April 2023 Wrap-up

April TBR Pile (16/27):

Bookworms BC: The Library of the Unwritten by AJ Hackwith
Friend BC: Crossings by Alex Landragin ✓
Nerdy Bookish Friends BC: The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal ✓
Currently Reading Bookish Friends BC: TBD
Kid Read Aloud: Midsummer’s Mayhem by Rajani LaRocca ✓
Kid Read Aloud: The Greatest Gift by Kallie George ✓
Kid Book Club: The Strangers by Margaret Peterson Haddix ✓
Kid Book Club: The Last Shadow Warrior by Sam Subity
Fantasy: The Other Half of the Grave by Jeaniene Frost
Fantasy: Destined for an Early Grave by Jeaniene Frost ✓
Fantasy: King of Battle and Blood by Scarlett St. Clair
Fantasy: The Night Ship by Jess Kidd ✓
Fantasy: The Crane Husband by Kelly Barnhill ✓
Fantasy: First Drop of Crimson by Jeaniene Frost ✓
Comics: The Many Deaths of Laila Starr by Ram V and Filipe Andrade
Romance: Radiant Sin by Katee Robert ✓
Romance: The Siren of Sussex by Mimi Matthews
Romance: The Dark King by Gina L. Maxwell ✓
Romance: A Touch of Darkness by Scarlett St. Clair ✓
Romance: A Restless Truth by Freya Marske
Romance: The Vampire Villain by Melody Ryan ✓
Romance: Part of Your World by Abby Jimenez ✓
Scifi: Waking Gods by Sylvain Neuvel
Nonfiction: The Emperor of All Maladies by Siddhartha Mukerjee
Nonfiction: The Angel Makers by Patricia Nell McCracken
Nonfiction: Come as Your Are by Emily Nagoski ✓
Horror: The Hollow Places by T. Kingfisher ✓

1,000,000 Page Goal:

Monthly Total: 5506 pages
Pages Remaining: 331,917 pages

Current Read - The Siren of Sussex by Mimi Matthews; A Year in the Woods by Torbjørn Ekelund

Books I Gave Up On (0)

Books Bought/Received (0)

UnRead Shelf Progress

Starting Number: 338
Books Read: 4
Books Acquired: 0
Books Unshelved: 0
Finishing Number: 334

May TBR Pile: In general, I’m throwing out my TBR plan for May and just going with my mood. I’m only going to list my book club books that I need to read and the kids read alouds.

Bookworms BC: The Library of the Unwritten by AJ Hackwith
Friend BC: The Keeper of Lost Things by Ruth Hogan
Nerdy Bookish Friends BC: I, Robot by Isaac Asimov
Kid Read Aloud: Audrey of the Outback by Christine Harris
Kid Book Club: The Last Shadow Warrior by Sam Subity

Movies Watched

65 - Silly, but fun action film.
The Toll - We do love our quirky black comedies. This one is from Wales.
The Portable Door - Delightful fantasy movie. I loved it.
Ghosted - Decent romcom, but nothing too special.
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania - Very uneven and nonstop action. There were no scenes to really breathe. Not my favorite.

TV Shows Watched

The Misfits S2-3
The Big Door Prize S1
Ted Lasso S3
The Mandolorian S3
Last Week Tonight
The Toys that Built America

Comments -

Next up on the TBR pile:

Crossings by Alex Landragin

Title: Crossings

Author: Alex Landragin

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press 2020

Genre: Historical Fiction, Fantasy

Pages: 384

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Unread Shelf

On the brink of the Nazi occupation of Paris, a German-Jewish bookbinder stumbles across a manuscript called Crossings. It has three narratives, each as unlikely as the next. And the narratives can be read one of two ways: either straight through or according to an alternate chapter sequence.

The first story in Crossings is a never-before-seen ghost story by the poet Charles Baudelaire, penned for an illiterate girl. Next is a noir romance about an exiled man, modeled on Walter Benjamin, whose recurring nightmares are cured when he falls in love with a storyteller who draws him into a dangerous intrigue of rare manuscripts, police corruption, and literary societies. Finally, there are the fantastical memoirs of a woman-turned-monarch whose singular life has spanned seven generations.

With each new chapter, the stunning connections between these seemingly disparate people grow clearer and more extraordinary. Crossings is an unforgettable adventure full of love, longing and empathy.

An interesting premise and attempt at an interesting construction and yet this one ultimately fell very flat for me. I was hoping for another Cloud Cuckoo Land, a story that discussed the the ways in which humans create connections. Unfortunately, I never quite connected with any of the characters or found them remotely interesting. Every single character was incredibly unlikeable and definitely unreliable. I just couldn’t. And when we get to the larger story, I just couldn’t really care to care. I even tried reading it along the Baroness sequence after getting about 40% of the way through the regular way. I agree that the Baroness sequence makes a better flowing story, but I still didn’t really love the story at all. So another book that I was very excited about that just fell super flat for me.

