Pass this on to five great blog neighbors
I define a great blog neighbor as someone that consistently comments on your posts and responds to questions or comments that you have.
I am now passing this award on (in no particular order):

I hope you enjoy this award as much as I have !!

From her blog:
We all leave our “footprint” on the world, in one way or another. We each, individually, do something or are someone that makes the world a little better just by being here. I created this weekly meme to get to know the blogging community I love just a bit better. To know what makes them tick, outside of books, that is. Each week I will post a question to be answered in the following week’s “A Bit of Me(Me)”. Check back each Saturday to get the info for next week’s post and link up with your current post right here.
This Weeks Question: Who is your favorite female character, in a book or on a TV show/movie? Why?

Read more: http://www.theresabook.com/category/a-bit-of-meme/#ixzz0xu1eNXjH
My Answer:
This week’s question is very hard for me to answer.  I have been thinking about it for days (Danielle posts what the question will be in advance).  I am not a big TV or movie person.  The only thing I watch and/or listen to when it comes to TV is one of the 24/7 cable news station.  Yes..I am a cable news junkie!!  As for movies, I would rather read and form the imagery in my mind as if I AM watching a movie.  Female character in a book?   That would be the character in whatever my current book is.  If I can relate to a character at the time of reading, then that’s my favorite character. 
Not sure if you learned a little bit more about me with this question, but had to answer it honestly.  What about you?  Any favorite female character?

With Friends Like These by Sally Koslow (ARC)
Published by Ballantine Books
ISBN 978-0-345-50622-1
At the request of Pump Up Your Book, a PB ARC was sent, at no cost to me, for my honest opinion.
  Synopsis (from book): A novel following four New York City women’s complicated friendships across a span of twenty years.
  When Quincy, Jules, Talia and Chloe become fast friends despite their drastically different personalities. Now, nearly twenty years later, their lives have diverged as much as they possibly can within one city: Quincy is mourning a miscarriage and lusting for the perfect Manhattan apartment; Jules, a woman with an outsize personality, is facing forty alone; Talia, married and the mother of a four-year-old, is her family’s reluctant breadwinner; and Chloe faces pressure from her hedge fund manager husband to be more ambitious. As these women grapple with the challenges of marriage, motherhood, careers, and real estate, they can’t help but assess their positions in life in comparison to each other-leading them to envy and disillusionment.
  My Thoughts and Opinion: I thoroughly enjoyed this contemporary chick lit novel, maybe even more so, because of recent personal issues, namely empty nesting. Lately I have been thinking about the past 20+ years, reassessing, recalling memories, taking inventory of life’s ups and downs and what I have learned from them in my own personal life. The same premise as this book. I could relate to many experiences that these 4 very diverse women with different personality traits encountered in their lives. I could also compare them to my friendships that I have been lucky to have, for many years, and how each of us has changed but still maintained that special friendship bond. Ms. Koslow has written a very emotional, touching and thought provoking novel that has an outcome that will have the reader, at least it did for me, taking stock of our own lives and friendships. What makes friendships endure for years? Even when there are times where intentions aren’t truly genuine and/or have even a little bit of envy. The plot is profound and meaningful, whereas the author, creates 4 characters that experience so many real life emotions, trials and tribulations and through her written words, allows the reader to palpate each and every sentiment. A poignant must read !!!

From her blog:
We all leave our “footprint” on the world, in one way or another. We each, individually, do something or are someone that makes the world a little better just by being here. I created this weekly meme to get to know the blogging community I love just a bit better. To know what makes them tick, outside of books, that is. Each week I will post a question to be answered in the following week’s “A Bit of Me(Me)”. Check back each Saturday to get the info for next week’s post and link up with your current post right here.
This Weeks Question: Who is your favorite female character, in a book or on a TV show/movie? Why?

Read more: http://www.theresabook.com/category/a-bit-of-meme/#ixzz0xu1eNXjH
My Answer:
This week’s question is very hard for me to answer.  I have been thinking about it for days (Danielle posts what the question will be in advance).  I am not a big TV or movie person.  The only thing I watch and/or listen to when it comes to TV is one of the 24/7 cable news station.  Yes..I am a cable news junkie!!  As for movies, I would rather read and form the imagery in my mind as if I AM watching a movie.  Female character in a book?   That would be the character in whatever my current book is.  If I can relate to a character at the time of reading, then that’s my favorite character. 
Not sure if you learned a little bit more about me with this question, but had to answer it honestly.  What about you?  Any favorite female character?

I am so excited about this giveaway!!!  Especially if you are like me!!!!  Do you run to the store at the last minute because you remembered you needed to send a greeting card?  A Get Well card, Birthday card, Thinking Of You card?  You get the idea.  Wouldn’t it be great to have these cards at your fingertips?  Then this is the giveaway for you!!!!! 

   

From An Island Life:
   In Hawaii, Aloha Friday is the day that we take it easy and look forward to the weekend. So I thought that on Fridays I would take it easy on posting, too. Therefore, I’ll ask a simple question for you to answer. Nothing that requires a lengthy response.
   If you’d like to participate, visit An Island Life answer the question and then post your own question on your blog and leave your link below. Don’t forget to visit the other participants! It’s a great way to make new bloggy friends!

   In the spirit of the Twitter Friday Follow, the Book Blogger Hop is a place just for book bloggers and readers to connect and find new book-related blogs that we may be missing out on! This weekly BOOK PARTY is an awesome opportunity for book bloggers to connect with other book lovers, make new friends, support each other, and generally just share our love of books! It will also give blog readers a chance to find other book blogs that they may not know existed! So, grab the logo, post about the Hop on your blog, and start HOPPING through the list of blogs that are posted in the Linky list below!!
   The Hop lasts Friday-Monday every week, so if you don’t have time to Hop today, come back later and join the fun! This is a weekly event! And stop back throughout the weekend to see all the new blogs that are added! We get over 200 links every week!!
   Your blog should have content related to books, including, but not limited to book reviews.
   If you start following someone through the Hop, leave a comment on their blog to let them know! Stop back during the week to see other blogs that are added! And, most importantly, the idea is to HAVE FUN!!
Today’s Twist:
Do you use a rating system for your reviews and if so, what is it and why?
My Answer:
Yes.  I have a rating system, which can be seen on the left side of this blog, from 1-5.  I feel it is a cyberuniverse system with 5 being FANTASTIC.  Some sites require the a rating system so feel that I should post it across the board.  I think that the wording may be a little different from other bloggers, but the majority that use the 1-5 scale are typically the same rating.

1. You do your thing; I do mine and sometimes we will do things together.
2. Wanting to do fall cleaning, but can’t, is what’s been on my mind on and off all day.
3. Remember when life was simple and stress free.
4. Reading, blogging and ice cream sundaes are three of my favorite obsessions 🙂
5. During the last year I have experienced both good and bad.
6. My family puts a smile on my face.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to relaxing and reading, tomorrow my plans include my computer to-do lists, sitting by and in the pool reading and Sunday, I want to definitely sit by and in the pool reading since summer is almost over!