1. Gotta be a cat. I‘ve had black cats over the years although ours right now is a torby.
2. The tagged book! Sweet and a favorite since childhood. I read it every year.
3. A little girl dressed as QEII walking the family corgis. Adorbs.
4. I love themed socks! Size 6.5.
5. I‘m just not a film person, but I do own Young Frankenstein.
6. Caramel corn! (with peanuts)

#HauntedHollowSwap

1. Friendly but maybe a little scary too
2. Witches
3. Hot chocolate
4. Classics with a dash of bestsellers
5. The great pumpkin
6. Chocolate all day!
7. Love Both!
8. Vampires
9. Hmm. A bit of both
10. Same as 9

#HHS #HHS23 #HauntedHollowSwap

I‘m in! I was mostly crap at my summer readathons, although I did read a fair amount. My big goal is to finish all the books set in the summer on my BookSpin list as well as both my BookSpin & DoubleSpin. #SummerEndReadathon @TheSpineView

Here‘s my September BookSpin list! I‘ve been doing it every month but I‘ve been a laggard about posting it. And I haven‘t done a stellar job of reading the BookSpin or the DoubleSpin either, but it‘s a new month and a new list!

Sunrise this morning, Day 1 of my favorite two weeks of the year! A tennis slam in my time zone. My overall favorite on the women‘s side is Iga, for so many reasons, including the fact that she‘s a huge reader. Nice piece that I thought I‘d share: https://www.vogue.com/article/iga-swiatek-tennis-interview-us-open-2023

I reread this book and it‘s sequel most summers, but I missed last year. Soooo sweet. Like my Eddy Charcoal. She‘s happy we got power back tonight after two days too. Even with the big generator it‘s a pain. And it‘s happening more; the planet is convulsing. But enough of that, look at that sweet face! And read a good book. 🧡

I‘m all signed up! So happy you‘re doing this again, @wanderinglynn !

What a perfect London WWII staycation, @BethM ! I was hoping you would choose that. And you chose one of the books I really wanted and one that sounds absolutely wonderful that wasn‘t on my radar—and the tote is fabulous. Another really fun swap, @Chrissyreadit and @DinoMom ! Litsy is the best. #staycation

What a night last night in Michigan! Hope all mitten littens are doing well. Our back forty is a little messy and we don‘t have power, but we *do* have the big generator running so it‘s all good. I‘m rereading the final Ruth Galloway since I read it in such a state of suspense last week. (Would I like the ending?) And I‘m ready to open my #staycation package tomorrow! It arrived Wednesday, and mine was delivered yesterday.

A Michigan August sunrise pic for your morning. I finished the Elly Griffiths Ruth Galloway series last week and now I‘m rereading the final two books because I read them in a state of suspense, afraid of how it would end. But they ended perfectly inmho, and now I‘m going to savor them. The penultimate book is set during the pandemic and it‘s terrific. The mystery, the setting, but most of all the characters. ☕️ and a book for my morning.

Your package has shipped, @BethM ! Arrival date is Thursday. #Staycation

I wanted you to see my lovely tea towel in the wild, @Chrissyreadit ! I‘ll dive back into my book stacks later, but right now it‘s time to head out for euchre with our besties. We play every weekend, and today it‘s a special birthday edition. Mine! Here‘s to a good Sunday littens, and if you‘re a mitten litten keep an eye on the weather!

I just inhaled, er finished, the ninth Ruth Galloway. Had to stay up; no going to sleep until I was done! It‘s the third Ruth I‘ve read in the last two weeks, messing with my “only read in season” mantra, but WTH. This one was actually set in June for the most part, and it‘s terrific. Bones, tunnels, Harry, Ruth, Judy (I love her character so much), Cathbad (not as much of him this book, to my disappointment), and of course, the new Super. Big 👍

What a beautiful package of natural goodies, @Chrissyreadit ! I had a tough time fitting everything into the photo. It‘s all lovely and so thoughtful. The books are perfect. I so wanted the tagged one! Not just a tea towel but a gorgeous tote bag too . . . and the bookmark! I love it all. I‘m so glad we could exchange in this swap. Thanks for hosting, @AllDebooks and @jenniferw88 ; it was such a fun swap. Happy Solstice / Happy Litha to all.

I really loved this book. And I‘m so happy I did. I‘ve read a few books recently that I just couldn‘t get into, and that hurts my reading mojo. Sure, i plod along, but it harshes my reading mellow! But recent weeks have been much better, and this book is a keeper. A fast read, bittersweet and magical, highly recommended.

Pic is of Sir Murray and his cows in our side yard.

