Book Review: March & April

Posted on by JC Rizk
  • The Mommy Group by Elizabeth Isadora Gold {3 stars}
  • The Whole Brain Child by Daniel J. Siegel {4 stars}
  • The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman {4 stars}
  • The Winter Sea by Susanna Kearsley {*5 stars}

Well, we reached a milestone — the first 5 star book of 2019! It was the most recent book I read and it was un-be-lievable! The more I read of the genre, the more I enjoy historical fiction, and this novel in particular was captivating. I will admit that I was hesitant to start it, because it is lengthy and I worried it would not catch my attention and would be a long struggle to the finish line. However, thankfully, it was a breeze and one that I am still reluctant to leave {by starting another book}. It is apparently the first in a series and now I added Slains #2: The Firebird to my TBR list. You can read more on my Goodreads, but The Winter Sea ebbs and flows between the 1700s and present day at Slains Castle in Scotland. The protagonist is an author creating a new character based off of her family tree, but as the story progresses, details that she ‘creates’ for her novel seem to be more fact than fiction. If this sounds interesting at all to you – pick up this book, today! You will not regret it!

It feels a little lack luster to discuss the other three books, now that I’ve gushed about The Winter Sea, but they were all good reads as well. I started off March with The Mommy Group, by Elizabeth Isadora Gold for a book club with my mama tribe. I was a little put-off by most of the mamas being seemingly forced into c-sections; not sure if this was due to location and population {takes place in NYC and my guess is the amount of people they work with in the hospitals there may translate to less time to honor birth plans to wait for the babies to come in their own time}. If you’re about to be a new mom and you read this, do not think that all labors are like theirs! That being said, it was a cute story and fun reading the anecdotes of new mamas, especially since my mama tribe and I then reminisced about our experiences during our book club.

Thankfully, I also finally finished The Whole Brain Child, which was a terrific read and science-based. This was one of the reasons it took the time it did; I wanted to be sure that I absorbed the information because it really resonated with me as a mother. Hubby and I use the techniques found in this book and it has been helping with Bird’s tantrums — yay, we reached the age of two! We found the information within this book help us to understand where the kids are coming from and understanding that while our frustration is understandable, it will not help in diffusing the situation. I especially love that they have a cheat-sheet in the back of the book for the refrigerator; thank you for the quick reference page! Excellent read, which I suggest to any new or veteran parent!

The remaining book on the list, The Graveyard Book, by Neil Gaiman, was enthralling. This is the book I read on my four hour flight to Colorado and all I can say is — what an imagination by Neil Gaiman — absolutely original and fun supernatural story.

What is on my upcoming TBR list? As I recently mentioned in a post, I would like to read Pride and Prejudice at some point this month; I cannot remember the last time I re-read it, which means it is time! I have one last book from my bestie, Chris, and that is Hunting Prince Dracula by Karrie Maniscalco. I started it yesterday during the kids’ nap time and quickly closed my own eyes after several chapters, but what I read was interesting. I’ll keep you posted!

Also, for my next book club, I need to read Save Me the Plums: My Gourmet Memoir by Ruth Reichl. I am excited for this book, but I am way down on the waiting list to borrow it from the library, so I am considering listening to an audio book instead. Now, I am very traditional when reading, meaning I really just read physical books; I believe I’ve only read several virtual books and I have never listened to an audio book. However, I have friends and other bibliophile friends who rave about audio books. Any suggestions? What audio book apps do you recommend? Are there any other books you recommend I listen to rather than physically read?

Yoga and Emotions

Posted on by JC Rizk

Namaste//


The divine within me honors the divine in you.

I absolutely love this word. I hear it at the end of every yoga class and I think it is profound and moving. Essentially, namaste means that we are all equal — I see, and honor, the light and divinity within you, with all the light and divinity within me. It truly fills me with happiness and a feeling of acceptance, which, let’s be honest, is what yoga is all about – accepting yourself exactly how you are throughout the practice, and life.

Love this yoga mat by Gaiam!

I think I found my favorite yoga classes at Cradle Your Soul and they couldn’t be more different! After trying out a bunch of classes, I am now going to the Sunday Vinyasa Flow class, which is challenging, nonstop, and helps unite breath with movements. In addition, I tried a new class today and plan to go weekly for the rest of the month, called Living Lighter Yoga, which is all about slow movements, taking your time in the discomfort of certain positions, and allowing your body to breathe through the pain to find a natural release. The idea being that when we are upset, instead of hiding our feelings away, we can sit in them and work through them, allowing our body to release them naturally rather than holding emotions hostage.

This really resonated with me this week especially as my hubby and I work with our daughter on her tantrums and meltdowns. For a while we would try and calm her down, but the more I read and the more we discussed, we realized we want her to understand a healthy range of emotions and to work through it, knowing that we are here to support her and comfort her with hugs and kisses when she is ready. Is it loud? Yes. Is it sometimes frustrating because we are trying to do something fun and she freaks out because she’s overwhelmed, confused, or unsure? Definitely. That being said, letting her take some alone time to cry it out, or scream, really seems to help her work through it quicker than us hovering and telling her that she is okay. Big surprise there, right?

I do not have to imagine my response when I am upset and someone tells me to calm down or that I am okay — completely invalidated and even more upset. Also, when I push my emotions down to make others more comfortable, it always leads to a blowup, which is always much bigger than me just working through my feelings then and there. I found the above children’s book called, In My Heart: A Book of Feelings by Jo Witek, which mirrors this thought — it is super sweet and goes through all the emotions that we can feel in a language that speaks to children. Plus, the art is super cute too!

How about you? Any favorite yoga classes or books or anything that is really speaking to you lately? Let me know!