There's A Bumbie Under My Bed!

It's so nice to get a chance to review some children's books, especially because I have little ones who still like me to read to them, unlike Olivia and Jackson who want to go off on their own.

There's A Bumbie Under My Bed - Bethany Ramos

Are you afraid of the monsters who come out at bedtime? Do you ever wonder what lives under the bed with the dust-bunnies? Bunny-stein that's who! There's a Bumbie Under My Bed is the story of a child's relationship with various monster-bunnies that come out when he is trying to sleep. Count Hopula bounces across his bed while the Were-bunny tickles his toes. The zombie rabbit hops and plays all night, making so much noise. . . Ms. Ramos has created a great story and method for children to befriend the imaginative 'monsters' teasing them at night. By encouraging critical thinking, There's a Bumbie Under my Bed shows children how to turn fear into a fun activity before bedtime.

Do you have a little one who is afraid of the dark? Perhaps they tell you of fantastic creatures that come out once the lights are off? I remember for years Olivia would refuse to sleep because of the flying dogs outside her second story window. She honest to goodness believed that these dogs were trying to get in her window because it was too cold outside. Needless to say, we had a lot of sleepless nights in our home. (Turns out, that child strongly dislikes sleep and functions on little to none even to this day and she's eleven. Yay us!)

With creative illustrations that almost look like spray painted graffiti bordering on the slightly scary side, this tells the tale of a little one who is visited every night by a slew of fantastic creatures. Turns out it's just the child's imagination along with a flashlight to make creative shadows on the wall! It's a cute story that invites you and your child to come up with some creatures of your own.

I'm sorry I didn't get this for review before Halloween because it could have been a cute Halloween read, but if you're looking for a cute little book that you won't easily find in a library or on the shelf of Target, this would be a fun one.

Blackbird by Molly McAdams COVER REVEAL

Title: Blackbird
Author: Molly McAdams
Series: A Redemption Novel
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Releasing February 28th, 2017

Cover Design: r.b.a DESIGNS

“Consuming. Enthralling. Sexy. MIND-BLOWING. From the very first line to the very last page, Blackbird sank into me and didn’t let me go. This is Molly McAdams at her best! A must-read that will have you questioning all your emotions as you fall in love with this unforgettable story.” – New York Times bestselling author, AL Jackson

From New York Times bestselling author Molly McAdams comes a powerhouse romantic suspense that will have you questioning your morals and second guessing your view on love.

I live in a world few know exist. I’ve trained for this. I know what to say, what to do, and how to act. I’ve perfected the lethal calm required for this life.

Now it’s time to buy my first girl. But all it takes is one look at the brave girl who starts singing mid-auction for that calm to slip.

Briar Chapman is going to be the death of me, and I don’t care. I’ll take every day with her until that death comes, and I’ll welcome it when it does.

On the outside, Lucas Holt is what nightmares are made of. A man cloaked in darkness, with sin-filled eyes and an enticing grin. A devil so devastatingly beautiful and cruel that his very presence instills fear.

But beneath his terrifying, ever-calm exterior is an affectionate man haunted by a past that refuses to stay buried. And Lucas looks at me as though he’s finally found the only person who can make it all go away.

We’re a battle of the brightest day and the darkest night—and I want to lie in the wake of our war.

Exclusive iBooks Pre-Order

Read a SAMPLE of BLACKBIRD on iBooks!

Molly grew up in California but now lives in the oh-so-amazing state of Texas with her husband, daughter, and fur babies. When she’s not diving into the world of her characters, some of her hobbies include hiking, snowboarding, traveling, and long walks on the beach … which roughly translates to being a homebody with her hubby and dishing out movie quotes. She has a weakness for crude-humored movies and fried pickles, and loves curling up in a fluffy comforter during a thunderstorm … or under one in a bathtub if there are tornados. That way she can pretend they aren’t really happening.

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The Six Train to Wisconsin

I'm doing so well on book reviews so hopefully you'll find a few new ones to read and a few to purchase as well! You'll notice at the bottom of every review now I'll have an Amazon link so you can shop easily, you're welcome, lambs.

The Six Train to Wisconsin - Kourtney Heintz

Sometimes saving the person you love can cost you everything.

There is one person that ties Oliver Richter to this world: his wife Kai. For Kai, Oliver is the keeper of her secrets.

When her telepathy spirals out of control and inundates her mind with the thoughts and emotions of everyone within a half-mile radius, the life they built together in Manhattan is threatened. 

To save her, Oliver brings her to the hometown he abandoned—Butternut, Wisconsin—where the secrets of his past remain buried. But the past has a way of refusing to stay dead. Can Kai save Oliver before his secrets claim their future?

