Celebrating 15k on LaLa Life BookClub!

Last week I hit 15k on my bookstagram account, so I thought it was the perfect time for

1) some reflection

and

2) a giveaway!

I started this Instagram account back in 2016 after occasionally posting what I was reading on my main life+style account and wanting to have a space dedicated to just books. Teaching, as we allll know, is an incredibly stressful profession. Even more so now. Around the time that I created this bookstagram account, I was dealing with major anxiety that had developed from trying to balance my teaching career, side business, and just life in general. I talk more about that in this post, but reading really helped me during this time. I have always been a big reader, but after being consumed with teaching all day and then coming home and starting another full time job with my TpT store and blog, I felt like I was drowning. I started reading as a way to cope with stress and I cannot tell you how much that help. I am so incredibly grateful for this bookstagram account and the community I have found through it.

Since I am celebrating 15k followers, I thought I would look back through all my 1,100+ posts and share 15 of my favorites with y’all. There are SO many gorgeous bookstagram feeds that have a specific theme and look. And while I am sometimes envious of those and wish my pictures followed a certain style, I love snapping pics that show my house decor projects, my sweet (yet grumpy!) dog, Piper, outside living, my current favorite coffee cup (LOL) or just general life. I have always looked back at my book pictures to remember what was going on during the time in which I was reading a particular book and I know if I changed my account into an actual theme, I would lose that. One person sent me a message once and told me they love how they could see the seasons through my pictures and I love that! 🙂

Here are 15 of my favorite posts from @lalalifebookclub

One of my very first bookstagram posts from way back in 2016! I originally read this and photographed it in 2014 when the book first came out, but when I made my bookstagram account into its own separate account from my main life+style one, I posted this picture to share about one of my favorite mystery/thrillers. I remember taking this pic on a Monday afternoon in late May. The end of the school year craziness was just beginning and I wanted nothing more than to forget all of the stress of teaching and just sit there on my back porch and read. I had a work thing to go to that night, but I was determined to sneak in a little reading time before I had to go. 🙂

The Hating Game is now one of the most beloved romances. It really ignited everyone’s love of the hate to lovers trope. I read this one when it first came out without really knowing anything about it. I just knew I loved a good rom com and that the cover was adorable. I remember posting this picture and talking about how much I was grinning while reading this book. It is just a magical read. I also love that I was drinking out of those pineapple wineglasses. My obsession with pineapples used to be strong, y’all! A friend got me those glasses and I just love them! 🙂

Now, this picture is definitely not “pretty” or even all that interesting to look at LOL. BUT it’s one of my very favorites. This was taken in February of 2017 right when I realized that stress and anxiety was becoming a real issue for me and I needed to do something about it. Like I said earlier, trying to balance full time teaching and a full time online side business really brought out the anxiety in me! I wouldn’t call them panic attacks, but I started having breathing issues where I was constantly having to get a deep breath and never really feeling like I could. This was a real problem for almost 2 years but at the beginning of 2017, I decided to start making a conscious effort to calm down and step away from working SO much ALL of the time. Reading helped a ton with that and this picture always reminds me of that. I took this one right after my mom and I had gone on a walk. Normally I would work on TpT from the time I came home from school until around 7:30, but in an effort to help with my anxiety, I started taking breaks for about an hour after I got home and then I world force myself to stop again around 6:30 and go for a walk. I will always associate this book and this bookstagram post with the beginning of getting better 🙂

Speaking of taking walks, I will always love this picture because it was taken at the very beginning of summer in 2017 on a perfect summer day. It was in the morning and my mom had come over to take a walk with me since we didn’t have to go to work. Afterwards, I sat on the back porch (my love of a back porch really started at this house, friends!) and started this amazing YA rom com. I love the colors in this picture because it was taken at my papasan chair that I used to sit in allll the time. 🙂

I hate how I look in this picture (lol) but it’s one of my favorites because it’s one of the first that I’m actually in! Like I talk about in this past post, I went a good 2-3 years never taking a photo of myself because I hated how I looked. I make a conscious effort now to try and not hid. Making my mom snap a picture of me with the book I was reading was a great way to remember this day in my life! My uncle passed away a few months before and we spent a lot of time at his little cabin by the pond at my grandparents, which is where this picture was taken.

A year after that picture was taken by the pond, I was still making the effort to not hide! I love this picture because it was taken right after I had finished this book in 2018 and filmed a booktalk for it because it was a monthly pick for our bookclub. The cell service at my old house was horrible at times and I could NOT get the stories to upload! I ended up having to drive to another town so I could pick up enough service in the car to upload them LOL Ahh the joys of living in the boondocks!

I love this picture for many reasons. The book was absolutely amazing and is still one of my all time favorites. This was taken on my mom’s back porch (I strive to find a cozy porch for reading anywhere I go, right? lol!) during the summer of 2018 when I was working lonnnng summer days on my TpT business, vlogging for Youtube, and working on clearing the land for my house. I will always remember this time (and this picture) as the time right before my life got incredibly busy with moving and house construction. I had no idea what I was in for, but I was just enjoying this book in the swing 🙂 🙂

This picture is also a favorite because it was taken at my mom’s house right after I moved in and construction on my house began. I decided to move in with my mom so I could get my house ready to sell, so I packed everything and basically lived out of a suitcase for the 9 months it took to build my house. It was such a stressful time because I was trying to take pictures for my TpT products without any of my supplies or set up (since everything was packed away.) Taking book pictures was also difficult because all my decor and furniture wasn’t with me. I snapped this on my mom’s front porch and I loved how it turned out because the colors of the fall decor matched the book-which is absolutely amazing and you should definitely read before the movie comes out!

