Hodgepodge ~ October 28, 2026

 Good morning blog friends.  I hope everyone is having a good week out there.  Thank you Joyce for hosting each week for Hodgepodge.

1. What most recently gave you goose bumps? 

I took dinner to a friend of mine Monday night whose father passed away a few weeks ago.  When she was sharing some stories with me, I had goose bumps.  It was a sweet time as we talked a lot about grief.  Grief is a recurring theme in my life and I am actually attending a grief event this week on navigating the holidays.

2. What does Halloween look like in your home and/or neighborhood these days? Do you participate? 

When my kids were little, I loved walking our neighborhood with the girls. For a few years, we would sit on our front porch and give out candy and have a fire in the fire pit.  Halloween was always the night I made the first pot of chili for the season.  I heard there really aren't trick or treaters in my current apartment complex.  I am sure most go to the neighborhoods nearby.  This year, I will probably go to my niece's house to see my kiddos.

3. Pumpkin, sunflower, sesame, poppy, chia...your favorite seed on the list? What's something you like to make/eat that calls for one of these seeds in the recipe? 

I do love a poppy seed chicken dish, but haven't had it in so long.  Maybe I can put that on my winter list to cook!  I use chia seeds in my smoothies, so I always keep those on hand.

4. What's the most (or one of the most) 'fall photos' you've ever taken? Share it here. Just one. 

I remember the first fall in my new house at this time & I was so excited to have this fall set-up.  It was my first fall living back in the USA and I had a variety of pumpkins, mums and a bale of hay. I loved sitting outside in our little cul-de-sac.

5. Somehow we're rolling in to November next week. If your October were a chapter in a book, what would the title of this chapter be? 

Birthdays Richmond Rethinking

I spent time celebrating birthdays this month & I spent 5 days in Richmond with family. I also have been rethinking of how to spend my time going forward with friends and activities.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

In a random series of events, my daughter and I met a friend at a Jewish BBQ festival Sunday afternoon for about an hour and met the mayor of Memphis while we were there and we all got a picture.  It was a different afternoon for us, but we had fun!

Enjoy the rest of your week!

Friday Favorites ~ October 23, 2026

 Good Friday morning!  I think I am glad it is the weekend.  At least a little less work this weekend to do, right?

Monday after a few hours in the office, I drove to pick up my great nephew for his birthday outing.  Today he turns 10 years old!  This guy made me a great aunt and I treasure him.  He calls me his grandmother and it just melts me.  He is only close with one of his grandmothers (my sister) so I am like his other grandmother.  He has had quite the year as he had a cochlear implant earlier this year.  I am so proud of how brave he is and what he lives with each day.  We had Mexican food and then Lego shopping!

Later that afternoon, I met my old friend from work for frozen yogurt and a diet coke from McDonalds!

I early voted!

Then I joined two women I use to go to church with for a walk at our main park in the city.  We walked 4 miles & it felt nice after eating Mexican and yogurt earlier.

Tuesday was work & then I cooked dinner for Brook, Wade and I.  It was a simple menu of grilled chicken (using my bourbon marinade I bought in Louisville this summer), roasted potatoes and salad.  I took a walk after dinner then joined them to watch Dancing with the Stars.  The dedications to all the mommas made me teary.

Wednesday I worked at home and then went to sub for a few hours.  I sub from time to time, so technically, this is my 4th part time job, ha!  I piece several jobs together to make ends meet, while stilling have some flexibility with my schedule.  There are definitely pros and cons to this.  The pro is my flexible schedule.  The cons are no benefits, no paid time off and my brain stays tired trying to sort through the different roles.  But this is part of the life I didn't want, but have to keep going forward.  

Wednesday night was the season home opener game of the Memphis Grizzlies, our NBA team.  They played the Utah Jazz.  My favorite Grizzlies player was traded to that team earlier this year so I wanted to go see him play.  It being the season opener made it such a fun environment.  I picked up Wade & we met up with Brook downtown after she got off work.  I had a friend meet me down there too so it was a fun night and the Grizzlies won!

