5MinutesForMom is having a sleeping angel contest. They are giving away a South Shore Children’s Bedroom Set from Home & Bedroom Furniture. They are asking people to post pictures of their sleeping babies, and the winner will have their choice of either the Lily Rose or the Summer Breeze set. I would definitely choose Summer Breeze if I were to win.

So, here is the picture. It’s adorable, and it’s one of my favorites. We were at Jason’s parents’ house one day this summer. I ran a few errands, and when I came back, I walked in the front door and saw this…

My Sleeping Angels

Well, like I said last month, I don’t have a nightstand. There’s one on Jason’s side of the bed, but we don’t have books on that one either. I just have my books all over the house. There are a couple in our room, a couple on the back of the couch, one behind the couch, one in my purse, one on my end table, and tons downstairs on our bookshelves.

Last month, I was reading The Breastfeeding Answer Book, Reclaiming Nick, and Happiness Sold Separately. I have made some good progress in the Breastfeeding Answer Book. I read Reclaiming Nick and the two other books in the series, Taming Rafe and Finding Stephanie. I did not finish Happiness Sold Separately. It fell behind our couch, and I sort of forgot about it. Whoops. I did start it, though, and it’s pretty good from what I remember.

In the last month, I also discovered PaperBackSwap and BookMooch. I wouldn’t say that I am obsessed with them, but they are so fun! I put 20 of my books on the sites (10 on each) and so far, I’ve received 4 books with a 5th on the way. I also thought I would try a swap with anyone on here who wants a book that I’ve read, but so far no one has taken me up on my offer. Since I wrote the post, I have decided, I will just give those books away, so if you want one, let me know. If you have any you’d like to swap, I’m open to offers, but I guess it’s now a giveaway!

I have a trip coming up in about 1 1/2 weeks, so my reading list is a bit more ambitious this month. I have some high hopes that I will be able to read a lot on my trip. So, here is my list for October:

Seeing and Savoring Jesus Christ by John Piper (from PaperBackSwap)- I was looking through available books on PaperBackSwap, and I saw this one. I hadn’t heard anything about it, but if it’s John Piper, I figured there’s a pretty good chance it’s got quality content.

Breaking Free by Beth Moore (from PaperBackSwap)- My friend from college purchased this study, and she has done it several times. I love Beth Moore, so I figured if my friend can do the study 5+ times and find it valuable, I would probably enjoy the book.

Midwives by Chris Bohjalian (from BookMooch)- This is a book I had heard about, but I’m not quite sure what I will think of it. It’s a subject I have pretty strong feelings on (midwives and homebirths). I suppose it could really go either way.

The Memory Keeper’s Daughter by Kim Edwards (from BookMooch)- I was in Target wandering around one night after a stressful evening trying to put A to sleep. I picked up this book and read the back of it. I had actually forgotten about it for quite a while, but when I was trading away my books, I decided to look it up.

Wild Goose Chase by Mark Batterson (received from Monica’s giveaway on her site Paper Bridges)- I actually found this giveaway last month when checking out others’ lists.

Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen (borrowing it from the library)- After hearing about this one for so long, I decided to find out what all the talk is about.

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith (don’t have it yet, but will be getting it from the library and hope to be a part of October Book Club on 5minutesforbooks.com)- I have heard about this book, but I don’t know anything about it. Maybe it’s time I start learning what the classics are all about!

The Problem with Breastfeeding by James Akre (borrowed from a friend)- She said this book is a must read. I guess I’ll find out.

Don’t forget to check out www.5minutesforbooks.com for a list of people who have shared what they are reading this month!

I love to read, and I have loved it as long as I can remember. According to my mom, I’ve been reading since I was 4 years old. I don’t think I remember that, but I do know that the library, books, and reading were a major part of my youth. I used to go to the library every Monday after school and exchange my books. I would sit there and read until about 4:45 when my dad got off work and met me there. Generally, in that time, I would have picked out 8 books (1 for each day of the week plus one for the time at the library) and returned the one I had just finished. Once I got into college, my pace slowed down, but I still read when I could. The day that I turned in my master’s independent study, I went to the library to celebrate. I checked out 4-5 books and read for the next week straight, I think.

Recently, I’ve gotten a little claustrophobic with all the stuff we have in our house, so I decided that I should list some of my books on some book swapping sites. I listed books on BookMooch and PaperBackSwap. The idea of the sites (with a few differences of course) is that you list books you’ve read. Someone else requests them and you send your books to people that want/need them. Then, you find someone who has books you want/need and you request those books. Of course, the books I want right now are also ones that 300+ others also want, so we’ll see how soon I get them. Haha…

But, why should I save all my swapping for people I don’t know and have no contact with? Anyone wanna swap with me? I’m putting 5 books up for a swap. If you want one of mine, offer me one of yours. I’ll pay my shipping, and you pay yours. I’m going to list my books, books I have liked in the past (to give you an idea of what my tastes are), and books I want now. If you think we could make a match, either leave me a comment or e-mail me at casey at berbs dot us.

First, books I have and want to give away:

A Family Apart by Joan Lowery Nixon- This was a book I had to read for one of my elementary education classes in college. I remember it being a good book, and I remember being somewhat tempted to read the rest of the series (The Orphan Train Adventures). It is a book that is appropriate for kids in the upper elementary grades. I would say it would be good for an advanced 3rd grader or an average fourth or fifth grader. There are some themes in the book that are somewhat intense for kids of this age (orphans, family/sibling separation, families that do not adopt the children out of love but are looking for labor or servants) so be aware of that if you are intending to give this book as a gift or to someone younger than 14ish (?).

