Hello Monday ~ August 10, 2026

 Good morning.  I am slowly getting back into blogging again this week after a 2 week vacation. 

I spent the last 2 weeks in Vancouver & Whistler, Canada, Seattle & Bainbridge Island, Washington and on a 7 day Alaskan cruise.  It was truly the best 2 weeks of  my life!  I will slowly share some of the trip here, but don't worry, I won't do a daily update considering I had a 15 day vacation!  

This was a vacation I had dreamed about for a few years.  I booked the cruise over a year prior to sailing date and booked these airline tickets 8 months ago.  It was everything I hoped and more.  

I landed at midnight Friday and was home by 1am.  There was a little adjustment back to my normal time zone with eating/sleeping, but I finally felt a little caught up by yesterday.

I came home to some really sad news from one of my best friends, who you all know and love too.  I spent 4 hours with Jenn Saturday morning and 5 hours Saturday evening/night.  I was so thankful to be there with her during this hard time.  Please keep praying for her and for all the things before her this week and the weeks to come.  

I heard of some other hard stories from friends too while I was gone. While there is so much sadness on this side heaven,  I am so thankful for the hope of eternity believers in Jesus have and we are able to grieve with that hope.  Heaven always gets a little bit sweeter.  

This is all I have for today.  I wanted to keep it short, but will be back this week with life & travel posts.  

Hodgepodge ~ July 29, 2026

Happy Wednesday and Hodgepodge day!!!

​1. What was the last thing you celebrated? 

I am celebrating every day this week! I’ll post more about this in a few weeks. 

2 July 29th is International Day of the Tiger. Besides the wild animal itself, when you hear the word tiger what's the first  person-place-thing-whatever that comes to mind? 

Memphis Tigers! Tigers are the mascot of our local college football team. 

3. The expression 'eye of the tiger' describes someone with intense focus, determination, and the drive to succeed. What area of your life are you currently bringing that kind of energy to?  

I am bringing the eye of the tiger to travel! Rocky is one of my all-time favorite movies and I actually watched it last week. It is inspiring to me & I love the love story of Rocky & Adrian in the first Rocky.

4. What was the last meal you cooked? 

The last meal I cooked was last week and it was chicken meatballs and broccoli, with slices of cheese.

5. Describe your July using exactly five words. 

Adventurous, Excited, Beautiful, Tired and Thankful

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Friday Favorites ~ July 23, 2026

 Happy Friday friends!  This post is short with minimal pictures :)

A few favorites....

I had a dance lesson and learned mambo!

I was able to help my niece after work with her four kids while she did a little of unpacking at her new house.  A bonus was my other niece dropped by with her 5 kids.  Seeing 9 of them is always a highlight!  I love those sweet kids so much.  I am just crazy about them.

On my way home, I saw this rainbow! It has been a while since I have seen one, so it made me smile.

I got caught on on a lot of things at work, which was a good feeling.

Overall, it was a good week and hope you all have a great weekend!

Hodgepodge ~ July 22, 2026

 Good morning! I am linking up with Joyce with a lemon themed Hodgepodge!

1. Do your goals and dreams energize or exhaust you? Elaborate. 

After reading this question, it made me wonder what my goals and dreams are, ha! A few of my goals honestly exhaust me a little bit as my hopes of reaching them aren't as bright as aging happens.  But, I am energized to keep pursuing them!

2. July 23rd is national lemon day. Are you a fan of this flavor? What's a favorite dish or beverage you enjoy that calls for lemons? 

I do like the flavor of lemon.  I have recently been adding it to my water more.  I also enjoy a lemon pie. I also think they look pretty as a decoration.

3. "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade"...is this something you're pretty good at managing? Have you had to do this recently? If so tell us about it. 

I think as I have lived through some sour moments in life, I have learned to manage this better.  Oh, I feel like I do this in so many big and small ways.  Some little ways are when I face traffic on my way to work, I try to achieve an errand, attempt a new recipe, etc.  Some of the big ways are definitely in still learning and re-learning to live life as a single person without a significant other.  Nights and weekends often feel like a lot of lemons, but somehow, I make it through to the other side.  By somehow, it is through the grace of God, my family and my long distance best friend who calls to check on me.  

4. Something you love that is lemon yellow in color? 

In searching for pictures with the color yellow, these were my 2 favorites...My Colombian jersey and yellow tulips.  

5. How would you describe your attention to detail? 

I am a detailed oriented person overall.  I like things organized and like knowing as much as a I can.  I have learned to be flexible though when I don't know.  I have been working on a detailed itinerary for my upcoming vacation.  I have a seven page document printed &  have spent a lot of time working on this recently.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

In case you are a numbers person ......

Hope your week is going well and thanks for reading!

Hello Monday ~ July 20, 2026

 Hello Monday friends!  Here is a little recap of the weekend.

Friday night was a super quiet, slow night.  I was home by myself and watched some tv.

Saturday, I went to a funeral and then went by John Mark's store on the way home.  He had 50% off the store before they renovate.

Afterwards, I stopped by to get me some frozen yogurt for lunch.

I came home to go through some clothes and listened to music.  My playlist is all over the place as you can see below....

I did something I rarely do. Okay, I don't think I've ever done this, but I picked up a co-worker at 9pm and we met some other co-workers around 9:30 on Beale Street, which is the famous street in Memphis and it has all the clubs.  We went to one and walked a little bit.  I was on my way home by 11pm though, which was late enough.  I didn't want to be out much later.  

