Friday Five Things 9/17

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“Don’t wait. The time will never be just right.” – Napoleon Hill

Last night I learned that an old coworker and dear friend died this week after a long battle with cancer. She was the kindest and sweetest soul, but could also be incredibly feisty. I learned a lot about what it means to set personal boundaries and advocate for myself at work from her. I hadn’t seen her or spoken to her in a few years but I miss her like it was just yesterday that we were having dinner together. Squeeze your loved ones tight and remind them you love them. And in the midst of it all, don’t forget to find joy also.

  1. Drinks with a friend. This week I was running errands south of Denver and decided to see if a friend was available to grab a drink. Then what started as a planned one hour happy hour turned into almost four hours of sharing, reminiscing, and laughing. It was very much needed for my sanity! I spend most of my time alone at home talking to the cats and dog, so it was good to be around people.
  2. Applying for jobs. I have been thinking about getting back to work part-time for a few months and this week I finally pulled the trigger on applying to a couple! TBD if anything works out, but it feels good to be acting on it. Would love to start working with people and feeling like I’m contributing to society again.
  3. Cooler weather. It’s finally feeling (a little bit) like fall! The afternoons are still pretty hot, but the mornings are cool enough to wear a jacket. This morning I had an early appointment for my car and I had to pull a fleece on over my t-shirt! No leaves changing around me yet, but I think next week I’ll get some mums for my front stoop.
  4. Football! I know I mentioned going to a college football game a couple weeks ago, but I’m also so happy that now my Saturdays and Sundays are full of the familiar sounds of football on the tv. It’s rare that I sit still and just watch a whole game, but I love having it on in the background while I’m writing or cleaning or cooking. It’s a cozy and comforting sound to me.
  5. Booksmart. I know I’m a couple years late to the party on this one, but I recently watched the movie Booksmart and omg, I loved it. It is rated R with a lot of F-bombs and sex-references and drug use…but it was really a heartwarming movie about two best friends just trying to have fun and support each other! The premise is that these two girls only focused on schoolwork and didn’t have any “fun” but then they realize they could have been doing both and try to cram four years worth of fun into the night before high school graduation. It was really reminiscent of Can’t Hardly Wait in a way. I laughed, I cringed, and I cried.

Friday Five Things 9/10

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“Courage is very important. Like a muscle, it is strengthened by use.” – Ruth Gordon

Summer is not leaving without a fight here in Colorado! Last year at this time we were getting snow and this year we are getting temps in the 90s. Hopefully things get more fall-like soon…I’m ready for mums and pumpkins! Although, I finally decided not to spend money on pumpkins for my porch this year because every year the squirrels make quick work of destroying them. Anyway, hope everyone is having a wonderful September so far, wherever you are!

  1. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. Tyler and I went to see this movie earlier this week and WOW it completely exceeded my already high expectations. It was such a great mix of a classic superhero movie and a classic martial arts movie, with lots of fun supernatural elements thrown in. I loved the story, loved the characters, and just had a lot of fun watching the movie. Side note: with our schedules we were able to go early afternoon on a Tuesday so the theater was practically empty. I think there were five other people there? I’m not sure I would have felt comfortable going to the theater during normal busy hours and being in a crowded room with stranger for a couple hours…
  2. Peanut Butter M&Ms. I don’t have candy very often, if I’m going to have a sweet treat it’s more likely to be ice cream or cookies. But Tyler picked up some candy for the movie and guys…I had forgotten how good those little suckers are! You know how sometimes when you haven’t had something for awhile it doesn’t quite live up to your memory of how good it was? Not the case with peanut butter m&ms. Seriously. Brought so much joy to my mouth.
  3. Hiking! Bama and I got back on the hiking train this week! After basically not hiking at all during August due to the heat and smoky air, we loaded up and drove a bit into the mountains to find a nice shady trail on Wednesday. It was about 3 miles round trip, which is a little longer than Bama prefers to hike with me, but she did it without too much struggle. I’ll probably leave her at home and try for something slightly longer next week, but so glad to have a few miles under my belt already this month.
  4. Long overdue dentist appointment. No, going to the dentist does not bring me joy. However, finally checking off “go to the dentist” from my to do list does! Like many others I’ve talked to, the dentist was one of the first regular doctors appointments to get bumped to the bottom of the list during the pandemic. In the early days, the office was closed. Then they opened, but the thought of going somewhere to sit with my mouth wide open for an hour sounded…risky. And then eventually I just started avoiding it because it had been so long and I knew it wasn’t going to be an easy appointment. Yesterday morning I sat down to journal and wrote down “Things are not as scary in real life as they are in my head.” And then I repeated that to myself a few times while I was getting my teeth looked at. And you know what? It’s true! It wasn’t a perfect appointment, I have to go back in a few months to get some things checked out and worked on, but nothing major that can’t be fixed. Not as scary in real life as it was in my head.
  5. Finished my Late-Summer Cleaning list. After chipping away at a it for a few weeks, I finished everything that was on my deep cleaning list for the house! Of course, between the two cats and the dog they are doing their best to undo my hard work, but the house really does feel cleaner and brighter.

