I’m so excited about this new segment Adam and I are launching on the blog! With our type of business, personal and “business” life are often overcrossed. We spend so much time talking about what we’re working on and what we are planning to do in our business, which is why we’re so excited about this new segment! Each Friday we’ll be sharing a blog post from Adam or myself on something that is inspiring us lately or is more personal than our typical wedding and business posts!

For my very first blog post in this series, I wanted to share something I’ve been making a priority in my day for the past 6 months: reading!

I know that may seem simple, but it took a lot of work to force myself to stop working into the evening and instead close my laptop and pick up a book. But wow has it been so, so good for me!

In 2021 I read countless books, and so far in 2022, I’ve re-read the first 5 Harry Potter books.

I tell Adam this often, but it has really made me so proud of how quickly I’ve been reading these books while still absorbing them.

To let you in on a very personal tidbit, I had a really hard time learning to read. I tried and tried in school but just couldn’t get it. I fell behind pretty quickly. My mom, who is an elementary school teacher and exceptionally patient, took me on as her own “student” during the summer between my second and third grade years.

I went from being completely unable to read and comprehend a chapter, to reading hundreds of books that summer. We read so many books that I had tested out of the entire 3rd grade reading level on the AR reading tests – okay, anyone else remember AR tests?

Even though I’m obviously much older now and I’ve read countless books since then, I’m just always so proud of myself when I finish a new book- especially when I have been able to become absorbed in it and really comprehend it. I can just imagine how amazed and in-awe that little 7-year-old version of me would be to know I’ve read the first 5 Harry Potter books in just the month of January.

It’s probably pretty clear, but reading is really important to me. Writing and reading are huge parts of my life so it is so cool to me that I’m getting to combine those two loves in this new segment we’re adding to the blog!

For my first post, I wanted to share some of the books that really stood out to me in the past few months and can’t recommend enough:

White Ivy by Susie Yang

Susie Yang did not come to play when she wrote White Ivy. This book is suspenseful to the point where I truly had no idea how it was going to end until the very end! White Ivy is based around a young lady whose parents immigrated to the United States when she was a young girl. You’ll follow the main character, Ivy, throughout the challenges of childhood and early adulthood with a lens of her mixed past and big ambitions. I’m still in awe of how suspenseful Susie Yang managed to make this book!

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab

This book is so good!! Adam bought this book in early 2021 and I picked it up towards the end of the year. This is probably my favorite fiction book of the year. It’s magic mixed with romance and mischievousness and I just loved it! 

The Stars Within You: A Guide to Modern Astrology by Juliana McCarthy

This nonfiction book was my most used book of 2021. Adam bought it for me this summer and I’ve been fully enjoying my new hobby of analyzing birth charts and looking into the world of astrology. Whether that’s a little too woo for you or not, it’s such an interesting book!

Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling

Okay you guys, I have never ever reread a book series until I started rereading Harry Potter this January. I’ve been a huge Potter fan ever since the first time I cracked open one of the books. So many magical memories growing up are tied to the love I have for this series. My mom used to take us to these amazing parties that my hometown, Columbus, Indiana,  would host each time a new book in the series was released. I remember how packed the mall would be with people making wands and eating chocolate frogs. You could just feel the energy in the air as everyone excitedly waited until midnight when the books would go on sale.

So, why has The Goblet of Fire made my list? It’s an interesting twist! This book and movie was always my least favorite (ironically, it’s Adam’s favorite). I mean, I literally couldn’t care about watching this movie and almost skipped it when rereading. BUT I didn’t. Maybe it’s because I know how the series ends? Or maybe it’s because I’m older? Or maybe it’s nostalgia? Whatever it is, I absolutely loved reading this book this time around. I also wonder if the fact that it is Adam’s favorite had an impact too.

I think what captivated me the most was the mix of my view when reading the book: I felt like I was back in my childhood room excitedly reading the book, but I also felt like the grown up I am now. The way I was gutted when Cedric died…I don’t think I would’ve ever felt that way if I didn’t have Charlie running around.

Books are such magic. I can’t wait to finish rereading the rest of the Harry Potter series! I’ve already got a reading list queued up, and I can’t wait to share what I’ve been loving throughout the year!

If you have any book recommendations, send them my way!