Sunday 13 March 2016

A Week in Review (March 6-12)

A Week in Review (March 6-12)

Watched: The final Downton Abbey episode.  It was a fond farewell from the writers.  There was so much more to be told, but I understand the actors and writers want to move on.  I kind of wish that someone would pick it up and write about their lives in book form.  I know I would buy them!


Read: I finished up Someday, Someday Maybe.  I wasn't a fan of this book.  There wasn't a lot of action, but a lot of self-loathing.  I also don't like books that don't wrap the story lines for you.  The book was cute, but no really substance was to be found.  If you are on the fence about reading it, I say skip it.  I stared The Shock of the Fall next.  I was given it by a fellow reader at Jack's school after giving her a book in November.  It's been sitting on my bedside table since then so I decided to give it a go.  This book was just too out there for me. It is told by an unreliable narrator in a nonsensical order. They kind of cleared up the order issue a bit at the end of the novel and I understand why the narrator was unreliable, but the story didn't have enough substance for me to justify dealing with either of them. One I would only recommend to someone looking for a very specific type of book, not general audiences.  Now, I am doing another buddy read with my friend.  We are reading What Alice Forgot.  I am about 1/3 of the way through and loving it.

Listened: To the sound of rocks splashing in the pond at a park on the prairie. We had two extra kiddos at our house for our Friday off school. I was looking for fun things to do for free around the area and found it. It is about a 25 minute drive from our house, but the Google pictures looked to fun not to give it a try. The kids all had a blast playing on the equipment, in the open spaces, and by the pond. A nice fisherman showed up and let the littlest one in our party use his spare polls. He even was taking request for different types of bait from his tackle box. While we probably won't go often, I can see us making the drive a couple times a year to enjoy the beauty. 

Made: A major purchase on Sunday.  My washer and dryer set were 16 years old and just weren't performing as well as I would enjoy.  Nick knew I had been dreaming of a new one and so he finally went out with me and made me commit to a new pair.  They wanted to charge $30 to haul them away.  I thought that just seemed silly.  So Nick came home and disconnected them and I listed them on Craigslist.  They were gone within the hour.  I probably could have sold them for more than I did because I had so many interested people, but we got a very small bit of cash out of them and didn't have to pay to get rid of them.  My new pair arrived on Wednesday.  I set straight to washing because Monday was my normal wash day, but I didn't own a washer and dryer that day!

Felt: Jilted. Apparently Jack's school picked a "Volunteer of the Year".  Now while I know that a lot of people help the school to run, I know just how much I am up there doing. I was extremely upset when I found out that my name was not listed under the title. It really made me rethink some of the commitments that I might sign on for next year.  I know Jack appreciates how much I do for the school and how much he sees me there, which is what motivates me to keep going.

Planned: On just another run of the mill Wednesday, but instead I spent my day helping my friend with her math homework and then going to Chipotle with her.  I think she saw my truly nerdy side because of how much fun I had challenging my brain in a way that I haven't in a while.

Loved: My whole Saturday.  I took a long shower, got a text that invited Jack to go on an adventure with his friends family which allowed me to have an impromptu date with Nick at a sushi bar downtown, watched the Jayhawks clinch the Big XII championship game, went with Jack to GameStop, came home and yummy omelette for dinner, then watched MythBusters until my boys fell asleep on me.  It was a nice relaxing day in which everyone had a great time.  Can't ask for better days than that!

Here are the pics for the week:

The park on the prairie


Inside the Sushi Bar

Isn't she the cutest?

My boys fast asleep


Sunday 6 March 2016

A Week in Review (Feb 28-Mar 5)

A Week in Review (Feb 28-Mar 5)

Watched: As much as I could of the new series True Crime Story.  This season they are focusing on The People vs OJ Simpson.  My boyfriend at the time was totally engrossed by this story and so I remember more of it than I would guess the majority of people my exact age do.  It is a behind the scenes look at a people who captivated America's attention for so many months.  If the trial interested you at all, I would highly recommend watching it.

Read: Not as much as my current pace had me moving along at.  My reading buddy and I decided to hold off on our next book until Monday so that she could catch up on some other reading and I could hang out with family.  Sadly, I caught a pretty strong cold on the Friday before and didn't have a lot of energy.  It was much easier to lay on the couch and just watch TV.  We did up getting about half through Someday, Someday Maybe.  It is a pretty lighthearted book.  I am having a hard time figuring how it made the list with the other three books we have chosen from.  Maybe something pretty intense happens in the second half.

Listened:  I finished up Something Borrowed. I'm not sure how this book was picked up for a motion picture. All the characters are unlikable. I was unable to find myself rooting for any of them. The only thing that I liked about was that it ended fairly quickly and no one seemed to get a fairy tale ending, which would have been extremely unbelievable in this book. Not one I would recommend.  I started listening to Someday, Someday Maybe, as well as reading it.  It is read by author which I always enjoy because they are getting at setting the intended mood for book.

