A Year of Books

I think it's been that long since my last book post, but fear not: I've been reading!  Here are some of the books that I read in 2015.

Elantris, by Brandon Sanderson
This one is fantasy, which is not my normal love, but I did appreciate that it isn't a forever long series, or even a trilogy.  Just a book.  Kris loved it. It's loosely about political and theological unrest and people trying to survive in a city of the damned.

Still Alice, by Lisa Genova
This was an interesting read, and (typical) better than the movie.  I did end up feeling like too many of the characters and plot developments only existed to showcase the various impacts of Alzheimer's, but I guess that was kind of the point.

The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work, by John Gottman
My book club read this and I now think that it should be required reading for everyone before getting married, while married, and before divorcing.  In fact, it's just plain good advice for relating with other people.  Also, pat on the back of my husband, being married is awesome!

Einstein's Cosmos, by Michio Kaku
More than a biography of Einstein, this is a biography of how his ideas developed.  Very interesting. Very beyond my pea brain.  Good thing it quotes a few different scientists as saying that no one really understands relativity :)

An Unnecessary Woman, by Rabih Alameddine
This is pretty dark, with a deliberately unlikable protagonist...and yet it's an interesting read. The novel follows the life of a woman in Lebanon who makes a life on her own, immersed in translating translations of books.

The Empathy Exams, by Leslie Jamison
This collection of essays revolves around the idea of empathy and how it works or doesn't or should in various areas of life.  My favorite essay in the collection is about a super quirky and ridiculously hard ultra-marathon.  I did sometimes get pretty annoyed by the author's attempts to relate her own privileged pain to some pretty serious tragedies in the "real world." In fact, I didn't like that she never moved beyond empathy as a function of pain.  But all in all, the essays made me think about empathy, Jamison has some gorgeous writing, and the book was definitely worth a read.

Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain, by Betty Edwards
I'm still not finished with this one, because it's a drawing textbook.  It's been really fun to do some of the exercises though.  Edward's philosophy is that anyone can learn to draw reasonably well with a little instruction and some practice.  Jury is still out on me :)

The Crucible of Doubt, by Terryl Givens and Fiona Givens
This is an LDS work that deals with the role of doubt in the journey of any person of faith, including how doubt helps us develop spiritually.  This is a scholarly book, dealing heavily in theological theory and complete with boatloads of references.  I really enjoyed it.

Love, Dishonor, Marry, Die, Cherish, Perish, by David Rakoff
This is a novel written in rhymed verse, from multiple character perspectives.  I really enjoyed the creativity of its construction. In total, it takes a rather dim view of love, but is somehow still fairly light and airy.  I thought it was interesting how each person's section seemed to focus more on other people.  There's a point being made there.

A Thousand Splendid Suns, by Khaled Hosseini
I'm late to the party, but this is a great book on several different levels. It's entertaining.  It's a super interesting portrait of modern era Iran.  It has appealing characters.  Very sad.  Very worth it.

The Age of Innocence, by Edith Wharton
This gilded age tale of high society New York and thwarted passions is surprisingly good. I mean it did win the Pulitzer Prize and all, but I still didn't expect to enjoy it as much as I did.  If you're out for a classic, you might consider picking this one up.

I've read several other books this year, but these are the titles most worth mentioning.  So I'm a nerd, but I LOVE reading.  Good fer yer brain :)    
 

Sunday Fun Run (In Our Yard)

Hey, Christmas Jude!

For an early Christmas, we cashed in some credit card rewards on a nifty fifty lens.  We've loved our macro lens for shooting the kids, but it is basically useless inside.  We've definitely still got a lot to learn about metering and shooting with inside lights, but I think these are pretty fun.



Kris took this one.  Handsome man takes great pictures of his handsome boy!



We are definitely in the Christmas spirit now!

For You, Grandma

After a spring flood that saw us mucking out people's destroyed homes, we've had a dry fall.  But not today.  Today, we're singing in the rain!

Like Catching Moonbeams

Today Jude dragged me outside at 6:30 am to see the moon.  We couldn't find it.  I told Jude that the moon had gone to sleep for the day.  His response? "Maybe the moon have jammies!  Jude have jammies!"  This boy is talented at making me laugh.  

He is not, however, a talented model.  Two things Jude simply does not do: hold still and smile on command.  Tough to be a mama bent on photography.  But, oh! how I want to kiss those cheeks. 

Glamour Shots by Deb

Remember how I'm always going to learn to take great pictures?  It's a fixation that has hit me every now and then...for the last 15 years.  You guys, this time I think I may be on to something.  With Eden as my model, here it is.

They may not be the best pictures ever, but I think they are MY best pictures ever.  If they aren't, don't tell me. I have to believe that I'm progressing by degrees somewhere :) Also, Eden is currently obsessed with The Sibley Guide to Birds.  We finally identified the pests at Target as Common Grackles.  If they aren't, don't tell Eden.  She has to believe that her mother knows something. That is all.  Carry on.  

Gymnastics

I recently read an article about how having children has a greater negative impact on overall happiness than does the death of a spouse. This makes me think two things: 1) That's because no one else got to marry Kris Bell, and 2) This can only be true during the horror that is the first year of parenthood.  Right?  Chronically sleep deprived people are not happy people. 

 

I can honestly say that I have never been happier than I am right now. 

On Monday, Eden had her first ever gymnastics class.  She grinned the entire time and consistently needed a reminder to wait her turn.  She was just so excited. 

Me?  I grinned the whole time too. I could not take my slightly watery eyes off of this amazing little creature and her donkey kicks.  How is it that no one ever told me that the greatest happiness in life is in watching your children do something they love?