My Harry Potter Fix: Week 36

So before I begin, I want to share some sad news.  My Harry Potter Fix will no longer be occurring as a link up.  Kim has decided to make her blog private for reasons pending on her future career as a lawyer.  I'm so sad to see her going from the blogging world, but I completely understand her reasons, and I'm behind her 100%!

I am going to continue posting for the next few weeks for a few reasons:
1. I need things to write about.  ;)f
2. I want to finish the "would you rather questions".
3. I want to discuss my likes and dislikes of the last two books of the series.

If you want to post about those remaining topics with me, feel free to share the link to your post in the comments.
Would you rather...

...fight the basilisk or a dementor?  Snakes FREAK ME OUT.  Ever since I had to hold a python at an assembly in front of the students, it's even worse.  SO extra large snakes would totally not be on my list of things to take on.  I'd absolutely pick the dementor because Patronuses are cool.  :)

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...spend a weekend with Dudley Dursley or Kreacher the House Elf? While Dudley is nothing more than an oversized bully, I would pick Kreacher simply because if I were with him, I'd be in the magical world. 

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...be a Quidditch Keeper or Beater? I honestly don't know....I was never good at sports, so I'd probably be bad at both.  BUT I think I'll pick Beater just because you'd get to participate in more of the action!

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...receive a Howler in front of your friend or eat a vomit flavored Every Flavored Bean?  Embarrassing though it might be, I'm totally picking the Howler here.  Sure, the vomit flavored bean might be over and done with quickly, but since I hate anything and everything associated with being sick, I can't choose it.  IN fact, the act of eating said bean might cause actual vomiting to occur.  I'll pass.

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...have Severus Snape as your father or Delores Umbridge as your mother? SNAPE, SNAPE, SNAPE, A MILLION TIMES, SNAPE!!  That one was too easy.  Yes, Snape isn't so nice to Harry.  Yes, he makes you mad over and over again in the books and movies, but ultimately, we know that he was truly good and had the capacity to love.  I would have deep pity for any spawn from that evil woman!

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Again, this will no longer be an official link-up, but please feel free to share your thoughts (or the link to your post) in the comments! :)

TV Addict

Hi.  My name is Becky, and I'm a TV addict.

Don't get me wrong.  I still love an appreciate a good book.  But I love TV.  I watch a lot of TV.  I get stressed out because I don't watch most of my shows live, and the DVR starts filling up....

Since TV is a big part of what I do, I decided to write a TV post to share what I'm watching (or getting stressed because I haven't watched) each week this fall. 

Sunday
The Amazing Race (CBS)

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The Mentalist (CBS)

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Monday
The Voice (NBC)

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Tuesday
The Voice (NBC)

NCIS (CBS)

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NCIS: Los Angeles (CBS)

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Wednesday
Criminal Minds (CBS)

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CSI (CBS)

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Law & Order: SVU (NBC)

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Thursday
Glee (FOX)

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Ok, this picture doesn't feature nearly enough cast members as I want, but I had to finally stop and just pick one.  Google yielded too many pictures including, season 5 promos, that still feature Cory Monteith (aka character Finn Hudson).  I'm still so sad about his untimely death this summer.  :(  This week's episode is going to be a farewell to Finn.  I will need a box of tissues.  Seriously.

Friday
What Not to Wear (TLC)

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This is the last season of What Not to Wear, which is a bit sad.  :(

Blue Bloods (CBS)

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Saturday
The Pioneer Woman (Food Network)

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There are some more shows that I watch regularly that either haven't started yet or aren't in season right now:
Big Brother (CBS)
Mad Men (AMC)
Psych (USA)
Rizzoli & Isles (TNT)
Sister Wives (TLC)

The Last Day of Skirtember

Although there is no official link-up today, I still wanted to share my last outfit for Skirtember.  I'll be honest, I had difficulty figuring out what to wear for the rest of the week since I didn't "have" to wear a skirt.  I'm really glad that I took on this challenge with Kristin & Chantal.  It was a lot of fun!

Day 30- Monday, September 30th

Dress & Tights: Old Navy // Boots: Target.com // Let's Dance Necklace: Penelope Ann

In case you missed any of my Skirtember Posts, feel free to click the links below:
Week 1
Week 2
Week 3
Week 4

Book Review: Between Shades of Gray

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Do you know what I really love about teaching 6th grade?  I can have intelligent conversations with my students.  They can share their excitement about books they're reading, and we can exchange books.  I seriously just love teaching these older kids.

During our Open House night the first week of September, I was talking with a student and her parents.  This girl is great for a lots of reasons: 1) We share a first name. ;) 2) I taught her in first grade.  3) She genuinely missed me for the last 6 years, and she was SO excited to have me again.  4) She LOVES to read.  Somehow in our conversation, I mentioned that my favorite genre is historical fiction.  Her dad encouraged her to tell me about this book that she read over the summer.  I said the book sounded great, and she to my surprise, she brought it to me the next day.

That is the story of how I came to read Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys. 

