reasons why I love my life

 

Happy Thursday, friends! I wish my words could adequately express what your kindness means to me. So many of you reached out to me yesterday, both here, on socials, or in texts, and you have no idea what that means to me. Thank you from the bottom of my heart, dear friends. Thank you for the words that you shared with me, but thank you for your prayers. I feel them with every breath, and I am grateful for all of you. 

Guess what? Today is a new day! Every morning when I wake up, I tell the Lord good morning, and I thank Him for the new day. To me a new day equals God's new mercies. This is from a passage in Scripture that I love, Lamentations 3: 22-26. This just means that each and every day, we get a brand new start. If God can extend new mercies each day, then so can I. So, because yesterday's post ended on such a sad note, I'm here to share some reasons why I love my life right now. I hope you enjoy this! 

• I don't really have to answer to anyone or give an account to anyone other than myself. It's my house, my life, my rules. I answer only to the Lord Jesus.

• I know myself better. I don't have to guess at who I am anymore. I've lived, loved, learned, and I bring that wisdom into every choice I make.

• I get to make decisions based on peace, not pressure. I get to do what feels right, and not what's expected of me.

• I am as free as a bird! I can do whatever I want, whenever I want. If I want to eat dinner on the couch every night while watching TV, then guess what? I will!

• I get to rediscover passions I didn't have time for earlier. I get to read, write, travel, deepen my faith, and pour into friendships all I want to. I won't get blamed for anything.

• I don't have to cook to please anyone anymore. I can make whatever I want to! I can use all the celery and mushrooms I want, because nobody is here to tell me otherwise.

• I get to sleep in the middle of my bed!

• I can be messy and not feel bad about it.

• I get to be more intentional with my friendships. They feel deeper; dating is more meaningful. I'm not looking for anyone to complete me, and I'm not depending on anyone for my own contentment. I have all of that on my own! 

• I can be a neat freak and it'll stay clean for days on end!

• I get to cultivate independence in a beautiful way. I have confidence from managing my own life well for the last year. I get to learn that I am fully capable.

• I don't get made fun of for liking Hallmark movies anymore.

• If I want to go out of town with Chris, he'll go out of town with me, no questions asked.

• I have room to build a life I want: one filled with decor that I love, schedules, hobbies, and routines...and anything else that brings me joy.

• I get to travel with friends or I can go solo. I found out last November how much I love traveling alone! I went to see Noah in McKinney (near Dallas), and I loved staying in a hotel by myself. It was amazing! 

• I love the freedom I have to plan the trips I want to take. I have a few coming up, but I'm leaving room in my calendar for more! Nothing brings me greater joy than booking my own airline tickets.

• I don't have to pretend to think men are the greater sex.

• I get to listen to my co-workers complain about their husbands and feel a little victory inside over the fact that I'm so glad I'm no longer married. I loved being married, don't get me wrong, but now that I'm not? I can't explain the feeling I have over this now, because I don't miss it nearly as much as I thought I would.

• I recognize narcissists more easily now and know enough at this point to steer clear of them!

• I get to decide on what thing I get to buy for my sons, and if I want to, I get to spoil them from time to time. 

• I don't have to listen to the TV at a stupid volume that kills my ears.

I realize that some of these are kind of funny, but a lot of them are fully honest. I really do love my life, and I'm grateful for what I've made it into. It reflects my heart, my personality, and my interests. I have no issue with speaking up anymore, either; for years, I was silent and agreeable. Not anymore! Chris says I'm stubborn all the time, and he constantly shakes his head at me. I love this! He also calls me feisty, and I think that's an accurate description. 

Tell me why you love your life right now! I'd love to hear from you! Thanks for reading my blog today, friends. Love to all!

Jenn 

P.s. I'm still in love with my bright pink front door and I get compliments on it all the time.

the Wednesday hodgepodge

 

Happy Wednesday, friends! I'm here with Joyce again today for the weekly hodgepodge...this is a post that I dearly love; thank you, Joyce, for your inspiring and thought provoking questions each and every week! I'll jump right in!

1. Are you a naturally trusting person? Is trust built on logic or gut instinct? Does everyone deserve a second chance? Elaborate. Oh, boy. This is a loaded question, if ever there was one! I've always been a trusting person, unfortunately. I feel like this is no longer the case, thanks to the train of my life derailing, but I'm okay with this. I'm a little tougher, a bit more jaded, way more opinionated than ever before, and I think women are amazing. I used to place a lot of value in men, but that's no longer the case either. I think this is mixed with both logic and gut instinct. 

As far as someone deserving a second chance, my belief is that as I have been forgiven, so am I to forgive others. That doesn't mean that women should be doormats, and it doesn't mean staying in a marriage when a partner is unfaithful. If someone is unfaithful once, chances are they'll be unfaithful again. 

