Good morning. Tap tap. Is anyone awake? Good, me neither. So, how were your weekends? Ours was jam-packed and mostly spent outdoors, which is just how I like ’em. On Saturday, we were up early for a backyard coffee date with our good friends – Nugget’s best buddy, D, and his family. They were taking family pictures in a park nearby, and the timing worked perfectly to get in a quick playdate before they headed to their photo shoot and we shoved off for the first tee-ball game of the season. Nugget’s team, the Royals, took on the baby Nationals, and it was hilarious. No one knew the rules, the batter was more surprised by a hit than anyone, and the handful of kids who were actually dialed into the action (a group that included team “ringer” Nugget) ended up piled on top of each other like puppies every time somebody actually hit the ball. We spent the afternoon lolling about at home. Nugget practiced tossing and catching his baseball using his new bounce-back net and strike zone (it’s possible Steve is even more excited about Little League than Nugget is) and I read outdoors.

Sunday was another outside day. In the morning, we drove to Bull Run to witness the annual bluebell spectacle. (Pictures coming soon!) I think we hit it just right this year – it was glorious. And we made it all the way to the Civil War battlefield this time, which was cool to see; Steve and I hiked the battlefield years ago, before kids, but haven’t been in that part of the park since. In the afternoon, we took the rugrats to a local elementary school to ride bikes; they’re learning to pedal without training wheels. Nugget, who has not yet met a sport that he didn’t pick up immediately, has already got it all figured out; Peanut is taking more time to build her confidence, but she’ll get there (please Artemis). Nugget was so reluctant to leave the school that I had to sunscreen him up at home and then take him right back out for more biking – he looped the little mini bike path for two hours. It was the kind of weekend I love – one filled with sunshine, fresh air and friends, and collapsing on the couch with a good book at the end.

Reading. Speaking of good books – I’m really leaning into National Poetry Month, as you can see. Didn’t I tell you my pace would pick up once our houseguests left? (Also, several of these volumes – especially the Candlestick Press ones – are very short, but still.) I finished The Iliad by mid-week and then blazed through Ten Poems about Walking, William Wordsworth (a selection by Seamus Heaney, for the Faber Nature Poets series – more about this coming soon), and Ten Poems for Spring, before turning back to ancient Greece and The Odyssey. I’ve heard so many wonderful things about this new-ish translation by Emily Wilson; I’m about halfway through at press time and I can confirm, it’s fabulous. (And I’m enjoying it much more than The Iliad.)

Watching. Ancient Greece (or ancient Greece-adjacent) watching, too. I convinced Steve and the kids to watch Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief on Friday and Saturday. We all loved it, and the kids have been chattering away about Greek heroes and monsters all weekend, which is too fun. On a more grown-up note, I watched a few episodes from Miranda Mills’ YouTube channel and Steve and I knocked back another episode of The Crown on Sunday night. Good times.

Listening. Not too much – just about an hour of All Creatures Great and Small. More to come this week, since I have to drive into the office at least twice.

Making. Not much this week. A few dinners – chicken escarole, which has been in the weekly rotation for awhile; lemon-pepper shrimp with roasted broccoli and mashed potatoes on Sunday evening. That’s about it. No fun baking to report, no gardening.

Moving. Ugh, let’s just not discuss this. Does panicking over career choices count? Definitely got my heart rate up this week.

Blogging. Another dispatch from the exurbs on Wednesday, and another poem on Friday – pretty standard stuff, but I hope you like both.

Loving. I look forward to this glory of Virginia bluebells all year long, and it never disappoints. Seeing the woods carpeted with ethereal blue blossoms is always such a joy and privilege. Steve and the kids enjoy it as much as I do, which makes it extra fun. Someday I hope to share the bluebell fun with my parents, or with friends – in the meantime, this is definitely good enough for me!

Asking. What are you reading this week?

Good morning! Happy Easter to my friends who celebrated this weekend, and Chag Sameach to those of you who are celebrating Passover. We had a red letter weekend, for sure. My parents have been here visiting since Wednesday afternoon, which has been fun for all of us – my mom has been cleaning like a tornado in the kids’ rooms and the playroom (will it last? ha) and my dad has been outside getting Nugget in shape for tee-ball, which starts today. My parents are on their way home now, but it has been a good visit. And the weekend was the best part.

I started the weekend off on a high note, with some incredible news on Friday afternoon. More to come about that soon, I promise! It was good enough that I put a bottle of my fanciest California sparkling wine in the fridge and we had a family toast with dinner to celebrate. (Apologies for being vague. I’ll spill the beans soon, because I’m too excited to keep it in – but there are people who need to be told in person first. And no, it’s not a baby. Obviously – wine.) Anyway! I had a smile on my face all weekend. On Saturday, we hung out together at the house in the morning, then fed the kids an early lunch and shoved off for a bike ride – my parents taught the kids to ride their bikes without training wheels – and then to Old Town for the afternoon. In the evening, my parents ran interference while Steve and I put the kids’ big Easter present together in the yard; read on. I wrapped up the evening by pulling together the Easter Bunny’s offerings, then collapsed on the couch.

On Sunday morning, the kids woke up to their baskets and their big present, then my dad went off to church while the rest of the family stayed home and watched the kids enjoy their Easter morning. (Steve and I are still patiently waiting for our vaccines; my mom is vaccinated but didn’t want to be in a crowd of people at church.) When my dad got home, we had a family brunch and then hiked at Rust Nature Preserve before coming home to a traditional Polish cold Easter supper. I was on my feet and smiling almost all weekend, outdoors for hours on end, I’m exhausted now, and it was great.

