jgalvinwhite

December Books & Top 5 books for 2025

Posted on December 30, 2025January 26, 2026 by jgalvinwhite

Hello and happy Tuesday.

I’m already starting to panic…this week needs to slow down.

That being said, today, I’m sharing one of my favorite posts that I write every year…

I had a pretty good year of reading and my love for audiobooks grew, giving me a few more opportunities to complete books.

December Books:

December reading is always festive and fun..

This month I read:

{As always, book summaries are from Goodreads…}

Blue Christmas:

Summary:

The popular Mary Kay Andrews delivers a tasty holiday treat as she brings back the winning characters from Savannah Blues and Savannah Breeze for a little Southern cheer.

It’s the week before Christmas, and antiques dealer Weezie Foley is in a frenzy to do up her shop for the Savannah historical district window decorating contest–which she intends to win. She throws herself into putting up a Graceland/Blue Christmas motif, with lots of tinsel, an aluminum tree, and all kinds of tacky retro stuff. The project takes up so much time that Weezie is ready to shoot herself with her glue gun by the time she’s done, but the results are stunning. She’s sure she’s one–upped the owners of the trendy shop around the corner. But suddenly, things go missing from Weezie’s display, and there seems to be a mysterious midnight visitor to her shop. Still, Weezie has high hopes for the holiday–maybe in the form of an engagement ring from her chef boyfriend. But Daniel, always moody at the holidays, seems more distant than usual. Throw in Weezie’s decidedly odd family, a 1950s Christmas tree pin, and even a little help from the King himself, and maybe there will be a pocketful of miracles for Weezie this Christmas Eve.

Quick Thoughts:

I listened to this one, and I really liked the narrator. I didn’t realize this was a series until after I finished listening. Anyway, this was a quick read with lots of festivity and a bit of mystery. Now, I want to read the other books in the series.

Rating:

Christmas with the Queen:

Summary:

December 1952. While the young Queen Elizabeth II finds her feet as the new monarch, she must also find the right words to continue in the tradition of her late father and grandfather’s beloved Christmas Day radio broadcast. But even traditions must move with the times, and the Queen faces a postwar Britain hungry for change.

As preparations begin for the royal Christmas at Sandringham House in Norfolk, two old friends—Jack Devereux and Olive Carter—find themselves reunited for the festivities. A single mother, typist at the BBC, and aspiring reporter, Olive leaps at the opportunity to cover the holiday celebration, despite self-doubts. When a chance encounter with the Queen presents an exciting opportunity, Olive begins to believe her luck might change.

Jack, a grief-stricken widowed chef originally from New Orleans, accepts a last-minute chance to cook in the royal kitchens at Sandringham. When he bumps into a long-lost friend, an old spark is reignited.

Despite personal and professional heartache, Jack and Olive’s paths continue to cross over the following five Christmas seasons and they find themselves growing ever closer. Yet Olive carries the burden of a heavy secret.

Christmas Day, December 1957. As the nation eagerly awaits the Queen’s first televised Christmas speech, Olive decides to reveal the shocking truth of her secret, which threatens to tear her and Jack apart forever. Unless Christmas has one last gift to deliver…

Quick Thoughts:

As you know, I love reading historical fiction, and that genre including the Queen and Christmastime, well, I’m hooked!

I loved every page of this book. Goodreads says, “Tis the season! The Crown meets When Harry Met Sally and Bridget Jones’s Diary, in the latest heartwarming historical novel from Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb…”

…and that’s a perfect little description. While, I love the royalty piece, the Queen actually wasn’t a main character at all, but she was still a key element to the story.

Fave Quote:

“We can’t bring the things we’ve cherished with us as we go, but we can leave them in the care of others who have loved us and will remember us. What a blessing.”

Rating:

A Seagrove Christmas:

Summary:

It’s time for Christmas in Seagrove!

Are you ready to catch up with your favorite characters on the tiny lowcountry island of Seagrove, SC?

When we last left off, there was a big wedding and an addition to the family. But, what happens when a new resident moves to town and shakes things up?

And what will everyone do when a familiar face shows up and creates chaos during the holidays?

