Recent reads

📖 Catching the Wind (Christian, historical fiction, time slip)... I should be tired of WWII - journalist stories by now but I'm not! Melanie Dobson is one of my favorite WWII authors, too. 

📖 Long Way Home (Christian, historical fiction)... I'll start with the warning that there was a major focus on WWII tragedies + a character's depression, PTSD, and suicide attempt. This WWII story was a difficult read as a result but so good and well-done! 

📖 Searching for the Ark of the Covenant (Christian, nonfiction, history [kinda])... I loved this fascinating nonfiction and I am excited to learn even more about the ark of the covenant. I have so many thoughts and ideas about it! 

📖 An Unexplained Death (secular, nonfiction, true crime)... I got very curious about this true crime story and have read + listened to many interviews about it. This book was heavily focused on suicide. It's hard to say a true crime novel was good, given the subject matter, and I come to a different conclusion than the author because of other interviews paired with what's in the book, but overall I'd call it generally good. 

📖 When We Were Young (Christian, contemporary fiction)... This was my favorite "Baxter" book yet! I loved the influencer angle because it's something I think about so often! It's primarily about an unrelated couple who happens to know some of the Baxters and works very well as a true stand-alone for those who have never read the Baxter books. 

Weekend!

This has been a super busy season for us so I was determined to make this weekend a nice combination of productive + fun + relaxing in spite of a couple obligations. 

Highlights: Finding an outfit I like even though cozy sweater season is ending // Pizza-movie-night with Sgt. Stubby // The best weather for sitting outside in the shade during a phone call with extended family // making a decent dent in my big book labeling project while Hubby and I watched a movie // listening to a good audio book during my big cleaning time // got a restaurant in a bigger town to make us some delicious custom breakfast wraps (mushrooms, onions, bell peppers, potatoes, avocado, salsa, greens) // a beautiful walk down by the water // lasagna soup for dinner being a hit for the whole family // tea and a good book! 

Recently Watched

As always, we tried a few things not worth mentioning here. These were the shows and movies we found most interesting, inspiring, thought-provoking, etc. You can find more TV and movie posts here. 

📺 90 Minutes in Heaven (Christian, based on a book)... I remember liking this book (I have a real love for books about near death experiences) and have wanted to watch the movie since it came out. I'm so happy I finally did! 

📺 Aurora Teagarden Mysteries- A Bone to Pick // Real Murders // The Julius House // Dead Over Heels // A Bundle of Trouble  (secular, TV, cozy mysteries)... I'm so happy with these! Like a cozy mystery in movie form. My husband and I both really enjoy a good mystery (especially a show that's focused on one long mystery that unwinds over the whole season rather than a different mystery each episode) but it's so hard to find one these days that isn't full of sex and gore. I'm okay with my kids watching these two as younger teens and I will definitely watch the rest + other Hallmark cozy mysteries! 

📺  Ben Franklin's Bones (secular, documentary)... I have long been aware of the fact that multiple human and animal bodies were discovered buried under Ben Franklin's old house and there has been some speculation that he may have been a serial killer. This fascinating documentary addresses those remains and theories. I have lots of thoughts but they'll spoil things. Word of warning: organs, bones, and body systems are displayed from a scientific setting + there is reenactment of a medical act that may all be a bit much for younger/squeamish viewers. 

📺 Economic for Children: Saving, Spending, and Investing Money (secular, kids educational nonfiction)... Definitely a smidge cheesy but one of my kids was instantly inspired to make wiser money decisions. 

📺 The Hunger Games // Catching Fire // Mockingjay Part 1 and Part 2 // Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (secular, movie, dystopian)... A lot more violent than I remembered but goodness, so clever! I don't honestly think I'll pass this one on to my kids as teens. I still haven't decided how I feel about the final one, kind of a Snow backstory. It was well-done and held my attention but did I like it? I don't totally think so. Also, depressing to end with that one. 

📺 Inkheart (secular, family, fantasy)... I'm pretty sure I heard a quiet d-word and there was non-graphic combat violence but I was comfortable with all of it for a tween and think my kids will love this one in a couple years! 

📺 A Thousand Tomorrows (Christian, TV, based on a book)... Loved this six-episode miniseries and hope they put it out on dvd! Will share with the kids as teenagers. 

📺 Wonder Park (secular, movie, family)... Super sad beginning that made me cry but overall good. There was a moment that one character made a statement that would normally come before a curse word (I'm sorry I don't remember what!) but it's pretty rare to not see at least one thing that shouldn't be in a children's movie. 

