Eat, Read, and Be Mommy

Googling can be a dangerous thing, right? One minute you’re talking to a friend about the Patricia MacLachlan book you’re reading, wondering about her age in comparison to the other Patricias of the Patricia Trifecta, and the next minute you’re facing the tragic reality that TWO of the Patricias have died in the last 14 months, and only Patricia Polacco is still gifting the world with new books. Seriously! Patricia Reilly Giff died in June 2021, and Patricia MacLachlan this past March. I mean, okay, neither one of them was exactly young–or, okay, middle-aged, since they were both born in the 30s–but still! The tragedy!

Okay, now that THAT’S out of my system for the moment, I finished listening to A Secret Shared a day or three ago, and it was a small but complete serving of a lovely, rich, old-fashioned dessert. (All of MacLachlan’s books, of course, are relatively small.) Old-fashioned mostly because Nora and Ben call their parents ‘Father’ and ‘Mother’, and dessert because it’s a gentle tale of sweet, loving people that turns out exuberantly happily. If you or someone you know is part of a family that includes both biological and adopted siblings, read this when you need the literary equivalent of a perfect cup of hot chocolate on a chilly day. As for me, well–at least I have more books to go before I’m done with either deceased Patricia?

We have survived the first two days of school, folks. Of course, it was two early days in a row for the elementary kids, and I mostly ran errands instead of accomplishing much at home, but we have survived. Next up–a full week, starting Monday!

Anyway. Last night I took the time to finish Steve Sheinkin’s last ‘Time Twisters’ novel–Amelia Earhart and the Flying Chariot. I wasn’t terribly looking forward to it, to be honest with you–I prefer Sheinkin’s stuff for somewhat older readers, which is brilliant, and Amelia Earhart isn’t a historical figure I’m passionate about–but I enjoyed it more than I expected to. The Earhart/Ancient Greece mashup works nicely, and elementary readers should enjoy the kinds of details of early Olympic competition that Sheinkin includes. The ending didn’t feel as much like a series finale as I was expecting–could more books be coming?–but it was entertaining. I’m hoping my 10-year-old son will enjoy it!

So…on Saturday the 6th the older girls and I went to see their cousins in a local theatre production of “Descendants”, after which they slept over with said cousins and I headed home. We did family dinner at my in-laws’ on Sunday the 7th–where we celebrated our immediate family’s July birthdays as well as the August ones, since July was crazy–and left for Kanosh on Monday morning to spend a couple of days with our friends there. (I watched my 7-year-old wander around outside in the grass and brush, playing with and cuddling their kittens, and it tugged at my heart–it may be the closest any of my children will ever come to experiencing what my own childhood was like.) We hit up the Merc for candy and went to the Indian bathtub–a dammed up swimming hole in Corn Creek–where I managed to bang my shin spectacularly while getting out of the water. (It was totally fun, though.) On our way home on Wednesday we grabbed my Provo nephew and took him to lunch; we made it home in time for an appointment at 3 and then the littles went to bed early (the older girls had Young Womens). On the 11th my oldest got her braces off (yay!) and her gums lasered (yuck), after which we headed down to Pleasant Grove to visit friends. On Friday I walked over to the school for PTA stuff, dropped my oldest off for an appointment at 11, and then helped with a birthday party to which my littles were invited while my hubby picked up my oldest, got her to the orthodontist for her retainer, and worked from home.

