Wednesday Hodgepodge

 

Happy Wednesday, friends! I'm linking up with Joyce today for the weekly Wednesday hodgepodge. 

1. What was the best, or one of the best, summers of your life? Why? I love thinking about this question! I would say it was the summer I was sixteen; I loved having a newfound freedom that year, and I was boy crazy. 🤣 I have always loved Jeeps, and I remember my friends and I using that word to rate the cuteness of guys. One time we were on our way home from Liberty Land, an old amusement park that used to be here in Memphis, and as we were driving home, my friend pulled up at a stoplight next to a Jeep full of cute guys. They followed us to a fast food place, we all started talking, and I gave my number to one of them. His name was Jason and he ended up being my first boyfriend. We didn't last long, but it made the summer fun having him around! We went to the amusement park several times together over the course of the summer, and I remember thinking even in that moment, that I was having the time of my life. 

This is what that Jeep looked like; it was even red like this one. I was always a little boy crazy; maybe that's why the good Lord saw fit to make me a boy mom! 

2. When you take a trip, are you a list maker or do you just throw things into a bag and hope for the best? Are you a last minute packer or an early packer? What about when you return from a trip, do you unpack immediately or wait until the next day? If you know me at all, you know that I am a list maker by nature. That being said, I've been accused of some things lately, and I'm finding myself trying to be more spontaneous and unpredictable. I know I shouldn't try to change those characteristics about myself, but you can never unhear things, you know? 

That being said, I'll always be a list maker, a last minute packer, and I unpack my bags before I go to bed the same day I get home. 

3. What's your favorite food or beverage made with lemons? Is that a flavor you enjoy? I love lemon flavored things! My favorite is probably a lemon pie that I make with only three ingredients: lemon juice (and the rind), sour cream, and condensed milk. I pour the mixture over a store bought graham cracker crust, and then bake it for ten minutes. It is divine! I also love lemon pound cake, lemon blueberry muffins, and chicken piccata that is flavored with lemon juice and capers. 

I love to squeeze fresh lemon juice over any fish; this is an old picture from when I would make salmon all the time when all the boys lived at home. This will always be my favorite kind of dinner! 

4. When was the last time you had to make lemonade out of lemons, figuratively speaking? I am currently living life making lemonade out of lemons. Nothing is as I thought it would be right now after being married for so long and having sons that are all grown and in the process of moving out of the house. It's not what I wanted or asked for, but it's what I'm living. I'm being vague, I know, but you can figure it out on your own if you think hard enough. That being said, I am living life to the fullest that I can, and with as much joy as I can muster, and I am taking things literally one day at a time. 

5. When you were in school, did you enjoy it? Why or why not? I enjoyed certain aspects of being in school. I loved being social, I loved singing in choir, I loved art, and the fun trips/retreats I went on in high school. Some of my best memories were spent with my high school classmates! I loved history, geography, etymology, literature/grammar, but I hated math and science. School was hard for me. and no matter how many hours I studied for tests, I was never able to do well on them. 

I have never been tested for this, but after working in reading intervention last year at an elementary school and giving screening tests for dyslexia, I am ninety five percent sure that I am dyslexic. I see numbers backwards all the time, along with letters, and even left and right. My sisters and I laughed about this one day this past weekend, because I was pointing to the left and saying it was right. You see why I hated doing the finances in the bookstore when I first started my job last year! It has never come naturally to me, but now that I'm used to doing it each week, it's actually getting easier. I am careful, and I have to go slowly, but I love that my job has taught me to be better at math. 

I can't wait to read your posts on this week's hodgepodge! I loved the questions this time. Thanks for reading my blog, friends. Love to all! 

Jenn 🖤