weekending

 

Happy Monday, friends! How was your weekend? Mine flew by! I'm linking up with Holly and Sarah for today's blog post. I'll back up to Thursday evening and will jump right in!

I had to work Thursday afternoon from 4:45-6:45; I was so hungry when I got home! I walked in the door, and my house smelled amazing. Chris had come over after work and hung out here until I got back home; he had dinner ready for me when I walked in the door! This was incredible: air fried pork chops and mushroom risotto. I can't say enough how much I love a man who knows his way around a kitchen and is an excellent cook! I will never stop saying this. We cleaned it all up together after and then talked while the tv was on in the background. I was so tired and fell asleep so early that night!

I'd made plans with Marilyn on Friday to sit by her pool; that morning I worked on laundry and cleaned my house again first. Right when I was going to get dressed to leave for her house, the bottom fell out of the sky, and it poured down rain for the next several hours. I canceled going to her house and opted for a cozy afternoon at home instead and took a two hour nap. I have no regrets! Chris came over after work, and we went to a Chinese buffet for dinner. It was really good! We just came to my house again afterward and watched a movie. 

Saturday was a good day, too! We got breakfast/brunch at my favorite spot, Eggs Up Grill. I got breakfast, Chris got lunch. Ha! While we were in town, we drove around for a bit and looked at some of the new development that's taking place here in Collierville. There are some cute little areas right now, and I enjoyed driving around looking.

Later on, we decided to make the hour drive to an Amish bakery called Backermann's. 

This is in a little town called Whiteville; this bakery sells all kinds of homemade goods like breads, candies, dried soup mixes, jams, and jellies. We both got a bag of goodies, then we went to their deli and shared a hamburger and pasta salad. It was so good! After this when we were driving back toward my house, I took him to a lake near where I grew up. We walked around for a bit before leaving again, because it was buggy and muggy. 

I love a body of water! We came back to my house for a bit and then we left to grab dinner. 

We shared some fajita nachos, and I enjoyed another soft serve margarita. The sky fell out again right as we wanted to leave, so I was thankful when he offered to go grab the car for me. I let him. 

Something was said to me about dancing in the rain, and before I knew it, we were out in the rain dancing to music I had playing for us. This was all his idea, but I was obviously on board! And then we heard thunder and saw lightning, so we stopped and acted like responsible adults once again. I have so much to say about this sweet, sweet man. I love how romantic he is and that he comes up with simple things for us to do that make me feel so loved. Not only that, he also speaks the very best things to me; yesterday he told me how grateful he was for me, and that he was proud of me for starting a new (summer) job today. I'm a words girl, but I'm also an action girl; his are equal! Anyway, this is just me also being grateful for him. 

I wrote a bonus blog post this weekend on things I'm making time for right now; here's a link if you'd like to check it out!

How was your weekend? I'd love to hear about it today! Thanks for reading my blog today, friends. Love to all!

Jenn 

things I'm making more time for

Happy Saturday, friends! I hope this finds you well...it seemed like another great day for a bonus blog post. Today's was inspired by Shay Shull; I'm talking about the things I'm making more time for in my life. I hope you enjoy!

Here are the things I'm making more time for:

breakfast dates with Chris

We love getting breakfast together on Saturdays! I remember when this first started; he came over super early one Saturday and while I would have preferred to have lingered over coffee instead of getting dressed for the day, it's become a tradition that I love. I'm sad when we miss it now! Sometimes if one of us are out of town, he'll send me a picture of his plate and the empty seat across from him; it always makes me sad that I'm not there with him. 

reading

I am trying to make more time for reading; this means that I am actively putting my phone down. I haven't done as good with this in the last few days as I had been, but I'm still trying.

phone conversations

Ideally, this would be more of an in-person thing, but with my out of town family, it's not possible. I'm trying to be better at calling people that I love.

in-person meet ups with friends

There's this whole time thing again; I don't have enough of it sometimes. The opportunities are endless, though! I have several friends that I need to make the time for to see them and catch up. I miss this particular porch! I need to get back there ASAP; maybe I'll make sure and do that this week on Wednesday after work. 

connecting with my sons

I would love for us to meet up on Saturday night at a place I've been wanting them to try. I'd love to treat them to this...but I might have to wait a bit before I can do that. In the meanwhile, I'd love for them all to come here, or maybe we could all meet up at Graham's house. 

journaling

I had that thought this week as I was trying to pass the time at work. I love to journal and I need to do it way more often. It's so therapeutic to me! I was cleaning out my work bag this week and came across all of these notebook pages full of things I was grateful or moments I wanted to remember that had happened at work. More of that, please! 

