April and May Check-In

Somehow two months have gone by without a check-in! Life has been both hectic and monotonous at the same time- I'm still job searching (somewhat..) and have also been doing a bit more travel. Since my last post we went on an amazing trip to Norway- I'm working on a few posts about it because there's so much to share! In the meantime- Here are some highlights from April and May.

- I finished the 100 Day Project! The last day of it was on June 2. I made so many fun things during the 100 days- I posted a little recap on my Instagram (@GretchCrafts) but I think my favorite was the kitty couch (using Selma for scale!)

- I also learned how to knit! This is something I wanted to learn for a while, but especially after our trip to Norway and visiting all the yarn shops. So far I've just made the Sophie Scarf, but I'm finishing up my first top and have plans for a sweater next.


- Dan and I took a trip to Chicago and Milwaukee for a long weekend. We got to visit 3 new baseball stadiums (we're trying to visit all of them eventually!). I've been to Chicago a few times and love it- this time we did an architecture boat cruise which was amazing. It was my first time in Milwaukee and it was such a cool city with lots of fun breweries. My favorite was Pilot Project!

- Our neighborhood hosted goat yoga, which was so much fun. Look how cute they are!!


Annual Goals

I also got a few more items checked off of my goals for the year!


- Cooking Class - We went to a pad Thai class hosted by Eat Thai Raleigh at the Hartwell. It was a fun afternoon and the food was amazing, but I didn't really learn much at the class like I expected. I definitely want to try another one sometime soon- maybe on a trip?

- Buy a Piece of Art - I went to a local art market (Lazy Daze in Cary) and got so many goodies, but the standout for me was a piece of alcohol ink that immediately caught my eye. I loved the colors and contrast with the trees in the front. When I got it home, I looked at the name and it was called Northern Lights - which I had just gotten to see on our trip to Tromso! It was fate for sure!

- Snowshoe - This was one of our excursions on our trip and was really great. I loved trying something new, and we got to experience some crazy snow storms during our hike. I'll share more in my post about Norway!

- Try Splatter Art - This was such a fun afternoon with some friends! We went to Mad Splatter in Apex, and I picked a canvas bag to paint. After that, you can just go crazy throwing paint in a splatter room. We got to pick our playlist and had a party in there and just had a blast.


And now for a quick book round up! Since I'm covering 2 months and read quite a bit, I'll just put these in categories.


Highly Recommend

I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman

Everybody is a Liar by Liv Constantine

The Wedding People by Alison Espach

Rebecca by Daphne DU Maurier

I Hope This Finds You Well by Natalie Sue


Would Recommend for Pool Reading

This Summer Will be Different by Carley Fortune

Ward D by Freida McFadden

The Widow's Husband's Secret Lie by Freida McFadden (short story)

The Housemaid is Watching by Freida McFadden

Say You'll Remember Me  by Abby Jimenez

The Tenant by Freida McFadden

Beautiful Ugly by Alice Feeney


Mehhhh

The Fury by Alex Michaelides

The Strawberry Patch Pancake House by Laurie Gilmore

The Let Them Theory by Mel Robbins

Better Small Talk by Patrick King


Would Not Recommend

Icebreaker by Hannah Grace


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