My Goings-On in July:
Here are the things that stand out to me this month:
- I started training for a marathon! Now, I am not a runner. At all. The farthest I’ve ever run was a 5k, and that was like 10 years ago (and I thought it was amazing that I even accomplished that at the time). I haven’t run since. But World Vision came to our church and talked about the importance of bringing clean water to developing countries, a cause I’m already passionate about. Many people walk miles every day to get clean water, so I figured I can run a few to help them. (Okay, more than a few, but it’s worth it.) I’ve been training, and have made it up to a half-marathon, which already felt more than a little impossible! If you want to donate toward my run to bring clean water to developing countries, you can do so by clicking the link!
- Savoring these last days with Danielle before she heads off to Purdue. She leaves in two weeks. Insane!
- New pup activity: swimming. I’ve been taking Bella to a special dog pool. She has hip dysplasia, so she can only manage low-impact activities, and she’s been gaining a bit of weight lately, which obviously isn’t good for her. We’ve taken her to the lake at a local dog park in the past, but it’s SO much work to get the dogs cleaned up afterward, I thought a pool would be more doable. She loves it!
Features & Discussions:
JULY 2022 DISCUSSION CHALLENGE LINK-UP & GIVEAWAY
MAY & JUNE 2022 WRAP-UP AND BEST OF THE BUNCH
MID-YEAR BERNIE’S BOOK BANK CHECK-IN: BOOKS I’VE DONATED THIS YEAR
JULY 2022 MONTHLY WRAP-UP ROUND-UP LINK-UP AND GIVEAWAY
My 2022 Reading Progress:
I read 16 books in July, bringing my total for the year to 82. This puts me 23 books ahead of schedule so far for the year.
I’ve also read 18 picture books and 6 manuscripts for fellow authors! (I don’t include either in my main Goodreads count.)
July 2022 Reviews
- Ballad & Dagger by Daniel José Older | Review
- Spineless by Samantha San Miguel | Review
- Lia Park and the Missing Jewel by Jenna Yoon | Review
- Mina by Matthew Forsythe | Review
July Best of the Bunch:
(Best of the Bunch is hosted over at Cocoon of Books. We link up our favorite reads of the month!)
I didn’t review much in July, and while I really liked all of the books (I wouldn’t feature them on the blog if I didn’t), my favorite ended up being the picture book. I think that’s a first! I just adore the dreamy quality of the illustrations in MINA and the multi-layered story where the text starts out telling a different tale than the illustrations at first is delightful!
2022 Goals Progress:
The Discussion Challenge is my one and only goal for 2022. (And I lowered it this year.)
Progress: 4/11-20 Discussions (Creative Conversationalist)
MID-YEAR BERNIE’S BOOK BANK CHECK-IN: BOOKS I’VE DONATED THIS YEAR
MY NEW 2022 WRITING METHOD
2022 YA & MG VERSE NOVELS: A COMPLETE LIST & TEN I’VE BEEN LOOKING FORWARD TO
DO YOU “SEE” A BOOK AS YOU READ? LET’S DISCUSS!
HOST/SIGN-UP LINK – Feed Your Fiction Addiction & It Starts at Midnight
Wrap-Up Round-Up!
Don’t forget to link your July wrap-up posts up to the Monthly Wrap-Up Round-Up. And enter the giveaway!
Congratulation on marathon training! I love that you take your dog to a pool for exercise?
Way to go on your training. Lulu would run frantically in the other direction; she doesn’t like water.
We tried it with Digit too, but he wasn’t a fan. Maybe someday we’ll get in the water, but we couldn’t convince him this first try.
It sounds like your marathon training is going well so far! Best of luck with it, and have a great August!
Congrats on the marathon training! The farthest I’ve ever run was a half-marathon. I quit training after that because I work too many hours, and it’s hot all the time. I don’t know when to run!
((HUGS)) It is so hard when our kids leave. I guess you have a bit of practice with Jade. Poor pup! I want to know more about this doggie pool. That has got to be a hotbed of cuteness. You need to do some video.
[…] JULY 2022 WRAP-UP & BEST OF THE BUNCH […]
Ahh, I didn’t know Bella had hip dysplasia. 🙁 Poor thing. I always wondered how much of a clean up it would be after a swimming day like that. Sorry I’m late getting around to commenting on this. Since I had to start back to work on July 27th, my August has been crazy!
Here’s my July wrap-up: https://lisalovesliterature.bookblog.io/2022/08/01/the-looooong-and-the-short-of-it-with-a-giveaway-july-2022-wrap-up-post-and-what-to-expect-in-august/