karenika

Books I Read in 2017

In 2017, I read 305 books.

My favorite read of the year was: This is How it Always Is

My favorite YA read of the year was: Turtles All the Way Down

My favorite middle-grade read of the year was: Full Cicada Moon

My favorite non-fiction read of the year was: Hunger

Here are my favorites, not in order, by genre:

Fiction/Poetry:

The Heart’s Invisible Furies
Bear Town
Lilian Boxfish Talks a Walk
The Impossible Fortress
The Weight of Ink
The Sun and Her Flowers
Stay with Me
The Ready-Made Thief
All Grown Up
Sycamore
Spoonbenders
Standard Deviation
Anything is Possible
The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane
Setting Free the Kites
My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry
The Dry
Celine
Pachinko
Faithful
Six Wakes
The Lonely Hearts Hotel

Young Adult+Middle Grade

All the Crooked Saints
Full Cicada Moon
Letters from Rifka
The Golden Compass
We are Okay
A Million Junes
The Hate you Give
Strange the Dreamer
Scythe
Learning to Swear in America
Wolf by Wolf

Non-fiction:

The Power of Moments
A Mind At Home with Itself
The Four Tendencies
The Bright Hour
Radical Candor
Loving What Is
Mindshift
We Should All be Feminists
I’m Judging You
Shrill
The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck

And here’s the full list:

