10 Books to Read This Summer

I adore reading books.  Reading is in my blood.  My mom read to me as a kid and took me to our public library.  I would shove my pillow in the crack at the bottom of my door so I could keep my light on and read when I was supposed to be sleeping as a kid.  I worked at my local public library in high school and college.  When I was a teacher, my most favorite part of the day was during our read aloud time.  I went on to teach middle school reading.  I still read every single night before I go to bed.  Like I said, I adore reading.  The only thing better than finding a good book to read is to tell someone else about it so they can enjoy it too.  

I check out the majority of the books I read from my local public library.  If I do end up buying a book, I try to find it at a local bookshop or buy it through bookshop.org, which is an online bookstore that supports local bookstores.  

So here are a few books to add to your summer reading list: 

Ways the World Could End by Kim Hooper

A husband loses his wife and turns to doomsday prepping to fill his time.  A daughter loses her mother and is struggling to find herself.  Despite its depressing set up and title, it's actually incredibly heartwarming.

    

No Hiding in Boise by Kim Hooper

This book is centered around a shooting that happens at a bar and is told from several different perspectives.  It really touches on the humanity that connects us all.  

The Good Sister by Sally Hepworth 

This is a thriller of sorts told from two different points of view that keep you guessing the whole time.  Fern relies on her sister Rose to help keep her life neatly-ordered.  Rose is struggling to get pregnant.  Fern sees a way to help Rose realize her dream of having a baby.  Which one ends up being the good sister?   

Consumed by Aja Barber

This is an eye-opening nonfiction book that pulls back the curtain on the fast fashion industry.  The author helps the reader understand how colonialism, climate change and consumerism all intersect and the role we as consumers play in the whole mess.  What I love most is that the author also gives specific, actionable steps we can all take to combat the fast fashion industry.  Despite being a heavy topic, the author presents it in a way that's interesting. 

Everyone In This Room Will Someday Be Dead by Emily Austin

An atheist lesbian winds up working as a receptionist at a Catholic church.  The previous receptionist was murdered and the new receptionist tries to figure out what happened.  I love how this charming book tries to point out that we're all more similar that we might believe. 

Clean by James Hamblin

This nonfiction book looks at our obsession with being "clean."  The author interviews dermatologists, allergists, beauty industry experts and also explains about our skin microbiome.  What could be an incredibly boring topic is actually very intriguing.  After reading it, I certainly feel better about my minimal skincare routine! 

   

Meet Me in the Margins by Melissa Ferguson

If you are looking for a sweet, wholesome romance set in the book publishing world, here it is!

The Jetsetters by Amanda Eyre Ward 

A mom wins a trip on a cruise ship and brings along her three adult children.  Family drama and antics ensue.  This was a funny, enjoyable read! 

We Are Not Like Them by Christine Pride & Jo Piazza

Riley is a Black television journalist.  Jen is white and married to a police officer involved in the shooting of an unarmed Black teenager.  Riley and Jen are best friends.  This novel is told from both of their perspectives and it's powerful.

Goodbye, Vitamin by Rachel Khong

Ruth returns to her parents' home when her father starts to suffer from dementia.  While it seems like it might be a depressing book, it's actually pretty funny and heartwarming.  Plus, the author's writing style really drew me in. 

Now it's your turn!  Give me your book suggestions please! 

My Home Composting Experience

When I first started trying to increase my sustainability efforts, composting was something that kept coming up.  I had heard about it, but didn't really know much about it.  I now understand composting is basically recycling organic matter (think food scraps and yard waste) into soil.  According to the EPA, "Food scraps and yard waste together currently make up more than 30 percent of what we throw away, and could be composted instead.  Making compost keeps these materials out of landfills where they take up space and release methane, a potent greenhouse gas."*  That's a really large percentage of stuff that could literally be prevented from ever going into the landfill!

After doing some very basic research, I decided to just go for it and learn along the way.  In January of 2020 I convinced Adam to put what's considered a digester in our backyard.  A digester is essentially an enclosed compost bin.  (Here's a link to a tutorial you can use to make one of your own.)  I decided an enclosed compost bin was best for our situation.  We still had our sweet dog Jazzy and she loved to eat any and all food.  So we wanted to keep all those food scraps contained and away from her.  Plus, Archer and Lyla were younger and like to explore everything.  We also have lots of bunnies and chipmunks and squirrels and probably other critters I don't care to know about hanging around our yard.  The idea of a compost bin that wouldn't encourage more critters was very appealing.  So we got a garbage bin, drilled holes in the bottom and sides, dug a hole and stuck in the bin!  It was simple and didn't take too much time.  

