The Lion's Tales: June 21-27

This weekly recap is where I blog about anything and everything from the past week. Could be about books, my kids, my garden... Random things in my life that don't fill enough space for their own post!

1. We had a garage sale this week (in fact I'm typing this post as I'm working it). Everyone always says "garage sales are too much work for how much money you end up making." I suppose that's true, but this year I tried really hard to work on things little by little -- I've kept a box by the stairs and anytime I came across something in the last few months that we don't use I'd put it in the box. And then we set tables up in the garage a week ahead, so when I had an hour here and there I'd go sort and price. We made out alright, and whatever is left we'll donate anyway. Abby and Ellie sold a ton of Rice Krispie treats.

2. I'm almost at the end of my "incentive period" with Usborne (my first 90 days). It's been great, and I've reached all of my goals except one. If I get 1 person to become a consultant too, before next Wednesday, I'll get a big box of free books and supplies. Would you like the chance to earn some extra income, build up your home library, and be part of a great community -- all with no sales quotas to meet? I've even known people to just buy the starter kit for a great deal on new books. Usborne is running a really great limited-time deal on a starter kit of 10 books plus supplies for only $55. Email me at thelionisabookworm at gmail dot com if you have any questions! You could also sign up right now by clicking through this link.

3. The girls had their first dentist appointment this week. They got to watch a little video about what to expect, then the dentist counted their teeth and just made it a fun experience for them. So far so good, no issues that she could see! We often joke that we hope the girls get my teeth and Rocky's eyes... if it's the other way around we're going to have lots of dentist and optometry bills. :-P


4. Ellie has gotten so many comments lately about how big she is. Whether it's at the store, at our garage sale, or people we know, everyone has a hard time believing she is still only 2 years old. I don't think she's any bigger than Abby was at that age, she's wearing the clothes Abby wore at that age. But she is only a couple inches shorter than Abby, and her speech is amazing. Some second-born kids take longer to talk because their older siblings do all the talking for them -- not Ellie!

Usborne Review: Beginners Non-Fiction Series

Beginners Non-Fiction Series
various authors

32 pages each. Hardcover. 

Usborne Review: The Complete Book of Farmyard Tales

The Complete Book of Farmyard Tales
by Stephen Cartwright & Heather Amery

328 pages. Hardcover. 

What the Cubs are Reading: June 15

It's Monday! What are you reading? is hosted by Sheila of Book Journey.  Jen from Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee and Ricki from Unleashing Readers have adapted it to focus on Picture Books to Young Adult Books. Since I recap what I'm personally reading each month with Modern Mrs. Darcy, for this linkup I post what Abby (age 5) and Ellie (almost 3) have been enjoying.

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Rodeo Red by Maripat Perkins. March 2015

We got this one from the library the last time we visited (it's SO weird to not be working there anymore...). It's a super cute story about a girl's interactions with her new little brother, and it's just impossible to not read without a southern drawl! :) I have yet to grow tired of reading it, I have enjoyed it so much! 

The Magic School Bus: Lost in the Snow

by Joanna Cole. January 2004

Apparently my kids don't care that the first day of summer is a week away... or maybe that's why they keep choosing this one. We have a couple of these MSB Scholastic Reader books that I've picked up at yard sales. We love watching the old shows on Netflix, and I was Ms. Frizzle for Halloween last year! This level 2 reader is still a little difficult for Abby to read by herself, but as she practices it's getting easier. As a science nerd I love love love the simple facts that MSB teaches - this one includes how snow is made up in the atmosphere. 

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We're doing some cleaning and purging for a garage sale next week, and I finally bit the bullet and went through the girls' bookshelves. We've been given SO many books over the last 5 years, and I was sick of picking them up off the floor every day - Ellie has a tendency to search for a specific book, and as she does she takes one off the shelf to see if it's what she's looking for, then puts it on the floor when it's not the right one. 

Before -- this was the everyday look...

After -- I bagged up a lot of stuffed animals too!

The "to-sell" boxes

It is SO hard to get rid of books. Many of them have specific memories. But as you can see from the "after" picture, we still saved a ton of them. I asked my husband to look through the boxes and pull out any that he wanted to save too. And after the sale we'll probably do one more look-through then donate the rest.

Do you have a hard time purging your kids' books too? 

