the books I read in January (2025)

 

Happy Thursday, friends! I'm excited about reading the books you read in January. I would love to walk away from here today with a lot of recommendations, and I hope to do the same for you. I read a lot of books this month! I always start strong in January, and then it fades. I'd love to read more books than ever before this year, but I'm not sure I'll be able to accomplish that. Here's to trying, though! Without further ado, here are the books I read this month. (Click on each picture to be redirected to a separate Amazon link.)

This was a wonderful little book! Filled with beautiful pictures of one of my favorite cities, it was full of practical advice for traveling to NYC during any season. I hope to go there in December of 2026; that'll be the year I turn fifty! I'd like to do this with my sisters. 

Call of the Wild was what we read for book club in January. I loved this book and it was my first time to read it. Are you familiar with this book? It's told from the perspective of a dog; the book starts with the dog as a pet, then after he's stolen, he becomes a very hardworking dog as one of the Alaskan sled dogs. This was a wonderful book! I found myself feeling all of the emotions: joy, heartbreak, laughter, and tears. I'd like to read White Fang eventually; it's the book that comes after this one. 

Daphne believes the world has a plan for her; every time she meets a man and starts dating him, a piece of paper shows up telling her exactly how long they'll be together. Finally, though, she meets the man of her dreams, and he doesn't come with an expiration date. As they date and get to know each other better, Daphne begins to doubt what the papers say; who's to say any of it is right? She knows that he would be heartbroken over some of the things he doesn't know about her. 

I thought this book dragged on for way too long, and though it wasn't predictable, it jut wasn't my favorite by this author. I really loved the one before this one that she wrote: One Italian Summer. That's been my favorite of hers so far.

When Sophie finds out just before her wedding that her fiancé has cheated on her yet again, she enlists her friends to hire a professional objector. That night in a celebration of her canceled wedding, Max the Objector shows up to the suite to collect his money; and in the process of him joining the festivities, she finds out more of what he does. He feels like his job is valuable because he stops people from wasting their lives. When they run into each other several months later, he asks her to help him, and she decides to give it a try. In the process, they become fast friends...

I'll stop there, but I loved this book. It was a little too racy for me, but I just skimmed over those parts. I do recommend this one; it'll grab you from page one! 

This is the incredible story of a woman who had twenty one surgeries before she turned thirteen. Vaneetha survived polio as a young girl; then years she was diagnosed with post polio, a condition in which she begins to lose her mobility and independence. Her entire life is marked with tragedy, yet throughout the pages of this book, she points to the love, mercy, and grace of Jesus. I highly recommend this book! My friends Jenna and Rachel gave me this back in the fall, and I just got around to reading it finally. 

I love books like this, do you? This was an inspirational and beautiful book on my favorite style of decorating. It was a very quick read with wonderful pictures, and I loved the inspiration it lent to me. 

I loved listening to Ina Garten narrate this book on her life with parents who mistreated her, Jeffrey who redeemed her terrible childhood, and hearing how she got her start with Barefoot Contessa in Westhampton. 

This was a great book! It was filled with ideas and inspiration on how to stay cozy during all the seasons. There are bucket lists, wardrobe staples, craft or cooking ideas, and more. This is free right now on Kindle Unlimited! I read the physical book form that I borrowed from my library. 

This is the third time I've made my way through this book, and each time I get something new. This time I paid more attention to the end of the book, now that my life isn't such a shock to me anymore. According to what she shared in one of the last chapters, I've made my way to the final stage of grief, which is acceptance. (I'm talking about the death of my marriage, in case you're wondering.) I believe that the stages of grief are unique in that you can experience them all together at one time. The five stages are denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. I could write a book on each one! Most days I'm fine and am rarely sad or angry; I rarely think about him most days. Time really does make a difference! I'm thankful for the fact that I am where I am right now in this process and not back in the beginning of it all, though I do know that I could experience any of the stages of grief at any given time. 

I loved this book and what she says about doing what is the most important to you. She included things like filling your home with things you love, altering your habit of the need to hang onto stuff, and she encouraged decluttering and simplifying as well. You can see why this kind of book stands out to me right now; I'm in the process of getting my home organized and uncluttered as I prepare for my future A.D. (After Divorce). (My life will forever be divided into two categories, as most of ours are. Mine are before divorce ((B.D.)) and A.D.)

This beautiful book was inspiring and fun to read/look at. I love reading books like this, do you? In my next home, I plan to have coffee table books, and this would make a great one! 

This was my final and twelfth book to read in January. The title is self explanatory, but I always love an Elizabeth George book! This was full of practical advice on how to live a balanced life for the Lord. I highly recommend this one, friends! 

