2017 by the books

1. Linda Sue Park - A Long Walk to Water *****
2. Ken Ilgunas - Walden on Wheels *****
3. Alan Bradley - Thrice the Brinded Cat Hath Mew'd *****
4. Gary Taubes - The Case Against Sugar *****
5. Gretchen Ruben - Better than Before *****
6. Tom Foreman - My Year of Running Dangerously *****
7. Haruki Murakami - What I Talk About When I Talk About Running ***
8. Chris Cleave - Everyone Brave is Forgiven *****
9. Joshua Fields Millburn - Everything That Remains *****
10. Maria Semple - Where'd You Go Bernadette *****
11. Xavier Amador - I'm not sick I don't need help ****
12. Sylvia Boorstein - Happiness is an inside job ****

13. Kazuo Ishiguro - The buried giant **

14. Brene Brown - Daring greatly *
15. Malcom Gladwell - Outliers ****
16. Elan Mastai - All Our Wrong Todays ***
17. Ryan Holiday - The Obstacle is the Way ***

18. Mark Manson - the Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck *****
19. Helen Russell - The Year of Living Danishly *****
20. Dallas Hartwig - It Starts with Food *****
21. Melissa Hartwig - Food Freedom Forever *****

22. JD Vance - Hillbilly Elegy *****
23. Garth Stein - The Art of Racing in the Rain *****
24. Andie Mitchell - It was Me All Along *****
25. Lodro Rinzler - The Buddha Walks Into a Bar ****
26. Rob Bell - How to Be Here *****
27. Kim Payne - Simplicity Parenting ****
28. Joshua Becker - The More of Less *****
29. Larry Olmsted - Real Food, Fake Food *****
30. Andy Andrews - The Traveler's Gift *****
31. Angie Thomas - The Hate U Give *****
32. Ann Brashares - The Whole Thing Together *****
33. Charlotte Cho - The Little Book Of Skin Care *****
34.  Joan Chittister - Following the Path *****
35. Joe Biden - Promises to Keep *****
36. Hillary Clinton - What Happened *****
37. Cheryl Strayed - Brave Enough *****
38. Liz Wolfe - Eat the Yolks *****

2016 By the Book

2016's list of books.  This is probably the least number of books I've accomplished in a year, but to be fair I did read my way through all of the Game of Thrones books which is no small feat.  I also fell in love with quite a few podcasts over the year.  Some of my favorites are Spartan Up, The Happy Hour with Jamie Ivey, Happier with Gretchen Rubin, Stuff Mom Never Told You, and Human Race.



1. Bryan Stevenson - Just Mercy *****

2. Adriana Trigiani - All the Stars in the Heavens *****
3. Paula Hawkins - The Girl on the Train *****
4. George RR Martin - A Game of Thrones *****
5. Pope Francis - The Name of God is Mercy ****

6. Ben Goldacre - Bad Science ***
7. Suzie Favor Hamilton - Fast Girl *****

8. Augusten Burroughs - Possible Side Effects *

9. Yann Martel - The High Mountains of Portugal ***
10. George RR Martin - A Clash of Kings *****
11. George RR Martin - A Storm of Swords *****
12. Paul Kalanithi - When Breath Becomes Air *****

13. Bill Bryson - the Road to Little Dribbling ****

14. Marie Kondo - Spark Joy *****

15. Anita Renfroe - Don't Say I didn't warn you **

16. Diana Abu-Jaber - life without a recipe **
17. Christopher McDougall- Natural Born Heroes ****
18. George RR Martin - A Feast for Crows *****
19. Drema Hall Berkheimer - Running on Red Dog Road *****
20. Erik Larson - The Devil in the White City **

21. Phil Knight - Shoe dog *****

22. Annie Proulx - Brokeback Mountain ****
23. Ryan Holiday - The Obstacle is the Way *****
24. John Parker - Racing the Rain ***
25. Brigid Pasulka - A long, long time ago and essentially true *****
25. Jojo Moyes - Me Before You *****

26. Ron Fournier - Love That Boy *****
27. George RR Martin - A Dance With Dragons *****
28. Shauna Niequist - Present Over Perfect *****
29. Mary Mann Hamilton - Trials of the Earth ***
30.Hope Jahren - Lab Girl ****
31. Rich Roll - Finding Ultra *****
32. Amy Robach - Better *****
33. Jojo Moyes - After You *****
34. Anna Kendrick - Scrappy Little Nobody *****

So what have you been enjoying lately?

Last year's list: here

first days

Time for another school year to begin.  This mama is actually looking forward to getting back into a weekly routine with regular bedtimes.  

The girlchild is starting her last year at elementary school.  She's got a fantastic teacher and they will be learning Nevada History this year.

Burrito got the teacher he wished for but none of his best buddies.  The good news is there is still recess and a chance to make new friends too.  p.s. don't let Bob's face fool you...he's wicked excited about school.  Just thinks he's too cool to smile for mama.

As for me, I'm patiently waiting to hear how the first day went and hoping the kids love their first day of school presents I left on their beds this morning!

2014 By the Books

Currently there are 8 library books sitting on my bedside table.  I just need a free weekend to catch up on my stack.

This year, a lot of non-fiction cycled through my hands.  The Remedy, The Meat Racket, Adrift, Dethroning the King, Everybody's Got Something....all come with my highest recommendations.