Last weekend, thankfully, was relatively chill–which was good, since on Monday my oldest took her permit test (and drove briefly around the church parking lot), my second went to the orthodontist and had her gums lasered, and my niece went swimming with all of the kids while I made dinner and tidied. Yesterday my oldest and I had the podiatrist at 8:30, so my hubby dropped the 3 younger kids at piano. After the podiatrist we headed to the high school for the oldest’s school picture and a brief schedule walk before picking up the other three and hitting the library and the pharmacy. We did manage a half hour at home after that, heading out to meet my hubby at the Pretzelmaker by his work around 1 for my second girlie’s (early) birthday lunch. We made it home from THAT just in time for my littles to go swimming with friends–although they ended up at a splashpad instead, since all of the rec pools apparently switched to non-summer hours this week–and then it was back to school night at the junior high, followed by a few minutes of child directions before I headed off to a bridal shower. Today we had a birthday breakfast for the birthday girl–I now have TWO teenagers!–and I dropped my son off at a friend’s at 10 before settling in to dishes and laundry and cleanup. I did manage dinner in the crockpot, followed by a brief lunch with the birthday girl and me, even briefer trips to the bank, the orthodontist, and Ream’s, and then back to school night at the elementary school at 4. After taking my kids to meet their teachers they walked home with an older sister while I helped man the PTA table. (This was crazy, and bless the other two board members for making the bank deposit afterwards so that I could get home and feed people, even though we didn’t end up able to do presents before YW.) My older two still aren’t home, which is frustrating–it was supposed to be a “short” activity–but the youngest is in bed, my hubby’s finishing up with our son, and I’m going to review Firefly Hollow, because I finished reading it aloud with my 7-year-old tonight before she went to bed.

You know those books that aren’t quite sure what age they want to be for? Alison McGhee’s Firefly Hollow is totally one of those. I could see story nuances in ways my girlie couldn’t until the very end, and yet the concept–a cricket named Cricket, a firefly named Firefly, and their friendship with a lonely boy–feels young. (Then again, the nature of that friendship AND the characters of Cricket and Firefly are more complex, so maybe it’s just less my thing?) There are occasional full page illustrations, which my girlie enjoyed, and at the end of the day, I think this is a Velveteen Rabbit sort of tale. (Only longer.) Animal lovers and thoughtful, perceptive readers should enjoy this one.*

*Sorry for the abrupt ending…it’s a long post and I just kind of petered out…

A prequel to the main post, that is, because we’ve been busy and I should record the gist of our busyness, only it’s late and I’m tired and I need to review PAWS: Gabby Gets it Together before returning it to the library tomorrow. Bottom line? It’s fun, full of animals, and deals with friend conflict successfully, if a bit rosily. (Optimistically?) I’m giving it to my birthday girl this week because I think she’ll enjoy it, even if it’s not as emotionally complex as might be ideal for her. (I’ll be interested to see how the sequel goes.) In the meantime, more another day!

We all have our happy places, right? Put me in front of a jigsaw puzzle with a good audiobook and I’m in a little piece of heaven on earth, because who could ask for anything more? (Until I get hungry. Then again, I’ve got more reserves than I used to, so that could take a while.) So there I was last night, putting together a trio of penguins and listening to the second half of Rajani LaRocca’s Red, White, and Whole–and then the blasted book made me cry.

Did you know that when you have to take off your glasses and wipe away intermittent tears, it seriously interferes with your jigsaw-puzzling ability?

Anyway. Red, White, and Whole is a beautiful book, mind–a gentle journey through the difficulties of growing up in America with immigrant parents and the resultant suspension between two worlds–but still, the tears, because MOM WITH LEUKEMIA. Thankfully, Reha’s friend situation is a positive counterpoint to her worries over her mother, and fans of 80s music will love the part it plays in Reha’s life. LaRocca’s verse novel is an incredibly worthy Newbery Honor book, and I’m terribly glad I read it.

Just–don’t read it in a situation where clear vision is essential.

I spent this morning at a PTA training and yesterday at the school helping with registration, because guess who’s the PTA treasurer at our elementary school this year? (A friend asked, and I couldn’t say no–she’s been treasurer and possibly president and has done more than her share of volunteering.) And while I totally meant to review Wendy Mass’s 11 Birthdays on the 1st, I actually finished it late enough that my writing brain had clicked off for the night. And so–tonight! Really, if you convert “Groundhog Day” into the kind of Disney Sunday night movie that I remember from my childhood, you totally have 11 Birthdays. Amanda is engaging and likable, and her repeated journeys through her 11th birthday differ in interesting ways. There’s a small town family history element that reminded me of Gary Schmidt’s The Sin Eater, if The Sin Eater were breezy and light instead of heartbreakingly, poignantly beautiful. (If you haven’t read it, you need to. SO BEAUTIFUL.) At any rate, I’m hoping my almost-thirteen-year-old will be entertained by Mass’s first ‘Willow Falls’ novel.

