30 Books in Year 30

Book Review of 2019

At the beginning of 2019, I set the goal of reading 30 books in celebration of the year I would turn
30 years old. Since 2016 I hadn’t had much time to read for pleasure as I was enduring MBA school
and my eyes were weary from reading case reviews and business articles. So, 2019 seemed like the
perfect time to jump into the long must-read list that had been piling up. I did however get a bit distracted
from my goal with the whole moving to another country thing, but alas, I did in fact, with a little help
from audible (which I do believe counts as reading) and a mini England retreat, complete my goal
of 30 books. Below are my favorites and the genres I would consider them.

Overall Best Read of 2019

The Sun Does Shine by Anthony Ray Hinton

This book was not an easy read but I do believe every American should read it. In fact, before you
read this book, you should read Just Mercy by Brian Stevenson. As a privileged white American,
I think it is important to see what other human beings in our country are dealing with and how we
can combat oppression in our nation. These two books will open your eyes.

Motivation/Self Help

Braving the Wilderness by Brene Brown

Amazon lists this book under Religion & Spirituality and in Social Science Research which I don’t
know that either genre truly fits. Regardless, I personally got to meet Brene Brown in the summer
of 2018 and she signed this book and I found it incredibly motivational and informative.

Entrepreneurial Motivation

Shoe Dog by Phil Knight

If you have hopes to start a business of any kind, the odds are your future won’t look like Phil Knight’s,
the founder of Nike, but I still think this book has important lessons and I especially enjoyed learning
that even Phil Knight had a TON of uncertainty at the beginning of his career. Sorry to burst your
bubble if you think you are going to hit it big, but hey if you are reading this and someday become
the next Oprah, then throw me a bone for being part of your motivation, mmmk?!

(I listened to this book on audile and really enjoyed the narration.)

Educational/International Relations

Notes on a Foreign Country by Suzy Hansen

As someone who has never been really interested in American history, I still found this book
incredibly interesting. I have a love for the country of Turkey and it’s complicated sharing so
if you want to know more, just ask. But if you want to learn about how America has influenced
other countries of the world, this book is a good place to start.

Enneagram Lover/Personal Development

The Road Back to You by Ian Morgan Cron and Suzanne Stabile

Ok, I know a lot of people have jumped on the enneagram train this year and I would HIGHLY
recommend this book to help you understand each number. I listened to this book on audible,
but I think it would be more beneficial to own a physical copy of this book. 

Mystery, Fiction, For Fun

The Woman in the Window by A.J. Finn

I read a lot of mystery and thriller fiction as entertainment. I rarely remember what happens in
these books when I put them down but I remember this one and so that has to mean it was better
than most?

Historical Fiction

Beneath A Scarlet Sky by Mark Sullivan

For Christmas this year we didn’t make it home because we just moved to Germany and
so instead traveled to Slovenia and Italy. This book is about an Italian man’s experience
during WW2 and is based off a true story. I find it incredible that we are surrounded by so much
history here in Europe and found it especially meaningful to connect with this story while traveling
to the same places that are described during the war. Regardless of whether you are heading
to Italy anytime soon, I still think it’s worth reading. 

Christian Must Read

It’s Not Supposed to be this Way by Lysa TerKeurst

I read this during a really difficult season this year and I connected to it more than any other book that I
have read in a long time. The author is so real about her experience in her marriage. If you are having
a hard time in your marriage currently I think you should read this. If you are thriving in your marriage
currently, I think you should read this. Did you catch that? I think you you should read this.

Below I've listed the rest of the 30 books that I read this year. I have nothing personally against
these books, but they aren’t super memorable and so I don’t consider them must reads, but go for it if you want! I’ve grouped them in genres if you prefer reading one type.

Fiction: 

The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware, Still Water by Amy Stuart, Caught by Harlan Coben,

The Midnight Line by Lee Child , Missing Molly by Natalie Barelli, In a Dark, Dark Wood by Ruth Ware,
The Couple Next Door by Shari Lapena, SUPER by Jon Coffey, Allegedly by Tiffany D. Jackson,
Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens, One Second After by William R. Forstchen,
Two Days Gone by Randall Silvis, The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas,
The Girl Before by J.P. Delaney, Long Road to Mercy by David Baldacci, Harry Potter and the Cursed
Child by J.K Rowling, Desperate Girls by Laura Griffin, Nine Perfect Strangers by Liane Moriarty,

Where'd You go, Bernadette by Maria Semple

Memoirs:

Educated by Tara Westover, Why Not Me? by Mindy Kaling (really a collection of essays not
a memoir but it's about her life).

