Friday, August 2, 2019

Month in Review: July 2019


July was such a busy month!  We celebrated the 4th at my sister's house.  She had quite the crowd and it was fun to see all the kids running around.

Summer hours continued at work - I'm still not crazy about staying late Monday through Thursday, but it has been kind of nice having half days on Fridays.  Tom and I have been having lunch dates on Fridays, and we even went to the movies one afternoon to see Spiderman: Far From Home (which was awesome, by the way!  Perfect movie to follow Avengers: Endgame).

I've mentioned a couple times that my sister, mom, and I work with our local Project Linus chapter (it's an organization that donates homemade blankets to children in need).  This month our group underwent some big changes, and my sister has been appointed our new chapter chairperson!  I've come on as an assistant and have been helping out with creating literature and putting together our first newsletter. We're having a lot of fun so far and are really excited about some stuff we have coming up.

My brother, his wife, and their two boys came to visit from Oklahoma at the end of the month.  We spent a day at the beach and the boys loved running in and out of the waves and playing in the sand.  We took a walk on the boardwalk and ran into the Queer Eye guys filming.  Even though the production crew was telling people, "No pictures!", we managed to snag a couple.

 

My nephews love trains, so we also took a little train ride with them.  We hadn't seen them since November, so I'm really glad they decided to come visit.  The boys are growing up so fast!  I also got to spend a little girl time with my sister-in-law and cousin, and we hit up a new brewpub nearby.

I have to end this month's recap on a very sad note.  Our book blogging community has lost one of its biggest cheerleaders and brightest lights.  As I'm sure you've all heard, Grace from Rebel Mommy Book Blog passed away last week after a battle with cancer.  I was devastated to hear this news.  I've read through several tributes from other bloggers and one thing that stuck out to me was that so many of them said that Grace was one of their earliest followers and she was always so supportive and welcoming to new bloggers.  This was absolutely my experience with Grace, as well.  I was so grateful that this successful blogger took the time to read my posts and comment so thoughtfully and so often.  Over the last 3 years, I felt like I had gotten to know her pretty well; we read a lot of the same books and watched the same TV shows.  I always hoped I'd get a chance to meet her one day since we both lived in New Jersey, but I am so appreciative of the virtual friendship we struck up.  Her positivity and strength are something I'll always remember.  My thoughts are with her family, especially her young children, during this difficult time. 


The Books


 The Dazzling Heights // Our House // Recursion // A Game of Thrones (#IronThroneReadalong, reread)
The Posts and Reviews


How was your July?  Did you do anything fun?
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34 comments:

  1. AmyAugust 2, 2019 at 3:33 AM

    Project Linus sounds exciting, I'm happy things are going well with that and hope all the stuff you have planned goes smoothly :)

    It's so heartbreaking about Grace :( I never interacted with her personally, but I always saw her comments pop up on so many other blogs. So awful. Her poor, poor family.

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    1. AngelaAugust 4, 2019 at 9:31 PM

      Thanks, Amy!

      I know, I feel so bad for her children, they are so young.

      Delete
  2. NicciAugust 2, 2019 at 6:59 AM

    I loved Spiderman: Far From Home but it broke my heart... Not just because it was dealing with the aftermath of Endgame but because I like Mysterio! lol

    I hope August is another good one for you.

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  3. MicheleAugust 2, 2019 at 7:40 AM

    So many great things in July! I couldn't be doing this Project Linus adventure without you! Looking forward to August, we have a lot of fun things coming up.

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  4. Emma at Words And Peace / France Book ToursAugust 2, 2019 at 9:26 AM

    wow, I didn't know about Grace, thanks for sharing. so sad, and with her young family!
    What did you think about Recursion?

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    1. AngelaAugust 4, 2019 at 9:32 PM

      I loved Recursion! One of my favorites of the year so far.

      Delete
  5. Aj @ Read All The Things!August 2, 2019 at 9:26 AM

    Summer hours at work are the whole reason I’m barely blogging. I basically live at work. I’m so sad about Grace. She was one of the first bloggers I met. I’m going to miss her.

    Aj @ Read All The Things!

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    Replies
    1. AngelaAugust 4, 2019 at 9:32 PM

      She was one of the first bloggers I met, too. :-(

      Delete
  6. Jenea's Book ObsessionAugust 2, 2019 at 12:14 PM

    The month of July sounds like it was a busy one for you. I hope you have another great month. :)

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  7. Heidi@Rainy Day RamblingsAugust 2, 2019 at 3:04 PM

    Sounds like you have had a busy but fun summer. I have been in the same boat. Lots going on, trying to catch up. That is so awesome that you are involved in such a wonderful charity. Hats off to you and your sister. I was very sad to hear about Grace. I didn’t know her well, but when I did interact with her she was kind and upbeat. I am so sad for her family. She was a beautiful light gone far too soon.

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    1. AngelaAugust 4, 2019 at 9:33 PM

      Thank you, Heidi! I'm so glad we got involved in this organization.

