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Book Club Meet #3 - The Coincidence of Coconut Cake

Dreams and Caffeine Book Club #2

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Hello everyone and Happy Thursday!  The next book we will read is The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger.  I thought this would be a fun book to throw into the mix, plus I figure it should be a decent read given its reviews.

Please remember that anyone can join the Dreams and Caffeine online Book Club at any time.  We will be meeting the last Wednesday of every month and then the next day I will announce the next month’s book.  I will post book club discussion points on the morning of the last Wednesday and throughout the day everyone can comment on them or add their own points of discussion, questions, or respond to others’ ideas.  This is meant to be fun and allow those that want to be in a book club, but that don’t have the time to commit, to be able to do so.  If you would like more information on how the Dreams and Caffeine Book Club operates, please check out my original post.

Thanks for stopping by and supporting the site and if you have any suggested books for the following months, please comment below!

Cheers,
Lisa

 

This post contains affiliate links that when clicked on and purchased helps support my family.  Thank you very much!

Book Club Meet #1 – The Husband’s Secret

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Welcome to Dreams and Caffeine’s very first book club meeting.  The first book selected to read was The Husband’s Secret by Liane Moriarty.

Below is the list of discussion points to get the conversation started.  Feel free to pose additional questions for discussion and to respond to others’ comments, or to just talk about any part of the book that you’d like.  Everyone will respond in the comments section below the post.  Please remember to be polite and keep it clean.  Originally I planned on announcing the next book at the end of the book club meeting, but have decided to announce it tomorrow (Thursday) in a separate post.  I hope everyone joins in on the discussion!  As a reminder, subscribe to my blog to receive future updates about the books we’ll be reading.

Now on to the questions…

  1. When Cecilia finds the letter from her husband she is tormented by the ethics of opening it. Do you agree with her ultimate decision?  What would you have done?
  1. Given all of the secrets the characters withhold from each other, are secrets ever justified in marriage?
  1. The Berlin Wall is referred to throughout the novel as Ester works on her school project. And in fact, we learn that Cecilia met John-Paul on the day the Wall finally came down.  What does the Wall signify in the book?
  1. Grief is a major theme throughout the book. How has grief affected Rachel?  Rob?  Tess?  John-Paul?   In what ways have their lives been irrevocably altered as a result of their grieving?  Do you think people can fully stop grieving and move on with their lives?
  1. Cecilia has been married to John-Paul for fifteen years and has three children with him. Until she opens the letter, she seems to trust him and believe him to be the wonderful husband and father she’s always thought him to be.  But when she discovers his terrible, sinful secret, she begins to question him.  How well can one know one’s spouse?  Is it possible to ever completely know another person?
  1. The Husband’s Secret was written in third-person and in past tense. What did you think of the writing style?
  1. What did you think of the Epilogue?
  1. Each character had their own issues to deal with throughout the book. Which character(s) did you feel the most for and why?
  1. Throughout the novel, you get glimpses of Janie’s strict upbringing. Do you think that played a role in her untimely death?
  1. Overall, did you enjoy the book? Would you recommend it for others to read?

That is all for today my friends!  I hope you enjoyed the book club meeting and I will be announcing the next club read tomorrow.  Happy Wednesday!

Cheers,
Lisa

As always, this post contains affiliate links and by clicking on the affiliate links and purchasing items you may need or want, you are helping support my family.  Thank you!


Top 5 Crochet Blogs for Free Patterns - Dreams and Caffeine

Top 5 Crochet Blogs for Free Patterns

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I couldn’t help but notice when I looked at my planner today how close we are to the holiday season.  It is amazing how fast time flies.  That’s why today’s post points you to my top 5 crochet blogs for free patterns.  With keeping the holidays in mind, I decided it was time to start making my holiday gift list.  I started “Pinterest-ing” (seriously, what did we do before we had Pinterest???) and decided on a few crochet projects that I thought would make great gifts… which then made me think about this post.

Without further ado, here are my top five crochet blogs that offer free patterns

  1. Repeat Crafter Me {http://repeatcrafterme.com}
    I absolutely love this blog!  She has amazing patterns that comes in a variety of sizes.  This is actually one of the first blogs I used when I first learned to crochet.  I loved how many different patterns she had and how fun they were, plus, she has a ton of holiday projects… which is perfect for the holiday-obsessed crocheter.
  1. Hopeful Honey {http://www.hopefulhoney.com}
    This blog offers adorable and fun patterns for all ages!  I’m a huge fan of her Disney inspired crochet projects.  They have made wonderful gifts that are fun and useful for the little ones.
  1. Posh Patterns {http://poshpatternsblog.com}
    Posh Patterns offers a variety of free patterns, but the ones I love the most are the cowls and scarves.  I also love the color combos she uses… great inspiration!
  1. ELK Studio {http://elkstudiohandcraftedcrochetdesigns.com}
    This site has tons of great winter wear (hats, scarves, gloves) that include nice projects for men.  As we all know, decent crochet projects for men are hard to come by, so check out this site.
  1. Mama in a Stitch {http://www.mamainastitch.com}
    She offers a variety of different patterns, but my favorite is the Icelandic blanket.  It’s beautiful and is definitely going to be one of the patterns I use this holiday season to make gifts.

