happy sale-ing

it's monday, and i have today off work. woot woot! things have been a bit crazy the last couple of weeks, so i thought it was about time to play some catch up. the church next door to the school i work for had a huge garage sale a few fridays ago. we're talking mini flea market here. the best part about it was that the money they made was raised for several missions projects the church is involved in. so how could i not wander over there for an hour or so and help some good causes? (: 

$12.50 later i walked away with these:

i had recently come across this room in all my diy/room redesign travels and fallen in love with the shutters. for $8 my dining room windows are going to be a whole lot prettier. i'm planning on using the green one to hang pictures on.

seriously i'm in love with the detail on these babies!

and of course, my book collecting habit was in temptation island that day. $.50 for softcover and $1 for hardcover and well, i stopped myself at 7. mostly because my puny arms couldn't manage any more.

i'm so excited to have john get the shutters up. and to shop for curtains for the windows too. and to spend some warm summer or chilly, rainy spring (as the case is for us here) afternoons reading!

i'd say this garage sale season is off to a super start. (:

happy monday!

summer reading

it can probably be traced back to early school days, but making a summer reading list seems to be a completely normal and perhaps expected part of jumping into summer! i shall play the game and share with all of you the books i'd like to ingest this summer.


now my goals would be much easier attained through the ownership or rentership of a porch, and even more so a porch swing. i find myself with neither. so if any of you happen to find yourself with either or both and also preferably find yourself in the western new york area, i'm more than available to help you occupy them. i'm even up for a road trip! 


now that that item of business is out of the way, without further ado, i bring to you... my summer reading list:

acedia and me, kathleen norris (i've been working through this one the last couple of weeks. some really good thoughts and perspectives on what is more commonly termed sloth, though that's not quite a comparable term for acedia.)


a million miles, don miller (i still have to purchase this one, but am anxious to as everything i've heard about it has been absolutely positive!)

reread: blue like jazz, don miller (it's a don miller summer... what can i say?)

forgotten god, francis chan (crazy love was by far challenging to the way i live my life. i'm hoping and, if i'm honest, not hoping the same for this one!)


now it's a well-known, totally proven fact that posting things on the internet increases your commitment 148.72%. so clearly there is no need for all of you to check in with me to make sure i'm making progress.


and, because i know you're curious, yes i read books simultaneously. i'm a woman dangit. i'm built to multitask! none of this one at a time nonsense.


ok that's enough about me. this all just begs the question... what's on your summer reading list?