TTBA Weekly News and Mailbox Monday

This feature was inspired by It's Monday! What are you reading? hosted by Sheila at Book Journey and by The Sunday Salon.

This is going to be a quick weekly update and Mailbox Monday post.  I'm so busy, I'm starting to feel like running off to a desert island.  LOL! I'm trying to work on Christmas cards...no, I have not sent them out yet.  Ugh! And we still do not have a stitch of Christmas decoration gracing our apartment, not even a tree (well, we are using the Christmas dishes).  After sorting my huge quantity of books and shelving (most of) them, guess what?  Not enough shelf space.  I lost one of my largest bookshelves in the move, but even if I still had that one, I still don't think there would have been enough room for them all.  So, I'm taking Martha Stewart's advice...that it's perfectly acceptable to stack books on the floor in front of the bookshelves.  I always say that books are the best home decor anyway.  With all this going on, I still try to stay optimistic and am trying to make the best Christmas possible for the boys.  Tonight we colored together in Christmas coloring books and watched several Christmas movies.  Right now, we're watching Home Alone, but I'm not sure how long they will last before falling asleep.

EVENTS

It's time to sign-up for my winter read-a-thon, A Winter's Respite Read-a-Thon.  It's scheduled for January 23 -29, 2012.  Visit the sign-up post HERE.  It's going to be a good start to tackling those new year's resolutions, if they include tackling that ever looming to-be-read pile/stack/mountain.  I hope you will join me!

If you're doing The Christmas Spirit Reading Challenge, how goes it?  We have a little over two weeks left (it ends on Twelfth Night/Epiphany).  I'm trying to make it around to read all of your reviews, so bear with me.  I've really enjoyed seeing what everyone is reading this season and I've even found out about some great new books!

My annual season long event, Sharing the Joy, is going on now at The Christmas Spirit.  I've had some lovely guests so far and I have more scheduled, along with some giveaways! I'll be posting all the way up until Twelfth Night (Epiphany).  That's when the Christmas season officially ends for me.  Well, it never officially ends for me, as anyone who knows me will tell you, but that's when I will stop the (almost) every day posts and go back to posting once a month on Rudolph Day (the 25th of each month).  Please stop by if your looking for a little Christmas spirit to add to your day.

What I'm Reading
--The Gift by Cecelia Ahern...TuesBookTalk
--Lost December by Richard Paul Evans

Finished
--Jane Was Here by Sarah Kernochan (Review)
--Writing Your Way by Julie Smith (Review)
--Little Shepherd by Cheryl C. Malandrinos (Review)

Coming Up This Week (these are for review at The Christmas Spirit)
--The Gingerbread Bump-Off by Livia J. Washburn
--Next Christmas in Girouette by Michael Welch
--Wise Bear William: A New Beginning by Arthur Wooten

Mailbox Monday was created by Marcia and is currently on tour. This month's host is Jenny at Let Them Read Books (want to read a book description? Clicking the book covers will take you to the book's page on Amazon)

WON:
From the author, Patricia Puddle, via a giveaway won on Read 2 Review:
Rascals Sing at The Opera House
Velvet Ball and The Broken Fairy
Star-Crossed Rascals

BOOKMOOCH:
Finding Father Christmas by Robin Jones Gunn

FOR REVIEW:
Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours
The Crown by Nancy Bilyeau
The King's Agent by Donna Russo Morin

Wise Bear William: A New Beginning by Arthur Wooten...from the author