If you’ve read it, what did you think?

I told my almost-13-year-old that I was going to start saying that every time she tries to swipe a graphic novel that I’m in the middle of–especially one that she’s already read multiple times. Hope Larson’s All Together Now most definitely qualifies on BOTH counts, and in the spirit of self-preservation I finally finished it last night. It’s a solid sequel to All Summer Long, although the almost-romance is definitely going to appeal more to the middle school experience, possibly provoking some smiling eye rolls from adult readers. My only issue was a personal disagreement on the copyright conflict, so to speak; while Bina probably didn’t handle it in an ideal way, I thought she was in the right. In any case, Bina’s quest to form her own band, keep healthy friendships, and make the music she really wants to make is worth reading–and should really appeal to Larson’s target audience.

In other news, yesterday morning we finally had my son’s birthday breakfast–hey, it’s still July!–and then I met with the PTA president about the budget before stopping at Walmart and coming home for a quick nap. My son’s friend’s mom invited us all to swim at their neighborhood pool in the afternoon, and while I had to leave for a bit to take my oldest to her scheduled volunteer service, good times were had by all. By the time we all got home and I exercised, heating up leftovers for dinner made the most sense, and then the kids and I read, because the sun takes it out of you. Today there’s more PTA fun and then a stake Pioneer Day BBQ.

In the heat.

On the other hand, our 7-day forecast has a 94 in it, so we may have to break out the jackets next week–here’s hoping y’all are cooling down as well!

I really thought things would slow down nicely after everyone was home from all the trips, but it really hasn’t felt like it! On Monday my oldest had the dentist and my son played at a friend’s house while I took his sisters shopping (by the time I’d dropped him off and come back my oldest was done). We hit a Walmart Neighborhood Market on the way home and I was unimpressed with the prices, and then I made lasagna for dinner. (We were going to have it on Sunday except that we were completely out of lasagna noodles, which is the number one reason we went to the weird Walmart.) Yesterday was a ‘clean up and organize in problem spots’ kind of a day–which certainly needed to happen–and this morning I ran to Ream’s to get pork and potatoes for dinner with my nephew tonight. I did laundry and such before going out to lunch with Britt, and then did a bit more dinner prep while my nephew took my older girls to the temple. After dinner my fantastic hubby took said nephew to the airport and I was a good girl and did the dishes I didn’t want to do, so go me!

In other news, I finished listening to A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking over laundry and such today, and OH MY STARS I LOVE THIS BOOK. (As in, I’m pondering getting it for myself for Christmas maybe?) T. Kingfisher is Ursula Vernon’s not-writing-for-kids name, and while this was a book club pick–I just don’t choose fantasy much on my own–I am so DESPERATELY glad it was. To be honest with you, it gave me quite a strong tribute-to-the-work-of-Robin-McKinley vibe, with its teenage baker wizard main character, her quirky, slightly rambling, real-time narration style, and its pointed way of viewing heroism. (Those phrases in that sentence want to be parallel but aren’t–quite–and I’m open to suggestions, being too tired tonight to actually come up with a solution.) If you can picture something Robin McKinley-ish written with all of the wit and humor of the ‘Hamster Princess’ books, you can picture this book; Mona, a bakery wizard with a sentient sourdough starter, finds a dead body in her aunt’s bakery and becomes slowly entangled in a plot against her city. The thing is, it doesn’t really even feel like fantasy; it feels like a story about incredibly real people who just happen to live in a world where different sorts of things happen–or where some of the same things happen as in our world, but happen differently. (I mean, yes, animating bread is solidly fantastical, but Mona’s just too real, somehow, for that to matter.) Just–go read this book, okay? Because you need this in your life.

