Ahhh, it’s finally summer! That means vacation! That means I might have time to read a book!

I am a firm believer that what we eat affects us mind, body, and soul. What’s Eating Your Child?: The Hidden Connection Between Food and Your Child’s Well-Being is a book that I am going to have to ruminate on for a while.

What’s Eating Your Child?: The Hidden Connection Between Food and Your Child’s Well-Being is all about the connections between food and childhood “ailments” like anxiety, recurring ear infections, stomachaches, picky eating, ADHD, sleeplessness, and more. This book is really interesting, with in-depth information on the surprising problems caused by gluten-intolerance, and—short of full-blown celiac disease—how difficult it is to diagnose.

Did you know that artificial sweeteners are worse than sugar, and soy milk is a poor substitute for cow’s milk?

Also included is advice on how to talk with a doctor about nutrition and how to get children off antibiotics, laxatives, Prozac, and Ritalin—and back to a natural state of well-being.

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Do you dream of setting out into the big wide world? The Boy Behind the Gate: How His Dream of Sailing Around the World Became a Six-Year Odyssey of Adventure, Fear, Discovery and Love is a true story of how Larry Jacobson overcame fears and insecurities to manifest his dream.

Jacobson spent six years sailing into the unknown, even as a novice sailor. The school of experience taught him seamanship, personal strength, and perseverance.

In his book, Jacobson reveals those crucial steps that will motivate you to make your dreams come true.

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A Dog Named Slugger is a book by Leah Brill about her journey toward independence and confidence, which began in college when she teamed up with a trained companion dog named Slugger.

Together, they transformed Leah’s challenge of living with cerebral palsy into a triumph.

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How can we inspire our kids to step away from the screen this summer? 101 Offline Activities You Can Do With Your Child has a wealth of ideas lain out in an easy-to-access way.

All activities in 101 Offline Activities You Can Do With Your Child are easy and environmentally friendly. You can utilize this book at home, in the car, or wherever you need to go!

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Retiring in France! That sounds like a dream!

In Taking Root in Provence, a couple from Washington relocate to Aix-en-Provence and learn to live as the locals do. Daily markets, strikes, gypsies, curious villagers, ancient traditions, truffle cheaters, pagan and religious celebrations, and secret swimming spots in the middle of Marseilles; they experience it all, sticking with Provence for more than a decade.

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Even with the economic slump, you can make money and have fun by holding a garage sale.

Don’t groan! Ava’s Guide To Garage Sale Gold is a guide to having successful garage sales, with advice on everything from initially finding items to include in the sale, to getting rid of stuff once the sale is over!

Ava has a website at www.garagesalegold.com that has a whole community of garage sale enthusiasts!

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I always have hopes of “bonding” experiences on the road with my kids, but sometimes it seems hard to get things rolling. RelationTrips – A Simple, Powerful Way to Bond with Your Loved Ones Through Personalized Road Trips is a great guide by single father Jeff Siegel about break through techniques he first used with his 7-year-old son that helped them grow closer.

RelationTrips – A Simple, Powerful Way to Bond with Your Loved Ones Through Personalized Road Trips is a workbook/memoir, and is a manageable 72 pages long.

Take it Like a Mom is about the transformation of Annie Fingardt Forster, a former lawyer (with TWO shaved legs), now a mom to a three-year-old and a baby on the way.

Annie has to “take it like a mom” as she struggles through her husband’s job loss, pre-school politics, and a playground throwdown with her arch nemesis.