Next up on the TBR pile:

First Drop of Crimson by Jeaniene Frost

Title: First Drop of Crimson (Night Huntress World #1)

Author: Jeaniene Frost

Publisher: Avon 2010

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Pages: 371

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Unread Shelf, Finishing the Series

Spice Meter: 5 (albeit with a vampire)

The night is not safe for mortals. Denise MacGregor knows all too well what lurks in the shadows—her best friend is half-vampire Cat Crawfield—and she has already lost more than the average human could bear. But her family's past is wrapped in secrets and shrouded in darkness—and a demon shapeshifter has marked Denise as prey. Now her survival depends on an immortal who lusts for a taste of her.

He is Spade, a powerful, mysterious vampire who has walked the earth for centuries and is now duty-bound to protect this endangered, alluring human—even if it means destroying his own kind. Denise may arouse his deepest hungers, but Spade knows he must fight his urge to have her as they face the nightmare together . . .

Because once the first crimson drop falls, they will both be lost.

A spin-off book featuring my favorite vampire, Spade. Seriously, I like him so much more than Bones (although I still love Bones). Spade is my kind of leading man. A little less quippy, but still smoldering. We finally get Spade’s story in his forced proximity story with Denise. Now Denise was not my favorite and really still isn’t my favorite. But I hung on due to the fun demon branding storyline. Plus we get to meet some other interesting vampires and our favorites make appearances. (Especially Ian’s appearance. Hello Ian!) Overall, I read this one just about one day due to a pain flare and it was just what I needed. Something fun and fast-paced to help distract from my pain. Enjoyable addition to the Night Huntress Universe.

Night Huntress World:

#1 First Drop of Crimson
#2 Eternal Kiss of Darkness

Next up on the TBR pile:

Odds and Ends

Here's my randomness for the week:

Yesterday my entire body hurt. Scar tissues was very angry and radiated pain throughout my body. No fun at all.
Being in bed half the day meant that I did read almost 2/3 of my current novel.
Today I have to get back it with coop and errands. Still not feeling 100%, but need to push through.
A little over a month to the bookish retreat. And I really need the break! I’m anticipating it so much.

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Crane Husband by Kelly Barnhill

Title: The Crane Husband

Author: Kelly Barnhill

Publisher: Tordotcom 2023

Genre: Fantasy

Pages: 120

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Spring TBR; 52 Book Club - Book starts with “the”

“Mothers fly away like migrating birds. This is why farmers have daughters.”

A fifteen-year-old teenager is the backbone of her small Midwestern family, budgeting the household finances and raising her younger brother while her mom, a talented artist, weaves beautiful tapestries. For six years, it’s been just the three of them—her mom has brought home guests at times, but none have ever stayed.

Yet when her mom brings home a six-foot tall crane with a menacing air, the girl is powerless to prevent her mom letting the intruder into her heart, and her children’s lives. Utterly enchanted and numb to his sharp edges, her mom abandons the world around her to weave the masterpiece the crane demands.

I randomly picked this one up from the New Releases shelf at the library. And I was so glad that I did. This is a very strange slim novella based on a reimagining of a classic folklore story. Right away we are dropped into a world that seems just like our own except that our narrator’s mother has brought home a crane to be their new Father. Very strange indeed. Over the next 100 pages, we slowly have to come to terms with the fact that there’s a crane/man living in the house disrupting the usual goings on in the family. Ultimately this a very sad story of a broken family.

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Next up on the TBR pile:

The Hollow Places by T. Kingfisher

Title: The Hollow Places

Author: T. Kingfisher

Publisher: Gallery / Saga 2020

Genre: Horro

Pages: 341

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: 52 Books - Sends You Down a Rabbit Hole

Pray they are hungry.

Kara finds the words in the mysterious bunker that she’s discovered behind a hole in the wall of her uncle’s house. Freshly divorced and living back at home, Kara now becomes obsessed with these cryptic words and starts exploring this peculiar area—only to discover that it holds portals to countless alternate realities. But these places are haunted by creatures that seem to hear thoughts…and the more one fears them, the stronger they become.

A deliciously creepy and strange horror novel was just what I needed this week. Right away, we get a great description for the Museum of Oddities that really sets the stage for the story. And then Kara finds a hole and things get very strange. I was seriously having some weird dreams while reading this book. Definitely a sign that I’m really enjoying the book and it’s very scary. I can still picture Kara and Simon’s encounter with Sturdivant. So very very creepy! This book gave me all the Annihilation vibes that I was looking for. And now I want to read everything Kingfisher has every written. I’m craving all the horror.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Music Monday - Demi Lovato "Still Alive"

Another banger from the Scream VI soundtrack. Love the cameos from Spencer and Mike.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Life Right Now #14

On my bedside table: The Crane Husband by Kelly Barnhill; Crossings by Alex Landrigan

On my tv this week: We’ve watched a few movies lately (Ant-Man, Ghosted, The Portable Door) while also continuing our currently airing shows and back episodes of Misfits.