reading the Bible

I know this is going to sound strange, but I stopped my Bible reading plan. I caught myself not paying attention, so I decided to leave it and do something new. I wanted to write out Scripture this summer, but I'm already behind...even so, I can still keep going and just start with today. I love to write out Scripture! It helps me to remember it; I love it when it's themed for a certain month. I had started one in June based on friendship; I should start it up again today. 

keeping my house vacuumed and dusted

This one isn't that fun, but my house makes me crazy, y'all. Noah's dog sheds horribly, but he's not home that often to vacuum for me. He will, don't get me wrong, but when it's bothering me the most, I just want it done right then. I love a clean and orderly home! I enjoy it more when I don't see dog hair on the floor and dust on the furniture. Did I mention that it drives me bonkers? I need you to understand this about me. Ha! (This is an older picture.)

sitting and connecting with the people I'm with at any given moment-- without any device in my hand

I had this thought when Graham came to visit on Thursday night. I love that he randomly drop by at a moment's notice! 

What about you? What are a few things you'd like to make more time for? I'd love to hear from you! Thanks for reading my blog today, friends. Love to all!

Jenn 

Friday Favorites, 6.12.2026.

 

Happy Friday, friends! How was your week? Mine was great, albeit busy. This was the week I worked two days of in-service for our summer school program called "summer learning camp" or SLC. I'll share some thoughts on that at the end of this post. Until then, here are some of my favorites from the week!

Words like this are my favorite! It's such a great and gentle reminder to myself...and maybe even for you. Frustrations will always be quick to pop up...praying is the easiest and best thing we can do to combat those feelings of anger or irritation. Words can never be unsaid! I wrote a whole post dedicated to that yesterday. Here's a link if you missed it!

I emptied a couple of tubs this week; I thought I'd share since that means that both must be favorites. The first is a body butter that smells heavenly; the next picture shows the gummies I take as part of my daily regimen. 

This is a picture of the classroom I'll be in the most over the summer for SLC. It's a room that is a third grade math teacher's class; I love that her alphabet letters are math terms and I also love the place value chart she has at the top of her dry erase board! As a SPED para, I appreciate that this teacher has this in place voluntarily; such things are accommodations for some of our students. I love that this one gets it! Aside from that, I appreciate all of her small touches; I've noticed that she has these little things on their desks that hold their pencils. Elementary students love to have theirs roll off their desks everyday! I also love that has hand signals for different things they might raise their hands for: one finger in the air might mean that they need a tissue. Two fingers means that they need to sharpen their pencils. Three fingers means they need a restroom break. Personal and thoughtful touches like that are my favorite! 

Hosting Bunco at my friend Karen's house was a favorite this week; so was the fact that Marilyn came with me as a sub!

Meeting my co-workers for lunch on Tuesday was a favorite! I opted for a regular margarita this time, but now that I'm writing this, I wish I had a soft serve one right now. 

Key lime pie has always been my favorite; so was eating the leftover filling for breakfast one day this week. 

This is one of my favorite passages in Scripture!

These were some favorite graphics I found on Instagram this week. 

Getting a pedicure was a favorite this week, and so is the color I chose: Funny Bunny by OPI.

I've also had lots of Chris time this week, which is another favorite. I won't take for granted the nights we get to share dinner together. I'm grateful for these times! I'm also grateful for the fact that I get to meet new friends at SLC. It's strange being in my building and not knowing most of the people. There are some very interesting people who are working with me this summer. I'll leave it at that. I'm excited about Monday! I'm a one on one aide for one of my normal students during the school year who also happens to be terminally ill. The job is easy, but being with her can be tricky. She's precious, but she has so many issues; I'm glad we're familiar with each other, though. I can't wait to love on her this summer! 

What was a favorite of yours this week? I'd love to hear from you! Thanks for reading today, friends. Love to all!

Jenn 

ten on the tenth (eleventh) June 2026

 

Happy bonus blog post day! I'm sharing again today and linking up with Marsha for this version of ten on the tenth. This month we're talking about ten things we love about this new season. I might take this literally and also a bit figuratively; anyway, here goes!

1. I love this new season because of how late it stays light outside. It makes being out later easier for me; I learned a long time ago that if the sun is still out, I'm not tired. I love it when I'm out with Chris or anyone else. I love it when I'm walking around a town square, or if I'm out enjoying a concert. 

2. I love this new season because I have a little more freedom. I enjoy being able to have an additional day off in the week; my summer job is only Monday through Thursday! I love a leisurely morning spent at home not rushing off or waking up to alarm clock. I love lingering over my coffee and and spending time reading blogs. I also love the freedom of a Friday off! I have plans this week to spend time with Marilyn that day when she's finished with work.

3. I love this new season because I love to be in the water. Any water will do! I love a pool, a river, a lake, an ocean...I love it all. 

4. I love this new season because it brings about more travel! I don't have a huge vacation planned this year, but I have some long weekend trips coming up. I'm looking forward to them both! 

