TGIF!

Yay! A week where I did not travel! I guess the good thing about traveling is that it makes me really, really appreciate the weeks that I don't travel! 

A book I am reading this week is ‘Forgotten on Sunday' by Valerie Perrin. This is a French novel that was translated into English with dual story lines. It's mostly set in a nursing home and is told from a 19-year old nursing assistant who really gets to know her patients. The other story line is a flashback of one of the residents who is in her 90s. I'm enjoying it so far. It is very much character-driven, though, so don't read if you need plot. 

The high of my week was just being home! It's nice to see my family, have complete control over what I am eating each day, and sleep in my own bed. 

The low of my week a situation where Paul was treated poorly by some other kids at the after-school program. The staff handled it really well so hopefully it's a very isolated incident that doesn't happen again.

For workouts I ran 3 miles on Monday and plan to run tomorrow morning. I wasn't able to fit another run in but I have been getting my 10+ minute walks in as part of the walking club that Elisabeth is hosting!

On Wednesday night, Taco and I went for a walk/scoot to look at Halloween decoration. Pumpkins are his favorite decoration!

A show we watched was the finale of the latest season of Alone which is a wilderness survival show. We also watch the competition part of Survivor with Paul on Wednesday night and I watched the first episode of the new season of the Great British Baking Show! 

The best money spent was on Paul's school photos! He's such a photogenic little guy!

My plans this weekend include laying low tonight as usual. Tomorrow morning we'll probably hit up the library after my run. In the afternoon we're going to the home of a friend that lives on a lake. Phil will help take their docks out. Sunday is the marathon so we will be spectating around mile 9. My colleague has been under the weather with a cold so I hope that doesn't impact him too much! The weather forecast has really improved and it should be pretty cool, albeit a bit windy.

How was your week?

What We Read in September

September was such a blur that had you asked me what I read during the month, I couldn't have told you without looking at my goodreads account. That is often the case but was especially the case last month since I traveled so much! Overall, the month was "just ok" in terms of my reading. I read 6 books, bringing the number of books read in 2024 to 74. Here is how my reading shook out. 

Good to great

You, with a view is a romance that was recommended by Stephany. It's about a granddaughter that discovered that her grandma had some secrets in her past that she doesn't learn about until her grandma has passed away. The book involves a road trip which made it extra enjoyable for me. The Guncle Abroad is a sequel to The Guncle which is a book I absolutely adored. I enjoyed being back with these characters but didn't like it as much as the first. After loving Rufi Thorpe's latest book, Margot's Got Money Troubles, I decided to read some of her back list and started with The Knockout Queen. It's a coming-of-age story about 2 teens that live next door to each other. I love that Thorpe's characters are so very "voicy." How We Named the Stars is a book I heard about on Sarah's Bookshelves Live. It's an owned voices coming-of-age story about 2 college roommates that are discovering who they are/their sexuality. Humor Me is the sophomore novel from Cat Shook. This one features a protagonist that works on an SNL-type of late night show. I enjoyed it while reading it but had to remind myself what it was about when reflecting back on my month's reading. 

Did not work 

I was drawn to read Absolution as it was about a group of expatriate wives living in Vietnam with their husbands/families in the early 60s when the conflict in Vietnam was escalating. I usually love character-driven novels but this one just did not work for me at all.

The boys' reading

We pulled out our fall books which Paul seems to have sadly outgrown. :( But Taco has really been enjoying them, especially Room on the Broom and Pumpkin Soup.

Paul has mostly been reading Wimpy Kid books. We are reading The Getaway together which is about a family vacation gone wrong. He also likes to re-read the various Dog Man books we own over and over and over so we are really getting our moneys worth on those books!!

Did you read anything great in September?