The Velvet Acorn {http://www.thevelvetacorn.com} is one of my favorite places to purchase crochet or knit patterns.  She has great patterns that are beautiful and come in most sizes from newborn all the way up to adult 3XL.  The patterns are reasonably priced and she is great about answering any questions you may have regarding your purchases.

Well folks, that is all for today!  I hope everyone takes a peek at these crochet blogs and what they have to offer.  Happy Holiday Crocheting!

Cheers,
Lisa


Potty Training and Fancy Resturants - Dreams and Caffeine

Potty Training and Fancy Restaurants

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Well my friends, today I am here to tell you the tale of potty training while dining in a fancy restaurant in hopes that you may learn from my mistakes and never have this happen to you.  About a week ago, my friend called and invited our family out for her birthday.  A fancy new restaurant opened and she thought it would be fun to celebrate together, so I marked it on the calendar and went about my day.

Miss Sassy Pants is pretty much potty trained with the exception of nighttime, so dining out is really not a big deal.  Once she wakes up in the morning, we take off the diaper and puts on undies for the rest of the day, minus naps.  Even if we leave the house, she wears her undies and I pack her little potty in the back of the car along with a slew of other potty training must haves.  We’ve dined out many times and have never had an issue.  If she has to use the restroom while we are out, I just run her out to the car and take care of business then go back in and finish doing whatever we were doing.  This is a great routine, unless you forget something.

About an hour before we had to leave I started getting the kiddos ready to go to dinner.  After getting them dressed, I got all of my potty necessities together and organized.  When my husband got home, I had Miss Sassy Pants use her potty, and as I was helping her pull up her pants, my husband suggested using a diaper to ensure we wouldn’t have an accident at the restaurant, which I thought was a great idea. We then grabbed the diaper bag with the kiddo’s stuff and headed out the door, forgetting her portable potty.

Once we arrived at the restaurant, I quickly got set up and began feeding Moose his bottle.  I couldn’t believe how well I had planned everything… it was working out quite nicely.  Everyone ordered dinner while I finished feeding Moose and just as I was setting him down in his chair our meal arrived.  The food was divine, and even Miss Sassy Pants was eating well!

FYI… you should never pat yourself on the back until the job is completed!  The mood of the restaurant was great and the view was impeccable, and since we were celebrating a birthday, we couldn’t pass up dessert.  As everyone was finishing up, Miss Sassy Pants said she had to use the restroom.  As I was getting up to take her out to the car, I realized we had forgotten her potty at home and she had a diaper on (making using a public restroom slightly harder).  Just as panic was starting to set in, my girlfriend jumped up and said she would help me.

As we were finishing up in the restroom, I (being ever so careful) dropped the diaper on the floor.  I quickly went to grab the extra undies out of the diaper bag and realized I had left them on the bed where I had been packing the diaper bag.  Not only did I forget a change of undies, I also forgot to put in an extra diaper. I decided I had nothing to worry about, that I would just have her pull up her pants up with nothing else on and we would quickly finish up and head for home.  After all, we were only going to be another 10-15 minutes!

Just as we were finishing our dessert… IT HAPPENED!  Miss Sassy Pants looked at me in a panic and said she had to use the potty again, but before I could even get up, I heard the sound of a faucet pouring, not in a sink, but on the beautiful restaurant floor followed up with an “ah oh” in her adorable little voice.  I calmly looked over to see a ginormous puddle on the floor and sat frozen for a second.

Luckily, mommy mode kicked in and I quickly tossed Miss Sassy Pants to my husband to take her out to the car and change her, then I loaded up Moose in his car seat, and I waved over the waitress to request items to clean up the mess and disinfect so the staff wouldn’t have to do it.

So here are some suggestions to those in the midst of potty training and would like to dine out:

And lastly, stay calm, write the incident in their baby book, don’t forget to laugh, and leave a GENEROUS tip for the waitress whether or not you know them!  To all of you in the trenches of potty training… good luck!

This post contains affiliate links. When you purchase anything after clicking on one of these links, it benefits my family. Thank you for your continued support.

Cheers,
Lisa