Books & Gratitude – Weekly Review
Sunday is the day to review the past week, both in terms of what I’m grateful for and in terms of what books I’ve been reading (or not reading).
Grateful for medical devices that help me live my best life
I’m thankful for a lot of things this past week. For one, I was finally able to get in with an occupational therapist to get proper bracing recommendations for my wacky joints. In February I see an orthotist to get properly fitted for all the braces the therapist recommended. Most of these braces are “off the shelf,” but it’s still recommended that you see an expert who can recommend the best braces for your needs. Also, you don’t normally find all of these at the local pharmacy, but the orthotist has several available and can order what he doesn’t. I’ll write a new post bout the braces once I have them.
I’m finally starting to feel less conscious about my knee and wrist braces, though I still have to field intrusive and sometimes judgmental questions from people who should know better. “I thought your problem was with your knees? Why are you wearing a wrist brace?” No matter how many times I explain that I have a connective tissue disorder that affects ALL my joints, people can’t seem to understand why I need the medical devices that were prescribed to me by health professionals. But there, I’m getting complain-y on a gratitude post. Moving on.
I’m grateful that with my braces and physiotherapy, I can still do most of the things I want to do. Because my joints have been really bad for the last few months, I’m starting slowly, and I’m thankful for the progress I’ve made so far. I’m going to keep at it until I’m back to my outdoor-loving ways. With lots of hard work and a little bit of luck, I’ll be ready to take on the trails by the time spring comes around.
I’m also, as always, grateful for the roof over my head, the food on my plate, and the clean water in my glass. I’m thankful for the privilege and opportunity to be home with my children and homeschool them, and I’m thankful that my husband bought me flowers as a “because I know winter is hard for you” surprise this week. Thanks Dan!
I’m thankful for the opportunity to watch my children grow and that I can be part of that growth every single day. I’m thankful that my husband has a good job and that we live in a nice house. I could go on. How about you? What are you thankful for this week?
Now that we’ve reviewed our gratitude, it’s time to review all the books we read (or didn’t read) this past week.
All the books I didn’t read this week
I wanted to share some of the books I read this week, and all the ones I didn’t. I have this tendency to check out a bunch of books from the library at the same time, and of course there’s never time to read all of them before the return dates come around. Well, here are the books I checked out for myself last week, some of the reasons I checked them out, what they’re about, and whether I’ll be checking them out again.
I’m definitely interested in reading all of the books, but the only one I fully committed to reading before the return date was The Witness Wore Red. Here’s a bit about each of the books I checked out this week.
Book Review: The Witness Wore Red, by Rebecca Musser with M. Bridget Cook
The Witness Wore Red is a memoir by Rebecca Musser, “the 19th wife who brought polygamous cult leaders to justice.” It’s the incredible story of a woman who suffered horrendous abuse, and her journey to not only escaping the prison in which she lived, but putting her captor behind bars. I highly recommend this book for anyone who enjoys reading memoirs from people who overcame great odds to heal from past abuse.
Book: The Great War, by Peter Hart
I signed this book out of the library and started reading it, but never finished before I had to return it. I intend on signing it out again after I read a novel. I’m trying to see if I can read a novel for every 2 nonfiction books I read, because I think I don’t read enough fiction. I’d like to try my hand at fiction eventually, and to do so, I need to read more of it. But I digress.
I’m interested in reading this book because despite spending seven years in the Navy, I don’t feel like I have enough understanding about the great world wars. I’d like to learn more about the events that led to the conflicts, and reading this book and others on the subject will help me form a better understanding.
Book: The War for Late Night, by Bill Carter
I remember when Jay Leno got an earlier spot on television, and the huge controversy it caused among Conan O’Brien fans. Although I remember people were angry, I never really understood what exactly went on, and I had friends who were Leno fans defending him, and friends who were O’Brien friends defending him also. I figured I’d read this book and get some more of the background. I’ll have to be honest, though, and say that in the entire time this book was home, I didn’t even have time to take it off the shelf. I’ll try to borrow it again in the future, but this one is not a priority for me.
Crazy Rich Asians, by Kevin Kwan
I saw a preview for the movie based on this book, and it looked like a fun watch, but I wanted to read the book before I saw the film. Despite some controversy (because everything causes controversy these days), many Asian-Americans have actually come to the film and book’s defence. I won’t watch the movie until I’ve read the book, but unfortunately this was not the week I read the book. I should know better than to take more than one book out of the library at a time.
Children’s Books We Signed Out This Week
Here are some of the books the kids checked out this week. We actually had a lot more than these at the house over the last week, but we had checked out the ones not pictured well before last week, and they were mostly Christmas-themed, so I’ll review them another time. Here is some information about the children’s books we read together.
Escargot, by Dashka Slater and illustrated by Sydney Hanson
This is a cute book about a snail who wants to be your favourite animal and also wants to eat a salad. I loved the illustrations but thought the story line somewhat odd; after all, escargot is a dish, and if the Escargot is going into a salad… you get the picture. I seriously thought the snail was going to get eaten at the end of the book. Spoiler alert: it doesn’t.
Fancy Nancy Ooh La La! It’s Beauty Day, by Jane O’Connor and illustrated by Robin Preiss Glasser
My children love the Fancy Nancy series, as do I. It’s such a great way to build vocabulary, and the characters are usually lovely to each other and apologize when they’re not. This book tells a cute story of Nancy pampering her mom before mom goes out on a date with her husband (Nancy’s dad). The book includes simple spa recipes, and one of these days, we will have a Beauty Day and use some of them.
Shay & Ivy Beyond the Kingdom, by Sheena McFeely and illustrated by Casie Trace
This is a lovely book about two sisters that are getting tired of playing princesses, and their journey to discovering all the other wonderful things they can also be. Cute illustrations and a nice message.
Calm & Soothe
This is a book of lullabies with suggestions on movements to do with baby while singing. M-girl checked this one out of the library because I “can sing these songs to [her] at bedtime.” Apparently she really is still my baby ❤️
The Octopuppy, by Martin McKenna
A book about a boy who wanted a puppy and got an octopus instead. The book has a wonderful message of acceptance and true friendship, no matter how different someone looks. Plus, the illustrations are sometimes pretty hilarious.
Peep & Egg I’m not taking a bath! by Laura Gehl and illustrated by Joyce Wan
G-boy loves this series; maybe because of the simple illustrations, maybe because of the simple words. This book will resonate with any parents who ever had a hard time getting the kids into the bath, and then couldn’t get them out once they were in.
Learning to Care for Reptiles and Amphibians, by Felicia Lowenstein Niven,
and
Can We Get One? by Lynn F. Buzhardt and Sue D. Steib
These books were mostly looked at by K-girl, who checked them out of the library. I’ll have to be honest and say I didn’t have time to look at either one. She would really like a pet, and told me jokingly that the “Can We Get One?” book was for me. No matter how many books about pets are checked out, I stand by my conviction: no pets unless the person who wants one has enough money coming in consistently to pay for a pet and everything that comes along with having one. Call me mean; I call it practical. I don’t want a pet, therefore I am not paying for one. Three lives is enough responsibility for this Mama; I’m not adding a pet to the mix.