Sunflower Keychain Crochet Pattern

Hello and happy Monday! Welcome to my blog if this is your first time, or welcome back if you’ve been here before! Thanks for checking out this post today. 😃

As you likely read in the title, today, I’m here with a pattern for crochet sunflower keychains! It’s very beginner friendly, so if you’re new to crocheting, you’ll likely still be able to make this! The stitches and techniques I’ll use in this pattern are a magic ring, half double crochet, chains, double crochet, and slip stitches.

Materials

• Worsted weight yarn. I used Peaches & Creme yarn in the colors Gold and Dark Taupe, but you can use any type of yarn that you like, or that you have on hand. You’ll need two colors: yellow and brown. You could also make this pattern, but use different colors to make a different flower.
• You’ll also need a 4 mm crochet hook. I’ve made this using a 3.5 mm hook as well, and this works.
• You’ll need a pair of scissors.
• And, a yarn needle.
• You will need a keychain if you want to make this sunflower into a keychain. If you don’t want to, you can just make the sunflower part, and sew it to a hat or a purse, which I think would look so cute!

Instructions

Start out with your brown ring and make a magic ring.

Into your magic ring, make fourteen half double crochets. It may get a bit tight, but you should be able to fit them all in. When you’ve made all of your fourteen stitches, pull the loose end of your magic ring to close the center. While making a slip stitch in your first half double crochet, change the color to yellow.

Now, we’re going to make the petals! In the first stitch, *chain one, double crochet, chain one.* Slip stitch into the next stitch. Continue the pattern of doing the stitches between * in one stitch, and slip stitching into the next.

Here are two completed petals.

Continue around until you’ve finished your flower with seven petals. Slip stitch into the stitch you began in and fasten off, leaving a long tail. If you don’t have a keychain, and you wish to just use your flower as it is now, weave in the ends, and you’re good to go.

If you have a keychain, stick around.

Take the long tail which you cut, and put it through the last ring on your keychain.

Take the yarn back through the stitch you’re at.

Pull tight. You may repeat this a few times to secure. When you’re done securing the keychain onto your sunflower, weave in all the ends.

And, you’re done! You have a cute sunflower keychain!

This is the end of the pattern! I hope you enjoyed it, and thank you for reading! Do you like this pattern? Will you try it out? Tell me how it goes in the comments!

I hope everyone is having a great Monday! I’ll be back on Thursday with another fun post! Bye until then!

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Crochet Projects I’m Working On

Hey, everybody! Welcome, or welcome back, to my blog! I’m here with a crochet-related post today! I’ll be going through my crochet WIPs (works in progress) because they were a little unorganized, and I haven’t gone through them in a while! 😄 I’m sure I’ll find some things I totally forgot about!

So, let’s dive right in!

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Here is the bin on the shelf. It doesn’t look too unorganized, but when I looked inside, it was pretty messy!

Yeah. You can see some of the projects, and the yarn tangles, too! 😬

Here’s the first thing I pulled out of the bin. It’s just a necklace-type thing I made. The only thing I had left to do was weave in the ends!

Here’s a hat I just made recently! It just needs the ends to be weaved in, now! (I have a feeling that that will be what the majority of these projects will be like!)

I don’t even remember what this was going to be…I might just unravel it and use the yarn for something else! 😄

Next, a little pouch! I just have to weave in the ends and maybe sew a little button on the front!

A cute little baby bonnet! I think it’s so cute! I just have to weave in the ends!

This isn’t really a project, but it is a Tunisian crochet swatch I was working on!

I kinda forgot about this one! It’s the blanket to a lovey I was working on! I’ll be going to the store soon to find yarn to finish the head! (My yarn stash is actually surprisingly low!)

I’ll be working on this one more, soon! It’s a blanket I started last winter (which I kinda forgot about), but then spring and summer came, and I didn’t really want to crochet it, because the yarn’s very warm and I wanted to work on some more summery projects! I’m going to try to find the pattern I was following (I can’t quite remember what stitch I used for it) and finish it this winter!

Here’s a headband I was working on. I just need to sew this little heart onto it, and weave in all the ends! I think that this yarn looks so fallish!

This is a cute little shawl I was working on, but I don’t remember the pattern, so I’ll probably unravel this and re-use the yarn.

A baby shoe! I don’t think I have any more of this yarn, though, and I only made one shoe, sooo…I’ll most likely be unraveling it to reuse the yarn.

Another Tunisian swatch!

This was a veil I was working on to wear to Mass, but I don’t like how the top is looking, so I might unravel it and try to redo it!

I don’t remember what this was going to be, lol. I will probably unravel this as well, and use the yarn! It’s a nice soft, velvety yarn!

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That’s all for this post! Would you like to see more crochet-related posts? How many crochet projects are you working on right now? I’d love to chat in the comments! I’ll see everyone on Thursday! I hope you have an awesome week!