Once we had our bin in place, we added just a bit of dirt to get things set up.  Then I did some more research to determine what exactly we could put in our compost bin.  You want to have a fairly even mix of green matter and brown matter.  Green matter includes things like fruit and vegetable scraps and grass clippings.  Brown matter includes things like cardboard, twigs and dead leaves.  The EPA's website has a good list of items to get you started.  Here's a list of some of the things we compost: fruit and vegetable scraps (think watermelon rinds, apple cores, potato peels), dead flowers, wine corks (make sure they are actually cork and not plastic), hair trimmings, toothpicks, cardboard, eggshells, parchment paper (make sure it says 'home compostable' on the the box- we use the 'If You Care' brand) and floss (again, make sure it says 'home compostable.')  Some things definitely break down faster than others.  The smaller you break down the items to begin with, the quicker they will break down into compost.  So instead of throwing in a whole cardboard box, rip it up first.  And smush up eggshells instead of throwing them in whole.  You get the picture.  Oh, and remember to remove any stickers from your produce before putting them in your compost bin since they won't break down. 

One thing that has been helpful is keeping a bowl in our freezer for all of our food scraps.  This keeps food from smelling and freezing it first actually helps it break down faster.  It also prevents me from having to go outside anytime I end up with an apple core.  I just toss things in there and then take the bowl outside when it gets filled up.  I might just be weird, but it brings me a nice sense of satisfaction each time I empty a bowl of scraps into our compost bin.   

I was a bit overwhelmed when we first started composting.  I think I checked Google before composting anything because I was worried I would do it wrong.  But composting isn't an exact science.  Even if you don't have an exactly equal amount of green and brown matter, it will still break down.  And after doing it for two years, it's become second nature.  Whenever we go on vacation or visit family that doesn't compost, I feel incredibly weird throwing away banana peels in the trash.  Archer and Lyla even have a pretty good sense of what to stick in the freezer versus the recycling bin or the trash.

Another piece of the composting puzzle is to regularly turn it.  Every once in awhile, when I bring out a bowl of scraps, I will grab a shovel from the shed and stir up all the contents of the compost bin.  Since our bins are buried in the ground, water seeps in the sides and we don't really have to add any water.  If you have a compost bin that's above ground, it's a good idea to give it a spritz of water every once in awhile to help it decompose.  

After composting for about two years, we realized our bin was getting pretty full.  Things were definitely decomposing, but we kept adding in new stuff.  Since it was January, we weren't ready to use it in our garden.  So we decided to add a second bin.  That way, we could stop adding stuff to the first bin and let that totally decompose so it would be ready to use in our garden when we planted it in May.  Looking back, we probably should have added two bins to begin with.  But we figured it out eventually.  

So this past May, I got to add our first batch of compost to our little raised garden.  It was pretty amazing that all those food scraps and cardboard somehow turned into soil!  We had enough to give our whole garden a good layer of compost. 

And look at how happy my garden is!  It is thriving this year and I truly think the compost made all the difference.  I planted lettuce and tomatoes this year.  We enjoyed lettuce throughout June and even had extra to share with our neighbors.     

We've had a few cherry tomatoes ripen so far and they are delicious.  I'm looking forward to even more throughout July and August.  We planted mint way back in 2016 and it comes up every year even though I rip it out continuously throughout the year.  We also had a few volunteer plants pop up this year.  They appear to be vines, so it will be fun to see what we end up with.  Could be pumpkins or cucumbers or watermelon, who knows?! 

With our two compost bins being so successful, we decided to add another compost setup strictly for our yard waste.  Adam got the idea from our neighbor who has a similar setup.  Our neighbor even shared some supplies with us.  (We are truly lucky to have so many sweet neighbors.)  The plan is to put all the sticks we pick up from the yard, along with leaves in the fall and plant trimmings into these bins.  It's divided into three sections.  The first section is where we add stuff to begin with.  Once it starts to break down, we add it to the next section.  Once it's fully broken down and ready to be used as compost, we'll keep it in the third section.  With this system, we'll be able to completely eliminate the need for curbside yard waste pick up.  Plus, we'll end up with more compost for our garden and flower beds around the yard.  

So now I just toss all those random sticks and flowers that I've deadheaded into the first section.  When I'm watering the garden, I give the setup a spritz of water to help things break down a bit more since it's above ground.  I'm so glad Adam came up with this idea.  When we were visiting my parents this past weekend, we had some corn on the cob.  Adam asked if he could bring home the husks for our compost bin and I've never been more in love.  Just kidding, but I do love how he's hopped on board this sustainability train with me.       

Composting has allowed me to reduce our household waste by a lot!  We end up with one trash bag each week and usually it's not even full.  It has also helped our little garden grow.  And I'm so happy this is one small thing I can do to help our planet.  I hope you'll consider giving composting a try!  I'm always here to answer any questions.  

*https://www.epa.gov/recycle/composting-home

A Family-Friendly Trip to Bentonville, AR

Back in May, we took a family-friendly trip to Bentonville, Arkansas.  We chose Bentonville because it was a relatively short three-hour drive, had lots of outdoor activities available and was a place we hadn't visited before.  I'm happy to report it was a fun trip for our entire family!  

