What it’s all about:
Adding books to your shelves each week is fun for all book lovers, but at some point, when our piles get a little too high, when our bookshelves are double stacked, and every nook and cranny in the house has already been filled with stacks of books, we all need to make room for more. There will always be new titles added to our never-ending TBR list, including upcoming releases, debuts, and the next instalment in a book series, so why not share/highlight the books you let go of, either through donating, selling, lending, or give away. We think it’s just as important to share the books we pass on, because in the end, they help feed our book additions by giving up their space on a bookshelf, table, or night stand so we can fill it up with something from our wishlist. Catch, Read, Release! was created to share the books we add to our collection, showcase the books we’ve read, and most importantly, highlight the books who sacrifice their spots so we can buy more!
Disclaimers: This meme was inspired by Tynga’s Reviews‘ Stacking The Shelves. I’d also like to give credit to Cindy @ Tynga’s Reviews for creating the awesome Catch, Read, Release! meme graphic and for helping us with picking the name! Thank you!
How you can participate:
Create your own Catch, Read, Release! post and link back to Moonlight Gleam Reviews to spread the word so others can join the fun! Moonlight Gleam Reviews will be hosting Catch, Read, Release! each Sunday, but there’s no set date for you to join. You don’t have to commit to post each week either, just as often as you want!
Don’t forget to visit each week and add your Catch, Read, Release! direct URL so others can visit your post!
Visit other participant links.
Don’t forget to have fun! 🙂
Lucy, a local Montreal blogger has come up with this great meme that I am going to try and take part in on a weekly bases if possible.
What did I catch this week? You can see what we caught this week by looking at yesterday’s post. Sorry I am doing this post in advance because we have hockey.
This week I read: I am still reading
and I have to read Shadow Fire for review this upcoming week.
This week I am releasing the following:
This is 29 books that were boxed and given to Michael’s school. To date that is 85 books I have donated. Ya me. It feels really good to pass along books we no longer read.
Thanks Lucy for hosting this be sure to check what Lucy has done this week and others as well. Until next week have a good week everyone,
I have been nominated/tagged by Kaitlin from the blog Vivacious Hobo for the Liebster Award. Thanks so much for this.
Rules
Thank the blogger who nominated you and link the blog !
List 11 random facts about yourself.
Answer their 11 questions.
Nominate 11 bloggers who have less than 200 followers.
Ask them 11 questions.
Let them know you have nominated them.
I have seen this in the past but I was never nominated for this so thanks again for giving this to me Kaitlin.
Here is my list of 11 random facts about me:
I have always wanted a tattoo but I am afraid of needles
I would love to visit London.
I would love to have a cottage in the USA.
I love freebies.
I am a stationary hoarder. Tons of pens, note pads, stickers etc
I have a secret stash of chocolate.
I love making lists.
I am addicted to Bath & Body Works
I love buying back to school supplies
I am a picky shopper when it comes to clothes
I love to travel
I am going to answer the questions Kaitlin posted on her blog.
1. Who are you? -My name is Cindy 2. Where are you from? – I am from Montreal, Quebec 3. How did you come up with your blog name? -It wasn’t a big complicated procedure I just picked my name and I have a love of books. Cindy’s Love of Books. 4. Why did you start blogging? -I started blogging August 26th, 2008 when my son was going off to kindergarten. 5. Have you met any of your favorite authors? -I have meet a few of my favorite authors and they were Cassandra Clare, Holly Black, Scott Westefield, Jay Asher, Lesley Livingston, Sherry Ficklin and so many others. 6. Have you ever preferred the movie over the book? -Hmm I don’t think so. 7. What is your favorite author? -If I had to pick one it would be Terry Spear because she writes the best paranormal romance books. They are the only ones I read. 8. Are there any super popular books out there, that you know you will never read? -Hmm another great question. nothing comes to mind. 8. What is your favorite genre of young adult books? -I would have to say paranormal 9. Do you read the books before you see the movies? -Yes usually I will read before seeing the movie 10. What is your all time favorite book? -My all time favorite book is Wuthering Heights. 11. What are 5 things you can’t leave home without?
car/house keys
purse
cell phone
digital camera
book
This is a hard one because I need to nominate 11 bloggers with under 200 subscribers. I can’t think of anyone at the moment so what I am going to do is tell you my readers, if you are a blogger and have under 200 subbies then I tag you do this challenge and if you do I will post your links in this post. So please leave me a comment if you decide to do this.
