Happy Friday! I am so happy to see Friday! This has been a good week, but an exhausting one! I went back to work in person four days a week and the kids went back to school in person four days a week. Teachers’ kids had the option to come back to school four days a week, but the other students can only come two days a week. Let’s get to the best parts!

Favorite 1: MAIL!! I finally got a package that I ordered on NOVEMBER 30TH!!! 45 days later my package arrived on my porch. Luke was so excited because our wonderful mail carrier put the package in the designated area he created and didn’t try to bust through his yarn trappings.

I was so excited because I have some super fun earrings in the package!! How cute are these?? The candy canes and Christmas trees are going to wait for Black Friday, November 26th, or maybe Christmas in July! The snowflakes and hats are going to get plenty of love this winter and 2021 is good for the whole year!

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Favorite 2: CORA’S DEN!! I am so excited to announce that I am a Cora’s Den ambassador this year!! I am looking forward to sharing even more of their fun jewelry and sharing a discount code with you!! You can save 10% on every single order with the code SUNSHINEANDBOOKS10 . Shop on!!

Valentine’s Day is coming quickly!

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Favorite 3: STRETCH!! After reading thesaurus after thesaurus, I decided that STRETCH is my word this year. I am ready to stretch, expand, and reach this year. I need to literally stretch more – my hamstrings are perpetually so tight! I want to stretch myself to try new meaningful things. I want to stretch myself reaching out in our community. If you need me this year, I’ll be stretching!

Favorite 4: BOOK CLUBS!! I am generally not a big book club girl. I am a mood reader and don’t like anyone to tell me what to read. But this year I am STRETCHING and reading books that people I trust or admire recommend is one way to do it. I also tend to read all fiction. These book clubs are nonfiction which is a big stretch for me. I just completed a book club through my county for “So You Want to Talk About Race” and it was so powerful. I am starting a book club for “Atomic Habits” which I have checked out and returned to the library twice without reading. It calls me from the shelves, but I haven’t put in the time with it. I’m looking forward to STRETCHING myself to read it.

Favorite 5: SWIG!! After Wednesday’s post, the Swig love was coming in big! They are dishwasher safe stainless steel mugs that come in fabulous designs! My sister even texted me and to see if I’d seen this Swig.

I have and I showed one teeny, tiny bit of restraint when I didn’t buy it. Don’t be too impressed – I bough the surfboard and seashell wine tumbler. I love how summery they feel and I use them all year long! My friend Holly shared that she used her wine sized swig for her coffee. I think I am going to start using them for my tea because then I can enjoy the shells and surfboards all day long, not just during wine time.

Favorite 6: WORK!! We are putting in the work over here! I am really trying to get a workout in 5 days a week and a long walk in on the other two days. It’s cold and dark in the mornings, but it’s always worth it after those endorphins kick in and start working their magic!

Luke is putting in the work, too. He tends to go to his favorite database, Brain Pop to learn about what’s going on in the world and answer any questions he has about current events. I love how curious he is and how independently he seeks out information. I found him like this in my office yesterday.

Jack is starting to not love when I try to take “50 MILLION PICTURES”, as he would say, but he is putting in the work, too. On Wednesday, he goes straight from basketball to baseball practice and is going hard for about three hours. He’s doing really well adapting to middle school and I’m proud of him too!

Favorite 7: THIS OUTFIT!! Wednesday is a work from home day when we are in hybrid. I had big plans for the day, but nothing seemed to go my way. I was so happy to have this on because the pants are SO COMFY and the shirt reminds me of some of my dearest friends!! All happy thoughts!

Favorite 8: LISTS!! I started my Winter To Do list this week. There is just something about a list that makes me a little too happy. I haven’t done one single thing on that list, but I love that it’s there. It is a pretty boring list, I assure you, full of things that just need to be done. For example: inventory the freezer, vacuum the dryer lint, etc. Nothing Earth shattering, but a good place to start when we have a few hours free on a weekend.

This week on Sunshine & Books:
Hello Monday / Not Just a Mom – Cozy and Small Comforts
Show Us Your Books
Tuesday Book Release Day
Let’s Look – Coffee Bar

We have a pretty busy Saturday with soccer and basketball. Sunday is a completely blank square on the calendar so I may tackle something on my winter list. Have a great weekend full of sunshine and books!