Stephany Writes

Categories: Recurring Series

Monday Morning Coffee Date

Happy Monday! Let’s have a coffee date to catch up, shall we? I am drinking a peppermint mocha, of course.

If we were having coffee this morning, I would begin by gushing about my Secret SANta! I got the woman of the hour herself: San! She put together a wonderful package for me, including a nice big mug, peppermint mocha creamer, a handmade ornament, and a Starbucks gift card. I was so thrilled with my gift. Thank you, San!

If we were having coffee today, I would tell you that I am firmly in the holiday spirit and really enjoying December. I am not someone that struggles to get into the holiday spirit, but last year was a little weird since my mom, my stepdad, and I left on a trip the day after Christmas. So I never put up a tree and we celebrated Christmas early. It was so nice to get out my tree this year and fill it up with my favorite ornaments. I’ve had this tree for a few years and I’ve noticed that some of the lights have burned out but it’s not enough to be noticeable to other people, I don’t think. I still need to figure out a present for my stepdad, but other than that, all of the presents are ordered and ready to go! And it will be a very Christmassy week: going to see the holiday lights, book club’s Christmas party, and making Christmas cookies with the fam. YAY!

If we were having coffee today, I would want to tell you how much I love my new therapist. I am fully in love with this woman. She is so encouraging and helpful and just plain amazing. She was born to be a therapist. And I love that she gives me tangible ways to help me through my anxiety spirals. When I told her I was having some anticipatory anxiety about January (and how boring it will be compared to the excitement of December), she gave me some tips for bringing myself back to the present moment. (Like deep belly breathing and pulling up a YouTube meditation video). When I told her how much change triggers my anxiety, she was like, “Great! We can work on that!” And, like, it just never occurred to me that I could get better at my fear of change? I could learn to embrace change? What a concept! In January, my health insurance is switching from an FSA plan to a low-deductible HSA plan, which means these therapy appointments will be more expensive. (Right now, I pay $30 a session since it’s a flat deductible.) But I will do whatever I can to keep going to this woman twice a month because I have a feeling she’s going to change my life.

If we were having coffee today, I might admit that I think it’s time to break up with my dietician. I love my dietician and she has helped me unpack so much of my diet culture baggage, but I think she leans a little too far in this “eat whatever you want!” mindset. I know that losing weight is going to be a big goal of mine for 2025 because I need to improve my bloodwork numbers and I am hoping that losing weight will allow me to get off CPAP therapy. But I find that whenever I bring that up to her, she dismisses my concerns. I need a dietician who is going to help me figure out how to eat in a way that will get me the weight loss I need without falling back into my diet-y ways. I’m unsure if I want to find a different dietician or just go it alone for a few months and see how I do.

If we were having coffee today, I might talk about my cats! Eloise’s gotcha day was on December 8th, which means I’ve been a cat mom for 6 years now! I still remember the moment I saw her. She had been rescued from the streets by a woman who nursed her back to health, got her fixed, etc. She was closed off in a room in this woman’s house because her other cat was not friendly to Eloise. The woman brought Eloise out to meet me and it was love at first sight. Immediately, I knew that we were meant to be together. I can’t believe we’ve had six years together and how much friggin JOY she brings to my life. She is the epitome of a velcro kitty who likes to be near me at all times. She sleeps tucked in between my legs at night and makes me share my office chair with her so she can snuggle close to me while I’m working. As I’m writing this blurb, I’m sitting at my dining room table and Eloise was sitting on my bed, staring at me (the bedroom door was open). I said to her, “I love you!” And she got up, trilled at me, and then jumped on the dining room table to get pets. She is such a goddamn lovebug.