Reading. Rather a slow reading week. I read at my usual pace early on and finished Mango and Mimosa on Tuesday, but then two things happened: (1) I picked up The Iliad, which is many things but is not a quick read; and (2) my mom arrived and we spent several evenings in a row sitting on my couch chatting over our boxed wine. (We are classy people!) So – at press time, I’m about halfway through The Iliad. I’m enjoying it very much, and I do expect to pick up the pace now that my parents are headed home. No regrets, though! I’d much rather talk to my houseguests than bury my face in a book during the limited time we have to spend with them.

Watching. We finished up our journey through Narnia over the last week, and then Peanut convinced Steve and my parents that we should start it over again on Sunday. Because The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe is an Easter allegory. (Apparently she was actually listening to me when I explained that?!?!) Oh, and I watched The Holderness Family’s “Vaccination Day” Frozen parody about eleventy-seven million times. (I texted the link to my friend Helena. Her response: “DID YOU GET AN APPOINTMENT?!?!?!?!?” I replied: “No, but I need to talk about this video with someone.”)

Listening. More of All Creatures Great and Small (four hours down, eleven to go!). And the kids requested “tunes” as we were driving to and from hiking and Old Town this weekend, so everyone got to listen to my R.E.M. live album. Hey-o.

Moving. While I keep saying that I am going to hit the weights again, it was another functional fitness week. Lots of cleaning the house to prepare for guests, and then running after Nugget on his bike, chasing the kids through Old Town, and hiking at Rust – all good stuff, but informal. Oh, and there was this week’s making, which was a workout:

Making. The kiddos’ big Easter present – a climbing dome! I’ve been wanting to get them something big and cool for the backyard (and let’s face it: they don’t need more junk to pile in the playroom corners). I narrowed it down to the climbing dome or a giant sprinkler, and the dome won out because they can use it all year long. I ordered it online and Steve and I spent several hours in the side yard on Saturday night, assembling it so it would be ready for them to discover on Easter morning. There was a lot of running back and forth, propping up the structure as it came together, and dashing around screwing on handholds – trying to beat the sunset. On Sunday morning, Steve groaned, “I feel like I just moved houses yesterday.” It was a big project. The red and blue colors remind me of Spider-Man, and I deserve a medal for not quoting Into the Spider-Verse excessively as we assembled the thing. (“We’re a little team! Me, the teacher, who can still do it. You, the student, who can do it… just not as good. I’m proud of us! Is there something you want to say to me?”) Oh, yeah, and in addition to the climbing dome, I made: an Easter basket assembly; Cadbury egg fudge (that was supposed to be a project with the kids, but once again the Little Red Hen ended up doing it all alone with no helpers); smoked salmon egg casserole for brunch; and a big decision about the future, nbd.

Blogging. March reading round-up for you on Wednesday, and another poem on Friday. Of course! It’s National Poetry Month, what can I do? I don’t make the rules.

Loving. You guys, I’m so excited. I signed Nugget up for tee-ball! I had tried but ran into difficulties with the website, so I emailed the league organizers and luckily they had space for him. His first practice is this afternoon, and his first game is on Saturday. All my baseball mom dreams are coming true! Go Nats! Hold me.

Asking. What are you reading this week?

Morning, friends. How were your weekends? Ours was pretty decent, if I do say so myself. After working basically all of last weekend, followed by a stressful week, I felt like I was due a good couple of days off. And I got them – it was a good mix of family fun, book time, and productivity. On Saturday, we woke up to bluebird skies and 70 degrees, so an outdoor day was clearly called for. Started with a neighborhood walk, and then after lunch, a hiking double-header – first Rust Nature Preserve in Leesburg, followed by Beaverdam Reservoir in Ashburn. Y’all. I thought it would be too early in the season for paddling envy, but it seemed like everyone in NoVA had their kayaks and SUPs out on the reservoir. I was green, and itching to get my new SUP out on the water for a test paddle. Steve and I spent most of the hike debating when we can get our first kayak outing of the season in, too.

Sunday was basically opposite to Saturday in terms of weather – grey, rainy, and mucky. Perfect for getting things done around the house, which was needed since several weeks of long workdays had left the place looking worse for wear. I ran to the grocery store pickup and to Target (for wine and Easter basket materials, the essentials), then came home and tornadoed around the house. I cleaned out the fridge; organized the coffee cupboard; went through Nugget’s school materials and tossed a bunch of outdated handouts; did laundry; cleaned the living room and foyer areas; packed up winter clothes and accessories; and worked on a side project. Tiring, but satisfying.

Reading. Despite a busy and stressful workweek, I managed to get some quality reading time in. The days between Monday and Saturday were pretty much evenly divided between Ex Libris (Michiko Kakutani’s wonderful book of recommendations) and A Morbid Taste for Bones (first in a new-to-me murder mystery series starring a sleuthing medieval monk, Brother Cadfael). I loved both, and will definitely be continuing with Brother Cadfael. On Saturday night, I switched gears and went back to my own shelves – taking a break on the library stack for the moment – to pick up Mango and Mimosa, a wonderful memoir of an adventurously eccentric interwar childhood. Duchess St. Albans was my company on Sunday night, and excellent company she was.

Watching. It was a whole week of Narnia! We finished The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, worked our way through Prince Caspian over several nights, and are (as of press time on this post) half an hour from the end of The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. We’re all loving it – some of us too much. Peanut has started leaving notes “from Her Majesty’s Secret Police” taped to the walls, and whenever a door is closed she bangs on it and shouts “Open up in the name of the Queen!” Someone needs to explain to her that the White Witch is not the hero.

