I read “The Hunger Games” and “Catching Fire” by Suzanne Collins back in May and June but it took me some time to actually finish the final book, “Mockingjay.”

I loved “The Hunger Games,” it wasn’t at all what I thought it would be about; I obviously had not looked into the story line before I started reading. I just decided since so many people were talking about it that it was probably good.  Going into it I assumed the book was either about a group of people fighting for their survival against starvation or about some sort of eating disorder…boy, was I off.

Never would I have thought this trilogy was about a teenager forced into a game of survival for sport, watched by millions of people.  But I was hooked.  I enjoyed “The Hunger Games” so much that as soon as I finished it I HAD to start reading “Catching Fire.”  I actually found “Catching Fire” pretty entertaining as well and made it through the book quickly as well.

I was so anxious to start “Mockingjay” that I borrowed it from some friends because I didn’t want to wait for it to be in stock at the library.  (Sorry you still don’t have your book back guys!) I started “Mockingjay” in June and was immediately bored.  Theoretically this book is actually very similar to the first two, it just wasn’t as interesting to me.

I put off reading it for months and have just now finished it.  Finally in the last 3rd of the book I did get hooked and actually wanted to find out what happened.  I definitely have to go with the majority on this one and say that book 1 is the best and they go downhill from there.

I’ve heard that some people are expecting “The Hunger Games” movies to be bigger and more popular than “Twilight.”  What do you think? I’m not sure that’s possible.

Jan 28th – Day 28

This was supposed to be Mom’s Christmas present, but when we went to assemble it on Christmas Day the table had a big chunk missing. So I had to wait for it to come back in stock and reorder it. The people at Bed Bath & Beyond made this a breeze & honored my original discounts (free shipping & 20% off), the rock!

Jan 29th – Day 29

A spur of the moment, ok it took us about an hour & a half of texting to decide what to do, brunch at Campisis can never be a bad decision!

Jan 30th – Day 30

These are the ingredients that went into my be crockpot recipe. How could anything with a wine marinade be bad?

Jan 31th – Day 31

Another successful crockpot recipe: Parmesan Garlic Chicken

Feb 1st – Day 32

February Photoaday Challenge started today. This is “my view” after an much needed pedicure with Nicole!

Feb 2nd – Day 33

Day 2 – words that make my day

Feb 3rd – Day 34

Day 3 – hands – this is my friend’s youngest son. All 3 are ADORABLE, but I’d never met this little guy before!

The other night I was in the mood to cook something. Of course it was about 6:30 and way too late to be creating something complicated for dinner. But, all the same, I started perusing the Tasty Kitchen web site and came across the recipe for Parmesan Garlic Chicken in the crockpot.

Once again this was an awesome crockpot meal!  It does require some prep work the night before because you marinade the chicken over night in all the goodies below:

I do always have a hard time knowing what dry white wine I should buy for cooking, but ended up going with a Pinot Grigio and then just picked an inexpensive one.  I couldn’t help but think, how could anything marinating over night in wine be bad?

I ended up doing 3 chicken breasts because that’s what came in the pack. This recipe called for 4 chicken breasts but to be honest, I’m not sure how there would be enough marinade for 4 breasts, the marinade seemed to barely coat the 3 breasts I was using and next time I might make it bigger.

When it came time to put it in the crock pot there was hardly any liquid for the chicken to sit in, but you’ll notice in the recipe it doesn’t call for additional liquid.  All the same, I added more Pinot Grigio just to feel better about leaving it all day while I was at work.

I loved how awesome my house smelled when I walked in on Tuesday!  The garlic and basil aroma was delicious!

You’ll notice on the recipe from Tasty Kitchen, that you can cook it on low for up to 8 hours.  I think I ended up cooking it more like 9 hours…and that was bit much.  I wish I’d been home to keep an eye on this one and see how it cooked.  I think that because I had to leave it for so long the chicken got a little dryer than it normally would have. However the flavor was still delicious and the meal turned out very good. 

Also…I just cooked the entire package of Orzo, I know the recipe calls for only a cup, but Orzo isn’t something I normally cook with so I just went for it.  Sadly my local grocery store doesn’t have a Whole Wheat Orzo option so I just had to go with regular ol’ Orzo.  Since I did the whole box of Orzo, I went a head and cooked the whole bag of frozen broccoli.  Out of laziness I just cooked the brocolli in with th Orzo so I didn’t dirty another pan.  Plus I hate microwaving frozen broccoli, some how I always end up burning it.

Once I’d cooked the Orzo and broccoli and then tossed in the chicken  I couldn’t believe how much this made!  Beth and I both had dinner on Tuesday night and then there was still enough for 3 very generous meals.

I’ve now tried this meal reheated and it was still delicious.  Maybe it’s the tenderness of the chicken from slow cooking that makes it reheatable, I’m really not sure.  But I LOVE that this meal is good left over.

Since I had left over Pinot Grigio I went ahead and had glass with dinner and you know what it actually wasn’t bad!

This week’s wine was another gift, thanks sis!

Did you know Adam Carolla does wine?  Neither did I, but apparently this one is from him.  He offers a Cabernet and a Zinfandel.

I thought the Sledgehammer Cabernet was excellent.  This is a California Cabernet that I supposed should be deemed a “Man’s Cabernet” with it’s big, bold flavor. 

Since this was a gift, I am not 100% certain how much it cost but at between $10-$15 a bottle I think this is actually a great selection.  And again, I recommend let this wine breath a little before drinking it because the flavors really even out as it sits.

I’m sorry, but I just can’t get passed the fact that Adam Carolla makes wine!  I want to make wine!  Guess I have to figure out how to become famous to make this happen!

After what felt like a self-imposed beating, reading “The Marriage Plot;” I wanted an easy read.  Since “One for the Money” was about to be released in the theaters and I’d never read a Janet Evanovich novel I thought…why not?

This was such an easy read.  I read it on my Kindle, so I’m not sure the length of the book.  But I started it Tuesday and had it finished Saturday morning and I didn’t even have a chance to read on Wednesday and Thursday.

This series is at least 18 books long, and to be honest, I’m not sure I’d read any more.  Evanovich’s writing style is easy to read but it didn’t really suck me in to the story.  Who knows I might change my mind if I find another book like “The Marriage Plot” and need a nice easy read I might pick up “Two for the Dough.”

This book to me is a “surface” novel; you don’t get a lot of depth about the characters.  Though to be honest I’m not sure there’s much depth to develop.  Stephanie Plum is your stereotypical “Jersey Girl;” well prior to the onslaught of the Jersey Shore.  But let’s face it, the Jersey Shore people aren’t really even from Jersey.

Don’t get me wrong, it was still a fun read and I really appreciated the easiness of the writing.  It was the perfect fit for this past week.

“One for the Money” was originally written in 1994, and I’m sure Evanovich was thrilled to finally have it made into a movie.  The movie was good, but definitely not an award winner and to be honest I’m a little surprised that Katherine Heigel wanted to play Stephanie Plum. 

There were obvious changes to the story in the movie and I’d assume for mass appeal, the Benito Ramirez story line was toned down so much that it almost seemed pointless to even have him in the movie.  This is one movie I don’t think you HAVE to read the book before seeing, but I’m glad I did.

Well, that’s 3 books down…maybe this goal of 20 in a year won’t be so hard to achieve after all!

Jan 21st – Day 21

Saturday I was at Hacienda on Henderson for a birthday dinner and a movie was being filmed there.  See the guy in the picture above, I tried googling him and looking him up on IMDB; no luck!  Supposedly he is or was on the Lying Game but I couldn’t find any proof.

Jan 22nd – Day 22

It had been over 3 weeks since I had last seen my nephews.  So I had a blast hanging out with them Sunday afternoon.  E has gotten so big, and W still doesn’t like to have his picture taken so the silly face was the best I could get!

Jan 23rd – Day 23

Monday night I was determined to finish reading “The Marriage Plot” by Jeffrey Eugenides that I forced myself to sit and finish it.  Now I can say I’ve read it and won’t ever recommend it to anyone, see Monday’s post!

 Jan 24th – Day 24

I had no idea that Starbucks did Valentine’s cups, but how cute is this one! Now if only the Cup Magic App was up to date!

Jan 25th – Day 25

Going to a Scentsy party was fun and dangerous…I walked away ordering way more than I probably should have, but I can’t wait for my new scents to arrive!

Jan 26th – Day 26

I love my new business cards so much I can’t wait to hand them out!

Jan 27th – Day 27

Borrowing this from yesterday.  Last night I finally made it to Del Frisco’s Grille and tried the Apt 5D martini that was delicious.  Look for a review coming next week!

This was my first time to knowingly try a Rioja wine.  I’m sure I’ve had one before, but I couldn’t tell you when or which one.  This one was a gift (thanks Gabby & Jeremy) which made it even more fun to try!

While full of flavor, this Rioja is surprisingly light with a hint of pepper.  Almost seems like it’d be a great summer time red because of it’s airy quality.  This reminds me of a Tempranillo.

In an effort to learn a little more about Riojas I looked it up on wikipedia and shocker….Rioja is a blended wine. . No wonder I liked it.

I opened this bottle up a good 30 minutes before trying it and by the time I had my 2nd glass it was perfect.  So I definitely recommend giving it some time to breath before drinking it.