Listening to: All the podcasts! I’m finishing S3 of the Revolutions podcast about the French Revolution. I might move on to S4 about the Haitian Revolution or switch back over to 99PI. Slowly working through all these back episodes of podcasts that I really enjoy.

On the menu for this week:

Monday - White Chicken Chili
Tuesday - Tobe Out for Book Club
Wednesday - Grilled Cheese Night
Thursday - Breakfast for Dinner
Friday - Spicy Black Bean Stuffed Sweet Potatoes
Saturday - Fish Chowder
Sunday - Leftovers

On my to do list: So many things, but focusing on working through my miscellaneous notes on my phone. So many random phrases all jumbled up together. I’m working to get them all organized and deleted.

Happening this week:

Monday - Kids’ Dentist Appointments
Tuesday - Arbor Day Farm Field Trip; Book Club
Wednesday - Science Class
Thursday - Coop
Friday - Platte River State Park Hike
Saturday - Home Day
Sunday - Home Day

What I am creating: Mostly I’m just working on organizing and clean various areas in the house. I’m apparently on a big cleanout kick. Hopefully I can get my office clean enough to work on my Memory Planner.

My simple pleasures: Lactose free ice cream - it has gotten so much better over the last few years. I can enjoy ice cream again without being in pain later. Very exciting for me!

Looking around the house: I finally sorted and cleaned the playroom and the Baker’s Rack full of homeschool crap. Wow! I feel so much better. We threw away random broken things and scraps and I have a whole pile of things to give away/sell. Removing the Baker’s Rack has really opened up on the breakfast nook. Replacing that with two rolling carts for homeschool stuff was the right choice.

From the camera: My current read for this weekend. Very very creepy. Just my type of horror.

Come as You Are by Emily Nagoski

Title: Come as You Are: The Surprising New Science That Will Transform Your Sex Life

Author: Emily Nagoski

Publisher: Simon & Schuster 2015

Genre: Nonfiction - Health

Pages: 400

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Spring TBR

For much of the 20th and 21st centuries, women’s sexuality was an uncharted territory in science, studied far less frequently—and far less seriously—than its male counterpart.

That is, until Emily Nagoski’s Come As You Are, which used groundbreaking science and research to prove that the most important factor in creating and sustaining a sex life filled with confidence and joy is not what the parts are or how they’re organized but how you feel about them. In the years since the book’s initial publication, countless women have learned through Nagoski’s accessible and informative guide that things like stress, mood, trust, and body image are not peripheral factors in a woman’s sexual wellbeing; they are central to it—and that even if you don’t always feel like it, you are already sexually whole by just being yourself. This revised and updated edition continues that mission with new information and advanced research, demystifying and decoding the science of sex so that everyone can create a better sex life and discover more pleasure than you ever thought possible.

Must read! Am absolute must read for all women. Nagasaki uses a conversational tone to teach us everything we need to know about sexual health. Each chapter tackles a topic or a myth and reframes health. We get a wholistic approach instead of just a focus on physical health. I learned so much after reading the book. I cannot wait to put some of the ideas I learned into practice. I definitely need to buy my own copy and probably a few more copies to give away to friends.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Destined for an Early Grave by Jeaniene Frost

Title: Destined for an Early Grave (Night Huntress #4)

Author: Jeaniene Frost

Publisher: Avon 2009

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Pages: 355

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Unread Shelf; Finishing the Series

Spice Meter: 5 (albeit one with a vampire)
Her deadly dreams leave her in grave danger

Since half-vampire Cat Crawfield and her undead lover Bones met six years ago, they've fought against the rogue undead, battled a vengeful Master vampire, and pledged their devotion with a blood bond. Now it's time for a vacation. But their hopes for a perfect Paris holiday are dashed when Cat awakes one night in terror. She's having visions of a vampire named Gregor who's more powerful than Bones and has ties to her past that even Cat herself didn't know about.

Gregor believes Cat is his and he won't stop until he has her. As the battle begins between the vamp who haunts her nightmares and the one who holds her heart, only Cat can break Gregor's hold over her. She'll need all the power she can summon in order to bring down the baddest bloodsucker she's ever faced . . . even if getting that power will result in an early grave.

Another volume in this series, but this one just didn’t land for me at all. Right away, we get an intriguing plot involving a potential previous claim on Cat by another vampire. I wanted to fall into the adventure and story. Unfortunately, I really disliked the storyline about Cat and Bones’s relationship. It felt just so incredibly off from the previous works. I was in a constant state of stress the entire book. I hated all the fighting between the two of them. I just wanted to see those two reconnect and move to the next phase of their lives. The saving aspects of the book were really the side characters. Vlad and Spade were the best. They really kept the book from getting 2 stars from me.

