Blog Challenge Day 30: That's All Folks

 

What a fun month with Katie and the gang for the September blog challenge! I had a blast with all the prompts, and I blogged almost every day this month. Go me!

For our final post today, we are sharing a photo that we love. This has to be one of my favorite photos, taken by my friend Kristin at Lanari Photography. It just captures so much of Will at that point in time (6 months old). Sweet, tentative, curious, adorable... need I say more?

My love

Kristin and her husband are taking more family photos for us next week. I can't wait to see how they turn out!

Anyway, that's it for the September blog challenge! Thanks again to Katie for hosting. And thank you for reading! My apologies if you've gotten accustom to me writing every day. October is going to be a whole different story!

Blog Challenge Day 29: Three Things

 

Today on the blog challenge we're sharing three things we can't live without. Aside from my loving husband and beautiful son, here are my top three:

1. Coffee: Black only please! There's nothing better than a hot cup of coffee in the morning (or afternoon, or evening).
2. MacBook Pro: My mom and step-dad gave me a beautiful MacBook Pro for Christmas last year. I love it. It's perfect for grad school, and I love how intuitive the operating system is. Team Mac all the way!
3. Note Cards: I have a slight obsession with note cards. I probably have over a hundred blank note cards in my kitchen side board. I love handwriting notes to people, and insist on having cards on hand at all times. I just wrote a note to my cousin Jenny this morning!

Blog Challenge Day 28: Favorite Books

 

Today on the blog challenge we're sharing our favorite books. I posted about my favorite fiction books and authors a few days ago, but I have a few other favorites I would like to share...

Nonfiction Book: Infidel (Aayan Hirsi Ali)

This book is incredibly compelling. It chronicles the author's youth growing up in the Middle East and Africa, her escape to the Netherlands to apply for political asylum, and her work in Dutch government. It reads like a novel, but it's based entirely on the author's life experience. It concludes with a really powerful dialogue about family, religion and citizenship.

Children's Book: The Country Bunny and the Little Gold Shoes (Du Bose Heyward)

This was my favorite book as a child. The illustrations are beautiful, and the story is really powerful. In the book, the mother bunny works toward becoming the Easter Bunny while taking care of 21 children at home. The message is that young women can follow their dreams and have a family. Surprisingly, this modern feminist tale was written in 1939.

Classic Novel: The Great Gatsby (F. Scott Fitzgerald)

Fitzgerald is such an incredible writer. I love the way he sets a scene; I can always visualize his characters in specific detail. I was immediately hooked on Daisy Buchanan the first time I read the book, and I have a continuing love affair with the 1920s. A classic that will always be in our collection.

Gifted Book: Jonathan Livingston Seagull (Richard Bach)

My dad got me this book when I was in high school. It's a fable about self-discovery and the pursuit of knowledge. The depths of this book are staggering. I continue to pick up on new themes and nuances each time I read it.

Blog Challenge Day 27: Three Wishes

 

We're sharing three wishes today on the blog challenge. Unsurprisingly, mine are all for my child.

Wishes for Will

1. I wish you health and happiness, now and always.
2. I wish you every opportunity in life.
3. I wish you the confidence to always follow your dreams.

(I also wish you'd sleep through the night more often, but that's another story.)

Missoni Mania

If you're like me, you were anxiously waiting the Missoni debut at Target a few weeks ago. I love the Italian designer's stuff, so I was really amped up to get some affordable pieces at my favorite discount retailer. Needless to say, I was really disappointed when I learned most of the merchandise sold out within 24 hours.

But wait! Look what I scored at our local Target yesterday...

Missoni cap-sleeve tunic and shift dress

That's right! Two Missoni dresses fresh from return. They fit like a dream and I adore the retro 60s vibe. I love having a piece of the collection, though I know the aesthetic isn't for everyone. What are your thoughts? Did you score any Missoni at Target?

Blog Challenge Day 25: iPod Shuffle

I've been so excited for this one since I first peeked at the blog challenge list! Today we're putting our iPods on shuffle and sharing the first 10 songs. Here you go...

1. Sunrise (Norah Jones)
2. Last Beautiful Girl (Matchbox Twenty)
3. Without You (Dixie Chicks)
4. I Hate This Part Right Here (Pussycat Dolls)
5. I'll Be There (Jackson 5)
6. Freshman (Verve Pipe)
7. King of Anything (Sara Bareilles)
8. That's How You Know It's Love (Deanna Carter)
9. Settle For A Slowdown (Dierks Bentley)
10. Jet Lag (Joss Stone)

Yes, I have this exact same pink iPod. And the pictured
Nelly Furtado album, oddly enough.

Blog Challenge Day 24: Shopping

Can you believe we only have a week to go on the blog challenge? Time flies when you're having fun!

Today we're talking shopping! Or more specifically our favorite places to shop. My top five are...

What can I say? I'm devoted to Target. I'm Minnesota-born, so it's in my blood (Target is based in Minneapolis, Minnesota). I always go to Target with a list, but leave with a hundred things I didn't know we needed! I love their housewares. I could look at sheets, pillows, towels, pots, and small appliances all day long.

Photo courtesy of Style Squad, via Google Images

Oh, Banana. In my pre-baby life, I was a Banana Republic Luxe Card member because I spent so much flippin' money there. Their clothes are polished and timeless. I love popping in to see what they have for work and play. They have such a great aesthetic.

I'm addicted to Baby Gap. They have the cutest boy clothes. Granted they're pricey, but if you wait for a sale or coupon offer, you can get really good deals. 

We love The Children's Place, especially their jammies. Will is really long and lean, so he drowns in most other sleepwear. But the Children's Place PJs are cut just right for him. We also buy a lot of Will's pants here. They're a little trimmer, so we can go up a size in length without having the pants fall off his cute cloth diapered bottom.

Photo courtesy of Kick

Kick is small shoe boutique in historic downtown La Crosse, Wisconsin (near where my parents live). Their shoes are ah-mazing. No joke. Plus, they carry up to size 11, which is really difficult to find. Their bricks and mortar store is darling, but they also have a great website. Help support small businesses and check them out!

Blog Challenge Day 22: Hobbies

 

Today on the blog challenge we're talking hobbies. Between full-time graduate school, full-time motherhood and part-time work, I don't have much time for hobbies anymore. But one thing I always try and make time for is reading fiction.

I love fiction. I love getting to know a character and being transported to another time or place. I'm a fervent supporter of public libraries, so I try and borrow all my books. There's something really cool about reading a book that's part of a community collection. I always think about all the places these books have been. All the bedside tables, vacations and coffee shops. If library books could talk!

Some of my all-time favorite fiction writers and books are:

• Margaret Atwood (The Handmaid's Tale)
• Ken Follett (Pillars of the Earth, World Without End and Fall of Giants) 
• Sara Gruen (Water for Elephants)
• Nancy Horan (Loving Frank)
• Stieg Larsson (The Girl Who trilogy)
• Audrey Niffenegger (Time Travelers Wife and Her Fearful Symmetry)
• Ann Patchett (Run and Bel Canto)
• Garth Stein (Art of Racing in the Rain)
• David Wroblewski (Story of Edgar Sawtelle)

I love recommendations, so if you have a favorite book or author, please let me know! I'd love to check it out.