Thursday, November 3, 2022

What I Read: October

I love to read creepy books and thrillers in October. I ended up accidentally getting 3 books in a row where the main character was a woman who witnessed a crime but no one believed her because she was considered a hysterical woman. That storyline was super frustrating for me and I liked the first book but the next two were stinkers for me. I think that storyline was okay but not so many in a row!


Reading on the porch together!

Book:

  • Inquiry Mindset: Nurturing the Dreams, Wonders, and Curiosities of Our Youngest Learners by Trevor MacKenzie and Rebecca Bathurst Hunt- I did a training in the spring where we listened to different speakers through an online website. I loved MacKenzie's presentation so I ordered a couple of his books. I decided to read this one first and use it to plan out my PLF for the year. I got really excited reading it and came up with lots of ideas and ways to incorporate some of the ideas into my classroom.
  • Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt- This is one of those classic children's books that I had never read. We picked it up at Goodwill and the kids picked it as our bedtime read aloud. I wasn't impressed. I didn't like it very much and neither of the kids were too into it.
  • The Winners by Fredrik Backman- This was the last book in the trilogy. I had a hard time getting through it for a while because I knew something bad was going to happen to a character you just have to love and I didn't want to find out what it was going to be. I'm honestly still a little depressed when I think about this book. It was just as incredible as the others but also sad. Matteo's storyline broke my heart and I kept wishing a teacher or someone in his life would reach out to help him. 

  • Lore Olympus: Volume Three by Rachel Smythe- I was a little disappointed in Volume 2, but this one was much better! I'd say I liked it about as much as the first one. I've been surprised by how much I enjoy a graphic novel. I didn't think I would.

eBook:

  • The Woman in the Window by A.J. Finn- This was a tough read. I was so annoyed by no one believing the woman because she had a traumatic experience. This was the first book in the string of books where women were "hysterical" and therefore not to be believed that started rubbing me the wrong way. I had a hard time finishing this one and really wasn't into it at all. I saw lots of good reviews so I was disappointed.

Audiobook:

  • Bicycling with Butterflies: My 10,201-Mile Journey Following the Monarch Migration by Sara Dykman- I saw our local indie bookstore was hosting an author visit about this book. I was intrigued and immediately put this book on hold at the library. I didn't get the book in time to finish it before the author event and decided not to go because I also had a Girl Scout camp out to prepare for. After reading the book, I was wishing I hadn't missed it because the book was so fascinating.
  • Beautiful World, Where Are You by Sally Rooney- This was on the librarian's pick shelf whose books I typically love. I was super excited to try it. It wasn't my kind of book. I thought it was a bit odd.
  • Before She Knew Him by Peter Swanson- This was our book club read for October. It started out a bit strange and I wasn't sure I was going to like it, but I ended up really liking it. It was very different than other books and had some interesting and unexpected twists. This is the one I finished on my drive home from the Pumpkin Holler 25k.
  • Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter by Seth Grahame-Smith- This was such a great concept for a book and it could have been amazing. I wanted more of a vampire book and to me, there was too much historical information like a biography. I already knew all of that and it took away from the storyline for me. I did like the surprise ending! Had the book not ended there and gone on, I would have liked it a lot more.
  • The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware- I absolutely loved In a Dark, Dark Wood by Ware so I was excited to read another one of her books close to Halloween. This one was disappointing. I hated it until about halfway through and then it picked up at the end.

Wednesday, November 2, 2022

Wordless Wednesday


Our Girl Scout troop did a trunk for our city parks' trunk or treat.



Photo op at the trunk or treat.

Riding the train at the trunk or treat.

The girls did a great job passing out candy.


Llama, goat, and sheep got loose from the petting zoo and were running around when I finished my run.

I helped corral a sheep but had to leave before they got the goat or the llama.


Carter playing soccer.

He stopped quite a few goals when he was goalie.

Book character dress up day at school. Our hallway did the "If You Give A..." books.
Took the day off work to volunteer for Pumpkin Mania with Elise's class.

Stayed to eat lunch with the kids.


Our table for lunch with Elise.

Elise's friend she wanted to eat with us.

Elise's class after Pumpkin Mania.

Elise pumpkin bowling.

Excited for Pumpkin Mania in the outdoor classroom.

Closing a ciruit with the pumpkins to make music.

Checking to see if her pumpkin would float or sink. This was the station I manned.

Recording her data.

Excited for pumpkin mania!

We had to drop Carter off early for circle state choir practice so Elise and I hung out for almost an hour, getting breakfast and doing some shopping. Elise carried everything for me.

Elise checking out for me.

I'm our troop fall product manager and Elise wanted to help me sort the items. She was a great helper!



I thought she looked so cute in her outfit she wore for the Tulsa Run 2k.

Hanging out with Thomas after his hernia surgery.

Beautiful view during my trail run!

Got to visit my friend's new baby.


Making Elise into a stick man.

Halloween!



Their stick person costumes looked so awesome as it got dark and their costumes were glowing.



Taking a break.


Ty fell asleep with Quinn when we went to visit Thomas.

Carter reading books we bought from the book fair as I was volunteering at the book fair.

Elise picked this tie dye bag and she worked on it while I volunteered.

Skippy stares me down pretty much every morning as I do yoga.