Night Huntress:

#0.5 Reckoning
#1 Halfway to the Grave
#1.2 The Other Half of the Grave
#1.5 Happily Never After
#2 One Foot in the Grave
#3 At Grave’s End
#3.5 Devil to Pay
#4 Destined for an Early Grave
#4.5 One for the Money
#5 This Side of the Grave
#6 One Grave at a Time
#6.5 Home for the Holidays
#7 Up from the Grave
#7.5 Outtakes from the Grave
#7.6 A Grave Girls’ Getaway
#8 Both Feet in the Grave

Next up on the TBR pile:

Spring Bucket List Update #1

Another season, another bucket list. Our main goal is to get out in nature weekly.

Read 45 Books (20/45)
Movie Month - We scrapped this one for now.
Go on 12 Hikes (5/12)
Have an Indoor Picnic
Check Off 50 Hours Outside - We’re getting there…
Visit the Zoo 3 Times
Monthly Bingo/Trivia Nights (1/3)
Use the GetOut Pass 3 Times
Make Homemade Cinnamon Rolls
Make a New Dessert
Have an Ice Cream Sundae Night
Two Lincoln Excursion Days
Three State Park Visits
Day trip to Des Moines
Plan out curriculum for next year - Working on this
Plan an Indiana trip for summer complete with mini trip - Working on this

Next Up on the TBR Pile:

Currently #7

Reading: Tackling The Library of the Unwritten by AJ Hackwith for next month’s book club selection. It’s an interesting fantasy novel, but I’ve been moving slowly through it. I’ve been very distracted when it comes to my reading this week.

Watching: After finally starting Misfits, we’re now in season three. It’s just so good!

Listening: Still working my way through Revolutions S3 podcast. The topic is the French Revolution and we’re coming to the end, but not quite there yet.

Making: Definitely need to make a batch of gazpacho for this week’s lunches. Sounded better last week with temps in the 80s. The weather has turned, but I’m still going to make it.

Feeling: After a busy weekend of stuff and tasks, I’m feeling much more relaxed.

Planning: Right now, I’m working on planning two summer trips. The boys and I are going to travel west to the Grand Island-Kearney area for a few days before my reading retreat. In July, we are going to Indiana to visit family and afterward, we’re going to drive over to Dayton to see some museums and zoos.

Loving: I made chocolate chip cookies last night and forgot just how much I love them. Warm and gooey cookies are just the best.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Homeschool W29: So Much Outside Time!

What We Studied

On the schoolwork front, we had a normal week. Outside of the table work, we spent a lot of time outside. It was great to take advantage of the great weather especially as this week’s forecast is calling for a ton of wind, rain, and lower temps.

Literature and Poetry

Instead of starting the next coop book club selection, J continued reading the Bromeliad trilogy to the boys.

We finished Midsummer’s Mayhem and it was utterly delightful. We loved how it puts a new spin on the classic Shakespeare story.

Nat Geo Book of Nature Poetry
Poetry for Young People: Emily Dickinson
On the Wings of Words: The Extraordinary Life of Emily Dickinson by Jennifer Berne
Midsummer’s Mayhem by Rajani LaRocca

Quentin focused on reading animal stories from around the world. I’m trying to line them up with our continents as we move across the world. We finished the second book in the Heartwood Hotel series. I imagine that we will read the third book soon.

Nat Geo Book of Animal Poetry
Heartwood Hotel: The Greatest Gift by Kallie George
A World Full of Animal Stories by Angela McAllister
Around the World in 80 Days by Saviour Pirotta

Math

For both boys, we have scheduled math for three days a week. One day is focused on logic, games, puzzles, and special projects. The two other days are focused on covering the main math curriculum (Singapore 4A and 4B for Arthur and Singapore 1A and 1B for Quentin). We continued our financial literacy unit. Quentin has very small lessons. Arthur is going more in depth. I had him quickly work through the Financial Literacy books for grade 1 and 2. We didn’t do the big activities, instead we just worked through the concepts and questions.

Evan Moor Financial Literacy Grade 1
Evan Moor Financial Literacy Grade 2
A Penny's Worth by Kimberly Wilson
Follow the Money by Loreen Leedy
What is Money? by Kate Marsico
Nat Geo Kids: Not-So-Common Cents by Sarah Wassner Flynn
Singapore 1B

Social Studies

Arthur continued his large study of United States history using a combination of Build Your Library Level 5 and History Quest United States History. We covered the Louisiana Purchase, Lewis and Clark, and the independence of Texas.