Like, now.

I wasn’t expecting to love Sal & Gabi Break the Universe. To be honest with you, I wasn’t even sure how much I was going to LIKE it. Sci-Fi/Fantasy is not so much my thing, after all, and while the Aru Shah books and the Storm Runner trilogy were interesting, I was fully prepared for Sal & Gabi to join them in the “adventurous ride that I listened to because my daughter was interested” category.

And then I loved it. LOVED IT. The thing about Sal & Gabi is that it’s hilarious–and real–and poignant, all at once and beautifully, incredibly so. The saga of the Mami Muertas–Mamis Muertas?–is enough to break your heart, except that then Sal is deflecting bullying by bringing up murdered poultry, all while his insights on life ring solidly true. How often do you get all that in one book? Add to that a main character with type one diabetes–I have a niece that was diagnosed at 4–and the fabulous Cuban Spanish angle, and Gabi’s writing, and Yasmany’s storyline–oh my goodness. This is a book that will take you from a Coral Castle (of sorts) through the multiverse to the NICU, and you’re going to love every minute of the journey.

I can’t WAIT to give this one to my 15-year-old.

Although not so much because I’ve missed posts, to be honest with you. Sunday was my birthday and I taught a Sunday school lesson and helped my 12-year-old get ready for Oakcrest–a Monday-Friday church camp for girls going into 8th grade. She was nervous and hadn’t prepped as much as I was thinking she had, so that was an endeavor WITHOUT the power loss that cost me a birthday cake. (One’s family does not prep for a cake that bakes for 45 minutes when no one has any idea if and when there will be electricity to bake it. One fully understands and supports this.) She needed to be at a neighboring church building to tag her luggage at 7, so my hubby took her while I exercised and then I took her to Murray to catch the camp buses on Monday morning. Monday was spent in 1)the craziness of hey, the new dryer I found out about yesterday is getting delivered earlier than I expected AND while my son and I are gone, so good thing we have a neighbor to come be the adult in the house! and 2)hey, my niece and her family are coming in time for dinner before sleeping here for an early morning ride to the airport. I got up at 5:30 Tuesday morning to get them to the airport and then had PTA meetings at 10 and 2; yesterday, thankfully, my hubby took our oldest to summer seminary so that I could sleep a bit more. My son had a friend over in the morning and we went to see my friend Andrea’s new house in the afternoon, and I spent a lovely evening working on a puzzle and listening to a fabulous audiobook. This morning my oldest had the orthodontist at 8:45, my littles had piano at 9:30, and then we headed to a friend’s house for lunch before I left the littles with her and took my oldest to a 2 pm appointment; we got home around 5 so that I could exercise and do a load of laundry before my hubby brought home Panda Express a little after 6. (My absent daughter hates Panda–hence tonight’s meal.)

The reason I HAVE felt sort of guilty involves Jarad Greene’s A-Okay, which my 12-year-old read at school and recommended to me. It’s a semi-autobiographical graphic novel about a boy’s struggle with severe acne, and reading it involved a lot of “dang, acne wasn’t a big problem in my life and that seems so unfair.” (To be clear, when I think about my teenage experience as a whole, I had plenty of my own struggles–that just wasn’t one of them. I got the occasional zit.) Jay ends up on a medication with some unpleasant side effects, which doesn’t help the scariness that is figuring out 8th grade friendships. Add to that Jay’s lack of romantic feelings for anyone, and you have a book that has you wincing on the author’s behalf. (And your own. Because let’s be realistic about how not great the average 8th grade experience is…) Thankfully, Jay does eventually figure things out–mostly–and we’re left with a graphic novel that some kids are going to hardcore relate to. (Others–like me–might not personally relate, but growing our empathy is always a good thing.) Give this one especially to the teenage boys in your life!