the Wednesday hodgepodge

 

Happy Friday, friends! I'm linking up with Joyce again today for her fun weekly hodgepodge link party. I'll jump right in! 

1. Summer officially begins this week (in the Northern hemisphere)...what was your favorite thing to do in the summer as a kid? What do you like most about summer now? Without a doubt, my favorite thing to do in the summers as a kid was to stay out late hanging with my friends. I had a group from church that I ran with as a teenager; we would always be together swimming, riding three wheelers (yes, three not four), going to concerts, going to the amusement park we used to have in Memphis called Liberty Land, going to Adventure River (the water park that we had), and watching movies at the drive-in. You would have always found me with Stacy, Amanda, (later on) Phaedra, Brad, Craig, Chad, Nathan, Chris, Scott, David, and Robin. We traveled to church camps together, some of us became couples for a brief stint in time, but mostly, we just stuck together like glue...or like thighs in shorts stuck on a vinyl bench seat at the local Pizza Hut.

Nowadays I like the vacation time and days spent near a body of water...any body of water, not just a beach. I like having a tan, and I like the longer, lazier days that are more prevalent at this time of year. I guess they call them the dog days of summer for that reason? I have to say that this is one reason I'm looking forward to changing jobs, so that I can have summers off. 

2. Something you'll celebrate this summer? I'll celebrate my first official year of being on my own this summer...this coming Sunday, actually. I know that sounds weird, but it was a long year of lots of ups and downs. I'm looking forward to putting the past in the past and it staying there, and moving on with my new joyful life. Additionally I'll celebrate my sister Lisa's birthday, the would-be birthday of my niece Ashley who lives in Heaven, and my twin great nieces turning five. 

3. Summer tastes like? Smells like? Sounds like? Summer tastes fruity flavored drinks to me. It smells like sunscreen and  coconut scented after-sun body lotion. Summer sounds like waves, loud music with calypso drums, Kenny Chesney, eighties songs, and windows down in my car. 

4. June 18th is National Splurge Day...what's the last thing you splurged on? What might you splurge on today? I splurged on a new Kindle last week that I love! I'm thinking of splurging on an Apple watch for myself; I've finally come around to wanting one in my life; I don't know that I'll do this today, but I feel it coming on soon. 

5. Share a favorite summer quote, saying, song lyric, or meme. "Everything good, everything magical, happens between the months of June and August." -- Jenny Han, author of The Summer I Turned Pretty.

6. Insert your own random thought here. I have a new favorite song! This one is Oh My Soul by Toby Mac and Cece Winans. 

I can't wait to read your answers to these prompts! Thanks for reading my blog today, friends. Love to all! 

Jenn ❤️

Tuesday Talk

 

Happy Tuesday, friends! I thought I'd do a little bit of rambling/talking here this morning, since I don't have any other content idea for now. This list of things I'm talking about today are things I've observed lately as someone who is no longer married. I hope you enjoy this kind of thing as I talk today! 

→ I seem to notice whether or not men are married more these days. I always find myself looking at their left hands; I don't know why I do this, it's not like I'm looking for someone. 

→ My phone keeps listening to me and I see lots of videos and reels that give dating advice to women my age. I think this is hilarious! Of course, talking about dating things with my phone out nearby is not helping this situation one bit. 

This popped up on my Facebook yesterday; the app knows me well, right? This cracks me up! Another instance of my phone listening to me talk about men and tattoos. 🤣 

→ I have a new routine at night when I "go to bed", and that is a lot of nights I talk to Marilyn last thing. I love this! She and I have gotten in the habit of "good morning" texts as well, which feels very sweet and caring. I also no longer watch TV to fall asleep, but instead, I watch videos on TikTok. I sleep with my phone on the bed under my pillow, and I keep my glasses nearby as well. I never turn my phone down or off, either, since I'm no longer married. 

→ I'm extremely sensitive when it comes to married people. My church does this thing that I don't love, honestly, in that they "honor" the couples who've been married fifty plus years each week on Sunday in the service. I want to scream every time I witness this, and I want to yell out, "I would have LOVED to have been honored for this! I can still set a good and faithful example for people even though I'm unmarried." It's frustrating. I'm also sensitive to people being mean to their spouses, or talking about them like they're awful. 

→ You know when you fill out paperwork, and you have to check a box that asks if you're married, divorced, or single? I will always check single, because checking the divorced checkbox feels like they're being super judgmental. 

→ I thought I hated tech issues at home before, but I really hate them now that I'm alone a lot. I couldn't watch TV all weekend, because of technical problems. This is one thing that overwhelms me and is above my pay grade! 