An emotionally powerful debut, The Six Train to Wisconsin pushes the bounds of love as it explores devotion, forgiveness and acceptance.

I've had this book, and the sequel, on my review shelf for a few months and I'm just now getting to it. I actually flew through this book rather quickly despite it being a little over 400 pages. The point of view switches between Oliver and Kai. Oliver would do anything for his wife Kai, he literally would go to the ends of the world for her. Kai would do the same for Oliver but she is so wholly dependent on him because she's a telepath who makes terrible choices. She feels extreme guilt and wants to save everyone all of the time even at the cost of her life or sanity. Oliver does everything he can to keep her from falling apart. One day, after the death of a child at the hands of her father, Kai is in rough shape. Oliver has been working on a plan to help Kai and he has to put it in motion a little sooner than planned.

Cue their road trip to Butternut, Wisconsin (Oliver's home town) where Kai has effectively been kidnapped by her own husband. Her irrational anger and lashing out at Oliver made her a very unlikable character for me, and I really felt like smacking her upside the head so she'd see that Oliver doesn't want to be there either but he's sacrificing for her well being.

Oh, but it's not all easy because Mickey is also in Butternut, and Mickey is Oliver's first love. Kai is angry that Mickey is a shameless flirt and makes it clear she wants Oliver even still. Now, on one hand I totally get it- I'd be angry if some chick was throwing herself at my husband. But on the other, I'd like to think I'd have some faith in my husband to stay faithful. If you don't have trust then you have nothing. (Except let's remember Kai is a telepath so she knows what Oliver thinks so yeah.. you already know how this is going to go wrong.) My problem with Kai is she acts fairly childish, much like a child stomping her foot when someone tells her no. She drove me nuts this entire book.

I'm not giving Oliver a free pass either, he did lots of things wrong. Anytime you assume you know best for someone so you do things or you fail to be honest with them, it's going to blow up in your face EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. And it does in this book, big time.

Mickey's son Lukas, who has taken a liking to Kai (mostly because he has his own powers like Kai, a bit different though so Kai naturally feels like she has to guide him) is kidnapped and in the search process, Oliver makes a HUGE mistake, which Kai witnesses. Cue her leaving instead of talking to him, Oliver making bad decisions, Mickey being an idiot, and we've got a seemingly lost little boy. We meet Nathan, Mickey's ex-husband, who is kind of nuts, and everything fall apart rather quickly.

I really liked the book but I can't give it five stars only because the first 3/4 of the book are SLOW. I kept wondering where the hell the drama was. It took so long to set it up that I almost gave up but then crap hit the fan and I was all in. Would I call this a fantasy book? No, not really. It's a romantic suspense if anything else. Sure, we have Kai and Nathan (and Lukas) with their weird powers but it wasn't enough of a thing for me to push it into a fantasy or paranormal category. It's a solid 4 star read though and I'm excited to read the second book!

AFE update: losing hair, new medication, and migraines.

Last week I had another full week of appointments and this week I only have one, with my counselor. Fortunately I was able to get on the cancellation list so when someone cancelled, I jumped on the appointment, otherwise my next one isn't until mid-December.

I've been talking to a few other AFE survivors online about their symptoms and diagnoses post AFE and it's kind of a downer, really. Almost everyone I have talked to are about six months or longer since their AFE, so not quite where I'm at, but they all are frustrated with doctors who don't know what to do with them. I do know that it's so rare that it's hard to study, so it makes sense that there isn't a whole lot on the books on what to do with us. I'm learning that a lot of what I deal with isn't going to be fixed by time or medicine, that I most likely learn to live with it because there just isn't anything out there.

Hands down the worst are the migraines, with a close second being the feeling of getting the flu all of the time. I'm always achy and tired. But the migraines.. oh man. At best, I get migraines 4 or 5 days of the week. At worst, I'll have one every day. My medicine I can take to keep the edge off works maybe half of the time now. So far the consensus is that it's either hormonal, because of low sodium in me, or a combination of both, courtesy of my broken pituitary. I had some labs last week to measure my hormones and those came back normal, so I don't need hormone replacement therapy yet, which is a GREAT thing.

Another change is the medication I take for my blood pressure and depression/anxiety. So far, I haven't noticed a change in either area except the depression/anxiety medication makes me feel physically sick, so that's a lovely way to start the day. I also decided I need to get one of those pill containers for morning and night because keeping track of my medicine is getting to be difficult. I'm afraid I'm going to take the wrong thing at the wrong time or double up on something I shouldn't. Honestly, I don't know how elderly people keep this all straight.