2. "Beware the Ides of March"...March 15th on the ancient Roman calendar, these words were made famous by William Shakespeare in his play, Julius Caesar. Caesar was assassinated on March 15, 44 B.C. Have you read any Shakespeare? If so, what was your favorite? Have you ever been to Rome? The only Shakespeare I've ever read was in high school; I remember hating Macbeth and liking Romeo and Juliet. A couple of summers ago, I saw an adaptation of one of his books about a comedy of errors. It was alright. I've never been to Rome! 

3. Do you like a Caesar salad? If given the choice between a garden/house salad or a Caesar salad, which would you choose? Anchovies or no? What's your favorite dressing? I love a Caesar salad! If given the option of that or a garden salad, it would depend on my mood. I love them both! I love the Olive Garden version of Italian dressing, but other than that, I really love oil and vinegar. I've eaten salad with both anchovies and without. I used to like them, but nowadays? Not so much. 

4. Where do you typically work (or blog if that's the case) at home? Do you have a designated office space? Are you happy with that space? I sit on my couch with my laptop to write here; I usually have music playing, or some show on for background noise. I do have a designated work spot, though: the desk in my living room, You may remember that a few weeks ago, I cleaned it off, organized is better, and changed the decor. I use this space to keep up with important paperwork that I might need to easily access and any paper bills that come in the mail. Now that I've reworked this little space, I'm really happy with how it turned out! 

I like for things to function well for me, but I also have an insatiable need for a space to look visually appealing. I love to decorate in my home, and I change it up all the time! 

5. Snowdrops, daffodils, lenten roses, crocus, hyacinth, or early tulips...what's your favorite early spring flower? I love seeing daffodils on the roadside as I drive! It's a sure sign that spring has arrived. 

6. Insert your own random thought here. I had family over to celebrate Jonah, Noah (not here), and Graham last night for their birthdays. Anytime with family is always a great time! I chose to be fully in the moment and had my phone away from me all night, therefore I have no pictures to share. I'm okay with this! It was a great night. On another note, I'm going to be candid here and share something from my private life. 

My ex-husband is getting remarried. I found out about this on my birthday, back in December, and I can't fully explain the reaction I had to the news. I definitely don't miss him in my life and would never in a billion years want to be married to him again, but I have to confess that it felt like another stab that he's marrying the woman he left me for. Additionally, I've realized that I cannot be friends with either of them, for obvious reasons. There was a day that I tried to do that, but it's not possible. I have an issue seeing her post pictures of my sons on her social media account; I don't check their accounts, but I have people who do. I cannot quite put into words how this makes me feel, but it's not a great feeling. 

I share this to say that most days I'm great. I'm in love with an amazing man that I wasn't even looking for, and I'm happier and more at peace than I've ever been in my whole life. I've never been loved the right way, and Chris loves me in the way that I have always wanted and dreamed about. I would go through all of that again to feel how I feel today. Even so, I have days that I am so mad that I feel like I'm breathing fire. I'm still so irritated that I wasted almost thirty years of my life on, and yes, I know that it wasn't all wasted time, but still. I still struggle at how my life looks now versus how I thought it would look as I grow older. 

I guess I share this to ask for prayers on my own behalf. I rarely ask for anything here, but I don't like feeling all of these feelings. I don't like walking around angry and experiencing this gut wrenching emotion over the thought of another woman playing "bonus mom" to my sons. My sons have an amazing mom, and they don't need some other woman with five kids of her own offering up advice and embarrassing my sons in front of women they date. 

Anyway...your prayers wouldn't be wasted on me, is all I'm saying. Thank you in advance. I'm prepared to take some backlash from this, but this is my little space here that I use and pay for. I'll remove any unwanted comments that happen, if they come. Because I am me, I am going to end this portion of the post on a positive note. I'm grateful that my life has turned out this way. I love my job and I thank God everyday that I get to go to work at a place I love, with people who are friends, and getting to make a small difference in many little lives. I can honestly say that in the words of CeCe Winans singing my favorite song, The Goodness of God, that all my life, God has been faithful to me. He is so, so good; He always has been and He always will be, I am confident of this.

Thank you for being here to read my blog each day, and thank you for the kind words you always offer to me. I appreciate you all more than you'll ever know! I'll see you back here tomorrow, friends. Love to all!

Jenn 

the benefits of having adult kids

 

Happy Tuesday, friends! I'm pausing my normal Tuesday inspired writing series to talk about the random things I love about being a mom of four amazing adult sons. I feel like it's been years since I've shared a post about my sons, so I hope you enjoy getting to know them a little through this post! 

