2016 Reading, part 3

To round off the books I read last year (before I get too behind on this year's list):

My absolute favorite was Jeff Wheeler's Kingfountain series. The Queen's Poisoner was one of my Kindle First picks and I loved it, especially narrated by Kate Rudd. The Thief's Daughter was even better, even though it had me crying in the middle of the night over the end. I had to move on to The King's Traitor immediately, and the tears kept waterfalling, but in a good way.

I love everything Charlie N. Holmberg writes (another author I discovered through Kindle First), and Magic Bitter, Magic Sweet lived up to my expectations. It also had the most haunting love story I've ever read. And, I think, my favorite couple of any world.

Intertwine by Nichole Van was also a Kindle First pick, and I once again ended up reading the entire House of Oak series. Divine was cute, but Clandestine didn't engage me as much. But I'm glad I continued reading as Refine was my favorite.

The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater was the most "not like the others" fantasy that I've read in a while. The characters felt real and the water horses even more so. I highly recommend the audio narrated by Steve West and Fiona Hardingham.

I try to mix in classics with the more recent novels, and I had been meaning to read The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco for years. I really enjoyed the narration by Sean Barrett, Nicholas Rowe, and Neville Jason. Another one I really enjoyed was The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, narrated by Ian Lynch. And The Lost World by Arthur Conan Doyle left me wanting more adventures.

It's not often I read mermaid books, and Emerge by Tobie Easton was really cute. I'm looking forward to the sequel. Another one that I want to read the next installment is Future Shock by Elizabeth Briggs. Great time travel, and a promise of a great series. Finnikin of the Rock by Melina Marchetta is a wonderful book, but quite heavy. I'll read the next one eventually, but I need lighter stuff at the moment if the sequel follows the tone of the first.

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Botanical garden

The kids love visiting the Botanical garden every time we go to Rio.

Echo Park Jungle Safari papers, stickers, and enamel dots; American Crafts Thickers and cardstock.

Simple Stories Harvest Lane paper; Echo Park I Love Family papers and stickers; Queen & Co. pearls; Cosmo Cricket Ready Set Chip alphas.

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Metro Car

We took the subway after the afternoon at the museum and the new station had a model car where the kids could play.

October Afternoon Road Map and Sidewalks papers and journal cards; Crate Paper Mistletoe paper; Emagination star punch; American Crafts Thickers; Gunmetal Stickles; Nuvo crystal drops; unknown polka dot envelope and ribbon. This layout was inspired by the February 15 Stuck?! sketch:

I also added extra photos this time...

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Museum visit

Rainy day was a great excuse to visit the Amerindian Museum in Rio.

Echo Park Jungle Safari papers and enamel dots; Stampin' Up! Perpetual Easy Birthday Calendar stamp set; Frayed Burlap distress ink; WRMK Sew Easy vine stitch piercer; Viva glitter liner (ruby); Nuvo crystal drops (red berry); unknown hemp thread. 

I really liked how the stitching and stamping turned out. And the layers of fussy-cut flora.

This layout was inspired by Stuck?! February 1 sketch, which I expanded to 2 pages with double the photos:

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Haircut time

Some things just fall through the cracks when we're rushing to get out the door.

Echo Park A Perfect Summer papers; Stampin'  Up! dazzling details and Night of Navy card  stock; Ranger Frayed Burlap distress ink; Emaginaton star punch; Jillibean Soup alphabet stickers; Cosmo Cricket mini alphas.

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Great grandma

I'm so glad my kids got  to meet my grandmothers.

Jillibean Summer Red Raspberry Soup papers and buttons; Simple Stories Bloom and Grow bits & pieces; American Crafts glitter brads and marker; Ranger Glossy Accents.

Not often do I have an excuse to scrapbook a pink page.

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Playground in Rio

This was a fun trip to visit my relatives in Rio de Janeiro. The kids loved playing at the several neighborhood playgrounds we came across while visiting family.

Echo Park Jungle Safari papers, enamel dots, and stickers; Memory Box stencil;  Ranger texture paste; Sakura gel pen; EK success Fastenater. This layout was inspired by the Creative Scrappers Sketch 303:

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Peek-a-boo

The little one has some really cute ideas...

Jillibean Summer Red Raspberry Soup papers and die cuts; Jenni Bowlin pearl buttons; Simple Stories adhesive brads; Echo Park alphabet die; WRMK Sew Easy stitch piercer and embroidery floss; K&Co. stickers; Ranger Glossy Accents; Eyelet Outlet brads; unknown foam. This layout was inspired by MWM Poppy sketch #2:

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Mother's day weekend

We've been going to Daytona beach once a year for quite a while.

Bazzill Basics Lucy's Crab Shack paper; Fancy Pants Making Waves paper and die  cuts; October Afternoon stickers; American Crafts Shimelle Go Now Go stickers; May Arts mesh; Signo pen; Stampin' Up! card stock; unknown thread.

For the title, I stitched the die-cut letters and the mesh onto the page:

This  layout was inspired by the MWM Poppy sketch #4, but I stretched it to 2 pages and added a ton of photos.

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