~ Rebekah

How to Start Crocheting: A Collab With BetsyJane

Welcome back to Books and Hooks! I hope you guys had a good weekend and are having a good start to your week! 😊

So, a little while ago, I asked BetsyJane if she wanted to do a collab post with me, and she said yes! I would definitely recommend checking out her blog, poppyseeds! She has some amazing posts! Make sure to go check out her collab post as well! It’s about how to start knitting!

In today’s blog post, I’ll go through how to start crocheting, from buying materials to finding easy beginner patterns online! If you’ve been wanting to start crocheting but didn’t know where to start, this is the post for you!

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Gathering materials

Photo by Kumo Knits on Pexels.com

Buying materials for crocheting is a very simple thing. All you really need is yarn and a crochet hook. However, with that being said, there are still a few things to look into when picking out your materials. Let’s talk a little bit about it!

Yarn

Color:

• Avoid darkly colored yarns. While using black and dark yarns, it can be hard to see your stitches, which can be frustrating for beginners.
• Using white yarns can also be frustrating to use for the same reason.
• I recommend using a light/medium-colored yarn, such as light blue or green. Something that is easy to see.

Weight:

• On the yarn label, it should say the weight number, which corresponds to how thick the yarn is. (Picture below.)
• #0 weight is very thin, while #6 is very thick.
• Each number has a different name (#0 is often called lace yarn, #1 is often called fingering yarn, #2 is often called fingering yarn, #3 is often called sport or DK yarn, #4 is often called worsted yarn, #5 is often called chunky or bulky yarn, #6 is often called super bulky yarn)
• I would recommend a #4 weight yarn (worsted weight yarn), which is of medium thickness. This is usually the easiest for beginners to use because it’s not too thin or thick.

Fiber:

• Three of the most common yarn fibers for crocheters are acrylic, wool, and cotton.
• Acrylic yarn is a popular choice because it is widely available, inexpensive, and can come in a wide variety of colors. Some acrylic yarns do split, however, this is pretty uncommon.
• Wool yarn is another good choice! It is very forgiving, so if you mess up on a stitch or make a mistake (which is bound to happen when you’re learning to crochet) wool is usually very easy to unravel and re-use. One thing to be aware of is that some people may be allergic to wool.
• Because cotton yarn is not as elastic as wool or acrylic, it is a slightly less popular choice for beginners. However, if it’s summer, cotton is cooler and more breathable, and it is a good choice for those warmer months. It also really depends on what project you are working on.
• Even though they can look really pretty, I would recommend avoiding fluffy yarns or novelty yarns at first, because the stitches are extremely hard to see when working with those yarns.
• To review, I would recommend smooth cotton, acrylic, or wool yarn, depending on the project you’re working on. Avoid eyelash yarns and any fluffy or textured yarns.

This yarn is a #3 weight (or DK) yarn. The suggested hook size is a 6 mm or J-10 hook. You can typically find this information on all yarn labels!

Here is where it shows the fiber content. This yarn is a mix of cotton and polyester.

Hooks

Photo by Anete Lusina on Pexels.com

Material:

• Hooks can be made out of aluminum, bamboo, and plastic.
• Each material has its own pros and cons.
• Aluminum hooks are generally inexpensive, last for a while, and are widely available. However, they can sometimes be painful to your hands. Because of this, some aluminum crochet hooks do have plastic or rubber handles for more comfort.
• Bamboo crochet hooks have a good grip, so if you’re having trouble with your yarn slipping from your hook, bamboo hooks may help. They are a bit more expensive than the other materials, though.
• Plastic crochet hooks are very affordable, and they’re lighter, so plastic’s usually used for larger sizes of hooks.
• People typically have their own preferences as to what material they enjoy using. I would recommend experimenting with different types of hooks to find what works best for you.

Size:

• For each size of yarn, there is a corresponding hook size.
• On the yarn label, it should say what hook to use. (Shown in the photo above.)
• If you’re using a #4 (worsted) weight yarn, then the hook size is usually a 5.5 or 6-mm hook. Check the yarn label to see what size to use, though.
• There are metric and US crochet hook sizes. Here is a helpful chart for conversions.

Other materials

Although yarn and a hook are all you really need to get started, there are a few other useful materials you can buy to help you on your crochet journey.

• It’s a good idea to have a nice pair of scissors to cut your yarn with. You can just use some scissors you have around the house, but it never hurts to buy a small pair to carry around with you when you are crocheting.
• You can use a yarn needle to weave in the cut ends on your crochet project. There are plastic yarn needles, metal ones, sharp needles, dull ones, and curved ones. Plastic and metal are both good, but a few plastic ones I’ve had have broken, so just keep that in mind.
• Sometimes, it’s wise to buy a little pouch to house all of your tools. If you bring your crochet project on a car ride, you’ll want to put your yarn needle, hook, scissors, and other supplies in this pouch, so you don’t lose anything. There are some that come with little loops to hold your crochet hooks and with little zipper pockets and such. You can buy something like that, or a simple pouch with one pocket, which you can usually find at Dollar Tree or Walmart.