• they're all financially responsible for themselves
• they call me to chat at the most random of times
• I get to have drinks with them on occasion
• they sometimes randomly ask me to hang out
• they can get me to say 'yes' to anything/everything
• they don't need me as much as they used to, but when they do need something it feels really special
• I love hanging out with them even more now than I did when they were young
• their friends are cool and love me
• they don't need me to cook for them all the time anymore
• they sometimes cook for me
• they sometimes call and ask me for advice
• I get to be a front row witness to them living their amazing lives
• I get to spoil them from time to time
• they share their streaming services with me sometimes

Today is Jonah's and Noah's birthday; they're 23 now! Graham will be 27 tomorrow. I'll have the family over for dinner tonight to celebrate them; it'll be bittersweet since Noah won't be here. Such is life with adult kids, though, right? I'm glad that I'll see the three that live here! We're keeping things simple for dinner: hamburgers, hot dogs, chips and dip, and cake was about all I could come up with after a full day at work. I tried to get barbecue catered, but I was met with a resounding "no thanks" from Jonah. Ha!

Here are some of my favorite pictures of them from over the years.

Thanks for indulging my walk down Memory Lane today, friends. Love to all!

Jenn 

weekending...3.9.2026.

 

Happy Monday, friends! I hope you had a great weekend! I can't wait to hear from you at the end of today's post. I'm linking up with Holly and Sarah for today's blog post. I'll jump right in! 

Most of you know that I call Marilyn before work every morning; I always pull over at my church to do this, and I park at the back of the lot. These are the beautiful trees that I saw when I pulled in on Friday! I love tulip trees, and these are in full bloom. My routine is that I sit here until eight o'clock and talk to Marilyn; and then I call Mom as I drive to work and wait to go inside until 8:20. 

Friday was so much fun with kindergarten! My co-worker Carla made this long sidewalk game out of chalk, so we had fun going outside with them that day since the weather was so nice. 

After work, I met some co-workers for a drink and appetizers, because Chris was coming to me a little later in the night. It was about 7:30 when Chris came over; we decided on a little place in town that has really good sushi. We ordered food to share, something we always do: a spicy shrimp roll, lo mein, and dumplings. This was so good! After dinner we drove over to the town square so that I could introduce Chris to this little place called Mensi's. They have all kinds of food (for cheap!) and the best soft serve ice cream. We got our ice cream and walked over to the square and sat on this giant swing. It was a fun night! 

This was the only thing on my agenda Saturday! I haven't had a pedicure since before Christmas, so this was way overdue. I love getting to pamper myself a little in this way; do you ever do things to take care of yourself? It was so rainy here all of Saturday; because of that I didn't do much. Chris was here, so we watched TV for most of the afternoon; by "watch TV", I mean that we both napped for the majority of the afternoon. 🤣

That night for dinner, we went to Memphis Pizza Cafe, then I took my friend Kendra some dinner. She's recovering from surgery, so we sat and visited with her and her man for a while before heading back to my house to finish Ted Lasso. I actually had tickets to go see a Broadway play, but I wasn't crazy about the idea of going with the rain and because of the long Sunday I had; also, there was the time change that had to be factored in. That being said, I gave my tickets to Drew and his girlfriend Mallory; they loved the show! Sunday morning I was at church bright and early! We went to lunch with Mom and Bill afterward, then we came back to my house before saying our goodbyes and having to leave for an extra choir rehearsal. 

I shared this post on socials in honor of National Women's Day; these are the most amazing and strong women I know. I'm so proud to call them Mom and sisters! 

Think of me while I'm at work this week; we have a four and a half day work week! The students go home and twelve thirty on Friday, then I'll get to leave around one. I might end up taking the whole day off, though...but more about that later. 

How was your weekend? I'd love to hear all about it! Thanks for being here to read today, friends. Love to all!

Jenn 

Friday Favorites, 3.6.2026.

 

Happy Fri-yay, friends! It's been a week. I feel like all of us who work in school settings deserve a metal for getting to this point. Ha! Yesterday was one of those days that if something was going to happen, it happened all in one day. It was the most crazy day! I'll jump right into sharing some favorites from the week. Buckle up!

This sweet baby is one of my favorites! Jonah took his baby girls to the vet on Wednesday for shots, and this one (Stella) had a very rough day there. She was so nervous that she had two major accidents in the kennel; it was so bad that they had to give her a full bath. Poor baby! She was exhausted afterward from all the trauma. 

This wall display of kindness is my favorite! I love seeing the students I work with show off their contributions they added to this display. 

I came across this picture yesterday and saved it to my phone. It's one of my favorite memories! Graham's first vehicle was a 1983 Ford Bronco, and these girls loved it. This was at a youth event one March weekend; they all climbed into his car and sprinkled glitter all over his seats, and then posed for this picture. 

Dinner out with Marilyn Monday night was my favorite! And so was this margarita.

 

Getting dressed each day is still my favorite! These are the Monday-Thursday outfits. I think Monday's was my favorite, with the oversized green button down.

Seeing Chris twice this week was a favorite! And so is Reese; look how big she's getting! She's so bad. 🤣

Other favorite moments this week have to do with my sons, and connecting with sweet students that I see everyday. This is the best part of my job! What was a favorite for you this week? I'd love to hear from you! Thanks for reading my blog today, friends. Love to all! 

Jenn