Top 10 Quick Reads

With everything going on and the way the world is right now, a lot of people have more time on their hands...which means people have more time to read! Now as we all know sometimes it's not that easy to just pick up a book and get right into it. Then again some people just prefer quicker reads.
Today we thought we would share with you some of our favourite books that have helped ease us out of a reading slump or that we just couldn't put down and whizzed through, to hopefully give you some reading inspiration.

Mrs H's Picks.

A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket
Most people will be familiar with these books in some way, whether it be reading the actual books, with the Jim Carey movie or the more recent series on Netflix starring the brilliant Neil Patrick Harris. The books are definitely a great easy to follow, quick read way to get you into a story in easy bites. 

The Twisted Tree by Rachel Burge

One of the best books I've read this year, The Twisted Tree gets you hooked pretty fast meaning I didn't want to put it down and completed it in only a couple sittings.

The Doomspell by Cliff McNish

You can never go wrong with a good fantasy and I think this is a little underrated gem.

The Land of Oz by L Frank Baum
I couldn't just pick one of these to share because any of the 14 L. Frank Baum stories from the land of Oz fits the bill. Classics, fantastical, and relatively short, I think these (like most books to be fair) are able to be enjoyed by all ages.

Tales from the Haunted Mansion by Amicus Arcane
There are currently 4 books in this collection. I bought the first one a couple months after it was released and have pre-ordered each sequel since, if that isn't evidence enough that these are super fun and enjoyable I don't know what is. 

Mr H's Picks

The Slow Regard of Silent Things by Patrick Rothfuss

I choose this book because I love the author's other works, This book is a great little read with one character and an amazingly descriptive world which will get you turning page after page.

The Firework Maker's Daughter by Philip Pullman

I read this book in one sitting!! The first and probably last time I will ever get to say that.

Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer

I went into this book thinking it's going to be great all about fairy and dwarfs etc however, it is a bit more on the sci-fi side of what I normally read. That did not bother me great story even if the best thing about this book for me was one of the support characters!

Alice in Wonderland by T.T. Sutherland

Probably an unpopular opinion but the reason I enjoyed this book so much is because I had already seen the movie, but maybe that's just because I love the quirkiness of the movies.

The Chronicles of Narnia by C S Lewis

I've recently read this whole series I found it great how so a big world and so much can happen in such short books I thoroughly enjoyed this whole series and can see why they are or of  Mrs H's all-time favourites!

Well there you have it 10 quick/easy reads have you read any of them? Do you have any suggestions for quick reads?

Meet the Pets - Anubis, Athena and Hades

When I say I've been an animal lover all my life, I mean it. In first school I learned the hymn 'All Creatures Great and Small' and although I'm devoutly religionless my adoration for all animals has done nothing but heightened through the years.
As a child, I had fish, rabbits, a guinea pig and then a multitude of hamsters in my late teens but I've always wanted to have reptiles. The last 'Meet the Pets' post saw me update you all on Baker our collie cross but this week I'd like to introduce you to our three of the inhabitants of our Reptile Room. I know they aren't the most popular creature and some people go as far as to have fears of them...so be warned - this post includes many photos of three different breeds of snake which you may find too cute to handle!! Proceed with caution.

Anubis

Breed: Corn Snake

Gender: Male

Age: 17

Birthday: May 1st

Length: 50 inches [4.1 foot] 

As I mentioned above, two of our three scaley worms were already with Mr H when we met. At the time that we started to see each other, he had adopted Anubis only a couple months prior. His previous owners, to state it bluntly, had lost interest and didn't want him anymore. He wasn't eating and his set up wasn't really suitable, they had had him his whole life but 'estimated' his age to be between 15 and 18. Also immediately after Mr H rescued him, he was back eating and being a character. In the less than two years we've lived as a family, he has become even more boisterous and silly. He is extremely tame, well handled and loves to come out to play so much that he'll often give you a dance from his vivarium to tell you he's ready for exploring time. 

Recently, we had a big scare with him where long story short we were pretty sure he had passed away. After a heck load of tears and making a little coffin for him, we went into the reptile room to get him ready and he was moving around again! What a shock that was to the system. At his age, he really could go anytime but I'm pretty sure he's a few good years left in him yet.