August Book Report

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“The person who deserves most pity is a lonesome one on a rainy day who doesn’t know how to read.” – Benjamin Franklin

While August didn’t give me many (or any) rainy days for reading, it did give me lots of days where it was too hot to do much else but sit still inside. I was able to finish five books this month! One I had started much earlier, but I’ll still count it as five books read in August. This will also be the last time you’ll see Brandon Sanderson on the reading list for awhile. Although he has several other books, I’m going to explore some other series while I wait for the next of the Stormlight Archives to be published. Enjoy my thoughts and happy reading!

Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer – I’ve been listening to this book for a couple months actually, usually when I’m doing chores around the house or on a walk with the dog. I can’t remember exactly how I can across this book, but I really enjoyed listening to it in small snippets. It’s not quite gripping enough to listen to for hours, but nice little 30 or 45 minute chunks worked for me. To be honest, I’m not sure I’d have liked reading it as much as I liked listening. The author herself narrates and she has a beautiful soothing voice. Kimmerer is a native Potawatomi woman who works as a biology professor in upstate New York. The book is part memoir, part ecology activism, and part cultural history. She tells the story of growing up apart from her Potawatomi culture and the story of her rediscovery later in life. She also very eloquently conveys the connection she feels to the land through her cultural ties and mythologies along with her academic training in biology. At one point she explains the tenets of the honorable harvest. The ones that stuck out to me the most and I think will stay with me are to never take the first one you see, as it may be the last one; take only what you need and only what is given; take no more than half; and give in reciprocity for what has been given.

Dawnshard by Brandon Sanderson – This (relatively) short novella fits into the one year gap between Oathbringer and Rhythm of War in the Stormlight Archive series. While it doesn’t seem like it moved the larger story forward much, it helped in the world building of mythology for the story. It was a pretty quick read and I enjoyed it, but it isn’t a necessary inclusion if you are interested in getting into the series. In fact, there was another novella that took place earlier in the timeline that I opted to skip and I don’t think I missed much because of it. In Dawshard, one of the characters we met during interludes of an earlier book opts to go on a voyage to try and save her pet/companion. Their trip comes up against many obstacles before they determine someone is deliberately trying to stop it from happening. Eventually they get to their destination and find much more than they bargained for.

Rhythm of War by Brandon Sanderson – This is the fourth novel installment of The Stormlight Archive and it was just as good as the last three! Unfortunately, this is the most recently published so it’s as far as I can go with this series for the time being. We see our characters split up into different groupings to achieve various objectives. Kaladin is put through grueling tests yet again, we learn a lot more about the nature of the tower, and Shallan and Adolin go on a journey in Shadesmar. While overall I really enjoyed the book, a couple of the characters seem to take a very long time to overcome their inner demons. I get that things aren’t nice and neat when it comes to addressing inner darkness and mental health issues in the real world, but I do think dragging them out for too long can wreck havoc on the pacing of a good novel. However, I’m happy to forgive Sanderson that one sin when the rest of the story marches along very nicely.

The Push by Ashley Audrain – Whew! This book was…complicated. I had read a review of this that called out the heaviness of the topics. Post-partum depression, loss of a child, divorce, mental illness, etc… And it was a lot at times. The story follow a young mom who struggles to bond with her first born daughter and then finds her second born, a son, incredibly easy to connect to. A terrible tragedy happens that rips the family apart and causes all kinds of suspicion and accusations. I would 100% NOT recommend this to any of my young mom friends!!! I felt like this book was 80% of the way to being perfect. The main character narrates much of the story through 2nd person perspective as she writes her side of the story to her ex-husband. There was such a great opportunity to make her more of an unreliable narrator, but even when she starts doing some crazy strange stuff, I never found myself not believing her. Which made the “twist” ending not seem very twisty to me. So…I don’t know. I don’t think I’d recommend it.