My questions to you are:
What is your favorite thing to eat when reading?
What is the one book you recommend alot?
Do you take advantage of your local library?
If you could only take 5 books what would they be?
If I was to look around your desk what would be the first thing I spotted?
Favorite drink to have when blogging?
If I could offer one piece of advise to a new blogger I would tell them…
I literally almost missed doing this post and acknowledging that Cindy’s Love of Books is actually turning 6 today.
I went back over the past 6 years to see my other posts from this date and it looks like a few are missing which I find really strange so I am going to have to try and track those ones down to put in.
As I sit here writing this post I am still amazed that I am actually still doing this. So many blogs have come and gone during this time .
I have to admit though at times I didn’t think I would continue. If you are a blogger you know exactly what I mean, its alot of work maintaining a blog with doing reviews and trying out new things. At times I have thought of throwing the towel in and just go about life but I can’t, I love my blog.
Over the past six years I have been blessed with meeting so many great bloggers in real life at meet ups or at BEA.
Speaking of BEA. I have been lucky enough to attend 3 (2010, 2012 and 2013) and visit one of the most amazing cities I have ever been too, NYC. I can never get tired of the hustle and bustle of city. Every year there is always a special memory that makes me remember that trip. Like the first year the Montreal group we went in saying okay we aren’t going to look like tourist and we blended in until the last day when Tina and I got lost well needless to say we whipped out that map to try and find out where we were.
The second trip since it was only Tina and I going, I was on the hunt for roommates and I ended up with three fantastic bloggers and needless to say that was a memorable trip. What happens in NYC stays in NYC 🙂
Then finally my last trip which I thought was possibly the last trip wouldn’t be because I got to hang out and room with a blogger I have been following for a long time, Sheila. It was so nice to hang out with Sheila (I am sure I drove her bonkers at time). I just have to say what you see online is what you get in real life.
I have my fingers crossed that I will be able to attend BEA 2015 since it will be the last time its will be in NYC before it moves to Chicago the following year (2016). So if you are planning on going or thinking of going and might possible be looking for a roommate please let me know…
Through blogging I have gotten to know so many wonderful bloggers the Montreal Ladies, Kate, Kim and Kelly (awesome roomies) Kathy, Sheila, and the list goes on and on.
I have gotten to work with so many publishing houses, publishers and reps. I have been lucky and gotten to meet them in real life Chris, Paul, Nikole, Miriam and the list goes on and on as well.
Over the past 6 years my reading has changed drastically as well and discovered so many fantastic books and authors and genres I must admit that I might not have read on my own. With that my TBR has increased drastically and my home is filling up with books.
Over the past year or two I have also had the chance to do other things and attend events that aren’t solely based on just books and for those I am grateful because I would love to incorporate some of my other interests into my blog. So if there is anything you would like to see please let me know.
Finally I don’t think I could be where I am without you guys. I appreciate all the time you put into commenting and I have been working on really going back to commenting on your blogs. At times I admit I thought no one was reading but I realize you are so for that I truly appreciate that.
You know summer is almost coming to an end when the Shrine Circus comes to town.
We have been going to the Shrine Circus now for almost five years give or take a few years. Michael loves going and he always has so much fun.
This year little did Michael know but he was going to be in for a surprise of his life. I was lucky enough to be contacted and get invited to the media event that was going to happen opening night. With this media access we were going to get to speak with the ring master, Richard Curtis and his wife, Kimberly and get a back stage tour.
We were greeted at the entrance by Richard and Kimberly and the group proceeded inside the big tent. Did you know that the tent is hand stitched and that 216 pegs were drilled in to hold the tent? Alot of work goes into putting up the big tent and that everyone wears multiple hats. Richard said that along with being ring master that he does other work such as helping to set up and even driving one of the 18 wheelers.
We also got to see Marie and Shelly get their pre-show baths.
ShellyMarie
What beautiful elephants they were. They were so calm and well behaved. The both really enjoyed their pre-show showers.
The tour was quick because Kimberly and Richard had to get ready for the show but they were very gracious to answer any questions we might have had and posed for some photos with us.
I was hoping to catch a better picture of Michael because he was thrilled when he found that we had ring side seats. We have never sat in that section before and always said next year we will do it and never did and I have to say that I think this will be our choice of seats when we go again. These are the best seats in the house even though every seat is good this is by far the best.
We managed to get a quick bite in before the show began and by this time we were really excited for the show to begin.
