Monthly Musings ~ June 2023

 Today I am Linking up with  Patty and Holly discussing Summer Fun for Monthly Musings.

Favorite vacation destinations?

Some of my favorite places in the USA to visit have been New York City, Glacier National Park, Disney World, Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Antonio.

Best packing tip?

I love using packing cubes!  I bought my first set in 2018, so I have been using them for a while now.  I bought my set from Ebags.com, but now they are readily available from tons of sources.

Road trips or fly?

I like to do both.  If the trip is over 10 hours, I would probably prefer to fly.  Otherwise, I feel like sometimes you can drive in the same amount of time when you consider time at the airport, layovers and waiting on luggage.  It also depends on if I am traveling solo or with others.  

Favorite vacation memory as a child?

When I was a child, we had a travel trailer and a pop up camper at one point too.  We took a few long camping trips.  One time, we drove out west to Utah and then another summer we drove to the Northeast.  We also would go to state parks and it was all fun!

Ocean, lake or mountain?

Do I have to choose?  I enjoy all 3!

Campout or indoor grill?

If I am cooking, I would prefer an indoor grill. If someone else is cooking, outdoor is fine by me!

Favorite summer cocktail?

My year round drink is a strawberry margarita.  I have found a light margarita mix I will use and add frozen strawberries to make one at home for a lot less.

Most amazing travel updgrade story?

My first job out of college was working as a reservations agent for Delta Air Lines.  Keep in mind, this is pre-internet when everyone had to call an 800 number to make an airline reservation.  Remember those days?  I worked at a call center for a year before our office was closed.  During that year, I had free travel benefits & flew to Hawaii with my parents and brother.  We all were given first class to Dallas, but once we got to Dallas, there were only 2 first class seats left (employees were standby for first class) to Honolulu.  My brother and I took the seats and were pampered basically for the next 8 hours!  

A few years later, I had switched to work for a travel agency.  I booked a lot of international travel and got to know the Cathay Pacific (an airline) representative since I booked them quite a bit.  He gave me and my mom 2 business class tickets from Los Angeles to Hong Kong and Singapore.  This was back in 1994.  

I have flown first class a few other times, but those 2 trips were the most memorable!

Ice cream or popsicle?

I would prefer frozen yogurt!  

Do you camp?

I have tent camped and when my girls were younger, we had a travel trailer, which was a lot of fun.  It was great to pull up and have almost everything set up instantly!  It is something that would be fun to do again!  

What's Up Wednesday ~ June 2023

Hi!  I am happy to be joining up today for What's Up Wednesday with the crew.

What we're eating this week...........

Monday - I went out to eat Mexican with a friend

Tuesday - My daughter and I went out to eat with my parents

Wednesday - chicken alfredo

Thursday - Chick-fil-A

Friday - out

Saturday - I may make some crab cakes and hopefully some fresh veggies

It's not for dinner, but I am on a key lime kick.  I can't get enough of this flavor, so I am trying to find semi-healthy alternatives.

One more food item, after spending some time with some Colombian friends recently, I was inspired to make arepas.  I added mozzarella cheese when making them instead of putting it inside it after it was cooked.  They turned out pretty good and enjoyed these for breakfast this week.

What I'm reminiscing about...........

Life 3 years ago....I wish I could go back.  

What I'm loving............

My oldest daughter came home last week for one night.  She lives full time 5 hours away & works at a church, so can rarely come home with her schedule anymore.  I love seeing my girls together!

What we've been up to............

I am working 3 days this week and spending time with friends and my daughter.  She bought me flowers last week after a rough day.

What I'm dreading..........

The heat and all the mosquitos and other bugs! The bugs get me worse than the heat I think!

What I'm working on.............

My goal is to work on the blog more regularly.  I also have a bench in my room that has become a catch all for all the things....random receipts, paperwork and who know what else.  I hope to go through all of this stuff by the weekend.

What I'm excited about...........

I am going to see a chiropractor this week to help with some tension I have in my neck.  I haven't been to one in over 20 years!  Is this something any of you do regularly?

What I'm watching.............

I am watching Battle on the Beach and Stars on Mars., but am losing interest in that one.  I also watched seasons 4 and 5 of The Crown.  I admit, I haven't watched the first 3 seasons, but wanted to pick up when Charles and Diana were in the picture.  That story is so sad to me.  I finished the most recent and final season of Ted Lasso.  The language is rough, but in the midst of that, there are such good stories of hope.

What I'm listening to.............

So many podcasts!  One post soon, I will list out what I listen to on a regular basis.

What I'm wearing...........

