What I've been reading in 2014...

Thanks to the kindle app on my smart phone, read.amazon.com, and my original kindle... I've been reading a lot more these past few years... I thought I'd share what I've currently read in 2014. There's no rhyme or reason to the books on this list. I have a lot of different interests in both fiction and non-fiction. I'm extremely interested in different religious/denominational/spiritual experiences and memoirs. And I love the Harry Potter series and A Series of Unfortunate Events books by Lemony Snickett.  I also love reading cookbooks, and re-reading juvenile adult (JA) books from my teenage years. What have you read this year? What to do plan to read before the year is over?

I generally read 4-5 books at a time, depending on my mood, time of day, etc...

You can find all these books by searching via name and author on Amazon if you're interested.

What I've read so far in 2014:

• $1 Per Pound Grocery Shopping by Mary Frances Pickett
• A Year of Biblical Womanhood by Rachel Held Evans
• Abducted by T.R. Ragan
• A Series of Unfortunate Events (entire series) by Lemony Snickett
• All Things Bright & Beautiful by James Herriot
• Call the Midwife by Jennifer Worth
• Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl
• Clark Howard's Living Large in Lean Times by Clark Howard
• Crazy, VA by Shannon Hill
• Danny the Champion of the World by Roald Dahl
• Daring Greatly by Brene Brown
• Daughters of Zion by Kim Taylor
• Deviation by P.D. Workman
• Dicey's Song by Cynthia Voight
• Divergent by Veronica Roth
• Escape by Carolyn Jessop
• Fortunately, the Milk by Neil Gaiman
• George's Marvelous Medicine by Roald Dahl
• Happy(ish) by Cara Trautman
• Homecoming by Cynthia Voight
• Let's Pretend This Never Happened by Jenny Lawson
• Love Times Three by the Darger Family
• Lyddie by Katherine Peterson
• Murder Shoots the Bull by Anne George
• One for the Money by Janet Evanovich (and following books in the series, I'm up to 14 currently...)
• Orange is the New Black by Piper Kerman
• Radical Frugality by Nic Adams
• Sarah Plain & Tall by Patricia MacLachlan
• Shattered Dreams Restored by Irene Spencer
• Shattered Dreams by Irene Spencer
• Soup & Bread Cookbook by Martha Bayne
• The Anti-Inflammation Diet & Recipe Book by Jessica Black
• The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith (aka J.K. Rowling)
• The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
• The Great Gilly Hopkins by Katherine Paterson
• The Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling (I read these at least once a year, if not several times a year!)
• The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart
• The Pinballs by Betsy Byars
• The Tao of Paleo by Michelle Connelly
• The Twits by Roald Dahl
• The Walking Dead #1 by Robert Kirkman
• Tiger Eyes by Judy Blume

What I'm currently reading:

• Buddism for Busy People by David Mitchie
• Mormonism for Dummies by Jana Riess and Christopher Kimball Bigelow
• Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J. K. Rowling
• A Study in Scarlett by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
• Pills and Starships by Lydia Millet -- Gave up after 5-6 chapters, too depressing (dystopian, about the future, etc... we're doomed folks... lol)
• Fearless Fourteen by Janet Evanovich

9 Things That Make Me Feel Happy & Calm My Spirit

photo by Michael Forbes -  June 2013

1)     Listening to spiritual and/or inspirational acoustic music

Little in this world can change my mood like music can. Finding music that can reach your deepest, darkest places is pivotal. Figure out what is meaningful for your body and spirit. Whether it's hip hop, classical, death metal (my husband!), country, pop, celtic, kid's songs, christmas music... whatever genre it is, use it to help you feel better on rough days. 

2)     Going to the drug store and spending an hour reading funny birthday cards

There are always days when finding joy is hard. Simply going to the store and reading silly, funny, knee-slaping cards can ALWAYS bring a smile to my face. My husband and I often make a point of visiting the card aisle when we go grocery shopping. 

