Finding Mercy: December 2015

Monday, December 21, 2015

2015 in Books

I set out the year wanting to read 20 books and I am currently on my 21st and part way through a couple others because I never usually stick with just one book at a time. It's been so, so good to get back to reading more. And very fun to keep mixing it up with a variety of books and genres I enjoy.

The reality is that I got through a lot of them by using two different apps: OverDrive to check out audio books from the library and Audible to utilize a free 3 month subscription and then buying some significantly discounted books before canceling my subscription to save money.

Here's what I got through, in no particular order. Asterisks for my top 5.*

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou*

Yes Please by Amy Poehler

A Path Appears: Transforming Lives, Creating Opportunity by Nicholas D. Kristof*

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

Cry Purple by Christine McDonald

Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief by Lawrence Wright

Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

Yellow Crocus by Laila Ibrahim

Silent Tears: A Journey of Hope in a Chinese Orphanage by Kay Bratt

Bittersweet: Thoughts of Change, Grace, and Learning the Hard Way by Shauna Niequist

The Help by Kathryn Stockett

Bossypants by Tina Fey

Carry On, Warrior: Thoughts on Life Unarmed by Glennon Doyle Melton*

Men Explain Things to Me by Rebecca Solnit

For the Love: Fighting for Grace in a World of Impossible Standards by Jen Hatmaker*

Boundaries: When to Say Yes, How to Say No to Take Control of Your Life by Henry Cloud

Why are All The Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria: And Other Conversations About Race by Beverly Daniel Tatum*

Next year I hope to manage to read (or finish or re-read) at least these 15 books. We will see how I do.

Half the Church: Recapturing God's Global Vision for Women by Carolyn Curtis James
Race, Real Estate, and Uneven Development by Kevin Fox Gotham
Instruments in the Redeemer's Hands by Paul David Tripp
The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grisom
The Secret Keeper by Kate Morton
Between the World and Me by Ta-Neshisi Coates
Rising Strong by Brene Brown
The Girl with Seven Names: A North Korean Defector's Story by Hyeonseo Lee
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
Out of Sorts: Making Peace with an Evolving Faith by Sarah Bessey
The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of Amerca's Great Migration by Isabel Wilkerson
Some of My Best Friends are Black by Tanner Colby
The Half Was Never Told by Edward E. Baptist
Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Call the Midwife by Jennifer Worth

Monday, December 14, 2015

Evelyn - 7

We are almost 3 months into you being 7, Evelyn, and we are all doing a lot of learning. Seven has not been easy. Seven feels different. Seven has you reading, thinking, exploring, and changing in so many ways. You growing into a young lady and you heart and head are sometimes a tiny child and sometimes wrestling with big things. Your dad and I fail you daily. We don't know what we are doing...a lot. We love you more than words and want so much for you. We will all figure this out together.

This last year you have accomplished lots of things. Reading is starting to click for you. You love to write letters to grandma and are learning to sound out all the words yourself. You passed the swimming test at the Y to get to swim at the deep end and go down the slide. You are doing to start gymnastics classes. You are doing great in first grade at your new school having made several best friends and a teacher who adores you.

Way back on your birthday I gave you your yearly interview and here is what you had to say.

Who is your best friend?
Stella, Pela, Leila, Havilah, Mia, Nikyla, Jalyse, Sammasia, and Greta