→ I need to have my weekends full; this isn't anything new, but I also have to make time for Mom, my sister Trish, and my friends during the times when I need to I'm not as busy. It's a lot to keep up, but I'm not complaining; the alternative is being at home for too many nights in a row, or neglecting the ones I love the most. This stood out to me Sunday when I talked to Noah; he's coming home this weekend for eight days, and we were talking about his plans. I know that he'll be home, but I don't plan on staying at home while he's here and I'm having to wait on him. I told him this, and he understood. I'll see him all that I can while still continuing with my life. I have plans to introduce my four guys to J this weekend, and I'm excited about that. 

Thanks for being here to read my blog today, friends! Tell me something good about your Monday; mine is that I had a full day and I crossed some things off my to-do list. Your turn! Love to all.

Jenn ❤️

weekending

 

Happy Monday, friends! How was your weekend? Mine was fun! Here's what I was up to: 

I'm starting here, because this kind of set the tone for my weekend on Thursday. I was driving to volunteer at a hospital that night with Marilyn, and as I was going through a green light, a man ran his red light and hit the front driver side of my car. I'm so thankful that we were both okay, that I was able to drive my car afterward, and that he was nice with good insurance. You never know how things like this could turn out in Memphis. We sat there for about an hour, and then I left and went to J's house. This was why I ended the night there; I needed a hug and something happy after having my nerves a little rattled by the wreck I was in. 

See? It could have been much worse. I spent the better part of Friday dealing with insurance stuff as I filed my claim and got the process started. I have a friend who runs an auto body shop, and sent him pictures that he needed to get the estimate started for me. 

And being the good friend that she is, and because my friend was someone I dated this year and things ended awkwardly, Marilyn drove thirty minutes to babysit me while I took my car to him so that we could wait in her car. Turns out we didn't have to, we were in and out in fifteen minutes, but I was so glad she was there as a buffer. I took her to Sonic afterward and treated her to a diet cherry limeade. Everyone needs a friend just like Marilyn in their lives! I'm so grateful for her friendship. After this, she drove back thirty minutes again to get back to where she was going before I interrupted her day. 

I went home for a bit, then left to go meet J. 

We ate dinner early because we were both so hungry! We ended up at Walmart on the toy aisle, because he collects Hot Wheels. 🤣 I think he's adorable, and this is an endearing quality! 

Picture to document the day on Saturday! I met Mom and Trish, and they helped me shop for Bunco gifts since I'm hosting this week. That was quite the task! 

When I got home, this cute outfit had arrived from Amazon! I like it so much that I immediately bought two more in black and brown. I debated on what to wear to the outdoor concert Saturday night and almost wore this, but instead I went with this one again.

Someone here asked me for a link to these block heels that I bought last week, and I found you one: here it is! 

I was trying to wear as little as possible since it was so humid. I don't regret wearing this dress one bit! It was thin, and there are pockets; what more can one ask for? So I went to this concert with J, his son, and his son's friend was supposed to go with us; at the last minute he canceled, so there was an extra ticket. When he asked if I knew of anyone that would want it, I immediately texted Marilyn, since she was in that area, and she joined us! We saw Treaty Oak Revival.

I didn't know who they were until a month ago, and she'd never heard of them, but here we are ready to have a fun evening! 

We had a blast! This is my friend Jerry; I thought it was time for you to officially "meet" him. We were sweating our butts off in this picture and passing my little handheld fan back and forth. He was so hot that he couldn't even be embarrassed!🤣 We feel pretty couple-y, I'm not going to lie. I loved seeing him have so much fun hearing his favorite band sing, and watching him sing every word. I liked that he moved along with me when I was kind of dancing and swaying to the music; I love that he was standing super close to me, but also not touching me since I was about to combust. I also love that Marilyn got to meet him and that he passed her inspection!  

I have to tell you something about this concert; I have never witnessed anything like I witnessed that night. I was literally dodging cans of beer flying through the air; the poor girl in front of me got nailed with a full can on her shoulder! I got rained on at the end, and beer was all over me and in my hair. It was the craziest concert I've ever experienced; I don't get it, but it sure did make it fun to witness! 🤣 

I'm looking forward to another concert here in two weeks when we go see Old Dominion! 

I was at church bright and early yesterday (that 6 a.m. wake up call hurt after only three hours of sleep). I love witnessing all the men in church joining the choir for Father's Day each year. What a sight to behold! They sounded amazing. 

I went to lunch with Mom and Bill after church, and right when I was about to leave, I felt a hand on me, and it was this sweet girl! Emma and Drew "dated" in high school, and I love that we ran into each other randomly after church. She no longer lives here, but in Starkville, Mississippi. It was so good seeing her and hugging her! It's the first time I've seen her in over a year! 

I came home after church and showered/washed the beer out of my hair, then sat here for the rest of the day. I took a nap, listened to music, talked/texted with people on the phone, and worked on blog stuff for the week for the rest of the day. It was nice! I also took an epic nap, and this fan assisted me with that.