Here's the summary from goodreads.com:

Lina is just like any other fifteen-year-old Lithuanian girl in 1941. She paints, she draws, she gets crushes on boys. Until one night when Soviet officers barge into her home, tearing her family from the comfortable life they've known. Separated from her father, forced onto a crowded and dirty train car, Lina, her mother, and her young brother slowly make their way north, crossing the Arctic Circle, to a work camp in the coldest reaches of Siberia. Here they are forced, under Stalin's orders, to dig for beets and fight for their lives under the cruelest of conditions.

Lina finds solace in her art, meticulously--and at great risk--documenting events by drawing, hoping these messages will make their way to her father's prison camp to let him know they are still alive. It is a long and harrowing journey, spanning years and covering 6,500 miles, but it is through incredible strength, love, and hope that Lina ultimately survives. Between Shades of Gray is a novel that will steal your breath and capture your heart.

I really loved this book.  Again, I do love historical fiction, so I had no problem getting into this story.  This was something that I honestly don't think I knew about history, and it was horrifying and incredibly interesting to read about this time under the rule of Stalin. 

If you are interested in the World War II time period, or if you just enjoy historical fiction like I do, I highly recommend this book.

P.S. I did return the favor.  During our conversation, the student's father asked her if she was familiar with Anne Frank.  She said she wasn't.  So I did the right thing as a teacher and lent her my copy of The Diary of Anne Frank.  She returned it shortly thereafter, having truly enjoyed it.  :)

Winning is awesome!

Do you remember a few months ago when I shared the products I received in my first VoxBox from Influenster?  In case you don't, the "VoxBox" link will take you to the last post of the series where you can click on all of the products I got to try.

Not only is it super awesome to get a VoxBox, but Brand Challenges open up for you for the products you received.  If you complete the tasks, you get entered to win more products from the brands themselves.  I actually won TWO! 

The first one I received was from Schwarzkopf Professional OSiS+.

The product I received from them in my VoxBox was called "Rough Rubber".  I liked that product, and so I was excited to receive this amazing package of products...even though I don't use much (if any) styling product on my hair. 

So what did I get?  From Left to Right- Dust It Matifying Powder, Fiber Gum, Shine Serum, the product guide, hair brush, cute travel carrying case, Mousse, and Hair Spray.

I haven't used the matifying powder, mousse, or fiber gum.  But the other products, I do like.  I particularly like the shine serum to tame stray hairs and to calm frizz. 

I will have another post with my other prize pack coming soon!

Have you ever won a Brand Challenge from Influenster??

My Harry Potter Fix: Week 35

I'm so excited for another round of "would you rather" questions this week, but before I get to my thoughts, please remember a few things:

1. Follow Kim, Tarole, and me.
2. Post about Harry Potter and link up below.
3. Share the love via Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and whatever other social media you love!
4. Visit the other blogs to check out their answers.

So here we go! 

Would you rather.....

....be a werewolf like Remus Lupin or a ghost like Nearly Headless Nick? While there's something to be said for flying through walls, I'd have to go with the werewolf.  Of course there are some pretty serious drawbacks, but at least when you're not being disfigured by the moon, you can enjoy things....like food.

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...have Hagrid or Dobby as a friend?  Oh wow.  This is a really difficult one for me.  I LOVE Dobby.  I think I would have to pick Hagrid, though.  Dobby tends to cause more trouble when he's trying to help.  Hagrid would probably be better at getting me OUT of trouble than creating more for me. 

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...spend an afternoon at the Burrow with the Weasleys or in Diagon Alley?  I do love the Weasleys, but assuming that they'd probably be with me, I'm going to go with Diagon Alley.  Sure, it would be cool to stay at the Burrow for a visit, but oh, the things there are to see and do in Diagon Alley!  :)



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...play Quidditch or Wizard's Chess?  I have to go with Quidditch here.  I'm sure chess would be much more exciting in the Wizarding World, but Quidditch is definitely the most exciting of the two.  I doubt I'd be any good, but it would be fun!

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...have a pet Hippogriff or a Phoenix?  Hippogriffs are rather large and would probably be a bit inconvenient as a pet.  So even though Buckbeak is cool, a Phoenix is WAY more awesome in my opinion!

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What are your thoughts??   Be sure to link up below!

 

Last October, I did my very first blog swap!  It was hosted by my friend Kristin and another blogger, Allie.  I loved picking out gifts to send, and getting my package in the mail, too.  That's also when I got to meet Casey because we were paired up! 

So anyway, about a month ago, I e-mailed Kristin and asked if she'd be interested in hosting a fall blog swap with me, and so was born the 2nd Annual Great Pumpkin Swap! :)

 

I can't even express how excited I am!  :)  So here's what you need to know!

 

What:  A fun swap of all things Fall with a blog partner.  You sign up, we give you a partner, you do some shopping, and ship out the package.  

And then,  you'll get a fun package in return! 

Cost should be $15-20 without the shipping.

 

When: Sign-ups will run from today to Monday, October 7th.  We'll send you your partner's email address by Friday, October 11th, so you can swap contact info (We'll have all the info on a spreadsheet, so if you have questions just let me know!)  Packages need to be mailed out by Friday, October 18th.  We'll link up our reveals on Friday, October 25th!

Swaps are SO much fun!  I hope you will join us!  Sign up below:

If you have trouble viewing or submitting this form, you can fill it out online:
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The 2nd Annual Great Pumpkin Swap!

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