Life Lately

Sarah’s in-laws moved to Bloomington this month and Abby’s been scoring some great (free!) secondhand wins.

Reading Lately

Sarah read the NEA Big Read for the year: Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng. She was captivated by how Ng was able to concisely convey so much about the characters.

Abby listened to Mirna Valerio’s memoir A Beautiful Work in Progress. Valerio is a self-described “fat girl running” and shares her life competing in ultramarathons.

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Our Year in Books, 2017

As listeners know, we love to read. We reflect back on our reading life in 2017: what we read, what we loved, what surprised us, and how the podcast has illuminated our different reading styles and preferences. Here are our favorites from the year:

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Eating Lately

We’ve both been feeling a bit uninspired in the kitchen and turning to easier (lazier?) meals: black bean nachos for Abby and bean quesadillas for Sarah.

If you’d like to join in the conversation, please leave us a comment, email us at friendlierpodcast@gmail.com, or find us on Instagram @friendlierpodcast. Thanks for listening!

This episode is sponsored by Audible. Our listeners can get a free audiobook and 30-day trial. Abby loves the audio version of Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert and Sarah always comes back to The Royal We by Jessica Morgan and Heather Cocks. If you need more suggestions of great audiobooks, check out our book recommendation page to see some our favorites.

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Life lately

Abby is excited to be part of a in-person book club for the first time in years, while Sarah shares a rant about book fairs.

Reading lately

Abby listened to John Green’s Turtles All the Way Down, a YA novel that tells the story of Aza, her anxiety, and her deep teenage thoughts.

Sarah (finally) finished the Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer, which is a dystopian series composed of four books–Cinder, Scarlet, Cress, and Winter–where each book reimagines a different fairy tale.

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Gift giving

‘Tis the season! We share our overarching gift-giving philosophy, how we budget, collect ideas, and shop for holiday gifts, how our families handle gifts for our kids, extended family, stockings, and Santa, and whether we find gift-giving joyful or stressful. We’d love to hear your thoughts on gift-giving and what works for your family.

Eating lately

Sarah and Abby both share casseroles–sausage for Abby, and green bean for Sarah. Here’s Sarah’s family’s recipe:

Green Bean Casserole

• 2 Tbsp butter
• 2 Tbsp flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 Tbsp dehydrated minced onion flakes
• 8 oz sour cream
• 16-20 oz frozen French cut green beans
• 1 can French fried onion rings
• Swiss cheese slices

Melt butter over low heat. Add flour, salt, pepper, onion flakes, and sugar. Stir. Add sour cream and stir until smooth. Increase heat to medium and cook until sauce is bubbly and thick, stirring consantly. Remove from heat. mix sauce with beans and place in a large casserole dish. Layer cheese on top and bake at 400 for 30 minutes. Spread onion rings over cheese and bake for five more minutes. Enjoy!

If you’d like to join in the conversation, please leave us a comment, email us at friendlierpodcast@gmail.com, or find us on Instagram @friendlierpodcast. Thanks for listening!