, I will wrap up that “love triangle” in book four or five. Probably book four. It’s boring even for me at this point.

On the blog I wrote:

I am listening to Frankenstein on Audible and hope to continue it this week

Now It’s Your Turn!

What have you been doing, watching, reading, listening to or writing? Let me know in the comments or leave a blog post link if you also write a weekly update like this.

Sometimes there are issues with commenting on WordPress. If you can’t comment, but want to, please feel free to hit the contact link at the top of the page.

In addition to my blog, I write fiction, and you can learn more about my books here: https://lisahoweler.com/my-books-2/

You can also support my writing and chat about books, mysteries, old movies, vintage books, mystery shows, etc. for $3 a month at my Patreon here: https://patreon.com/LisaHoweler.

If you like my content you can subscribe to my posts for free here too.

Sunday Bookends: More cold weather and switching back and forth between books

February 16, 2025February 16, 2025 / Lisa R. Howeler / 18 Comments

The weather is so cold in our area that we are doing our best to conserve heating oil by dressing in layers, wrapping ourselves in blankets, and using microwavable rice packs to warm our feet and laps. This might sound dystopian to some, but I have actually been having fun with it and enjoying my little blanket nests and my warm rice packs. Check back after our planned arctic cold snap this week and see if I still see this all as an adventure. Of course, my attitude will also plan on whether or not I need to go out in the cold on any of the days that the weather is supposed to be so cold.

I talked a little about what else has been going on in our world in my Saturday Afternoon Chat yesterday.

I’ve been switching between The Tuesday Night Club (Miss Marple) by Agatha Christie and Every Living Thing by James Herriot.

I read Miss Marple during the day, usually, and James Herriot right before bed.

I am enjoying them both, but Herriot’s a bit better. Both are a collection of short stories with some connections, such as characters. I am not a huge fan of Christie’s writing style at times and this format, which involves people sitting around and telling each other stories, is a bit dry to me. The stories are good but it does get repetitive for every story to feature someone telling a story they supposedly don’t have an ending to, Miss Marple to solve the case, and then the person telling the story to go, “Actually, I do know what really happened. Let me tell you.”

It’s all a bit tedious but there are some humorous moments and quotes from Miss Marple so I am pushing through.

I also just started Nancy Drew: The Sign of the Twisted Candles by Carolyn Keene.

I am itching for a good novel after these two, which I will finish this week, so I am planning to start A Fatal Footnote by Margaret Loudon, which is a cozy mystery.

I am listening to Frankenstein while doing my dishes.

Little Miss and I are also reading Sign of the Beaver by Elizabeth George Speare.

She is reading (here and there) Harry Potter: Prisoner of Azkaban.

The Husband is reading Starter Villain by John Scalzi.

This past week The Husband and I watched the first part of Going Postal on Peacock. I watched a lot of Victorian Farm and more All Creatures Great And Small (even going back to the beginning for fun).

I also watched Angels Over Broadway from 1940.

Last week on the blog I shared:

Now It’s Your Turn!

Now it’s your turn. What have you been doing, watching, reading, listening to or writing? Let me know in the comments or leave a blog post link if you also write a weekly update like this.

Some commenters have been telling me there are issues with commenting on WordPress. If you can’t comment, but want to, please feel free to hit the contact link at the top of the page.

In addition to my blog, I write fiction, and you can learn more about my books here: https://lisahoweler.com/my-books-2/

Sunday Bookends: Cold weather (still), planned reads for February, and a lot of Edwardian Farm

January 26, 2025 / Lisa R. Howeler / 23 Comments

Last week was very cold and I chatted about it a bit on my Saturday Afternoon Chat yesterday, if you’d like to go read that.

Today is a day of relaxing and taking part in the Crafternoon zoom event with some other ladies and Erin from Still Life, With Cracker Crumbs. We are going to do crafts and chat on Zoom. It should be fun.

I am still reading the same books but have added Frankenstein which I will start this week to read with The Boy for school. I had planned to start reading it last week but got caught up in Christy and Bourdain: The Definitive Oral Biography by Laurie Woolever. I won’t lie — I am probably going to listen to Frankenstein on Audible with Dan Stevens narrating it. I’ve already listened to about five minutes and after seeing him in The Man Who Invented Christmas, I know he can pull off the voices and intonation needed for the story.

In February I hope to read more of Little Men by Louisa Mae Alcott, The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman, and The Sign of the Twisted Candles by Carolyn Keene.

The Husband is reading a book by Nelson Demille that I forgot the name of.

Little Miss is reading Harry Potter: The Prisoner of Azkaban.

Last week I watched Gunga Din. Yeah…so that was interesting … and I blogged about it. I also watched a lot of Edwardian Farm and an episode of All Creatures Great and Small (the newer ones).

