Friday Favorites & the books I read in August [9.1.23]

 

Happy Friday, friends, and happy September! I'm linking up with Andrea and Erika for today's favorite blog post of the week. I hope you've had a great week! I'll jump right in with some favorites from my week.

I went to get my nails done last Friday after my dad left, and this color is one of my favorites! It's Less is Norse, by OPI. I went darker since I knew it was the start of my favorite time of year.

Scripture writing is my favorite! I have been doing a form of this for a very long time, and the reason I love it is because it helps me to remember God's word. I love to pray it back to Him and I love to be able to use it when I'm encouraging someone. 

That being said, I'm going to use this plan in September. Do you want to join me? I used to print this out, but now all I do is copy the references down in my journal and write it out there each day.

This is my favorite picture of my man! He bought himself a used Harley last weekend, and I could not be happier for him. I'm eventually going to ride with him, but he wants to get more confident before that happens.

It was my favorite thing getting to see my sister Lisa this week! She flew in to surprise Mom for her birthday on Monday, and we had a great time hanging out on Saturday, then again on Monday night. I hadn't seen her since last Thanksgiving, so it was good to get my fix. 

We ate lunch at one of my favorite places, Moondance, and I had this amazing wedge salad.

Those are my favorite! 

Chloe's favorite thing to do is to lean on Chip. He's her favorite toy! 

It's my favorite thing in all of the world to see my sons sitting together in church. This was three out of four of them last week. Noah was traveling back from Dallas on this morning.

After church, Missy and I jumped in the car and headed to Nashville for the rest of the day to see this sweet friend. That was a favorite from the week, for sure. 

Taking notes is also one of my favorite things to do, and I had plenty to write the night of the women's event. Sophie Hudson was the speaker. and I love what she had to say.

This is one of my favorite pictures of my mom. She's with my handsome nephew, Tyler, and this was taken a couple of years ago. Aren't they adorable? 

This is one of my favorite memories from when the boys were younger. Jonah and Noah saw these giant bears at Costco one time and convinced me to let them spend their money on them. Me being me, of course I was on board with this, so this was us in the Suburban heading home afterward. You should have seen the stares we were getting over this! 🤣

I was in the mood for fall, what with the cooler temps we've had this week, so I decided to put out all of my favorite décor! I'm just sharing a sneak peak...I'll share more in a few weeks.

And speaking of decorating, that's what I've been doing all week at the bookstore, as well! I've been rearranging displays and trying to make things eye catching for people who come in.

This is my favorite saying and sign!

One of my sweet friends from Bible study brought me her fresh peach on Wednesday. She had brought it as a snack and never ate it, so she gave it to me. I ate it when I got home; it was delicious!

And lastly, yesterday was my favorite lunch view! I was at the bookstore, and had sat to eat and do a few things on my laptop. The little spider plants I have are my favorite as well. I bought four of them a month ago, and kept two of them here. The other two are at the bookstore, and today, I replanted them in coffee mugs. 

Isn't that cute? This mug above is one that my sister Debi gave to me, and the other one not pictured is in a mug that looks similar but that my best friend gave to me. I love having little reminders around me of the people I love. 

That wraps up my favorites from the week...

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...and now for the book portion of this post—click on the picture of each book, and you'll be taken to a separate link on Amazon. I hope you're inspired by one or two of these!

First up was...

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

You see five stars because I loved this book! First, it's the same author of another recent and favorite book, Nora Goes Off Script. This one was every bit as wonderful! It's the story of Sam, who is off to her parent's Long Island beach home to scout out wedding venues with her fiancé Jack. She hasn't been to this beach house in ages, and with good reason: everything about the place brings back all of her old memories of her very first love, Wyatt. Imagine her surprise when he shows up to her parent's house, acting as if he's their long lost best friend that has come back home. Even her little sister Gracie loves him! Sam tries to stay away and keep her distance, because her heart still hurts over the way he ended things when they were in high school. After years of counseling, she's finally able to speak his name without feeling sick; can she survive one week with him living right next door and showing up to every single family dinner? What will Jack think? Will she be able to face seeing him every single day she's there that week? 

Don't just take my word for it, friends. You should definitely read this book. 

Next up was...

⭐⭐⭐1/2

Benedict Stone is a quirky man with a family business of jewelry making. When his parents died, not only did he raise his younger brother, he also took over the family business. He and his brother are estranged now, though, and his marriage is in trouble. Late one night he gets a knock on his front door; a beautiful young girl is standing on his doorstep, claiming to be his niece. After proving to be who she said she was, Benedict agrees to let Gemma stay with him for a few days before going back home. Is she really there just to visit, though? Or is there something else going on? Gemma is more than he bargained for, but in a surprising way.

This was a really good book! I had a few issues with it, though. One, I've seen this as a Hallmark movie and couldn't get past the differences. Secondly, I loved the story and how things turned out, but the author droned on and on and on. I was ready to be finished by the time I actually reached the end of the book.

Thirdly was this one...

⭐⭐⭐1/2

Four women...one summer camp that set the trajectory for the rest of their lives...even if life has taken them apart in miles, they'll always be the Songbird of Summer to each other. When they learn the summer camp of their youth is in major financial trouble, they band together to save it; if it meant so much to them, it would surely mean that to more young girls! 

I love Kristy's books and I love a good story about adults returning to summer camps of their youth. Have you seen the movie Indian Summer? It was from the 90's, and this was very reminiscent of that movie. I enjoyed it, but again, I was ready to be finished with the story once I knew how it was going to turn out. 

And last was...

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Darley, the oldest daughter in the wealthy Stockton family, traded her job and inheritance for motherhood; Sasha, a middle class New England girl, married into this family that lives in the Brooklyn Heights, and finds herself cast as an outsider; Georgiana, the baby of the family, has fallen in love with someone she can't have...and she must decide what kind of person she wants to be. 

I love a book about family drama, and I also love a book set in New York City; this one sparkles with flawed but loveable characters, the peculiar characteristics about a family that is unknowable, and the miles between the haves and the have-nots. This book was witty, sharp, and enjoyable. The only reason I didn't rate it with 5 stars is because it took me a long time to read it; I don't know if it's because I could put it down, or because of my life at the moment and how I've been busy again. Either way, I highly recommend this one!

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Did you happen to read my other blog posts from this week? I'll link them below.

Saturday was Share 4 Somethings, which always takes place on the last Saturday of every month.

Monday was a weekend recap post where I shared about my mom and sister who flew in to surprise her for her birthday.

Tuesday I shared about a fun little road trip I took on Sunday.

On Wednesday I talked about my new job, responsibilities, and what I've been wearing in this month's edition of What's Up Wednesday.

Yesterday I shared about some thoughts I had after attending the memorial service of a family friend last week.

And finally, for anyone still here at the end of this monumental post, this Wednesday September 6 is when I'm hosting this month's Currently post. We'll be sharing what we're currently loving, experiencing, dreaming, eating, and using to decorate. In October we'll share what we're currently loving, excited about, watching, seeing, and observing. I hope you join us! Thanks for reading my blog, friends. Love to all!