wolf by wolf
learning to swear in america
small great things
because of mr terupt
salt sugar fat – partially
organize today tomorrow
flaws <not done>
The Whole Town’s Talking
The sleeper and the spindle
Wolf in a White Van
Messy (only 2 chapters)
Still Life with Tornado
browsing (partial)
scythe
the diviners
the future of us
the bear and the nightingale
shrill
in defense of food
chasing secrets
the subtle art of not giving a f*ck
a gathering of shadows
lilian boxfish takes a walk
lab girl
The achievement habit
losing it
the look of love
man’s search for meaning
carve the mark
all our wrong todays
the underneath
a truck full of money
this close to happy – halfway
a separation
the lonely hearts hotel
lincoln in the bardo
the three-body problem
my not so perfect life
six wakes
the futures
small admissions
pachinko
you will not have my hate
the impossible fortress
what light
faithful
gemina
the menagerie
version control
exit west
the roanoke girls
i’m judging you
edgar and lucy
the stranger in the woods
the rules do not apply
ill will
celine
number the stars
fuzzy mud
stretch
fear and other uninvited guests
innocents and others
the dry
always
we should all be feminists
dear ijaewele, or a feminist manifesto in fifteen suggestions
milk and honey
my grandmother asked me to tell you she’s sorry
the reader
five dysfunctions of a team
universal harvester
the arrangement
strange the dreamer
solve for happy
eggshells
setting free the kites
The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane
The Dance of Intimacy
What it Means when a Man Falls from the Sky
Hallelujah Anyway
The Things You Can See Only When you Slow Down
a little more human
this is how it always is****
why won’t you apologize
waking gods
the animators
lucky boy
idaho
perfect little world
the wanderers
hourglass – dani shapiro
the book of polly
the stars are fire
south and west
mindshift
american war
option B
for the love
anything is possible
chasing slow
the hate u give
the upside of unrequited
the one memory of flora banks
the book of joy
beartown
ginny moon
the leavers
men without women
garden of small beginnings
eleanor oliphant is completely fine
dance of anger
the boy on the bridge
The lights we lost
Windfall
new boy
one day we will all be dead and none of this will matter
loving what is
house of names
woman no 17
startup
one of the boys
giant steps
dinner party
the best of adam sharp
golden state
tenth of december
the first bad man
the heirs
trajectory
ramona blue
barrowfields
radical candor
chemistry
craft a life you love
no time like the present
bodhisattva mind
a million junes
standard deviation
touch
overcoming the five dysfunctions of a team
white fur
the bright hour
do not become alarmed
The new old me
The answers
Midnight at the bright ideas bookstore
You don’t look your age and other fairy tales
Dear cyborgs
The chalk artist
A house among the trees
Ministry of utmost happiness
The shack
void star
the fifth season
hungry
fireworks
f*ck feelings
windfall
body love
stories of your life and others
the end of men
spoonbenders
Making friends with your mind
sycamore
what we lose
we are okay
all grown up
don’t bite the hook
hello sunshine
The reason you’re alive
words in deep blue
when dimple met rishi
watch me disappear
A Beautiful, Terrible Thing
Normal
Who is Rich
made for love
make your bed
the turquoise table
less
rabbit cake
after on
spirit junkie
the little things
Rising Strong as a Spiritual practice
Mrs. Fletcher
the dying game
the epiphany machine
hunch
becoming wise
the readymade thief
impossible views of the world
the breakdown
our chemical hearts
perfect just as you are
joy diet
the driver
the marriage pact
The misadventures of awkward black girl
of mess and moxie
amanda wakes up
the locals
class mom
reincarnation blues
almost missed you
home fire
stress proof
would everybody please stop
stay with me
13 things mentally strong people don’t do – half
the child
a life of adventure and delight
it’s not yet dark
george and lizzie
dinner at the center of the earth
the how of happiness
braving the wilderness
little fires everywhere
flesh and bone and water
i liked my life
the ninth hour
since we fell
new people
conversations with friends
the four tendencies
letters from rifka
they both die in the end
warcross
jane, unlimited
a mind at home with itself
unfuck yourself
forest dark
turtles all the way down
no asshole rule
the sun and her flowers
sourdough
the power of moments
strengths switch
everyone’s a aliebn when ur a alienbn too
towers falling
autonomous
manhattan beach
sing unburied sing
the pema chodron audio collection
the wisdom of sundays
the rules of magic
reset
a short history of the girl next door
dunbar
almost sisters
grit
we need to talk
lagom
dear martin
Heather, the totality
The snow child
I am not your perfect mexican daughter
full cicada moon
Permission to screw up
The golden compass
Real love
Celebrations
Bonfire
Fierce kingdom
The power
Insight
The Weight of Ink
Long Way Down
All the Crooked Saints
Five Carat Soul (some of the stories)
Future Home of the Living God
The gentleman’s guide to vice and virtue
Your best year 2018
The heart’s invisible furies
The Deal of a Lifetime
Dear Fahrenheit 451
Inherit the wind
Rain Reign
Seven days of us
How to Talk So Kids Will Listen & Listen So Kids Will Talk
The Uterus is a Feature not a Bug
The story of Arthur truluv
Invincible Summer
Young Jane young
Far from the Tree
Solitude of Prime Numbers
A hundred thousand worlds
Why We Came to the City
Artemis
Miller’s Valley
Flood Girls
The Wangs vs The World
Fishbowl
The Hike
The Last Black Unicorn
Nourishing Intimacy
Coming Closer to Ourselves
Stick with It
Unlimited Power
It Ends with Us
Inventing Joy
Motherest
Improvement
Britt-Marie was Here
Food Freedom Forever

For 2018 I plan to use a sheet to track my reading. Here’s to another year of reading!

December Daily – 21

Day 21 is a story about our wrapping papers and our tree with gifts under it.

love this project!

One of my goals for 2017 was to make 20 pieces of art each month. I had some ideas of what I wanted to do but I also knew that they would likely change as the year progressed. I wasn’t sure I would be able to pull off making 20 pieces of art each month. But I did! This post will be image heavy as it will show all of them. (Almost all.)

For January I made loving hearts:

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For February, I made some quick sketches:

For March, I captured everyday magic:

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For April, I played with fabric:

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For May, I wrote about what shining means to me:

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For June, I painted rocks:

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For July, I played with paint:

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For August, I made 10-minute art:

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September was my travel journal.

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For October, I made mantras:

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For November, I made art boards:

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And December, of course, was December Daily.

The best part is: I enjoyed every one of these projects a lot!

Not too shabby for a super-busy year. Here’s to hoping for more art in 2018!

December Daily – 20

Day 20 starts with this awesome photo of Nathaniel that i adore!!

And another one of him on the back.

And then it’s David’s card.

and the back

and then I moved the pocket page forward and wrote about our family photos and how we don’t send a holiday card.

love these photos

and finally actual page 20 is about how we went to see Star Wars.

love these photos

Books I Read This Week 2017 – 51

This was a big week for reading. I had a little extra time and I finished several books that I had started a while ago.

