Another year, another chance to try my monthly thoughts series! I was doing relatively well for a while, until I decided that not doing monthly thoughts was a little less time consuming than actually doing them.
But it’s a new year, and it’s a new month, and I thought, “eh. why not?”.
So here we are, bringing back the Monthly Thoughts!
WHAT’S NEW?
morning routines
I’ve been getting into the habit of a morning routine. Not that I’m particularly good at it yet (one might argue that I fight with myself tooth and nail every morning before I relent and do it), but I’ve definitely noticed a change in my mood.
It begins with the alarm. It goes off. I roll over. I check the time. I see that it is 6:30AM (the time which I had set my alarm to the night before). I groan and hit snooze. Snooze time passes, and it’s 6:45 and I wrestle myself into a sitting position, read my bible, pray for my family and my friends, and finally yank myself out of bed before turning on my light and getting into the swing of the rest of my day.
Feed the bird. Exercise. Eat breakfast and write.
Breakfast and writing are the two rewards I give myself for getting up at a decent hour.
I’ve been looking at the routines of other writers lately, hoping that maybe there’s something locked inside their brains that will help me become a better, more efficient writer. But I think the meat and potatoes of the thing is that they just kinda…do it. A writer will find the time to write, no matter how busy he is. That’s how they keep writing books. That’s how they stay consistent.
I’m training myself on how to do that.
Right now, it looks like 30 minutes of outlining and drafting with my dreams in one fist and a peanut butter and banana roll-up in the other. Sometimes there’s tea thrown in there, too.
(my life is absolutely Pinterest worthy, let me tell ya.)
college
I don’t think I’ve mentioned the fact that I’ve gone back to school yet, so consider this my announcement to the world!
The bean has gone back to school.
I am currently enrolled in a program through Arizona State University for a Bachelor’s in English. This means that there are many, many, manyyyy essays in my future, and I’m weirdly excited about that. I also survived my first semester of college–though there were a few days where I wasn’t sure I’d make it.
It also wasn’t until halfway through my first semester that I realized I’d enrolled into college full-time.
I also work full-time.
It has been a crazy, crazy school year so far.
But the Lord is good, because we’re about a quarter of the way through our second semester, and by the start of May, I’ll be 25% of the way through earning my degree! It’s insane to me how quickly the time flies, but I’m so grateful for this opportunity, and for the opportunities that will open up as I continue to learn and grow.
THE BOOKS OF JANUARY
Despite it being an absolutely insane month (second semester of college, here we goooooooo!) I’ve managed to read 4 books in January! One of them was for school, naturally. Two of them were children’s books. And one of them was a book that I read because I wanted to.
(to be fair, I’ve read WAY MORE children’s books than what is listed. these are simply the ones that I read for funsies and not to a room of enraptured children.)
At the start of the year, I considered keeping track of all the books I read for work, but I realized that this was A) actually not a sustainable method of book tracking, and B) would massively affect my storygraph recommended feed. So I have decided to continue my tracking of the books I read for fun and–because there will be a smaller but still substantial amount of them–for school.
For all intents and purposes, I’m going to limit the books I share in my monthly thoughts to the books long enough to form a substantial opinion on. (unless, of course, I read a particularly enthralling picture book)
Also, if you’re interested in following along with what I’m reading, feel free to check out my profile on Storygraph! I’m always looking for new book recommendations!
what I’ve read
OCTOBER, OCTOBER … by Katya Balen
This book was recommended to me by my mom and sister–so naturally I had to read it! It’s a really sweet story about a little girl who lives in the “wild” with her dad–until one day the woman who was her mother returns, and everything changes. I really enjoyed the character development in this book, particularly between October and her mother. It was a sweet story about friendship and family and embracing not only who you are, but who you were meant to be.
I would definitely recommend this book!
AMERICANAH by Chimimanda Ngozi Adichie
As of me writing this, I haven’t yet finished this book. But I’m over 60% of the way through, and I feel as though I have a pretty solid grasp on my feelings towards it.