Listening. Several hours of All Creatures Great and Small over the course of the week, and still loving it. My favorite parts are the sections featuring the tumultuous household of Jim, Siegfried and Tristan.

Making. Lots of work product, as usual. And progress toward a clean house! I have a few items left on my checklist, but overall it’s looking pretty good around here. Oh, and Nugget and I planted sunflower seeds this weekend, so hopefully I’ll soon be able to say I’ve made some seedlings.

Moving. Sigh. Just the hiking and walking, again. I can feel the lack of strength training – I always have more energy when I’m mixing up the workouts. Maybe next week? I know, that’s what I say every week. Blame pandemic working from home while supervising virtual kindergarten.

Blogging. Themed reads this week, and it’s another one for those of you with cabin fever. And then Friday will be April, which is National Poetry Month, so you know what that means – it’s e.e. cummings day!

Loving. A couple of weeks ago, our little miniature backyard frog pond was a symphony of ribbits and croaks. Well – now we know why. Behold, a floppity jillion tadpoles! (Take my word for it: there were more than I could count, all clustered around the edges of the pond. I noticed them on Saturday when I tried to clean up some of the detritus that the kids have been dropping into the pond all winter – when I couldn’t get one of the sticks in the pond to shift (don’t worry, I was using another stick, not my hands) I realized why; it was surrounded by hundreds of green jelly frog eggs, and swimming all around the eggs – tadpoles! The kids and I spent a good hour sitting by the pond, staring mesmerized at the tadpoles. I can’t wait to watch this gang turn into frogs this summer.

Asking. What are you reading this week?

Yawwwwwwwn. G’morning. How were your weekends? Bit of a blah one over here, although the weather was spectacular. I ended up working for big chunks of both Saturday and Sunday – just one of those things. On Sunday I had to visit a client site, which is unusual but not unheard of for a weekend day, and on Saturday I was busily trying to make headway on a few other things. I don’t mind working on the weekends – especially when, as this weekend, I have things that I really need to get done. (Steve once had a job in which he often had to work weekends just because some unnamed person above him in the food chain would decide “I feel like I want people working this weekend” – and that, I never appreciated. Fortunately, that’s never been my experience.) What frustrated about this working weekend was that, as frantically as I hacked away at my stack of work, it didn’t shrink any and I’m still behind the eight ball this week. But at least I came home from my Sunday work to an adorable welcome home note in the driveway!

All the work I had didn’t leave much time for fun, but we did manage to get to Riverbend Regional Park for a Saturday morning hike, where we got a fabulous view of one of the nesting eagles and saw a wood duck! (Pictures to come as soon as I get them off my camera.) And on Sunday morning, in between bouts of work, I joined Steve and the kids for a ramble through the neighborhood park. No exciting wildlife sightings this time, although we’ve seen herons, bluebirds, hawks, and foxes there in the past. And somehow in the midst of all of this, I even managed to finish the book I was reading. So – not the best weekend, but could certainly have been worse.

Reading. Last week was a slow one in terms of books – not the fault of the books, but just a pile of work, it happens. Between several working evenings and a couple of long evening phone calls with different people, my reading time was curtailed and The Splendid and the Vile moved more slowly than it would have if I’d had more time and attention available to me. Don’t let that put you off the book, though! The fault was with the reader (or the reader’s schedule), not the book itself – it’s wonderful. I finally finished it up on Sunday evening and turned to another library book: Ex Libris: 100+ Books to Read and Reread, by retired NYT book critic Michiko Kakutani. I’m about a third of the way in as of press time on this post and really enjoying Kakutani’s thoughtful commentary on her recommendations, most of which I have not read yet. My TBR is taking a beating.

Watching. All over the place this week. A few episodes of The Crown – we’re going at a pace of one or two a week, trying to savor. A NatGeo miniseries called Kingdom of the White Wolf, which Steve chose and we all enjoyed. The first episode of Waffles and Mochi. I wanted to watch that because two adorable puppets learning to cook with Michelle Obama is what the world needs – the first episode was cute, but Steve wasn’t really into it, so the parents dropped off that one and the kids have continued to binge the series on their own time. And, finally, Nugget discovered The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe on Disney+ so obviously it had to happen. We’re still an hour from the end (it’s a long movie, fam) but we’ll finish it tonight, probably.

Listening. I started the week with podcasts – Another Mother Runner and The Mom Hour, specifically – but found myself craving an audiobook, so midweek I switched over to my newest Audible acquisition, All Creatures Great and Small. I have never read it before, but am loving it so far (about two hours into a 15-hour book).

Making. Piles of work product – that’s about it.

Moving. Oof. It was another one of those weeks in which work was just too busy, and between trying to keep my head above water in the “office” and parenting, I just didn’t make anything happen beyond those two hikes I mentioned above. All week I craved a long solo walk through the neighborhood, or a good head-clearing run, or some quality time in my little makeshift home gym – but mental gymnastics were the biggest workout I got. I have another busy week ahead of me, but I’m hoping to get at least some time to myself. Hope springs eternal.

Blogging. An update on virtual school for you on Wednesday, and the promised first post in my new “Life Library” series on Friday. Check in with me then!

