weekending

Happy Monday, friends! How was your weekend? Mine flew by! I'm linking up with Holly and Sarah for today's blog post. 

A lot of my weekend was spent watching this little cutie for my friend, Kat. Isn't he handsome? His name is Pac...as in Tupac, the deceased rap artist. I died laughing when she told me this! I sent this picture to Kat, which I think she appreciated. Kat is a friend from work! It's so strange to think about how these people I'm so close to now are ones I didn't even know this time last year. For that matter, I didn't know Chris yet this time last year! I'll never stop saying how strange life can be, and that I have all these new people in it because of circumstances that have transpired. I'm not complaining, I promise! 

The actual day of Friday was pretty low key. I read a book most of the day, in between doing things around my house. Chris took me to dinner at Lost Pizza that night, then we came back here and watched a movie. I can't remember which one, though...

I made it to the Farmer's Market this weekend! Isn't this place adorable? I even ran into an old friend while we were there, so it was great to catch up with her and her daughters, and to get to introduce them to Chris. 

I didn't buy anything this go 'round. It's a little too early still to be buying seasonal vegetables. I'd like to go back in a few weeks and buy some tomatoes and enjoy them on white bread with mayonnaise, salt, and pepper. Have you ever eaten a tomato sandwich? It's good with bacon and lettuce too, but it's delicious with just that one ingredient. 

On the same property of the farmer's market is this nursery with two gift shops...again, I didn't buy anything, but it's fun to browse. Their plants are spectacular! I only wish I didn't kill them. The other major event of the day was getting locked out of Kat's house. I don't know if the dog somehow locked her back door or if I did it, but we had to call a locksmith. Thankfully, Chris knows people, because of his line of work, and one of his customers came out and only charged a minimal fee. Locksmiths usually charge anywhere from $150-$200, especially on a Saturday! We didn't pay even half that. Kat and I were in constant communication during this time, so I was relieved to let her know when I was inside her house again. 

We grabbed some of our favorite ice cream before making our way back to my house to cool off. It warmed up quickly! 

 

We got really ambitious and while we were out that morning, got the ingredients to make our own steamed and pan seared gyoza! We went to an international market to pick up what we needed; from start to finish, this took one hour. I love that Chris loves to cook! It's fun to do that together. I don't know that we'll do this very often, but it was fun to do and it was delicious! 

This means that we had breakfast by nine, and dinner by four. A couple of hours later, he took me to get a soft serve margarita, and we had chips and dips at the bar. It was so good! The rest of the weekend was low key. We went out for lunch on Sunday, then grocery shopped together. I got some things for this week, one of which was a rotisserie chicken and the ingredients to make my mom's chicken salad. That sounded good to me to have for lunch this week, especially while I'm sitting by the pool! I hope to do that two or three days this week, so here's to hoping! I'm also dog sitting again next weekend...for three families. Ha! Two of them have pools, so my weekend will be spent poolside as well. I'm great with this! 

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

Jenn 

Share 4 Somethings -- May 2026

 

Happy Saturday, friends! I'm so glad you're here today; thanks for linking up with me again this month! Today we're here to talk about something we loved, something that sustained us, something we're carrying forward from this month to the next, and something we're making space for. I'll jump right in!

This month I loved...

...reminders like this...

...thoughtful gifts like this mug for Mother's Day and Teacher's Appreciation week...

...visiting the new Barnes & Noble in town...

...the calendar being flipped to May...

...all the beautiful foliage that looked so green and vibrant after rain...

...seeing my sons outside enjoying life with friends on the back porch without a phone in sight. I love these people and consider several of them bonus kids! My OG bonus kid Alex is pictured back there, too, in the black hat. I love him and am always so happy to see him when he comes around!

Something that sustained me...

...realizations like this one above...

...prayers like this...

...and reminders like this. All of these things sustained me this month, along with really good conversation with lots of people. 

Something I'm carrying forward from this month to next...

I'm carrying forward moments like these captured above. It's almost a new month, and I am ready for some new memories! I consider each weekend a new opportunity to do new things with my guy, and he's always up for whatever I want to do. I won't see him next weekend; he is hoping to have one of his motorcycles ready to race by then, and he'll be off in Steele, Alabama. I'd hoped to go with him, but I'm dog sitting. 