Check out what others are reading in today's linkup!

This post contains Amazon Affiliate links. Purchases you make help support The Lion is a Bookworm a little bit without changing the cost to you!

Quick Lit: June 2015

My goal for this year is to read 36 books - 3 a month - after only finishing 24 last year. I'm slightly ahead of schedule, with 18 books completed so far in mid-June. Here's what I've finished in the last month.

Keepers of the Covenant (Restoration Chronicles #2) by Lynn Austin

I read the first book in this series last month, and raved about Austin's skills in writing historical fiction. I usually enjoy when characters appear throughout a series, and was a bit disappointed at first when I discovered so much time had passed between this book and the last one that only one character bridges the two. But that disappointment quickly faded as I got caught up in the stories of three new characters: Ezra, Amina, and Reuben. The book begins with all chapters alternating between these three, and how the Thirteenth of Adar (the story of Esther) affects them in their own communities. I loved seeing how the three stories, very separate at first, eventually intertwine and interact. The third book in this series, about Nehemiah, won't release until fall... ugh!

Centaur Rising by Jane Yolen

I took a break from adult fiction to read this one from the juvenile section. I enjoyed all of the Percy Jackson books a couple years ago, and I'm guessing this one came along because of the Greek mythology craze. This is the first non-picture book I've read by Yolen (I love her How Do Dinosaurs... series), and it was a fun, simple read. Rather than taking readers to a fantasy world, the concept here is that a bit of magic and mythology enters our world. I thought it was very predictable, but then again most juvenile books are that way for adults. :)

The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

I found this book at a yard sale and thought it sounded familiar (shows you how much I know about popular mainstream bestsellers! :-P ). It honestly took me a little while to get into, I really had to think hard about the dates and Clare and Henry's interactions, and what things happened in what order - it's difficult to explain. Once I got into it, I went back to skim some of the events at the beginning and then they made more sense. And once I got to the last 200 pages or so I sped through them and cried at the end. It's considered a romance, so there was a little more descriptive sex than I would usually read. But my overall takeaway was positive -- it made me appreciate the life and family I have and encouraged me to make the most of my time with them.

Linking up with Anne at Modern Mrs. Darcy!


This post does contain Amazon Affiliate links. Purchases you make help support The Lion is a Bookworm a little bit without changing the cost to you!

Usborne Review: See Inside Your Body

See Inside Your Body by Katie Daynes & Colin King

16 pages. Large boardbook. 

The Lion's Tales: May 31-June 6 (including June's #bookwormproblems)

This weekly recap is where I blog about anything and everything from the past week. Could be about books, my kids, my garden... Random things in my life that don't fill enough space for their own post!


1. It was the last week of school around here. Rocky has finished his 10th year of teaching, and Abby has finished her first year of preschool.

2. In honor of Abby's 5th birthday, we stopped by the library so she could get her very own library card. I know it's more for show than anything (I keep it in my wallet next to my own card, and signed up with my email address for her due date alerts), but she was pretty excited. :)

3. I closed an Usborne party this week for a teacher-friend who got $200 worth of books for $70. And actually if those packs in the picture would have been bought as separate books, the retail would have been even higher. Would you like some free and half-priced books? Let's have a party! If we get a party in during the month of June, you can get double the amount of free books as usual because I'm still new at this. And if you're not local to me, let's do a Facebook party! Send me an email at thelionisabookworm at gmail dot com.

4. #bookwormproblem of the month: I saw this photo come through Facebook and it really resonated with me:

I realized a lot of books I read are parts of series - it's been awhile since I read anything stand-alone. But that means I often have to wait until the next book in the series a) gets published or b) comes in at the library (luckily I've gotten in the habit of requesting the next book when I'm about halfway done with the first!). AND I've gotten in the habit of paging through the back of my current book (not reading anything though!) when I think I'm getting to that point where there's a good possibility it will end sooner than I'd like, so I can be prepared...

Do you read those chapter previews at the end of a book? Or just wait until you actually get that next book? 



Linking up with Jessica at Quirky Bookworm today! Click through to see what other problems are plaguing bookworms this month. :)

Usborne Review: Step-by-Step Drawing Book

Step-by-Step Drawing Book by Fiona Watt

96 pages. Paperback.