Loving. This may have been completely obvious to everyone except for me – probably was, but do me a solid and don’t tell me if you already had this down. Recently I was re-reading this post by Miranda Mills, on evening routines to reduce stress. I read it back when she first wrote it, but something jumped out at me afresh this time – Miranda says that rather than waiting until she might be too tired, she does her nighttime skincare routine early in the evening, shortly after getting home from her (then) job. Y’all, this blew my mind. It literally never occurred to me (stupid, I know) to do my evening skincare routine any earlier than immediately before bed, and the result was that I almost never actually did it. I’ve mostly gotten away with this tendency to flake on myself, thanks to a combination of good skin genes and rarely wearing makeup (<–personal laziness). But as I’ve gotten older, I have been wanting to prioritize my skincare but was struggling to get into a routine. Miranda’s suggestion to get it out of the way early was completely earth-shattering and I decided to put it into practice and see what happened. So for the past few weeks, I have been doing my evening skincare routine right after I put the kids to bed, before I settle in for the night with my book. I don’t say this lightly, but – it’s been life-changing. My face looks brighter and healthier, and it’s been such a nice way to transition out of mom-and-employee mode and into self-care mode.

Asking. What are you reading this week?

Good morning, all – how is your week looking? I have a busy one on the docket, as usual – or maybe even busier than usual; I’m not sure how I’m going to get it all done. I will, though, somehow I always do. In the meantime, looking back on a gorgeous bluebird weekend will get me through. It was Nugget’s birthday weekend, so he got to choose the activities (mostly), and the universe sent him the gift of glorious early spring weather. On Saturday, Nugget wanted an epic hike: to start at Riverbend, hike downriver all the way to the neighboring Great Falls Park, have a picnic, and then hike back. Considering we usually only make it halfway from Riverbend to Great Falls, this was ambitious indeed – but we did it! And then because he inherited my energy levels, no sooner had we returned home than he and I loaded up in the car again, drove to Arlington, and had a four hour-long outdoor playdate with his best bud, D, and D’s intrepid little sister.

Sunday was slightly less active. Both of the kids were fighting off something of a spring forward hangover, and nobody was interested in doing anything especially outlandish. I took the kids to the playground briefly, but we left because roving bands of (unmasked!) boys were stirring up trouble – really uncool, since the playground was Nugget’s one request for his birthday Sunday. I felt bad for the guy, but we weren’t going to hang around with a bunch of jerks looking to start fights and not even wearing masks. We spent the rest of the day knocking around the house. Nugget dug in the sandbox, I sat in the sun and read (and tried to fend off Sunday Scaries), Peanut scattered crocus petals all over the garden walk, and Steve played video games. The kids were zonked on Sunday night – I was, too. And now it’s off to the races…

Reading. Although the above makes it look like an ordinary, active reading week, last week was actually kind of slow on the book front. I spent most of the week over The House of Mirth, which was absolutely wonderful and which I loved – but which moved slowly through no fault of its own. Just one of those weeks. I finally finished it up on Sunday afternoon, and spent the rest of the afternoon and the early evening with Cheerful Weather for the Wedding, a Bloomsbury novella that takes place on March 5, so it was fun to pick it up in the same month if not the precise day. Finally, ended Sunday evening with The Splendid and the Vile – so excited! I’ve been wanting to read this one since it was announced, long before publication, but my place in the library queue was interrupted when I moved to a neighboring county and a new library system. It’s a tome, and I have a busy week ahead, so I’m guessing it will take me the full week to get through, but I already know I’m going to love it. I have adored everything I’ve read by Erik Larson (and am already planning a dive into the few backlist titles I’ve not yet picked up, in order to tide me over before his next book).

Watching. So much to report this week! Two episodes of The Crown – so, so gorgeously filmed. (But I agree with the Fug Girls – what the what, Peter Morgan, skipping Anne foiling her own kidnapping? Isn’t that the whole point of the 1970s?) The highlight of the week, though, was finally sitting down to watch disneynature: Penguin. OMG, y’all. It was hilarious, adorable, beautifully filmed – we all loved it, and have been walking around quoting it for days. “I just got beat up by a baby.” I could watch it every day.

Listening. More podcasts – the usual suspects, some Mom Hour, some Sorta Awesome, some Mother Runner Podcast. And music, while driving little Nugget to and from a playdate in Arlington; he prefers music to podcasts, fair enough. We listened to some New Pornographers (which I call “Carl Newman,” after the lead singer, when referring to the band in front of the kids) and some R.E.M.

Making. A lot of work product last week, and therefore a lot of deep breaths. Some tentative plans and some reshuffled plans. Salmon with tomatoes and capers, again. And most importantly, a birthday cake (funfetti, from a box, but it was good) for the little dude.

Moving. Hmmmm. Well, it was one of those “functional fitness” weeks, I guess. I did lots of moving, it just wasn’t very formal. Lots of walking and hiking, lots of cleaning and carrying children around. Not a lot of running or strength training.

Blogging. Reflections on one year since the COVID-19 shutdowns on Wednesday; not sure I really have anything new to say, but I suppose I’ll find out. And introducing a new project on Friday – check in with me then!

Loving. I mentioned this up above, but GUYS. I can’t recommend Penguin highly enough! We were trying to figure out what it is: is it documentary, is it fiction, what? It’s sort of a combination. The premise is that a disneynature film crew follows one year in the life of an Adelie penguin colony, through the experience of one particular penguin, Steve. You watch as Steve reunites with the colony, builds a nest (and defends his nest from rock-stealing neighbors), finds a lady penguin, raises chicks, and encounters orcas and leopard seals. Throughout the film, the narrator switches back and forth from describing the action in a very factual way, to giving Steve’s inner monologue, which is absolutely hilarious. “So peaceful,” Steve muses as deadly orcas surface right behind him. “I could build a tree fort!” he considers excitedly, contemplating parenthood. I won’t say more, because I don’t want to ruin it. Just this – go watch it!

