Yawwwwwwn.  Is it Monday already?  I feel like this weekend never really got off the ground, although we did try to make something of it.  We had birthday parties to attend both days this weekend – Peanut is, apparently, leaving the “invite just a handful of kids” age and into the “invite the entire class” age when it comes to birthday parties, and we’ve got three in two weeks (two this weekend, one next weekend).  It’s fun, but it does tie up the weekend rather a lot.  As a result, we didn’t make it to IKEA (our “need” errand) or to the National Book Festival (our “want” idea for the weekend).  And Sunday was a train wreck because the party was during nap time and Peanut was generally a mess all day, as she always is when she has to go without her nap.  But we still squeezed in some fun – our first family walk on the Mount Vernon Trail since moving back – one of our old favorite haunts; Nugget and I hit the trail for a run a couple of weeks ago, but the rest of the family hadn’t been back.  And another old favorite, Lake Burke, for a nice family walk on Sunday before birthday party madness set in.  The weather was in the sixties and it felt really refreshing, but the sun was still shining – it was a great hike.

As for reading, it was a good week that’s passed, and a good weekend.  I finished Alias Grace – I read it slowly, even though I was dying to know what was going to happen, because I wanted to savor the gorgeous writing.  I think it’s my new favorite Atwood, bumping The Year of the Flood and MaddAddam off the top spot.  Then I grabbed something from my nightstand: Little Victories, by Jason Gay.  This was a Christmas gift from my mom, and it was a pretty entertaining read.  I was laughing out loud – literally – through many sections, and I forced Steve to stop what he was doing and listen to me read aloud the Zen Cubs’ rules for Little League, because it was gold.  Then I moved on to Sofia Khan is Not Obliged, at the recommendation of my friend A.M.B.  Once again, A proved that she can be trusted when it comes to book recommendations – Sofia Khan was a joy to read, light and warm and funny, and also thought-provoking.  (I kept thinking, “This is like the Pakistani version of Bridget Jones, only with way more substance,” and I still think that pretty well describes it.)  I bid goodbye to Sofia on Friday, which meant perfect timing to read Hamilton: The Revolution, also known as The Hamiltome, over the weekend.  (It’s WAY too big to take on the Metro!)  This was another gift from my mom, who picked it up at one of the Smithsonians because she thought I needed a little pick-me-up treat to remind me that my hard work as Mom, Esq. is appreciated.  (Nice, right?  She’s pretty great.)  I’ve been deep in the Hamiltome all weekend, hearing the soundtrack play in my head as I read the lyrics with Lin’s annotations, and Jeremy’s essays on how the musical came to be.  (The annotations are my favorite part; well, that and the picture of Lin on vacation in Mexico, reading Ron Chernow’s Hamilton – how it all began!)  The book is awesome, although it’s making me even itchier to actually see the show.  Hamilton comes to the Kennedy Center in 2018, but I’m not sure I can wait that long… I’m scheming a way to make Broadway happen.  (Insert “Room Where It Happens” joke here.)  YAY, HAMLET!

As for the coming week, my current plan is to catch up on all six currently-released trade volumes of Ms. Marvel.  I’ve flipped through the first volume, but that’s it, and I can already see what the fuss is about.  So I’m dying to read more.  And if I finish those, I’m thinking of picking up the most recent Mindy Kaling (another gift from my mom!).

On the blog this week: my diverse kidlit pick for September on Wednesday.  You guys, I am so excited for this one.  When I dreamed up this project back in January, Wednesday’s pick was the first book I added to the list, and I knew immediately that it had to be September’s choice.  It’s a book I absolutely love, which has stood the test of time, and which Peanut requests almost every night – a true family favorite.  And on Friday, back to the beach for another vacation recap; I’m having way too much fun with those.  It’s gonna be a good one here on the blog.  Check back!

What are you reading this week, my friends?