The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins – Now this one! 100% enjoyed reading. It’s a retelling of Jane Eyre, kind of. You’ll recognize the trope of a young woman hard on her luck who catches the eye of an older and richer widower. But things aren’t what they seem and a lot of twists and interesting past details are uncovered throughout the book. The ending irked me a tiny bit, I just felt that the premise wasn’t built on a super firm foundation, but other than that I found this book very readable. I think I finished it in just a couple days actually. Would recommend to anyone looking for a kind of romantic, kind of thriller-ish book!

Friday Five Things 9/3

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“The world always seems brighter when you’ve just made something that wasn’t there before.” -Neil Gaiman

Sometimes I think of myself as not very artistic. Like, only someone who makes visual art is truly creative. But then I remember this quote from Neil Gaiman and remember that every time I sit down and write, I’m making something that wasn’t there before. And it does make the world feel a little brighter when I’m done.

  1. It’s finally September! I am so glad that August is in the rear view mirror and we are marching on towards autumn! While chatting with a friend this week I commented how January, February, and August are always so difficult for me. I think it’s because while January and February are often too cold for me to spend significant time outside…August is usually too hot! So I am very much looking forward to the cooler weather on the horizon.
  2. The ability to rest when needed. Earlier this year I had my first episode of vertigo. It was scary and unexpected and frustrating. Earlier this week I had a second episode. Let me tell you, there is nothing fun about waking up and rolling over as usual, only for the world to start spinning uncontrollably. Luckily this time I understood what was happening and what would help me. I also gave myself permission to rest and recover. While I haven’t had any spinning the past couple days, I still haven’t felt 100% stable yet. So I’m continuing to take it easy as needed, even if it means delaying the completion of my deep cleaning this week! But I figure bending over to wipe down all my baseboards isn’t the best activity for my equilibrium.
  3. DIY Haircut. Okay, hear me out. I’ve been giving myself at home haircuts for the past year, just a couple inches or less every few months. And because I wear my hair curly it isn’t the end of the world if things are completely even. But I feel like I really nailed it this week! So I’m happy to look a little less scraggly and frizzy.
  4. Mike Richard ousted as Jeopardy EP. A few weeks ago I mentioned being happy that Mike Richards had stepped down from the role of the new host of Jeopardy. But I had resigned myself to the fact that he would remain executive producer, especially after hearing the Sony execs planned to send him to sensitivity training. It seemed like such a dated and disappointing move that I figured they wouldn’t be swayed further. BUT THEN this week they straight up fired him from his job. Guys, it is so gratifying as a Jeopardy fan to see Sony take it seriously that this guy has damaged their credibility. And it is so gratifying as a woman who has experienced blatant misogyny in the workplace to see someone truly be held accountable for their toxic behavior. I truly think Jeopardy will be better for it.
  5. Finding the right thing at the right price. While I’ve been trying to buy less and spend less, there are a few house projects that are still on the table for purchases. One of these is making our laundry room more functional. After we moved in, we took out the utility sink to reseal the floor in the laundry/utility/mud room. Then it just never made it back inside. And then I got a standing drying rack that took up the space where the sink used to be, but I really only ever use the top part of the drying rack. Anyway…I reorganized the laundry room a couple weeks ago and decided I want to get a new utility sink which means I needed a new drying rack solution. This week at Costco I found the perfect little rack/shelf with hooks underneath it! It was less than $15 and will fit perfectly over the space where the sink will go. Now we just need to find the right sink at the right price…

Friday Five Things 8/27

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“Happiness is not a goal; it is a by-product.” – Eleanor Roosevelt

I think recently I’ve been making happiness my goal. And this week something shifted that allowed me to let that go and focus on other things, which has actually brought about happiness as a by-product. So I guess my encouragement is that if you are striving after feeling happy, let it go for a bit. Focus on other things that take your time and focus. See if happiness shows up along the way.

  1. A little break from the smoky air. Weather patterns have changed over the last week and we had several days of wind which brought some relief to the bad air quality around here. From what I’ve seen, the smoke will return shortly. But it’s been nice to have a break. I’ve been able to spend time outside without feeling it in my lungs!
  2. A garden that keeps giving. Some how, despite the heat and smoke and wind we’ve been having, my outdoor plants are still thriving and producing! I even got to harvest my first cucumber this week! I’ve been able to shop my yard for tomatoes, zucchini, kale and herbs all month and so far it isn’t showing signs of slowing.
  3. This recipe. Making these zucchini fritters will help use up any squash your garden might still be churning out, like mine is! I think it would work just as well with yellow summer squash as it does for zucchini. I made these and ate them with some tzatziki sauce. They would be great for a very light dinner, otherwise I’d serve them as a side to some grilled salmon.
  4. 40,000 words written. I just crossed 40,000 words written in my novel manuscript! For reference, that’s probably about 150 pages of a typical novel. My goal is 90,000 words by the end of the year and now that I’m past 40,000 it feels so doable! I’d love to be able to finish my first draft by mid-December, take a break for the holidays, and then hit the ground running with editing in January!
  5. Exercise and movement. I pretty much stopped working out in August. It wasn’t intentional but the weather started to get too hot for hikes. And the dog only wanted to go for short walks. And the air was so smoky I didn’t want to spend much time outside. And there was so much other stuff to do! So it just eventually stopped being a priority. And then I stopped putting it on my daily list of things to do. But this week I’m making more of an effort to get outside and move my body for at least 15 minutes every day. So far so good and it feels great!

Friday Five Things 8/20

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“Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards.” – Soren Kierkegaard

Getting this out a little late this week, but better late than never. Last night I had the privilege of attending a fundraiser gala and the featured speaker was Eric Weihenmayer who is the first blind man to summit Everest. His story has always been inspiring to me and it was incredible to listen to him speak in person. He infused that room with encouragement and motivation about how change is difficult and full of struggle, but the end is worth it. We also each got a copy of is new book and I’m excited to read it soon and report on it here!

  1. Encouragement and motivation. In addition to getting inspired from the talk last night, I’ve been feeling very encouraged and motivated in my writing recently from people I’ve been talking with. I’ll be honest, sometimes I feel embarrassed to tell people that I quit my job to write a book. Like, I’m not worth as much to the world because I’m not working. Or that I don’t deserve to not be working full time because I don’t have kids to take care of. But when I’ve told people what I’m doing, the response has been overwhelmingly positive. Most commonly people tell me that they are excited for me and that they can’t wait to read my novel. I think it’s easy for me to get stuck inside my head with what I assume people’s expectations are of me. When I actually get out and talk to people I realize that there are no expectations really. And that most people will celebrate the fact that someone they care about is happy and pursuing their dreams.
  2. Late-summer cleaning. I’ll be honest, Tyler and I are not clean freaks by any stretch of the imagination. I guess that’s a good thing, given we have two cats and a dog running the house. I do my best on a daily and weekly basis to mostly keep a handle on the dirt, but it still builds up. I’ve also never been super into spring cleaning. I get the idea, after being cooped up in your house all winter you want to freshen things up. My problem is that in the spring…I don’t want to spend my time inside cleaning! But when it’s unbearably hot outside in mid-August? I’ll happily spend my days inside wiping down baseboards and cleaning out closets! To me this is a perfect example of managing time vs. managing energy. To keep me inside in the spring just to fit into the pattern of spring cleaning would completely zap my motivation. But a late-summer cleaning is the right match for me!
  3. Empathetic pets. Earlier in the week I was watching an episode of a tv show that just hit my emotions hard and I started crying. All of a sudden I was surrounded by my sweet sympathetic animals who just wanted to make sure I was okay. One of the cats ran over to me and snuggled up next to me and the dog started nosing my arms out of the way so she could get to my face. Of course this ended with the dog trying to scare the cat off, assuming in her mind that the cat was making me cry. So it all ended in laughter but it was such a sweet moment with them.
  4. This quick and easy dinner recipe. It was so easy to make, it’s relatively healthy, and it was SO YUMMY! I highly recommend for a weeknight dinner.
  5. Jeopardy drama. I was THRILLED to see that Mike Richards decided to step down from being the new host of Jeopardy. The things that some journalists uncovered about him were so problematic. It was pushing me towards not wanting to watch the show anymore if he was going to be the host. I think there were a lot of other fans who felt the same way and Sony felt that pressure. Not happy that he’s staying on a executive producer…but I guess you take what you can get. On the edge of my seat to see who they end up selecting now!

Friday Five Things 8/13

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“It’s the simple things in life that are the most extraordinary.” – Paul Coelho

This week was pretty quiet after all the people and activities of last week. And I am grateful for both, the busyness and the stillness.