Asking. What are you reading this week?

Mornin’ friends. How goes your Monday so far? I know, it’s just getting started. We had a low-key weekend; it was nice. On Saturday, Steve thought it would be fun to do a hiking double-header of sorts. We drove out to Rust Nature Preserve for the first hike; it got off to an auspicious start when we saw a gorgeous fox out the car windows as we drove in. We had a lovely stroll through the nature preserve and ate a picnic lunch when we finished – the perks of living in Virginia; sitting down for an outdoor lunch (with parkas on, of course) is doable even in early March. And then we headed off to Beaverdam Reservoir for our second hike of the day… which was immediately scuttled when Nugget jumped off a boulder into a large puddle (despite being repeatedly warned off of said puddle) and got himself soaked from the waist down. We headed home and made up for it with a walk through the neighborhood park after we’d gotten him into dry clothes, but – sheesh. This is why I can’t have nice things.

Sunday was an even quieter day. We hit the trails again in the morning – just our local favorite, Riverbend Park – and then headed home to feed the kiddos lunch and have a FaceTime date with Grandma. After FaceTime I got the kids out of Steve’s hair for a few hours, taking them off to the playground. They ran around and played “escape artists” with a gaggle of other kids, and I sat on a bench in the sunlight and read my book. Headed home at 5:00 and slapped a quick breakfast-for-dinner on the table, then ended the weekend with a book, a candle, and an early bedtime. Not too shabby.

Reading. It’s been a good reading week! I spent most of last week completely engrossed in Vere Hodgson’s Blitz diary, Few Eggs and No Oranges. Totally fascinating and absorbing. Finished it up on Thursday (or Friday? can’t recall) and picked up Black Narcissus, a vaguely unsettling, atmospheric story of a convent of nuns that sets up shop in a mountaintop palace. It was both gorgeously written and quite eerie – and a good read for this time of year, since so much of the action takes place during Lent and around Easter. I finished it up on Sunday evening and immediately turned to The House of Mirth, which I’ve been meaning to read for so long. I love Edith Wharton and have been saving this one – but I have in my head that I might finally make it to The Mount, Wharton’s estate in Lenox, Massachusetts, this summer when I visit my parents, and I absolutely have to have read The House of Mirth before I do. I’m loving it so far, but it’s too soon to tell whether it will supplant The Age of Innocence as my favorite Wharton.

Watching. Well, we had a moment of parental indecision about what to watch for “family TV time” this week, and Nugget stepped into the breach and insisted on Alaska’s Grizzly Gauntlet on Disney+ NatGeo. It’s a beautifully shot show, and I am soaking in all the gorgeous footage of scenery and wildlife in Alaska, although I could do with less animal scat and half-eaten salmon. We have half an episode left and then the little dude will probably capitalize on the fact that it’s his birthday week to insist that we start over and watch the entire show again. Other than that – I did sneak in a few episodes of Miranda Mills’ BookTube – even on the “big TV” on Sunday morning when no one else was using it. (I wasn’t really in the mood for television at the time, but it’s so rare that I get the remote that I felt I had to take advantage of the opportunity.)

Listening. More podcasts this week, mostly The Mom Hour. Highlight of the week was the validating episode on getting through the rest of the school year – encouraging listeners not to worry about kids falling behind academically this year, host Sarah reassures: if your kids have food to eat, a safe place to sleep, and the security of love, you’re doing just fine.

Making. Ummmm… not sure I made anything last week, except for the standard work product. I guess – the beginnings of some plans? Steve and I started some very preliminary conversations about traveling to Europe with the kids, but that’s a few years away. 2023 is looking good? Hopefully COVID will be over, and the kids will be able to use booster seats in the car – making rentals easier. We have a big international trip, sans kiddos, coming up before then… but planning and dreaming is always fun.

Moving. It was a big week for foot traffic. Looking for sunshine and fresh air, I logged multiple runs and neighborhood walks, and the standard two hikes over the weekend. I need to get back in the habit of strength training regularly, so maybe that’s for this week.

Blogging. Just some silliness for you this week. More “tales from the exurbs” on Wednesday, and an update on library shenanigans on Friday. Check in with me then!

Loving. So, I told you I would report back on the hand cream I ordered from Beautycounter (it’s this one). Update: I love it. It’s as light and smooth – but effective – as the gift set I received from my friend Samantha, and the bright citrusy scent is delicious. At $30 it’s a little spendy, but the bottle is huge (for hand cream) so I’m expecting it to last a long time. It’s definitely helping with my scaly late-winter skin, and it doesn’t burn either. Go get you some.

Asking. What are you reading this week?

Hello new week, and hello new MONTH! March used to be my least favorite month of the year – just a lot of mud, slush, and grim weather. But since 2015, March has been all about my sweet little guy and the joy and fun he brings to the family: happy birthday month, Nugget! He’s had a birthday countdown going since January and he’s very excited to be down to the final inning. My feelings are a little more mixed. How is he turning six already?

Anyway – it was a good, if not particularly restful, weekend. On Saturday, we were hoping to have a playdate with my law school friend, Carly, and her two munchkins. We’d tried to get together a few weeks ago, but the weather (ice storms) prevented. The forecast for this weekend was almost as bad, calling for rain, rain, and more rain. But mid-Saturday morning, Carly texted and said it had stopped raining near her and was supposed to stay dry, if cold and gloomy, for the rest of the day. Did I want to get together? I did. Carly and her kiddos drove out to my neck of the woods this time – her husband stayed home to supervise some renovations – and we passed a lovely afternoon first in my backyard, while the kids played, and then on a nearby playground. By around 3:00 even the clouds had burned off, and there were blue skies and warm sunshine, a welcome surprise. The kids ran around the playground while Carly and I chatted as hard as we could through our masks.