Both your packages mailed last week, @Chrissyreadit ! One from me, one from Amazon. And I received your package this past week too; so very excited! #naturalitsy #naturalitsysummerswap

All signed up! Thanks for hosting, @jenniferw88 and @AllDebooks ! #Naturalitsysummerswap

Good morning, Litsy! Especially Mitten Littens. What a night in the Irish Hills. We never lost power (AMAZING) and we have no trees close enough to the house to do damage, so mainly there will be lots of cleanup in the future. Today? Reading sounds splendid. Gotta start that #20in4 readathon!

I opened my wonderful #MugLove23 package yesterday afternoon before we went out for a late lunch and then I forgot to post. Thank you so much for everything, @Littlewolf1 ! The book and coffee are perfect, and I can‘t wait to try the candy. And the mug is absolutely wonderful. I‘ve started collecting mugs for different seasons, and this past holiday season I realized I had no winter/holiday mug. ⬇️

Happy Valentine‘s Day, dear littens. It was a tough night in my beloved Michigan. Our loved ones are safe; thinking of those who aren‘t. But it was a gorgeous sunrise, and here we are. 🧡

It‘s here, @Littlewolf1 ! Can‘t wait to open it. And your second package is currently out for delivery! #LoveMug23

I‘m in! I fell down on the last couple of readathons—grrr—so I‘m gearing up for a good second half of February. My goal is finishing my current read (Jerusalem Inn) + two more: And Justice There is None & Other Birds.

Your packages have shipped, @Littlewolf1 ! Mine should be there Thursday (pictured) and your other package should arrive this week too. It‘s coming from an Etsy shop in Kansas. #MugLove23

My new planner! It doesn‘t have pockets like my beloved PeanutButterTaco planners, but I love that I can put my Bookspin list on the same page as the “bingo card.” It‘s from Emily Cromwell Designs on Etsy. #BookSpinBingo #BookSpin (pens were a Christmas gift from my husband)

I‘m in for #JoyousJanuary! My goal is to read five books, including the tagged. The others are holdovers set around Christmas that I want to finish soon; they‘re all part of a series and I want to get them read so I don‘t have to wait until next Christmas!

Mugs! And since it‘s winter, I‘d like it to be winter themed. I have many mugs but I love them all, and I rotate seasonally.

Blues/greens

An Old English Sheepdog named Murray and a torby cat named Eddy Charcoal. (Eddy is a girl kitty, fyi).

Columbia or breakfast blend coffee (love beans), green and white tea (I love all teas, generally), herbal teas. Love pretty much all kinds of coffee it must be admitted.

My January #Bookspin list! I prepared it last week, and finally transferred it into my temp book journal aka moon datebook until my Etsy shop order arrives. The book journal is a new one for me. I‘ll post pics when it‘s here. I‘m having my delicious winter blend coffee courtesy of @Kshakal in my beautiful mug courtesy of @AmyK1 and plotting my day.

I didn‘t do very well at the #WinterReadathon, or post that much, but I loved following along. Thanks so much, @Andrew65 and @GHABI4ROSES ! Here we are in a new year, with all kinds of fabulous reading ahead. Getting started today! Yesterday we had 60F in my corner of Michigan. And SUNSHINE. Happy Winter indeed!

Ahhhhh, my #WinterWonderlandSwap! We had company for a long New Year‘s weekend, which was fabulous, but they‘re gone now & we‘re finally getting back to normal. I always get a little melancholy after the holidays, so it was lovely to open this today. You found a velvet headband! The books are perfect, and we too love that brand of K Cups—and I haven‘t had the winter blend before. It‘s a terrific choice! Thanks so much, @Kshakal !

Sunset from two days ago. We‘re back to a grey day today, but on the other hand, I woke up to 52F. Here‘s a lovely and eclectic list I thought I‘d share: https://parnassusmusing.net/2022/12/30/bestsellers-of-2022/ I‘ve finally put Seven Husbands on hold at the library! And Woman of Light and The Candy House and my first Emma Straub (I chose All Adults Here). I also have Other Birds and Shrines of Gaiety on hold. January #BookSpin here I come!

My #jolabokaflod package has been opened! And it‘s loverly, @TheDaysGoBy ! The chocolate is perfect (I love that one is local), and the book is a wonderful choice. I put my package away last week and then had trouble locating it, but i cleaned my messy salon/office today, and lo and behold, that‘s what it took. Great timing too; I‘ve got a couple of days to read before my brother & family arrive for New Years. Thanks again for a terrific swap!

And your #WWS packages should be there this week, @AmyG ! One was shipped from a shop in Georgia and one from me in Michigan. @Chrissyreadit @TheBookHippie

I‘m catching up on swaps today! Here is my #WWS package that arrived last week, I believe. Eddy is making a cameo. Can‘t wait to open it! @Chrissyreadit

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays, dear Litsy friends! It‘s a white Christmas in the Irish Hills of Michigan and life is good. I hope everyone is having a terrific day and books are plentiful! #WinterReadathon @Andrew65 #WinterReadathonDailyChallenge

We had a sunrise in Michigan this morning! It‘s been awhile. It‘s a cloudy time of year here, so maybe it was a solstice miracle. We made it, friends! No snow on the ground, but hoo boy that‘s about to change. Did a big grocery shop this afternoon, met great friends for a late lunch, and Mark did minor repairs to our hot tub. Time to hunker down and celebrate the shortest day of the year. Happy Solstice, everyone!