A Kid’s Guide to Native American History by Yvonne Wakim Dennis
An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz
We were There Too by Philip Hoose
Words that Built a Nation
History Quest: U.S. History
A Different Mirror
DK American History Visual Encyclopedia
Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans by Kadir Nelson
Nat Geo Our Country’s Presidents
Smart About the First Ladies
Which Way to the Wild West by Steve Sheinkin
Lewis and Clark: A Prairie Dog for the President by Shirley Raye Redmond

Quentin continued his study of the world with Build Your Library Level 0. We finished our study of Africa with a focus on South African countries.

Nat Geo Beginner’s World Atlas
DK Countries of the World
DK Children Just Like Me
DK Children Just Like Me: A School Like Mine
Africa is Not a Country by Margy Burns Knight and Mark Melnicove
Jaha and Jamil Went Down the Hill by Virginia Kroll
Nelson Mandela’s Favorite African Folktales
Misoso: Once Upon a Time Tales from Africa by Verna Aardema
Nubiah’s Well by Donna W. Guthrie
Honey Honey Lion by Jan Brett

Arthur Independent Time

We are working on following a checklist in a planner for weekly independent work. There’s usually some math workbook pages, an ELA packet, weekly writing prompts (1-2 times a week), independent reading time, and a special creative project. There has been many drawing projects lately.

Science

Arthur is focusing on Physics this year. We are covering the text and related videos at home and then joining friends for experiments and extra projects. The boys didn’t quite finish their model engines this week, so we are going to take one more week to finish those before moving on to optics.

RSO Physics
The Story of Science: Aristotle Leads the Way by Joy Hakim
The Way Things Work Now

Quentin will be focusing on animal science with BYL Level 0. We continued watching a new documentary series called Magic of Disney’s Animal Kingdom. It’s a behind the scenes look at caring for the animals at the park. Each episode is less than 30 minutes, so it’s a perfect length for Q. We also covered more animals from Africa.

Nat Geo Wild Animal Atlas
DK Animal
Lonely Planet: The Animal Book
The Tarantula in My Purse by Jean Craighead George
African Acrostics: A Word in Edgeways by Avis Harley
African Critters by Robert B. Haas
Life-Size Anaimals by Rita Mabel Schiavo
Bringing the Rain to Kapiti Plain by Verna Aardema
Grasslands by Laura Purdie Salas
Over in the Grasslands by Marianne Berkes
Here is the African Savanna by Madeleine Dunphy
Hippopotamuses by Kari Schuetz
Meerkats, Moles, and Voles: Animals of the Underground by Jody Sullivan Rake
Meerkats by Jody Sullivan Rake
Zebras by Amelie von Zumbusch
Lake of the Big Snake by Isaac Olaleye
Rumble in the Jungle by Giles Andreae
Draw by Raul Colon
Tree of Life: The World of the African Baobab by Barbara Bash

STEAM Coop

The oldest group has moved on to their last theme of the year: Math + Art in Science. This week, there was a bit of a mix-up, but they ended up making art from found nature objects and a shelter with tree branches. Q’s group started on a gardening theme focusing on how bean plants grow.

Art/Music/Crafts/Cooking/Documentary

We’re planning one doing on art project and one cooking project each week as well as picking a composer or musician to listen to and enjoy.

Field Trip

On Tuesday, we had a guided field trip to Lauritzen Gardens. The older group walked the entire gardens observing signs of spring along the way. We then identified trees and learned about various species. Thankfully the weather was perfect for our visit to the gardens. We even got to have a picnic on the patio afterwards.

We also had book club on Saturday morning. I didn’t actually have to lead the meeting this month. A friend brought a great cipher activity to add to our discussion.

High

Friday’s spring hike at Fontenelle Forest was just delightful. We got out into the woods, saw some turkeys, and generally enjoyed the perfect weather. After our hike, we visited Raptor Rescue to check out all the birds. While there, I spied a garter snake. A worked caught it and gave us an impromptu lesson about snakes in the area. Turns out that snakes were this particular guy’s specialty. I love it when we get unexpected lessons while out and about.

Low

Nothing really. We had a good week.

Next Week

Starting two new read alouds
Continuing a financial literacy unit (both kids)
Finishing building engines for physics
Taking a break from social studies (Q)
Catching up with our math and language arts packets and random pages

Next up on the TBR pile:

Music Monday - Mike Shinoda feat. Kailee Morgue "In My Head"

Apparently the new Scream movie has a great soundtrack. This is the perfect song for me.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Life Right Now #13

As I look outside my window: It’s cold, windy, cloudy, and rainy. After temps in the 80s this past week, we’ve dropped back to around 40 degrees for this weekend. Very dreary weather.

Right now I am: Surrounded by curriculum for the rest of the year. Thankfully, I only need to sort Quentin’s math and language arts and I’ll be done until I start planning next year’s curriculum.

