April Monthly Recap

Monthly Recap

It is finally Baby Boy's due date month. He should be here by the end of the month, but you never know right?! I'll do a quick highlight reel of what was accomplished in April as well as what I have prepped and planned for baby.

Recent Blog Posts

Read

I am using Goodreads to track my reading, rate books and write short reviews. Last year, I read 61 books and surpassed my reading challenge goal. This year, my goal is to read 52 books. I am a part of 3 book clubs and 1 library reading challenge. 

I read quite a few physical copies of books this month. Audiobooks are extremely helpful when multitasking (like folding laundry or doing dishes or going on walks), but there's something about holding a book in your hands that I love. It also forces me to sit down and put my feet up.

Books Completed in Month: 6 books

• Eleanor Oliphant - Gail Honeyman
  • Huxley Public Library Book Club 
• The Roughest Draft - Emily Wibberley
  • This book is a witty read untangling the past of a pair of authors. 
• With the Fire On High - Elizabeth Acevedo
  • I absolutely loved this book! 
• Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism - Amanda Montell
  • AViD Author - I was able to meet her at the Des Moines Public Library's Author event and she signed a copy of my book!
• Meet Me in the Margins - Melissa Ferguson
  • Quick, easy to read, Hallmark-style rom-com
• My Friend Anna - Rachel DeLouche Williams
  • Based on the true events of Anna Delvey and written by one of her closest friends. I was immediately invested in the story AND started researching more about this fascinating fraud case. 

YTD Total: 22 of 52 Books

Watch

• Johnny Depp v. Amber Heard Trial
  • I'm not watching the livestream of the trial, but I do try to watch the highlights on a regular bases as well as body language analysts' and lawyers' takes. @houseinhabit is my favorite social media journalist to follow her stories on Instagram.
• Jessica Stansberry YouTube Channel
  • I love her videos about productivity, content creation, and her day-in-the-life vlogs.
• Confession Tapes
  • Adam and I have recently watched a couple of Netflix episodes of the Confession Tapes. It really gets my blood boiling to see all the manipulative tactics used to get a confession rather than spending that energy analysizing evidence. 

Listen

I listen to a lot of podcasts, audiobooks, and music. Here are the highlights from the past month.

• The Thing About Pam
  • Adam and I watched the NBC Dateline episode about Pam (our Friday night ritual). I listened to the podcast for more details. There's also a mini series that I'm interested in watching.
• Truthers: Tiffany Dover is Dead*
  • Fascinating look into recent conspiracy theories, specifically, around the vaccine.
• Conviction: The Disappearance of Nuseiba Hasan
  • Journalistic view on a missing woman

Learn

I love learning new things, and I'm making space to continue learning.

• Double batching my favorite meals.
  • Starting in March, I have been making double batches of my favorite meals—one for that night's dinner and one for the freezer. This will hopefully come in handy during the newborn phase. We will have some of our faves ready to pop in the oven without having to cook anything. I also plan to do a lot of grilling (or have Adam grill) and fresh (or steamable) veggies for quick and healthy meals. 
• Keeping an inventory on my phone of Baby Boy clothes and baby gear.
  • We have a lot of the larger baby items from Lexi, but we didn't have any boy clothes. So as not to get carried away, I've been keeping an inventory list on my phone with photos of the clothes in each size. Plus, some of the gadgets people love these days were not around 3 years ago when I had Lexi. Also, I was told by friends with multiple kids that I if something is going to make my life easier, then just buy multiples - it's worth it. So I have 2 pack n plays with bassinet attachments - one in our master bedroom and the other to move around the house for naps. 
• Ear infections as an adult suck.
  • I ended up getting Lexi's cold at the beginning of the month which turned into an excruciating ear infection. I'm hopeful that I'll remain healthy until baby gets here.
• LEXI TURNED 3!
  • How in the world is she already 3?! She is so spunky, smart and sweet. She loves to be outside with her daddy and wear dresses to twirl in and sing all the songs she knows.