The pop corn was delicious and also the caramel corn was to die for as well. Neither Michael or myself are big cotton candy fans so we didn’t get that. But I did hear that the nachos were delicious. hmm next time I plan on getting some of those.
Before the circus began there was elephant rides. Michael didn’t do that because will we were in line he told me his stomach hurt. Thankfully it wasn’t anything serious and he was just excited.
The show began with all the performers coming out to greet the audience and this is the first part of the circus.
The opening act was suppose to be the Human Cannonball with Saturn Garcis but due to technically difficult before hand he was unable to perform. Hopefully they will bring this act again.
The first performers we saw were the Zamperla Zoppe. The horse was beautiful and Gino, Ernes and Nathaniel performed balancing acts, juggling, and so much more on horse back. It was amazing to watch then.
One of all time favorites is always the Videla Family. They have been a part of the circus since we have been going. I believe Piolita is the dad. This is one of many of their acts.
This was also included in this act and funny enough Piolita actually drove that little bicycle for a bit.
If you follow me on twitter you might have seen my tweet about RRRR there are pirates in the building. These are a Zerbini family and they did sword balancing (which is being done in this photo), knife balancing, and juggling. Robert was amazing to watch.
Gabriela took my breath away with her juggling. Juggling is one thing but add fire and it brings it to a whole other level.
I was in total awe of watching Shelly and Marie do their act. They were so graceful. They are such beautiful animals. This was one of Michael’s favorite acts.
I was hoping that I could have gotten some pictures of this act but with them moving the pictures came out blurry. This is the Videla Duo and they did an aerial act on this star. It was so beautiful to watch them perform above us.
Another great act that left us speechless was the Dragomir Troupe from Romania. They did all kinds of jumping off of ladders on to see saws throwing the girls into the air and getting flying in the air. I am always amazed when they can balance poles on their heads and hold it.
The last act before intermission was Piolita and his company of clowns.
During this act they grabbed four people of the audience to help them out. I think this is always the funniest act because you never know what they will do. They had the guys dancing around and yes they even did the YMCA. During this act Piolita and his son don’t speak but use whistles to communicate.
Michael laughed so hard during this performance. This is his all time favorite act.
The last act before intermission is the Wheel of Destiny with Saturn Garcia. This is one of those acts that I literally watch through my fingers because I am covering my eyes up. My heart is always in my throat when I watch this. So much can go wrong in a split second.
We are now half way through the show and it was intermission time. During this time they were once again doing elephant rides, the kids could get their face painted, grab some snacks, grab some autographs, pictures and run to the bathroom if needed.
The Gino Brother’s returned this time they performed a comedy acrobatic table act. These guys were so funny and you had no idea what was going to happen. I heard Michael laughing quite a lot during this performance.
I have to say that I think the act of Gabriela Zerbini was my favorite of the night. The aerial cast came out at first and with the lighting it made it so beautiful. When Gabriela came out from her cast she was beautiful.
I wish I could have gotten a better picture of Gabriela in the outfit below because under the lights its was beautiful. The orange just glistened. It was breathe taking. Her act was all aerial and I admit a few times I felt like I was covering my eyes.
Sadly this picture doesn’t do the outfit justice but please take my word it was beautiful under the lights.
The Videla family makes another appearance but this time as musical clowns and this was so much fun listening to them play.
When the oldest son went to play on the keyboards I thought it was going to be this funny act but it wasn’t. This kid can sing and he did a beautiful job of it. I wish I could remember the songs he sang but I can’t. He rocked and that’s all I can really say.
I managed to zoom in because Richard was in the back ground listening to him sing. Doesn’t this picture just show how proud he is of the act?
You know the show is almost coming to an end when Ericka Zerbini comes out. This horse and pony were so cute. They were both so graceful and elegant. If I could I probably would have jumped into the ring just to pet them both.
This is the year of the horse and it was a tribute to that. After this act was done out came these beautiful horses.
Its always a joy to watch these horse perform. I believe the horses range in age from 4 to 18 if I remember correctly. It was funny as they were performing there was one horse that would constantly try and bite the horse in front of him/her. Then at one point he/she seemed to get distracted on the far right of the ring. I was thinking that it was perhaps a light stick but not quite sure. They performed amazingly and Erika was a pleasure to watch. She was constantly smiling and beaming.
We are now almost to the end of the show. The last act was once again Dragomir and they performed all kinds of acrobatics that had the crowd oohing and aahhing. It was so much fun to watch them.
The end of the show brings out the entire cast to wave good bye for another year.
