Friday, March 20, 2020

Five on Friday - March 20, 2020

Happy Friday everyone! (Is it still okay to even say that given the circumstances?!) And, did we even realize that the first day of Spring snuck in yesterday??? Did we notice because I totally forgot! I've had a pretty rough week, but am trying to turn it around and stay as positive as I can! 

ONE 

Well it's been two weeks since I've done a life update and clearly shit has hit the fan in the last two weeks here - wow! On March 11, 2020 WHO officially declared Covid-19 a pandemic, on March 15, 2020 Calgary declared a state of emergency and the province of Alberta announced that all child care centres and schools were closed indefinitely, and then on March 17, Alberta declared a state of emergency. 

So, basically schools are closed until at least the start of the next school year, and daycares we have no idea! We are very lucky to have my Mother in Law, as jails don't close during emergencies so my husband and I still have to work during this time. Most businesses have closed down entirely at least for a couple of weeks and no one is allowed gatherings over 50, but everyone is recommended to stay to themselves and maintain social distancing! So, let's stick to the recommendations to stop the spread!!!

TWO

I purchased everything in this post - this post contains affiliate links

It's Spring now, so it's time to share my Spring 2020 Reading List! (And, seriously if now isn't a great time to pick a new book it, I don't know when is!) I'm starting with my fiction picks, and I will share some non-fiction books soon too! And really, most of these are fantasy style books, because I need an escape before bed each night right now! And don't go out to get a book - we have some local book stores offering free delivery and Indigo has free shipping on right now too! 

I always track my books on GoodReads, so if you have GoodReads and want to connect - you can find me here! I really love seeing what everyone is reading and I always find recommendations for myself from your reading lists! What I'm planning on reading this Spring is:
  • The Familiars by Stacey Halls ~ okay, the paperback cover caught my eye, and this hardcover is beautiful too and perfect for Spring! Then, the story-line of witch-hunting caught my attention and sounded intriguing! 
  • My Dark Vanessa: A Novel by Kate Elizabeth Russell ~ this is a brand new release earlier this month and it is a story of a girl who during the MeToo movement is re-living her previous affair as a teenager with her older teacher. It sort of jumps back and forth between past and present and this was very highly reviewed, so I can't wait to read it.
  • The Wicked Deep by Shea Ernshaw ~ I am reading another book by this author that I got in an Owlcrate and I heard a lot about her first book, The Wicked Deep and it sounded amazing. Three sisters who were sentenced to death and drowned for witchery return and steal the bodies of three girls to return and seek revenge and maybe love is the only thing can stop them! Sounds so good! 
  • The Hazel Wood: A Novel by Melissa Albert ~ This is another beautiful covered fantasy book that always draws me in - this is about a girl who has a string of bad luck and weird events, who ends up searching for her Mother who was kidnapped and taken to the Hinterland where her grandmother fairy-tell book was set!
  • Wicked Like A Wildfire by Lana Popovic ~ Did I buy this only because of the cover? Yes. Do I regret it? No. This is another magical story about two sisters who can "gleam" or manipulate beauty, but when their mother is mysteriously attacked, they discover a wicked curse that haunts their family line! 
Why yes, I did pick a ton of magical books for Spring, but they looked so amazing and all seem so perfect for Spring time! What's on your Spring Reading List? 

THREE 


How did you spend your Social Distancing St. Patrick's Day? I made green Shamrock pancakes and hand dyed my wine! Boom - pretty good idea. All of our restaurants had to drastically cut back on the number of diners and bars were ordered to close, so hopefully everyone decided to stay in and celebrate at home! 

FOUR 

And since I didn't share any life updates during my last Five on Friday, so I've missed a couple of happenings - Friday the 13th, time change - you know, some normal life events.


My little kitties - Max and Mephisto turned 7 at the beginning of March. Mephisto is the big black cat and his birthday is a guess because he was rescued from a dumpster when he was a couple of days old. And Max, we picked up from a family friend and she was born on March 8. 

FIVE 


And, March 8 was also International Women's Day and I celebrated with this gorgeous Girl Power! collection from Sweet As Candy x Land of Daughters x Hollow Bird and Co. These are all local Calgary companies and I'm so impressed with this collection as each company is donating 50% of the sales to the Calgary Immigrant Women's Association for the month of March! 

The scent of both the Sweet As Candy bubble bath ($15 CAN) and Land of Daughter's candle ($30 CAN) is a delicious Tangerine Coconut scent and it's amazing! The art was done by the Hollowbird and Co. and she also has a full print of available of the same picture ($15 CAN). 

Whew, I hope you all have a quiet but great weekend - we will be doing crafts and baking and hopefully going for some walks, but keeping our social distancing going! 

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