Music Monday - Death Cab for Cutie "Here to Forever"

Apparently my favorite bands from the early 2000s are all coming out with new music this year. Love it!

Next up on the TBR pile:

Life Right Now #24

Right now I am: Hoping to fit in some reading time this morning along with vacuuming and the laundry.

On my bedside table: The Palace Papers by Tina Brown; The Fervor by Alma Cats

On my tv this week: We’ve sped through The Sandman and it is just as glorious as I thought it would be. Just beautiful.

Listening to: Mostly just podcast, but I’ve also downloaded the new songs from Sleeping from Sirens. Absolutely loving it!

On the menu for this week:

• Monday - Leftovers

• Tuesday - Potato Soup with Sausage

• Wednesday - Parmesan Tilapia

• Thursday - Black Bean Soup; Chicken Ranch Tacos

• Friday - Spinach and Artichoke Melts; Grilled Cheese

• Saturday - Apple-Cheddar Stuffed Chicken

• Sunday - Leftovers

On my to do list: I have some random tasks that need to get done as well as finalize the plan for this week’s coop and science experiments.

Happening this week:

• Monday - Home school day

• Tuesday - Zoo Day; Grocery

• Wednesday - Science

• Thursday - Coop; Art Class

• Friday - Home school day

• Saturday - Home Day

• Sunday - Book Club Zoom

What I am creating: I finished June’s Memory Planner pages yesterday. Here’s hoping to be able to work on the July pages today.

My simple pleasures:

Looking around the house:

From the camera: Arthur made me take screenshots of his Minecraft zoo.

Hide by Kiersten White

Title: Hide

Author: Kiersten White

Publisher: Del Rey Books 2022

Genre: Horror

Pages: 319

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: 

The challenge: Spend a week hiding in an abandoned amusement park and don’t get caught.

The prize: enough money to change everything.

Even though everyone is desperate to win—to seize a dream future or escape a haunting past—Mack is sure she can beat her competitors. All she has to do is hide, and she’s an expert at that.

It’s the reason she’s alive and her family isn’t.

But as the people around her begin disappearing one by one, Mack realizes that this competition is even more sinister than she imagined, and that together might be the only way to survive.

Fourteen competitors. Seven days. Everywhere to hide but nowhere to run.

Come out, come out, wherever you are.

An overall entertaining horror novel. This wasn’t the best I’ve ever read, but it definitely kept me wanting to turn the pages and see what happened next. We start with a fairly unlikable character, Mack, that I never can to love, but definitely came to understand by the end of the book. We throw in 13 more contestants and a few game organizers and set them loose in an abandoned amusement park. Chaos and murder ensues. I figured out the big allusion to another story by the end of Day 1, but knowing the big secret didn’t deter me from continuing to read. I still found it a very entertaining ride. There is gore (a lot of it), murder, and suicide. Not a book for everyone, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles

Title: The Lincoln Highway

Author: Amor Towles

Publisher: Viking 2021

Genre: Historical Fiction

Pages: 576

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: 

In June, 1954, eighteen-year-old Emmett Watson is driven home to Nebraska by the warden of the juvenile work farm where he has just served fifteen months for involuntary manslaughter. His mother long gone, his father recently deceased, and the family farm foreclosed upon by the bank, Emmett's intention is to pick up his eight-year-old brother, Billy, and head to California where they can start their lives anew. But when the warden drives away, Emmett discovers that two friends from the work farm have hidden themselves in the trunk of the warden's car. Together, they have hatched an altogether different plan for Emmett's future, one that will take them all on a fateful journey in the opposite direction—to the City of New York.

Oh my this was another winner from Amor Towles! I didn’t quite know what I was going to think of it when we first met the characters. Emmett seems like a likable guy, but Duchess and Wooley are hard to like at first. I was concerned that we would be leaning on white America tropes (and we are a bit), but it’s more of a story of journey for two brothers and their adopted family. We get to see Emmett and Billy try to make sense of a world after losing their parents and facing prejudice from the inhabitants of their hometown. They attempt to strike out for a new life and encounter a variety of obstacles. I loved how Towles weaved the narratives of multiple side characters into the story of the brothers. I ended up really caring for all the characters we encounter (even the pretty vile Pastor John). Towles has a way of really diving into the lives of characters and showing you as the reader their humanity. In many ways this is a quiet book, but the plot keeps us moving from day to day until we reach the closing on chapter for Emmett and Billy and an opening of another. Delightful!

