October 2019: Recap + On My Shelves
I'm almost caught up – the end is in sight! For the most part, October proceeded exactly as I'd expected with lots of fun fall adventures and family time. But then, it took a very unexpected turn at the end of the month.
1. House Projects – With the baby expected in February, we've been extra motivated to get some things done in and outside our home. That's included purging and organizing every room, as well as doing some more decorating. Two huge things we checked off our list in October were replacing all of the blinds with bamboo shades and having a fence installed in our backyard. Perfect timing with cooler weather! Each change makes me love our home more.
2. Corn Maze & Pumpkin Patch – The weather was gorgeous on Columbus Day + Nick had the holiday off work, so we decided to check an adventure off our fall bucket list. We headed to a farm about thirty minutes of us with a great corn maze, pumpkin patch, hayride, market, and other fun activities. It was a great day! I love that we've made this a priority each fall, and it's so fun to compare photos from year to year. Excited for the baby to join in 2020!
3. Fall Festival – Our neighborhood feels a little bit like Stars Hallow from Gilmore Girls, in the best way possible. There's always a monthly calendar with tons of social events to participate in, and October was one of our favorites: the fall festival! The day was a little overcast and chilly, but we still loved the petting zoo, bounce houses, and checking out all the vendors who participated. This community is so cool, and I'm so happy we moved here!
4. Talented Medical Professionals – My son woke up sick one morning, and we thought it was a stomach bug. We knew something wasn't right after a day and headed to the pediatrician. He ordered an ultrasound and then sent us on to a children's hospital in Atlanta. Our son's appendix had ruptured, and he needed surgery. Surgery went well, and he was so incredibly brave during it all! After five days in the hospital, we headed home. I will probably write more about this in the coming weeks. But needless to say, I'm so thankful for our pediatrician, the surgeon, and all of the nurses who took such wonderful care of my son (and us!) during such a scary experience.
Read 14 Books | Favorites:
Serpent and Dove by Shelby Mahurin
The Firebird by Susanna Kearsley
“Our lives reflect our hearts.”
Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin
“Home was complicated, layered. Home was people you loved but also places you knew well
and liked to go to, things you had around you that made you feel safe and comforted.
Home was too much for one person to be to anyone.”
Beginner's Luck by Kate Clayborn
“That’s the truth about making mistakes, about making the wrong choices. You live with them,
and if you’re lucky you get enough perspective to see where you went astray.
You figure out what you can do to repair the damage,
and you figure out how to do better going forward.”
Luck of the Draw by Kate Clayborn
“When I’m with him—walking streets I know with my eyes closed,
sitting on a couch where I’ve sat hundreds of times before—
it feels like something’s changed in the way time moves.
Every second is that second before the runners spring off the block at the start line,
or the second before the bass drops in a song you love.
He makes the whole world sit in that beat of suspended animation.
And every time I’m with him, part of me is always thinking: Please, please, please. Press Play.”
Best of Luck by Kate Clayborn
“When one door closes, another one opens.
I might just have to do a little breaking and entering to get the right one for me.”
Kulti by Mariana Zapata
“I think it’s interesting that you have a thing for the teenage version of me
but you’re not all that fond of the real, adult version.”
Meet Cute by Helena Hunting
“I’m not good with fragile things,” he said. “I’m careless, and I break them, and I lose them, but I…”
He broke off, as though to gain control of some emotion,
and when next he spoke his tone was gentler than she’d ever heard it. “I’d take care of you.”
The Firebird by Susanna Kearsley
“There are times when our victories have a cost that we did not foresee,
when winning brings us loss.”
The Firebird by Susanna Kearsley
Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin
“Home was complicated, layered. Home was people you loved but also places you knew well
and liked to go to, things you had around you that made you feel safe and comforted.
Home was too much for one person to be to anyone.”
Beginner's Luck by Kate Clayborn
“That’s the truth about making mistakes, about making the wrong choices. You live with them,
and if you’re lucky you get enough perspective to see where you went astray.
You figure out what you can do to repair the damage,
and you figure out how to do better going forward.”
Luck of the Draw by Kate Clayborn
“When I’m with him—walking streets I know with my eyes closed,
sitting on a couch where I’ve sat hundreds of times before—
it feels like something’s changed in the way time moves.