I wear a lot of dresses in the summertime because it seems to be the coolest thing I own.

What I'm doing this weekend............

I am going to see the touring production of Frozen, the musical.  I love a broadway play, so I looking forward to seeing this story unfold on stage.  

What I'm looking forward to next month...........

I am going to Virginia for the wedding of my niece!  I know it will be warm, but perhaps it will be a tad bit cooler than here?

What else is new..................

I mentioned a few weeks ago I assembled some candles to help repel mosquitos.  I also purchased this bug zapper.  Did I mention bugs are the worst part of summer to me?

Well, that's all for my June 2023 to share...It is hard to believe this year is halfway over!  Let's go on to 2024!

 

Thankful Thursday

Good morning & happy Summer!  Here I am on Thankful Thursday with a few things I am thankful for lately.  

Last week, some Colombian friends came over and cooked Colombian arepas.  They were delicious and it was fun to be with friends.

I set up some candles inside and out to help with mosquitos.

I layered lemon, limes and fresh rosemary, then added some drops of lemongrass oil to the candle holder with some water before adding the candle.

I received a tomato plant for Mother's Day and was excited to get my first tomato last week! I am thankful to have some fresh tomatoes for the summer!

Last week, along with lots of other cars, we witnessed a beautiful sunset.

These are just a few things I am thankful for the past 2 weeks!  

 

Weekend/Life Lately

Good Monday morning!  I had really hoped to blog yesterday, but my re-entry to blogging is going slow.  Last week was actually a full week.  A combination of that and honestly, a little bit of laziness and exhaustion, did not result in any posts.  

At least this week I am off to a better start, right?

I am sharing a few pictues of life lately from this past Spring since I took a blogging break.

When it isn't so hot outside, I have been trying to take some walks a few days a week.

One thing that hasn't changed in my life is how much I adore my greats!

The sweetest little girls!

I went to a flower decorating class at church last month.  It was fun to come home with my arrangement.

Due to my ups and downs of feeling hot at work, my boss surprised me one day with this nice desk fan.  It has been a game changer.

Speaking of work, we had an event in April and I had my neighbor style my hair up.  I rarely wear it up so it was fun to see her creation!

The views from the event were beautiful.

This was from a randon facetime call with both my girls when they were both in school.

I began cleaning out my house of some extra things and had a yard sale a few weeks ago.  These are things that were mostly hidden in random cabinets, closets and drawers.

This is one of our interns and I was able to go to her graduation.  She shares the exact birthday as my youngest daughter, so I often call her an extra daughter.  She attended a Jewish school so I am learning so much about her traditions.

My daughter and I at our locat AAA baseball team's game a few weeks ago.  

Have I mentioned I love having her home?  

I hope you all had a good weekend!

Linking up with Sarah and Holly

Currently ~ June 2023

 Hi to my blog friends!  I hope to re-connect with you as I try to regain some blogging habits & share new things with you.  It has been over 2 months now since I have blogged and linking up with my friend, Jennifer, seemed like the perfect time to jump back in to this platform.

I would like to thank you for praying for me during this time.  I can continue to use your prayers as you think of me.  

Living

I am living life very differently on my own these days.  It has been the hardest season of living. 

Doing

I am doing life, consisting of work, spending time with friends, watching tv. I am beginning to cook & do laundry more with my daughter being at home this summer.  I am looking for a few new opportunities for some more part-time work.  I am finding new shows to watch and will blog more on those later.

Trying

I am trying new ways of communicating, a lot more counseling, managing parallel emotions and being 100% more flexible and able to pivot with plans.  There has been such freedom and confidence in living in these new ways!

Seeing

I flew to Savannah, Georgia last week and was there less than 24 hours!  I helped pack up my daughter's dorm room from her first year of college, although she had done most of the work.  I was able to drive home with her, but sure enjoyed my brief time in such a beautiful city.

This saying below really made me laugh and I just happened to read it the day I was moving my daughter out of her freshman dorm.  I texted it to my college roommate/suitemates!

We are so thankful for her sweet roommate from New Jersey whom she met on day 1 last September.

She made it through year one!!

On our drive back, we stopped at Buc-ees and it is the first time I've been there that I didn't eat the brisket...but I sure gazed.

I am seeing my daughter every day and getting a hug! I am also seeing more than ever, my identity is fully rooted in Christ and not in any individual.

Reading

I have just finished reading the 50 day devotional, "Your'e Going to Make It", by Lysa Turkeurts. It has been such a gift to me these past 2 months.

Thanks for reading and I hope to be in this space more!