I started with Dear Fahrenheit 451: Love and Heartbreak in the Stacks: A Librarian’s Love Letters and Breakup Notes to the Books in Her Life which sounded like a good idea and was cute but if anything it was too cute. Trying too hard to be cute.

I read Inherit the Wind for our Lit Club with the middle graders. I had heard of it but never read it. I am glad I did. It’s funny!

Nathaniel was reading Rain Reign for his Lit Club so I read it alongside him to help with his understanding and homework discussions. It is a fantastic book if you have a 3-6th grader.

I had attempted Seven Days of Us unsuccessfully before but decided to tackle it this time and I liked it. It wasn’t pithy or amazing but it was still enjoyable.

I had also attempted How to Talk So Kids Will Listen & Listen So Kids Will Talk before but hadn’t managed to finish it. I finally did. Solid ideas but nothing super-new to me. If only I could actually implement these consistently.

I wasn’t sure if I would like A Uterus Is a Feature, Not a Bug but decided to give it a try and enjoyed it enough to keep going. Worthwhile for me.

The Story of Arthur Truluv is Elizabeth Berg’s new novel and I love her. She did not disappoint. So sweet, this one.

I bought Invincible Summer on Audible months ago and hadn’t read it so I decided to finally read it. I was a sweet tale of 3 friends. It wasn’t the best book I read but it was okay.

Young Jane Young is by Gabrielle Zevin who wrote several books I’ve loved reading. So I’d bought this one on Audible too and finally read it. It was good but not great.

When I was at my YA Book Club earlier this week, my friend Angela recommended Far From the Tree which just won the National Book Award. She said she really liked it and I had just checked it out from the library so I decided to read it next. It was fabulous.

Relatively good week of reading. Two more weeks left in this year. Here’s to more reading!

Books I Read this Week 2017 is a year-long project for 2017. You can read more about my projects for 2017 here.

Nourish Me – 51

Mind:

I read: A lot of books this week. Finally tackling my audible pile.
I learned: Calculus and Python classes for the kids took up all my empty moments this week. Though I did sign up for a Machine Learning class, we’ll see if I can actually do it.
I watched: No movies this week. Haven’t even turned on the TV in weeks.

Body:

Exercise: I exercised four days this week despite major sciatica pain.
- Monday: Body Pump
- Tuesday: Body Pump Express
- Wednesday: nothing
- Thursday: Yoga
- Friday: Body Pump Express
Food: Food was so so. Still no soda. Too much coffee still and just overall not eating much or well.
Body Care: I’ve done nothing here still. Will use the holiday season to get back on track.

Soul:

I rested: A little better on sleep this week but still pretty deprived.
I connected: Spent some time with my friend Leslie and went to google party with Jake.
I journaled: I journaled a whole bunch more. Making plans for 2018.
I made art: December Daily baby!
Flowers: still filling my life and home with these and still loving it.

Didn’t quit coffee, don’t know if I have it in me. Maybe I should quit chocolate instead?

Nourish Me Week 2017 is a year-long project for 2017. You can read more about my projects for 2017 here.

December Daily – 19

Day 19 is about the google holiday party. One of my favorite things about our parties is that there a ton of photo booths.

I added a little Journaling on the back of one of the photos.

And then lots of little embellishments behind each photobooth photo.

Love all of these.

2017 Stories – 51 – Seventh Grade Culmination

David’s school has culminations that happen at the end of each major unit. The 7th grade culmination this year was about the World’s Fair where each of this kids studied a commodity and then wrote an Activism related paper on it, found its Chemical compound and features, wrote a creative story around it and made a piece of art.

David’s commodity was gold. On culmination night, they also had to sit on an expert panel on their commodity and answer questions about it.

The 8th graders did country studies so I had to capture this one on Turkey.

It’s always special to be a part of these evenings and see all of his work come together so wonderfully.

Stories from 2017 is a year-long project for 2017. You can read more about my projects for 2017 here.

December Daily – 18

Today’s story is about brunch that my YA book club hosted.