On my bedside table: The Hollow Places by T. Kingfisher; Crossings by Alex Landrigan

On my tv this week: We watched a few movies (The Portable Door was absolutely amazing!) and continued watching our currently airing shows (Schmicago, The Mandalorian, Ted Lasso).

Listening to: Still making my way through the Revolutions podcast season on the French Revolution.

On the menu for this week:

Monday - Pork and Green Chile Stew
Tuesday - Ham and Potato Soup
Wednesday - Leftovers
Thursday - Cheesy Bacon and Egg Hash
Friday - White Chicken Chili
Saturday - Beef Stew
Sunday - Black Bean Stuffed Sweet Potatoes

On my to do list: So much! But first priority is to cleanout my Notes app. I have so many little (and big) things listed in there. I need to organize my notes and get my brain dump list straight so I can know what I need to tackle first.

Happening this week:

Monday - Crafting afternoon at the park (if the weather holds)
Tuesday - Coop Earth Day Party
Wednesday - Science Class
Thursday - Coop
Friday - Nature Explorers at Heron Haven; Lit Society
Saturday - Home Day
Sunday - Home Day

What I am creating: I want to work on my March Memory Planner pages this week. Maybe I can take them to the crafting day at the park on Monday.

My simple pleasures: Yogurt, organized curriculum, a good night’s sleep

Looking around the house: Meh. I need to do laundry today and really need to put away all the clothes. That would help make the house much cleaner.

From the camera: Making and breaking ciphers at coop book club.

Part of Your World by Abby Jimenez

Title: Part of Your World

Author: Abby Jimenez

Publisher: Forever 2022

Genre: Romance

Pages: 400

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Spring TBR; Romanceopoly - Spring (Has an animal on the cover)

Spice Meter: 4

After a wild bet, gourmet grilled-cheese sandwich, and cuddle with a baby goat, Alexis Montgomery has had her world turned upside down. The cause: Daniel Grant, a ridiculously hot carpenter who’s ten years younger than her and as casual as they come—the complete opposite of sophisticated city-girl Alexis. And yet their chemistry is undeniable.

While her ultra-wealthy parents want her to carry on the family legacy of world-renowned surgeons, Alexis doesn’t need glory or fame. She’s fine with being a “mere” ER doctor. And every minute she spends with Daniel and the tight-knit town where he lives, she’s discovering just what’s really important. Yet letting their relationship become anything more than a short-term fling would mean turning her back on her family and giving up the opportunity to help thousands of people.

Bringing Daniel into her world is impossible, and yet she can’t just give up the joy she’s found with him either. With so many differences between them, how can Alexis possibly choose between her world and his?

CW: Domestic Violence, Abuse

Look at that Content Warning. Usually I immediately put a book down if it deals with those topics, and yet I wanted to read this one. I think my ability to attempt it is due to previous success with Jimenez’s books. She deftly handles very difficult topics within her contemporary romance books. In this one, we meet two very different people that eventually realize just what they are missing in life. Alexis is a great character, but Daniel is the real favorite of the couple. I loved his commitment to his town and the people within his life. Seriously, so attractive! There’s a happy ending, but it definitely takes a while for our characters to get there. Along the way, we get very serious events and discussions. I found myself working through the some of my past. Strange cathartic book for me. It’s not super steamy, but a very satisfying contemporary romance.

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal

Title: The Calculating Stars (Lady Astronaut #1)

Author: Mary Robinette Kowal

Publisher: Tor Books 2018

Genre: Science Fiction

Pages: 431

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Spring TBR

On a cold spring night in 1952, a huge meteorite fell to earth and obliterated much of the east coast of the United States, including Washington D.C. The ensuing climate cataclysm will soon render the earth inhospitable for humanity, as the last such meteorite did for the dinosaurs. This looming threat calls for a radically accelerated effort to colonize space, and requires a much larger share of humanity to take part in the process.

Elma York’s experience as a WASP pilot and mathematician earns her a place in the International Aerospace Coalition’s attempts to put man on the moon, as a calculator. But with so many skilled and experienced women pilots and scientists involved with the program, it doesn’t take long before Elma begins to wonder why they can’t go into space, too.

Elma’s drive to become the first Lady Astronaut is so strong that even the most dearly held conventions of society may not stand a chance against her.