Every second is that second before the runners spring off the block at the start line,
or the second before the bass drops in a song you love.
He makes the whole world sit in that beat of suspended animation.
And every time I’m with him, part of me is always thinking: Please, please, please. Press Play.”
Best of Luck by Kate Clayborn
“When one door closes, another one opens.
I might just have to do a little breaking and entering to get the right one for me.”
Kulti by Mariana Zapata
“I think it’s interesting that you have a thing for the teenage version of me
but you’re not all that fond of the real, adult version.”
Meet Cute by Helena Hunting
“I’m not good with fragile things,” he said. “I’m careless, and I break them, and I lose them, but I…”
He broke off, as though to gain control of some emotion,
and when next he spoke his tone was gentler than she’d ever heard it. “I’d take care of you.”
The Firebird by Susanna Kearsley
“There are times when our victories have a cost that we did not foresee,
when winning brings us loss.”
The Firebird by Susanna Kearsley
After a three-month hiatus, I was missing this space. I have complicated feeling about bookstagram, but I can't give up blogging! No matter how many views or visitors I get here, it always feels worth it. And I appreciate every single reader who sticks around during the ebb and flow, especially since consistency is touted as a tenet of success.
In October, I felt my blogging mojo return and realized that I should probably explain where I'd been the past few months. And so, I chatted about my second pregnancy in a personal discussion post. After that one, I shared my June 2019 Recap. I'd hoped to post at least once more, but my son's surgery and hospital stay changed all of that.
Favorite Album: new skin by VÉRITÉ
I don't know if I like this album as much as the previous one, but I still had it on repeat.
My favorite song right now is "gone," followed by "ocean."
Peaky Blinders, Season 5, starring Cillian Murphy, Paul Anderson, Helen McCrory, Sam Claflin and more – Nick and I binged the first four seasons of this show in January, and I've been anxiously awaiting the release of this season. While it wasn't my personal favorite, I still enjoyed it overall. I loved seeing Sam Claflin, as well as the return of a character I didn't expect to see again. These characters are so self destructive, but dang if it isn't great to watch.
The Good Place, Season 3, starring Ted Danson, Kristen Bell, Jameela Jamil, William Jackson Harper, Manny Jacinto, and D'Arcy Carden – This was another show we started to binge in January! We didn't like it enough to want to watch week-to-week, so we just waited for the third season to hit Netflix. It's still a little too ridiculous for us, but it was a nice change of pace after the heaviness of Peaky Blinders. I look forward to season four!
Downton Abbey (2019) starring Maggie Smith, Michelle Dockery, Hugh Bonneville, and more – I couldn't contain my excitement when the movie was announced! I went to see it with my parents, who were also fans of the show, and we were in agreement: this movie didn't need to exist. Many others feel differently, but I didn't like it at all. It was so cheesy and scattered! We kept making eye contact in the theater and suppressing laughter.
Going Out of Business Sale: For the Love of Discipline by Sara Wallace, Grumpy Mom Takes a Holiday by Valerie Woerner, Memory-Making Mom by Jessica Smartt, The Ministry of Ordinary Places by Shannan Martin, Finding Holy in the Suburbs by Ashley Hales, and Mercy Like Morning by Jane Johnson
Book Outlet Haul: The Story Girl by L.M. Montgomery, Empress of the Seven Hills by Kate Quinn, The Long-Lost Home by Maryrose Wood, The Problim Children by Natalie Lloyd, and Sorcery of Thorns and An Enchantment of Ravens by Margaret Rogerson
Used Books: From Twinkle, With Love and There's Something about Sweetie by Sandhya Menon, Lies Jane Austen Told Me by Julie Wright, Winter Solstice, September and Coming Home by Rosamund Pilcher, Someone to Honor by Mary Balogh, Project Duchess by Sabrina Jeffries, and The Season by Sarah MacLean
Gifted: The Golden Road and Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery, Lady of the Eternal City by Kate Quinn, and The Boy, The Mole, The Fox and The Horse by Charlie Mackesy
It looks like October was an utterly delightful month (save for the way it ended, and I'm seriously glad that everything turned out okay and you had a great team of professionals taking care of your son). I'm glad you enjoyed fall and all the festivities prior to that!
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