As for Lila, I am going to attempt to take her for a bath this month! It will be her first time. Cats don’t normally need to be bathed, but Lila has some matting issues and will not let me brush her, so I found a pet spa that offers this service. And not to get too TMI, but she needs some, ahem, clean up around her “potty area” (as the pet spa calls it, lol). I’m going to drug her up and hope for the best. She’s usually pretty chill at the vet so I hope she’ll be the same at the pet spa. One of my favorite things Lila does is that the minute she hears me turn off my CPAP machine in the morning, she jumps on the bed for cuddles. She’ll let me cuddle her when I’m wearing my mask at night, but it feels like she’s just waiting for the sign that it’s almost time for me to get up, which means she can scooch in for cuddles and kisses in the morning when I’m half-asleep.

What would you tell me at our coffee date?

Categories: Recurring Series

What I’m Reading (11.24.24)

Pretty Face by Lucy Parker (★★★★★)

E-Book • Owned (Amazon) • Contemporary Romance • 2017

Short synopsis: Lily Lamprey is determined to prove herself in her first role as a stage actress. Sparks fly when she catches the eye of the director, Luc Savage. As their romance deepens, both their careers are put at risk, testing their love and ambitions.

This romance was a reread for me, and oh, I loved it just as much as I did the first time around! I think this book is when I really noticed Lucy Parker’s talent as a novelist and she became an auto-buy author for me. There was so much I loved about this novel, between the sweet romance, the complicated family dynamics, and getting a glimpse into what it takes to put on a stage production these days. I loved the rapport between Lily and Luc—they had sizzling chemistry but also a very sweet way of caring for one another. Please do yourself a favor and pick up a Lucy Parker romance if you haven’t yet!

The Very Nice Box by Laura Blackett and Eve Gleichman (★★☆☆☆)

Audiobook • Spotify • Fiction • 2021

Short synopsis: Ava Simon, a designer at a Brooklyn furniture company (basically an IKEA knockoff), is startled by her reaction to her new boss, Mat Putnam. As an unexpected relationship between them blossoms, things begin to unravel for Mat and Ava realizes everything is not as it seems.

I had a very strange reading experience with this book. The book is marketed as “suspenseful” and I was expecting something a bit more dark and twisted than what I got. Instead, about 70% of the book was a bland romance between a woman who had a hard time opening up to others and a boring white man who expected the world to fall at his feet. Snooze. Finally, just about a few chapters to the end, things picked up and the suspensefulness I had been promised was delivered. By that point, though, I was tired of the book and didn’t feel like the payoff was worth it. I needed more of a build-up to the big reveal rather than it all happening at one time. It was also just hard to feel invested in the story between Ava and Mat when I knew something crazy was about to be revealed, so why are we spending pages and pages and pages with them and their budding romance? Meh.

Our Woman in Moscow by Beatriz Williams (★★★★☆)

Print • Library • Historical Fiction • 2021

Short synopsis: In 1948, Iris Digby and her family mysteriously vanished from London, sparking rumors of either a Soviet kidnapping or defection. Four years later, Ruth Macallister receives a postcard from her estranged twin sister, prompting her to journey to Moscow under false pretenses to rescue Iris and her family. 

This was a great historical fiction novel! The Cold War era fascinates me so much, but I find that there is little I know about it. This novel took me on a journey of a small part of the Cold War involving a woman whose husband is a Soviet spy and her sister who knows very little about her life. I’ve read many novels by Beatriz Williams and this one felt a lot darker and heavier than her other ones, while still having her signature lightness with some romance thrown in to keep things from feeling too dark. I wanted a little more from the ending—it felt very rushed and I would have liked another chapter or two to explain everything—but other than that, it was an excellent novel that had me on the edge of my seat at the end!

What are you reading?

Categories: Recurring Series

Snapshot of My Day: Wednesday, November 20

Time I woke up: 7:30 a.m.

First thing I did upon waking: After feeding the girls and getting dressed, I went downstairs to my car. You see, last night, I discovered my wallet was missing. It has my driver’s license, debit card, credit card, Target Circle card, insurance cards, and FSA card. (No cash, thankfully!) I did one last sweep of my car to make sure it wasn’t stuck in a random spot, but no dice.

