Weekend Reading: Checking In Edition

I realize things have been a little slow around here of late. I blame the lazy days of summer.

Still, I wanted to check in and update you on a few things.

On a whim, I decided to take Operation Houseplant outside. This basket had been filled with dusty, fake flowers and greenery that I just couldn’t handle hanging on the front door. So I ripped out the fake stuff and put some real in instead.

I’ve seen tutorials on this somewhere that involve lining the basket with a trash bag, etc., but since I found an arrangement at the hardware store, already planted in an oblong plastic pot, I just used that.

I switched out some of the flowers to create a red, white and blue arrangement since we have a flag and bunting up for the summer. I plopped the whole pot into the basket and it comes out easily for watering.

Being the world’s laziest gardener, I have no idea how long I can keep this alive, especially once the real heat of summer hits, but I’m enjoying it for now.

Summer Reading

(Note: This section contains my Amazon referral links. See my disclosure policy for more details.)

With one child in London and another in town, but rarely home, I’ve been fighting off some of my summer boredom with reading.

I pre-ordered some new summer releases from Amazon: Mary Kay Andrews’ Ladies Night and Elin Hilderbrand’s Beautiful Day. I’m seriously considering adding Jen Lancaster’s The Tao of Martha to the list. It sounds hilarious.

I also had the chance to work a four-hour stint at my library’s summer used book sale last week. I spent my time “merchandising” the romance and mystery areas, which have to be the most fun places to be. Those readers are serious! They even come prepared with long lists of titles that they’re looking for.

It was strictly volunteer, but I got some “book bucks” for my effort and promptly spent them on these titles.

The first one I read was The Drop, by Michael Connelly. It’s the first book of his that I’ve read and I liked it. It’s one of a series featuring his detective character, Harry Bosch, who solves not one mystery, but two, during this book.

Speaking of reading, here’s some stuff from around the web that recently caught my eye:

• You Are a Terrible Investor and You Should Stop That @ The Daily Beast. Simple investing advice in the form of tough love.

• Worst End of School Year Mom Ever @ JenHatmaker.com. Laugh out loud post that you will totally relate to.

• Five Ways to Use Vinegar in Your Garden @ Bridging the Gap. Some new ideas and some good reminders.

And I want to thank Charlotte at Teens Got Cents for inviting me to do an interview there. Teens Got Cents was started by Charlotte and her daughter, Eva. They now have some contributing writers too. It’s a new personal finance blog from a younger point of view, which is pretty rare in the blogging world. It would make great reading for you or your kids.

What are you up to this summer? Gardening? Reading? Traveling?