Personal Development:

The First 90 Days by Michael D. Watkins

Books first up for 2020:

1.The Dearly Beloved by Cara Wall

2. You are the Girl for the Job by Jess Connolly

3. Women of the Word by Jen Wilkin

4. Daisy Jones & the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid

5. Small Fry by Lisa Brennan-Jobs

If you have a MUST read that I should add to my 2020 list please, please, please leave a comment
below!

Xo, Theresa

Although I plan to do a lot of sharing about my travels here on my blog, my daily love is fashion and

so what better way to sum up this year and kick off the New Year than to look back over my style

trends for 2019! I find a lot of joy in incorporating new trends each year into my style and this year

did not fall short. No, I did not buy a micro bag that fits nothing but a chapstick in it  because I have

a personal rule that if the bag doesn’t fit an extra pair of shoes, than it’s not big enough for me. And I

didn’t buy a clear bag like the rest of the high fashion world did, because nobody wants to see the

crap I put in my bag! Also, while we are on the topic of trends I didn’t go for, NO I did not get tricked

into thinking that biker shorts were suitable to wear anywhere but on a bike (not even at the gym, but

I guess that’s a personal preference). Regardless, I did add a few new trends to my closet arsenal

so I am rounding them up for you here!

Bold Colors

Bright colors in my wardrobe make me seriously happy. If you know me in real life, you know I don’t

have a super bubbly personally and I am typically pretty serious, but my closet is anything but! I love

loud colors, that make you think- did she really wear that? Or, maybe I should add a little punch of

color in my life. I have never been one for pastels and so this year I was super happy to find the bold

color trend running right along with me! Not sure, how to add color into your wardrobe? Try adding

an earring or lip color that is bold to start so that it is less pressure of making a huge statement or

investment!

My current favorite bright pieces can be found here, here, and here.

Wide leg Statement Pants

The first time I put on wide leg denim this year, I was wary, but looking back over the year made me

realize that I actually dig a wide leg pant! I’ve found that denim can be a little less forgiving, so try a

thinner material if you want to try it out. Or you can do a wide leg jumpsuit, that essentially looks like

a dress with a twist. I love skirts and have way too many of them so this trend is another way to feel

a little fancy with a chic twist.

My current favorite wide leg pants can be found here, here, here and here (there are EVERYTHING).

Hats & Headbands

I have been converted to a hair accessory lover. Hats of any kind, headbands, hair clips, you name it

and I love it. It has been super fun being cold enough in Germany for hats with an actual function,

but you can catch me in a hat all summer long so this trend is not a new one. What is new is the

headband CRAZE and I’m here for it. What I love is that you can put your unstyled hair up with a

headband and look put together or pop a headband on dirty, styled hair to prolong washing it. I can

personally attest to this because I arrived to bible study with no makeup and a headband on having

done nothing else to my hair and my hair was given a compliment. Headbands = magic. 

My current favorite hats and headbands can be found here, here, here, here, here, here, and here. I told you I loved them.....

Twirly Tulle

Tulle and ruffles really hit the scene big in 2018, but the best thing about most trends is that if it’s a

super great trend, it usually comes back bigger and better than ever the following year. I feel like

tulle and me will have a lifelong friendship and what’s great about tulle is you can wear it at 5 or 50,

just ask Carrie Bradshaw. 

My current favorite tulle pieces can be found here, here, and here.

Turtlenecks

*Caveat* it is certainly easier to wear turtlenecks in my new German climate rather than the heat of

Louisiana, but I actually put on my first turtleneck this year in Alabama, so don’t discount it if you live

in the heat! Now truth be told, I struggle with a little double chin, so turtlenecks can be a tad risky (if

you want a good laugh, go google double chin gifs), but I’ve found that a big chunky sweater or

thinner fabric turtle work just fine! Maybe it’s just me but I think turtlenecks can really class up a

look. 

My current favorite turtlenecks can be found here, here, here, here, and here.

Animal Print Everything

I’ve always had a few pieces of leopard in my wardrobe as a necessary neutral but this year I feel

like the world experienced a leopard EXPLOSION. I love that animal print was not exclusively

leopard this year in fashion and there were so many new prints in the party! My favorite new addition

was snakeskin although I did restrain myself on purchasing snakeskin boots.

My current favorite animal prints can be found here, here(in multiple snakeskin colors), and here.