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Atlas Six by Olivie Blake

Title: Atlas Six (The Atlas #1)

Author: Olivie Blake

Publisher: Tor 2020

Genre: Fantasy

Pages: 375

Rating: 2/5 stars

Reading Challenges: 

The Alexandrian Society, caretakers of lost knowledge from the greatest civilizations of antiquity, are the foremost secret society of magical academicians in the world. Those who earn a place among the Alexandrians will secure a life of wealth, power, and prestige beyond their wildest dreams, and each decade, only the six most uniquely talented magicians are selected to be considered for initiation.

Enter the latest round of six: Libby Rhodes and Nico de Varona, unwilling halves of an unfathomable whole, who exert uncanny control over every element of physicality. Reina Mori, a naturalist, who can intuit the language of life itself. Parisa Kamali, a telepath who can traverse the depths of the subconscious, navigating worlds inside the human mind. Callum Nova, an empath easily mistaken for a manipulative illusionist, who can influence the intimate workings of a person’s inner self. Finally, there is Tristan Caine, who can see through illusions to a new structure of reality—an ability so rare that neither he nor his peers can fully grasp its implications.

When the candidates are recruited by the mysterious Atlas Blakely, they are told they will have one year to qualify for initiation, during which time they will be permitted preliminary access to the Society’s archives and judged based on their contributions to various subjects of impossibility: time and space, luck and thought, life and death. Five, they are told, will be initiated. One will be eliminated. The six potential initiates will fight to survive the next year of their lives, and if they can prove themselves to be the best among their rivals, most of them will.

Most of them.

Goodness this was not good. I was super intrigued by the premise (I’m always up for a book about the Library of Alexandria), but this book did not live up to any of the promise. The plot moves incredibly slow with nothing really happening for about 80% of the book. I never felt compelled to pick it up and keep reading. That’s never a good sign. The characters are all pretty terrible. The jacket copy makes it seem that although they all start out as enemies, the six characters will come to care deeply for each other. They didn’t. They mostly hate it each other throughout the entire book. I just wanted to see some genuine affection for another person. If these six people are the best of the best, we are a species are doomed. They are all terrible. Libby may have been the least terrible, but she would have been a pain to live with and ended up with the corruption arc. That didn’t make any sense at all… I hated this book.

The Atlas

• #0.5 Sacred Hospitality

• #1 The Atlas Six

• #2 The Atlas Paradox

Next up on the TBR pile:

Hench by Natalie Zina Walschots

Title: Hench

Author: Natalie Zina Walschots

Publisher: William Morrow 2020

Genre: Science Fiction

Pages: 403

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Summer TBR

Anna does boring things for terrible people because even criminals need office help and she needs a job. Working for a monster lurking beneath the surface of the world isn’t glamorous. But is it really worse than working for an oil conglomerate or an insurance company? In this economy?

 As a temp, she’s just a cog in the machine. But when she finally gets a promising assignment, everything goes very wrong, and an encounter with the so-called “hero” leaves her badly injured.  And, to her horror, compared to the other bodies strewn about, she’s the lucky one.

So, of course, then she gets laid off.

With no money and no mobility, with only her anger and internet research acumen, she discovers her suffering at the hands of a hero is far from unique. When people start listening to the story that her data tells, she realizes she might not be as powerless as she thinks.

Because the key to everything is data: knowing how to collate it, how to manipulate it, and how to weaponize it. By tallying up the human cost these caped forces of nature wreak upon the world, she discovers that the line between good and evil is mostly marketing.  And with social media and viral videos, she can control that appearance.

It’s not too long before she’s employed once more, this time by one of the worst villains on earth. As she becomes an increasingly valuable lieutenant, she might just save the world.

