Month in Review: August 2011

September’s here – can you believe it’s September already?!! – which means I can finally say:

I’m due this month.

I can’t believe how fast the end of my pregnancy has been going. I finally feel ready – not 100% ready but about 90-95% ready. I still need to pack my hospital bag and the kids’ bag and I still need to get a few things. I can’t believe I’m going to be a mama of three soon!! Guess we need to decide on a middle name soon, eh? OMG! I just realized we don’t have any diapers or wipes in the house!! (Note to self: buy diapers and wipes STAT!)

I’ve got an online ‘baby pool’ going on. A baby pool is where you make a guess as to when you think baby TBV will make her debut and what you think her birth weight and length will be. (OMG, I can’t believe I’m having a(nother) baby!) Click on the banner below to enter your guess (do eet!!):

I am blown away with the response to my cry for help with the blog A Novel Challenge. For those of you who may not be familiar with the site, it’s the go-to place for all Reading Challenges and Reading Events. When the blog admins announced that they were letting the site go, I jumped in and offered to take over. It’s been a great and valuable resource for book bloggers, I just couldn’t let all their hard work and dedication go to waste. I knew that I would not be able to run the site solo, especially with baby #3 coming soon, so I put a call out for help and I am completely overwhelmed and amazed with the response! I thought maybe 3 or 4 people, if I was lucky, would be willing to help. Nope. Over 30 people have expressed interest in helping me run the site! I will be going over the applicants and selecting blog admins over the next few days. Those that are selected will be notified via email. Thank you to all who offered to help out with the site!

Lastly, I wanted to say a big Thank You to everyone who nominated The Book Vixen for BBAW. The Book Vixen made the long list for BBAW’s Best YA Book Blog! And congratulations to all the other fellow book bloggers who also made the long list, in all categories!!

Books Read/Reviewed:

1. Moon Called by Patricia Briggs – 4 frogs
2. Blood Bound by Patricia Briggs – 3 frogs
3. Iron Kissed by Patricia Briggs – 4 frogs
4. Bone Crossed by Patricia Briggs – 4 frogs
5. You Belong to Me by Karen Rose – 4 1/2 frogs
6. Bad Girl by Night by Lacey Alexander – 4 frogs
7. Nightfall by Ellen Connor – 4 frogs
8. Glow by Stacey Wallace Benefiel – 3 frogs
9. Turn It Up by Inez Kelley – 4 1/2 frogs
10. The Ideal Man by Julie Garwood – 3 1/2 frogs
11. The Chase by Erin McCarthy – 4 1/2 frogs
12. Extreme Exposure by Pamela Clare – 4 frogs
13. Something About You by Julie James – 4 frogs
14. Crux by Moira Rogers – 4 frogs
15. Dragon Bound by Thea Harrison – (review to come)
16. Love Story by Jennifer Echols – (review to come)
17. In Seconds by Brenda Novak – (review to come)

Guest Posts:

• J.A. Saare shares with us 10 of her quirky writing habits.
• Excerpt from Cover of Darkness by Kaylea Cross (giveaway winner will be announced later today).
• Gabi Stevens talks about her idiosyncrasies and wants to know what yours are.

Misc:

• On My Wishlist (77)
• Monster Review-a-Thon: The Starting Line
• Monster Review-a-Thon: Mini-Challenges I participated in
• On My Wishlist (78)
• I asked ‘How Do You Prepare to Write Your Reviews’ and got some great feedback.
• On My Wishlist (79)
• IMM (9)
• On My Wishlist (80)
• Review link up posts for the month of September are up for the challenges I am hosting 
       ♦ YA of the 80s & 90s 
       ♦ Nicholas Sparks 
       ♦ Outdo Yourself 
       ♦ Men in Uniform

Current Giveaways:

• (1) print copy of The Wish List and As You Wish by Gabi Stevens – ENDS 9/1 (International)

2011 Reading Challenges Status Report:

• YA of the 80s & 90s – 0/12 books (sign-up)
• Nicholas Sparks – 0/10 books (sign-up)
• Outdo Yourself – 76/102 books (sign-up)
• Men in Uniform – 13/6 books (sign-up) – COMPLETED
• eBook Challenge – 28/20 books – COMPLETED
• Romantic Suspense – 13/12 books – COMPLETED
• Off the Shelf – 15/30 books
• Stephen King Challenge – 0/6 books
• Show Me the Free – 1/12 books
• Book Blogger Recommendation Challenge – 4/15 books
• Support Your Local Library – 16/30 books
• 100+ Challenge – 76/100 books
• YA Challenge – 21/20 books – COMPLETED
• Contemporary Romance – 17/10 books – COMPLETED

How was your August?