A Summer Gathering Of Thoughts

I got this post idea from one of my favorite bloggers-- Elizabeth Foss. This summer, I am planning to blog once a week using this format, giving myself a bit of a summer break at the same time. I'll see you here each Monday from now until Labor Day. 

Loving... that our weekend was crazy busy but surprisingly fun. I thought this weekend would be all work and no fun for me, but it turned out to be, as I said before, surprisingly fun. Today was about recovering from all that fun-- and cleaning a house that didn't get as attended to as it might've had we not been in and out so much. 

Listening to... David Gray in preparation for his concert this week!! 

Clothing myself in... I am finally braving skirts and dresses, even though my legs aren't near as tan as I would like. I cooked Curt and his dad a nice Father's Day feast and threw on a cute cotton sundress minutes before it was time for lunch. When I did I suddenly remembered the loveliness that is throwing on a dress and hearing how nice you look when actually you were totally cheating because 1) it's so comfortable (it's like being complimented on wearing a nightgown) and 2) you don't even have to think of components for an outfit because the dress is the outfit. I forgot all about this particular brand of summer miracle. 

Reading... I tore through Elin Hilderbrand's new one, THE RUMOR, which was out last Tuesday. Perfect summer reading! I loved it! I also finished IN THE WOODS by Tana French, the first book in one of the series I wrote about last week. I am sad to say I didn't love the book like I'd hoped I would, which means I am not going to go through that series like I'd planned (too many other great books to get to!). 

This week I'm working my way through a She Reads book that we're not going to be able to choose (we have our reasons but suffice it to say this one won't appeal to a broad enough cross section of readers) but I am intrigued enough with where the author is going with it that I am determined to finish it. 

Bingeing on... The Missing, yet another BBC mystery show that I loved. It took me a few episodes to get into it-- figuring out who the characters are and the time jumps-- but once I started tracking with it, I was sucked in for sure. Great acting, layered characters, and so many twists and turns. (I streamed it off Amazon on Demand.)

Pondering... Whether I want to attempt to make Pioneer Woman's iced coffee, based on Modern Mrs Darcy's recent recommendation. It looks like an involved process and yet, I think it might be worth it. 

Cultivating a rhythm... We've got some travels coming up for various family members, which means all attempts at rhythm are futile. That's ok. It's summer. 

Creating... As I said before, I created a feast for Father's Day, which we are still enjoying (read: leftovers). I made this excellent barbecue beef and served it on sliders, served with slow cooked green beans, baked beans, pasta salad, and watermelon. We had oatmeal raisin, chocolate chip or white chocolate macadamia nut cookies for dessert (store bought so don't be too impressed). Curt loved having a nice lunch at home (more relaxing than going out) and since I had done most of the prep work on Saturday, I didn't have to stress out getting it all ready on Sunday. Today I created a loaf of banana bread out of some browning bananas. I added chocolate chips because that just makes it better. 

Giving thanks... for this season. I love every minute of it-- even the really hot minutes. Even the pop up thunderstorm minutes. Even the "I'm bored" minutes. Even "The dishwasher is full again?" minutes. Even the no bedtime minutes. It's all good. Because it's summer. 

Planning... trips. 

Looking forward to... trips. 

Quick Lit: My (Perhaps Overly Ambitious) Summer Reading Plan

Last week I mentioned my "summer reading plan" which involves reading my way through several literary mystery series. This week, in honor of Modern Mrs Darcy's Quick Lit roundup, I thought I'd expand on that plan. I am currently reading the first book, Tana French's In The Woods, and was a bit chagrined to see that it is 592 pages!!!! This made me immediately wonder if my summer reading plan is a bit, um, ambitious. Alas, I am moving forward with it and we will see how it works out. I will sprinkle in some She Reads books and some contemporary favorites for variety so it's not all murder all the time. It's summer after all-- time for poolside and lazy afternoons spent reading the days away. At least, that's how it goes in my fantasy.

(Note: Click on each series to get to a list of the titles in order.)

The Dublin Murder series by Tana French

Zailer and Waterhouse series by Sophie Hannah

The Jackson Brodie series by Kate Atkinson

I couldn't find a photo of all the titles together so I settled on the latest title in the series to serve as a representative image. 

The Tess Monaghan series by Laura Lippman


And finally, to the commenter who asked how I find book recommendations-- what blogs I read-- definitely click on this month's Quick Lit roundup for more recommendations than you can possibly get to. I read every single link every single month. (It's true. I do.) Also be sure and check out the She Reads blog network page for a plethora of blogs about reading and books! 

A Summer Gathering of Thoughts

I got this post idea from one of my favorite bloggers-- Elizabeth Foss. This summer, I am planning to blog once a week using this format, giving myself a bit of a summer break at the same time. I'll see you here each Monday from now until Labor Day. 

(Addendum: This post is up late today because I wrote the whole thing and then lost it. So then I had to go around and rant for a bit before I could get the gumption up to write it all over again. Must be a Monday...) 

Loving... Summer. School's out and my favorite season is finally here. 

Listening to... Chris Botti-- the concert was awesome and I'm trying to recapture it via listening to his music. (Not. The. Same.)

I will share this amazing clip from the concert. Hang in there and you will be glad you did. (It was much better live, as you can imagine.)