Overall, this book just didn’t quite land with me. I was so caught up in the weird innuendo scenes between Nathaniel and Elma and the in-your-face sexism and anti-semitism that I had trouble really connecting to the rest of the story and characters. By setting the book in the 1950s, I knew that there was going to be a lot of -ism, but the storyline really never seemed to get past it in anyway. Even Elma herself constantly exhibited micro-aggressions towards her colleagues. I expected to see growth and really didn’t get much of any. And the marriage between Nathaniel and Elma constantly annoyed me. I realize that it’s still the 1950s, but come on. We get weird foreplay scenes and then fade to black almost every other chapter. We get to see Nathaniel support Elma, but then also constantly question her abilities and role. It was like watching a very infuriating tennis match. I was not a fan of them at all. And then we get to the storyline. While I was glad that we didn’t dwell on the immediate death and destruction caused by the meteorite, I feel like the it was quickly forgotten as we focused on the day-to-day running of the space program. I wanted a bit more about what was happening to the world. We get a few tiny snippets, but Elma mostly dismissing them. I would have liked to hear more about how the impact had affected people around the world instead of focusing on the small cast of characters in Kansas City. On a last note, the pacing was really slow in the middle. I was struggling to stay with it and not turn to other books. Unfortunately, I just don’t think that this story was for me at all.

Lady Astronaut

#1 The Calculating Stars
#2 The Fated Sky
#3 The Relentless Moon

Next up on the TBR pile:

Odds and Ends

Here's my randomness for the week:

This season of Ted Lasso is killing me. So many emotions!
A weird reading slump this week… I’m just not feeling the books that I’m reading.
I’m still on the lookout for some comfy pajamas that don’t make me hot.
Very thankful that coop is finally outside for our meetings. Here’s hoping the weather holds for the next five weeks.

Next up on the TBR pile:

A Touch of Darkness by Scarlett St. Clair

Title: A Touch of Darkness (Hades X Persephone #1)

Author: Scarlett St. Clair

Publisher: Scarlett St. Clair 2019

Genre: Romance

Pages: 353

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Spring TBR; Romanceopoly - Coffee Shop (Read a book that has been recommended to you!)

Spice Meter: 5

"Let me worship you," he said.

She remembered the words she had whispered to him in the back of the limo after La Rose. "You will worship me, and I won't even have to order you." His request felt sinful and devious, and she reveled in it.

She answered, "Yes."

Persephone is the Goddess of Spring in title only. Since she was a little girl, flowers have only shriveled at her touch. After moving to New Athens, she hoped to lead an unassuming life disguised as a mortal journalist. All of that changes when she sits down in a forbidden nightclub to play a hand of cards with a hypnotic and mysterious stranger.

Hades, God of the Dead, has built a gambling empire in the mortal world and his favorite bets are rumored to be impossible. But nothing has ever intrigued him as much as the goddess offering him a bargain he can't resist.

After her encounter with Hades, Persephone finds herself in a contract with the God of the Dead, and his terms are impossible: Persephone must create life in the Underworld or lose her freedom forever. The bet does more than expose Persephone's failure as a goddess, however. As she struggles to sow the seeds of her freedom, love for the God of the Dead grows—a love that is both captivating and forbidden.

I’m a bit conflicted about this book. I really loved Greek mythology retelling stories and the overall concept of this one really got me. I loved the work that was created with the gods coming down to the mortal world and revealing themselves. How fun! I loved the various gods that we meet throughout the story, especially Hades and Hermes. All of those parts of the book made me want to give this 5 stars. But then we get to Persephone herself and I just couldn’t with her. She constantly tells everyone how strong she is, but turns around at every situation and allows others to decide her actions. She’s just so spineless throughout most of the book that I could not really root for her. And her constant ignorance of how the gods operate really got me. Like I understand that your mom kept you sequestered, but you’ve been out in the world for a few years now. Did you learn anything? Clearly the answer is no. Even her interactions with Hades made it so that I couldn’t really root for her. I will probably keep reading this series, but I’m not the biggest fan of Persephone at this point.

Hades X Persephone

#1 A Touch of Darkness
#2 A Touch of Ruuin
#3 A Touch of Malice

Next up on the TBR pile:

Homeschool W28: Distracted By Our Foster Chicks

What We Studied

With our foster chickens, our school time was greatly decreased. They were just too entertaining to hang out with. Plus we had to farm/nature walks and our usual science and coop classes. We’ll catch back up, I’m not concerned. Some weeks we focus less on book work and more on experiences.

Literature and Poetry

We still reading the coop book club selection. I’m interested in the overall mystery, but the pacing is very slow. We finally finished the book this week, but our club meeting isn’t for another week.

The Strangers by Margaret Peterson Haddix

To follow up after the previous week’s Shakespeare unit, our literature selection is a retelling of Midsummer Night’s Dream. I’m very into this book and Arthur has also been enjoying it.

Nat Geo Book of Nature Poetry
Poetry for Young People: Emily Dickinson
Midsummer’s Mayhem by Rajani LaRocca

Quentin focused on reading animal stories from around the world. I’m trying to line them up with our continents as we move across the world. We continued with the second book in the Heartwood Hotel series. Quentin likes the gentle nature of these books.