  1. Honey harvest. This week was the big honey harvest from our bees! One of our hives lost a queen earlier this summer and didn’t quite make enough excess for us to take, but the other hive gave 50+ lbs so far! I’m excited to sell it again this fall as well as try out some new recipes. Honey caramels anyone?!?
  2. Garden veggies. Speaking of harvests, our little cherry tomatoes have started to ripen as well as a couple of our bigger tomatoes. The chickens got to one of the big tomatoes before I did, but there’s a couple more that are just about ready to pick. In the past week I’ve also harvested a couple zucchini, some jalapeños, and a strawberry! And we finally have baby cucumbers!!! Very excited to see the literal fruits of my labor.
  3. Reorganizing. I get a unique sense of joy and accomplishment when I’m able to rearrange and repurpose items around the house in a way that bring better organization and efficiency. This week it was moving a big cedar chest out of the guest room closet into the living room behind the couch. We have so much space between our couch and the wall that isn’t being used and isn’t visible from the rest of the room. Before it was filled with mismatched baskets overflowing with blankets, dog toys, and exercise equipment. Now all of that is tucked neatly into the chest. And now the guest room closet doesn’t look quite as cluttered as it did before. I did a couple other little projects like that this week and it makes me so happy to get the right things into the right places.
  4. Shitty first drafts. I’m serious here. I follow a few writers on social media and I am constantly thankful for the reminders that all first drafts are bad. The purpose is just to get the words out and the story on paper because you can’t edit nothing. I’ve been writing a lot recently and it’s been pretty bad. But it brings me joy to know that what I’m doing right now is all part of the process and exactly what I should be doing at this stage in the game!
  5. Reading. I spent a lot of time this week reading. I mean, I probably read more than the average person on a weekly basis because I consider it part of my “job” as a writer. But this week I really took some intentional time to dedicate to reading and I am really grateful for slowing down and immersing in story.

Friday Five Things 8/6

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“Nothing is worth more than laughter. It is strength to laugh and to abandon oneself, to be light.” – Frida Kahlo

Whew! It’s been a busy week and I almost forgot to write something to publish today! My sister and her family have been in town, so we’ve had a lot of good family time. Lots of fun and laughter.

  1. The best pet sitter in the world. A couple years ago I asked people for recommendations of pet sitters and a coworker/friend recommended her good friend. She has been ah-mazing. Our timid dog LOVES her. Our scaredy cats will snuggle her on the couch. It has been such a help and relief to have someone we know takes care of our animals when we are gone as well as we would, or even better! And as a bonus, she’s become a friend as well!
  2. My niece and nephew. I love all my nieces and nephews so much, but this week I got to spend a whole day with the two oldest. It was the first time that I’ve watched them by myself for an entire day, from wake-up to bedtime. And it was an adventure! We went to two playgrounds, did some shopping, sang silly songs, ate Red Robin, played outside, played a game, went to Dairy Queen, read books, rode bikes, ate dinner, and watched the Olympics! Whew! I was exhausted but so so happy.
  3. Cooler weather. Not only had the weather been slightly cooler at home at the end of last week, but we once again escaped to the mountains for cooler, crisper weather. My absolute favorite weather is when I need a sweatshirt and long pants in the mornings and evenings, but then can wear shorts and a t-shirt during the day. And that’s been the weather in Breckenridge so far this week.
  4. Writing progress. At the end of July I felt myself starting to get into a slump with my writing. But instead of giving into the block, I tried something different instead of just trying to write the next scene. I went back to my outline and wrote out a quick summary of where I want the rest of the book to go. In doing that, my writing just started flowing again and I’ve written over 2,000 words just this week!
  5. Really good sleep. I’ve been having a streak of really good sleep and not waking up during the night at all! It’s such a great feeling to feel really refreshed when you wake up and I am not taking it for granted this week.

July Book Report

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“She reads books as one would breathe air, to fill up and live.” – Annie Dillard

I finally got back into the habit of reading a little bit every day and was able to finish 5 books in July! Woohoo! Lots of good fiction reads this month. I’ll have a few more non-fiction to write about after August, but there were just too many great stories recommended to me in July and I wanted to read them all!

Oathbringer by Brandon Sanderson – The third in the Stormlight series, this book really started to bring multiple characters together both in partnership and conflict. There is some really interesting character development and growth, but some of it felt too slow. Like, we were seeing someone’s day to day growth rather than it matching the pace of the rest of the story. Not sure if that makes sense, but I wanted certain characters to reach conclusions faster than they did and that made parts of the book really slog along to me. But overall I am loving this story and I can’t wait to see where it goes. There were some unexpected revelations made in this installment that set up some interesting philosophical questions that I hope are explored in depth in the next book.