Hey Jaren Jackson Jr.

My Thursday was busy working a few hours as a sub and then I went to my regular job and got home at 8.  I am tired.  Do I stay this tired as I get older and older???

Y'all enjoy your people, football and fall weather this weekend!

Hodgepodge ~ October 21, 2026

 Hi friends!  Linking up with Joyce today for this week's fun Hodgepodge questions.

1. This week's Hodgepodge lands on 'Back To The Future Day'. October 21, 2015 was the date the movie characters (Marty McFly, Doc, and Jennifer Parker) traveled to in the future in the 1989 film Back To The Future Part 2. 

Did you see the movie? Tell us a something about what was happening in your life in the fall of 2015. 

Oh, I loved this movie!  Here are some pictures from October 2015.  I went down a picture trail and found a lot :).  It happened to be a good travel month for me.  I was living in Colombia at the time, but flew to New York City to meet up with my mom, sister and sister-in-law for a girls trip.

I also went on a trip with my family to Armenia, Colombia, which is in the coffee region.  We were with the team we worked with while living in Colombia and took a retreat there.  It was so cool to stay on a coffee plantation and take a tour of how Colombian coffee is made from watching them actually pick the beans to tasting their coffee!

We went horseback riding and this area was known for their wax palm trees.  

We went to a restaurant that is known for their trout.  It was served on a patacones.  I specifically remember when I ordered this in Spanish to ask for the fish to be served without the head!

The girls also went zip lining.  It was quite the experience!

On another Back to the Future note, I went to see some of the cast last year on the 40th Anniversary of the original movie.  I went mainly to see Huey Lewis, who had a brief part in the movie and sang the theme song.  I was also a big fan of Michael J. Fox in the 80's because I loved the TV show, Family Ties.  Michael J. Fox was on a panel at this event, so I was able to see him, which was really cool.  This was a really fun day & another trip I did on my own in New Orleans.

2. Which -ber month is your favorite? (September, October, November, December). Explain why. 

November is my favorite month of the year.  Here are my top 5 reasons in no particular order:

The weather is cooler.

There is an emphasis on what we are thankful for in life.

People decorate for Christmas and begin the holiday spirit.

Black Friday/ week of sales!

It is my birthday month!

3. Red, yellow, orange, bronze...your favorite fall color to wear? To eat? To see in nature? 

I like to wear red or bronze color clothing.

I like to eat most foods these colors!

The red and yellow leaves really stick out to me as such beauty.

4. What do you miss most about being 20? 

I miss the easier schedule because I was in college then.  I miss having most of life in front of me.  I would probably do a few things different....study something else, eat healthier, wear sunscreen and spend more time with my grandparents.

5. We're roughly three quarters of the way through the year. What's one goal, habit, or mindset you want to purposely carry into the final weeks of the year? Elaborate. 

I want to carry the goal of keeping up walking most days and a mindset of being okay with being alone.  

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Happy Wednesday!

Fashion Files ~ October 20, 2026

 Good morning!  I am joining again with Fashion Files with a short post today.

I wore a new dress to church Sunday that I purchased from the most recent Amazon Prime Days.  It is comfy, lightweight and has pockets....a perfect transition dress for the season!

This is a lightweight long sleeve shirt that comes in so many colors and looks nice to dress up or down.

I went shopping with Brook Sunday afternoon for her birthday and it was fun to go into stores and see what the fall trends are.  It inspired me to look for some things online or see what a TJ Maxx/Marshalls has that is similar.  I did find these 2 sweaters on sale at Altar'd State that I bought.  I will style mine a little different though, ha!

Tie front sweater

Pullover Sweater

That's all for today!  

Hello Monday ~ October 19, 2026

Hey friends.  My weekend was one of those where I was holding the good and the hard things at the same time.  I will focus on the good for this post!