I am getting ready to release Gladwynn Grant Shakes The Family Tree, the third book in my cozy mystery series February 19 (or maybe sooner). If you want to know more about it or pre-order an ebook copy, you can click HERE.

This Friday I will also start sharing a serial version of the first book in the series Gladwynn Grant Gets Her Footing. Blog readers can follow along each week or choose to purchase the book instead on Amazon.

This week on the blog I shared:

I also wanted to mention that I share photos, memes, reels, and other things on Instagram if you would like to follow me there.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Lisa R. Howeler | cozy mystery author (@lisarhoweler)

I also started a YouTube channel where I share shorts only for similar content (books, writing, cozy mysteries) and you can find that here: https://youtube.com/@goodbooksandtea?si=xbn6zYq0rnAT9Uj7

Now It’s Your Turn!

What are you reading, watching, writing, doing, listening to …. Etc. etc. I’d love to know. Let me know in the comments.

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

Sunday Bookends: It’s cold. No. Really cold. Reading the same books but planning for others. Crafternoon Again! And some podcasts I want to listen to.

January 19, 2025January 19, 2025 / Lisa R. Howeler / 25 Comments

Due to the illness of children or the cold of the northeast I have not left my house in two weeks and though I am a homebody, I must admit it is becoming a little depressing.

And based on the fact I feel like I am starting to get sick and dangerously cold temps are set to hit the area Monday through Wednesday this week, I have a feeling I will be in my house at least another week. At this point I’ve told my parents, who only live seven minutes from us, that I might not see them until after the spring thaw.

Our house is located on a hill, has a steep driveway, and we are down to one car, so that also makes winter travel difficult.

Yesterday I was alone for much of the day because Little Miss was at a friend’s house and The Boy was sick upstairs, while The Husband was at work. This was a strange situation for me because I’m rarely alone. I didn’t know what to do with myself. I eventually decided to work on a blog post (the second part to my Civil War letters posts), start watching Gunga Din, and read a chapter in my Agatha Christie book. I also was very brave and went out into the cold darkness of our backyard to retrieve a couple pieces of wood for our woodstove.

Then it was back inside where I realized I should cook some dinner for me and The Boy.

He’s had a horrible headache and watery eyes and no appetite, but he was finally able to eat a little bit around the time the mom of Little Miss’s friend brought her back home.

Today we are seeing how the weather is since we were supposed to get a snow storm but now it looks like it’s moved further east (I see you Poconos and NJ…good luck!) and I might visit my parents or … again…tell them I’ll see them in the spring thaw.

Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday are bringing temps where we are expected only to reach about 11 as a high. Lows will be below zero due to windchill and other factors. I asked The Husband to bring some wood from our pile behind the garage into our laundry room so we don’t have to go out into the bitter cold to replenish the supply we have in our living room by the stove.

We do have some heating oil but do our best to use as little of that as we can because of how expensive it has been the last couple of years.

A quick reminder that we are having another Crafternoon Zoom Call next Sunday (the 26th) at 1 p.m. If you are interested in being a part of it, you can email me at lisahoweler@gmail.com or Erin (from Still Life, With Cracker Crumbs) at crackercrumbs@gmail.com.

If you don’t know what that is – it is where we all get together and chat together while doing crafts or other projects. We’d love to have you join us and stave off the gloom that can come with winter sometimes.

With all this cold and being trapped inside a lot you would think I would have plenty of time for reading and I do, but I also have other projects I am working on, so alas, this will not be an exciting section, because I am still reading the same books.

Christy by Catherine Marshall is a super long book and so I am taking breaks and reading A Body in the Library by Agatha Christie (do I really need to type her last name?) for something “lighter”.

I also hope to get back to Bourdain: The Definitive Oral Biography by Laurie Woolever this week.

If you are not aware of what Christy is here is a description:

The train taking nineteen-year-old teacher Christy Huddleston from her home in Asheville, North Carolina, might as well be transporting her to another world. The Smoky Mountain community of Cutter Gap feels suspended in time, trapped by poverty, superstitions, and century-old traditions. But as Christy struggles to find acceptance in her new home, some see her — and her one-room school — as a threat to their way of life. Her faith is challenged and her heart is torn between two strong men with conflicting views about how to care for the families of the Cove. Yearning to make a difference, will Christy’s determination and devotion be enough?

After these books I have a couple of books I want to get to including Frankenstein by Mary Shelly (for English with The Boy) and Miss Morgan’s Book Brigade by Janet Skieslen Charles, but I also want to read a Nancy Drew. Oh my gosh! Why does there have to be so many good books out there to read?!

Little Miss and I are reading The Sign of The Beaver by Elizabeth George Speare for school and listening to Peter Pan by J.M. Barie at night.