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern – This book is about a mysterious competition between magicians that takes place on the backdrop of an equally mysterious and enchanting traveling circus. It was recommended by a friend as one of her top five books. I struggle with what to say on this one because the story is really good and unique and inventive. And I was invested in the characters and what was going to happen to them. But also it felt difficult to read. I kept picking it up, excited to see what was going to happen next, only to end up putting it down again after 15 pages because it was taking too much mental energy to follow along. So I’m not sure if I would recommend it unless you are up for a challenge.

The Midnight Library by Matt Haig – On the opposite end of the spectrum, I found this book incredibly easy to read! Devoured it, quite frankly. It has such a unique premise, the main character has an opportunity between life and death to try out all the different lives she could have had if she had made different choices. While the moral of the story is pretty unsurprising, I thought the way Haig gets us there was fun and thought-provoking. It’s a quick read and I’d definitely recommend it! I think it would be a great vacation read or for a book club to discuss.

An American Marriage by Tayari Jones – This book was good but heavy. It took a bit for me to really get into the groove with the characters and how the book is written. It is told from varying viewpoints, mostly the two main characters. And it jumps forward through time, so you have to pay attention to the clues that tell you how much time has passed. The main premise shines a spotlight on our current justice system, but the story as a whole makes you think about the implications of all the different parts of a person — being a parent, being a husband or wife, being in love, being open and honest, being successful, being loyal, being true to yourself — and while the story is so vastly different from what my life looks like day-to-day, I still felt cracked open at the end. Highly recommend, but know you will be getting yourself in deep with this one.

Hallelujah Anyway by Anne Lamott – I saw someone mentioned they had read this on instagram and I decided to check it out. This is a very Lamott book in that it interweaves big lessons with her own personal experiences (and failings), bible stories, and tales from other people’s lives. She focuses on the idea of mercy, who deserves it, who gives it, who receives it, etc… I think a lot of people would say they struggle with the idea of mercy, both in giving and receiving. I do especially as an Enneagram 1. I have high standards for myself, the people around me, and the world at large. And when things don’t meet those standards, I consider the idea of justice more than I think about mercy. So this was a good read for me at this point in time. It’s a short book, about 100 pages. I’d recommend if you like Lamott’s writing style and if you are good with overtly Christian content.

Friday Five Things 7/30

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“It is a happy talent to know how to play.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Earlier this week I attended an Olympics themed birthday party that was so fun and really well executed. I think it was my first party in a very long time and I wasn’t super great with party-type situations before staying locked in my house for a year and a half. I had some pre-party social anxiety but it eventually faded when I got there and remembered how to play and have fun with other people. Over all, it was a great reminder to be playful and not take things too seriously!

  1. Olympics! I’m not really a fanatic about the Olympics but it’s always fun to watch a few competitions when they’re airing. I love hearing to how excited the commentators get during close races and unexpected outcomes, due to many of them being former athletes in those events.
  2. The neighbor’s kitten. My neighbors were out of town for a few days this week and they asked me to stop by to feed and check in on their two cats. They have a very sweet black long haired cat and a new little orange kitten who is a firecracker! Both cats have been very friendly even though I’m a stranger to them. The kitten has the scratchiest little voice when he meows and he purrs like a diesel engine.
  3. New houseplants. I stopped by our local garden center to pick up some self-watering devices to help a few of my outdoors plants get through the near 100 degree temps this week. And while I was there I allowed myself to buy two new houseplants! I potted them last night and also repotted a few of my other plants. While doing so I discovered that my snake plant had propagated itself three times in it’s original plant so I split off the babies and I now have four snake plants! When I was younger I tried to keep plants alive and just never could do it. Now that I’m older and pay more attention to things in my house, taking care of my green babies has brought me so much joy!
  4. Cutting back on social media. Over the past year my social media consumption has gotten a bit out of control. So on Tuesday I decided to delete Facebook and Instagram off of my devices. Not having them easily accessible has prevented me from mindlessly scrolling for a few days. I’m not sure how long I’ll keep them deleted, but even just a few days away has felt really good and freeing.
  5. Books. I got back on track with my goal to finish five books this month! I read some good ones and I’ll have my book report up early next week with my reviews and recommendations.