Starting out

Now that you have your materials, you want to start crocheting. But, how do you start? Well, there are a few different options.

Take a class

• Taking a crochet class is a good idea because you can have someone there explaining to you how to do different stitches, and you can ask them questions.
• I don’t have any experience with a class, because I just taught myself to crochet through online blogs and YouTube videos, but I’ve heard some good things about crochet classes.
• Classes can, however, be a bit pricey sometimes, so just keep that in mind.

Have someone teach you

• If you have somebody in your family, or one of your friends, who crochets, you can always ask them to teach you!
• I’ve been teaching my little sister how to crochet, which is really great. It allows her to ask me when she has any questions, and she can see in person how to do different stitches.
• One drawback is that not everyone has that amount of time, so this might not be the best for everybody.

Blogs/websites

• Sometimes, if I’m trying to learn a new stitch, I just don’t want to watch a YouTube video (especially if I’m out in public or something) blogs are a great alternative.
• Blogs can be a great way to learn crocheting, too! There are a lot of people out there who post helpful tutorials about basic crochet on their blogs.
• I like it best when I find a blog that has a lot of pictures to show how to do something.

YouTube

• YouTube videos are a good way to learn. Unlike reading blog posts about how to crochet, you can actually see someone doing it, which is how a lot of people learn best.
• There are many YouTubers out there who are great crochet teachers.
• It’s also free.
• YouTube is mainly how I learned, and it was very helpful to me.

Some of my favorite resources

• A lot of craft stores, like Micheals, offer crochet classes. You can also just search “crochet classes near me” and you should be able to find some great options.
• Some of my favorite crochet YouTubers are Evelyn and Peter Crochet, Bela Coco Crochet, Simply Daisy, and Happy Berry Crochet. You can also just look up “how to crochet for beginners” and find new tutorials.
• Some helpful blogs and websites are Heart Hook Home, Bella Coco Crochet, The Spruce Crafts, and Sarah Maker. Again, you can look up how to do certain stitches, and you can find your own favorite blogs!

Stitches and patterns

Now that you know a few ways to learn crochet, let’s look at how to practice crochet so that you can become an amazing crocheter!

• If you aren’t taking a class and you are just learning from YouTube and blogs, first, look up how to make the foundation for most patterns: a chain! Once you’ve mastered that, you can look up tutorials on how to do the basic stitches for crochet: single crochet, double crochet, half double crochet, and treble crochet. Here is a playlist on YouTube with instructions on all of the basic stitches!
• Practice making swatches! When I was first starting to crochet, one way I practiced my stitches was by making practice swatches. Crochet a short chain, then practice making some different stitches. You can unravel it and practice the stitch again, or work on some different stitches.
• Make some easy projects! Scarves, washcloths, baby blankets, and basically any other project that’s just a plain square or rectangle are amazing beginner projects! A lot of them have simple stitch repetitions.

Finding patterns online:

• Almost all of the patterns I make are ones I find on the internet.
• A lot of YouTubers and bloggers share amazing free patterns that they design.
• I think that YouTube videos are really good for beginners because they can see what’s happening as someone does it. Patterns may be kind of hard for beginners to read.
• Once you’ve learned to read patterns, I would recommend watching the YouTube video as you follow along with the pattern.

Buying patterns.

• Whether it’s in a crochet book, or if you’re buying a printable pattern on Etsy, there are many crochet patterns to buy out there!
• I don’t tend to buy patterns a lot because I can usually find whatever pattern I’m looking for free online.
• However, there can be some amazing patterns out there for sale. Make sure you know how to read a pattern before you buy one, though!

Patterns:

• Some of my favorite beginner projects are washcloths, scarves, headbands/ear warmers, baby blankets, and simple hats!
• The pattern you find should list the yarn to use. It might list a specific brand, or just say “worsted weight yarn.” Either way, make sure the yarn is suited for the specific project you’re making.
• As I mentioned earlier, I think that video tutorials are easier for beginners to understand compared to blog tutorials, because in YouTube videos, you can see what the person is doing better than if it’s written out.

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Thank you for reading today’s post! And, thanks again, BetsyJane for doing this collab with me! Everyone go check out her post to learn how to start knitting!

Would you like to learn to crochet? Did you find this post helpful? Do you want to see more blog posts about crochet for beginners? Be sure to comment!

Have an amazing day, and have fun with your crocheting!

~ Rebekah

Crochet Flower Chain: Beginner Pattern

Hello and happy Monday! How’s the start to everybody’s week?

As I mentioned in my last post, today I am posting a crochet pattern! It is for an easy, quick, and simple crochet flower chain! 🌸

Made using Lion Brand Coboo yarn! One of my favorite yarns!