The star rankings are my own, I didn't get much book reviewing done this year but you can tell from the 1-5 scale how I felt about each book.

Which leads me to the natural question....Have you read any good books lately?


1. Pittacus Lore - The Rise of Nine *****
2. Cassandra Clare - City of Fallen Angels *****
3. Cassandra Clare - City of Lost Souls *****
4. Jeannette Walls - Silver Star *****
5. Ernest Hemingway - The Old Man and the Sea***
6. Cassandra Clare - Clockwork Angel ****
7. Veronica Roth - Divergent *****
8. Cassandra Clare - Clockwork Prince ****
9. Cassandra Clare - Clockwork Princess ****
10. Ron Rash - Serena *****
11. Orson Scott Card - Rebekah *****
12. JRR Tolkien - The Silmarillion Vol 1 ***
13. Diane Setterfield - The Thirteenth Tale *****
14. Robert Hicks - A Separate Country ****
15. Veronica Roth - Insurgent ***
16. Veronica Roth - Allegiant ***
17. Jeff Olson - The Slight Edge *****
18. Malcolm Gladwell - Outliers ****
19. Kirby Larson - Hattie Big Sky *****
20. JRR Tolkien - The Silmarillion Vol 2 ***
21. Ernest Hemingway - To Have and Have Not **
22. Daniel James Brown - The Boys in the Boat ***
23. Brunonia Barry - The Lace Reader *****
24. Ernest Hemingway - For Whom the Bell Tolls *
25. Matthew Quick - The Good Luck of Right Now **
26. Julie Macintosh - Dethroning the King *****
27. Daniel Gilbert - Stumbling on  Happiness ***
28. Robert Edsel - The Monuments Men ****
29. Robin Roberts - From the Heart *****
30. Alan Bradley - The Dead in Their Vaulted Arches *****
31. Ali Wentworth - Ali in Wonderland ***
32. Christopher Moore - The Stupidest Angel *
33. B. J. Novak - One More Thing *
34. Jim Gaffigan - Dad is Fat *****
35. Paulo Coelho - Manuscript found in Accra ****
36. Ruth Ozeki - A Tale for the Time Being *
37. Ransom Riggs - Mrs. Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children ****
38. Mary Karr - The Liars' Club **
39. Rob Lowe - Stories I only Tell My Friends **
40. Juliet Schor - The Overspent American ***
41. Napoleon Hill - Think and Grow Rich ***
42. Dave Bruno - The 100 Thing Challenge *****
43. Rachel Joyce - The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry *****
44. Shawn Achor - The Happiness Advantage *****
45. Elizabeth Smart - My Story *****
46. Helene Wecker - The Golem and the Jinni ***
47. Michael Morpurgo - War Horse ****
48. Gabriel Garcia Marquez - Love in the Time of Cholera ***
49. Leif Enger - Peace Like a River ****
50. Lauren Graham - Someday, Someday, Maybe ****
51. Ridley Pearson - Kingdom Keepers ***
52. Ben Haas - Look Away, Look Away ***
53. Maggie Stiefvater - Sinner *****
54. Justin Halpern - I Suck at Girls ****
55. Joe de Sena - Spartan Up *****
56. Tom Ryan - Following Atticus *****
57. Terry McMillan - Who Asked You? *****
58. Brian Jacques - Redwall ****
59. Solomon Northup - Twelve Years a Slave ****
60. Thomas Goetz - The Remedy *****
61. Thomas Stanley - The Millionaire Next Door *****
62. David Roberts - Alone on the Ice **
63. Lev Grossman - The Magicians ***
64. Tara Conklin - The House Girl ****
65. Cassandra Clare - City of Heavenly Fire ****
66. Amy Bloom - Lucky Us *****
67. E. Lockhart - We Were Liars *****
68. Steven Callahan - Adrift *****
69. Robin Roberts - Everybody's Got Something *****
70. Jacqueline Winspear - The Care and Management of Lies *****
71. Paulo Coelho - Adultery **
72. Robert Kurson - Shadow Divers *****
72. Adam Corolla - Not Taco Bell Material **
73. Lucinda Vardey - Mother Teresa A Simple Path *****
74. Nancy Horan - Under the Wide and Starry Sky *****
75. Jordan Belfort - Wolf of Wall Street **
76. Sue Monk Kidd - The Invention of Wings *****
77. Ben Sherwood - The Survivor's Club *****
78. Christopher Leonard - The Meat Racket *****
79. Margaret Atwood - The Handmaid's Tale ****
80. Beth Macy - Factory Man ****
81. Amy Poehler - Yes Please *****
82. Bill Nye - Undeniable **
83. James Herriot - Favorite Dog Stories *****
84. Ernest Hemingway - A Moveable Feast **

Last year's reading list

A New Year

4-H end of the year awards banquet

Changing some things up this year, hoping for a strong and productive year as the leader of the Dog club and the girlchild has signed up for rabbit club.  First item on the agenda, find a baby rabbit.

This will be a learning experience for all of us!

chugging away

Now that all the clocks have been turned back for winter, I find myself out of daylight to run sprints after work.  You will find me bright and early on Sunday mornings at the track...still chipping away at my new year's resolutions.

Four seconds and 7 weeks to get my mile time under 7 minutes....

Happy Weekend

I am absolutely in love with this race picture from the Color Me Rad run last weekend.  

That Boy

That backward glance

Those hands clasped tightly together

My world right there