We had so much fun and I just want to quickly thank The Shrine Circus for inviting us to run away and join the circus for one night.
Thank you to the Zerbini Family for putting together such an amazing show and happy 251st Anniversary to you. Wishing you a happy anniversary and hears to another 251 years.
Thank you once again to Kimberly and Richard for giving us a sneak peek into what happens back stage at the circus. Hope to see you next year under the big top.
*Please note that I was provided tickets to attend the circus. These are my own personal thoughts and opinions and in no way was I influenced to write a positive review.*
One of our favorite things to do when the summer is coming to an end is being able to go to the Shrine Circus. The Shrine Circus is the only circus we will attend because the money raised goes towards the Shriners ongoing fund raising event and also the animals are all treated with love, kindness and dignity. You can visit the Zerbini family run sanctuary for elephants by visiting this link: http://www.allaboutelephants.com/
This year the Shrine Circus is celebrating their 251st anniversary of the Zerbini Family Circus. Since the humble start of the Zerbini Family Circus in Paris, France, in 1763 ten generations of Zerbinis have travelled the world sharing their talents with circus audiences on three continents.
The 2014 all-new showcase also includes: the Year of the Horse Spectacular with the Zerbini Liberty Horses and the Zamperla Zoppe JiockéAcrobatic Riders plus Trapeze and Aerial Artistry, Juggling, Sword Balancing, the PerilousPole Perch, Musical Comedy, High Flying Romanian Teeterboard Acrobatics, Classical Clowns and more.
What I love about the Shriner’s Circus is that every year is different, thrilling and magical. We are excited to go again this year so I invite you to check out my tweets on August 14th as I am going to attempt to tweet as much as I can and I am going to attempt to instagram some photos as well providing my phone will work properly. Just click on the images below to follow me on twitter and instagram.
Be sure to come back to my blog next weekend when I blog about the night we ran away and joined the circus.
There is three stops planned for the Montreal area:
Lasalle: Aug 14, 2014 – Aug 24, 2014
Laval: Aug 28, 2014 – Sep 07, 2014
Parc Jean-Drapeau: Sep 12, 2014 – Sep 21, 2014
You can check out the http://shrine-circus.com/buy-tickets/ for more information.
Today I am thrilled to be able to give away this amazing prize. Its a family of 4 VIP tickets.
This contest is valid only for residents of the Montreal area who will be able to attend one of the shows either in Lasalle, Laval or Parc Jean-Drapeau. The date is of your choosing.
All you have to do is answer this I LOVE THE CIRCUS BECAUSE…….., your email address and the top three dates of your choice ( http://shrine-circus.com/buy-tickets/ ). Winners will be announced in a separate blog post.
I have been fortunate it enough to have been asked to take part in the Jane Bull Canadian tour. I am one of ten blogs and bloggers that will host Jane on her cross Canada tour.
The other bloggers who are on this tour are listed below so be sure to check out their post in the upcoming weeks to see what kind of fun and exciting things Jane has been doing during her visit in Canada.
By seeing the world through a child’s eyes, Jane Bull’s fresh, original, and energetic designs inspire children to get crafty. Since joining DK in 1982, she has been coming up with fresh, original, and energetic ideas to inspire children to get crafty. Her books for DK include Make It,Made by Me and Stitch by Stitch among many others. Jane lives in London and has three children of her own to practice her crafty ideas on.
I was super excited to have Jane visit and the day finally happened last Wednesday when she arrived save and sound from the DK Canada offices in Toronto.
She was happy to be in Montreal because she had a bumpy ride coming in.
Jane arrived just around lunch time so she grabbed a quick lunch and then we chatted as she told me all about her books she has written.
Jane was excited to meet Michael because on her last stop she got to spend some time with Jasmine and her family from Ottawa. You can read about her visit on http://canadianladybugreviews.blogspot.ca/
Jane and Michael had a blast together. They talked about all kinds of things from what she would like to do in Montreal, to lego and so much more.
Sadly the majority of the week it was raining so we didn’t get much sight seeing in but I did take her to breakfast when I met up with some friends.
Its was at our regular spot. I didn’t take Jane and pose her in the picture because I was worried she would have gotten dirty and there wasn’t much room on the table as you can see. So much food but I personally think the table was too small.
So later that day we decided to drive to Angrignon Park.
Its a beautiful park in LaSalle that boosts roughly 100 hectares of land. This park has had some major renovations done. The park is named after Jean-Baptiste Angrignon who was a long time city councellor. The park is beautiful and very quiet. It was nice to walk around and look at nature.