After work Friday morning, I went to a pumpkin patch with my sister and 6 of the greats.  The weather was delightful, as it was all weekend.  

Saturday morning, one of my great nieces had her 1 year old party and it was a sweet time.

That afternoon, I walked to a local fall fest, which was just a 1 1/2 miles from my home.  They had live music, rides and booths there.

I bought some incredible whipped cinnamon honey that was divine on sourdough bread!

I spent the afternoon watching all the football games/upsets.  I had the TV on multi-view, mainly watching the Ole Miss game, Georgia/Auburn, and the UT/Alabama game.  I was so glad UT won!

Sunday was my daughter's 22nd birthday!  I spent some time being the birthday fairy and decorating a wee bit.  I made breakfast and it was so good to see her again on her birthday after missing a few years while she was at college.

I went to church then met up with a friend who I use to work with for coffee because it was her birthday too!  Afterwards, I met Brook for some birthday shopping.  Look at these earrings....original price $24/sale price $24, ha, ha ha!

Thanks for reading and enjoy the start to a new week!

Friday Favorites ~ October 15, 2026/Exploring Virginia

 Hi friends.  I am recapping a little more of my trip to Virginia.  This was my 4th trip to Richmond since my brother has lived in Virginia so I have explored Williamsburg, Jamestown and a few other places over the years.  Virginia is such a historical state with so much of our nation's history that took place in this state.  

On this trip, I did two things I had not done before.  The first one, not a historic location, but a fun one for sure!  We visited an orchard and went apple picking!

It was my first time here and someone else's too :)

Me with my siblings, 2 nieces, great nieces and sister-in-law.  My nephew couldn't make it and my niece's husband took the picture.

The apples were so good!  We picked a ton and ate a few right off the tree!

It made my trip when my great niece let me hold her!  She is super attached to her parents and I hadn't held her since she was a baby.  I asked if she wanted Aunt Marilyn to carry her a bit and was shocked and so excited when she said yes! Holding my 2 great nieces were the highlight of my trip! My favorite from the week for sure!

These hot apple cider donuts were sooo good!

Afterwards, we ate at an old tavern.  It was like stepping back in time here.

We then rode around Charlottesville and saw the campus of University of Virginia.  I love seeing college campuses!

My sister, sister-in-law and I took a walk when we got home.  We ate such a big lunch, none of us ate dinner that night. I loved sitting on their patio each day.

The next day, we took a tour of Berkley Plantation. Here is some information on it from the world wide web:

Berkeley Plantation, one of the first plantations in America, comprises about 1,000 acres on the banks of the James River. It is the ancestral home of two presidents of the United States: William Henry Harrison, who was born there in 1773 and his grandson Benjamin Harrison.

Among the many American "firsts" that occurred at Berkeley Plantation are:

In 1619 settlers celebrated the first annual Thanksgiving celebration after landing at Berkeley Hundred.

In 1862 the Army bugle call "Taps" was first played, by bugler Oliver W. Norton; the melody was written at Harrison's Landing, the plantation's old wharf, by Norton and General Daniel Butterfield.

One of the many interesting facts is this home is 300 years old this year, which is quite remarkable for the United States.  It has never been re-built.  This is the 4th oldest brick home in our country.  The oldest is not too far away on the other side of the James River and that home is 361 years old. It was cool to see 300 year old brick.

Afterwards, we ate lunch at CAVA.  I don't have CAVA at home, so I always enjoy eating there. 

My brother was going on a trip the same day we left, so he changed his flight and flew with us to our connection in Atlanta.  He is top level with Delta, so he got my sister and I in the Delta Sky Club.  Traveling with him felt a little more bougie for sure. Below I am with my sister in law and sister on the morning we left. 

I was back at work for the rest of the week.

If you missed it, the first part of my trip was recapped here.

Hope you have a great weekend friends!