Athena

Breed: Columbian Boa (debatable) 

Gender: Female

Age: 3 

Birthday: 1st March 

Length: 52 inches [4.3 foot]

Athena is another re-home/rescue dealio. And she is our 3rd rescue pet since getting together, having been with us since February. Sadly, the people who had her were trying to sell her as she had been a gift for their autistic son who had quickly lost interest. They didn't know her breed, her living environment was completely wrong, as was her feeding schedule etc. I've written 'debatable' in the breed above as she looks just like a Columbian boa, however, her size is all off...at only just over 4 foot when really for her age she should be 6 - 9 feet. We can only guess that the wrong husbandry has led to stunted growth or a morph we are unfamiliar with. 

Her size wasn't the only issue because although we had been told she was eating and shedding well, she actually had numerous layers of stuck shed on her, particularly her tail (see last photo above, from the day we brought her home). It took a few weeks but she's doing 100% better now.

This girl definitely lives up to the assigned breed stereotype as she is so docile and calm, a really lovely girl despite what some people have called her 'scary eyes'. 

Hades

Breed: Ball Python

Gender: Male

Age: 4

Birthday: 3rd July

Length: 48 inches [4 foot]

The real OG. Mr H has had Hades from a tiny baby Ball Python. Hades has a custom-built Ikea-hack vivarium which he loves. He's a super chill and predictable guy who can usually be found asleep on his 'shelf' although apparently Ball Pythons don't like to climb! He comes alive in the evenings mostly and will do his little dance just like Anubis, as well as push his little nose super hard against the door to get you to open up. Just like his snakey siblings he enjoys being handled and will chill out around your neck, on your knee or, as you can see, in the bookcase...

Hades is the laid-back, no bother guy of the bunch. We're thankful he has been happy and healthy his whole life which is what happens when you look after animals as they should be!

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And so these are another 3 members in our 10 strong family. If I have gotten anything out of putting this post together, it's the fact that I've realized I really don't take enough photos of the reptiles with my actual camera meaning the majority of photos I've taken quickly with my phone and are terrible quality. All three snakes have great personalities and are very big parts of the household. Like I mentioned above one of our three bedrooms is the dedicated Reptile Room, which once we have introduced the other two residents and completed a couple of currently half-pending projects, I will share here too. Spoiler alert - the walls used to be bright orange before we painted..!
Well, that's all for this week. Thanks for joining us and take care.

April Book Haul

With the current situation in the world meaning our charity shop book hunting trips have been on hold since the very beginning of March, we assumed April's book haul would be even smaller than March's stack of 9. However, like most people use retail therapy as a pick me up we also use it in book form. Here are the online book purchases we've added to the collection in April!

The Final Empire  by Brandon Sanderson

Paperback

awesome_books_001 via Amazon

A Skinful of Shadows by Frances Hardinge

Paperback

Infinite_Books via Amazon

The Court of Broken Knives by Anna Smith Spark

Paperback

awesome_books_001 via Amazon

Tunnel of Bones by Victoria Schwab

Paperback

Book Depository

Five Children and It by E Nesbit

Paperback - Puffin Classic

eBay

The Gospel of Loki by Joanne Harris

Paperback

Music Magpie

Seraphina by Rachel Hartman

Paperback

Music Magpie

The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making by Catherynne M. Valente

Paperback

Music Magpie

The Austere Academy by Lemony Snicket

Hardback

Music Magpie

The Vile Village by Lemony Snicket

Hardback

Music Magpie

The Return of the King by J R R Tolkien

Paperback - Collins Modern Classic

Music Magpie

The Scent of Magic by Cliff McNish

Paperback

eBay

At the Back of the North Wind by George MacDonald
Paperback - Puffin Classics
AbeBooks

Evidently secondhand is our go-to but not being able to see them before you buy them has been a pain. It seems many booksellers have lower standards than we do when describing the condition books are in because we rarely order anything that isn't listed as 'very good' but extremely broken spines don't fall into that in my opinion haha. Beggars can't be choosers though, a book is a book and any that are for special collections can always be replaced.
Also, like I said, we didn't expect to accumulate as many books, therefore, what with that and the fact of an even more limited income than usual, our only luxury will be put on hold for the time being too! That means no haul post next month..boo!