The biggest change so far is easily my hair loss. I've  never had post-partum hair loss before, and I don't think that's what this is at all. I think it's either hormonal or medication related. It started as a few strands here or there (a few weeks ago) but this weekend I noticed every time I run my hand through my hair, a small handful will come out. It's... weird. I mean, I have extraordinarily thick hair so I wouldn't be opposed to it thinning out a bit but now I'm a little worried I need to call someone about this. I'll likely just wait until my next appointment in December to check on my medication.

But to combat feeling overwhelmed, I put up our Christmas tree on Sunday. Christmas is my most favorite time of year and I'm holding onto it like a life line at this point. We are really blessed, even more so this year, and I'll talk more about that later. I just want to soak it all up, you know?

Dear Pope Francis

Oh lambs, my heart. I knew as soon as this book came through my email as a potential review I had to do it. I didn't realize how much I was going to need it soon after it came.

Dear Pope Francis - Pope Francis

In this unprecedented book, questions from children from across the world are presented to Pope Francis — and the Pope himself answers each letter. All too often, the big spiritual questions from children are ignored or written off as quaint, but Pope Francis helps every child feel God’s love and know that their voices are valued and heard. With each question charmingly illustrated by the child, Dear Pope Francis lets the Pope respond directly to each child with inspiring, meaningful answers. Pope Francis's joyful warmth and wisdom shine through for parents, grandparents, teachers and, of course, children.

I absolutely should preface this by telling you I'm not really religious. I'm certainly not considered Catholic (though I'm baptized as Catholic), but I have a special spot in my heart for Pope Francis. I feel like he really, more so than the last two Pope's in my lifetime, appreciates the differences in people worldwide and he really tries to be a good soul towards everyone. Some of the statements he's made about public issues throughout the years have really blown me away and made me look at the institution of the Catholic church a little differently.

And this book... the first thing you'll take away is the absolute candor and his genuine love of children and people. The letters from children come from all around the world and showcase their original artwork, a photo of the child and a little information about where they come for, and translated into English where needed. All of the letters are adorable, some are funny and lighthearted, some are serious, and some break your heart because you can only imagine the weight the child must have been feeling in their heart to write to the Pope for guidance. Questions like, "why do some parents argue with each other?", "do bad people have a guardian angel, too?", "my mum is in heaven, will she grow angel wings?"- so many of these questions are so hard for any parent to answer but the answers the Pope gives are just enough to make you break down and sob. The Pope shows off his personality, not something you'd think you'd really see, and does such a great job at conveying a special message with each response.

If you are book shopping for a child in your life, I absolutely recommend this one, no question. This will be one of those books I'll pull out when I need a little pick me up because though some questions make you hurt for these children, the responses give you a good reminder in your own life.

More appointments, more pee, and trying. Lots of trying.

After last week, I went into the weekend feeling pretty damn defeated. I did some fun things, to hopefully make life a little more fun and not focus on my failures and struggles so much. But let's talk about the medical stuff first.

Last week I saw my endocrinologist and he reviewed the lab work I had done the week before. My thyroid is still considered low functioning, and everything is basically the same. He was concerned that I'm still peeing too much, which means my diabetes insipidus is maybe not as controlled as it could be. In order to figure that out, he ordered me to do a pee-in-a-jug test where they test it to see how much salt is absorbed into it... or something like that. Turns out, I peed 3 liters in a 24 hour period which is considered elevated and peeing 10 times in the course of a day is kind of high. So the recommendation is for me to take another half pill of Desmopressin in the morning (I take a half pill at night) and that should help. All well and good while my insurance deductible is met and I don't have to pay for my medications, but it's dawned on me come January 1? I can't afford all of these pills. I will become that person who has to determine what I can afford and what I can live without. I'll have to just learn to like peeing hourly.

Sigh.

Another concern that I have, which my OB doesn't seem to be concerned about is my scar. Because I was in a really critical situation during my c-section, I have a vertical incision. Normally it's a horizontal one, but what can you do? My problem is that for most of my life, I have had what I have always referred to as my "kangaroo pouch". It's a weird lump of fat under my belly button and no amount of dieting or exercise makes it shrink. Well, half of my scar goes over and under the flap so when you lift the flap, it basically looks like another butt hole. In my stomach.

You see? We can all just call it my second butt hole. The other super disgusting part? Is that because it's a flap (you can see the crease), I sweat during the day (thanks, hot flashes!) and it.. let's just say it leaves a residue and it's so gross. I've become that fat person that has to clean the folds of skin. It's disgusting. I cannot highlight enough how disgusting it is.

Sigh.

