We're one month into summer vacation and with camps and activities and travel, life feels busier now than during the school year! But I'm not complaining. I love the longer days, the bountiful cherries and peaches of the season and watching the kids delight in staying up late and sleeping in. Here's what else I've been enjoying this past month:

• Painting: Early this year, I bought a bunch of acrylic painting classes at Michaels, for my boys and I. It's been so much fun painting together. This beach scene looked easy enough but the blending was so hard! While I'm not entirely happy with the way it turned out, I just really enjoyed the process. And, I learned a ton.

• What Should I Read Next: I attribute my long TBR list to this book recommendations podcast. I’ve discovered and read many books from this show. The Nightingale and The Forgetting Time are recent favorites.

• Writing to your intuition - Speaking of podcasts, I heard about the concept of writing to your intuition on The Lively Show. It's a method of connecting to your deeper self. I journal every day but this past month, I've used this strategy to unearth what's really going on and it's been very helpful.

• Gilmore Girls - I’m sooo late to the party on this one, but I now get why this TV show is so popular. It’s funny and sweet. It's basically TV comfort food! I’m already on Season 3 and I’m so happy I have another four seasons to go, plus “Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life.”

• The Quality of Silence: If you're anything like me, when you're craving a fast-paced read, you want it to be well-written too. This book is exactly that. It's about a mother who, upon arriving in Alaska with her deaf daughter, learns that her photographer husband has disappeared and then sets out to find him. It was fascinating to read about Alaska. I found myself googling the three moons and watching videos on the weather and terrain. I highly recommend this book!

What have you been into lately? I’d love to know so please share in the comments.SaveSaveSaveSaveSaveSave