What I'm reading & loving lately

In my spare time this weekend (generally as I'm trying unsuccessfully to not fall asleep while putting Little M down for her nap!) I've been doing lots of reading. Reading about pickling cucumbers, reading about pigs, and reading about simple living. In my stack right now are Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving, Storey's Guide to Raising Pigs, and Organized Simplicity. I love books!

I'm also loving these weekend evenings. Not so good on the family time side of things, but so good on the down time for mama side of things. Everyone but mama has to be in bed by 9. Which means I get to unwind and become very tired by at the latest 10. That gives me another while to read, or get the main room & kitchen all tidied up for the day to come. It's really making our days go smoother, without me staying up until all hours to get everything done!

And to top it off, I've been getting up earlier since the house is all quiet and the bed is empty so early (the mr is currently getting up at 5:30, very hard for a night owl like him to accomplish!). The amount of outside work I can get done by myself between 6:15 and 7:15 is just amazing. And then I don't feel guilty about dozing off with Little M in the afternoons - win win win all around :) With the heat we've been experiencing lately, those cool morning moments spent outside are much appreciated!

The photo's are of sunset last night. We've had several forest fires burning around us, although quite a ways off. First east of here late last week and into the weekend, and then today another one started a ways south of here. This smoke blew into our little valley in the early evening, but within an hour of sunset it had blown on by. Before it cleared up, it smelled pretty smokey outside and I would feel it stinging my eyes, so I was glad to see it lighten up!