Dancing with Daffodils

I set a goal to read 35 books this year, after I successfully read 30 last year and felt the need to step up my game. I have read 17 books, so I am about halfway there, although more than halfway through the year so I am looking forward to catching up during the fall time when the kids go back to school. But here is my first 17 reads of 2018. 1. Victoria by Daisy Goodwin. Fantastic book! I absolutely loved this one although it is right up my alley of English historical fiction, but it is well-written and interesting and it was a great way to start the year. 2. Of Mess and Moxie by Jen Hatmaker. I have some friends that just love her and I liked her but am not quite drinking her kool aid. It was an easy, uplifting read and I enjoyed it but it felt a bit fluffy to me. Good book, just didn't wow me. 3. A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly. This takes place in the Adirondacks and is full of good characters, heart and mystery. I was really into it and it was a refreshing change f...

Sometimes it is just hard to be a grown up. There is something about summer that makes me yearn for the simpler days of my childhood. I drove nine hours last week to visit my parents and while I was driving I couldn’t help but be slightly envious of my kids sitting in the back of the car, reading and playing with toys. That used to be me. Since I am the youngest, all our years of road tripping across the country meant all my sisters would take turns driving but I was never old enough. I got to sit in the back and read, listen to my walkman, watch out the window, sleep or do whatever I wanted for 36 hours. That sure beats sitting in traffic, getting cut off by a red BMW, being rerouted onto sketchy streets because of traffic and trying to find a Wendys before your kids get too hangry. My kids always wonder why dad doesn’t have a summer break. Every day for the first week of vacation they ask where is dad and they’re so confused when I explain how he still has to go to work. Wouldn’t...

Last week I was at the beach and was therefore too busy dancing in the waves to write. It was a glorious week of being disconnected from any regular responsibility other than my children. I know I've written about how much I love the beach before but here it goes again. I love the ocean. I don't know if it is because I went so often as a kid or if it is just part of who I am but I love water in general and the ocean especially. I find the power of the waves inspiring and I love how it is always changing so it never gets boring; some days the waves are huge (fun!) some days the waves are calm (still fun!) and some days they are just right (super fun!).  I love how the water is always moving and going somewhere, pulling or pushing you. I love how beautiful it is when a wave crests and crashes on itself, spraying white bubbles and kicking up sand and shells. My favorite is getting out just past where they are breaking and wave dancing. This is a sport I invented when I was nin...