This week I saw my neurologist on Monday. That was a really depressing, and frustrating, appointment. I learned that not only did I have lung failure, amniotic fluid embolism, and the right side of my heart fail, but I also had a STROKE. Apparently having a stroke after a trauma involving blood loss and lack of oxygen isn't uncommon. But I was surprised that this was the first I had heard of it. So I left there with a feeling of defeat because though I'm only 34 and my brain is young and relatively healthy, they can't tell me how much I'm going to get back. Certainly memories that are gone, those are gone. But my short term loss? Nobody knows. We're hopefully that my brain testing in January will be more helpful.

I'm scheduled for an EEG today to see if my "brain blinks" are actually seizures. The hope is that they ARE because if they aren't then they don't know what's causing them.

I saw my general practitioner on Tuesday for a full physical. The doctor is GREAT and is so thorough, listens to everything, took a copy of my symptoms list and really tried to go through each one to find solutions. My blood pressure medication and my anti-depressant are changed so we're hoping that helps a few things. Interestingly, when I mentioned the stroke she said I didn't have one. I said, oh yes I did, I saw it on the MRI myself. So she spent 20 minutes going through every report and image in my patient file and sure enough, it's there. Bad news? Is that the MRI was taken on August 4 and the only doctor who would have known about it is the neurologist- the information wasn't readily available in my file so anyone treating me from that day until this week, wouldn't have known it.

Cue frustration and fear.

So now I have to advocate harder for myself to make sure EVERY detail of what I've gone through since August 1, as much of a pain as it is, is in my patient file on the summary page. Maybe it doesn't seem like a big deal, but if I get into a car accident or see a doctor who isn't familiar to my situation, they need to know right away. They wouldn't know, or maybe have time, to go into the detail pages to look for something.

So that's been my week so far. I'm feeling really down on life in general. More on that another day. But I need a nap and I'm sure you have things to do. More soon, lambs.

Avelynn: The Edge of Faith

If you're a long time reader of this blog, you'll know I'm not the biggest fan of historical fiction in general. From time to time I'll pick one up and it grabs me, and that's how the first Avelynn book was for me. At the time I demanded a sequel and the author pulled through for us all.

Avelynn: The Edge of Faith - Marissa Campbell

It's the year 871. Charges of treason, murder, and witchcraft follow Avelynn into exile as she flees England with Alrik. Arriving in Wales, they find refuge among Alrik's friends in the Welsh nobility. Cast out by his half-brothers, Alrik seeks to regain his honor and earn favor with the gods. When war threatens, Alrik embraces gold and the opportunity for his crew to become mercenaries, aiding the Southern Welsh kings in their fight against Rhodri the Great.

Desperate to return home, Avelynn seeks to find a way to prove her innocence, but she is pitted against Alrik as their desires for the future clash. With battle looming, Avelynn's faith in their relationship is further tested through a bitter struggle with Marared, a jealous lover from Alrik's past. Marared's threats turn deadly, and Avelynn runs afoul of magic and sorcery, causing her to question her beliefs and role as priestess.

When Avelynn and Alrik are betrayed, Avelynn is captured and Alrik is charged with regicide. The two become separated, a chasm of greed, deceit, and ambition driving them apart. In an act of harrowing faith, Avelynn will stop at nothing to find her way back to Alrik and break them both free from Wales's bloodthirsty grasp.

I'm just going to get into it- the romance between Alrik and Avelynn is pretty damn steamy, and thank god. I have to say that being a historical romance you kind of assume their love affair would be tame given the time period but nope- and us readers fully benefit from that! We know Avelynn is basically on the run and leaves a mess behind in England. It doesn't take long for trouble to find her as they arrive in Wales, a place familiar to Alrik. Avelynn soon meets Marared, Alrik's former lover, and she doesn't accept Avelynn at all as Alrik's true love.

I have to say I really like how despite being in a Christian world, Avelynn's convictions and her love of the Goddess never wavers and it actually gives her the strength to do what she needs to do in order to clear her name. Things go bad fairly quickly for Avelynn and Alrik and Alrik's fate isn't certain as he's charged with crimes, Avelynn is captured, and people are dying left and right. The only complaint I have is that so many characters are in this book that sometimes I had a hard time keeping track of who was who and what their part in the greater story is. Big points for the story never getting dull, it's fast paced and action packed. There is more action in this book than the last three thrillers I've read combined. You won't get bored and you won't be able to put it down. I also loved how the book ended, it made it feel like if we never hear from Avelynnn again, it would be OK.

I have to give this book five stars because again, it blows away every other historical romance or even historical fiction that I've read. It's not a genre I read a lot of but I'm so glad I've discovered this author through Avelynn.