Today’s weather: Warm but less humid than usual, which is a nice reprieve. The high was 79 and it was very gloomy due to the hurricane that THANKFULLY passed way, way west of us.

Something I spent money on today: $54 to replace and renew my driver’s license.

An out-of-the-ordinary thing that happened today: Mostly, dealing with the craziness of losing my wallet! I guess 2024 is the year of losing things (first my keys and now my wallet). I have no idea where it went—thankfully, my debit/credit card was never used (which makes me wonder if I’ll just find the wallet in a random spot in a few days). But I wasn’t going to wait around to maybe find the wallet. I went ahead and canceled my cards and went to the bank to get new debit/credit cards. I was also able to snag an afternoon appointment at the DMV to get a new driver’s license. I’m leaving on a cruise in less than two weeks and there’s a holiday in the middle of all of that, so I didn’t want to wait around for things to be mailed to me. Next up: replacing my insurance cards, FSA card, and Target Circle card.

Last thing I read (not on the Internet): Our Woman in Moscow by Beatriz Williams.

Last thing I read (on the Internet): The Reddit thread about the show I’m currently watching (The Summit) to make sure everyone else was as frustrated by the people on the show as I am.

Last text I sent: “I hope they fall off the mountain.” I sent this to my mom about The Summit.

Last text I received: “For reals.” My mom’s reply, lol.

Last website I visited: My blog to grab the prompts for this post.

Last show I watched: The Summit, ugh.

Last podcast I listened to: Beach Too Sandy, Water Too Wet, one of my fave podcasts!

Last thing I said: “Lila, I need you to stop walking all over my laptop.” She’s cute, but she can be a menace.

Last thing I ate: Ice cream!

What I was doing an hour ago: I was watching Survivor and coloring.

What I will be doing an hour from now: Probably tidying up my apartment. It’s a bit of the mess from the wallet search + procuring the appropriate documents to get my driver’s license renewed.

Current whereabouts of other members of my household: Lila is snoozing on the table next to me and Eloise is snoozing on the ottoman under my desk.

One thing I crossed off my to-do list today: Did I get anything done today? Not anything work-related but I did make it to my Wednesday evening HIIT class! I felt like I struggled so much during this workout but I got it done.

Categories: Recurring Series

Currently in November

—-

Loving… NaBloPoMo. I was on the fence about tackling this challenge again, but it’s been so fun and I’ve met new bloggers! I’m enjoying myself.

Loathing… Abby. That’s the name I gave to the abscess on my underarm. I’ve had a cyst in this area of my underarm for years, and every now and then, it gets a little swollen. This time, though, it turned into a huge abscess (it was 4 centimeters when my dermatologist measured it) that needed to be drained. I was lucky enough to see my dermatologist the day I called for an appointment (she’s usually booked out for months). The abscess was very painful and irritated, and draining it helped a lot. But it’s still not back to normal. The area is pretty red and I’m still doing warm compresses to drain it. Ugh.

Reading… Our Woman in Moscow by Beatriz Williams, which has been a fantastic historical fiction book about Soviet spies. (Feels a little prescient to read it right after the election, too.) And I have about an hour left in my audiobook, The Very Nice Box by Laura Blackett.

Watching… not much these days. I’m trying to keep up with my weekly episodes of Survivor, The Summit, and The Floor. But otherwise, my time is taken up with writing and reading blog posts!

Listening to… Christmas music! Is it too early for Christmas music? Maybe, but I don’t care. I am ready for the holiday season!

Anticipating… birthsgiving! It’s fun when my birthday falls on Thanksgiving like it does this year. For my birthday, I have requested a traditional Thanksgiving dinner. Too much?