My last picture with the leaves at my house! I used to take the “bottom outfit book picture” so much and I never do anymore LOL! My old house had two big trees that had the prettiest fall leaves, which I would take advantage of for book pictures. I had already moved out, but I ran by after work one afternoon to check on something and snapped a picture. I remember reading this one during Thanksgiving break and I loved it! I know a lot of people don’t care for this Laine Moriarty, but it was one of my favorites and I’m so excited for the show/miniseries/movie that is coming out in August!

The first book picture in the new house! I moved into my house in late March and one of the very first spaces I decorated was- you guessed it!- the back porch. I mean, the yard wasn’t even finished yet, but I was enjoying my book and back porch! 🙂 This thriller was amazing, too!

Truth be told, this is one of my favorite pictures because of the pretty pink flowers LOL BUT I also love remembering what was happening while I was reading this one-even if I was knee deep in stress! This was taken during the first summer that I moved into my house. It had been such a hard year due to building a house, moving in with my mom, getting my house ready to sell, and then moving into my new house. For some reason, I decided that it would be the perfect time to switch grade levels. I had taught 5th grade for 6 years and on a whim, I decided to move back to lower elementary. I still don’t know why I thought this would be a smart idea. It was way too much to tackle. I was still trying to move into my house and unpack and organize everything. I did not have the time to learn a new grade level (especially a big jump in age levels!) and decorate a new classroom. It was just too much. I got into the biggest reading slump during that time and couldn’t concentrate on anything. I had to really work to get everything settled enough to enjoy reading. I still look back on this time and go “What were you thinking??” Sometimes change is good and sometimes it’s not. The timing just wasn’t right, and I should have stayed put after having such a busy year.

The book that got me OUT of that horrible reading slump AND my first time experiencing grocery pick up Ha! This was taken right after school started after that busy, busy summer. My mom has AFIB, which causes her heart to race at times. When this happens, she usually has to go to the hospital so they can give her something to make it convert back to a normal rhythm. It’s usually brought on by stress or rushing around in a short time period. The beginning of the school year is definitely stressful and this was one of the times that mom had to stay overnight in the hospital. We came back home on Friday and I did grocery pick up for the first time. I didn’t have to wait long, but I brought a book in case I had some reading time lol. I remember that Friday as being so relaxed because we were so glad mom got to come home. She stayed at my house and it was just a nice and calm weekend.

My first Christmas in the house! I made mom snap my picture of American Royals before we ran to Lowes to pick up some small Christmas trees for the front porch. This was the year I vlogged on my Youtube channel for Vlogmas and I’ll always associate this book with that time. 🙂 Such a great book! I sadly didn’t love the sequel 🙁

The first #targeteggchair picture AND the last picture before the pandemic, which is kind of eerie, right?? Don’t you think back to last March and just remember such an odd feeling? This was taken on the Saturday before school stopped. I had just placed a grocery order because I didn’t want to tackle the crowds and the pick up times were insane. I spent the majority of March through August right here!

When I see this picture, I always think of landscaping. I know that doesn’t make sense because there isn’t any landscaping in this picture, but when I was reading this book, I was tackling my front yard landscaping. My mom was a big help, but landscaping basically consumed a good 2 weeks of my life. I snuck in any reading time I could though! I absolutely loved this book and I’m so grateful that I was reading it during this busy time because it was a great distraction!

**** I know technically that’s 15 pictures, but I am having such a good time looking back on old pictures, so I’m going to include a few more!************

I wasn’t lying when I said I spent most of March through August on my back porch-even at night! I put lights in my topiaries last summer and sat outside and read and I absolutely loved it. I will always remember reading Big Summer and Beach Read out on my back porch at night. Such good memories!

I posted this picture right before I started my first Elin Hilderbrand book. I don’t know if I’ve ever gotten so many comments so quickly on a picture as I did when I posted this one. Little did I know how obsessed I was going to become with this book. Or this author!

Last summer was definitely the summer of Elin for me! After finishing and declaring 28 Summers my favorite book of 2020, I quickly went and stocked up on EH books! I became obsessed with all things Nantucket. After reading The Rumor, I fell in love with one of the character’s love of landscaping and flowers and discovered a new passion!

This was the first book that I read once we went back to work. We were face to face starting in August (with masks, of course!) We were never virtual. I was very nervous about returning to work. I had hardly gone anywhere from March to August. I was very worried about my elderly grandparents (both are in their late 80s) and my mom, who has diabetes and a heart condition. I snapped this picture around 6 in the morning before work. I love waking up early and having time at home before having to leave for work. I’ve discovered if I do a little TpT work in the morning before school and have a little reading time before the craziness of the day begins, it helps me have a calmer day at work. This book helped me de-stress and gave me an escape from all the worry of my real life.

I know I’ve said I am grateful for the bookstagram community, but this picture always reminds me of that support. My dad passed away in early December so I took a little break from social media and reading. This book was the absolute perfect read to pick up a few days after his funeral. It was the pure definition of escapism and unputdownableness!

Okay, I’ll stop now, but I just want to thank you all again for your support! I am so happy to have a space to share my love of reading with everyone. I hope you have found books that you have loved through my page. Reading is truly one of my favorite things in the world and I’m glad to have found friends that feel the same!

Be sure and enter the giveaway that is happening starting tonight (6/17) at 6pm CST on my bookstagram page. It ends Sunday night at midnight. (6/20) Good luck! 🙂