This was taken very close to my tour host’s home. We are in the parking lot of the french elementary school and high school. The white tube in the back ground is a water tower and that is the crest for the town I was in.
Looking for things to do during the rain we decided to head out for lunch and do some shopping. I picked up a few souvenirs to bring home with me. As you can see Michael was being fun behind me.
While visiting I got to experience Tim Horton’s for a nice ice cap on the last day of my visit. It got hot really quickly after the rain.
Another fun thing I got to experience was watching Michael play hockey. As you can see I am trying to sneak into his bag to go and watch him play. He is in a spring league that is 3 vs 3. It was a very fast paced game and Michael scored two goals and their team won while I was there. Sadly before I left they played in a play off game and lost.
My last day there we took advantage of the nice weather and did some sight seeing in my host’s city. This is Stewart Hall Cultural Center.
Stewart Hall, Pointe-Claire Cultural Centre, is a unique cultural venue located on the bank of Lake Saint-Louis offering a range of activities for the whole family: cultural workshops, concerts, children’s shows, conferences, exhibitions at the Stewart Hall Art Gallery, library, art rental and sales service (Artothèque), cultural associations, etc.
For the citizens of Pointe-Claire, Stewart Hall is a synonym of serenity, beauty and cultural blossoming. Before becoming a venue dedicated to art and culture, Stewart Hall experienced a very exceptional history.
The above pictures were taken at Canoe Club. The day before I arrived Michael was there with his class on a field trip. He told me that they canoed, kayaked, went on a dragon boat, and did a few other activities. It sounds like so much fun and the view was so pretty.
While we were in the village we popped over to the St Joachim church. What a beautiful church inside and out. Last year they celebrated the 300th anniversary. I was told that this is the spot to watch St Jean Baptiste day fire works and Canada Day fire works. Its one of the best spots to see them from.
I have to admit this was the first time I have seen this beautiful windmill in my city. Its one of oldest windmill’s in Montreal and one of 18 still remaining in Quebec. As you can see we didn’t get to see it closer because its on private property. It was so pretty to finally see it. This was constructed in 1709. There has been renovations done on it since then.
I also got to visit their local library and as you can see I was having a little fun playing hide and seek.
Sadly all good things must come to an end and it was time for me to pack up and head back to the DK offices in Toronto to visit my next family. Who it is I have no idea but I am sure it will be just as fun as my visit to Montreal and Ottawa.
I am helping Cindy do a wrap up post and sadly as we were looking for pictures to add some really good ones got deleted.
I had so much fun taking part in this tour and I want to thank Chris from DK for thinking of me and asking if I would like to be a part of the tour. I wish the weather was nicer where we could have gone down town to see some sights but you can’t predict the weather.
Jane I hope you had fun on your visit and I look forward to seeing your other tour stops.
Please check back next week for some reviews on Jane’s books. I was graciously given three of her books to review.
You know school is almost over (June 23rd) when its time to sign up at the local library for the summer reading club.
Once again this year our local library went with the TD (Toronto Dominion Bank) Summer Reading Club. We have had so much fun with this program.
The theme this year is Eureka. This year they are encouraging kids to get creative, messy and imagine.
I really love the site this year http://www.tdsummerreadingclub.ca/ because there is so much they can do with various activities and reading lists that can be tailored for each age group. Also in another section of the site there is a place with craft ideas and those will come in handy for rainy days.
What is really nice was when I was looking at the suggested book list for Michael I spotted two books I got from DK so he will be happy to find that out. We are going to try to read as much of the books from the list as possible.
Also as part of the summer reading program our library has awesome activities planned for both branches of the library. Some of the activities include Art Attack (the kids will make crafts to decorate the library), making small figurines (using beads, felt and string), painting a floral abstract, game of skill with beads (making your own game with every day materials and you use beads), making a beaded dragonfly, abstract art, making a vibrating toy insect, and match box monsters (the kids will make a little felt monster and a bed for him out of match boxes).
Michael will also be doing lego club (one of his favorite activities) and chess (which he enjoys playing).
I will try and do blog posts about the summer reading club but if you to see pictures I would recommend that you follow me on instagram. The link is on the right hand side of the page.
Michael is planning on making the most out of the summer reading program this year because it will be his last year in the children’s section of the summer club and then he will move on to the teen side. Hopefully next summer when its time to register they will have a lot more geared towards the boys.
Do you sign up for the summer reading club? Any themes?