You can make this chain as long as you want, and use it for many different things. You could turn it into a garland, a bracelet, a curtain tie, a clothing accessory, a headband…so many possibilities!

Materials

• Yarn (the size and amount depends on what you’ll end up using it for)
• Coordinating crochet hook
• Yarn needle

Instructions

1: Chain 5. Slip stitch in the first chain to create a loop. *Chain 2. Do 2 double crochets, a treble crochet, and two more double crochets in the loop. Slip stitch in the loop.*

2: This creates one petal. Repeat the instructions between * four more times to create five petals, and to finish your first flower. The stitches will get a little crowded toward the end, but that’s okay.

3: When you’ve finished this flower, you’ll want to chain 10 or 15 ( depending on how far apart you want each flower to be). Then, you’ll slip stitch in the fifth chain from the hook, creating a loop.

4: Repeat the stitches between * five times into this loop to complete your next flower. Then, just keep chaining 10, slip stitching into the fifth chain, and completing the stitches between * five times into this loop. When you’ve made it your desired length, fasten off, weave in the ends, and you’re done!

As you see, this pattern is super easy! You really just repeat a series of stitches for each flower, and make as many flowers as you desire.

I hope you liked this pattern! Do you like crochet? Will you be trying out out? I’d love to chat in the comments!

Have a wonderful day and week, everybody! ❤️

~ Rebekah

Answering Y’all’s Questions

Hello! I’m back with a new post this week! I’m going to be answering the questions you guys have asked in this post!

Thanks so much to Addie and Maggie for asking some questions! Be sure to look at both of their blogs, because they share some great posts!

Let’s get into the questions, now!

Addie’s questions:

1. Have you ever been out of the U.S.? If so where did you go?

I actually haven’t ever. I think it would be really fun to travel sometime, though! I just don’t like plane rides.

2. Do you have any pets? (you may have answered this question before I just can’t remember lol)

I think I did before, but I don’t mind answering it again!! I have a cat named Luna! 🥰 Here is a pic!

3. What’s your favorite hobby?

Uhhhh…this is a hard one, considering the fact I have so many hobbies! 😅 Writing, crochet, and running have to be my top three. I don’t think I can choose just one!

4. If you could live anywhere you wanted in the world where would you go and why?

I would really like to visit Italy or France! If I had to choose one, though, it would probably be Italy! I’d love to go there for many reasons, one being the food! Pasta, pizza, gelato…yum! I don’t know if I’d like to live there, but just for a visit would be fun! To live…I’m not sure! I don’t have a very good understanding of different places, because I haven’t traveled a lot, so I don’t know if I would be able to answer that!

5. Any college/future plans?!

It’s funny you ask this because it’s something I’ve been thinking a lot about lately. I plan to become a doula when I’m out of high school, and then maybe go to college to become a midwife if I like that career area!

Maggie’s questions:

1. Would you rather visit a library or a bookstore?

I like them both for different reasons! I love bookstores because I can actually buy the books, whereas at a library I’d have to return them in a few weeks. I also really like the library, especially if I don’t have any money to spend on books. Overall, though, I’d have to go with a bookstore!

2. What’s your favorite savannah animal?

Elephants! For some reason, I’ve just always loved them, and I don’t know why, but that’s definitely what I’d choose for this question!

3. What are a few countries you’d love to visit?

Like I said earlier, Italy and France are two countries I’d love to visit! I also really like Ireland!

4. Do you prefer lemonade or tea?

I like both, but lemonade is my favorite!

5. What were some of your favorite games to play when you were little?

When I was little, I really loved to play Monopoly and Risk! I love the games that rely heavily on strategy, instead of just luck. These games sort of combine the two, so I really enjoyed them! I also liked Scattegorites, I think, though that was a bit later.

6. How would you describe your art/decorating style?

I like really simple and cute decorations that are bright and cheerful! 😊

7. Do you prefer drawing or painting?

I don’t do much of either, because I’m not the best at it, but I do like drawing better.

Thank you all for reading! And, thanks again to Addie and Maggie for asking some questions! I had so much fun answering them! See y’all Thursday!

Bye!

~ Rebekah

Monthly Wrap-Up: August 2022

Hello! Welcome or welcome back to my blog! How are you doing?

Today I’ll be wrapping up my August, considering the month is over. Now is your last chance to ask me any questions on this post, because I’ll post the answers on Monday, probably!

Books

The only book I finished this month was We’ll Always Have Summer by Jenny Han. It is the third book in the summer I turned pretty series. Despite my higher ratings for the other two books, I did not enjoy this book. I just found it very annoying, and I didn’t like the ending.