Christmas decoration time for #WinterReadathon! Great friends gave us this a couple of weeks ago. It looks just like our Murray. I might need to bring him in on Friday to protect him from the blizzard! #WinterReadathonDailyChallenge

1. NO! Well, six miles away on Christmas Eve for euchre & the Lions. And presents!

2. We are now! Michigan is expecting a blizzard in southern and central lower. Happy about the snow, notsomuch the potential for travel woes. And the winds are predicted to be intense. We‘ve got a bomb cyclone coming people! We‘ve stocked up on gin, gas for the big generator, and bird feed. Am I forgetting anything? 😉

Ahhh, I inhaled this book! It‘s my pick of the year, at least right this minute. It‘s such a joyous, bittersweet, precious read. Fiction at its best. I‘m not sure I‘ve ever read a better book about friendship. Highly recommended. Eddy Charcoal approves of my current reads.

My #jolabokaflod package arrived last week! Yay! And I mailed yours out today, @BookwormAHN ! I even had your address in my address book: 😄 Scheduled arrival is Thursday. I forgot to write the swap on the box, OR take a pic, but when you see the box from Michigan in your mail you‘ll know it‘s from me! #jolabokaflodswap

My #WinterReadathon Christmas lights entry! My plant window is decorated for Christmas. The tagged book is my current read, and I‘m enjoying it (number 2 in the series), but I need to power through and get to some lighter fare! I‘m loving the Winter Readathon prompts even when I don‘t participate; I‘m enjoying seeing what everyone is posting! @Andrew65 @GHABI4ROSES @DieAReader

Second in the Anderson & Costello series, and even better in my opinion. Just ordered number three, which is set around the New Year. Gotta read these books in season, even those in a series, and yes it‘s tough to wait at times! This was two mysteries that converged and it had me guessing until the end. Terrific characters and story. Set at Christmas, and my first book down for #WinterReadathon! @Andrew65 @DieAReader @GHABI4ROSES

My first #WinterReadathonDailyChallenge post! This is Sir Murray the Old English Sheepdog good-naturedly but awkwardly wearing his reindeer antlers! This is such a fun challenge; thanks to @Andrew65 , @DieAReader , and @GHABI4ROSES ! I have various bingo cards I‘ll be posting later. #WinterReadathon

Sinking into another excellent chunkster on a cold November night. Ahhhh.

Moonrise over the decorated bird tree; so pretty.

Amelia CatHeart* says Happy Halloween to all! Especially mama, who gave me special treats after I good-naturedly let her put this hat on me. I think a Christmas hat is in my future. That‘s fine. More treats!

*Eddy Charcoal, the beautiful girl torby cat.

So, I got as far as the harvest snack mix and I tore it open and started eating it! What a terrific swap box. Three great books, including the first in a series I‘ve long wanted to read! And socks and more treats and NOTEBOOKS! My heart 🧡. Happy Halloween Eve to all! #HHS @wanderinglynn

It‘s a beatooootiful October morning in the Mitten. Saturday morning plans: ☕️ and P.D. James. The tagged installment had a verrryyy slow start, but P.D. & Adam have mesmerized me, so I‘m into it. Lots of setting the table in the first section. Then we get the murder and our golden detective finally appears. I have the next one in the series on my October bookspin too; both set this month, gotta read them now!

My #HHS package has mailed as planned! Estimated delivery in Texas is Tuesday. I‘ll update and tag the lucky (I hope she agrees!) recipient then. A terrific swap and season. @wanderinglynn

I‘ve received my #HHS package! I was cleaning my admittedly messy salon yesterday and I discovered my wonderful husband put it there without me realizing, probably late last week. And my package is finally ready to go. Whew. More updates forthcoming.

I have curling on the tee vee and my morning is sorted! There was indeed a bookmark in the box, @AmyK1 . It was mostly hidden beneath the socks in my group pic and I missed mentioning it! Fall blew into Michigan yesterday, so those socks will be worn soon. 36 F earlier this morning.

My goodness, @AmyK1 , you‘ve outdone yourself! I love that you‘ve read and enjoyed most of the books you chose and that you included comments! The one I tagged sounds perfect for the season. Cheese straws and ghiradelli: what can I say: They hit the bullseye for me. Th socks are just right: they fit perfectly. The tea and the mug will be used tomorrow, and I‘m a writer and a journaler, so 💅 to the notebook and stickers! @Avanders #fffs