This Week’s Miscellany: Vol. 164 (Haircut, Holidays, Felines, and More)

Welcome to This Week’s Miscellany, the occasional round up of Carrots family updates, photo dumps, books I’m reading, links I loved, and events where you can find me. 

Well, we’re back to the daily grind on our little urban homestead after a trip to Florida to visit family for Christmas. It was wonderful to be with our families and friends in Tallahassee. But that drive, tho. Sooooo long. Audiobooks always save us from losing our minds on that 16 hour drive.

Florida was beautiful. We packed a ton of fun things into our visit including a trip to one of our favorite state parks to see manatees and alligators.

I keep wanting my hair long but I was wanting something a little edgier so I went for an undercut in the back. I thought about doing one on the side but the back seemed easier to maintain and grow out when I feel like growing it out.

And even when my hair is down and you can’t see the undercut I feel like I have a secret. AN EDGY MOM HAIR SECRET.

We 12 days of Christmased it up and had our annual family living room sleep over after watching White Christmas and drinking sparkling cider.

Gingerbread houses, Christmas movies. We did it all. Now I’m feeling the urge to take our fire hazard of a dead tree out and pack everything up for next year. It was a good Advent and Christmas for us. I can’t remember a fall/winter that we’ve been so healthy and I think it really helps to enjoy the season if everyone isn’t miserably ill.

We also got a cat when we got back from Florida. Benjamin has been wanting one forever and some friends of ours needed to rehome Lily due to allergies. In this photo she looking at our dog Olaf with deepest loathing while Benjamin looks at her with adoring love. I’m not a cat person, but I’m glad he’s happy.

Olaf is the only Stewart pet that has my heart. SNUGGLEBUGS.

On my Bookshelf:

My 2017 reading list has me so motivated to get through some great books this month. It also helps that we discuss books on the Fountains of Carrots podcast and when I co-host The Simple Show podcast with my friend Tsh Oxenreider. It’s like…..reading is my job or something. And I can definitely live with that.

Here’s what I’ve been reading lately:

• ✓ Have His Carcase by Dorothy Sayers

Like all of the Lord Peter Wimsey with Harriet Vane books, I loved it! And I’m discussing the series on next week’s episode of The Simple Show, so tune in!

• Atheist Delusions: The Christian Revolution and Its Fashionable Enemies by David Bentley Hart

More than halfway through this one. It’s pretty academic. Hart has an amazing vocabulary and a brilliant mind. Sometimes it’s hard for me to keep up with him, but this book is excellent. A very thoughtful and reasonable response to the New Atheists. Highly recommended.

• Lila by Marilynne Robinson

Since I can’t read non-fiction like Hart’s book without a break to some fiction, I also started Lila and it’s beautiful and wonderful.

• ✓ The Story of the Treasure Seekers by E. Nesbit (audiobook re-read–it’s on Librivox!)

Listened to this one to fall asleep to at night. Nesbit’s children’s books are so comforting and lovely.

• Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte (audiobook re-read–on Librivox)

One of my favorites. Can’t keep away.

With the Kids:

• Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome

I really like this one. But I think maybe it’s a little bit beyond Lucy and Gwen. Benjamin is enjoying it, but I may hold off a few months so the girls can enjoy it more, too.

• The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Perilous Journey by Trenton Lee Stewart

These books are SO good. I’m reading this one with Benjamin at bedtime and he is obsessed!

• Catholic Tales for Boys and Girls by Caryll Houselander

Lovely and just perfect for reading aloud to all three kids.

• Secret of the Shamrock (Chime Travelers) by Lisa Hendey

Just started this one yesterday because Lisa will be joining us on the podcast soon (yay!). Kids are loving it.

• A Series of Unfortunate Events: The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket

Listening to this one in the car. Benjamin adores it, but I’m thinking it might be a little to scary for Gwen, so the rest of the series I may just read with Benjamin. I’m excited to watch the new Netflix series! But we gotta finish the books first.

• Meet Addy by Connie Porter

Reading this one at bedtime with the girls. It’s so good. A very age-appropriate way to introduce the injustice of slavery in the Civil War era.

Upcoming Speaking Events:

February 11th: Grace Not Perfection Retreat, Sacred Heart Catholic Church, San Angelo, TX

-(email Patricia Gonzales, pazingaro@gmail.com to register)

March 25th: Catholic Women Blogging Network Midwest Conference, St. Paul, MN

-(sign up here to register and you’ll get an email from the conference organizers with details)

Podcast:

The Sisterhood of the Traveling Mom Jeans with Blythe Fike: Fountains of Carrots

-We interviewed Blythe Fike and y’all…..this is one of our best episodes yet. Blythe is so funny and so inspiring and we laughed so very hard. I think it’s our most popular episode so far.

Links:

Skidding Off the Runway: Finding Grace in Re-entry after the Holidays: Molly Walter for Catholic Exchange

Also, I have opinions on which Jane Austen novel you should read first.

Posts to Your Inbox?

I realized after getting a few queries about how to get Carrots posts delivered automatically by email that I did not even know what service I had set up with WP to do this a million years ago. I can’t even figure out how someone can sign up! Which makes it amazing that there’s over 1,000 of you getting each post by email. I don’t know how you did it, but my hats off to ya.

ANYHOW, I set up an automatic email list that delivers each post to your inbox through MadMimi this morning and you can sign up here. It’s free, of course, and will email you when there’s a new post. I currently have it set up to go out daily (if there’s a new post) but what would you prefer? Every 3 days? weekly? Let me know in the comments and sorry it took me so long to make that easy for you!

If you’d also like to sign up for my secret posts that I send out monthlyish, you can sign up for my email newsletter (which is a separate thing).

Any questions other than how someone so technically challenged could be a blogger? Hit me up.

Hope you have a splendid weekend!

Lots of love,

Haley

P.S. You can follow me…

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