This book came a recommendation from my favorite podcast, Currently Reading. I don’t always align with the hosts’ tastes in books, but when we do, I absolutely love the book! We get a complete flip of the superhero genre, imagining if the fact of having superheroes create much more damage and trauma than they save. I fell for Anna right away even if she is very prickly and has questionable social skills. I was rooting for her to find a good position and then the incident happens. From there, I felt like the novel was full-steam ahead, diving us and Anna into the world of real supervillains. We get to peel back the layers to see all the dirty secrets and revel in the downfalls of many superheroes. I especially loved Leviathan and his entire character arc. This is a very fast-paced thriller style science fiction novel with a few very graphic scenes of mutilation. Nothing I couldn’t handle, but just imagining the body horror scenes at the end has me shivering a bit. Oh so good!

Next up on the TBR pile:

Currently #14

Reading: Hide by Kiersten White - I totally figured out the weirdness within the first third of this book, but I’m still loving it. Almost finished.

Watching: We started The Sandman and it’s amazing! I loved the comics and the television is a beautiful adaptation of the comics.

Listening: We have a few field trips coming up and have been listening to back episodes of Eons podcast.

Making: For this week’s coop lesson, the younger groups are going to be covering rocks and minerals (biggest kids are doing plate tectonics). I’m making the rock cycle out of starburst. It is a bit time-consuming, but a very easy way to explain the rock cycle.

Feeling: The temps cooled off just a tad and I feel so much better. I can do mid-80s, I am not a fan of mid-90s.

Planning: We scrapped our bit fall family road trip (we had one in May anyway) in favor of me taking the kids for a long weekend to Des Moines. We’re going for a living history event on Friday and then staying to explore the area.

Loving: The bakery inside Baker’s makes these amazing brown butter caramel cookies, but I don’t love paying the price they are marked. Lucky me that I keep finding them on the bakery clearance rack! 50% is totally my price point for these delicious cookies.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Homeschool W1: We're Back at It!

What We Studied

We dove into our third year of homeschooling with Arthur entering 3rd grade and Quentin entire kindergarten. This first week was all about attempting to figure out our weekly schedule. We have to work in coop on Thursday morning, art class on Thursday afternoon, physics with friends on Wednesday afternoon, and a weekly field trip. I’m attempting to decide if we will be doing art class and field trips weekly or on a different schedule. I’m still thinking about that. As for the curriculum itself, we dove right in and accomplished a ton this week.

Attempting to make a paper hole to step through a la Alice

Literature and Poetry

Arthur started Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll for his ELA read aloud. To go along with the text itself, Blossom and Root Grade 3 Language Arts gives us a ton of activities and creative projects to go along with the text. We will be reading this for two more weeks. He also has a weekly poetry selection. We also started our Myths and Maps extra curriculum from B&R. We began covering creation stories from around the world. One last item, we finished reading The Penderwicks in time for coop book club on Thursday evening. Only one other family joined us, but we chatted about the book for awhile before the kids scampered off to the playground.

• Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

• Nat Geo Book of Nature Poetry

• In the Beginning by Virginia Hamilton

• The Penderwicks by Jeanne Birdsall

Quentin has a mixed week. We started with a few books related to traveling the world (preview of our social studies curriculum). He also covered the Blossom and Root Kindergarten Language Arts week dealing with names and the importance of identity.

• How to Make an Apple Pie and See the World by Marjorie Priceman

• Johnny Appleseed: A Tall Tall retold by Stephen Kellogg

• Alma and How She Got Her Name by Juana Martinez-Neal

• Your Name is a Song by Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow

• The Name Jar by Yangsook Choi

• Me and My Family Tree by Joan Sweeney

• High Five Intro Issue

• Rocket Finds an Egg by Tad Hills (Quentin read)

• Rocket’s Very Fine Day by Tad Hills (Quentin read)

• Nat Geo Book of Animal Poetry

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). This week Arthur and I played a Pirate themed place value game. I also found a fun packet of logic puzzles based on Alice in Wonderland. We will be spreading these out over our reading of the text.

• Logic Liftoff (Arthur)

• Singapore 4A

• Tyrannosaurus Math by Michelle Markel

• Tinkeractive Math Kindergarten

Social Studies

Arthur started his large study of United States history using a combination of Build Your Library Level 5 and History Quest United States History. We covered an introduction to Native American history and a general geography review. We also started some great resources for stories from Native American societies. Arthur did a short research project about the Omaha and Ponca tribes as we live on their ancestral land.

