2015 Reading Challenge Review and Favorite Reads

At the beginning of every year I do a wrap up of my favorite reads from the previous year. Last year I committed to the 2015 Reading Challenge where I picked books from different categories, and I did pretty good with almost completing the whole challenge!

Here are the books I read to complete the challenge!

• A Book Published this year: At the Waters Edge, by Sara Gruen
• A Book in a genre you don't typically read: (biography!):  My Life in France, by Julia Child 
• A book everyone's reading All the Light we Cannot See, by Anthony Doer 
• A book you chose because of its cover: Huckleberry - A cookbook!  Couldn't resist! 
• A Book by A favorite author: After You, by Jojo Moyes  (def not as good as Before You)
• A book recommended by someone with great taste : Follow The River, by James Alexander Thom
• A book you should have read in High school:  For Whom the Bells Toll, by Ernest Hemingway  - actually I am still reading this one - it is slow and hard to get through but I enjoy the writing! 
• A book that's currently on the best seller list: The Boys in the Boat, by Daniel James Brown

Here are some other books I did not read in the challenge but I really want to read this year!

• A Book you have been meaning to read: Still Alice by Lisa Genova 
• A Book your mom loves: WALDEN or The Children's Blizzard (fact)  or Devil Colony ( fiction but lots of scientific fact)
• A book from my Childhood: The Borrowers by Mary Norton
• A book originally written in another language: Strange Pilgrims by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
• OTHER books by favorite authors: Lisa See - China Dolls OR Rainbow Rowell - Fangirl OR The Boston Girl by Anita Diamant (The Red Tent was one of my fav books of all time!)

Anyway for My FAVORITE BOOKS of 2015...I read a lot of middle of the road books - i.e. 3 star*** books and none that I rated 5***** stars, so I really do not have any TOP favorites that you just HAVE to read, but a few good ones - 4**** star reads! - that would be worth your time!

Follow The River, by James Alexander Thom 

Probably my favorite read of the year! WOAH - this story was insane and what a crazy story of survival and determination! Honestly I did not know this was a true story until the authors note at the end with the history of the story. Throughout the book I thought there were some areas which were unbelievable and I thought the author could have made it more believable, but then when I realized at the end it was based on a true life account, I realized most of it really did happen and was impressed with the story.   Goes to show real life is stranger than fiction. So the story was awesome and the author did a pretty good job of filling in the blanks, but honestly he could have cut a third out of the book as about a third of it was the same journey trials over and over...but an amazing story and a fast read! Caution though - a few gory parts in the book too so would not recommend for younger readers. 

In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex, by Nathaniel Philbrick

This on was a doozy of a read and I started it at the end of December but finished it in 2016 but the movie about this is coming out so I would read it before the movie comes out! Very intense and what a story!

The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown

A touching heartwarming story of strength and courage to overcome hardships and endurance to persevere! Loved reading more about rowing and feeling more of a connection to a family member who coaches rowing at Stanford. Now I get what it is all about (well without the blood sweat and tears of it!) . A well written story interspersed with some facts about Germany during the Olympic days before WWII.

My Name Used to Be Muhammed: The True Story of a Muslim Who Became a Christian

Wow - what a story! I knew this was about a man who converted from Islam religion to Christianity (Mormon) but did not realize that he had been so deep in the Islamic Culture - the stories about his family are heartbreaking. The stories about his time in an Egyptian prison are crazy and the fact that he spent years in prison because of his conversion just makes me appreciate the freedom of religion we have in America! What a strong man and a amazing story.

And as always I post my reads and often a short review on Goodreads! 

And I need to start sharing some of my kids favorite reads too!  Shayla is my voracious reader so I will have to pass on some of her favorite as well!  

Here's to your happy reading in 2016!

Road Trip Tips and Tricks with kids!

I SURVIVED 50 HOURS IN THE CAR WITH TWO KIDS! 

(This is the shirt souvenir they should sell at gas stations - I would have bought one!)

"I'm going on a adventure to Idaho!"

  Soooo.....I just got back from a 3,000 mile 45+ hour car ride through 7 states with a 6 year old and a 3 year old (with only one 2 hour nap from my 3 year old during all driving hours combine – so first tip = don’t rely on sleep to fill lots of time!).  Yes I know, I am brave!  The thought of being in a car for close to 50 hours with two kids was a bit daunting!  I probably spent more time prepping their car activities than I did planning our trip activities. Anyway, I know several of my friends who are doing long road trips soon too - and why reinvent the wheel - so I am typing up some of my favorite car tips for kids and parents alike and I hope they help you keep your sanity on your next road trip as well. Please note I put many links throughout this post so you can click and see what I am referring to!