What did you read this month? I can't wait to read your posts. Thanks for linking up with us today! Love to all. 

P.s. I have another post (Thankful Thursday) right below this one if you want to keep reading. 

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Thankful Thursday

 

Happy Thursday, friends! I love this day of the week; mainly because practicing gratitude everyday gives me a much needed dose of perspective. Also, it happens to be my Friday, except for this week since I'm working for a little while tomorrow morning. This week I'm changing it up a little and I'm going to share one thing that I am the most thankful for everyday of my life. This is something that happened yesterday while I was at work; if you follow me on social media, then you've already seen this. For most of you, this will be new. 

I am most thankful for the love of God. Here's what I shared on social media yesterday:

It's been a day! I've noticed something so interesting about one of the ways that God shows His love for me-- it's often on the worst days that He loves me through others. Today God showed me His love through one of my best friends and her precious kids; look at the beautiful heart paintings they made for me! (We all know I have a thing for hearts, and the reason I have one tattooed on my wrist is to remind me that I am to love others.) They'll live here in my kitchen window forever, because I always want to remember this day. Their mom also gave me the best card with a long handwritten note inside, and she picked out a tea towel for me from my favorite store: John Mark's! She told me that he wrapped the gift for me himself; and the towel has 1 Corinthians 13 on it, and is also known as the love chapter. What a beautifully kind, thoughtful, and meaningful gift. What a kiss from the King.

Here are a few pictures to follow up with.

My best friend Abbey goes to community Bible study at my church every Wednesday; it's become my favorite day, because she and her kids always stop in to see me while I'm working. Yesterday I was having a rough start to the day; it was my fault for opening myself up to someone with an email, but it escaladed (as it does), and I was being accused of things and told things that were very upsetting. So, as I was composing a response to an email, Abbey came in. (What timing, right?!) She grabbed some coffee, then left, telling me that she and the kids would be back after class. When they came in, they were bearing gifts!

I didn't even have words to adequately respond to this beautiful and generous offering. I hugged her and thanked her, of course, but this meant so much more to me than just a hug and a "thank you" can offer. Abbey has loved me very well lately; she's the friend who brought me cinnamon rolls to wake up to the morning of my birthday, she's invited me into her home, and she prays for me every single day and points me to Jesus. She picked out a gift for me as well, a tea towel with 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 written on the fabric. I'll share the verses below.

Love is patient, love is kind. Love does not envy, is not boastful, is not arrogant, is not rude, is not self-seeking, is not irritable, and does not keep a record of wrongs. Love finds no joy in unrighteousness but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

In her card she mentioned how she is praying for me that on Valentine's day and every single day of my life, that I know how loved I am by the Father, the great Love of my life. (I added that last part.) How fortunate am I to have such amazing friends? I am so thankful for them, and the way that God loves me through their kindness, thoughtfulness, generosity, and prayers. And today this is just about Abbey, but rest assured that all of my friends have loved me very well since June 22, 2024. I will never forget any of it, and it's the reason I share about them here, on social media, and in the pages of my journal. They've never ceased to blow me away in all of those months and weeks; and God never ceases to amaze me with how He loves me so very much. And to Him I say, "I love You, too."

Needless to say, when I got to my car after work, I could no longer contain the tears that bubbled to the surface, and I sobbed while I sat in the parking lot. The words "thank you" never seem adequate, do they?

What are you thankful for this week? I'd love to hear from you. Speaking of hearing from you, thank you for emailing me! Please feel free to reach out anytime you want. I love talking to you! My email is allboys@gmail.com. Thanks for reading my blog, friends! Love to all.

the Wednesday hodgepodge

 

Happy Wednesday and Hodgepodge day, friends! It's a bonus blog post day; make sure you keep scrolling past this post to see today's Currently post and link party. I'll jump in with Joyce's fun prompts for today's post. 

1. What area of your life feels like you're stuck in a Groundhog's Day loop, doing the same thing over and over? Does it bother you or is that just how life is in this particular season? I love this question, but I honestly don't feel like I'm stuck in a loop of any kind. There are things I do most days that are the same, but none of it is mundane or loathsome. On the days that I work, those feel the most repetitive: I wake up, I go to work, I come home. In spite of that, each day feels different! I love this about my job. I never know what will happen on any given day. As of right this moment, life is great and I enjoy it immensely!

2. What's something that makes your heart skip a beat? More appropriately, what doesn't make my heart skip a beat?! Lots of things: getting to begin again, being financially independent, heights, not knowing for certain what is in store for me next week/month/year, scary movies and/or shows, certain songs when something turns suspenseful, thoughts of meeting someone new someday, romantic movies, thoughts of seeing someone I don't want to...I could go on and on, obviously. 

