My children were on Spring Break this week, although my University was not…so my week was filled with working with teachers, shuttling kids and trying to find a bit of family time somewhere in-between. And of course, some reading and writing, too.

 
What I’m Reading:

In my quest for more margin in my life, I eagerly read The 4-Hour Work Week by Timothy Ferriss. Now, I have absolutely no intention of quitting a job I love, creating a product-based business and automating my work completely. No. But, I do plan to create more space in my day for the things that matter most to me and that means finding ways to be more productive and efficient. And I walked away from this text with a few tools to do just that. I created a dreamline for myself (more on this in a future post), revisited the 80/20 Principle from Vilfredo Pareto, learned a method for deciding what to say ‘no’ to and closed the book with a pretty incredible ‘moral of the story’ moment for living life.

I also read a beautiful book called The Promise of Change by Jo Ann Allen Boyce and Debbie Levy. This book was both rhythmic and lyrical, powerful and impactful. It tells Jo Ann Allen’s story as one of the twelve students to desegregate Clinton High School in Tennessee in 1956. As I read, I was in awe of Jo Ann’s solid family foundation that built such braveness and courage in the face of horrific racism. Her positivity, open heart and hope for something better never wavered even as she, and the others, witnessed and experienced true hatred as they claimed their own civil rights. I’m left feeling truly connected to Jo Ann from afar, disgusted by the behaviors of others and saddened to realize how little I knew about the Clinton 12. This should be on a must-read list for all.

What I’m Writing:

Well, in the words of George Costanza, my worlds have collided….in an amazing way! You already know I love Gretchen Rubin and the Two Writing Teachers blog. Well, Kathleen Sokolowski has created The Writing Teacher’s Happiness Project! =) Each month, she’ll tackle a different aspect of her writing life, much like I choose a new word of the month. I’ve been notebooking about what my own happiness project might look like in relation to my word of the month (April’s word is: margin) and here are a few things I’ve been notebooking about:

  • Creating space by cleaning closets and sorting junk hot spots in my home
  • Clearing work tasks off my plate that are not required and don’t serve me well
  • Adding a bit of margin to my daily schedule and not jam-packing in Zoom meetings

I have a brainstorm page in my notebook of all the ways to bring margin to life and this happiness project has inspired me to keep at it even more.

What would be included in your happiness project?

What I’m Learning:

This week was all about nutrition. My youngest is growing like a weed, so we visited a nutritionist to make sure he is getting enough protein and calories. Honestly, I learned so much about nutrition in that one session than I ever have in my adult life, information that can help me better balance my blood sugar and energy levels. So, while I can’t cook (yet!), I have a new zest for trying new food combinations and preparing snacks and meals for easy access. Clean Food Crush, Chocolate Covered Katie and Smitten Kitchen are now bookmarked. What’s your favorite food site for me?

What I’m Loving:

Someone sent this article about dry brushing to me since they know I’m up for anything healthy. This is new for me, but I am very intrigued.

I found a new podcast this week! It’s called Mom’s Don’t Have Time to Read Books. In the words of my grandfather, I beg to differ…but am so enjoying this mom’s take on popular books as an invitation to grow my reading community. And now, I’m a Zibby Owens fan for life.

I am a fan of bullet journaling and while I love it, I am not nearly as creative as the Instagrammers celebrating their beautiful journals. That’s why I appreciate printables so much and I hit the mother-load of printables when I found Kaylyn Brooke’s blog. So, if you love printables as much as I do, be sure to take a look!

There you have it! I hope this inspires you to make space for more reading and writing in your own life. What are the highlights from your literate life this week?