Parents:

In my case, my husband did all the driving and although at first I was grateful he did and that he prefers NOT to have me drive (Im not THAT bad of a driver!), I realized it was a lot more difficult entertaining the kids than driving!  Anyway, although I brought 2 books I was hoping to read, I did not read either of them because I was either entertaining the kids or having something requested of me every 5 minutes which really does not allow one to get into a book- luckily I brought a few mind numbing magazines and had my email/facebook to entertain me.  If you are a lucky one whose kids sleep easily in the car, then don’t forget a good book to read!

Driver entertainment -  First, if the drivers not happy, nobody is happy!  Make sure you do not forget about snacks or special music or activities (that can be safely done driving) for the driver! My hubby is content to listen to music while he drives, but  to break it up, download some clean comedy albums from Itunes so you can listen while you drive (Jim Gaffigan is our fav!).  We also enjoyed this road trip questionnaire- and even learned a few things about each other in the process –you can modify this for kids too as Shayla asked to play and so her and Mitchell answered several of the questions too (favorite color? Favorite tv show? Favorite dessert? Favorite Part of road trip?, etc).  (I also used the countdown and road trip license game from this link to which I will share later. http://www.thedatingdivas.com/tara/the-road-trip-date/)

Kids:

Yes, this was where I had fun planning new activities and surprises for the kids.  Here are a few of the kids favorite and most engaging *(meaning using the most amount of car time!) activities of the trip. Also if you are staying in hotels or camping, many of these activities can be brought into the hotel to keep the kids busy while you shower, etc.

1.       Travel Games – Yes, this seems obvious, but think about games that you already have that may not necessarily be travel games but CAN be played EASILY in the car. One of the favorite activities in the car was playing the game Pictureka - the kids would hold the boards while I called out the cards of what to look for (like Ispy) and then they would help each other play it as well.  

2.      White Boards – Great for drawing, writing notes, adding reusable stickers, etc! Both kids loved these and do you know they now have dry erase crayons (or this could be old news?). Target $1 section normally has some!

3.      $1 store molding clay – similar to this  http://www.walmart.com/ip/Modeling-Clay-Assortment/25078396?findingMethod=rr.  I had fun with this too and Shay and I made a bunch of animals and vehicles with this clay and she reused it over and over again!

4.      License plate game- This was fun for mom and dad too and since part of our trip was in Yellowstone we got almost ALL of the plates minus 6!  http://www.thedatingdivas.com/wp-content/uploads/License-Plate-Game.pdf

5.      Countdown – I used this for the first leg of the trip – a 10 hour drive from CA to Utah.  I broke it up so that every 75 miles they got to unwrap a new goodie or game or sticker book that I had wrapped in tissue paper - each kid got one and I wrapped them in their own color tissue paper so I could just grab a green and blue one from my prize bag, etc. http://www.thedatingdivas.com/wp-content/uploads/Road-Trip-Countdown.pdf

6.      Books/Audiobooks/Movies from the Library – We went to the library and got books for kids to read, books on cd (which I downloaded to my 6 year olds ipod so my hubby and I did not have to listen to them too) and movies to watch.  Don’t spend money getting new books when you can use the library for a great resource!  Also, a GREAT tip – be sure not to put all of the books/cds out at the beginning, pack a box with them and rotate them out for the way back or different leg of the trip so they always have new books! Don’t forget to get a book about the place or places you are visiting to help garnish excitement in your kids for the destination!

