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What I’m reading (January 2020)

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This weekend, Philly saw the first snow of the season. And I don’t know about you, but my favorite snowy day activity is to curl up with a mug of hot cocoa and a good book. This past Saturday didn’t disappoint!

Snow days aside, since having Ellie, I’m reading less than I used to. Running after a toddler keeps you busy! But since the best way to raise a reader is to model reading, I’m trying to be more intentional about picking up a book instead of my phone when she’s watching. It seems to be working – she’s been picking up her own books and sitting quietly to flip through them…or bringing them over for me to read to her. My heart melts whenever she runs over saying, “Mama, BOOK!”

Here’s what I’ve been reading so far this month:

1 & 2: A sweet and steamy romance series set in a family run flower shop (Coming Up Roses and Gilded Lily, on Kindle Unlimited)

3. Non-fiction about the first women’s air race across America. (Born to Fly)

4. The second book in a YA series about badass mad-max style lady pirates. (Steel Tide)

5. A beautiful edition of one of my childhood favorites, spread out over a few bedtimes. (The Velveteen Rabbit)

6. The audiobook sequel to of one of my all-time favorite YA Urban Fantasy books. (Shadowhouse Fall)

7. The MG graphic novel superhero story by one of my all-time favorite authors. (Black Canary)

What I’m looking for next:

  1. A swoony historical romance
  2. A twisty YA mystery set in a small town
  3. The perfect, funny bedtime book for Ellie

Any recommendations? What have you been reading?

Thinking about Small Space Living (with a toddler!)

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We’ve lived in our Philadelphia apartment for over four years now. I remember walking into the space and thinking – this is it. It just had a good vibe to it. I think Eric thought I was a little crazy, but I whipped out my checkbook on the spot. We’d seen too many other places fall through at the last second, and there were people waiting outside to tour it after us. Sorry, people outside – this place was going to be ours.

In many ways, it isn’t an ideal space, but it checked off three major requirements that we had: 1) it allowed pets, 2) there was a yard for Zoey, and 3) IN-UNIT WASHER-DRYER. Something I hadn’t had at all in my adult life. I was happy to overlook the odd layout, the crooked floors, and the minuscule amount of closet space. We’d make it work.

And we have! We went from a childless married couple and creatures to parents of a newborn (plus creatures). Then parents of a baby. And now, parents of a toddler, plus a dog and two cats. With each of these transitions, our little apartment has seemed smaller. We’ve added stuff. We’ve purged. We’ve added more stuff. We’ve discussed moving a million times, but by now – this apartment is our home. It’s going to take a lot to get me to move out of it. But even I have to admit that these days, life in 1000 square feet is feeling a little claustrophobic. It’s a constant struggle between always editing our belongings and living in a culture that wants you to buy more. And more. And MORE.

So the question is, how much space does a toddler really need? How much stuff do they need? How can we handle the steady stream of gifts from generous and well-intentioned friends and family who love us but who don’t take into consideration how we will actually fit an item into our tiny house?

I don’t have any answers today. But I’d love to hear your ideas – especially if you’ve tackled apartment and city living with littles. Here are a few ideas I’ve come up with to make our space work for the time being:

  1. Purge AGAIN. Especially clothes and shoes.
  2. Rethink our spaces and our furniture. What needs to be in the main living spaces, and what needs to be in the bedrooms? What can we do without?
  3. Freshen up. I’m dreaming of repainting our living room (maybe Sea Salt or Yarmouth Blue or Lavender Heather – what do you think?). I’m hoping a refresh will help us look at the space in a new light.

Hosting an Independent Reading Celebration in the School Library (plus a free packet download for teachers + librarians!)

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The best parts of my job are, hands down, the opportunities I get to collaborate with my amazing colleagues. So when the 6th Grade ELA team had a gap in their schedule between Thanksgiving and Winter Breaks that they wanted to fill with an independent reading unit, I was thrilled. And then the ideas started coming fast and furious. What if I bring a cart of books into the classroom? Oh – let’s teach THEM how to book talk? What about book reviewing? And I know, let’s let the kids pick any book they want! And I have this bulletin board we can fill with the books they’ve read. And what about hot chocolate? We definitely need hot chocolate.