Recent middle grade reads

📖 Book Scavenger (secular)... This clever book is full of puzzles and ciphers. This will be a huge hit for my logic-brained kiddos and I will try book 2. 

📖 A Gathering of Days (secular)...  This book was interesting and definitely a fast read. I tend to like epistolary and diary-style books so no surprise here. 

📖 Goliath Must Fall for Young Readers (Christian, nonfiction)... Loved it, got a lot out of it even as an adult and believe it'll bless my tweens 💙

📖 Mixed-Breed Dogs (secular, nonfiction)... Big hit for or of my dog fans. I found this one to be made up of mostly universal dog tips, just one of many in a sea of dog care books. 

📖 Star of Light (Christian, from the TGTB list)... Better for the older tweens but wow, another deeply inspiring read by Patricia St John! My son and I are really enjoying her writing.  

📖 What Do We Know About the Kraken? (Secular, nonfiction)... Loved this one- so fun! I find cephalopods to be so creepy and fascinating. Based on the research of Frederick Aldrich, lits of giant and colossal squid sightings should start happening in the 2050s. More WhoHQ reviews here. 

Adventures in Boise, Idaho- Part 1

 

We recently enjoyed a trip to Boise, Idaho to compete in an extracurricular event and then meet up with extended family + explore Boise. I always enjoy sharing our adventures here! 

Things that worked on driving days- chatting // music // 90s trivia for my husband and me // Family Feud for everyone (haven't finished every card but nothing inappropriate so far) // Innotab (old hand-me-down I can't even find on eBay to link) + my brother's old Game Boy Advance + my grandpa's old handheld Solitaire game, but during scheduled intervals and not as a free-for-all // foods we brought from home

Day 1- We got into our hotel in time for a late dinner. Settled in and ate, checked out the event venue, read and relaxed.  

Day 2- We started our day with breakfast we'd brought from home but some of the other families at this event said the breakfast was good. We got kids registered for their event and then we took a beautiful riverfront walk right outside a hotel entrance. 

We had to pass a giant chess board and checkers board in a courtyard so of course we played those, too. 

We went back over for the start of the event and socialized with others for a bit (had the coolest conversation with a parent from Venezuela who shared so much of his life journey with us + was stunned to learn that Americans don't typically get a passport unless they're about to travel to another country) and then I took the younger two back to the hotel room for a while. (The littles and I went back and forth for their sake).

We all just ate lunch we'd brought from home and then the littles and I ran to Whole Foods to grab some dinner items. We admired a lot of art on the way and I realized that's one of my favorite things when we travel, seeing the art in different cities and towns! 

We were all so mentally + socially drained by the time the event was over! We had just-add-water soup/noodle snack plate dinners in the hotel room while watching Jumanji since it was playing on one of the channels (we bought an electric kettle just for this trip and wow, highly recommend!)

My husband and I also (finally!) watched the first of six episides of A Thousand Tomorrows before bed.

Day 3- We slept in (needed it!) and lounged around in the hotel room for a bit, ate breakfast I'd brought from home and then took another beautiful riverfront walk. This time we saw people surfing! 

 After our walk we packed everything up to make our move to the Airbnb we'd gotten for the second leg of the trip. We couldn't check in or meet extended family until 4pm so we had time to kill. We started with the aquarium which wound up being so great!  

My girls and I have been doing the TGTB Wind and Waves science unit and they've all been pretty fascinated by the ocean info + loving an ocean science kit on the side. This got them so excited! Some of my kids fed fish + pet stingrays and starfish, and everyone enjoyed seeing all there was to see. 

After that we went to the mall to look for a birthday gift component for an extended family member. We of course checked out all the puzzles and games while we were there. 

The rest of the night went by fast! We met up with family at Natural Grocers to buy food for our meals together, got all set up in the Airbnb, and the kids played Uno with family while I made a super easy dinner for a crowd. 

If you're ever cooking for a big group, I highly recommend burrito bowls. It's so easy to put multiple meal components out and et people add whatever they want to their respective bowls. I cooked a big batch of rice + riced cauliflower as the base and then we put out bowls of options on the table... Steamed broccoli, sauteed mushrooms + onions, pinto beans, black beans, salsa, Pico de Gallo, romaine lettuce, cashew cream, coconut aminos! You could also add meat, cheese, whatever 

After that Hubby and I finished setting up the airbnb, tucked in the kids, and then curled up in bed to watch the next episode of A Thousand Tomorrows and then read!