I baked these 2 loaves of sourdough Sunday.  The first is a cinnamon loaf and the other is regular.

Sunday afternoon, I went to watch the World Cup at my Colombian friends' home.  They had about 40 people over!  There was so much food, including Argentina beef and Spanish tostados.  (more food after these pictures were taken)

Even though Colombia was out, we still wore our jerseys! We were glad Spain won.

My daughter had been gone for 8 days house/dog sitting, so it was good to have her back home finally on Sunday.  We watched a few episodes of the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleader show from the new season and I got very sleepy.

I was thankful for a weekend with a few things out of the house and of course, always time at home too.

How was your weekend?

Friday Favorites ~ July 17, 2026

 Happy Friday!  This post is a little recap of my week so far. The fact that today is Friday is a huge favorite!

Monday 

This was a car morning.  I had an early morning oil change (I was there by 7:05am) and other car maintenance, then I went to renew my car tag in person due to my new address.  This only took an hour, which I was pleasantly surprised actually! I got gas, so I had spent a lot of money before 10am on my car!

Afterwards, I had an appointment and had lunch with my parents and sister.

I did a little remote work throughout the afternoon, visited with a friend at work and went to TJ Maxx & found Halloween is in the store!

I then had dinner in another suburb about 45 minutes away.  It was a long, but good day.  I left home at 7am and got home closer to 8:30pm that night.

Tuesday 

I started the day at a work event where I tried an official dirty soda (I had made one at home but this was the first one I ordered).  This was coke zero, sugar free vanilla and half and half.  I enjoyed it, but this isn't something I would get on repeat.  I was able to get this complimentary so it seemed like a good time to try it!  After work, I had a coffee meeting and then came home to watch the All Star game.  I watch this every year, but I think this is the first time I have watched it by myself.  American League won if you didn't watch.

Wednesday

I worked at home, went to a meeting, then had a quick visit with Jenn.  It had been a long time since I had stopped by her house and so I was greeted with some Chloe love!

I came home to do a little more work, but first was lunch.  I blended some cottage cheese with a sprinkle of shredded cheddar cheese and mixed it with some shredded chicken (which was already seasoned with taco seasoning). I ate this with some chips and it was delicious.

I then met a friend at a coffee shop to do a little more work and enjoyed a London Fog.  This is my favorite place to get one and it is delicious here.

After the coffee shop, I was hungry but wasn't sure what I wanted for dinner.  It was honestly a little later than I like to eat.  (I like to eat embarrassingly early...before 6 if I am eating on my own, which is most nights). I stopped by Whole Foods and picked up these snacks and drink.

I made 4 little treats of the parm crisps with the turkey pepperoni.  This was the perfect protein snack to keep me satisfied the rest of the night.  I saved the other snacks for work.

Thursday 

This was a work day with 2 different hospital events, one in the morning and one at night. I was exhausted at the end of it.  Since I had my long day at work, I was able to take a break to meet up with my sister at a 100 % gluten free cafe/restaurant.  My sister is a school teacher and yes, she started back to work this week.  She eats gluten free and everything is good there! I had a small piece of quiche.  It was good, just not filling, ha!

One random favorite I saw this week was this magnet:

Ha, ha!  Hope you all have a lovely weekend and thanks for reading!

Everyday Images ~ July 16, 2026

Hi!  Hope you are making it through the week okay. I am linking up today with Kym for Everyday Images.  Sharing away ....

 Layers

Lots of layers to share...First, I love layers of small bracelets.

Layers of my daughter's art work never ceases to impress me.

This finished piece was on display for a year at our airport.

Here she is teaching some women a painting class.

So many layers are in personalities and my goodness, there are so many layers in grief.

Layers of flowers/plants are so delicate and beautiful.

When it comes to packing in different climates, layers is key and I am implementing this! Even though in my day-to-day life I am hot quite a bit, I always have a sweater for layers if I need it. Oh, and a raincoat :).

Current season (quarterly)

The season of summer usually consists of once a week either being at my pool or my sister's pool.

Milestone

This months wraps up 5 years at my current job.  I am so thankful for a co-worker who keeps me young!

Getting ready

This is my spot for getting ready each day.  I have a great built in storage cabinet and it holds all my bathroom/getting ready essentials, including this amazing organizer container for my makeup!

Wings

Before I get to beloved butterflies, I also think of airplane wings because I have always loved flying. This is attributed to my love of travel, studying aviation in college and going into the field of travel as a profession. 

From the world wide web: "Butterflies universally symbolize profound transformation, hope, and the journey of the soul. Their remarkable life cycle—from crawling caterpillar to chrysalis, and finally to a winged creature—serves as a powerful metaphor for personal growth, rebirth, and emerging from life's challenges with newfound freedom and beauty."

From my most recent trip to Louisville:

Artwork drawn by my daughter framed in my home:

This picture hangs up in the children's hospital:

Jenn gave me this cute bag!

My co-worker gave me this as a housewarming gift:

Entrance

This is a picture from the entrance to my back door where I enter 95% of the time.

Young

This is a picture taken of some of my greats a few weeks ago.  I love seeing their shadows here, but also love seeing smiles on their faces.  It just lights up my day!

And wrapping this post up with a young picture of yours truly :).  I was around 3 years old here I think.

Have a great day!