Utility Bags

I know I really trashed on the 2019 bag trends above, but one thing I loved about 2019 was that

bags have actually become really functional. I have made quite a few international trips and using a

belt bag/fanny pack/or tiny crossbody bag for travel has CHANGED me. I love having my passport,

ID, credit card, chapstick, and headphones so handy. I also think cute backpacks are here to stay

and I love it.

My current favorite functional bags can be found here, here, and here(SPLURGE).

Whether it was tulle, turtlenecks, functional bags, animal print, headbands and hats, or bright bold

colors, 2019 surely had so many new and old trends. I can't wait to see the new trends that pop up

in 2020!!!

XO, Theresa

Thinking and dreaming about all of my European travels was super fun. As soon as I found out our

move to Europe was official, I made a LONG list of everywhere I wanted to see and if I’m being

completely honest, I thought about all of the beautiful places I wanted to take pictures in. But, I didn’t

bring myself to book anything while I was dreaming because I wasn’t quite sure of work schedules

so I waited until I arrived to Germany in October. (Keep an eye out for future posts with my FULL

European bucket list. I will be linking and tagging all of my stops along the way!)

Five full days living in Germany and I felt completely overwhelmed with the prospect of booking

travel. There are so many blogs and best places to stay lists but guess what, most hotels are

ASTRONOMICALLY priced, especially around the holidays. I found that most of the hotels that were

recommended by said bloggers and lists were booked for my first few trips so I was left wondering,

how far in advance do I need to book?! So, I want to write you an honest review through my blog

about where we choose to stay (and why) and how to travel while not losing your life savings, BUT

also having the trip you’ve dreamed about and getting all the good pics. Do you think it’s possible?

I’m skeptical... 

We have four trips scheduled before the end of the year so I will start there in walking you through

our planning. I want to add this post as a preview and background to my process in booking a trip,

even if it’s just a weekend excursion. 

First things first, I’ve been on a couple of really cool trips in the past few years that have been

planned by a travel agent. While I think a travel agent is the most CONVENIENT way to travel, I

don’t always think you get the best of the best of all categories (lodging, food, price, excursions, and

price) because they just don’t know you as well as you know you. I think travel agents allow for

amazing trips to be planned when you don’t have the time or energy to do the research yourself. I

would love to be a resource for you about where to eat and what to see while you travel, but if I fully

plan a trip for you, it will certainly be from my point of view. With that being said, I am all for you

using travel agents to book your travels (you do you boo), but if you DO decide to plan your own

trips, I hope to make your planning a little bit easier. 

So tell us your process ALREADY!!! Ok, ok, here are the basic steps I follow when planning a trip.

1. Decide the time frame for when I plan to take a trip (I estimate the days in case travel ends up being much cheaper on some days over others).

2. Decide where I want to go. I usually keep a list of places that are close that I want to take a long weekend trip to and then another list with a destination I want to see for a week or longer.

3. Do extensive research on the best places to stay. I use a mix of resources of where to stay. I check Airbnb and booking.com to get a good idea of price ranges for my time frame for traveling and for the place I plan to visit. I also search “best hotels” on google and scroll through a few lists. I will occasionally check with influencers and bloggers about where they have stayed, but I am VERY cautious with their suggestions because typically if they are big enough, they are getting paid to stay at super fancy places that I just can’t afford on a military budget so it isn’t helpful for me to see the amazing hotel they stayed in before I book my average hotel/rental.

4. Once I’ve decided on where I want to stay, I check flights if I need to or a plan my drive.

5. Decide on the MUST EAT restaurants on the journey. Especially in Europe and big cities, I make

reservations if it’s a restaurant I really want to try. Food is super duper important to me so I plan all of

my activities around the food. I typically do quite a bit of research and will even go down a few

Instagram rabbit holes in order to find the best restaurants in specific cities. 

6. Plan what I want to see and do. Once I know where I’m eating, I can plan the rest of my days.

Some days, I choose not to plan anything or a really loose schedule but I keep a list of all the things I

want to see and make sure if they are MUST sees then I check if reservations are needed.

7. Once the major things are planned, I make sure I look into the local public transportation- do they

have google? Can I walk to most things? Where will I park the car? Etc. etc. 

If this list of travel planning to-dos overwhelms you, then I hope that my future posts will be your

solution. I will tell you what I really think about where I stay, what I eat, and the MUST see things in

each city. I promise to tell you where I’ve sacrificed my personal preferences for the price and even

what I would have done with a bigger budget. I hope you will join me on this wild ride!