Easy Vegan Meal Ideas

Over the past two years, I have thankfully finally bit the bullet and fully transitioned to vegan eating. Before I went vegan I was vegetarian, used vegan spreads, have never eaten egg and only used milk extremely rarely...my big hurdle being chocolate and treats!
My whole life I have also been an extremely fussy eater. Not only that but I have had multiple issues with food aversions and disordered eating which makes eating more of a chore than something done for enjoyment like many people. I would happily survive on the same basic meals over and over but when you marry a chef you really have no option but to try new things, urgh! Insert eye roll here haha.
That all being said, a meal ideas post doesn't sound like something I'd be likely to do. However, I feel that with most vegan meal ideas shown online or vegan meal options you are given in restaurants people like me are left out. You can't be vegan and be fussy. Or can you?!
Here is a week of meals in our household.

[Note: Everything is vegan. It is also mostly Gluten Free but I only have a gluten aversion that sets off other health issues - I am not a coeliac. Therefore if you are gluten intolerant, obviously alternatives can be substituted.]

Cajun Fried Rice with Broccoli and Garlic Potatoes

Made with Plain White Rice, Cajun Seasoning, Fresh Garlic and Sesame Oil.

New Potatoes, Olive Oil, Garlic Granules and Oregano. (Portion for two)

Cheese and Bacon Loaded Potato Skins with Salad
Made with Baking Potatoes, Vegan Cheese, Vegan Bacon, Garlic Granules and Salt.
Basic salad of mixed lettuce, savoy cabbage, grated carrot and cucumber. 

Pesto Pasta and Cheese with Broccoli

Made with Gluten-Free Penne Pasta, Free From Green Pesto and Vegan Cheese.

Cous Cous with a Vegetable Medley and Garlic Potatoes.

Made with Plain Cous Cous, Garlic Granules, Chilli Flakes, Fresh Chives and Mixed Vegetables.
New Potatoes, Olive Oil, Garlic Granules, Fresh Chives and Oregano. (Portion for two)

Spicy Bean Wrap with Potato Wedges and Salad

Made with Gluten-Free Wraps, Spicy Bean Burgers, Plain White Rice, Siracha and

Basic salad as above. Pre-made seasoned wedges.

Vegan Sausage Pasta with Vegetables

Made with Gluten-Free Penne and Fusilli Pasta, Homemade Tomato Sauce and Vegan Sausages.

Broccoli and Green Beans.

Vegan Breakfast for Dinner

Made with Gluten-Free Bread Toasted, Hash Browns, Vegan Sausage, Vegan Bacon and Baked Beans. (I don't like certain items of food to touch so my beans were in a ramekin)

Broken Biscuit Traybake
Made with Digestive Biscuits, Golden Syrup, Vegan Spread and Vegan Chocolate

As you can see I am a huge advocate for carbs. I'd like to be living the high carb, low fat, vegan life but we do use some fats and processed foods still. It's a balancing act.
There seems to be quite a few diets doing the rounds and particular restrictive diets gaining popularity again. (The only thing I personally believe should 100% be eliminated from a persons diet is animal produce haha!) But all I want to promote is that plant-based is nutritious, tasty and has so many options to fit all tastes.Veggies, grains, pulses - good. Saturated fats, processed sugar - bad. As with anything, it's all in moderation though, isn't it?

 Can you guess some of the most common 'vegan options' that I don't like and will never have in my dishes...? Cauliflower, Mushroom and Avocado seem to be the basis of almost every vegan menu in restaurants and I say nope!
I already have another of these posts in the works, so I hope you enjoyed this and will look out for that in the following months.

Pages Per Day // April

Wow, now April was a reading reading month! Our current goal is 'around 1000' pages per month, so as Mr H's TBR totalled 886 pages over 3 books and Mrs H's TBR 953 pages over 2 books, it was our main goal just to complete those books. See below for the insane month we had...especially Mr H while furloughed.

