Saturdays at our house start off the same way every week: TV for the kids, husband/dad pumping iron, while I grab a few quiet minutes in my office before making chocolate chip pancakes for the girls.

Today: no different.

Since I love Saturdays, it’s fun that I missed posting yesterday and I can add to my thankfulness list today, instead.

Here’s what I’m thankful for today:

38. Everyone doing their thing. Maggie decided today that she wanted to use a scrub brush she found to do some cleaning. She’s got the scrub brush, some rag towels, and a bowl of warm water. Sitting on the floor, she’s scrubbing our lower kitchen cabinets, shaking her sweet curls out of her face. Cami is sitting her with me at the kitchen table, enjoying a chai latte (she made it herself)and reading. Natalie is outside adventuring with her dad, who is…

39. Smoking meat. My husband’s new hobby, discovered this summer, is smoking meat. He cooks some amazing pork shoulder, delicious ribs, and the best chicken ever. Today, he’s fussing with the smoker (with a variety of meat he pulled from the freezer),chopping wood, and generally enjoying being outside with one of his girls.

40. There’s a fire in the hearth. When we moved here a few years ago, a woodburning fireplace ranked high on our list. Gas insert? No way. We love real wood fires.

41. Work I love. I woke this morning early and stayed in bed for a few minutes, mentally planning for a client meeting in Atlanta this week. I love the work we’re doing!

42. Creative sparks and ideas. I had a new big idea yesterday and I’m excited to see what it develops. I think it will enable us to serve our clients more effectively while expanding and serving more authors than ever. If you’re curious, follow the new Twitter handle (@HometownReads).

43. A great book for a Friday evening. I don’t know if I’ve mentioned it here before, but my favorite genre of books is memoir, and I just read a fabulous one: Breaking Night by Liz Murray. Murray tells her story of growing up on the streets of New York, going from life as a homeless high schooler to studying at Harvard. Warning: it’s a tear-jerker. I dare you to read it without crying. There’s a movie, too — hoping to watch it sometime.

Tell me something! What are you thankful for today? What good books have you read lately?

Becky Robinson

I am the founder/CEO of the Weaving Influence team, the author of Reach: Creating the Biggest Possible Audience for Your Message, Book, or Cause, and the host of the Book Marketing Action Podcast. I’m a wife and mom of three kids, and I enjoy running, reading, writing, coffee, and dark chocolate.