Friends, we’ve made it through another week! I’m not sure what it is about short weeks (when the kids don’t have school on Monday) that actually make them feel longer. But the weekend is here, nonetheless! Here are a few of my favorites that I collected this week.
Spirit of 67 Open the Doors for Education Home Tour: It’s back! After a brief hiatus, this iconic spring event is back with not four houses, but five!, for this year’s Home Tour on May 7. I learned which houses which houses will be on the tour this year and they are all a-mazing! Please set aside May 7 with your girlfriends and start praying for sunshine. This home tour is going to be great. I’ll be posting more details about this event once tickets are for sale and as we get closer to the date.
Lake Forest’s Katherine Reay Pens Awful Beautiful Life: Awful Beautiful Life is the story of Texan Becky Powell who faced the unthinkable on May 16, 2013. Her husband Mark called and said, “I’ve done something terrible.” Within hours, she learned that he had taken his own life and, over a period of several years, millions of dollars from friends and colleagues. Awful Beautiful Life is Becky’s journey through the two years surrounding Mark’s death and how she overcame it and the chaos he left behind. It came down to God, a present and dedicated family, and friends, who showed up for her and her kids in tangible ways.
Becky knew she had to share her story and turned to Katherine Reay, whom she had met when the Reay family lived in Texas. Katherine is prolific fiction writer who most recently published The Printed Letter Bookshop and has a new novel, Of Literature and Lattes, scheduled for release this May. When word reached Katherine that Becky was in a need of an author, she was in between novels and actually had a little time on her hands. She took this as a sign that even though she didn’t write nonfiction, she was supposed to write this inspiring story. Through some intensive weekends together, comprehensive interviews of Becky’s circle of family, friends, attorneys, and creditors and hours of phone edits, Katherine truly delivered Becky’s story. It’s an absolutely riveting read of faith, strength, and hope.
Trish McEvoy Essential Pencil: What would a roundup of mine be without some makeup? This is for the ladies who don’t love red lipstick. (Even I need to tone it down once in a while from all of my reds!) It’s Trish McEvoy’s Essential Pencil in Nude. It’s a universally flattering rosy pink that looks natural but not washed out. It comes in my favorite pencil format that leaves a satin shiny finish. Love it!
Before I let you go, here are few other things I’m obsessed with this week:
- Currently reading: Modern Love, The Best of the New York Times “Modern Love” Column. I’m just about finished. How is your reading going? I’m looking forward to posting a recap next Thursday, February 27.
- Currently listening to: Braving the Wildernesss by Brené Brown. I saw a quote by Brené this week that we should always assume others are doing the best they can. I was so moved by this that I decided to listen to another one of her books to see what nuggets I might take away. Brené narrates the book and she’s an amazing storyteller. (If you’re interested in listening to this book, please consider downloading it from Libro.fm. You support Lake Forest Book Store when you use this service.)
- Currently eating: Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup Easter Eggs are back, and in my opinion, they beat the Christmas Tree and heart shape peanut butter cups all day long!
Happy weekend!
xo,