Clothing myself in... slouchy tees from Marshalls I bought with a birthday gift card-- at 7.99 and 12.99 respectively, these versatile tops with light colored boyfriend jeans are my uniform of late

Reading... Attempting to go through several series this summer-- all murder mysteries: Tana French's Dublin Murder series, Sophie Hannah's Zailer and Waterhouse series, Kate Atkinson's Jackson Brodie series, and Laura Lippman's Tess Monaghan series. These have all been well-reviewed on the various book blogs I follow, and I do love a good mystery in the summer. All of these should keep me very busy. I have declared this to be my "summer of reading."

And for the kids, I really loved this list of titles-- definitely just blew up my library holds list! 

Pondering... this article. While I don't reach for my phone first thing in the am because it's usually on a charger in another room, this did get me to thinking about what I do reach for-- and how it reflects my priorities and my day.

Cultivating a rhythm... Can creativity be scheduled? This post has me thinking of how I can schedule my writing in the midst of a houseful this summer. 

Creating... How about wanting to create? This flag banner that looks easy and perfect for the Fourth.

I will also be creating banana muffins in the very near future because... old bananas are on my counter, which is a sign.

Giving thanks... for this, my favorite season, for a surprise working out (more on that later), for my husband, for time with my kids this summer. 

Planning... amending this list to reflect our family's needs, but definitely wanting to have some sort of screen time moratorium this summer. I don't want my kids' faces in their respective screens all the livelong day. This, by the way, was not something my mother had to worry about. Ah, simpler times.

Watching... (Speaking of screens, grin) Binged on Five Days, a BBC/HBO miniseries concerning a mother and her two children who go missing. The uniqueness of this show is that it is five episodes concerning five pivotal days in the investigation. Though it started slow for me, I found myself hooked and watched it all in one big (long) gulp. Also watching Wayward Pines and Aquarius. Aquarius is good, Wayward Pines is... strange. But I'm hopeful. 

Looking forward to... the Michael McDonald concert with my oldest for his birthday this week. He and I have a long running thing about Michael McDonald-- most recently inspired by this skit:

Can't wait to see the man himself!

More Links (Just For Fun)...

Love this printable-- I emailed it to my local UPS store, they printed it on card stock and I cut it to fit an existing frame. This isn't a great picture but it looks nice on a table in my living room-- and adds some inspiration as well! 

How to get rid of sour towels. I'm trying this as we speak. We have an, um, problem shall we say with  laundry getting left in the wash a bit too long. There is nothing worse (ok there is but go with it) than getting all clean in the shower and then drying yourself with a stinky towel.

Because I am not a decorator, this post was a wow for me-- just look at how changing the pillows and throws changes a room! (I told you I was not a decorator.)

And finally, this bucket list for summer has some fun items to cross off. Let's all try to hit as many of them as we can!

A Gathering of Thoughts

I got this post idea from one of my favorite bloggers-- Elizabeth Foss. This summer, I am planning to blog once a week using this format, giving myself a bit of a summer break at the same time. I'll see you here each Monday from now until Labor Day. 

Loving: my summer walks. I am trying to build up the time I spend walking to at least an hour a day. It is both restorative and exerting at the same time.

Listening to: Brandon Flowers' new album pretty much nonstop. I didn't love this song until I saw the video-- it makes me smile. It's a good testimony to a marriage that lasts.



Clothing myself in: New skinny jeans I got at Loft for a mere $17 (gotta love half off clearance!). Pairing them with a couple of tunic-style shirts I got at Marshalls using a birthday gift card from my in-laws and wedge sandals. My legs are still just a bit too day-glo white to do shorts or skirts in public. Soon though, very soon. Many days at the pool are on my horizon.

Reading: Jen Hatmaker's new book, For The Love. I scored an advance copy and have read it and loved it. This is the first book of hers I've read. I found her funny, real, and right about a lot of things. I highlighted many, many lines. Go ahead and put it on your TBR list for next fall! I've also been listening to Jenna Blum's The Art of Fiction and recommend it for anyone who wants to write novels.

Pondering: Just what I can realistically expect out of our summer. Writing my 1000 words every day? Reading aloud to my youngest every day? Making light and easy meals consistently? Getting in a few trips? I want to relax and enjoy the summer but I also don't want to fritter it away. So I'm thinking about striking that balance.

Cultivating a rhythm: This week is about getting through our last week of school-- which includes field day, my last lunch duty rotation, and a last day of school musical production-- and then the rhythm of our lives is about to change big time. No more daily routine, no more morning school runs, no more afternoon carpools. Two of mine have already finished so my days alone are gone for a few months, but it's a welcome change that we are all looking forward to. I, for one, am looking forward to not packing lunches!!

Creating: Peppermint Brownies thanks to the recipe in the back of a book my daughter read, which she has now declared one of her most favorite books ever. If you have a daughter around the age of 10, you might want to check out The Forget Me Not Summer.

Giving thanks: for six healthy and (mostly) happy kids. I can take that for granted so easy and I shouldn't. Each one of them adds so much to my life. My word for this year is ABUNDANCE and one thing I've learned is this abundance of children has enriched my life in so many ways.

Planning: all the books I am going to read this summer. This shall be the summer of reading. For me at least. I have so, so many books to get to. It's a bit embarrassing. Talk about abundance.

Looking forward to: a summer of concerts-- Chris Botti is this coming weekend, Michael McDonald is the week after that, then David Gray later in June, with plans to also see Toad the Wet Sprocket and Brandon Flowers before the summer ends as well! Can. Not. Wait.