December Wrap-Up

It is the FINAL Wrap-Up of the year! I mentioned in my Christmas Haul that I would post the rest of my non-bookish gifts that I received, so stay tuned for that down below. I will be posting something that reflects on this year’s blogging experiences & my 2016 goals. And then after that you should see a January 2016 TBR. I just wanted to clear that all up in advance.

But now onto my December Wrap-Up. This month I was striving to complete my Goodreads Reading Challenge. This year I set the goal of 30 read books because I didn’t start officially reading as a commitment again until the summer of 2015. So that gave me around 6 months to read as many books as I thought I could, also thinking about school and such. I originally set it to be 25, but then around mid-August I decided to add 5 more. And I am pleased to say that I DID reach 30 novels (not including my DNFs). Goodreads doesn’t count re-reads so it is going to say 29/30.  I think I am just going to change the read date to early 2015, so at least it’ll say I completed it. But, originally I read Looking for Alaska by John Green in 2014. That is one thing that I hope Goodreads changes in 2016.

Here are the novels that I finished in the month of December:

Five-Seven-Five by C.E. Wilson

My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

*I was sent this novel in exchange for an honest review*

And We Stay by Jenny Hubbard

My Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

The Secret of the Old Clock by Carolyn Keene

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Scott Pilgrim’s Precious Little Life: Volume 1 by Bryan Lee O’Malley

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

DNF

The Dinner by Herman Koch (full review here)

---

I guess I could’ve read more this month since I was on Christmas break, but really I was just trying to reach my goal and then focus more on this blog and other necessities. However I think I did have an overall successful reading experience this month — 3 of the 5 novels that I completed were pretty great, so that was awesome to end with for 2016.

I DID create some art pieces this month; most of them are not completed so I think I’ll leave them out until January…

OH! And one more thing until we get into my top posts this month. I think I mentioned in several posts but mostly here that I would be going to my local Wal-Mart and buying a good amount of toys and items for the less fortunate children for the holidays. I did get the opportunity to buy toys for ages 3+ and I wrapped every single one. I took the toys to my grandmother’s church and gave them out to the children and it was a great experience. I did have some leftover cash after purchasing the toys, so later on this week I plan on moving that cash onto my debit card in which I will donate to a charity of choice. But yes, I just wanted to share that information with you guys since I had some people asking me about my success with that event. I am setting a goal for next year, so stay tuned for that in my 2016 Goals post.

---

Top Two With Most Views:

• A to Z Bookish Survey!
• Feature with Followers | #7

Top Two With Most Comments: 

• 12 Days of Christmas | Day 1
• Bi-Weekly Wrap-Up | December

Top Two With Most Likes:

• December Book Haul
• Bi-Weekly Wrap-Up | December / Christmas Book Haul

Thank you for all of the interactions this month! Please feel free to check out those top posts 🙂

And PLEASE don’t forget this month’s Feature with Followers:

1. Cristina @ My Tiny Obessions | December 6th, 2015
2. Jesse @ Books at Dawn | December 13th, 2015

Also if you haven’t taken my blog survey PLEASE do so — I promise it won’t take too long.  I want to hear your thoughts about my blog since you’ve been possibly following me! I’ve only been blogging for about 5 months, but I still want to know how I can improve & what I do/don’t need to change for next year! (If you haven’t noticed I have made some changes already!) THANK YOU TO ALL IN ADVANCE — you are AMAZING!!

[CONTINUE READING IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE THE REST OF THE NON-BOOKISH ITEMS I OBTAINED FOR CHRISTMAS!!!]

Subscription Box: Uppercase Box | #3

Hello my lovelies! Today I am happy to share one of my newest subscribed boxes — UPPERCASE! This is my third box since I started my subscription and so far I am still in love.

BUT WAIT! If you haven’t taken my 2015 blog survey, PLEASE DO! Your contribution & thoughts will be taken into consideration for the new year. It will only take a few minutes, I promise! Thanks to ALL in advance! 🙂

From Uppercase, every month you’ll get an amazing young adult book that you’ll absolutely love! Every book you get from Uppercase is a brand new, hardcover book that’s signed by the author or comes with a signed bookplate from the author. Every Uppercase book is always published within the last month. It is extremely uncommon for a subscriber to already have a finished copy of the book and it almost never happens. 

There are three current options that you can subscribe to:

• Book Exclusive Plan – $17/month [Brand new hardcover, YA book, signed book or bookplate, reading experience with exclusive content, & a personal hand-written note to you]
• Expert Plan – $23/month [everything listed from the Book Exclusive Plan, except you also get 1-2 high quality bookish items]
• Personalized Plan – $29/month [you will fill out a personalized reading profile which is used along with your Goodreads profile (if available) and each month you will receive a book based on YOUR specific reading preferences and tastes. No author content or reading experience]

However, I am currently subscribed to the Expert Plan. I received everything promised, and I am very excited to share those today.

I’m kind of late for this unboxing post because I received my package around the 18th of December, but I guess that’s okay, lol.

So if you’ve seen my previous two posts, you know how the package arrives. Originally when you take it out of the mailbox it comes in this white, bubble-wrapped package. And then in the inside is the drawstring bag that I personally use to keep some of my color pencils in..Here are the items that came in this month’s subscription:

Items Included:

• Not If I See You First by Eric Lindstrom
• Signed Bookplate from Erin Lindstrom
• Wood Cherry Blossom Bookmark from Mitercraft
• 2016 YA Quotes Calendar (Uppercase exclusive)

I am honestly so in love with the bookmark that they sent this month! It is sturdy and the fact that it is handmade is really intriguing! I am currently using it in the novel I am reading. Speaking of novels, Lindstrom’s sounds very interesting so I am excited to read that as well. The Quotes Calendar is so cute, however I don’t think I’d use it. The quotes are nice & the illustrations are well done. So I’d think I’d just hang it on my wall for decoration. I was thinking of doing a giveaway with the calendar but it’s an exclusive so I don’t think I will…

***ALSO throughout the book, they add post-it notes – each with a special code that you can enter on their website to unlock exclusive content, videos from the author, additional backstories, and interact with other Uppercase readers. How cool!

As always, if you have ANY questions or comments, I would love to chat!

*Disclaimer: Uppercase currently ships to U.S. and Canada, including APO addresses and Puerto Rico only.*

Thanks for reading and I’ll see you next time…