Something I'm making space for...

I'm making more space for daily reading! Most of you know me really well, and how much I've missed reading. My brain took an almost two year hiatus on this favorite hobby, but your girl is back and getting better than ever. This book is amazing, by the way. 

I'm making more space for lunch dates with friends and for dining al fresco while I can. It'll be way too hot before long, so I'm basking in the moments for now. 

I'm making space for intentional time spent getting things done before work starts back. Also, I have a little life update! I had applied back in the early spring to work at our summer learning camp (old fashioned summer school) this year, but I didn't think I'd gotten the job, because I never heard from HR. Then this week, I got the email! So I have two weeks off at the beginning of the summer, then will have four weeks of summer learning camp (only Monday-Thursday), then I'll have an additional two weeks off at the end before returning back to work at the end of July. I'm grateful for this opportunity, because I didn't really know how I was going to make it without getting a paycheck...I get monthly alimony, but that doesn't cover all of my bills. 

Once again, I have to sing God's praises, because never once has He let me down. Things always turn out, no matter on the timing or how it might look different. Additionally, my other side hustle is helping friends out with their dogs while they vacation. Any extra money I make will go directly to my savings account! You know me...I'm an open book here, and I always hope that a little part of my story encourages someone else on their own journey in life. 

Thanks for being here to read and link up today! I can't wait to read all of your answers to the prompts over the next few days. I'll see you back here on Monday. Love to all!

Jenn 

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Friday Favorites, 5.29.2026.

 

Happy Friday, friends! How was your week? Mine was great! This was my first official week off from school, and I have to say...it was glorious. I have some favorites that I thought I'd talk about today...some of which you might have already seen pictures of, but it'll be okay. 

Social media trends are always a favorite for me...I found this one yesterday on Instagram and added my pictures to jump on the bandwagon. 

These two images above were some of my favorites from the interwebs this week. I'm starting to realize some things in my life to be true, and this week I've had a couple of eye opening revelations about being the best version of myself. 

Memorial day was always one of Dad's favorite holidays...and this picture will forever be one of my favorites of him. He was 82 in this picture; this was us at the Veteran's cemetery for a Memorial day tribute when my sons were little...and this is his final resting place today. 

Years and years ago, Scripture writing was one of my favorite ways to have quiet time. I took a break from it for several years; when I saw this on my FB memories yesterday, I had the thought that I might start back up again. Now that I'm saying this out loud to you, I kind of can't wait to start and I might get a head start! I'm probably going to do the one on friendship, but in sharing this, I wondered if any of you might want to join me in this? 

Lunch with Mom and Trish yesterday was a favorite! I got an order of pan seared gyoza. These were delicious! I sent Chris this picture and told him that I felt like I was cheating on him, eating this without him. He told me I was fired as his girlfriend. 

While I waited on Mom and Trish yesterday, I sat in my car and read. I took this picture while I waited; this is one of my favorite areas in town and just so happens to be Marilyn's new community in which she lives. I was talking to her as I sat there for a good while; I miss her! She's in Savannah, Georgia for her daughter's college graduation. 

I only have two outfits to share this week! It's been so gross and rainy here...I'm ready for sunny skies once again. After tomorrow, it clears up a good bit. 

It was a favorite sitting here with my friend Andrea on Wednesday; we sat there for over three hours catching up on all of life! 

This book might be a favorite of summer! It's so, so good. Have you read it yet? 

These images that Chat GPT generates of you based on what it knows about you is a favorite and kind of spot on, truth be told. 

Being home and getting to snuggle has been their favorite this week! 

And finally, spending a lot of quality time with this one all week has been a favorite. I love him so much and am grateful that we found each other. Our relationship has been nowhere near perfect, but we are willing to fight for what we have and to keep pressing on. I have high hopes of being remarried someday, and I can genuinely see Chris being the one. He loves me so very well; he loves my sons, and he is such a kind and gentle soul. We were watching a show at one point this week, and he told me didn't think he could keep watching it because of all the violence. I think I fell a little deeper in love with him when he said this. I thank God for this sweet man every single day. 