5. I love this new season because I enjoy having a man in my life. He brings a steady presence to my days...not because I need to be rescued, but because life feels richer when it's shared. The ordinary moments become sweeter when there's someone to share your day with; I love that he knows my stories and that he notices little things that matter to me. The gift of companionship is one that I don't take for granted; healthy love feels like a gift. It feels like coming home after a long day. It feels like safety, and it feels like gratitude.

6. I love this new season because I love the clothes of summer! Bring on all the cute dresses, coverups with swimsuits, baseball caps, and skorts/shorts.

7. I love this new season because I enjoy the quiet moments that I sometimes have. When my house is empty (and clean), I love sitting on my couch and curling up with a good book. I also love binge watching a great show! I enjoy eating a simple dinner and having my candle warmer turned on to make my house smell good. I love settling in for an evening of being cozy. I'll do this tonight, now that I'm saying this!

8. I love this new season because of the smells of summer. Give me all the lotions, oils, and perfumes, please, but make them smell like summer.

9. I love this new season because of how beautiful the flowers and trees are at the moment. I don't even mean mine, necessarily, but everywhere I go I see beautiful flowers.

10. Lastly, I love this new season because I get to slow down and enjoy life. I still have the daily mundane things, yes, but I choose to not let that take away from what I love about this new season. I have bills that I make sure are paid, I have to keep up with this lovely home that is now solely mine, and a whole slew of other things...but how wonderful are those things, really. I'm grateful for both the mundane and for the beautiful; in fact, beauty can often be found in those small everyday moments! 

I feel grateful and blessed as I write this today, honestly. How fortunate are we to be able to live and love life? Thanks for reading today, friends. Love to all!

Jenn

the power of our words

 

Happy Thursday, friends! I was thinking about the topic of words one morning this week and thought I'd talk about it here today. I hope you enjoy today's post!

Since I was a young girl, words have been important to me. I've always collected cards and letters that people send me; I still do this today and will hang onto something for a long time before letting it go. I actually pull things out and re-read the words from time to time; I do this because it's a good exercise on a day when I'm feeling less than. 

Here's a small sampling of the cards I've collected over the last two years. I threw away a bunch of what I had in my keepsake box two years ago. 

I say this today, because words are powerful. It's important to choose them wisely! I'm talking to myself as much as anyone else here today. How do you use your words? I asked myself this as I wrote this out earlier this week. Before I tell you how I like to use my words, I feel the need to confess how many times I have fallen short of what I am about to say. And that's okay, and even normal sometimes. We're all human and our emotions can overtake us from time to time. The goal is to keep trying to do better. 

I like to use my words to encourage. 

I like to build others up. There's a Bible verse that I love that talks about this.

Don't use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them. Ephesians 4:29

Have you ever been the recipient of really kind or thoughtful words? I have too many times to count; it's because of that reason that I like to pass that small act of kindness forward. I try to interact with people in such a way that I leave them smiling or laughing. Have you ever had a really bad day and experienced a sweet compliment from a stranger? I have! I don't try to flatter people; there's a difference in that and a sincere compliment. But if I see something about someone that I like while I'm out, I will always say something. At the very least, I will ask them how their day is going, if I'm out and interacting with someone.

On the flip side of this, have you ever experienced negative words from someone? It's even worse when it's someone you love that does the lashing out. I have experienced negative words a lot. I think most of us would say the same thing, honestly. And here in the blog world, where we all live pretty open lives, it puts us in a position to be easily attacked. I've gotten a lot of flack for being so open here on my blog about my life in the last couple of years. I get that not everybody understands this little community and how it works, but it was a choice I made to be like that here, and I don't regret that choice. My thoughts are that even if someone doesn't understand why I would be so open here, from my point of view, if it helps even one person who is going through something hard, then it's worth it to be an open book here. 

I like to use my words to remember. God has been faithful for all of my life; never once has He forsaken me or left me on my own to figure things out. He has always provided for me, in every sense of that word. I love to talk about this with people! I love to remember through story; one of my favorite things in life is to sit around a dinner table with my sons and talk about the memories we share. I have so many wonderful memories of their childhood, that the stories are too many to count. I also know that almost every time we're together, I learn something new that I've never heard before. This is life with adults for kids, particularly a bunch of young men. They were into all kinds of crazy things that I was clueless about! 

I love to use my words to get to know people. I love to ask questions and often have many. Do you do that, when you're getting to know someone? I think it's a great way to show someone that you're paying attention. All of this post today is to say that our words are important. I think there are times when I don't pay close attention to mine, and that isn't good. I always want to strive to use my words for good! What about you? Are words important to you? I'd love to hear your thoughts on this. Thanks for reading my blog today, friends. Love to all!

Jenn