Nat Geo Book of Animal Poetry
Heartwood Hotel: The Greatest Gift by Kallie George
A World Full of Animal Stories by Angela McAllister
Around the World in 80 Days by Saviour Pirotta

Math

Kumon Geometry and Measurement Grade 4 WB
Lots and Lots of Coins by Margarette S. Reid (A)
The Invention of Money by Nicolas Brasch (A)
The History of Money: From Bartering to Banking by Martin Jenkins (A)
Nat Geo Kids: Not-So-Common Cents by Sarah Wassner Flynn (A)
DK Eyewitness: Money (A)
One Proud Penny by Randy Siegel (A)
What is Money? by Katie Marsico (A)
Paper Money by Dana Meachen Rau (A)
10 Fascinating Facts About Dollar Bills by Chris Jozefowicz (A)
Singapore 1B
Froggy's Lemonade Stand by Jonathan London (Q)
A Kids Book About Money by Adam Stramwasser (Q)
Let's Explore Needs and Wants by Laura Hamilton Waxman (Q)
Needs and Wants by Nadia Higgins (Q)
Lemonade in Winter: A Book About Two Kids Counting Money by Emily Jenkins & G. Brian Karas (Q)

Social Studies

Arthur continued his large study of United States history using a combination of Build Your Library Level 5 and History Quest United States History. We covered the lives of Irish immigrants and mill workers in the early 1800s.

A Kid’s Guide to Native American History by Yvonne Wakim Dennis
An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz
We were There Too by Philip Hoose
Words that Built a Nation
History Quest: U.S. History
A Different Mirror
DK American History Visual Encyclopedia
Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans by Kadir Nelson
Nat Geo Our Country’s Presidents
What the Eagle Sees
A is for Abigail: F for First Ladies
Smart About the First Ladies

Quentin continued his study of the world with Build Your Library Level 0. We continued our study of Africa with a focus on East African countries.

Nat Geo Beginner’s World Atlas
DK Countries of the World
DK Children Just Like Me
DK Children Just Like Me: A School Like Mine
Africa is Not a Country by Margy Burns Knight and Mark Melnicove
Jaha and Jamil Went Down the Hill by Virginia Kroll
Nelson Mandela’s Favorite African Folktales
Misoso: Once Upon a Time Tales from Africa by Verna Aardema
The Perfect Orange by Frank P. Araujo
The Best Beekeeper in Lalibela by Cristina Kessler
Only a Pigeon by Jane and Christopher Kurtz
Fire on the Mountain by Jane Kurtz
For You are a Kenyan Child by Kelly Cunnane
Wangari's Trees of Peace by Jeanette Winter
Mama Panya's Pancakes by Mary and Rich Chamberlin
My Rows and Piles of Coins by Tololwa M. Mollel
We All Went on Safari by Laurie Krebs

Arthur Independent Time

A took the zip line gondola and made an entire station with a queue

Science

Arthur is focusing on Physics this year. We are covering the text and related videos at home and then joining friends for experiments and extra projects. We’ll be spending the next week finishing building model engines.

RSO Physics
The Story of Science: Aristotle Leads the Way by Joy Hakim
The Way Things Work Now

Nat Geo Wild Animal Atlas
DK Animal
Lonely Planet: The Animal Book
The Tarantula in My Purse by Jean Craighead George
African Acrostics: A Word in Edgeways by Avis Harley
African Critters by Robert B. Haas

STEAM Coop

I finished teaching the oldest kids the Engineering Challenge unit. We wrapped up with creating zip line gondolas. I think the kids had fun. Now we are going to move on to Math and Art in Science for the oldest kids. Q’s group covered telescopes and microscopes. They will move on to gardening next cycle.

Art/Music/Crafts/Cooking/Documentary

We’re planning one doing on art project and one cooking project each week as well as picking a composer or musician to listen to and enjoy.

Field Trip

We had a visit to the Gifford Farm to see all the baby animals that have arrived. A couple of coop friends joined us for a lovely morning. We’ll be back later this month for two different guided field trips.

We had another Nature Explorers meeting. This time we traveled over to Iowa to the Hitchcock Center. We walked the ridge trail (about 1 1/2 miles) and got to see some great views. The kids really enjoyed exploring. Afterward, we had to stop at the playground there to play and eat a snack lunch.

High

For the second year, we rented two chickens for the week. We pick up 3-day old chickens and take care of them for the week. The boys were begging to do it again. And we spent a lot of time playing with them and devising things for them to explore. We’ll be doing this again next year.

Low

We have gotten a bit behind on our curriculum due to our multiple excursions this week and the distraction of the chicks.

Next Week

Finishing a Midsummer Night’s Dream retelling novel and Heartwood Hotel
Continuing a financial literacy unit (both kids)
Finishing building engines for physics
Moving to South Africa (our final selection)
Fitting in animal science for Q (hopefully!)

Next up on the TBR pile: