**I’ve missed a few weeks, so this is a very picture heavy post.
Walk at least 500 miles this year (440 miles walked and 60 left to go)
I love it when I get to under 100 miles left for the year! We had beautiful weather this week so we walked at the park multiple times and then I did some new BodyFit by Amy videos on Youtube.
Read more classic and nonfiction books
I read Bunnicula to Ben for our bedtime read aloud. Does that count as a classic?? I’m going to say yes…
I have been on a spooky reading kick lately and have found quite a few gems. My Books Read List for 2021 is now up to 81 and steadily growing. Can I hit 100? I think so. My favorite two books that I have read this past week were The Winter People (4/4 stars in my opinion. This has to be the best spooky book I have ever read. It kept me guessing and properly horrified me at the end when we got to see what had been going on the whole time and we didn’t even know it!) and Every Heart a Doorway (3.5/4 stars, but only because I thought the ending was too predictable. It was a great read though)
Keep a gratitude journal
-I am always so thankful for the library. I could not afford to feed my reading habit if I had to buy every book I (or my kids!) read. I also really love the kindle book lending program the library offers too. Finishing my last book at 8pm is much less sad when I can hop online and download another one within minutes.
-I am so thankful for my kids. They always want to spend time with me right now ( I know that might change later) This week, I got to play Battleship with a cute little solider and then I took my daughter to the library and we loaded ourselves down with books.
Try new foods and recipes
-We got a goodie box from a loved one in Korea and enjoyed getting to try out “Korean food”. I will say the Korean brands use way less salt, fat, and sugar than American companies and my kids thought it was all quite tasty. **The blue bag had these weird stick-less sucker type candies filled with pop rocks. That was the only sketchy thing in the box though.
Do more things as a family
-We played Clue together this week. Emma’s winning streak is still running strong. She is freakishly good at Clue.
-I took the kids and my mom out to eat at Logan’s to celebrate the conclusion of their play. I tried out a fried cheese bacon burger. **My mom said the broccoli does not cancel out the fat from the burger….I disagree! It was very tasty, but I shudder at the calorie count.
-We had our annual pumpkin carving event at my mom’s. Ben did a traditional jack o’ latern and Emma did a cat. **We think the cat looks like it is saying “Meooooooowwwww”.
Buy more used items
We had a really great thrifting/yard sale month. I cannot even remember everything we got.
Emma found a dress, a handmade Victorian costume ($13!), and two shirts at the thrift store. Ben found three long sleeve shirts, a brand new JanSport backpack (with tags still on it for $4) I found a few shirts for myself and a pretty vase.
At a community yard sale, I picked up a large stack of children’s books for 50cents each. They were in pristine condition too. My favorite find was a Lily’s Purple Plastic Purse book and doll set for $5. I plan on giving it to my 5 year old niece for Christmas because she is into purses right now.
Take each child on a monthly outing by themselves
We mostly did things together as a family this month, but hopefully next month we will get back to more one on one outings.
Finish my 2019 NaNoWriMo novel
If I can get my laptop repaired quickly, I plan on participating in NaNoWriMo 2021 and finish up my 2019 novel finally. A computer is holding my novel hostage…sounds like a good plot to me.
Work on my bullet journal skills
Eat 5 fruits and vegetables each day + drink 96oz of water
I did this for five days this week.
The Thrifty Educator 