Look at me staying home for another night! I have a busy week, so I figured I'd appreciate one night here. What did you do that was fun this weekend? I'd love to hear from you! Thanks for reading my blog today, friends. Love to all! 


Jenn ❤️

Linking up with:

Friday Favorites, 6.13.2025.

 

Happy Friday, friends! How has your week been? Mine has been really good, in spite of a few irritating moments, but I have nothing to complain about. I'm glad it's Friday; the weekends have become my favorite! Speaking of that, here are some more favorite moments from my week...

This is my favorite spot to watch TV these days! I was waiting on J to join me when I took this last Saturday. I really love the time we spend together on the weekends; it's beginning to feel like he's always been around, but it also still feels new and really exciting. This part of my joyful life is so much fun! I am ready for him to start meeting some of my people.

This is one of my favorite things that I saw on socials this week! It's so true, unfortunately, and I've had some eye-opening experiences lately in regards to who I let stay in my life. My peace of mind is so much more important than trying to remain friendly with people who are no longer in my life and won't ever be again. This is where I like to employ the "let them" theory from Mel Robbins. 

How good/true is this? 

These shoes are my new favorites! 

I've been wanting a pair of these block style heels forever, and love the way they look on my feet. 

Sitting right here was my favorite this week! And so was getting some sun on my legs while J did yard work. 

This cracks me up! It's so true, but it was worth sharing again this week. 

These gold hoops for my second and third holes are my new favorites! 

And so is this hat! I needed one for the pool and for some outdoor events I've got coming up. 

This reminder is always my favorite! 

Sending daily pictures back and forth on text is also my favorite! 

 

This dress is a favorite that I've recently rediscovered in my closet; it's a tiny bit on the shorter side, but I just keep it adjusted properly in the front to keep it from getting too short in the front.

The Salad Station twice this week was my favorite!

Chocolate fudge and strawberry ice cream are my favorite ice cream flavors! I ate my feelings Wednesday night. 

Doing this on his couch is my favorite! I saw him last night and we watched a couple of episodes of White Lotus; I don't love season three and kept falling asleep again. 

What's a favorite from your week? I'd love to hear from you! Thanks for reading my blog today, friends. Love to all!

Thankful Thursday

 

Happy Thursday friends! Today I'm talking about things I'm grateful for this week. I'll jump in! 

→I'm thankful for the fact that I was able (and kind of excited) to stay at home for two nights in a row this week! This is huge, friends. I've been unable to be at home at night for months on months the last year, and this felt like a major accomplishment! Monday night wasn't quite as enjoyable, since I was kind of in a bad mood, but I persisted and talked on the phone a lot. Tuesday night was so much better! I showered and washed my hair early, then settled in with dinner (I cooked, too!) and a movie on Prime TV. I worked on this week's blog posts, I talked on the phone, and after the movie I listened to a new playlist on Spotify. It was glorious! I was in bed by 9:30 and asleep by 1 a.m. 🤣 

→I'm thankful for the fact that I finally finished a book this week! I refuse to give up on reading, because I'm stubborn enough to keep trying. I will not let my new joyful life ruin my lifelong love of books and reading. In order to keep making myself do this, and out of necessity, I ordered myself the newest and latest version of the Kindle! She arrived yesterday and is beautiful with her new hot pink cover and Kindle Unlimited subscription for three months. Now to just get her all set up and ready to go! 

→I'm thankful for things to do when I'm not at home! I thoroughly enjoyed last night and having dinner with a sweet friend I don't see often enough. We enjoyed catching up and eating at The Salad Station (her first time), and then driving around later listening to music and continuing with talking. 

→I'm thankful for the art of communication. It's definitely something I'm getting used to again, and I've enjoyed some heartfelt conversations with people. I follow all these accounts on socials that give life/dating advice, and I keep seeing these lists of things that are green flags in people. Here are some more of my green flags in relationships (both with friends and in the one I'm seeing):

• a love for Jesus
• excellent communication skills and the ability to talk things out without frustration
• good morning/goodnight texts
• checking in throughout the day texts
• thoughtfulness
• vocal concern (hearing it in their voice and being asked how I am)
• them wanting to know about my life (my day, my job, my family, my hobbies)
• late night phone calls
• seeing how they treat others, particularly someone that can't help them in any way
• what they do in their spare time
• facial expressions...do they always look mad or content?
• driving skills...I refuse to ride in the vehicle with someone who doesn't make me feel safe

→I'm thankful for the gift of prayer and this image that I saw on it yesterday.

What's one thing you're thankful for this week? I'd love to hear from you! Thanks for reading my blog today, friends. Love to all!

Jenn ❤️