If Saturday was mostly given over to fun, Sunday was for productivity. The house had gotten pretty gross (#keepingitreal) between muddy boots, breakfast Cheerio casualties, scraps of art projects and just the detritus of four people living here 24-7. While the rest of the family was content with it, I couldn’t stand it anymore – the mess was stressing me out. I spent three hours cleaning like a maniac: folding and putting away multiple loads of laundry; sweeping and mopping the entire ground floor; deep-cleaning the kitchen and all three bathrooms. I was done by 2:00 p.m. and had the afternoon to relax in a (mostly) clean house. There really is nothing like that feeling, is there? The rest of the afternoon – quiet. I roasted a chicken and two sheet pans of veggies for dinner (+ leftovers), read Betsy and Tacy Go Over the Big Hill to Peanut, and sipped a Dogfish Head Namaste witbier. Finished the weekend curled up with my book; a good way to go into another hectic week.

Reading. Well! Some reading, all right. I closed out February with a banner week in books. The Woods in Winter, which I really enjoyed, occupied the beginning part of the week, followed by three more in quick succession – The Gardener’s Year, a slim but charming book; Terms and Conditions, which has been languishing on my TBR for far too long; and the very funny Pigeon Pie. I finished the weekend with Few Eggs and No Oranges, a World War II Blitz diary I’ve long been wanting to pick up. So far, it’s really wonderful.

Watching. I got the remote on Saturday, and thought it would be fun to watch The Durrells in Corfu, which I’ve been wanting to see. I figured the kids would enjoy Gerry and his menagerie. They did, but the older siblings made the show Not Appropriate For Children, and I had to turn it off – blah. Hopefully Steve and I can watch it together, but what with The Right Stuff, The Crown, and others that we are running behind on watching, it might be awhile. Other than my abandoned attempt to watch The Durrells, it was the usual Rick Steves all week. Can’t complain, although travel shows are not helping my extreme wanderlust.

Listening. I was on a bookish podcast bender and blew through several back episodes of Shedunnit this week, plus a Q&A episode of The Mother Runner Podcast while running (of course), a recent Sorta Awesome on morning routines for the Myers-Briggs types (fun, but not surprising – as an INFP, I like a slow morning with a book, big shock) and a couple of The Mom Hour episodes. The usual suspects.

Moving. Cleaning is my cardio! Or it felt that way this weekend. There was some running and some walking this week as well, but not enough strength training.

Making. A clean house (are you tired of reading about my clean house yet?) and a Sunday roast chicken, and I am feeling very pleasantly domestic about it.

Blogging. Recaps, recaps, get your recaps here! February’s reading round-up on Wednesday and outdoor report on Friday.

Loving. On a whim, I ordered this initial mug from Anthropologie, and I have been drinking my morning tea out of it all week. I know what you’re going to say: don’t you have enough tea mugs? (One can never have enough tea mugs.) My response to that is: (1) I have wanted an initial mug for years, but have always hated the design on every “J” mug I came across, until this one, finally, and (2) okay, fine, I don’t really need more mugs, but it’s a pandemic and this inexpensive little luxury is bringing me some joy right now, which I need. We all need.

Asking. What are you reading this week?

I have a question for you guys: how do you fend off the dreaded Sunday Scaries? I mean that creeping sense of dread that the week is coming and there’s nothing you can do about it. It starts for me at around noon on Sunday. It’s definitely more intense when I have a task I am dreading, or a difficult person that I know I’m going to have to deal with at some point in the upcoming five days (thankfully, the difficult people are not my co-workers, who are wonderful!). And it can really eat up an afternoon. Know what I mean? Anyway. Sunday Scaries aside, we did have a relaxing weekend. It was Peanut’s half birthday, so we let her decide where we were hiking, and all she wanted to do was visit the park right in our neighborhood – nice and easy. It ended up that both Saturday and Sunday followed the same pattern: wake up slowly, straggle out the door to the neighborhood park, come home and be productive for a few hours, crash with book. On Saturday, the afternoon productivity took the form of a massive clean-out and organizing of Nugget’s bedroom, and a work call at the same time. On Sunday, I tornadoed through the ground floor, cleaned Nugget’s school station and my work area, did dishes, swept, ordered some new cleaning supplies (we were running low) and took Nugget out to the garden center for more birdseed. That was the big fun of the weekend; randomly, I had never brought him before – I usually just run in, pick up the birdseed I need, and rush on home – and every time I go I think about how much he would love it there. In addition to a bunch of stuff he likes (birdseed, bird feeders, gardening supplies) they have a little farm out front with pigs, chickens, bunnies, and goats. Dude went nuts – even stuck his finger in and petted the rooster before I realized what he was about – and I’m so glad I finally got around to bringing him.