We left on a Thursday morning and planned a few stops along the way to help break up the drive.  We packed a quick lunch of PB&J sandwiches and found a random park to stop at along the way.  (I'm pretty sure we are some of the last people still wearing masks in public indoor spaces.  Knock on wood, Adam, Archer, Lyla and myself have not gotten Covid and we'd like to keep it that way until the kids are fully vaccinated.  So we've opted to find restaurants with outdoor seating, which can be tricky sometimes.)  

Our next stop after lunch was Old Redings Mill Bridge in Joplin, Missouri.  It featured some pretty scenery and had a trail we walked on for a bit to stretch our legs.  I'm not sure it would be a place I would travel to just to see on its own, but it was the perfect pit stop to break up our time in the car.    

After driving for a bit more, we found a Braum's drive-thru to get some ice cream.  Adam has a fondness for their frozen yogurt so whenever we're in an area that has Braum's, we have to make a stop.  Archer, Lyla and I certainly didn't mind stopping for ice cream! 

After our tasty treat, we stopped at Tanyard Creek Nature Trail in Bella Vista, Arkansas.  It was absolutely gorgeous!  There was a really pretty trail that led to a waterfall!  We all enjoyed the views and Archer and Lyla enjoyed not smiling or looking at the camera at the same time.  In fact, that seemed to be a recurring theme throughout most of our adventures.   

 

Following our waterfall adventure, we made it to our hotel.  We stayed at the Embassy Suites in Bentonville, which worked out really well for our family.  We tend to pick Embassy Suites when we travel because the rooms are bigger, they usually have an indoor pool and they have breakfast included.  In fact, I think Archer and Lyla might have enjoyed the hotel the most out of everything from our trip.  They were big fans of riding the elevator and loved watching cable cartoons.

Thursday evening we ate at Grub's Bar & Grille.  It had decent food, was close enough to the hotel to walk to and had outdoor seating.  

The next morning, Friday, we stopped by Onyx Coffee Lab after enjoying our free hotel breakfast.  While I'm not a coffee drinker, Adam is and he said this might be his favorite coffee shop of all time.  I can also offer high compliments for their hot chocolate, while Archer and Lyla can praise the macaroons.  They also had the most adorable outdoor seating area.  Downtown Bentonville is very dog-friendly, so we all enjoyed watching all the cute dogs walk by in addition to enjoying our treats.    

Next, we walked around their little downtown area called The Square.  There were restaurants and cute shops, along with the Walmart Museum.  We didn't visit the Walmart Museum, but we did head to the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art. 

The weather was nice and sunny on Friday, so we decided to enjoy the outdoor spaces at Crystal Bridges.  There were lots of different paths you could take with sculptures to view along the way.  This sculpture was giving us major Stranger Things vibes!  

Following the museum, we enjoyed lunch at Bentonville Brewing Company.  This was a fun place to eat and drink.  We enjoyed their covered patio and beverages.  They even had a little area for the kids to ride some balance bikes.  

While we were driving around, the kids noticed a park along the way.  Since this was their vacation too, we decided to stop by the park after taking a rest at the hotel.  Osage Park has lots of walking trails, a lake, pickleball courts, an archery range and a dog park.  Of course there was playground equipment too, which Archer and Lyla loved climbing on.  

Coming to Osage Park was a bit of a happy accident.  Right next to the playground was Thaden Field, which is a small airport.  They had a restaurant (LOUISE) which featured patio seating right next to the runway.  So we got to enjoy a meal and watch a few planes land and take off!  It was a really fun dining experience and the food was delicious too.    

We started the following Saturday morning much like the previous morning.  Our first adventure was another visit to Onyx Coffee Lab.  The weather was looking a bit gloomy, but we managed to enjoy some drinks and snacks without getting rained on.  As we were heading back to the car, it started to rain.  We decided to head back to the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art to check out the indoor exhibits since we only made it to the outdoor spaces the previous day.  There was lots to take in and they even had a cute little art studio for kids to create some artwork.  

Lunch proved to be a bit tricky on Saturday.  Since it was raining, we had a tough time finding somewhere with covered outdoor seating.  We ended up back at Bentonville Brewing Company.  We all enjoyed it just as much as the other visit.  

Our last stop of the day was the Amazeum, which is a children's museum/indoor play area with lots of hands-on activities.  It was super busy and more than a bit chaotic.  But the kids enjoyed themselves and had fun exploring all the place had to offer.  

Sunday was our last day in Bentonville and we ended up at Onyx Coffee Lab, once again.  Did I mention Adam said this was his favorite coffee place ever?  We started heading home afterwards, but did make one stop on the way home at Shoal Creek Falls.  We enjoyed stretching our legs and breaking up the car ride a bit.  The kids loved tossing rocks in the water, while Adam and I kept grabbing their jackets to keep them from tumbling into the water.  

All in all it was a fun getaway!  We got to see Archer and Lyla experience some new things.  We got to enjoy some beautiful scenery.  And we got to spend time together as a family.