I didn't mean to say all that, but I think I'll leave it out there. It feels like a great way to wrap up this post. Thanks for being here to read and encourage! In case you need a reminder, tomorrow is the May edition of Share 4 Somethings; I'll see you back here then! Love to all. 

Jenn 

Monthly Musings, May 2026

 

Happy bonus blog post day! I love being off work for this kind of thing...these posts rarely happen during the school year for me. I wanted to post again, because I love reading these types of things! I'll jump right in, but I'm linking up with Patty over at Good, Better, Best for this extra little tidbit today. 

1. Tell us about your Memorial day weekend. It was rainy and very low key because of that. I spent the better portion of Saturday exploring my city with my guy, which was fun. We went to a new to us car museum, and had breakfast at a place we'd both heard of but had never been to. It was a fun day! The rest of the weekend was very chill. I missed doing something this year, though...not that we usually do anything from year to year, my sons and I, but this year it would have been nice. 

2. What were your summer jobs when you were younger? My best memories are when my mom and sister owned a flower shop with a tanning bed salon upstairs. I loved working there at the florist with them, and our friend Patti (and owner of the tanning salon) would ask me to work for her on occasion. And I got to tan for free! Don't come at me for this, please...it was something almost all of us did. I loved laying in the tanning bed! It felt like I was at the beach with the smells, fan blowing, and music playing. My other summer jobs were always babysitting. 

3. Ice cream or popsicles? Favorite flavors? Ice cream all the way, please! I love chocolate and strawberry mixed. 

I often go out with Chris at night to make an ice cream run at the local Baskin Robbins! The first picture contains my all-time favorite flavor and brand of ice cream. I became obsessed with this on the first ever blogger's trip I took in the spring of 2024; Jeni's ice cream shops are all over Nashville.

4. What do you like on your hamburgers and hot dogs? On my hamburgers, I like lettuce, onion, pickles, and mustard. I'm my dad's daughter! On my hot dogs, I like mustard only or sometimes grilled onions and mustard. I rarely eat hot dogs...and I don't know why. They're so delicious, even if they're not great for you. One every once in a while never killed anyone. 

Huey's is a local favorite; I love their hamburgers! I also really love a Sonic burger.

5. Beach, lake, or mountains? Yes, please! I love them all, honestly. It'll be a lake season for me this summer, and I'm okay with that! But I do love the beach and the smell of the salty air the minute I reach the ocean. 

The first lake picture is Drew jumping into one several summers ago; that was one of the most fun days we had as a family of six. We spent the day of the fourth of July with our friends Tiffany and Jeremy. I was in a boot that summer, so I did a lot of sitting, but my sons all had the time of their lives. 

6. Share any travel for summer of 2026! So far I have two long weekend trips planned! One will be visiting Amy in Louisville, and the other will be with Chris when we celebrate a year of us being together. I'm excited for both! I don't know what else is in store, though.

7. Do you visit any amusement parks in the summer? Tell us your favorites. I'm not one for amusement parks, to be honest. 

8. Do you enjoy dining outside in the summer? I love dining al fresco when the weather's nice! I love doing this while I'm on vacation and there's water nearby. 

9. Favorite summer beverage? My favorite adult beverage would be a margarita or some other cocktail with coconut flavored anything. Rum comes to mind? Or maybe this year it'll be this new viral soft serve pineapple margarita!

10. Favorite side dish for summer parties? Feel free to share recipes! My favorite summer recipe is hands down this key lime pie.

It's so easy! All you do is mix together the juice of 6-10 lemons or limes and zest, two cans of condensed sweetened milk, and 1/2 a cup of sour cream; pour into a graham cracker crust and bake at 350 for ten minutes. It's amazing! Another side that I like in the summer is a cold pasta salad; I use the boxed kind, but I spice it up with Olive Garden Italian dressing, olives, capers, and lemon juice. 

Thanks for reading my second blog post of the day, friends! I'll see you back here tomorrow for Friday Favorites. Love to all!

Jenn