• If America were a Village by David J. Smith

• The Scrambled States of America by Laurie Keller

• A Kid’s Guide to Native American History by Yvonne Wakim Dennis

• An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz

• The Earth Under Sky Bear’s Feet: Native American Poems of the Land by Joseph Bruchac

• Turtle Island: The Story of North America’s First People by Eldon Yellowhorn and Kathy Lowinger

• What the Eagle Sees: Indigenous Stories of Rebellion and Renewal by Eldon Yellowhorn and Kathy Lowinger

Quentin began his study of the world with Build Your Library Level 0. We covered the basics of the world with a close look at maps the globe. He worked through some activities and completed most of the introduction box from Atlas Crate. He also prepped his world passport for our studies.

• The World is Waiting for You by Barbara Kerley

• Our Earth by Anne rockwell

• Exploring by Alain Gree

• Me on the Map by Joan Sweeney

• Nat Geo Beginner’s World Atlas

• DK Countries of the World

• DK First Earth Encyclopedia

• DK Children Just Like Me

• DK Children Just Like Me; A School Like Mine

• My Bed: Enchanting Ways to Fall Asleep Around the World by Rebecca Bond

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. Beyond the paperwork, Arthur made an Alice puppet and worked on his board game. .

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 first week was an introduction to the realm of physics and a review of the scientific method. We also started The Study of Science, which we will be slowing moving through the first book over the entire year. We wrapped up the week with a documentary about our human ancestors (NOVA S36 E15 Becoming Human Episode 3: Last Human Standing).

• Where Did We Come From by Chris Ferrie

• RSO Physics

• The Story of Science: Aristotle Leads the Way by Joy Hakim

Quentin will be focusing on animal science with BYL Level 0. We did a small introduction of animals across the world. Next week we will dive in more.

• Nat Geo Wild Animal Atlas

• DK Animal

• Lonely Planet: The Animal Book

• The Tarantula in My Purse by Jean Craighead George

STEAM Coop

Coop started with a crowd! Seriously,, we had about 43 kids come to the first meeting of the semester. The oldest group (4th-8th grade) had 20 kids by itself! All three groups learned a bit about the layers of the Earth (more in-depth for the oldest kids obviously) and then make models of the layers of the Earth using Model Magic Clay. Some of the kids really got into adding their green continents as accurately as possible. I loved the attention to detail! Of the 8 new families that came, 2 have already officially joined us! Next week, we will be continuing with the geology theme.

Art/Music/Crafts/Cooking

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. This first week we scrapped the intended craft project of making a carved apple doll for an apple taste test and scientific observation. I just knew that I would end be be the one doing the entire apple doll and wanted to give the kids something hands on. While doing our apple taste test, we enjoyed listening to a variety of composition from Beethoven. We even went on a Fifth Symphony deep dive and listened to about 20 different variations of the piece. I really liked the Bossa Nova version. Arthur liked the organ version, and Quentin like the marching band version. Lots of fun with that one! My goal is definitely to keep this light and fun.

At coop art class, the boys learned about landscapes featuring a background, middle ground, and foreground. They then created their own versions. A nice low-key art class was just what we needed.

Field Trip

None this week due to my Monday afternoon to Tuesday morning migraine.

High

• We loved getting back with our coop friends for a fun session (and art class and book club). We missed them so much on our mini summer break.

Low

• I overloaded the curriculum a bit this week. I knew the first week would be a bit rough in terms of the schedule. Hopefully next week will be better balanced.