Writing updates

Considering the fact that I was traveling during the first half of the month, and I was in sort of a writing slump, I didn’t get a lot of writing done. I worked on Old Hopes and New Beginnings a bit and picked up the second draft of my dystopian book, and I’ve started writing it again! And…guess what? I’ve come up with (yet another) book idea. Now, I really want to write it, but I have to finish one of my other books first. 😣

Crochet

I have started working on some fall projects!! Yay! I made some decorative pumpkins (here’s my pattern) and some other autumn decor!

Running

Again, I was traveling, so I didn’t run during that time. I did get quite a bit done in the latter part of the month, which was great. I also did a 5k race, which was lots of fun!! My time was a little under 30 minutes, which I think was a pretty good time for me!

Posts

Monthly Wrap-Up: July 2022

I didn’t set any August goals, so I’ll just go right into listing my September goals. (I can’t believe it’s September already!!! 😮)

September goals

• Write 1,000 words every day
• Practice Spanish lessons every day
• No phone on Mondays and Fridays (except for texting friends and doing Spanish lessons)
• Follow schedule
• Get up early & go to bed early
• Read five books
• Post a crochet pattern
• Drink more water
• Post twice a week

Important events in August

• As I have mentioned a lot, I was visiting family during the first half of the month, so that was quite fun!
• One weekend, my dad and brothers traveled a bit, so my sisters, my mom, and I had such a fun time! We did some shopping, got snacks, and had chick flick movie nights!
• Our fair happened, which was lots of fun!

My little brother did this puzzle while on our trip, and he wanted me to take a pic!

We got frosties on the way back from our trip! I loved the strawberry kind! It was nice and refreshing for the hot summer day!

Yummy dinner!

Just some flowers! 🌼

You won’t understand how hard I was gripping my phone while taking this photo. 😅

My younger brother found this praying mantis. It was really cool, actually!

Crocheting with lace weight yarn is tedious, but I really love it!

Post run m&m snack!

Going on a walk!

I really like how this photo turned out, with the setting sun!

Foggy morning runs!

I started rereading one of my favorite books, “The Hunger Games!”

Fall projects!

Smoothies!

I love this homemade artisan bread! Recipe here.

Thanks for reading! How was your August? What books did you read? What are your September goals? I’d love to chat in the comments! Everyone take care, and have a good rest of your week and weekend!! Also, please comment if you have any post ideas you’d like to see on my blog!

~ Rebekah

Monthly Wrap-Up: July 2022

Hello, y’all! I’m back!! How’s everyone doing?

July’s monthly wrap-up is quite a bit late because I was on a trip visiting family and I decided to take a short blogging break while I was there. Now, I’m getting caught up and doing my monthly wrap-up!

Check out this post, where I asked y’all to ask me questions, and I’ll answer them sometime next week!

Books I Read:

Wait For Me by Caroline Leech was the first book I finished this month. It was a pretty good historical fiction novel. My sister had recommended it to me after she finished it, and I enjoyed it as much as her. It’s a historical fiction book set during World War Two. Some historical fiction that I’ve read has been quite action-packed, with lots of stuff going on. This book, however, wasn’t. It was slower, but not boring. I rated it 4.5 out of 5 stars!

Waking Rose: A Fairytale Retold by Regina Doman is the only other book I read in July. Regina Doman writes amazing books. I have read two of her previous books in the fairytale retold series, The Shadow of the Bear and Black as Night. They are all good books for Catholic teens especially because Doman incorporated a lot of Catholicism into these books. It was a 5/5!

Writing updates

I wrote a good amount in “Old Hopes and New Beginnings” my contemporary novel, though not as much as I would have wanted. I was hoping to finish the book this month, but it feels like I’m not even very close. I am at a little over 57,000 words, and I was aiming for 60,000 words for the first draft, but I am pretty sure it’s going to be longer than that.

Crochet

Not a lot of crochet, but I did finish a crochet top which I am really excited about! I have pics down below!

Running

I got a lot of running done, though!! I am so proud of my running last month! I followed my 10k training plan, and I ran seven miles as well! When I started running a few years back, I couldn’t even run a whole mile without stopping. I never would have imagined going seven miles. But, here I am!

Posts

My One Year Blogiversary 🥳// Comment Some Assumptions // Blog Redesign

Monthly Wrap-Up: June 2022

Summer Aesthetic

The Music Loving Writer’s Tag (Original)

Reacting to and Answering Your Assumptions About Me

Taking a Short Break + Ask Me Some Questions

Reviewing my July goals

• Exercise every day I think I did! At least most days. There was one day where we went to the store, and I didn’t get to exercise, but we did walk around quite a bit, so I guess that sort of counts. I think I did pretty good with this one!
• Get caught up (at least a little bit) on tags, awards, and nominations on my blog Uhhh…not really 😅
• Write for 20 minutes each day Nope, but I did end up writing pretty consistently!
• Make a schedule I did! I made a morning schedule, because I felt like I needed to be more organized!
• Hydrate more, because it’s getting super hot Yes! I am working more on that! It had definitely been very hot here, so hydration is important!
• Do a 10k run Yup! Like I said earlier, I followed and completed my 10k training program!
• Post a book review No, I didn’t.
• Take more walks, and enjoy nature I feel like I really did this in July more! I tried to get outside, and take more walks and bike rides this month!

Important events in July

• In July, I didn’t have a lot going on. There was a lot of time with family, walks and runs, and finishing up my schoolwork for the year.

Pictures from July

The crochet top I made!

Constructing the top!

Chocolate chip cookies 😋

A picture from one of my walks

My cat, Luna

I love taking the dogs on my walks with me!

Fireworks from the 4th of July

Thank you for reading! I hope everyone is having a good start to their week! What’s been going on in your life lately? What posts would you like to see in the future on my blog? I’d love to chat in the comments! I hope that you have an amazing day, and a good week! I’ll be posting on Thursday (probably an August monthly wrap-up). Bye! 💕

~ Rebekah

Monthly Wrap-Up: June 2022

Hello everybody! I know that this is my second post today, but I wanted to get my monthly wrap-up posted before we get too far into July! June was a pretty good month for me, but I did feel like it went by really fast!

Books I read

I got three books read in June.

The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han. This was a sweet, fun, quick contemporary read! It definitely gave me some summer vibes! I read Jenny Han’s other series, To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, and loved it, so I thought that I’d read this series! I loved it, and gave it 4.75 out of 5 stars!

The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano by Olaudah Equiano. This was one that I read for my English class. I didn’t like it much, but there were some interesting descriptions and scenes. I rated it 2 out of 5 stars.

Emma by Jane Austen was the last book I read. I was assigned to read Pride and Prejudice last year for my English, and I enjoyed it a lot, so I thought that I would read another Jane Austen book! Emma was a really fun book! I liked it a lot and I rated it a 4.75 out of 5!

Writing updates

I barely wrote at all this month! I know that I was trying to finish the whole novel in June, which definitely did not happen, but I think that taking a break was good for me because now I really want to write it. I am planning to share a bit more about it once I finish the first draft!

Crochet

I got some crocheting done this month, including a summer top, and some smaller projects, like washcloths. I am currently working on another top, but I ran out of yarn, so I have to wait and get some more!

Running

I am really proud of my running this month! I stuck with the 10k training plan, and only have a few more weeks left! It’s getting so hot here, so I have been getting up earlier and getting my runs in early when it’s still cooler out, or going in the evening. Running in the middle of the day in summer is brutal. I’ve also been focusing on warming up before my runs, which I’m bad about, and cross-training, which I have done more of this month!

Posts

Monthly Wrap-Up: May 2022

Some Bookish Phone Wallpapers

The Blogger Recommendations Tag

Definitely not a lot of posts in June, but in July, I’m going to be posting twice a week again, because school is settling down for the summer and I’m not as busy!

Reviewing my June goals

• Read a Kasie West book Sadly, I did not get around to it. I couldn’t buy one, and I couldn’t find any at my library
• Follow the 10k training plan Yes, I did this!
• Run 20 miles (at least) 39 miles! 😃
• This might be too ambitious, but I want to finish my contemporary novel Yeah, definitely not…😅
• Post once a week I only missed one week this month.
• Read five books Nope!
• Make a summer bucket list Yes, I did!

Goals for July

• Exercise every day
• Get caught up (at least a little bit) on tags, awards, and nominations on my blog
• Write for 20 minutes each day
• Make a schedule
• Hydrate more, because it’s getting super hot
• Do a 10k run
• Post a book review
• Take more walks, and enjoy nature

Important events in June

• I visited some family and relatives, which was fun!
• VBS happened one week at our church, and I helped! My siblings all had fun, too!
• Awaiting season 4 vol. 2 of Stranger Things!!! It finally came out today, and I’m going to be watching the first episode tonight! (I’m so scared!) Do any of y’all watch Stranger Things?
• I made a new blog in May, which I posted about in my last monthly wrap-up, but I recently changed the name and the link, so here is the new one: Rambles With the Saints Please check it out, and follow if you want!

Pictures from June

We went on a little car ride, and I got Subway for the first time! (At least that I remember. There might have been a time I had it when I was younger.) It was so good!

My crochet project in the car. It was a washcloth! I usually get pretty carsick when I crochet or read in the car, so I didn’t get that much of either done on the trip.

Messing around with the macro photography on my phone! I kind of like how this picture turned out!

Watermelon is the perfect summer snack!

Yum!

We got this Stranger Things Surfer Boy pizza one day, and it was actually really good!!

Reading Emma on the porch on a nice cool day. ☺

Another macro shot! I was working on a puzzle, and I think this picture is pretty cool!

My puzzle of the Eiffel Tower! ❤ Almost done!

Strawberry smoothies made with strawberries from our own garden! Smoothies are one of my favorite summer foods, especially for after I go on a run!

Crocheting outside with some of my favorite yarn, Lion Brand’s Coboo! It’s the perfect yarn for crocheting summer patterns, especially tops! 💕

My sister’s dog is adorable!!

The theme for this month’s bookshelf display was “Comfort reads”. This includes nostalgic reads or ones that my sister and I read when we were younger…books that feel like home. She made this sign, and it’s amazing!

Here are the books! Lovely War by Julie Berry, To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han, The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins, An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir, and The Lord of the Rings series by J.R.R. Tolkien. My sister also made the eye of Sauron (on the right) from The Lord of the Rings series! She’s so artistic and creative!

That’s all! Thanks for reading today’s post! How was your month? Which books did you read in June? What are your goals for July? I’d love to chat in the comments! 😊 Have an amazing day!

~ Rebekah

Monthly Wrap-Up: May 2022

Hello, hello, hello! I hope everyone had an awesome weekend! I definitely did: I visited some relatives, and it was really fun!

Today, I’m posting a monthly wrap-up for May! 💕

Books

I barely got any reading done this month!

A Sky Beyond the Storm by Sabaa Tahir was the first one I read. I already read it in 2020, when it came out, so I thought it was definitely time for a re-read, because I was going through the series again. My sister and I listened to it together, and it was just as sad as I remembered it being! 😭 If any of y’all have read this book, you probably know what I’m talking about! 💔 Of course, it’s 5/5 stars!!

Walden by Henry David Thoreau was the other book I read this month. It was an autobiography I had to read for my English autobiography class, and I really didn’t like it. A lot of Thoreau’s arguments don’t make sense, and there were a lot of really boring descriptions. I like some of the themes and ideas, such as the fact that we should simplify our lives a little bit, but not so much so that we’re living in casket sized boxes (something that he suggested in his book.) I wrote a few essays about it on my school blog. I only gave it one star, because of these reasons. Have you ever read it? Would you agree with me?

In June, I want to try to read Kasie West’s newest release, Places We’ve Never Been because it looks really cute and summery! I also want to read one that she wrote a little while that I haven’t gotten to yet, Sunkissed.

Writing

This month, I planned to just write my contemporary book, which I did, and get to 60,000 words, which I didn’t. I’m at about 40,000 words. When I finish the first draft, would you guys like to see a week long series about the book? Like, one day maybe I’ll talk about the plot, then I’ll share an aesthetic, and some quotes? Let me know if you’d like to see something like that! 🙂

Crochet

I finished a few projects this month including a top and a skirt! I also did a few smaller projects, like washcloths! I did get sooo close to running out of yarn (actually running out!!!) but I got some more, thank goodness, lol! 😌

Running

I followed my 10k training plan pretty good at the beginning, but during the last half of the month, I didn’t follow it as well, partly because we had family visiting, and I wanted to spend some time with them. This month, I’m really going to try to stick to it!

Posts

I didn’t really stick to my posting schedule this month, which I’m going to try to do better with in June!

Monthly Wrap-Up: April 2022

Five YA Book Cliches (Part Two!)

One Week Until the Deadline: Photography Contest!!

The Remarkable Blogger Tag

Photography Contest!!

Photography Contest: Winners!!!

Reviewing my goals for May

• Post every Monday I didn’t post quite every Monday, but I did post pretty regularly.
• Do a book review I did not get around to doing this, because I didn’t really read any new books. I’m going to try to do a book review in June!
• Follow my 10k running plan Like I said earlier, I followed it for a while, but for the past couple weeks, I haven’t really been following it, just running for how long I felt for.
• Focus on writing the contemporary novel I did! I think that I only wrote this one, which really helped me get more into the story than writing all of the different books that I’m working on!
• Finish reading “The Return of the King” I did not. I’m only on chapter 2 or 3. I don’t know why I’m having so much trouble reading this series. I like them, but I feel like they are books that you kind of have to take slowly to process everything, especially because of the old way they’re written.
• Get to 60,000 words in the first draft of my contemporary novel I did not. I’m only at about 40,000 words

June goals

• Read a Kasie West book
• Follow the 10k training plan
• Run 20 miles (at least)
• This might be too ambitious, but I want to finish my contemporary novel
• Post once a week
• Read five books
• Make a summer bucket list

Pictures from May

Here are a few pics I took in May!

I got some Converse!! I absolutely love them! Thanks, mom and dad! 😁

Another pic! What’s your favorite outfit with Converse?

I took this picture of this leaf because I thought that it looked like a heart! 💚 I don’t think that the pictures turned out super good, but oh well!

Another!!!

I took these pictures of this pretty purple in my yard! Do you know what kind it is?

And, some ice cream to finish it all off!!