And now, another week begins. Wish me luck…

Reading. So! Some reading week. I spent most of it with Moby-Dick. Full review coming on Friday, but, spoiler ahoy – not my cup of tea. Pages and pages and pages of how-to manual on whaling, interspersed with gory cetacean murder scenes… just not for me. The weekend was more promising. First of all, on Friday morning – prior to turning grimly back to Moby-Dick – Peanut and I finished our read-aloud of Betsy-Tacy and Tib. I don’t mention it every week, but we generally always have a book on the go, and if it’s a classic I’ll include it in my “read” totals for the year, because it’s just as much for me as it is for her. The rest of the weekend was devoted to pure fun. On Friday night, after finishing Moby-Dick, I turned to my library (!!!) book, That Can Be Arranged: A Muslim Love Story. I’ll write more about it next week, but for now: when a graphic novel memoir opens by paraphrasing Jane Austen, you just know it’s going to be wonderful. It was a quick read, and I finished it by 9:00 on Saturday morning – off to the races. Most of the rest of my weekend reading time was devoted to A Winter Away, from the Furrowed Middlebrow collection for Dean Street Press, which I LOVED. No predictions now, but I wouldn’t be surprised if that one ends up on my top-ten list for the year. And finally, ended Sunday curled up with another Furrowed Middlebrow book – The Woods in Winter, by Stella Gibbons (yes, she of Cold Comfort Farm fame). Can you tell I’m on a winter books jag right now?

Watching. A little of this and a little of that – some Rick Steves, some Rock the Park, but the most exciting thing is: I introduced the kids (and poor Steve) to the 1996 Matilda movie. The kids love it and have insisted on watching it twice as a family this week. Steve is barely tolerating it. I am jubilant. I bought Peanut the book for a small half-birthday present, and she is devouring it, Matilda-like.

Listening. Still binging those bookish podcasts, yo. I finished my stash of back episodes of Tea or Books and The Slightly Foxed Podcast, and a few episodes of Shedunnit, just for good measure. (Where am I finding time to listen to all of these podcasts? I have no idea. I listen when I drive to the grocery story and when I do dishes, but that’s it?) As of blog post press time, I am midway through an episode of Shedunnit on vacation-themed murder mysteries – so good.

Making. A clean, tidy and organized little boy’s room – that’s my big achievement for the week. I spent Saturday afternoon putting together a closet organizer and then filling it up with Nugget’s toys. He loves his clean room, and being able to find his stuff. We’re working on paring down the toys to what both kids actually enjoy playing with; Nugget in particular seems to be much happier when he’s not surrounded by clutter.

Moving. Boring week to report. A couple of Peloton workouts, some walks, and maybe one run? I can’t even remember.

Blogging. Bookish week for ya! On Wednesday, I have February’s Themed Reads, and on Friday, that review of Moby-Dick. I am sorry to tell you, the gif website failed me this time, so it won’t be a very funny post. I would say there’s a cookie in it for you if you make it through the whole review, but hell, I had to read the whole book.

Loving. This one is kind of bittersweet. So, before I left my last job, my work wife Samantha gave me a gift set of three Beautycounter hand lotions. All three smell fabulous; all three are almost empty. They’ve literally been saving my life – or more specifically, my hands – in this winter season. I am prone to dry skin in general, especially on my hands and especially when I am stressed out. This busy pandemic winter has been a recipe for disastrously scaly skin; it’s actually painful. These days I am never without one of the Beautycounter hand lotions from my dear Sam; they’re the best hand creams I have ever used. (I am a big Beautycounter fan in general.) Sadly, it seems Beautycounter no longer carries them – maybe they’re a holiday thing? – but I have a big jar of their citrus mimosa hand cream on its way to me. I will report back.

Asking. What are you reading this week?

We all knew this was going to happen, didn’t we? I mean, real talk. I got a library card in my new system. It was a total accident, I swear!

As I mentioned in this post, I have been sans library card for months now and, to be honest… kind of loving it. At the beginning of the pandemic, I had a stack of books checked out from the Alexandria library. I read through those, but figuring out the vagaries of curbside library pickup just felt too overwhelming with all of the other adjustments I was working through at the time – transitioning to working from home all the time, juggling a full-time job with homeschooling, searching for a new place to live after our lease expired. So I just didn’t deal with it. I read and returned the books I had checked out at the time, and then I read from my own shelves. Once I pushed through a pandemic-induced reading slump, I found myself really enjoying my own books. It turns out most of my book-purchasing decisions have been good decisions.

Then we moved from Alexandria to the exurbs – new county, new library system. And I decided to hold off – not forever, just temporarily – on getting a library card in the new system. Partly, that was due to a reluctance to go into any public buildings if I didn’t absolutely have to; partly, it was due to still really enjoying reading from my own shelves. So I set up my bookshelves and a cozy reading nook in the living room, and I kept on making my way through my own collection. I figured I’d probably get a library card in 2022, maybe?

It’s been a nice routine. Tuck kids into bed, light candle, toddle to bookshelf and choose whatever speaks to me, flop down on couch. Lather, rinse, repeat. I guess all good things have to come to an end?

Here’s what happened: I was killing time by scrolling through book recommendation lists online (tell me you do that, too), and I wanted to make note of some books to borrow when I did eventually pick up a library card in the exurbs. I like to keep my Goodreads to-read list limited to books I really want to get to sooner than later. And a lot of the books I wanted to get to, I didn’t necessarily want to buy. So I navigated over to the online catalog in my new county’s library system, just to look, y’all, I swear. And – oh, you can create custom lists and add books. What would be the harm of opening an online account? I can just use it as a running list of books to borrow when I do eventually get a library card. I opened an online account – which doesn’t get me a card; I would have to stop by the library for that, and the libraries are all closed, so I thought I was safe – and started adding books to my new online TBR. What fun!

