#read

Update to our Marie Kondo–inspired organization of our house; this post continues to allude me because every time I think about writing it, I am overwhelmed by what we completed so far and even more so by the amount of work yet to complete! Hubby and our awesome contractor completed my “Zen Room” and it’s starting to gain its identity. We moved our sleeper sofa in there, Salvation Army picked up the clothes and books today, so you can actually see most of the floor now! I have one corner with items to sell in a yard sale, otherwise it’s clear. My yoga mats live here, as well as my yoga block; my hope is to find a large basket for these items and a blanket, so that they aren’t just leaning up in the corner of the room. My last project for this room is to refinish/paint an old glider and replace its cushions. This project is sentimental for me, as my parents rocked me in the glider, then for a short time the glider lived with my Sito and Gido {grandmother and grandfather}, and now is back with me. I think with a little face lift, it will be a beautiful piece to continue to serve our family.

I was trying to take a picture of just how empty and simplistic the Zen Room is and our Bernese decided she would make an excellent addition — I admit, she’s not wrong! In fact, this is the coolest room in the house, so it’s often her favorite to lay in, especially with the tile floor!

While I was in Connecticut with the kids, Hubby organized most of the office and then upon my return, I organized the kids’ art supplies and my scrapbooking/art supplies as well, but there is still plenty of work to be done in the office, especially regarding my paperwork. I tend to hold onto paper items under the guise of ‘you never know when you’ll need them’. Hubby then responds ‘paper is dead’, which breaks my heart a bit, but I know he’s right in this case {don’t tell him that though}. In September, Hubby and I are going on a cruise {the kids will go to Florida — thank you Abuela and Abuelo!} and when we get back, just Hubby is going down to Florida to visit for longer and retrieve the babes. Do you realize what that means?! I have several days, at home, by MYSELF! I plan to go through items I have in the garage {home decorations, sports equipment, and kids’ items} and finish organization in the office while on my own. Then maybe fit in a massage and yoga class! I’m stoked!

The last, and most overwhelming to organize will be sentimental items, especially photographs, in my case. I am thinking about getting my childhood albums transferred to digital copies and then just keeping certain physical copies once completed. I also want to then update our photo collages that we have in our hallway. We made the decision to move forward with our home renovation, which is exciting and daunting! We are hoping to start this fall or next spring — either way, coming fast and that means that I need to start packing items for storage and work on design ideas for the rooms!

Along with the organization, we’ve kept up a lot of reading in the house; I borrowed some sweet books for the kids and one for me from the library recently. Girls Like Us was an amazing novel with some interesting twists! Looking forward to reading more from Cristina Alger — for the kids, I think my favorite from these picks was My Forest is Green by Darren Lebeuf — it was about the artistic rendering of a young boy after exploring the forest near him. Bird wanted to continuously read it — I think it encouraged the adventurer inside and we went on a few nature walks collecting acorns, nuts, and flowers in the neighborhood.

Currently, I am sitting in the zen room with a full breakfast, including tea and my book, while editing this post, which can only mean one thing…. Spoiler alert: I started this post several weeks ago and I am currently in the house while Hubby and the babes are visiting with los abuelos, so please forgive the “in September” reference! I’m also ready to post about Hubby’s and my first cruise vacation and my next book review, so stay tuned!

I love to read. My favorite sweatshirt says “Bibliophile” and that is, seriously, no joke. I am the type of reader who takes hours in the bookstore {well, I used to before babies} trying to find the perfect read. I am the type of reader who loves to smell the books — yes, I am that person and I do not apologize! I am the type of reader who loves becoming absorbed into a plot and finding books I connect with, whether I adore or dislike them.

I try to read often, although some days I only get a few minutes during the kids’ naptime and maybe at the end of the night. Sometimes I get stuck on a book, especially parenting ones, where I feel too exhausted from actually parenting to read about it more, but I am also the type of reader who has to finish a book once started. Every year I make a goal for the number of books I will read and this year my goal is 25 books. I am hoping that by writing book reviews, I will continue this self care plan of reading regularly! You can read my individual reviews of these books on my Goodreads — you can find the link to in the sidebar — but I wanted to give an overview of the six books I read so far this year.

In January and February, I read the following books:

Farm from Home by Amanda Brooks {4 stars}
Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman {4 stars{
The Wildling Sisters by Eve Chase {3 stars}
The Immortalists by Chloe Benjamin {4 stars}
The Lying Game by Ruth Ware {3 stars}
The Bookshop on the Corner by Jenny Colgan {4 stars}

Only one nonfiction this go-around, and I really loved it; Christmas gift {thank you, Mom!} and the perfect way to start the year. A life dream of mine is to pick up and move somewhere new, where life has a better work/life balance, and there is a new adventure. Since I am getting a taste of that with this trip to Utah, this book was very apropos! I also love the beautiful photography and the recipes included with the writing, so this book is one of my favorites so far this year!

The next three books on the list were all a bit on the darker side, but excellent stories about family, relationships, and all included some mystery, which usually keeps me heavily entertained. Excellent reads! I think my least favorite of the group is The Lying Game by Ruth Ware, only because I loved In a Dark, Dark Wood and this was not as compelling. That being said, it was still a great book and kept me intrigued throughout.

Last, and certainly not least, is The Bookshop on the Corner by Jenny Colgan, which was my favorite of the six. The writing style was such an ease to read; I felt as though I was conversing with an old friend. Plus, the plot was idyllic! Overall, a terrific selection of books; I find that I give three stars to many book selections and in the past couple months, four different novels earned four stars. What an amazing start to this year’s reading goal! Keep tuned in for more reviews — I am hoping to do an overview of my books each month from here on out, so come back next month for more!

Want to know what is in the pipeline?

This month, I switched gears from fiction to a parenting book called The Whole-Brain Child by Daniel J. Siegel. I was struggling to stay connected with the book these past weeks, but I think that is due to toddler tantrums wearing me down. All the more reason to read the book, am I right? So far, I really appreciate the information and the science behind how children’s brains work, as it reminds me of the information I learned in college and beyond, as my background is in education, specifically elementary education and school counseling. I think I am finally ready to commit to reading this with my full attention. The other three books in this picture are books I borrowed from my bestie — thanks Chris! — and I look forward to hopping into these for a reprieve from more serious material once I am finished.

What are you reading lately? What are your favorite reads? All suggestions welcome!

Organization

Bibliophile Book Review: January and February