August 2019: Recap + On My Shelves

August 2019: Recap + On My Shelves

• Nov 25, 2019

August was a pretty chill month for me! I didn't read very much, didn't blog or bookstagram, and barely watched anything, too. What was I doing? I was cleaning, organizing, and fully embracing my nesting mode. Let's discuss!

1. Bargain on a Baby Bassinet – It didn't take long for me to start seeing baby-related advertisements and posts online. One thing I kept noticing in perfectly styled Insta photos were gorgeous bassinets from Design Dua. But as much as I loved them, I couldn't justify the cost. AND THEN! I found a barely used one + the stand on Craigslist (only an hour away!) – for essentially 75% off the retail price. Our first new baby purchase! *happy dance* 

2. All the Projects – I spent most of June and July feeling exhausted, which is the main pregnancy symptom I experience in my first trimester. But I finally entered the second trimester in August and felt all of my energy returning! In fact, I started a major project cleaning, purging, and organizing every room of my house. That project involved several shopping trips, including one where we found a cute chair for the playroom.

3. New Planner – For the last two years, I've been so obsessed with Happy Planners. In fact, I've written several posts about how I use the various sizes as a gratitude journal, daily planner, bookish bullet journal and reading log. They were all still working for me, except the actual planner. I realized I was only writing in it after the fact and starting to dread the stickers. So, I decided to give Emily Ley's Weekly Simplified Planner a try, and I am LOVNG it.

4. Time for a Big Boy Bed – After I found out I was pregnant, I started to go into planning and preparing mode. One of the biggest things on my list? Moving my firstborn into his big boy room! He was still happily sleeping in a crib in the nursery, and the "toddler room" was a dumping ground for random things we hadn't fully unpacked after moving in a year ago. In August, we finally cleaned out the room, decorated it, and moved him in. He is in heaven! 

Read 9 Books | Favorites:

A Simplified Life by Emily Ley

Design Your Day by Claire Diaz-Ortiz

Hello Mornings by Kat Lee

(And honestly, none of these are truly favorites. It was a mediocre reading month!)

“The tricky thing about giving opinions is that sometimes
they cost you more than you wanted to spend.”
The Downstairs Girl by Stacey Lee

“Don't sacrifice the good to chase the perfect.”
Grace, Not Perfection by Emily Ley

“You see, living an exceptional life isn’t just an opportunity that comes along once in a lifetime.
It’s an invitation that awaits us every single day. Every single morning.”
Hello Mornings by Kat Lee

“At that point I realize that the wild, faithful pursuit of big adventures
is so much more glamorous than the wild, faithful pursuit of the everyday.”
Hello Mornings by Kat Lee

Favorite Album: Lover by Taylor Swift
I was excited for this album but didn't love the first two singles, so I lowered my expectations.
Thankfully, the album as a whole was so much better. I've loved having this on repeat!

Walk the Line (2005) starring Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon – This wasn't a new-to-me movie, which is what I usually focus on in this section of my recap. But I didn't end up watching anything else this month, aside from a few episodes of Gilmore Girls, so I had to include it! It's been years since I watched this movie, and I'm so glad that I still adored it on rewatch. And I'm not even the biggest fan of Johnny Cash or classic country music!

Book of the Month: Well Met by Jen DeLuca, That's What Frenemies Are For by Sophie Littlefield and Lauren Gershall, and The Downstairs Girl by Stacey Lee

Used Bookstore: Complete Guide to Money by Dave Ramsey and Make It Happen by Lara Casey

Gifted: Grace Not Perfection by Emily Ley

Review: Someone to Remember by Mary Balogh

Audible: Catching Fire and Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

Kindle: The Next Right Thing by Emily P. Freeman (Not Pictured)