the Wednesday hodgepodge

 

Happy Wednesday, friends! It's one of my favorite blogging days of the week: the Wednesday hodgepodge that Joyce hosts. I always love the prompts that she gives us, and it's fun reading the others' posts each week. I'll jump in! 

1. The Hodgepodge lands on National Picnic Day...Will you celebrate? Do you enjoy picnics? Dining out of doors picnic or otherwise? What are three or four things I'd find in your picnic basket? I won't be celebrating National Picnic Day today, but I have always loved picnics, as long as it's not too hot outside. I don't enjoy the bugs that come once it gets too hot, and sometimes even the flies can be terrible. I used to make picnic lunches for my sons all the time; once Spring arrived, we were always packing something and heading to a park or to the zoo. Those were the days! I love alfresco dining when the weather permits! I love this time of year. I always have a good combination of foods in my picnic lunches: something cold (like cheese and turkey slices), something crunchy, something soft, and maybe a bite of something sweet. 

Here are some recent moments that I've picnic-ed or enjoyed dining alfresco: one Wednesday after work, I met Abbey, Everly, Asher, and Violet at a local park for a picnic lunch. It was the perfect day for a picnic! And then a few weeks ago, Marilyn and I ate at a local food truck for dinner before a dance class. This was us waiting on our street tacos from Taco-N-Ganas. They have the best food! 

2. When is a time recently that you felt "antsy"? Y'all, I literally feel antsy every night of my life when I stay home. I cannot be here at night anymore, or at least if I am, it can't be for too long. I get bored, and I literally feel like the walls are closing in on me when I'm here for too long! I have to be out doing something for at least a good portion of the night. I prefer to be gone until at least eight p.m., and often time I'll come home and shower and then go lay in bed to watch tv, talk on the phone, or scroll social media. 

I used to say that I turned into a pumpkin after nine p.m., but those days are a very distant memory. The old me is dead and gone; I don't even know who I am sometimes when I think of how much I've changed in less than a year! 

3. As the saying goes, "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade." Do you like lemonade? When did you recently need to make lemonade out of lemons, figuratively speaking? I like lemonade, but I don't drink it much because of the sugar. I don't mind a diet version of that from Chick Fil A, though! The last time I made lemonade out of lemons that I'd been given is my very recent past. This wasn't a life that I would have chosen for myself, but now that I've been given this life, I'm making the most out of it everyday! I am living life to the fullest, which means that I'm enjoying all of the free time I have. I love being with my family and friends; I love not answering to anyone or checking in with a spouse if I go out at night; I love being independent in every sense of the word. I'm enjoying learning how to do things I've never had to do before, like on Monday when I had to go buy new windshield wiper blades for my car; the person who checked me out taught me how to change them myself when I replace them the next time. 

4. Recently, five celebrities made a brief foray into space aboard Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin rocket. Did you hear about this? Do you have thoughts about it? If money were no object, would this be something you would consider doing? My mom told me about this after it happened, otherwise I wouldn't have heard about it or even cared. I don't really pay much attention to what celebrities do or don't do, you know? I don't think it's relevant at all to my own life, which is why I just don't care. That being said, I am very much into pop culture and love knowing all kinds of tidbits about that kind of thing. If I had a lot of money, I would want to do something meaningful with it instead of spending it on an adventure for me, you know? I'd donate it to St. Jude, most likely. I have no interest at all in going up to space. 

5. What's your favorite thing about the "space" you're sitting in right now? I'm writing this on Tuesday night, as I sit in my living room. 

My favorite thing about this space that I'm in is that it's cozy. I love that it's warm and inviting, and people are drawn to being here. I have this sign that people see when they leave my home that says, "You are dearly loved." And it's true! I want people to come into my home and feel welcomed; I want them to dig through my pantry if they're hungry, or grab a blanket out of the basket if they're here and freezing. I want my home to be lived in and inviting. 

6. Insert your own random thought here. I recently discovered a new (to me) artist whose voice I love: this is Jamie MacDonald. The song is titled Who He Is; I love that she sings about the character of God; much of the song is straight out of Scripture. That's my favorite type of song! I hope you enjoy this one. 

