So Long, Summertime

Wow--my last entry was June. Again, not surprising I suppose. Despite the best of intentions I am still a mother of two boys under 5, and that means I don't often have a chance to sit down for the quiet reflection of journaling. It has been a fun summer, and some of the last days I'll have weekday freedom to take the boys on outings to West LA or downtown. Beginning later this month I'll be tied to Redondo in order to make Liam's pick-up and drop-off times to and from Transitional Kindergarten. 

While that may be the case, we've made the most of our time this summer. With pool parties and lots of visits to museums, the LA Zoo, and Knott's Berry Farm, it's been a summer full of family fun. 

Liam and I also started working through reading lessons. What a struggle that has been! The material challenges him, but I've worked with him enough to know it is not beyond him. His squirminess, defiance, and goofy behavior are honed to push my buttons and--he hopes--convince me to just give it up. My son is stubborn, but where does he think he gets it from? Lessons continue, and we've had victories along the way. The last story he read for his lesson he legitimately read. He is learning reading skills and the time we've invested is going to help him in the classroom. And, by the time we finish Lesson 100 sometime this fall, he will be reading at a second grade level. 

 

It's been a fun and productive summer, but I welcome the coming routine of the school year. Liam is ready for it and will benefit from it. It's time he had another big boy upgrade. Of course it will be bittersweet for me--especially the early mornings--but it's exciting too. Liam's world is going to expand a little bit more this school year, and he's going to begin to find out more about his world. 

Favorite 10 Books of All Time

The Mummy Case (Elizabeth Peters)

Really, anything every written by EP--her books, which feature all sorts of topics, were a gateway to my learning all sorts of things on all sorts of obscure topics. This book, however, is special. If I'd never picked up "The Mummy Case," I'd never have caught the Egyptology bug and everything would have turned out very differently for for me. Very, very different.

Anne of Green Gables (L.M. Montgomery)

Really, the whole series. Who doesn't love Anne Shirley?

Trojan Gold (Elizabeth Peters)

I brought this book to a high school basketball camp one summer at Eastern Illinois University. A lot of my teammates were the popular kids and I wasn't and a couple of them weren't very nice to me. This book was my escape at the end of each day.

The Last Camel Died at Noon (Elizabeth Peters)

My favorite book from my all-time favorite series.

The Lord of the Rings series (J.R.R. Tolkien)

Duh.

Harry Potter series (J.K. Rowling)

Sacrificial love defeats ultimate evil--an all time favorite series for sure.

A String in the Harp (Nancy Bond)

I read this book as a kid and never forgot it. Time-travel is a theme I find endlessly fascinating. (Really, the history geek likes time travel stories? Shocker, I know.) This was the first time-travel story I read.

Ramona the Brave (Beverly Cleary)

As an elementary school kid, I could definitely relate to this book.

Tales of a 4th Grade Nothing (Judy Blume)

Ditto.

The Moonstone (Wilkie Collins)

A wonderful adventure novel and the book that introduced me to Victorian literature.

Good Reads

This past year was the first in a long time that I got in some quality time for myself by reading some good books. Most of this "reading" happened listening to audiobooks from Audible.com as I spent 2.5-3 hours commuting to Malibu from Redondo Beach everyday for work, and was my way of redeeming what otherwise might be considered lost time. I still do a lot of reading the old-fashioned way, of course, but even since September I find myself listening to audiobooks frequently while doing chores or taking walks with Liam around the neighborhood. So, what books made my 2012 reading list? Here they are, in no particular order:

11-22-63: A Novel (Stephen King)

I am no fan of Stephen King, but the time travel premise of this book combined with the historical angle of President Kennedy's assassination convinced me to give this book a try. I did not regret it.

A Clash of Kings, A Storm of Swords, A Feast For Crows (George R. R. Martin)

In 2011 I started the Game of Thrones fantasy series, and this year I nearly made it through all of them--I have just one more left...

No Higher Honor (Condoleezza Rice)

This choice revealed the hardcore historian in me. Anyone who is not into history and politics would not enjoy this (very long) read, so if you're not a history lover and you don't want to sleep, I recommend leaving this one alone.

Drift (Rachel Maddow)

Again, more hardcore history and politics. Although Maddow is a far more engaging and entertaining writer than Rice, this is not a causal read for the uninitiated.

Big Leagues, Curveball (Jen Estes)

These two cozy mysteries about a young female sportswriter were on my list because the author is from my hometown. A little baseball mixed with malice domestic--fun, quick reads, even for a busy working mom.

Calculating God (Robert J. Sawyer)

Like 11-22-63 this book provided an intriguing combination of two subjects I am very interested in--space exploration and museums. The premise of the book is that an alien lands at the Royal Ontario Museum in Canada in order to consult with a paleontologist and learn about the history and development of life on earth. The twist? The alien civilization has studied the universe through science and has concluded that science points to a Creator--i.e. God. The story is told from the point of view of the ROM paleontologist who, as an earthly scientist, has studied science and reached the exact opposite conclusion. This book was one of the most enjoyable sci-fi reads I've had in a long time, and if you like sci-fi I highly recommend it.

The Bone Bed (Patricia Cornwell)

I've been reading Patricia Cornwell's books since I was a teenager, and as a long-time fan of the Kay Scarpetta series, I wouldn't miss out on a new release. The series is as strong as ever, and if you like forensic thrillers, you can't go wrong with Scarpetta.