The Boy will be starting Frankenstein this week.

The Husband is reading The Rum Diary by Hunter S. Thompson.

(For anyone new, The Husband is just a joke nickname for my husband since he jokingly calls our son “The Boy”.)

This week I’ve watched three old movies I had never seen before — The Prisoner of Zenda, which I wrote about on the blog, The Stranger, and Gunga Din. I’ll be writing blog posts The Stranger and Gunga Din soon.

I also watched the first episode of season five of All Creatures Great and Small and am so excited that it is back for another season. I can’t wait to see Tristan again.

I watched a few episodes of my favorite YouTuber farmer, Just A Few Acres Farm, while I waited for him to release a new episode.

The Advanced Readers Copies of Gladwynn Grant Shakes the Family Tree have been sent out to my advanced readers. I pushed back the release date to give them some time to read the book and me some time to tie up some loose ends.

It is available for pre-order here:

I am working on a monthly writing update and some movie impression posts for my Substack, which people can subscribe to for free or pay about $3 a month to receive exclusive posts I plan to offer in 2025.

This week on Substack I shared:

|| Classic Movie Impressions: The Ghost and Mrs. Muir ||

This week on this blog I shared:

Podcast I listen to daily:

Our Miss Brooks – rebroadcasts of the old radio show. I listen to these as I go to sleep.

Podcasts I am occasionally listening to because I don’t seem to just put them on since I am doing other stuff:

Little House 50 for 50

Pop Culture Preservation Society

True Drew: A Podcast for All Things Nancy Drew

Podcasts I want to listen to this year:

The Matthew West Podcast

The Life Without School

Lisa Harper’s Back Porch Theology

Now It’s Your Turn

What have you been doing, readin’, watchin’, and listenin’ to this past week? Let me know in the comments!

Sunday Chat: So insanely cold, watching old shows because I’m always behind the times, and shows about farming in the past

January 12, 2025January 13, 2025 / Lisa R. Howeler / 17 Comments

It was so cold this past week that our animals had no interest in going outside, which is unusual for the cats who like to go out even if it is snowing or raining.

I’m very glad they stayed inside because I worry about them when they are outside. Yes, we have outside cats. We live in a rural area and allow them to wander during the day and they come in whenever they want or they come in at night because I do not want them out at night with the various critters we have out here. I’ve had people on social media be very rude to me in the past and tell me I’m a horrible pet owner for letting my pets outside so I just thought I’d add a little context. I’m not flinging my animals out the back door into the wilderness.

They absolutely thrive when they can go outside and they stay close to our house and then return, often with a dead mouse to present to us. I sometimes forget that those who don’t live in a more rural area don’t let their pets outside for safety reasons so they misunderstand and think I’m pushing the cats out into danger.

That all being said, they have not wanted to go outside because of the cold lately, so it has been nice to have them want to cuddle and to watch them sleep curled up on the coffee table or sprawled out in front of the lit woodstove.

The oldest cat, Pixel, has been making me a little nervous lately. I don’t know if she feels well, and I’ve found a couple of bumps on her head. She’s been a lot more desperate to sit on me and be petted. Ever since I read that cats purr when they are happy or in pain, I’ve wondered/worried why my cats are purring and hope they aren’t in pain. Hopefully she’s okay. She’s pulled this on me before and bounced right back, so we will see.

I am reading three books at the moment. Christy by Catherine Marshall (with some heavy stuff amidst the inspirational, so I need breaks), Bourdain: The Definitive Oral Biography by Laurie Woolever (with some heavy stuff amidst the inspirational, so I need a break), and A Body in the Library by Agatha Christie (because a nice old fashioned murder always breaks up the heavy stuff. Hee. Hee.).

Little Miss and I are starting The Sign of the Beaver by Elizabeth George Speare for school this week. At night we are listening to a collection of Henry Huggins books by Beverly Cleary and read by Neil Patrick Harris and William Roberts.

The Husband just finished The Quiet American by Graham Greene.

The Boy is getting ready to read Frankenstein by Mary Shelley.

I finished the first season of Only Murders in the Building last night and really liked it. I’m looking forward to the other seasons.

My brother said he got bored with the show after season two, but he gets bored easily so I’m going to keep going. (*wink*)

As evidenced by the fact I am only just watching Only Murders in the Building, I often watch popular shows years after they ended. That’s why I have also started Castle, with Captain Mal — oh, I mean Nathan Fillion.

If you don’t understand that niche joke, I can’t help you — well, I can, but I’m going to make you search it up on your own instead.

Actually, The Husband started it for me last week (he’s watched it before) and now I’m continuing to watch it on my own.