A Time to Kill by John Grisham- This is a great book. It’s a crime drama. It’s about a man who kills two men who raped his young daughter. This book isn’t in great condition. I got it off the library swap table. It has the library book tag on the side and the barcode on the back. The binding is broken and page 117-118 falls out. It’s definitely readable, but it’s not fresh. It’s a book worth reading though.

The Witness by Dee Henderson- I read Dee Henderson’s books The O’Malley Series and The Uncommon Heroes series. I really enjoyed those books. I thought The O’Malley Series were her best books though. This book is good, too, but I didn’t like it as well as the O’Malleys. I think that I got so attached to those characters I missed them when I was reading this book. It’s a Christian suspense book. There’s a little romance in it, too, if I remember correctly, but it’s definitely PG.

The Nanny Diaries by Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus- This book is light chick lit. It’s about a woman who becomes one of “those” nannies to a wealthy New York family. The job starts out as caring for one small child. She ends up becoming much more than just a nanny. It reminds me a little of The Devil Wears Prada Nanny Edition.

Every Storm by Lori Wick- I read this book quite a while ago, so I’m not all that clear on the details of it anymore. I remember something about a plane crash and that’s about it. It’s Lori Wick. That should say it all. The main character is sweet and maybe a little unrealistically perfect, and there’s romance in it. Also, this is Christian fiction and PG. It’s a good book. It’s hardcover in case that matters, too.

Books I have read in the past and liked:

See the list above. I liked all those. I have read books by Susan May Warren, John Grisham, Dean Koontz, James Patterson, Lori Wick, Anita Shreve, Dee Henderson, Dr. Sears, Mary Doria Russell, John Piper, Henri Nouwen, and Beth Moore.

Books I am looking for right now:

I’m particularly looking for

You: The Owner’s Manual by Michael Roizen and Mehmet Oz

The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan

In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver

The Shack by William P. Young

You can try me on Christian fiction and non-fiction, but I’m not interested in the Beverly Lewis/Amish type of Christian fiction.

Ready, set, SWAP!

I’ve been blogging on this site for over a year now, and I’ve been reading others’ blogs for even longer. Only recently, though, have I really started participating in the comments and giveaways on others’ blogs. Apparently, I’ve had a great streak of luck, because I’ve won 3 giveaways in the last few weeks. So, I want to take a minute to say thanks to those bloggers for their fun contests. Thank you, 5 Minutes for Books, for the book, Shop Your Closet. I have big plans for my closet! Thank you, Heather, for the lipstick. I love it, and I’m so glad I took a chance on the Raisinberry. It’s so fun. Thank you, Monica, for the book, Wild Goose Chase. I have a lot of reading I want to do, but I think this may make its way up to the top of the list rather quickly.

I have enjoyed reading new blogs, and of course, there’s always an extra thrill that comes with winning something. Hmmm, maybe some time it will be my turn to do a giveaway!

I think over the course of the next several months, I will probably be changing my blog topics up a little. When I was breastfeeding K frequently or when A was born and I was feeding both boys frequently, I felt like I had a lot more to say about nursing specifically. Now that they’re getting older, it’s just something that’s an every day part of our lives. It just is. I don’t think or worry about it too much. We’ve gotten over most of the hurdles and pitfalls. A is sleeping better, and K has kept up his 2 a day nursing routine for the past few weeks.

Some of the topics that I have become more interested in lately are healthy eating, green living, cooking, exercise, and expanding my reading repertoire. Maybe I’ll finish a book (without reading the ending ahead of time) and do a review of it. Who knows?

What are you reading? I’m always looking for a good book or a good recommendation. I start lots of books, and I finish a few. I will start anything that sounds even remotely interesting. I’m not limited to a certain genre, author, or storyline. I read Christian authors and non-Christian authors. I read fiction and nonfiction. I read as much as I can. I have always loved to read. As a child, my mom says that I taught myself to read around the time I was 4. Since then, I have almost always had at least one book in the process of being read.

Right now, I don’t have a nightstand, but I do have a reading list. Some of these I just started, and some I have been working on for a while.

The Breastfeeding Answer Book - Who doesn’t love a good several hundred page, spiral bound, informational book?

Reclaiming Nick - I read this review on 5 Minutes for Books, and I thought I should start at the beginning of the series instead of at the end.

Happiness Sold Separately - I got this book off freecycle. If someone’s giving a book away, it’s worth taking a chance, right?

I’m sure there are a few others, but these are the ones that get most of my time right now. How about you?

I decided after trying all those lipsticks that I should probably post a picture of my normal lipstick. I think that when you see it, you’ll agree it looks fine. It’s nothing super obvious or flashy. it’s fine. That’s my problem with it, though. It’s just fine. I want something a little different and more exciting. Maybe raisinberry is it. I’ll have to think about it.

My usual look

Better late than never, right?

Yuck, yuck, yuck. Let’s just say that I couldn’t find a way to make this color work for me. I didn’t wear it out of the house. Lip gloss just didn’t do it. It was very obviously not me.

Pink Melon

Today’s lipstick is okay. I don’t feel like it’s the right shade for me, but I’m not ashamed to be seen wearing it either, so I guess that’s okay, too. I would not buy it for myself though. Oh, I forgot to add that I chose this color because my blush from Merle Normal is called Dusty Rose, so I thought they might go well together. I don’t think they do though.

Dusty Rose

This is my favorite so far. It’s not quite the right shade, but it’s fun, different, and oh-so-close! I think I might need to explore some of the colors that are like this one but just a little different.

Raisinberry