Next Week

• Continuing to read Alice in Wonderland (A)

• Figuring out more logic puzzles (A)

• Learning about Native American cultures (A)

• Moving on to Density and Water Displacement for Physics (A)

• Reading some animal stories (Q)

• Starting The Very Very Far North (Q)

• Covering Biomes and Ecosystems of the World (Q)

• Covering geology for coop

• Introducing the art of John Singleton Copley

• Starting The Beast of Buckingham Palace for coop book club

• Listening to Bach or Mozart - haven’t decided which exactly

Ice cream to wrap up the week: Blue Moon for Quentin, Blood Orange sorbet for me, German Chocolate for Arthur

Next up on the TBR pile:

Music Monday - Lindsey Stirling feat. Amy Lee "Love Goes On and On"

I’m such a sucker for both of these women.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Life Right Now #23

As I look outside my window: The air is a bit hazy but not quite as bright as it was yesterday. It’s still going to be hot today but slightly less than the over 100 degree temperatures of yesterday.

Right now I am: Getting to breakfast and my book fairly late as I slept in a bit. Very tiring week!

Thinking and pondering: Do I have enough supplies for coop this week? We are having a great turnout for our free, open house meetings, but that also means more supplies. I think I have enough, but I did order more sand and lava rocks just in case. (We’re making sedimentary rocks as one of the activities for the geology unit.)

On my bedside table: Hide by Kiersten White (super excited by this one); Lore Olympus Vol. 2; The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin

On my tv this week: J and I are finally getting through The Umbrella Academy S3 (two episodes left!) and keeping up with Loot and What We Do in the Shadows. On Friday, the family watched Lightyear for our pizza and movie night. It was a decent kids’ movie.

Listening to: Catching up on my currently publishing podcasts. We did listen to an Eons episode on the way to art class on Thursday afternoon. That may become a routine.

On the menu for this week: Goodness! My meal plan is all out of sorts for the week ahead. Guess I will be tackling that after brunch…

On my to do list: I’ve got a ton of little computer-based tasks to take care of. I imagine finding new doctor for the kids is going to be the long, complicated one to finish.

Happening this week:

• Monday - School Day

• Tuesday - Schramm Geologic Field Trip; Trivia Night

• Wednesday - School Day; Science Class

• Thursday - Coop; Art Class; Library Book Bash (virtual)

• Friday - School Day

• Saturday - Home Day

• Sunday - Currently Reading Zoom Discussion of The Lincoln Highway

What I am creating: Nothing much at the moment, although my June and July Memory Planner pages are on my desk waiting for me. If only it wasn’t so hot upstairs in the afternoon.

My simple pleasures: A cold shower (seriously, it’s so hot!), seeing friends, sorbet (for us lactose-challenged folks)

Looking around the house: Even with a full week of schooling, the house doesn’t look bad. I need to pick up the living room, but that’s mostly coop supplies that are being organized.

From the camera: Our apple taste test was a last minute change to the curriculum but definitely worthwhile. I liked the Cosmic Crisp, Arthur liked the Fuji, and Quentin like the Gala.

Hotel Magnifique by Emily J. Taylor

Title: Hotel Magnifique

Author: Emily J. Taylor

Publisher: Razorbill 2022

Genre: YA Fantasy

Pages: 400

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Summer TBR

All her life, Jani has dreamed of Elsewhere. Just barely scraping by with her job at a tannery, she’s resigned to a dreary life in the port town of Durc, caring for her younger sister Zosa. That is, until the Hotel Magnifique comes to town.

The hotel is legendary not only for its whimsical enchantments, but also for its ability to travel—appearing in a different destination every morning. While Jani and Zosa can’t afford the exorbitant costs of a guest’s stay, they can interview to join the staff, and are soon whisked away on the greatest adventure of their lives. But once inside, Jani quickly discovers their contracts are unbreakable and that beneath the marvelous glamour, the hotel is hiding dangerous secrets.

With the vexingly handsome doorman Bel as her only ally, Jani embarks on a mission to unravel the mystery of the magic at the heart of the hotel and free Zosa—and the other staff—from the cruelty of the ruthless maître d’hôtel. To succeed, she’ll have to risk everything she loves, but failure would mean a fate far worse than never returning home.

Now this book is totally my jam! We get a fun fantasy story featuring magic and the illusion of magic. I absolute adore books where the setting becomes a real character. The Hotel Magnifique itself is one of the most important characters in the novel. As Jani slowly uncovers the secrets of the hotel and the employees, I fell more in love with the hotel itself. My biggest complaint about this book is that we didn’t get to see more of the guest rooms and enchantments. As for the human characters, I loved Bel and his mysterious ways. I despised Alaister and his underlings (as you should). I grew to love Jani’s strength and commitment to her sister. I called the twist as it relates to character, but it felt appropriate instead of gimmicky. This book gave me big The Night Circus vibes but with much more action. Loved it!

