It’s Monday (boo), but that means it’s time for another #ListifyLife post! This week’s challenge was Books I’d Want to Live In For a While. And it was actually harder than I’d anticipated to come up with some books for this. I read a lot of books. I read a lot of great books. But I’m not sure I’d want to actually live in the worlds I read about all that much. For instance, Elle Kennedy’s Killer Instincts series. I love the books. I love the world. But being in constant danger every second of the day? I’ll pass, thanks. Same with several of the paranormal books I’ve read and loved. Hell, even the books I read the most—contemporary romance—are hard to pick which world to live in, because they’re already set in my world. That’s the beauty of the contemporary novel.

So I sat and thought about this topic this morning, wandered over to my bookshelves and took a gander at my books, reminiscing about old favorites. And I plucked out three worlds I would absolutely love to visit.

Jill Shalvis’s Lucky Harbor Series

Jill is my favorite author, hands down, because I know exactly what to expect with one of her books. I’m going to get an alpha male, a relatable heroine, a side-cast of fantastic characters, and a quaint town I’m going to want to live in. In the Lucky Harbor series, she gave me the homesick feels the same way Gilmore Girls did for Stars Hollow. How can I feel homesick for a fictional place? I don’t know, but it happens. I’d love to get transported to this idealistic little town and live for a bit (or forever).

Stephanie Perkins’s Anna & the French Kiss

Anna is one of my favorite reads, and definitely in my top 5 YA books. Yes, it’s contemporary, but it’s set in Paris! While I wouldn’t love going back to school, I think I could tough it out for a chance to see Paris in all its splendor. Plus, Etienne.

Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight

How could I leave out the book that started me on this crazy, fantastic journey? Twilight is the book that got me reading and writing again, and I’d love to spend a while in this world. (So long as I was a vampire and had some sort of cool power… I don’t want anything lame like sensing emotions.) It’d be like catching up with old friends. To be honest, it’s why I still read fic. It is and forever will be my happy place.

That’s it for this week’s #ListifyLife post! And I actually won’t be posting until Wednesday next week, as we are off for a little Spring Break vacation. See you then!

*This post contains affiliate links. In plain English, that means if you purchase something from these links a small percentage of the sale comes back to me (at no cost to you!). It’s Amazon’s way of saying, hey, thanks for mentioning this product! Here’re some pennies. I promise I will never post about things I think suck. I’ll only ever recommend items I really, truly love!

Welcome to #ListifyLife week one! And would you look at that? I said I’d post on Monday and it’s Monday and I’m posting. You might want to watch out for other signs of the apocalypse, in case the end is near…

I gave an overview of the #ListifyLife challenge in this post, but just to recap: anyone can participate, you can list your answer to the prompt however you’d like (handwritten, scribbles, pictures, digital, whatevs), and it goes for the entire season. Posting is only once a week, so pretty easy to keep up with!

This week, our prompt was: Spring to me is…

I love spring. It’s my second favorite season behind fall (because fall). I’m not sure if it’s because I’ve been a Midwesterner the majority of my life and I’m desperate for those nicer temps and some time outside, but I love it.

Around these parts, 40º in March means we go outside without a coat (and my kids beg me to wear shorts). We are woken up by chirping birds (seriously, they’re so loud), but I forgive that because I’m also greeted by newly sprouted tulips, and my gorgeous lilac bush blooms out front. It’s rain puddles and the dirty brown of winter washing away. It’s long road trips with the family (seriously long…usually 20+ hours in the car). It’s Easter brunch and my kids (at least one of them) believing in the Easter bunny. It’s the countdown to summer, where I realize I’ve pissed away most of the school year and man do I need to get some work done. It’s so many birthdays, I usually forget one until the day before and then scramble for a perfect gift. It’s fresh and it’s new and it’s spring. 

You may be wondering why I wrote my list on a child’s handwriting pad… One of my new obsessions interests is hand lettering. I’ve may or may not have spent hours on Instagram watching hand lettering videos in total captivation. There is something so mesmerizing about seeing how the letters form, how the artist’s hand moves, and, of course, the final product. As per usual, I get obsessed interested in something, and I immediately get any/everything I need to do it myself. Hence why my list is on my first grader’s Learn to Letter notepad. I was skeptical using it, because I figured any/all of my pens would bleed through, but I was seriously impressed with the paper thickness! After watching this brush pen review, I grabbed myself the Zig Cocoiro (Spring to me is…), and I also stocked up on this 20-pack of Staedtler Triples pens (all other designs and lettering). Both are seriously amazing to this newbie and very easy to use.

If you’re interested in hand lettering, or even if you have no idea what I mean and want to check it out, here is a list of a few of my favorite Instagramers who seriously rock at the hand lettering:

@prettyprintsandpaper
@jenmanship
@EP_Lettering
@GS_Calligraphy
@lissletters
@poppyandmintdesign
@caligrabasics
@thepostmansknock
@thehappyevercrafter
@trinetollefsen
@renmadecalligraphy
@randomolive
@piecescalligraphy

And if that doesn’t keep you busy, I don’t know what will.

I’ll be back on Wednesday, talking about things I love this week. Not sure if I’mma do a post on cooking or reading…or both. I might even sweet talk my kids into giving brief reviews on books they’re currently reading, because I know it’s hard sometimes finding books your kids will love.

See you Wednesday!

*This post contains affiliate links. In plain English, that means when you click on a link from this post, a small percentage of anything you buy comes back to me (at no additional charge to you!). It’s Amazon’s way of saying, hey, thanks for mentioning this product! Here’re some pennies. I promise I will never, ever, ever post about things that I think suck. I’ll only ever recommend items I really, truly love!