the deliberate life

A Quick DIY Project

Though we do make an effort to eat every meal at home during the week, we love going out to eat when the weekend rolls around. We're lucky to live walking distance from some of our very favorite restaurants, but that also means that we find ourselves at the same two restaurants week after week. Sure, it's nice (or maybe embarrassing), to have staff hug you when you walk in, or ask how many visits it's been so far this week, but one of our favorite things to do is try new places. 

    I saw the idea for creating a "Food Passport" on Pinterest and thought it'd be a great way for us to break our habit. The concept is simple: fill a notebook with different restaurants you'd like to try. When the inevitable "Where should we eat?" debate arises, pull out the notebook and choose somewhere. Easy-peezy project.

    I had carved a fork/spoon/knife stamp for a farmer's market tote, so I thought it'd the perfect thing to stamp on the cover of a blank Moleskine. (Although here, it looks more like a spork than a fork). I then wrote down all the restaurants we've been wanting to eat at inside, leaving room to record what we had. I also plan on stamping the date we visited with a date stamp. If space allows, it'd be great to washi (yep, it's a verb now) a business card or memento from the restaurant to the page. 

I actually have quite a few DIY ideas I've completed that I'll be sharing in the weeks ahead. I decided to decorate our bedroom for the first time ever, which resulted in some fun projects that I'm excited to post on here. Stay tuned! 

What I'm Reading

It’s no secret that I’m a big reader. I’ve always known how much I love reading, but it wasn’t until recently that I realized just how important reading and books are to me. They’re essential to my well-being. Before art, before crafting, books are my true love (other than Kevin, of course).

At the beginning of the year, I set a goal on Goodreads to read 50 books this year. (Side note: Do you use Goodreads? Though I’ve had an account for years, it wasn’t until last year that my love affair with it began.) So far, I’ve read 12 books in 2013, which means I’m on track to meet my goal. Here are a few that have really stood out.

 

When Autumn Leaves by Amy S. Foster I have a soft spot for books with a touch of magic in them. I discovered this when I first began reading books by Sarah Addison Allen, who is known for her style of magical realism style of writing. When Autumn Leaves is just an enchanting book. It's not fine literature, but it made me feel very warm and cozy, and I love that in a book. 

Tell the Wolves I'm Home by Carol Rifka Brunt A complete contrast to When Autumn Leaves, this book will not make you feel warm and cozy. It will make you sad. It will make you cry ugly tears. It will make you say, "Damn, that's a good book." It's the coming-of-age story of an awkward 14-year-oldl girl dealing with losing her uncle to AIDs. Such a haunting story, it's stayed with me for some time now.

An Abundance of Katherines  by John Green I fell in love with John Green after reading The Fault in our Stars (if you haven't read it, you need to) and have been on a mission to read everything by him. This book is lighter than The Fault in our Stars, which deals with children and cancer, but still a wonderful read. It is the story of Colin, a prodigy, who has been dumped 19 times, all by girls named Katherine. Being the prodigy that he is, he figures he can find a mathematical way to predict how successful a relationship will be. This book has laugh-out-loud moments, thanks to John Green's fantastic sense of humor. 

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak This book was recommended to me by countless people. Because everyone loved it so much, I was worried that it wouldn't live up to its hype. Oh, but it did live up to it, and then some. The story is narrated by Death, and tells the story of a girl growing up in Nazi Germany. Again, I cried big, ugly tears (probably partly because the book was over). I couldn't recommend this book more. 

As I continue my quest to reach my goal of 50 books by year's end, I'd love to hear what you're reading! Or, if you've read any of these books, I'd love to hear your thoughts on them!