300 Days of Sunshine

 .    And just like that, 2017 is half over (what?!).  In six months I have traveled to four states, celebrated my sister's wedding, hosted almost a dozen visitors, watched a newborn baby learn to crawl, sit, and eat solid food, started Half Marathon training, maximized my crock pot use, savored "me time" with a happy hours and a few pedicures, and read a lot of great books.   Here are a few of my favorites from the first half of the year, with my complete 6-month list below.  (Ady's favorite books, for the record, are ones about animals, especially if the pages contain fuzzy textures!)  Ahh, if only there were enough time to read everything. Top 10 so far for 2017... A Gentleman in Moscow, by Amor Towles Homegoing, by Yaa Gyasi Small Great Things, by Jodi Picoult The Memory Keeper’s Daughter, by Kim Edwards Americanah, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk, by Kathleen Rooney The Last Mile, by David Baldacci North ...

Happy Summer Solstice!  Summer is a time for energy, socialization, music, exercise, and celebrating life.  It's a time for watching the sunset, hiking in the mountains, watching the trees and flowers blossom, listening to kids laughing in the backyards, and enjoying cocktails on patios with friends.  There is so much to do in Santa Fe in the summer -- art festivals, live music, the Farmer's Market, free movies, restaurant events, beer and wine festivals, Folk Art Market, the opera, and the list goes on!  Ahh if only there was enough time for everything.  Here are a few tidbits about life lately... 1.  We enjoyed the first week of this year's Music on the Hill series last week!  This is a weekly, family-friendly event every summer at St. John's College, exhibiting a variety of musical performances throughout the season.  The first week featured a jazz flutist.  Although the air in Santa Fe has been hot and smoky lately, I'm gl...

Last weekend we celebrated little Baby Adyson's baptism.  It was a very special few days of family, nature, community, and love.  The journey that led us to this celebration actually began several months ago, before Ady was even born, and involved many discussions about our roots and values. I grew up Catholic, sang in the church choir, served as a lector and Eucharistic minister, and got confirmed and married in the Catholic church.  While I have never agreed 100% with the teachings of Catholicism, I appreciated the community that the church offers and the traditions that connect people throughout time and around the world.  I am not a religious person, but I believe that going to church cultivates good habits; I thought I would always belong to a church to some extent, and that it would always be a Catholic church.   Jaycob and I sustained many frustrations during our marriage preparation four years ago as we dutifully fulfilled the requirements of the chu...