What I Read...
- The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood: This book was one of the most intriguing and yet disturbing books I've ever read. Offred, the book's narrator, is a "handmaid" to a wealthy, powerful family and is only valued for her ability to have children. The Handmaid's Tale was absolutely chilling at certain points, but it's a book I'm glad I read.
- Dreams of Joy by Lisa See: I usually enjoy See's books, even though none of her later books compare to Snow Flower and the Secret Fan for me. I was a little nervous to read this one because I didn't like her previous book (Shanghai Girls) as much. However, I'm glad I read Dreams of Joy because the story was fascinating, and I learned a lot about the early days of Communist China in the process.
- Argo: I saw this movie early in the month after hearing all the buzz after the Golden Globes. It was a great movie, and I'm glad it won Best Picture at the Oscars.
- Casablanca & Rebecca: I love Oscar month on TCM! I was able to catch both of these movies this month, and I still have a few movies DVRed for later.
- I Capture the Castle & Felicity (Season 1): I've been working my library card out since the beginning of the year, checking out movies and TV shows (and books) that sound interesting.
- Downton Abbey: The third season ended this month — too soon if you ask me. There were lots of changes this season, and most of them weren't for the best (RIP Sybil and Matthew). I'm still looking forward to rewatching the season on DVD.
- TV: I also watched Castle, Grey's Anatomy, and Bunheads.
- Spending the weekend with the whole family earlier in the month. The game didn't quite work out, but we had a lot of fun together. I loved making breakfast for everyone on Saturday morning, and it was wonderful to go out to County Line again.
- Driving out to Georgetown one Saturday afternoon to look around the square and shop at some of the antique stores. I'm so glad I found a few things too.
- Watching the Puppy Bowl on Super Bowl Sunday — it never gets old!
- Enjoying the wonderful dishes at our February office potluck.
- Rediscovering the joys of the public library. It's exciting to pick out great books and movies and enjoy them for free.
- Buying some white chocolate M&Ms for the first time since last year.
- Making progress on my cross-stitch project and 2011 album.
- Baking chocolate chip banana muffins and bread for the office. When life gives you ripe bananas, you make banana bread.
- Seeing the Longhorns come from 22 points behind to beat OU. Any time you beat OU, it's a good day.
- Falling down hard while trying to put my new IKEA bookcase in my car.
- Having my hairdryer stop working on a super cold night.
- The craziness that ensued around my apartment in the hours after the Super Bowl. Some of my neighbors must have been enjoying themselves a little too much and decided kicking my trash can across the breezeway was a good idea. Then my next-door neighbors decided to have a yelling match. Fun times.
About My Monthly Round-Ups
At the end of each month, I take a look back and write a post about the month's highlights, as well as what I read and watched. To see all of my round-up posts, visit this page.
