playful + peaceful – blogging categories

• Balance. (This can be about work/life balance, or about balancing being a parent and being a human, or about balancing the ways I nourish my heart, soul, mind, and body, which was the original theme of the blog.)
• Self-care. (I write about what I need to read! My self-care sucks. I need to read and write about it as much as possible!)
• Writing. (These three – balance, self-care, and writing – are the categories I use more than any others.)
• Books + reading.
• Parenting.
• Goals.
• Mindfulness. (I am hoping to write about this more! I’m reading a great book on mindfulness and trying to start a daily mindfulness practice. I also have meditation  and presence as categories, but I think those will end up being subcategories to mindfulness.)
• Adoption. (I love writing about our adoption journey. I’m hoping to write about it more and more, especially as the boys grow and we start learning more and more about the experiences of being an adoptive parent in the world.)
• Blogging.
• Flow/Life Alignment.
• Mental health. (Including early childhood mental health.)
• Farming.
• Podcasts.
• Poetry. (Just something I use from time to time when I find a beautiful poem to share!)
• Recovery.
• Wellness.
• Simplifying.
• Gratitude.
• Community.
• Friendship.
• Family.
• Creativity.
• Personality.
• Grief + loss.
• Play.
• Goals.
• All The Things or Thought Of The Day.

 

This summer is our summer o’ camping.

Are we crazy? Yes. The sleep situation is tough, with our boys being 4 (almost 5!) and 2 (turning 3 in September).

But, is it so much fun? Also yes.

My Audible library is chock full of books to listen to, and this summer, I’m hoping to get some listening done!

Typically, when I listen to an audiobook, my goal is to learn something new. I read paperback novels when I want to get lost in a good story; I listen to audiobooks (in the car or while tidying) when I want to learn more about a topic of interest.

Currently, the main topics of interest for me are parenting; mindfulness; Buddhism; kid behavior techniques; and social justice. I’m feeling motivated to refresh my knowledge in the areas of mindfulness and behavior management because I’m starting a new position at an elementary school next year, and I feel that knowledge in those areas helps me to best support children and families. I’m continuing to read about social justice because it’s important for me, my family, and my community. I want to lean into my decades-long curiosity about Buddhism because of some spiritual questions that have been on my mind. And I am always eager to listen to books about parenting – particularly as I strive to be more mindfully present as a parent after a long year of multi-tasking.

These are the books on my “To Listen/Read” list for this summer; I’ll feel amazingly awesome if I finish three of these titles!

• Buddhism For Beginners.
• The Conscious Parent.
• Practices for Growing Up Mindful.
• Being At Your Best When Your Kids Are At Their Worst.
• 1-2-3 Magic. I heard this book recommended to a parent by a school counselor, which made me curious to check it out!
• Parenting 4 Social Justice. I actually don’t have this one available via Audible, but I am loving reading the paperback copy I purchased on a whim months ago! It’s a great read so far, full of excellent food for thought. Just wish I had a few parent friends to book club it with!
• We Want To Do More Than Survive. I am book clubbing this one with a friend of mine and really enjoying it so far.

These books will, as always, be mixed in with fiction. Next up are State Of Wonder by Ann Patchett and The Maidens by Alex Michaelides. Happy summer reading to all!