3)     Writing a real note and snail-mailing it to a friend

Because everyone, I mean EVERYONE, appreciates small hand-written notes. Whether it's a brief sentence or a full letter, you are sharing a small part of your day with someone else. It's an offering of love both to you and from you. 

4)     Slowly walking to my car in the hot, hot sunshine after spending all day in an overly air-conditioned office.

Learning to notice abundance, even in small, "everyday" things like the warmth of the sun is a priceless gift. Once you start noticing the gifts around you, others will notice them as well. Abundance is everywhere. 

5)     Reading the website: "What Money Cannot Buy"

The little things in life are truly the most valuable. When we learn to enjoy the smallest of blessings (finding a fork in my drawer at work during lunch time, when I thought I was completely out of utensils!), it makes the big blessings seem even bigger, and gives every single day endless possibilities. 

6)     Taking a LONG hot shower

The power of water can be unimaginably refreshing and rejuvenating. Soaking in hot water eases muscle tension, clears nasal sinus passages naturally (oh to breathe in allergy season!), and can clear your mind. 

7)     Making Michael an unexpected cup of hot chocolate or a batch of his favorite chocolate chip cookies.... just because

Doing small things for those who love us, especially on days when life seems blue, can be uplifting and energizing. Love the people who love you. Even when you don't feel like it. It can make a world of difference. 

8)     Baking bread or making cupcakes for other people... just because

I've always enjoyed baking and sometimes I just need the rhythmic physical-feel of baking bread or making cupcakes. Often, I don't even want to eat them, I just enjoy the act of making them. (However, don't leave me alone with a fresh loaf of bread and butter...) Sometimes, even for someone like me who rarely enjoys anything "physical fitness" related, the "physical-ness" of making something like cupcakes or bread is soothing and brings me a lot of joy. 

9)     Watching incredibly cheesy, happy-ending inspirational movies on Netflix

Need to watch something mindless, yet happy & heartwarming? Check out the inspirational movies on Netflix. Seriously, sometimes we just need to remember there ARE happy endings and not all pets die at the end of movies! Laughing at cheesy dialogue is also ridiculously fun!

What are things that make you happy & calm your spirit?? I'd love to how others relax and find peace!

So we went camping this weekend...

It rained... A LOT....

Needless to say it was a very short camping trip!

Have any of your plans been rained out lately?? Did you do something fun anyway?

Before we decided to leave the campground on Saturday morning, we were able to use a small table top grill for dinner on Friday night. We grilled all-beef hotdogs, fresh corn on the cob, and of course marshmallows! It was delicious and simple and still fun despite being surrounded by water on all sides!

I hope to post more in the next few weeks. I've been on a blogging/social media hiatus of sorts and it always seems hard for me to get back in the swing of things when I've taken a break.

Here's hoping your summer hasn't been quite as rainy as ours! (On the good side, we are in NO danger of a drought this year!)

new year, new you, canned beef stew...

Because today started out with a migraine... day two (no headache remedy tips necessary, trust me, I've tried them all).

Because it wasn't gluten. Really, it wasn't. It was just a migraine.

Means I didn't pack lunch for my first day back at work. But I had these little Hormel Beef Stew containers in my desk drawer at lunch.

And they are gluten-free. Yes. They really are. I called the company. Ignore the sodium content, you don't want to know.

You're Welcome Tip: Make sure to heat the stew up in A LARGER container in the microwave, like my favorite multi-use pottery bowl/mug and cover with a paper towel.

Otherwise the small container will explode (my guess as to why they sold it at the dollar store) and you'll have to clean that up. At work. And it WILL smell up your office ALL day long.

But really, it's a pretty decent lunch for 150 gluten-free calories.

Thanks Dinty Moore beef stew (in a different container)... I don't get it either... just go with it.

I KNOW... I'll have a green smoothie when I get home to make up for it... but really gluten-free convenience, especially when you have a migraine is pretty awesome stuff.