I’m sure you can guess what happened next. I was doing really well, cruising through the catalog, adding books to the TBR list when… muscle memory kicked in, and instead of “Add to List” I accidentally clicked “Place Hold” for That Can Be Arranged: A Muslim Love Story. I really did want to borrow that one, and it probably would’ve been one of the first up when I got my card, but – I didn’t mean to reserve a copy. So I quickly clicked “cancel” and added the book to my library TBR instead. But I guess I messed that up, too, because a few days later I got a text message and an email. My hold was ready! Ummmmm…

I guess that’s that, then. I called the library and verified that I could get my permanent card at the same time I picked up the hold, and I drove over to the curbside pickup, snagged my book and my card, and I’m now a card-carrying (see what I did there?) member of my new library system. It really was only a matter of time.

HOWEVER. I still plan to do most of my reading from my own shelves for the foreseeable future. Somehow, I am going to resist the siren call of the library holds queue. I MEAN IT THIS TIME. There are so many books on my shelves that I am really eager to read, and I’m going to create some self-imposed rules (like, maybe only one book on hold/checked out at a time? if I can stick to that?) to keep to reading my own books as much as possible, at least for awhile. I’m just having too much fun with my shelves – but I know myself, it’s so hard to resist the siren call of the library. I swear I’m going to try though, and I want you guys to hold me accountable.

Have you ever accidentally gotten a library card? Maybe don’t answer that.

Happy new week and happy day after Valentine’s Day to you, friends! I hope that you all had lovely weekends. Recently a friend of mine shared a meme on Facebook that lamented, in effect, that weekends are starting to feel more and more like thirty-minute lunch breaks. I feel that so hard. This was a relaxing weekend, even if it did go too fast as they all do. It was the rare weekend in which we didn’t hike or really go outside at all. We were expecting ice, and ice we received. I nipped out to pick up a grocery order on Saturday morning and saw multiple car accidents on my way to and from Wegmans – yikes. (The other drivers on the road may not have appreciated my slow speed, but I made it to Wegmans and back without a skid, so who’s laughing now?)

We spent the rest of the weekend hunkered down indoors – not even a walk outside; our hilly neighborhood is a skating rink right now. We’d had plans to get together for an outdoor, socially distanced playdate with my friend Carly and her munchkins, but ended up postponing – I wasn’t in the mood to drive into D.C. and she wasn’t in the mood to drive to the exurbs, and no one was in the mood for the playground in the freezing rain. Hopefully in a few weekends. The rest of the weekend, we all just kicked around the house. I finally rolled up my sleeves and organized the family/overflow bookshelves, which was long overdue. And that’s about it. Sunday Scaries hit hard, but I did get some good relaxation time in.

Reading. Whew! Some reading week, indeed. I have been really good about setting my phone down, and not doomscrolling, in the evenings – and this is the result. I finished up Winter: An Anthology for the Changing Seasons on Monday, and then whipped through Crossed Skis: An Alpine Mystery, which was one of my Christmas presents from Steve. Loved it – totally engrossing, and the scene-setting was fabulous. Next I wanted to get to an anti-racism book that has been on my list for ages now; I’ll say more in my monthly reading recap, but Me and White Supremacy was okay but not as informative as I was really looking for. Switched back to classics with some relief – The Diary of a Nobody over a few days (so funny!) and then spent the weekend over Moby-Dick. No ideas as to what’s next; I’m only about halfway through Moby-Dick as of this post going live, so I have a few days before I’ll need to consider what’s on deck.

Watching. This and that, and more of this and that. I spent part of Sunday catching up on some of the newer content on Miranda Mills’ BookTube channel that I hadn’t already watched – always a delight. We also watched a few episodes of Giada Entertains, as the kids are still on a major Food Network jag and I am loving that. And finally, I got the remote for family movie night on Saturday, and drunk on my own power, I subjected everyone to my favorite movie of all time, Bringing Up Baby. Steve and I cackled throughout; the kids laughed a lot, but I’m not sure how many of the jokes they got. They liked the leopard, though.

Listening. Just podcasts this week – mostly bookish ones. Several back episodes of Tea or Books? – a consistent winner.

Making. The usual – dinners, mostly, and work product, and more dinners and more work product. But also, some house progress! I’m almost done with moving-related organizing tasks at this point (only eight months after moving, which seems embarrassingly slow, but I never really got organized in our last house and we lived there four years). This weekend, as noted above, I finally found time to organize the family/overflow bookshelves; they were in a sorry state but they’re looking much better now, and more important, there’s space for me to buy more books, hurray! That’s the last real unpacking sort of task although I would like to get the playroom closets organized and tackle the chaos in the kids’ rooms. All in good time.

Moving. It wasn’t the best week for movement. Other than a 5K on the treadmill on Sunday, I didn’t do much – especially toward the end of the week, my work days were quite full and it was hard to carve out time for a workout. I know, I know. I’m feeling the lack of movement and fresh air.

Blogging. Bookish week ahead! On Wednesday, I have a Classics Club review of Song of Solomon, which (spoiler alert!) I loved. And on Friday, I had a little bookish accident and I’m telling you all about it. Check in with me then!

Loving. As I approach the close of my umpteenth (seriously, I’ve lost count) Whole30, I have been treating myself to overflowing berry bowls almost every day. It is a treat – berries in the dead of winter aren’t cheap, but I’ve had good luck in getting some really juicy and delicious ones, at least. I drizzle coconut milk or coconut cream (depending on how decadent I am feeling) over the berries, and it’s delightful and wonderful. Often, I avoid eating berries because I want to leave them for the kids. And then the kids end up chowing down on pretzels and ignoring the fruit, and it goes bad – sad, sad story. No more of that! Give me ALL the fruit.

Asking. What are you reading this week?