Important events

May was a pretty amazing month! There were some great things that happened! ☺

• “Stranger Things” season four came out!!! I love this tv show, and I love the season so far!! The final two episodes of the season are coming out on July first, so I am excited for those, too!! I’m going to be posting a review soon!
• We had some family visiting, which was fun!!
• Soccer has ended for the season. While I’m kind of sad that it’s done, I’m also kind of relieved because it takes up so much time. I think that taking a little break is good. It was definitely an amazing season, though!!
• I finished my Algebra 2 math book, and now I’m on to geometry, which I actually kind of enjoy
• I started a new blog called “A Catholic Girl’s Musings“. If you want to, please check it out! I’ll be posting things about my Catholic faith, my beliefs, and I’ll also share recommendations for good Catholic books, movies, music, etc.

Conclusion

May was a pretty good month for me! ❤ I had some visiting with family, which was super fun, and Stranger Things 4, which is my absolute favorite show, was amazing. I’m going to post a review for it on this blog sometime soon!

How was your May? Did anything important happen this month? I’d love to chat in the comments!

Thank you all for reading! I hope you all have a great week, and I’ll see you next week!

~ Rebekah

Monthly Wrap-Up: April 2022

Hey! 😊 Sorry, guys, that I haven’t been posting regularly! Things have been kind of crazy, but I’m going to try to post more consistently in May!

Books I read

Saint Gianna: Her Life of Joy and Heroic Sacrifice by Giuliana Pelucchi. I bought this book because I wanted to learn more about this saint! The book was pretty well-written, though it did get a bit boring at certain points. (I feel like this is the case for a lot of biographies.) I definitely did learn more about this heroic saint through this book! I rated it 4.75/5 stars.

St. Maria Goretti in Garments All Red by Godfrey Poage. This is another saint biography. My sister found it at a thrift store, bought it, and read it. I decided to read it, then. I think that Saint Maria Goretti was such a brave person, and this book was also written really well. 4.5/5 stars.

I Am Margaret by Corinna Turner. My cousin recommended this book, so I decided to get it. I loved it! There were only a few things that I didn’t like, such as the unusual font, but I got used to it as I read. Another thing about it that made me not enjoy it as much as I would have, is the fact that my cousin was hyping it up a lot. I still rated it 5/5 stars, though!

The Case For Easter by Lee Strobel. I watched the movie”The Case For Christ” a while ago, so I decided to pick this book up before Easter. It definitely gave a lot of great evidence of Jesus’s death and resurrection. I would recommend it to anyone! 5/5 stars.

Twelve Years as a Slave by Solomon Thompson. This was another autobiography I was assigned to read for my English class. I found the details very descriptive, and it was written very well. 5/5 stars!

Echo by Pam Muñoz Ryan. I started this book a little while ago and then stopped reading it. I picked it up again and finished it in a few days. I absolutely loved it! It’s a few different stories in one book, following one harmonica as it transforms three different children’s lives. I also loved the ending, because it just tied everything together nicely! I’m thinking about doing a full book review for this book! I gave it 5/5 stars!

Writing updates

I did not get much writing done this month. I feel like I’ve been busier with school and soccer, but I’m going to try and get more writing done in May! I’m just going to try to focus on one of my books, the contemporary one!

Crochet

I got a good amount of crochet done this month! I even posted a pattern for Easter bunny keychains! I’m running out of yarn now, though!!!! I might do a yarn haul soon!

Running

I actually reached my goals this month! I aimed to run 20 miles, and I did *exactly* that!

Posts

Thank You For 100 Followers! 💖

10 Minute Crochet Easter Bunny Keychains

Happy Easter!

Celebrating 100 Followers: Becky’s Springtime Photography Contest

Reviewing goals for April

Get 100 followers and do a special post Yesss! Thank you for 100 followers! I never thought that in less than a year, I’d reach this many followers! 😊 I am doing a photography contest to celebrate! The deadline is May 20th, but I might have to push it back because no one has entered yet.

Run 20 miles (actually do it this time!!) I did! Like I said, it was exactly 20 miles!

Post a crochet pattern I did! Here is my pattern for cute little crochet bunny keychains!!!

Do a book review I didn’t get around to this. I am going to try to do one in May, though! ☺

Get some bike rides in! Yup! I was trying to focus on doing more cross-training this month on the days I didn’t run!

Do at least one lesson of Spanish a day There were some days I didn’t get around to doing a lesson, but I tried to do one lesson a day! In case anyone’s wondering, I’m learning Spanish on Duolingo.

Practice piano every day Yes!

Goals for May

• Post every Monday
• Do a book review
• Follow my 10k running plan
• Focus on writing my contemporary novel
• Finish reading “The Return of the King”
• Get to 60,000 words in the first draft of my contemporary nove

I’m not going to be able to add any of my pictures from April right now. I might come back and add them later!

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Thanks for reading! How was your April? If you celebrate it, what did you do for Easter? Did you reach your goals? I’d love to hear from y’all in the comments! Thank you for reading! I hope everyone is having an amazing Monday! Have a great week! 😀

~ Rebekah