I want to love this book. I really, really do. Unfortunately, there’s a little too much graphic content in it for me to ever be able to recommend it in good faith to someone. That being said, the character development in this novel is unmatched, and you do find yourself growing attached to the characters as they move throughout their lives. I’m fascinated by how Adichie weaves the story together, jumping smoothly between timelines so that we’re given a glimpse into both the present and the past. For being my first full-length required reading for school, I was pleasantly surprised by how invested I became in the story. If it hadn’t been mandatory to read, I don’t think I would have pushed past the first couple chapters.
Again, I would not recommend this book based on some of the content, however I have to give it a 3.5 star rating because it really is masterfully written.
on the nightstand
There are so many books I want to read in February! I’m slowly compiling a list of them that I want to knock out (if not next month, at least this year) which is aided in part by me attending a 24-hour read-a-thon with a couple of my friends at the end of the month!
There’s a reason February is one of my favorite months. It’s going to be an absolute blast!
As of right now, these are the books that are on my proverbial (and physical) nightstand. Recommendations are always welcome!
A STROKE OF THE PEN by Terry Pratchett
Not only is this one of my readathon picks, but it will also be my first Pratchett! (we are very very excited about both of these concepts!)
I really don’t know what to expect about this book, other than the fact that (I’m assuming) there will be Pratchett’s renowned wit and humor locked within the pages. Also it is relatively thin, which means I should (???) be able to finish it within a reasonable amount of time during the read-a-thon… It might even be the first book I grab. Something whimsical and humorous is just the thing I need to ease me into 24 hours of reading!
DAUGHTER OF THE PIRATE KING by Tricia Levenseller
This book has been on my shelf for FOREVER. I started reading it at a work conference a few years ago, but I wasn’t able to properly get into it. Now I’ve been staring at it for a few years and am determined for it to be read this year. (along with many other books which I have failed to read ahahahahahahaha) This will be book two that I will pack for my 24-hour read-a-thon in February, though might not be the second book I grab… Either way, it will be going with me to the tree house!
(yes… we rented out a tree house. yes, I am super excited!)
THE CLINIC by Cate Quinn
A few friends and I have a book club that meets about once a month, and this was February’s book pick! Judging from the cover, I’m in for a twisty, psychological thriller type adventure. (this, of course, is very fine by me!) I’ll probably be taking this book along with me to the read-a-thon if I have not finished it by then. I try to get the book club picks read before I do any other fun reading, since it’s kind of important that I know what we’re talking about during the book discussion…
I have a reputation to uphold as the librarian of the group, okay?
LOOKING AHEAD
valentine’s day
As I mentioned above, February is one of my favorite months. There’s something extra special about it, with the reds and pinks and purples everywhere, cut out hearts and valentines being passed around… It’s especially fun when you work with kids, because you’re able to do a whole bunch of arts and crafts and cutting and pasting and homemade card making.
If I had the time, I would make a homemade valentine for everyone I love. Unfortunately, I have a feeling that school will suck my soul out in the coming weeks, and therefore I might have to buy everyone a donut instead.
planting
For Christmas, I received a hydroponics system, and I’m a little scared and a little excited to try it! I’d really like to try my hand at growing my own garden this year–something that can be a little bit difficult when you’re living in an apartment and don’t have a ton of window light. To start, I’m going to try and grow some herbs–just a few, to see if I can actually do it. I’d love to be able to have my own little window herb garden in our kitchen window, but we’ll have to see if that’s actually feasible or just a pipe dream…
(the one time I tried to grow vegetables in our kitchen window, it did not end very well for the cucumbers.)
I’d also like to try and have a raised garden bed in the summer. But that’s not something I need to worry about quite yet…
GOODBYE JANUARY
January has been a good month to me. School started again, I’ve read some delicious books, and I’ve been building healthier routines that actually help me be a more productive…well…me. I’m blessed to have had this month to grow in, and I’m excited for what else 2025 has to offer!
Here’s hoping that February is just as good–if not better–than January, 2025.
TALK TO ME
What did January teach you? Is there anything you are looking forward to in the coming months?
Mackenzie K. Writes 
Talk To Me, Peasants!