Next up on the TBR pile:

Pachinko by Lee Min-Jin

Title: Pachinko

Author: Lee Min-Jin

Publisher: Grand Central 2017

Genre: Historical Fiction

Pages: 490

Rating: 2/5 stars

Reading Challenges: 

In the early 1900s, teenaged Sunja, the adored daughter of a crippled fisherman, falls for a wealthy stranger at the seashore near her home in Korea. He promises her the world, but when she discovers she is pregnant--and that her lover is married--she refuses to be bought. Instead, she accepts an offer of marriage from a gentle, sickly minister passing through on his way to Japan. But her decision to abandon her home, and to reject her son's powerful father, sets off a dramatic saga that will echo down through the generations.

Richly told and profoundly moving, Pachinko is a story of love, sacrifice, ambition, and loyalty. From bustling street markets to the halls of Japan's finest universities to the pachinko parlors of the criminal underworld, Lee's complex and passionate characters--strong, stubborn women, devoted sisters and sons, fathers shaken by moral crisis--survive and thrive against the indifferent arc of history.

Unfortunately, this one really did not work for me. Everything was so dour and bleak that I never wanted to pick this volume up. I let it languish on my nightstand for days while I read other books. I dreaded having to go back to this very serious novel. And I definitely was not a fan of the time jumps. I don’t really enjoy the “sweeping family saga” genre of books and this one fits that to a tee. The writing was very detached and void of emotion during the most intense scenes. I forced myself to finish as we had picked this one for book club., but I was not fan at all.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Odds and Ends

Here's my randomness for the week:

• A bit nervous about today’s coop meeting. We are going to have 47 children!

• Deep into my current read and it’s giving me The Magicians vibes but with a faster moving plot.

• My Bachelorette predictions: Gabby will end up picking Nate and Rachel will end up picking TIno.

• I feel the urge to make a fun dessert this week, but do I have the energy?

• Currently looking at the giant stack of books for homeschooling week 2. It’s really a lot…

Next up on the TBR pile:

Inheritance by Elizabeth Acevedo

Title: Inheritance

Author: Elizabeth Acevedo Illustrated by: Andrea Pippins

Publisher: Quill Tree Books 2022

Genre: Poetry

Pages: 48

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: 

In her most famous spoken-word poem, author of the Pura Belpré-winning novel-in-verse The Poet X Elizabeth Acevedo embraces all the complexities of Black hair and Afro-Latinidad—the history, pain, pride, and powerful love of that inheritance.

Paired with full-color illustrations by artist Andrea Pippins in a format that will appeal to fans of Mahogany L. Browne’s Black Girl Magic or Jason Reynolds’s For Everyone, this poem can now be read in a vibrant package, making it the ideal gift, treasure, or inspiration for readers of any age.

Slim poem put to beautiful illustrations celebrating natural hair. I was moved by the words and the visuals. This would be a great book to have on any shelf and especially those of shelves belonging to little girls. There is such a celebration in these pages. I would love to hear Acevedo perform this piece accompanied by the visuals on screen.

Next up on the TBR pile:

August 2022 Life Goals

Let’s check in on July’s goals and my progress.

• Read 15 Books ✓

• Finish prepping curriculum for 2022-2023 school year ✓

• Visit Indiana (and on-the-way states) ✓

• Finish prepping for fall coop semester ✓

• Redo the Playroom ✓

• Put a pause on my library holds for second half of July-August ✓

August Goals: Sticking with just a few goals for the month as I know it’s going to be a busy one.

• Read 18 Books

• Kick off the Coop for the Fall Semester

• Make 4 Recipes for Our 52 Desserts

• Visit the zoo once

• Visit two state parks

Next up on the TBR pile:

Music Monday - Yeah Yeah Yeahs "Spitting Off the Edge of the World"

Digging this new song during this super hot week.

Next up on the TBR pile: