Here, for your enjoyment is my latest installment of awesome things I have been loving in the past week. I hope you enjoy them as much as me. If you have any suggestions of things I should check out, please let me know.

1. Joan Ganz Cooney and John Burke. An invitation to the 12th Annual Sesame Street Gala got passed along to me a few weeks ago and I was beyond excited. I was going to attend as a member of the press and Mark was going to be my plus one. The event was honoring the beyond amazing co-founder of Sesame Street and the Children’s Television Workshop Joan Ganz Cooney. Her achievements are worth an article of their own (one I hope to write). But the video below is a good start.

It turned out that were weren’t able to attend the star (and muppet)-studded event,which was super disappointing (especially considering meeting a Muppet is one of my life dreams). But in reading the coverage I found this beautiful piano rendition of Rainbow Connection by John Burke, and read a lot about a very inspiring woman.

2. Women Making America. I feel like we are reaching a new turning point in our culture consciousness about feminism. I have always been a feminist and been very interested in women’s history, but I’ve been reading and writing about in as it relates to leadership lately. So I discovered this book at the perfect time. I was browsing in the Young Adult section of the library a few weeks ago and I found Women Making America by Heidi and Julie Hemming. I guess it could best described as a text book aimed at middle and high school students but that’s underselling it. It is such a great comprehensive survey women’s role in American history. I’m only halfway through and I’ve learned so much.

I feel like our educational system robbed me of so much. This is exactly the kind of book kids should be reading — it tells the stories of women from all ethic and social backgrounds and makes the stories rich with first person accounts, letters, diary entries, and photos.

3. Grape Escape Wine Tour in Niagara-on-the-Lake. We celebrated on two year wedding anniversary with a long weekend trip to Niagra Falls last weekend. We had a wonderful time. A highlight of the trip was the bike wine tour we took. We ended up being the only people on the tour, which made it even better.

We were also the only people staying at the lovely and super affordable Elizabeth House Bed and Breakfast. I highly recommend both.

4. The outpouring of love and inspiration in the wake of Maya Angelou’s death. Her death was sad and unexpected but there is no doubt that she lived a full life and left a powerful and inspiring legacy. There are no words to sum up all she said and did. I have enjoyed reading the celebrations of her life, and re-reading all of her badass empowering words.

fuck yeah.

4. Celebrities Reading Mean Tweets. I realize I’m late to this party, but I just discovered this the entire series, and it was just the levity I needed. Celebrity and twitter and insulting people with 12-year-boy toilet humor are just all so absurd that you can’t help but laugh. Seriously– people getting mad on the internet. Ridiculous.