I love this book club because it’s all writers. They all write YA Fiction or other fiction and I get to be there an hear all their stories.

so so lucky!

December Daily – 17

Day 17 is about the Tech Challenge and David and his friends working.

This is one of my favorites because I’ve had this story in the book for four years now and I love being able to see how it changes.

Little bits of embellishments. Not much.

Living Intentionally 2017 – 51

Weekly Intention: Hello to what will hopefully be my first week of holiday vacation. My intention this week is to make some plans for 2018, to read a bunch, to really really relax with my family. That’s it.

Things I want to get Done: Here’s the list for his week.

Work: matching
Personal: see if I can exercise a bit?
Personal: do December Daily
Personal: do advent of light
Personal: make 2018 plans iteration 3 + journal
Personal: Continue with the new scrapping/storytelling system.
Family: take photos!
Family: Math with D and Python with N
Family: Make a plan for the next two weeks.

This month’s intention is: Shine Slowly: And here it is. The end of one more year. You made it through. Tough times, joyful times. Celebrations and trials. Changes and all. You did it. Time to slow down. Time to make space for the next year. Growth comes after downtime for you. Take this time to store some energy so you can hit the ground running in 2018.

Ways to Shine this week:

One: Bold: prepping for 2018 but honestly resting would be bold this year.
Two: Open: open to the possibility of going somewhere.
Three: Heal/Nourish: some serious self-care this week.

I am looking forward to: resting. nothing. reading.

This week’s challenges: not getting antsy and bored.

Top Goals:

Work: matching. and not working 🙂
Personal: sleep+exercise+food+journaling. december daily.
Family: loving my kids and husband

I will focus on my core desires (bold, mindful, nourish, love) by: really focusing on my family wholly.

This week, I will say yes to: self-care.

This week, I will say no to: ennui.

I am worried that: we will waste these two weeks. i really really don’t want to.

This week, I want to remember: that it’s a major luxury to get this time off and i really want to make the most of it.

Weekly Reflection 2017 – 50

How I shone this week: This week I shone at work by helping planning come together for all of my organization and closing many of the loops that needed to be closed. I am officially out starting this week hopefully. I also supported my kids by doing work with them and going to David’s culmination. I showed up for my friend Leslie. It was a good week.

Things I wanted to get Done:

Work: planning done! (for now). emails done, posters done. matching still underway.
Personal: exercised four times, did conway, didn’t quit coffee, ate so so. did december daily and most of advent of light. scrapped.
Family: did math, python and calc. Took photos. did shopping round three. went to D’s culmination and Google party. made no plans though.

I celebrate: a good, solid week.

I am grateful for: a fun holiday party.

I nourished myself by: not super much this week.

Reflecting on my worries: exercised but didn’t eat great. planning is mostly done. i will hopefully have the two weeks off. tried not to disappoint anyone.

I let go of: anything being perfect. perfection is a myth.

Core Desire Check-in (bold, mindful, nourish, love):

bold: bold with moving planning forward this week.
mindful: mindful that the next two weeks can be really hard if we let it be.
nourish: i need to do some strong push here.
love: i love the holiday season, slowing down!

What made me laugh this week: lovely laughter at holiday party with Jake.

What I tolerated this week: a lot of chaos around planning and two interviews.

My mood this week was: driven.
I forgive myself for: feeling exhausted. i need rest.
What I love right now: that i am finally finally taking some time off!

Here’s to a great week 51. We’re so close to the end of 2017.

Books I Read in 2017

December Daily – 21

2017 in Art

December Daily – 20

Books I Read This Week 2017 – 51

Nourish Me – 51

December Daily – 19

2017 Stories – 51 – Seventh Grade Culmination

December Daily – 18

December Daily – 17

Living Intentionally 2017 – 51

Weekly Reflection 2017 – 50

projects for twenty twenty-six

archives by month

archives by category

savor every last drop

projects for twenty twenty-five

projects for twenty twenty-four

projects for twenty twenty-three

projects for twenty twenty-two

projects for twenty twenty-one

projects for twenty nineteen

projects for twenty eighteen

projects from twenty seventeen

monthly projects from previous years

some of my previous projects

me elsewhere

past classes