Thinking about… how I want to approach goal-setting in 2025. I may even give up annual goals in favor of quarterly goals, which would be a wild thing for me to do. I love my annual goals! But a year is a long time and I always start feeling meh about halfway through the year about the goals I set. It’s just something I’m pondering, though.

Buying… Christmas presents! With a large order placed at Amazon, I will be nearly finished with holiday shopping. I just need to think about what to buy for my book club gift exchange and some other family members.

Grateful… for a new therapist. I feel so lucky to have found someone I click with immediately and don’t need to go therapist hunting. I have my second appointment with her tomorrow and I am looking forward to it!

What are you currently reading and watching?

Categories: Recurring Series

Three Things Thursday (Bookish Edition)

Typically, Three Things Thursday is a blog series I do where I choose 10 random categories and write 3 things about each. For today’s post, I only chose 5 categories and they’re all bookish! Let’s dive in, shall we?

Three bookish memories from childhood

1) My weekly library trips with my mom. We would go every Saturday morning, and I would check out 10 books, as that was the maximum number of children’s books I was allowed to check out. I would read them all and be ready for my next 10 books the following Saturday.

2) Receiving a copy of The Complete Guide to the Baby-Sitters Club, which I read so many times that the cover fell off and my parents bought me a new one. THE BEST.

3) Getting in trouble for walking and reading during my walk home from school one day. Apparently, it’s “unsafe” to be lost in a book when there are cars around?! Hrmph!

Three books coming up on my TBR list

1) The Last One at the Wedding by Jason Rekulak—I hated this author’s previous book, but I heard really good things about this one, so I’m going to give him another try. Don’t let me down, Jason!

2) Worst Case Scenario by TJ Newman – I loved Newman’s previous two books and I’m excited to dive into her latest release as soon as my hold is in.

3) The Night Swim by Megan Goldin – I bought this book from Book of the Month years ago and I’m finally going to pluck it off my shelf soon.

Three of the lowest-rated books on my Goodreads Want-to-Read list

1) Pete and Alice in Maine by Caitlin Shetterly (3.38 stars) – Lisa gave this novel 4 stars but it has a very low rating on Goodreads. A lot of people said this book is boring and apparently the dialect the author uses is slightly problematic? IDK. I may try this on audio since more character-driven stories work better for me in that format.

2) All This & More by Peng Shepherd (3.4 stars) – This “choose your own adventure” story piqued my interest when it was talked about on Sarah’s Book Shelves Live. Most reviewers say the book just goes on forever, so I’m not sure if I’ll give it a try or not.

3) Piglet by Lottie Hazell (3.45 stars) – Another SBSL rec! I may remove this one from my shelf, though, because a lot of the negative reviews talk about the disordered eating that’s rampant through the book and that’s just not something I need in my life.

Three book goals I’m pondering for 2025

1) Read one 500+ page book every quarter – I tend to shy away from big chonkers, which is why I’m pondering this goal. Right now, the books I have my eye on are The Shell Seekers by Rosamunde Pilcher (544 pages) and 11/22/63 by Stephen King (849 pages). If you have ideas for other 500+ page books, I’m all ears!

2) Read more Agatha Christie mysteries – This year, I set a goal to read 6 mysteries by Agatha Christie, which has been such an enjoyable goal! And it would be fun to become an AC completist and read more of her books in 2025.

3) Choose six books I previously abandoned and give them another shot – I’m curious about all the books sitting on my “abandoned” list on Goodreads. It’s possible that I just wasn’t in the right headspace for some of them. Then again, there are so many books to read so why rehash the past?

Three 2024 releases I loved this year

1) The Women by Kristin Hannah – I devoured this book, even though it was long and sad and heavy. Learning more about the Vietnam War and PTSD among those who served was fascinating.

2) Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera – Listening to this book was, hands down, my most favorite audiobook experience ever. It was so good!

3) Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez – I loved this contemporary romance that had a lot of difficult themes at the core of the novel. The ending was pure perfection.

What’s a bookish memory from your childhood?