Ughhhhhhhh I cannot, I just cannot, deal today.  This is going to be one of those kinds of blog posts, because I am in a rotten mood.  I have been dreading this week, because I’m swamped with work and also running around (two speaking engagements and an all-afternoon meeting) the first half of the week, so I have no idea when I am going to get everything else done.  I put in time on both Saturday and Sunday, but I’m still totally behind the curve and just burnt. out.  Plus, it was kind of a dreary weekend, but not actually raining – so the weather was both good and bad, which – pick a lane, weather!  It was supposed to rain all weekend, and I was already mad about that (because of course it’s gorgeous all week long when I’m stuck in an office) but at the same time, I figured the blah weather was going to be good for work, at least.  Well – the rain forecast didn’t materialize, which meant I got less work done (and I was crankier when I was working) but at least we were able to squeeze in a hike on Saturday morning – staying on track in the 52 Hike Challenge, if not chipping away at the backlog.  We hiked Potomac Overlook Regional Park – a new-to-us trail that was a lot tougher than advertised.  There were something like ten slippery stream crossings, logs to climb over and limbs to duck under, lots of elevation change, and we were both schlepping about 40 pounds of child carriers.  Definitely not the “easy to moderate” trail that our local hiking guide promised, but at least it was good preparation for hiking in the Adirondacks this summer.  On Sunday we just wandered around the neighborhood, which was nice – and then it was back to the computer for me.  Wish me luck this week, friends.  I have fun plans for next weekend (weather permitting) but I have to get through the week first.

Reading.  This week has felt like a bit of a rut.  I finished Northanger Abbey on Monday, which is one of my favorite books – so that part was good.  But pressing library deadlines pushed me into the “reading feels like work” territory and as a result, I didn’t have much fun with the rest of the week.  The Untelling was beautifully written but I just couldn’t feel much sympathy for the main character, who made terrible choice after terrible choice.  Second Class Citizen, similarly, is beautifully written – I can tell why it’s a classic – but it’s suffering from not being exactly what I want to read in this moment.  I’m just in a funk, y’all.  I’ll be out of it by next weekend, I’m sure.

Watching.  I don’t think I’ve watched anything this week.  Certainly nothing is sticking in my memory.  Steve has been turning on the TV only for video games, and the kids are on an iPad diet so I’m not even watching Miles From Tomorrowland over their shoulders.  It’s sort of refreshing.

Listening.  All over the place, again.  Some music (Offa Rex, mostly, this week) and some podcasts.  I’m catching up on back episodes of parenting and lifestyle podcasts, mainly because I feel like I should.  I’m usually up-to-date on book podcasts – although I am saving season 2 of Annotated for a rainy day – but I often leave podcasts on other topics languishing.  The highlight of the week was a back episode of Sorta Awesome on celebrating the everyday.  I’ve listened to several people’s fair shares of Sorta Awesome at this point, and I think I can safely say that the episodes in which Kelly Gordon co-hosts are my favorites.

Planning.  I am so overwhelmed with work and life stuff right now that it feels like the only way to escape it is by diving headfirst into summer vacation planning, so that’s what I’m doing.  Lodging is booked, and now it’s time to do my favorite part – plot our activities.  I’m a list-making, canoe-rental-finding, hike-scheming machine.

Blogging.  This should be a fun week.  On Wednesday, I will get controversial with some opinions about things like pie, sidewalks, and vegetables – this is hard-hitting stuff, folks.  (Not really.  Unless you think Christmas is better than the Fourth of July, in which case you are wrong.)  And on Friday I have a fun pre-Mother’s Day post about motherhood in Austen novels, so check in with me then.

Pinning.  Big news!  I’m back on Pinterest after an eleven-month hiatus.  I had to create a new account because Pinterest put my old account in “safe mode” and I couldn’t reset it, since it was associated with an email address I no longer have.  But I’ve moved most of my pins over to my new account, and created a bunch more boards just for fun.  I’ve been having the best time going pin-crazy, so if you’re a pinner, come find me!

Loving.  I am so excited that The Yellow Note recently featured my hometown!  I’m a huge fan of Briana’s photography on Instagram – her feed is such a breath of fresh air.  It was super fun to see my favorite stomping grounds come to life through her gorgeous photos on the blog, and to hear about the delicious food and fun sightseeing she enjoyed during her short stay in town – which included stops at some of my favorite haunts.

Asking.  What are you reading this week?