7.      Magnetic Tins, words and Magic Ink books – the magnetic tin with cars used on an old Cookie Sheet I brought were a big hit with my three year old boy and Shayla loved the Storymaker to make her own poems and stories (a bunch of magnet words you can connect) and she also loved the Magic Ink books 

8.  Crafty stuff - Beads and string to make necklaces, pipe cleaners (also a big hit for making animals, bracelets, water bottle covers, etc) and pom pom balls to sort or to use with pipe cleaners to make wands! and included in this section also are Pop Beads – These were a big hit too!   http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1591743656/ref=oh_details_o03_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

9.   Dover Little Activity books are fun – but honestly the kids are done with this in under 10 minutes so may be something to save for the hotel at night or out to dinner or  something where you just need a few minutes or distraction 

10.  Ipod/Ipad and/or Leapsters  – I don’t feel as bad when they are playing reading games or reading interactive books then watching movies in the car for hours on end! Be sure to download a few new apps or books before you leave – some favorite of my kids are the Toca apps (Toca Hair Salon, Toca Kitchen, Toca doctor), Endless alphabet,“Cars matching 2” game for 3 year old boy, Cupcakes Maker, ArtSee Studio

11.  Memorization – Have your child memorize a poem, song, scripture or something!  You will be amazed at how fast their little minds cling on to things and it kills time! While you are at it, you can memorize something too- my daughter may or may not have memorized a kids poem with an underwear theme – so don’t ask (;  

12.  Origami - Print out some directions on how to make simple to complex origami shapes depending on your kids ages!  This is fun for parents too! Depending on the age of your kids, they'll be able to do this on their own or require a helping hand. Go to www.activityvillage.co.uk/origami_for_kids.htm or www.origami-fun.com for printable instructions and pictures.

13.  More resources - And last but not least – my list is in no way comprehensive, but it just has some of our favorite ideas, there are sooo many more out there!  You know your kiddo so pick ones you think they will  like but do not be surprised if one of their favorite activities is something you did not think would be interesting to them! There are lots of sites out there with lots of travel ideas, so to save you time – here are my two favorites with lots of ideas!  I got a few of my tips from here, but these sites are more comprehensive (i.e. remember to bring a trash bag, etc!) These tips are MORE than enough info for all you need to have in your car!!! http://www.funcheaporfree.com/2012/11/roadtripsurvivalwithkids.html

And http://www.makeandtakes.com/12-simple-activities-for-traveling-with-kids?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+makeandtakes+%28Make+and+Takes%29

FINAL TRAVEL TIPS:  Here are a few other things not to forget that helped on our trip:

• A Sharp knife (unless you are going by airplane) – to cut up snacks like apple slices for kids, sausage for hubby, etc
• Quarters – Laundry and for the penny pressing machines – 2 quarters and 1 penny – cheapest souvenir ever!
•  Ziplock baggies and dixie cups– To divvy up snacks, game pieces, save leftovers,  fruit, etc.  Gallon and sandwich size!
•  Binoculars – always a hit and bonus when going to National park or somewhere similar!
• Snacks - of course this is fun and get some things your kids don't normally eat and that is not too messy or melty - animal crackers, jerky, trail mix with all your own mix ins, sweet dry cereal, freeze dried fruit, etc!
• Boxed milk and oatmeal packets and spoons– Boxed milk for any kid who likes milk to drink and you can make a cheap fast breakfast with oatmeal packets and hot water from coffee machine!

And if all else fails - esp if you have a view like this 

- LOOK OUT THE WINDOW!!!

GOOD LUCK ON YOUR NEXT ADVENTURE 
AND SHARE YOUR FAVORITE ROAD TRIP TIPS IN THE COMMENTS TOO! 

Hungry Girl

So, I just thought I would share one of my favorite healthy eating tip websites -

http://www.hungry-girl.com/

I love this website because it gives you healthy makeovers of unhealthy foods - so you still feel like you are indulging but you are saving calories - yay!

Check out their recipes and, if you like it, sign up for their regular emails for healthy food updates and more recipes!

Here are the tips for this week (I agree with all of them except the Splenda substitute - although it does have fewer calories, it is a modified molecule of sugar that has not been around long enough to determine its long term side effects on your health and many studies say it is bad - remember they used to praise Nutrasweet/Equal/Etc but that has now been linked to cancer - so beware of Splenda!)

HUNGRY GIRL'S TOP ATE Calorie-Saving Cooking Swaps!
1. Nonstick cooking spray instead of oil (for stovetop cooking)
2. Canned pumpkin instead of eggs & oil (for baking)
3. Light vanilla soymilk instead of milk or cream
4. Fat-free liquid egg substitute instead of eggs
5. No-sugar-added applesauce instead of butter
6. Ground-beef-style soy crumbles instead of ground beef
7. Splenda No Calorie Sweetener (granular) instead of sugar
8. Butternut squash instead of potatoes