3. Do you wear your heart on your sleeve, or are you more of a closed book? Elaborate. Ever since I was a young girl, people have said that I was overly sensitive. I equate that with wearing my heart on my sleeve; I'm a highly sensitive person, which is a whole thing, in case you didn't know. I tend to overthink things and I get emotionally involved with people. These all make me sound like a mess! 🤣

4. According to Prevention magazine, these are the 25 best foods for heart health: 

wild salmon, sardines, liver, walnuts, almonds, chia seeds, oatmeal, blueberries, coffee, red wine, green tea, soy milk, dark chocolate, raisins, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, sweet potatoes, whole grains, apples, oranges, grapefruit, avocado, avocado oil, olive oil 

Which do you include in your diet most often? Are there any foods on the list you simply cannot abide? From this list, the ones I eat most often are walnuts, almonds, oatmeal, coffee, raisins, broccoli, sweet potatoes, apples, and avocados. I have eaten all of these things; the one that sounds the least appealing to me is sardines. I am not a picky eater, in case you didn't know that about me. 

5. What was the last piece of furniture you bought? Is there a piece of furniture you need/want to purchase this year? I had a gift card from Amazon last week, so I spent it on four new chairs that could go around a kitchen table. I didn't love them at the table, though, so I am using them as extra chairs for when people are here. I put one at the piano, one at a desk, and the other two are additional seating in the dining and living rooms. I'm not going to purchase another piece of furniture anytime soon, but I'd love a new headboard for my bed and a new living room couch and chair. I'll wait to do these things until things are final. 

6. Insert your own random thought here. I've been reading old blog posts this week and came across these from the previous summer. Some of you are new here, so I thought I'd share them again from the early days of when my life drastically changed. 

The post that I shared before Dad died.

The post I shared after Dad died. 

The day of Dad's funeral.

My first Friday Favorites, post funeral. 

Here's the post that I shared when I got home from the beach. 

A post-anniversary blog about things that surprise me in my new life. 

I'm glad I wrote about things in those early days; most of you know about me that I love to look back at timelines and events. That being said, I'm so glad I'm where I am today instead of back in those early days. God has been so good to me and He is the one who has carried me through the tumultuous last eight months. 

Thanks for reading my blog today, friends! Don't forget to read the Currently post that is underneath this one. I'll see you back here tomorrow! Love to all. 

Jenn 🖤

Currently: February 2025

 

Happy Wednesday, friends, and welcome to February's Currently post; today we're talking about what we're currently loving, anticipating, remembering, sharing, and wish-listing. I'll jump in with today's post!

Loving

I am loving (LOVING) reading the book of Exodus. This was where I read yesterday, and I wrote in the margin that Moses called God, "The LORD is My Banner". I didn't write this there, but the thing I keep seeing over and over again is that God provided so wonderfully for the Israelites as they were wandering in the wilderness. He gave them enough manna for each day with a double portion the day before Sabbath; it was never too little, never too much. For years I've prayed something along the lines of what Proverbs 30:8-9, which says this:

First, help me never to tell a lie. Second, give me neither poverty nor riches! Give me just enough to satisfy my needs. For if I grow rich, I may deny you and say, "Who is the LORD?" And if I am too poor, I may steal and thus insult God's holy name. 

This is why God's manna to His people stands out to me. 

I'm loving French press coffee!

I'm loving the fresh paint still!

I'm loving painting my nails (and picking it off, apparently).

And I'm loving all things February! This picture above is my current screensaver. 

Anticipating

I am anticipating a trip to Dallas at the end of this month! I cannot WAIT to get my arms around my Noah. I miss him so much that it hurts. 

This was the last time I went there to see him last year in September. I could cry looking at this! 

Remembering

On a fluffy note, I'm remembering why I don't love regular nail polish. It doesn't last very long! I'm still determined not to get my nails done, though. The dip powder destroyed my nails, and while I miss them looking so good all of the time, I don't regret having it removed. I know that as they grow out and get stronger, that I'll be able to better cope with them. 

 Sharing

I'm thinking of sharing some of the bread I made this week!

Wish-listing

I'm wish-listing lots of things, but here's just one.

Click on the picture to be re-directed to a separate Amazon link. 

Thanks for being here to link up with me today, friends! I'm looking forward to reading your posts. See you back here tomorrow! 

p.s. 