And friends, that is how the 6th Grade READ-A-LATTE CHALLENGE was born!

Now, I’m a librarian in an independent school, where we have a certain degree of freedom to make last-minute changes to our curriculum, so you may have more constraints on you when trying this in your own classes. But it’s a great little unit to implement when you have a small chunk of time. The kids loved it. We loved it. And best of all? Each and every one of the kids met–or exceeded–the goal they set for themselves. Our 61 6th graders read a grand total of 217 books in 21 days.

61 kids. 217 books. 21 days. The only rule was that they couldn’t read a book that they have already read. Their teachers graded them on the book talks and book reviews, which they uploaded to Flipgrid.

Oh, and the hot chocolate? Well, the Middle School Library was turned into a magical winter wonderland for the occasion. First, we settled in for our Read-A-Latte Lightning Round. The kids assembled themselves in two rows, each with a partner. They then had 30 seconds to pitch their books to their partner before the rows rotated. Once they had heard from everyone, we celebrated with hot cocoa (and toppings), winter word searches, and checking out even more books. It was a win-win for everyone!

Read-A-Latte Packet DownloadDownload

Good luck! And let me know if you try this on your own – I’d love to hear how it goes!

Hello, 2020!

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Happy 2020, friends! I hope you had a magical December. Eric and I were both on winter break from school and took 10 days to road trip and see family and friends in Ohio and Maryland. It was a long and exhausting trip – especially with a dog and a toddler in tow.

We hit traffic between Dayton and Cincinnati, so Zoey decided it was time for a car selfie.

We spent a lot of really great time together as a family (even with the constant sound of the Octonauts) in the background. We caught up with some of our favorite people. And we had a lot of really great conversations. After all, we spent 20+ hours in the car – Eric and I did a lot of talking.

We spent most of Christmas Day at Eric’s grandparents’ farm – Ellie loved seeing the cows!

One of the topics that seemed to come up again and again was what we were hoping for the coming year. I think it’s natural, at the end of December, to start to look forward. To hope. To plan. This season of life feels uncertain, and dreaming about the future makes me feel like I have some measure of control. Toddlerhood seems to be an ever-evolving series of mysteries and discoveries. The end of Eric’s PhD is on the horizon, even if it isn’t quite in sight yet. The last decade saw moves from Ohio to DC to Philadelphia, four stints at graduate school (three successful), and six jobs between the two of us — not to mention an engagement, marriage, a baby, serious illness, a book, a dog, a year apart, and more. I’ve learned a lot from the last ten years. Most importantly, I’ve learned that the only constant in our life is uncertainty. I’m not sure if that’s the same for everyone else – I’m guessing that it is, on some level.

We talked, too, about what I was hoping to accomplish by relaunching this blog. Again. Honestly, part of it is to get me back in the habit of writing. It’s something I’ve put on the back burner since moving to Philadelphia, and my fingers are itching to put words to paper (er, screen). I am so good at putting my energy into my career as a school librarian. The rest of my life-my writing, my family, my friends– deserve that same level of attention – which is something I used to be very good at.

And thus, my word for 2020 was born.

For the next 12 months, I am going to be intentional about how I spend my time. My energy. My money. My life. I’m going to focus on the things that matter the most to me: my family and friends, my writing, and my mental health. I’m going to spend less time on the things that don’t: namely, endless scrolling on social media. This means more books, less facebook. More green things in our house and less time on Pinterest looking at homes filled with plants. Clearing the clutter at home, not adding to it with cheap toys and clothes and things we don’t need. More time writing and less time thinking about writing (which, I admit, is valuable and all but there comes a point where I am just procrastinating). More face-to-face time with people I love.

So bring it on, 2020. I’m ready for you.