Made: The trek out to Woodland Park, CO for a traditional wrestling tournament.  It took us 45 minutes to get there, even though we were only about 17 miles away the crow flies.  We had to go clear down south to trek up the mountain pass north.  The drive was pretty.  This tournament started a little bit later because they were able to combine both sessions into one with a smaller number of wrestlers.  Most of the clubs stop practicing after state, as ours does.  You have to register for the final two on your own if you are interested.  Jack loves wrestling and wanted to participate.  He ended up with this first again with a 2-1 record. There is debate if his second match was with a girl. After talking to a couple coaches, it appears it was a boy. I don't know if we will know this season. You can watch his matches HERE, HERE, and HERE.

Felt: Excited about how well the Fun Run went for Jack's school.  I didn't have to do a lot of planning for this event as the wellness committee ran with most of it.  I did a few things in the background like coordinating the parents who volunteered and trying to help think of logistically issues.  My main contribution was in working my booty off that day.  It was easier than some events because there was a lot of good energy and excitement coming off of everyone.  They had it on Dr Seuss's birthday and had decorated the halls for it.  I didn't catch any pictures of it, but I did take a picture of Jack's part of their classroom door.  I thought the quote he picked was so perfectly him!

Planned: Out Jack's various outfits for his Spirit Week. On Monday, he wore a hat. Tuesday, he wore his crazy lucky socks. Wednesday, was mismatched workout clothes--not an easy happening. Thursday, he dressed up as what he wants to be. It was nice that he already had a jersey with his last name on it. Friday, was wear a mustache day.  The only one he didn't love was mustache day. I wanted to make it fuller, but he doesn't like the marker feeling on his face.

Loved:  Watching Jack participate in Rookie State. He ended up getting 5th out of 20th. His last two matches came too close together in my opinion. It didn't give him a lot of time to get over the first lost that had sent him reeling. It's the name of the game though. He was pretty disappointed that he didn't walk out with a trophy, but he learned some good lessons and continues to want to strive for better. He needs to continue to learn how to handle himself on the mat after a loss.  I hope he keeps it up and we continue to see growth for years to come. I am definitely a wrestling mom. They asked us to not record the matches and sadly, they lost his first match which was a good battle. You can watch the other matches HERE, HERE, HERE, and HERE

Here are the pics for the week:




Saturday 5 March 2016

A Week in Review (February 21-27)

A Week in Review (February 21-27)

Watched: A good chunk of the series How to Make a Murderer. It really leaves you feeling conflicted about the justice systems. It also makes me thankful that my family never made the wrong side of the law in a small town. If you haven't watched it, I think it's worth the time commitment.

Read:  While The Dinner reads pretty quickly, its hard to say very many good things about it.  Here was my review from Goodreads: Do you want a book where a single character is likable? If so, don't read this book as none of them are. Do you like a book that answers all your questions? If so, don't read this book. Do you wonder what it would be like if two very damaged people attempted to raise a child? If so, read this book.  I also finished up Deadlocked, mostly from my audio book.  It was a very fast listen for me.  I was really hoping that this book would be about Sookie moving on from Eric, as I was sure that they were finished at the end of the last novel. Sadly, they are still together and still can't get on the same page. I can't imagine that she can wrap up so many story lines in one more book. While I think that I would like to know, I can tell that I need to take a break from Sookie and her friends so that I can fully appreciate the ending.

Listened: Since I finished up Deadlocked so quickly, I started on Something Borrowed. It had been sitting on my bookshelf since Olathe and it seemed to fit the light and easy mode I've been going with audiobooks. That is holding up as true, but all the characters are so unlikeable.

Made: Both a new Star Student board and 300 bags of popcorn for Jack's school. While I had help on the popcorn bagging, it is still a lot of work. I wish these two events didn't happen on back to back days.  It's not horrible, it is just a lot of work in one week when others are more empty. :)

Felt: A bit sad that this was Jack's last week of wrestling practice. He has had such a good time and learned a lot of important lessons. It will be weird to have our Monday and Wednesday evenings open again. I hope that all of his hard work pays off at Rookie State on Sunday.

Planned: On just Valerie visiting this weekend, but on Thursday, we got the good news that Mom and Lee would be driving from Vegas too!  I am so glad we live in a space that can easily accommodate a larger number of people. 

Loved: Playing Life with everyone before we went to bed Saturday night. 6 people playing takes quite some time. But we had lots of laughs. In the end, the almost penniless Aunt Valerie, won by calling the number of the Day of Reckoning. :). I feel so thankful that Jack is surrounded by people who love him and are willing to engage on his level to make awesome memories for him. 

Here are the pics for the week:
She sometimes carries around the tennis ball.  You know, just in case. 

Aunt Valerie and Jack's selfie

Papa Lee and Jack playing foxtail