I’m also watching Tudor Monastery Farm and this has me wondering a lot about this show and its spinoffs (Victorian Farm, Edwardian Farm, Wartime Farm) and how they work. Do these historians really do all these things they record, and do they really stay at these old buildings and houses? Or do they just film a little bit for educational purposes and move on. I guess I will have to step into the rabbit hole and figure this out this week.

I also watched Morning Glory with Katharine Hepburn and Douglas Fairbanks Jr., a couple episodes of Monarch of the Glen, and an episode of No Reservations (with Anthony Bourdain) last week.

I’ve started a Substack for cozy mystery, vintage movies, and book enthusiasts, as well as readers of my books.

For $3 a month you can join in and geek out with me about vintage Nancy Drew, classic movies, classic books, Gladwynn Grant and so much more.

You will be added to my book club Discord, A Good Book, and A Cup of Tea, and receive sneak peeks, exclusive discounts, access to various products, and whatever else comes to mind as I grow my space.

You can join here: https://lisarhoweler.substack.com/7ce3211e

What I shared on the blog last week:

|| How To Start Morning Creative Writing for More Productive Days by Filling the Jars ||

|| His Encouragement 300 by Christian Fiction Girl ||

|| Wordless Wednesday by Southern Patches ||

Now it is your turn! I’d love to hear what you are doing, what you are reading, what you are watching, listening to, etc. Let me know in the comments.

Sunday Chat: Octagenarian birthdays, starting my 2025 reads, and podcasts I recommend

January 5, 2025January 5, 2025 / Lisa R. Howeler / 12 Comments

Today is my dad’s 81^st birthday. We had a family dinner for him yesterday when my brother could visit and will probably have another lunch together with the kids and I today.

We had ham and bean soup yesterday and today we will eat some sausage balls I plan to make in memory of my aunt Dianne, as well a beef roast.

Last night we played a game of Uno that got a little crazy and felt like it might ever end. We ended up laughing and shaking our heads at how long it seemed to be going on.

This upcoming week we have nowhere to go which is fine with me because homeschool has to get back under way first thing tomorrow. Ha. First thing. Yeah right. It will probably be afternoon before we do anything, but it sounds better if I write “first thing.”

Having an easy-going week is something I am looking forward to after a pretty nuts Christmas break. The Husband was in the ER and diagnosed with Diabetes a few days before Christmas, so it’s been a period of adjustment and him not feeling well. He slept or rested most the break, which he needed and I’m glad he wasn’t working when this all hit.

I also injured my knee by – I don’t know how actually. By rolling over in bed or something. Who even knows.

So far we have not caught any of the various illnesses going around but I know our time is coming and I’m pretty worried about that happening.

I’m reading Christy by Catherine Marshall and really enjoying it. I loved the show that was based on it and aired on CBS in the 1990s and the book is fairly close to it from what I can see so far.

The book is a fictional book very loosely based on the life story of Marshall’s mother, if you’ve never heard of it. The main character travels to a very remote area in the Smokey Mountains of North Carolina in the early 1900s to become a teacher at a missionary school.

As a young, inexperienced woman she is for a rude awakening but also an amazing experience of learning about the determination of the people who live in the mountains.

Upcoming books for me:

I have three Nancy Drew books coming in the mail from Thriftbooks and hope to read at least one of those after Christy.
World Travel: An Irreverent Guide by Anthony Bourdain and Laurie Woolever
Little Men by Louisa May Alcott
The Two Towers by JRR Tolkien

Little Miss finished Harry Potter Chamber of Secrets yesterday while reading at her grandparents. She even made us wait for our game of Uno so she could finish the book. I’m very proud of her for reading the first two books. She was bothered by some of the violence in the end of the Chamber of Secrets so says she will be taking a break before she decides if she want to read book three.

The Boy and I will be starting Frankenstein soon, which he’s looking forward to a lot more than me. If you know anything about what I read, Frankenstein isn’t my normal read. We are reading through British literature this year and he likes the story of Frankenstein so we will go for it.

After that I’ll be having him read some Agatha Christie so that will be more up my alley.

The Husband is reading Bourdain The Definitive Oral Biography by Laurie Woolever.

This past week I watched The Power of the Press, a 1928 silent movie starring Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Morning Glory, a 1933 movie starring Fairbanks Jr. and Katherine Hepburn, a few episodes of No Reservations with Anthony Bourdain, and videos by Booktubers preparing their 2025 reading journals.

I enjoyed this video by Plant Based Bride. It scratched some sort of crafty itchy for me, but I don’t think I’ll ever be as detailed or organized in my reading journal.

I also watched A Victorian Farm: A Victorian Christmas this past week and am now starting A Tudor Farm.

I am finishing up corrections to Gladwynn Grant Shakes The Family Tree and started a Patreon, which you can subscribe to here if you’d like a sneak peek of the book.

Last week on the blog I shared: