Wednesday Hodgepodge

Hello and happy Wednesday! Happy October 1st!

Why do the weeks off from school go by so quickly?! We’ve been having a great week so far; I will tell you more about that later.

I’m linking up with Joyce for her Wednesday Hodgepodge post.

Here are my answers to her prompts this week:

1. What’s your favorite fall scent? Would we find this in or around your home right now?

I love apple/pumpkin/vanilla in the fall. You can find those combinations around my house thanks to my assortment of candles.

2. October is Country Music Month…are you a fan of country music? Do you have a favorite country artist? Ever been to Nashville? In terms of lifestyle are your more of a country mouse or city mouse?

I am a country music fan, and I have been for a quite a few years. I typically have channel 57, The Highway, on my radio most of the time. Some of my favorite country music artists are Chris Stapleton, Morgan Wallen, Luke Combs, Tyler Childers, and Zach Bryan.

Most of the concerts I’ve been to in my life have been country music artists. Chris Stapleton is from Kentucky, and he put on an awesome show at Kroger Field a few years ago.

We saw Bailey Zimmerman a couple of years ago, and two artists that opened for him, Josh Ross and Brandon Wisham, have been on the radio more and more. It’s been fun to watch them become more popular and have hits on the radio after seeing them in person.

Kind of random but I really enjoyed Carrie Underwood as a judge on American Idol this past season. She just brings a great perspective considering how much winning Idol changed her life. She seems a bit reserved/guarded, but you can tell that she has genuine gratitude for her success thanks to American Idol.

Also, I heard an old Faith Hill song on the radio recently, and it took me back! I’ve always loved Faith Hill.

We’ve been to Nashville quite a few times…for fun, for music, for sports, to see friends and more. It’s only about a three hour drive from Lexington.

City mouse or country mouse? I’d say that I’m technically somewhere in between. I like quiet, but I like the convenience of being near things. The thought of having to drive far just to go to the grocery store isn’t something I can wrap my brain around. I also don’t necessarily love driving back country roads. I guess I am more of a “city mouse.”

3. How about ‘country cooking’? chicken and dumplings, fried chicken, shrimp and grits, biscuits and gravy, mach and cheese, fried green tomatoes, cornbread, collard or turnip greens, deviled eggs, BBQ, gumbo, banana pudding. Which of the foods listed is your favorite? Any on the list you’ve tried or would say a firm “no thank you” to if offered.

I am not a country cook. Poor Trav married me… who has never fried anything and hates mayo! haha

His mom and aunts are great country cooks. I cook a lot, but I’m definitely not a country cook.

My fave from this list would definitely be mac and cheese. “Hard no’s” for me would be deviled eggs and fried green tomatoes.

One food that’s not on the list is green bean casserole, but it’s one of my favorite “southern” foods. I always look forward to it at Trav’s family functions.

Fun fact: Hadley loves biscuits and gravy…but really loves the gravy most of all…she’ll just eat it with a spoon! Hayden really isn’t a picky eater, but the one thing he doesn’t like is corn…and he refuses to eat cornbread. I love cornbread.

4. What is something that has a positive impact on your mood?

How I start my day…I can’t be rushed. As I’ve shared time and time again, I like a slow start to my morning with some quiet time. Even if we have to go somewhere early on the weekend, I factor in getting up with enough time for even twenty minutes to sip my coffee and start my day slowly.

5. As we say so long to September share a noun, a verb, and an adjective that tells how that month looked for you.

You know the English teacher in me loves this prompt.

Noun – school – We got the hang of our school routine this month.

Verb – maximize (my time) I truly felt like September was such a busy month that I had to use my time wisely. I made lists, I went to my room to work for a few minutes before Hadley’s home volleyball games, I graded a bit on the weekend (which I really don’t want to do, but it did help start my week of right feeling caught up), had groceries delivered, and just did whatever it took to keep my head above water.

Adjective – busy -Just the season of life we’re in, but life is busy. The kids’ activities and school were in full swing…even the weekends were pretty full.

6. Insert your random thought here.

October truly is my favorite month of the year.

The temps finally start to dip, football is in full swing, soups and chili are for dinner, and pumpkins are on my front porch!

Tomorrow, I’ll recap September!