The June Round-Up
June.
School is officially done for the year and it flew by. We would normally have summer bucket lists taped to the wall, activities planned, and full days. I am trading all of that in this year for spontaneity and rest. As a recovering Type A person, I am finding immense peace in letting go. Having a wide age range (17-3) means I no longer have complete control over our schedules. We have kids with summer jobs and their own plans for the summer. And while it looks different, I am thankful for the opportunity to experience this new season of life.
June Looks Like:
picnics wherever, whenever
backyard bbqs, blow-up pools, sprinklers, and lounging
early mornings of prayer & coffee in the Lookout
dinner parties with new recipes
evening neighborhood walks
book baskets (see this post)
spontaneous outings
reading the stack of books I have accumulated the last two months
I had big plans to read during May, which did not go as planned. I listened to one juicy memoir on Audible and read one book: American Fantasy- which while good, was not quite as good as I had hoped. First up this month:
Dolly All the Time by Annabel Monoghan- Her book, Nora Goes Off Script is one of my all-time favorite easy, breezy reads and I have high hopes for this new one!
It's Not Her by Mary Kubica has been waiting for me. If you have not read Mary’s books, you are missing out. Her stories often take place in Chicago, specifically the Chicago North Shore and suburbs, which is always fun. My two favorites of hers are The Good Girl and Every Last Lie which still haunts me every time I send Tim to pickup carryout for me.
My goal is to read those two this month, low-bar hopefully means I will surprise myself and get to a few more.
We are really enjoying Widow's Bay on Apple TV. It has been awhile since Tim and I have been this wrapped up in a show (not since Severance). Widow’s Bay is very quirky and may not be for everyone. It is about the mayor small New England town who is trying to make it the next Martha’s Vineyard, though it appears to be cursed. It is campy, extremely well-written, and boasts Twin Peaks character development. There are so many nods to famous thriller/horror films and books throughout and you feel really smart when you catch them, wink wink.
#makeingdinnerandashow is still going strong. I finished binging a popular high school show on Prime that I will never admit to watching in writing. If you know, talk to me because it was… something. On my list for June:
Beef Season 2- I did not like season 1 and stopped watching it but this one looks right up my alley.
The Boroughs ,which is the new Duffer brothers series, looks so good.
On the Menu…
The grill will be the star of the show this month. I checked out What's Gaby Grilling from the library and have practically the whole cookbook dog-eared. What's Gaby Cooking is one of my go-to sites for recipes. Her food has not disappointed and it is often easy, flavorful, and healthy.
Enjoy my summer backyard playlist which will be on repeat this whole month:) I hope all of you have a peaceful, relaxing, and memorable June!