Monthly Medley: November 2024

 

November's Monthly Medley is a bit early, and therefore a bit shorter than my usual Monthly Medleys, but that's how the schedule played out this year. You can blame Thanksgiving for being so ridiculously late. 😉

Reading

Liv Constantine is one of my new favorite authors. She writes complex, layered stories and characters; weaves in suspense and twists in ways that feel exciting and surprising yet also believable; and wraps up all of her books with satisfying endings. This month I read The Last Mrs. Parrish and it was perfection.

I also listened to Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid, and I enjoyed it enough that I'll likely look to her books again the next time I'm taking a long road trip. (I listened to most of the story while on my way to and from Arkansas for my grandma's funeral.)

Watching

I had high hopes for Happy's Place, starring Reba McEntire, but neither Hallie or I can get into it. St. Denis Medical, which just premiered a couple of weeks ago, is however a hit in my book. It's kind of like Parks & Rec or The Office, in that the show seems like it's about normal people doing their normal jobs while a documentary crew films their lives, except St. Denis Medical takes place in an emergency room/department.  

Listening To

Before I started Listening To Malibu Rising, I listened to The Man in the Black Mask - a Dateline Original Podcast from Dateline NBC. If you like listening to Dateline the podcast or watching Dateline the television show, you'll like this podcast!

Following

For humorous videos about everyday life experiences, check out Julie Story (@juliestory). This video (here and here) was my first of hers...she's funny on her own, but it's her use of props that does it for me.

Trying/Using/Wearing

I don't have anything new to share here this month, as everything I've recently bought or I'm currently buying is getting wrapped up and won't be tried or used or worn until the end of December. 😉

Eating/Drinking

I actually found quite a few great new recipes this month! (More than usual, at least...)

• This Crock Pot Creamy Ranch Chicken was easy to throw into the crockpot and came out perfectly a few hours later.
• I took a few liberties with this One Pot Cajun Chicken Alfredo recipe, but the end result was a huge hit. I cooked the chicken first, removing it from the pot when it was almost done cooking. Then I browned the sausage, and added it to the plate with the chicken. Then I sauteed chopped onions, red peppers, and green peppers in the same pot, and when they were done, I added all of the meat back to the pot and continued with the recipe. When it came time for the heavy cream, I used 1.5 cups of skim milk and 1 cup of heavy cream, just to lighten it up a bit. Delicious!
• Though not everyone in my family loves fish, there are enough fans that I periodically try new surf (primarily salmon and tilapia) recipes. This Baked Parmesan Garlic Herb Salmon was fantastic, which I expected because it's hard to go wrong when you top something with butter and cheese.  

Smiling About

• Whenever Hallie and/or I need a mood boost, we watch these two YouTube videos by The Scott Family. We can't make it through them without actually laughing out loud. Here's the first, and here's the second.

 

Happy November, friends!