      I know, Grace always had something nice or funny to say.

      Delete
  8. GregAugust 2, 2019 at 7:13 PM

    Ooh seeing Queer eye filming must have been kinda neat! Sounds like you had a pretty good July. :)

    So true about Grace- just shocking and heartbreaking.

    I loved Recursion! And I can't wait to see what you thought of The Secret History Of Us.

    Project Linus sounds like a very cool thing.

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  9. Samantha@WLABBAugust 2, 2019 at 7:28 PM

    It's nice that you and your husband are using the Fridays for couple time. Awwww. And, how fun that you ran into a Queer Eye shoot at the beach. You read some books I really liked this month. Lots of YA! Things We Know by Heart and H&OPL were both spectacular for me. I really liked The Thousandth Floor series too.

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    Replies
    1. AngelaAugust 4, 2019 at 9:34 PM

      Yes, our Friday dates are making up for the fact that I barely see him Monday through Thursday!

      Haha, yes, I felt like I read a lot of "you" books this month!

      Delete
  10. Tanya @ Girl Plus BooksAugust 2, 2019 at 8:41 PM

    Half-days on Friday's sounds awesome! :) And Project Linus sounds like a wonderful organization. (Love the nod to Linus and his blanket. So sweet.)

    I thought Hope and Other Punch Lines was so well done. It's my second book by Buxbaum and I definitely want to read more.

    Lovely words about Grace. So many are feeling the loss... and will continue to do so. :(

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    1. AngelaAugust 4, 2019 at 9:36 PM

      We have really enjoyed working with Project Linus and are glad for the opportunity to do more1

      Thank you, Tanya, even though I never met Grace in person, she was a big part of my blogging life.

      Delete
  11. Phoebe @ My Bookish FriendsAugust 3, 2019 at 9:23 AM

    I read about Grace somewhere else, and it broke my heart. She just posted about books in June and said she was ready to fight it. This hit me hard. She was a young woman with a family. Life is definitely not fair sometimes :(

    I liked hearing about your Linus Project. Does your family make the homemade blankets? Do you knit, crochet, quilt...?

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    1. AngelaAugust 4, 2019 at 9:38 PM

      I know! She faced the cancer battle with such strength, I was really hoping she could beat it a second time. She and I were about the same age, so it was such an eye-opener for me.

      My sister and aunt crochet, but I haven't learned yet! I make fleece blankets with fringe on the edges.

      Delete
  12. Lindsi August 4, 2019 at 2:09 PM

    I really enjoyed Hope and Other Punch Lines! The Secret History of Us is on my TBR and I'm really looking forward to it. I was devastated when I heard about Grace, and my heart goes out to her family. Those poor kids. I can't even begin to imagine what they're going through. Grace was such a kind person. I hate that this happened to her.

    Lindsi @ Do You Dog-ear? 💬

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    Replies
    1. AngelaAugust 4, 2019 at 9:39 PM

      I hate it, too, it seems so unfair. To go from the high of having a baby to finding out you have cancer, I just can't imagine.

      Delete
  13. Erica RobynAugust 4, 2019 at 3:16 PM

    July seems to have been crazy busy for everyone! <3 I hope you have an awesome August!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Suzanne @ The Bookish LibraAugust 4, 2019 at 8:41 PM

    Congrats to your sister on being selected chairperson! I'm loving our summer hours too and will be sad when they end in a few weeks. I get so spoiled by them. And yes, I'm still so gutted about Grace. I still don't think I've fully processed it because I find myself still visiting her blog for new posts and expecting to see her around the blogosphere. :(

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    1. AngelaAugust 4, 2019 at 9:41 PM

      I'm still thinking about Grace everyday. My sister followed her blog, too, and she was quite upset to hear the news.

      I know what you mean, I keep seeing her reviews pop up on Goodreads, and it just hurts every time.

      Delete
  15. Tracy August 4, 2019 at 10:03 PM

    It sounds like you had a great month! I love it when my brother gets to come visit! I hope you had a great time. :) I really need to read Recursion! It has been on my TBR since before it came out!

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    1. AngelaAugust 5, 2019 at 7:54 AM

      We had a great time with my brother and his family, the kids are adorable and it's hard being so far away from them!

      Yes, read Recursion, it's soooo good!

      Delete
  16. Alicia @ A Kernel of NonsenseAugust 5, 2019 at 10:12 PM

    Sounds like you had an enjoyable month full of family. I'm really going to miss Grace as well. She was such a kind person. Wishing you a wonderful August!

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  17. IngeAugust 7, 2019 at 7:37 AM

    I absolutely love the idea of Project Linus. Also, the Queer Eye guys. ♥♥ I'm currently watching season 4 and it's amazing as always.

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    1. AngelaAugust 9, 2019 at 7:49 AM

      We love Project Linus, they do such good work. I've never actually watched Queer Eye, I'm surprised I recognized them!

      Delete

I'm so glad you stopped by, and I would love to hear your thoughts! Comments are always greatly appreciated!

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