Days 1 - 7 =  307 

Days 8 - 14 = 284

Days 15 - 21 = 400

Days 22 - 28 = 292

Days 29 - 30  = 126

Monthly total = 1409

I ended up completing not only my 2 TBR books, but another 4 on top of that. Two of those were audiobooks so I don't include any pages read...since I technically can't keep a track of audio pages...but they have all helped me pass 20 book mark for this year! I'm currently 8 ahead of schedule and hope to keep up our routine of nightly reading and reading in the mornings too.

Days 1 - 7 =  664

Days 8 - 14 = 640

Days 15 - 21 = 438

Days 22 - 28 = 368

Days 29 - 30  = 116

Monthly total = 2226

This is the most books I have ever read in a short space of time! I think this is even more books than I read in 2018 total! I ended up reading 7 books in total and even a 5star book this month which I'm pretty sure I even had on a post we did about books we want to read this year.

May TBR Lists

Here it is! What we're reading in May. Well to start out because with the extra time we are definitely getting through these TBR piles quicker than usual. I don't know what it is about Mr H being home from work that makes me read more, but it does! And I'm not complaining haha
Anyway, this is what we plan to read this month.

Mr Hallow's TBR List

The Brightest Star in the North by Meredith Rusu [TBR jar pick] - 234

The Last Battle by C. S. Lewis [Mrs H's pick] - 172 

Loki: Where Mischief Lies by Mackenzi Lee - 403 pages

- Page Total = 809

Mrs Hallow's TBR List

The Land of Neverendings by Kate Saunders [TBR jar pick] - 317 pages

Tales of Terror from the Black Ship by Chris Priestley [Mr H's pick] - 243 pages

The Subtle Knife by Philip Pullman - 341 pages

- Page Total = 901

Becoming Mrs Hallow

I wasn't the type of girl who grew up dreaming of weddings and babies. I've never pictured myself in a white dress or living life following the so-called traditional path, so it's weird to now tick the 'Mrs' box on forms and have a ring always on my finger. And I love it!!

On October 31st 2019 (yep, Halloween!) at our local Registry Office, Josh and I got married in the presence of my parents. Nothing about our journey there was traditional. There was no proposal...it was a discussion and consequential joint decision. We both picked out and wore somewhat matching engagement rings. For the ceremony I wore a black knee-length dress and he wore jeans and a shirt. And I didn't take his name.

From deciding that it would be beneficial legally to get married until the day actually arrived was a total of 4 months. These two people with no previous interest in marriage decided at the end of June, bought our engagement rings on the 11th of July, booked the date not long afterwards, gave our notice on August 6th and completed the deed on October 31st - our official 1 year anniversary of being together. 4 months! The average length between engagement and wedding day is apparently 12-20 months, but with no guests, no party and no real planning involved we were able to grab the only date we wanted, Halloween, in the current year rather than wait 16 months until the date came around again. Thankfully, it is apparently not a common date that people want to book at the registry office, which was to our surprise!

Now, once all of the above is taken into account, obviously we also didn't have the usual wedding costs either. Including the wedding itself (room, registrar, licence etc), wedding rings and our outfits, we spent almost exactly £250. A far cry from the UK average wedding cost of anything around £15,000 - £30,000+...like, what?! Considering I used to be a wedding photographer, we had no photographer and I only allowed my parents to take one quick photo on their phones. I suppose that the party side of a wedding is where a lot of the expense comes in and we can count our friends and family on one hand, plus we don't like partying in general so that wasn't an issue.

We did drive up to Edinburgh for the evening where we had dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe, drinks at The Conan Doyle and stayed at a little boutique hotel before visiting Edinburgh Castle, The Writers Museum and Greyfriars Kirkyard the next day. That was our celebration haha!
Obviously, as I mentioned in a recent post we did book a 'proper' Honeymoon (read about it here) but even that isn't traditional seeing as it is in the month that our first wedding anniversary will be rather than the week or so after.

Lastly, I wanted to also touch upon the fact that I said I didn't take his name. However, I am Mrs Hallow. We wanted to have the same last name as each other, it feels more like being an official, legal, legitimate family to me, but there were reasons not to use the current names, therefore, we chose our own and changed both of our surnames via deed poll.

That is how I became Mrs Hallow.