It’s been a long time coming, but our back porch renovation is 99% done. All that’s left is for the television to be hung above the fireplace. However, that didn’t stop me from hosting book club on the new porch last night! We had a smaller than usual group, which worked perfectly with my new eight top table. Let me backtrack: years ago Ben and I worked with an architect and a contractor to come up with a plan for our porch. The old porch was functional, but it was two levels and didn’t allow for the best use of space. We decided we wanted to raise the porch to make it all one level and, most importantly, add a fireplace.

This all took place winter of 2020…..you know where I’m going with this, right? Covid happened and suddenly our quote tripled due to lumber and other supply shortages. Since we were not in an urgent situation, we decided to just wait it out. Three years later prices finally stabilized enough and I reached my breaking point. The project commenced in January and just finished this week. Totally worth it.

I worked with the fabulous Frances Kinloch Still of Kinloch Interiors and enjoyed every second of the process. I’ve worked with Frances before and she is a delight, not to mention brilliant. If you’re local, give her a call. I don’t have any good “before” pictures, but the “after” pictures make me VERY happy.

Porch Pictures

Ben really wanted more neutrals and NO PINK in this area. I worked with Frances to come up with black, green and gray hues and I’m shocked by how much I love it. Maybe I’m a neutral girl after all.

The book club selection for this month is Local Woman Missing by Mary Kubica. This is my first Mary Kubica novel and I am now her biggest fan. I devoured this book. It’s dark and twisted and disturbing, but for some reason I gravitate towards these stories.

Local Woman Missing

This just moved to the top of my list. My favorite book of 2023 thus far. Get it here: https://amzn.to/3sA9HfE

Here’s what Amazon says:

People don’t just disappear without a trace…

Shelby Tebow is the first to go missing. Not long after, Meredith Dickey and her six-year-old daughter, Delilah, vanish just blocks away from where Shelby was last seen, striking fear into their once-peaceful community. Are these incidents connected? After an elusive search that yields more questions than answers, the case eventually goes cold.

Now, eleven years later, Delilah shockingly returns. Everyone wants to know what happened to her, but no one is prepared for what they’ll find…

It’s a great plot to discuss! I was guessing up until the last second. I think we all read the entire book in the span of three days. Once you start, you can’t put it down.

Now to see about getting that television hung before football tonight…happy Thursday!