Current Books in the "Book Stack"! What's On Your Reading List?

I still remember the first time I drove myself to the bookstore to buy a self-help parenting book.  It was about 8:00 p.m and I was pregnant with my second child.  My oldest and only daughter at the time was almost two.  I don't remember the exact series of events but they involved a 
Battle 
of 
the 
WILLS!
 Twenty-nine year old Me against 20 month old Her.  
She had my number.  
                             And we both knew it.  
She looked me in the eyes and deliberately and willfully threw a glass vase down to the ground to shatter into millions of pieces.  Non-reactive parenting?  What was that?! Because at that moment, she had me reacting all over the place.  Screaming and yelling and acting like...well, the two year old.  She certainly wasn't celebrating her win.  Instead, she looked rather scared shitless.  We were both an emotional mess.  My husband stepped in and sent me to my room to BREATHE and count to 500.  It was at that moment that I was seeing myself react just the way I knew I DID NOT want to be as a parent, that I knew I needed to have a plan so that it wouldn't happen again.  I was going to be in control of this parenting thing!  
Here's the book I bought that night:

From the small amounts of the book that I've read, it really is an excellent book!  I just pulled it off my shelf a few minutes ago and after a thumb through, I'm going to finish reading it.  I even found the notes that I had started taking while reading it.  I love rereading my notes because I end up learning all over again!  Great reminders:

• Calm my own anxiety, refusing to transfer it over to my children and make the situation worse.  (Gosh, I really needed to reread this one!)
• In order to be in charge, I need to bring myself under control!
• Emotional Reactivity doesn't just make things worse; it actually helps produce the very results we're reacting against. 
• My goals: really notice and comment on the good good things they are doing and Tap deep for my reservoir of calm.

I'm really glad I found this book again and that I kept some of my notes in the book! Hoping to pick it back up again over the next few weeks!


Stacks and Stacks of Books

If any of you are like me, you might have a long list, or in my case, a big stack of books that you are "READING".  Really this means that I've started them all but not getting finished with any of them.  One of my new goals is to really make time for finishing some of the books I've been dappling in or thumbing through with a non-committal agenda.  Especially my parenting book!  Don't get me wrong, sometimes it is fun to have books just scattered around to pick up when the moment strikes me.  Reading small snippets here and there...little nuggets of wisdom to think about throughout the day.  This works well with non-fiction.  


Here are just some of the books you might find by my bedside or in a stack by the couch right now:

Flow in Sports is one that Meg from Meg Runs highly recommended.  So I ordered it.  Grace Based Parenting...Loving it!!

This one was sent to me in the mail as a "just because" gift from a blog friend.  Love it!

A book I saw in a friend's bathroom and said it sounded interesting.  She loaned it to me.  Thanks Cathy!

I hear great things about this and as an educator and mother of a boy, this one is definitely one I will get to!

Oh, and don't let me make you think that I don't enjoy a good fictional book!  In fact, I have book club tonight.  We read all sorts of things ranging from heavy historical fiction to humorous fiction, and yes, I do indulge in the occasional mindless but enjoyable "chick lit" book.  The one we just read for book club is this one below.  Yeah, don't judge! Ha!  Emily Giffin is actually a pretty good author and she nails the chick lit!  

Now, as I finish icing my calf, I'm off to pick up one of these and stick with it! With the help of my foam roller, compression socks, good stretching, and a go get 'em attitude, my calf served me well this morning.  I felt strong on my treadmill workout...short and sweet.  And this gym childcare?!  Score!  My kids love it, I love it, AND I don't have to wait until 7 p.m to get my run on!

What is on your reading list?  Or what books are in your "reading stack"?  Please share!  I love to know this kind of thing.  I might be adding some of your books to my list or stack!


Amanda

Garmin Virgin and Time For Books!

Just a quickie  post (do you like how I've used the word quickie and virgin in just the first several words of this post?) before I close the computer so I can use this designated mommy/kid quiet time for some reading.  I've found that since I started this blog, I don't get nearly enough reading fit in my day....so many books just stacked up here collecting dust.  My most recent goal is to actually get into a study/reading mode and devote a solid stretch of time to just reading, taking notes, learning from my books, and escaping in a good story (usually my book club book).  I definitely enjoy all the blog reading that I've been doing but I realize that I need a balanced literary life and that means getting off the blogs and into some good ol' books!


I'll get to the Garmin Virgin part in a minute.


Here is what is on the reading list for the next hoping for 2 hours.  Yeah right, between my Mommy ADHD and the many interruptions from these little people wanting their every need met by ME, I am not so sure what will be accomplished.  But I have high hopes.  Oh, speaking of that ADD (and ADHD), as I was saying....Here is my reading list for this week:


1.  Brain Training for Runners.  Loving it so far!  I started it last night and everything I have read so far is great!  Thanks for the recommendation Jill!  This just might be what I use for my next marathon plan.  In addition to accounting for all the important components of a training program, it also accounts for drills to help train the brain/body to improve and change running form, which as many of you know, can be a hard thing to change.




2.  Sacred Hearts by Sarah Dunant (Book Club Book for this month).  I will finish the book this month. I will.  I will.  I will not be a Book Club slacker.  And I will bring thoughtful and reflective conversation to share about the book.  I have high hopes for this month and getting a grip on my book club slacker self.

3.  My Garmin 205 Manual.  So much to Learn.  Here are a few lessons I've learned already:

  *  You are in control of your Garmin.  Your Garmin does not control you.

  *   Do NOT look at your Garmin every 2 seconds or you will slow down! And you will look like a fool doing it.

    *  Try to forget that the Garmin is there.  You will run much better if you allow yourself to just settle into your natural rhythm without worrying about what pace you are running.  

*  This brings me to figuring out how to set up my Garmin so that it automatically records/has a lap set of every mile.  I know it should be able to do something like this?  And I think it should be able to alert me with a sound at every mile.  This will help me to just let go of the constant checking.  

*  The Run will be much better if I just allow myself to relax and run like I know how to run.  I can look at the Garmin stats later.  I've been doing just fine with my running without a Garmin so no need to let it totally mess up my mojo!  

Off to get some reading done!  Thankful for this  quiet time carved into my day!  

1.  What is on your current reading list other than blogs?  


2.  Do you have a Garmin?  If so, was there a learning curve for you when you first started running with it?


Amanda