Thanks for reading my blog today, friends! I can't wait to read your responses to this. I hope you have a great day! Love to all. 

Jenn ❤️🩷

April things

 

Happy Tuesday, friends! As I sat down to write this post, I was blown away by the ending of yet another month of 2025. I know that we all say this often, but can you believe how quickly time flies by? It seems like just yesterday it was December of 2024, and I both looked forward and dreaded the coming year. I looked forward to it because I was ready to be divorced and to fully separate my life from my ex. I was dreading it because I wasn't sure what that time period would look like; I'd thought I would be moving and I was dreading have to be on my own financially. 

But you know what? I'm killing this whole single woman gig. I don't want to brag, but I don't need a man to help me with things. I'm enjoying learning new things and I'm proud of myself for not having to ask for help too often. Just yesterday I went to Auto Zone to purchase my first ever pair of windshield wipers; the person who checked me out taught me how to put them on myself for future reference. See what I mean? What I need help with, I can easily ask the Google or the YouTube. 

Also? Stay tuned for more exciting updates. 

Here are my favorite moments from a very full and busy month:

The day the lights went out at work will forever be a favorite memory of working at my church. We sat in the lobby and played games all morning; at 11:30, our boss Sam sent us all home. Six of us went to lunch at a favorite local restaurant, and I had the very best nachos for lunch that day. 

Time with Mom on a random Friday will forever be something I love the most. I love doing everyday life with the people I love. 

Seeing Mare a lot this month was something else I loved and appreciated. Last Thursday was a rough day for me; I was talking to a friend at work when I saw her walking into my church, and I literally ran to her and hugged her. I almost cried! It's a long story, but it was a bad day, and I'd never needed to see anyone more than I needed to see her at that moment. She hung out with me until I left work that day, then rode to Sam's with me; after all of that she came to my house until she had to leave for a thing she needed to be at that evening. Get you a friend just like Marilyn! You'll be so grateful that you listened to my advice. 

I loved the scenic walks that I took this month.

I got this ice cream as a celebratory "happy divorce" gift; I ate one small spoonful at a time until it was completely gone. I just finished this last week!

Hot pink lipstick was something I enjoyed this month.

Spending time with friends is a major theme in my life...I will never in a million years take this gift for granted!

Drew (and my bonus son Alex) being here for Drew's birthday and spending that night with me was the best thing from this month. 

 

My home away from home is my favorite place to be. I sent this picture to my friend a few weeks ago, to show him the sheer size of my church compared to his tiny one of fifty people. 🤣

My best friends are life-giving! This is my sweet Abbey; I loved spending time with her as we ran an errand for her on a Sunday afternoon. 

My Missy and I went out to dinner one night, just the two of us, and it was such a great night of catching up with each other. We're like ships passing in the night these days, and rarely see each other outside of church. 

This walking trail was a fun one!

I loved reading the book of Ruth! I'm currently in 2 Samuel.

Puppy cuddles have been therapeutic this month!

I've loved eating lunch with friends at work on Thursdays. 

Babies at work are the best!

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The gala that I attended with with Marilyn was fun! I loved dressing up for this event.

Peaceful nights in the country at my parents house are good for my heart!

Time with my boys is the very best; I loved being able to FaceTime with Noah while we ate lunch together on Sunday. 

Luna time is the best time!

I've never talked about how I named my car Dory when I got her in 2020; I decided it was time for her to be known as that, so I put this bumper sticker on her.

Celebrating the birthday of my best friend's husband was fun. I will always be grateful for the fact that my friends include me in their everyday lives. I love that Jeff did this with my phone when I left it on the table Sunday night. He cracks me up! 

I loved seeing my beautiful great nieces celebrate Easter! A big highlight was booking a flight to Denver for a week in July; I can't wait to see these little dolls and do all the fun things with them. 

Having a fun Saturday was a big highlight for me in April. I would love more Saturdays like this in my future!