I hope you make plans to join us again next month! The date will be Wednesday March 5th. We'll be talking about the things we're currently loving, craving, pinning, planning, and appreciating. 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

February Intentions

 

Happy Tuesday, friends! I just talked about my January intentions last week; since that one was so late in the month, I thought I'd start the month by sharing it early this time, and updating again at the end of February. Here's my list for this month.

1. Paint some more

2. Clean out pantry & kitchen cabinets.

3. Entertain more than one friend!

4. Serve dinner to someone less fortunate.

5. Court.

6. Talk about a last name.

7. Clean out lingerie chest in my bedroom.

8. Clean out my nightstand.

9. Take pictures out of frames and store them in a photo box.

10. Take down the photo wall from outside my bedroom; pack up the pictures of you know who.

11. Flip and vacuum my mattress.

12. Pull out the pink and red books that I have and decorate with them! ✅

I changed out the books that were in this picture above; I used ones that were brighter (springier) in their color. 

13. Make a bow like John Mark! I watched him make a bow while he was in Times Square in NYC yesterday, and I am inspired. Again.

14. Visit the library more.

15. Write more blog posts and schedule them ahead of time.

16. Work on my writing project at night.

17. Read more!

18. Do something fun with Marilyn! We have something scheduled next week that I'm excited about.

18. Buy birthday presents for my guys! 

19. GO SEE NOAH! I'm so, so, so excited about this one.

20. See a movie in the theater.

21. Go for walks after dinner.

22. More coffee dates, less eating out. 

What do you want to do more of this month? I'd love to hear from you! 

Don't forget that tomorrow is the link party for February's Currently post; we'll be talking about what we're currently loving, anticipating, remembering, sharing, and wish-listing. I hope you'll make plans to join us! Thanks for reading my blog today, friends. Love to all! 

Linking up with:

weekending

 

Happy Monday, friends! How was your weekend? I had my favorite kind of weekend: productive, relaxing, fun, and also quiet. Does that even make sense? 

I stayed home all day on Friday, and the pups were glad I didn't have to rush off! We enjoyed an easy morning until I got up and started on my first home improvement project. This first picture is how it started...

...and this is how it ended! I painted my kitchen, something I've been wanting to do for years and finally got around to checking it off my list. I love how it turned off! The color is Agreeable Gray by Sherwin Williams, but it's the Lowe's brand, Valspar. They color matched it for me when I picked it up Tuesday after work. I was BEAT by the time I finished Friday afternoon, but I'm so glad to have this behind me. I'm nowhere near done yet, but I have a plan on where I'm painting next.

I love it! I am not hanging anything back on the walls, except for the pictures you saw; I'm also keeping the counters decluttered and minimal. It's extremely gratifying seeing that immediate difference. My sister Trish came over with our dinner that night! We ate and then watched Reagan; well, she watched and I watched and slept. I told you I was tired! 🤣

On Saturday, I watched When Calls the Heart and caught up, then I switched to The Way Home; both are Hallmark series that I am able to watch on Hallmark +. Are you familiar with either show? They're both really good! 

I ran a couple of errands: I went to Goodwill, then to the library, to pick up groceries, and then back home. This is my current favorite lunch: scrambled eggs made with cottage cheese and spinach. I'm still doing the WW eating plan and I haven't cheated yet. 

I made this soup Saturday afternoon (a white version of taco soup made with chicken), but then met Marilyn for dinner Saturday night; we had Mexican food and a margarita each! It was delicious. 

I had the soup for dinner Sunday night. 

When I woke up Sunday morning, my coffee pot wasn't working; I went old school and pulled out this 29 year old French press. I bought this before I got married from a coffee shop I used to frequent, Gloria Jean's. Their French press coffee was always my favorite, and I used this solely for my coffee for a long time. It's still every bit as good as it was way back then! 

I caught up on my PT Sunday morning before work (I missed Saturday), then left shortly after. I felt bad for the rest of Sunday, unfortunately; though I'd made plans with a friend to go to an ice hockey game, I had to cancel when I didn't feel well enough to leave. I went to bed feeling a little better, thank the Lord. 

Chloe was glad I was home for the rest of Sunday!

Speaking of not feeling great, have you ever had these? I hadn't, and appreciated my friend giving me some when she heard that I didn't feel well. They're really good! I will be adding some of these to my next grocery order. 

I also piddled around some with the decor in my living room and made this arrangement in the vase on the mantel; I also pulled out the books I have with pink and red on their covers and am using them to decorate with for the impending spring and summer months. I love doing things like that with the things I already have. If you love books, do you ever use them to decorate with? 

What did you do that you loved this weekend? I'd love to hear from you! I'll see you back here tomorrow, friends; thanks for reading my blog today. Love to all!

Linking up with: 

Jenn 🖤