I loved having family over to my house for lunch on Sunday after church! I'd like to do this kind of thing more, moving forward with life. We've always had celebrations like this at my mom's, but I'd like to start doing them at my house more. I enjoy the whole process of having people over, the shopping, the food prep/cooking, the company, all of it!

Please peep the dogs waiting on me at the front door. 

I texted this to my friend Friday afternoon before I went to church that night. I loved singing in choir in that service! I was also excited about the next day that I'd planned. 

Did you have any highlights from the month so far that you want to tell me about? I'd love to hear from you! Thanks for reading my blog today, friends! Love to all. 

Jenn ❤️🩷

P.s. Don't forget about April's Share 4 Somethings will take place this Saturday April 26th; if you're new here, all year long on the last Saturday of each month, we share some things we loved, some things we learned, some things that went well, and some things we let go of. The topics stay the same for each month. May's Currently link party will take place on Wednesday May 7th; in May we'll be talking about what we're currently loving, looking forward to, leaving behind, letting go of, and looking at. Again, for anyone new here who wants to participate, the topics for Currently change each month; I provide the next month's prompts at the bottom of that post, and this always takes place on the first Wednesday of every month. I hope you make plans now to join me for both of these each month! Meanwhile, I'll try to be better at giving you reminders. 

Linking up with:

Hello Monday

 

Happy Monday, friends! I hope you had a great weekend! Mine felt pretty epic, and I'll share more details as this post goes on. My week feels the same, since I'm leaving town on Friday. I can't wait to leave town for the weekend! This is the trip I'm going on with Marilyn, Tanya, Joanne, Amy, and Maria. I can't wait to see them and catch up over the course of the long weekend. Here's what I was up to this weekend.

I came across this picture about friendship last week and then shared that and the picture above this on Friday. Friendship is such a gift, and one perk of my job is that I've gotten to know new people. Last fall I got to know a new friend; we'd started talking when her daughter would want hot chocolate every time she saw me. I'll never forget the day when I mentioned something about walking the path of unwanted divorce; my friend's eyes grew huge as she told me that she, too, was walking that same road. Never underestimate the power of your story or the pain you go through! I know it was the Lord that led me to share that with her that day, and the second I did, a friendship was born. We're not meant to walk through life alone; when we share our hardships with people, it's a beautiful thing! 

On a lighter note...

This was how I started my Friday. I took Marilyn to the airport, then I went to get a pedicure. 

I loved seeing this picture of Drew at work last week; he helped serve breakfast at Arlington Elementary School with his two bosses. I love seeing my sons doing what they love and loving what they do for a living! 

I came home and did a few things around the house that afternoon until I left for the Good Friday service at church Friday night. I loved being a part of this and singing in choir! We were asked to wear all black, which was appropriate given the occasion. 

I was up early making bread Saturday morning!

I walked over to the neighbor's house to take care of their dogs and always appreciate the early morning hour. I love their dogs! I always enjoy getting to see them and take care of them when we do this for them. 

I got dressed for my day adventure! 

I met my friend in Sikeston, Missouri, which is two and a half hours away for both of us. We ate lunch at a Mexican restaurant, then we went over into Illinois to visit this giant cross statue at the top of a mountain. It was beautiful! I went from Tennessee to Arkansas to Missouri to Illinois and back all in a day's time. I left home at nine that morning and was home again by seven thirty. It was a full (fun) day! 

Yesterday was such a great day! We went to church and then everyone came back here after church for lunch. I loved seeing 3/4 out of my sons, and we FaceTimed Noah while we were eating. I loved seeing his face! I can't wait to see him in May; it's time for me to hug him again. 

Later that afternoon I went to my best friend's son's house to celebrate her husband's birthday. I love that they invited me over for this, and that they include me in family celebrations. This means the world to me! 

I loved getting to visit with them and seeing their sweet little daughter, Luna. It was a great weekend! What did you do that you loved? I'd love to hear from you! Thanks for reading my blog today, friends. Love to all! 

Jenn 🩷❤️