Quick Thoughts:

This book was just ok…I found it because I was searching for audiobooks in the Libby app. I didn’t love the narrator, but since it was a quick read, I stuck with it.

There was a little twist at the end and that was about the only saving grace!

Rating:

Secret Christmas Library:

Summary:

Mirren Sutherland stumbled into a career as an antiquarian book hunter after finding a priceless antique book in her great aunt’s attic. Now, as Christmas approaches, she’s been hired by Jamie McPherson, the surprisingly young and handsome laird of a Highland clan whose ancestral holdings include a vast crumbling castle. Family lore suggests that the McPherson family’s collection includes a rare book so valuable that it could save the entire estate—if they only knew where it was. Jamie needs Mirren to help him track down this treasure, which he believes is hidden in his own home.

But on the train to the Highlands, Mirren runs into rival book hunter Theo Palliser, and instantly knows that it’s not a chance meeting. She’s all too familiar with Theo’s good looks and smooth talk, and his uncanny ability to appear whenever there’s a treasure that needs locating.

Almost as soon as Mirren and Theo arrive at the castle, a deep snow blankets the Highlands, cutting off the outside world. Stuck inside, the three of them plot their search as the wind whistles outside. Mirren knows that Jamie’s grandfather, the castle’s most recent laird, had been a book collector, a hoarder, and a great lover of treasure hunts. Now they must unpuzzle his clues, discovering the secrets of the house—forming and breaking alliances in a race against time.

Quick Thoughts:

I enjoyed this book! It was not very Christmasy, but I liked all the characters, and thought they were a fun crew. There was mystery and romance. At times, I felt like I was reading the Scottish version of The Goonies. That being said, I don’t really think the title applies to the plot…and even at the end, I went back and re-read the first few chapters thinking I missed something.

If you’ve read this book, let me know your thoughts! I must have been reading too quickly.

Rating:

Recap of 2025 books:

As with past years, I had a goal of reading 40 books, and I guess I fell one short of that goal…although Goodreads thinks otherwise.

Goodreads has me all kinds of confused. After I read my 40th book, I got the congratulations message…

But then some stats on the app, said I read 38 books. Maybe everything wasn’t synced up after I read my last books…that being said, when I counted my books on this post, there are 39… and the photos in the app, it appears I read 38 books. I do think I read one in January that I started last December. This is making my “type A” self crazy…haha …but no matter what, I was able to read more books than last year (35), and it was a better year of reading, for sure.

I did check the app and it seems a couple of books were counted twice, which I’m just now realizing. Anyway…

Here are the 39 that I books I read in 2025…

When looking at this list, there were a few books I didn’t even remember that I read this year! Also, as you probably know, historical fiction is my fave, so I have quite a few books in that genre. I also really like suspense/mystery, but apparently I didn’t read as many of those this year. I’d love some book recommendations for that genre…maybe I can branch out in 2026.

I love seeing the Goodreads stats on the app…

39 books read
12,837 pages read
The shortest book I read was Blue Christmas with 194 pages
The longest book I read was Lilac Girls with 497 pages
Average book length in 2025 was 337 pages.

…then I also received an email with a few more facts…including this graphic which isn’t really accurate because, for example, I read four books in January and December…not three!

Over 12,000 pages read — which means I read enough pages to go up, down, and all around the Eiffel Tower, with pages to spare.
My top genres for 2025 were: romance, memoir & biography, and historical fiction
I finished five of the most read books on Goodreads this year: The Academy, A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder, One Golden Summer, From Here to the Great Unknown, and The Night We Lost Him.
I (supposedly) completed my 40 book reading goal.

I read in lots of places this year:

Book trackers:

I also continued making book trackers this year which were fun to share on Instagram. (They are saved in monthly highlights on my Insta)

The books I read this year:

January

Lilac Girls
The Stories We Tell
One Big Happy Family
The Match

February

Far Beyond Gold
The House Party
From Here to the Great Unknown
Hooked

March

Brooke Shields is not Allowed to Get Old
The Underground Library
The Night We Lost Him

April

A Happier Life
The Sicilian Inheritance
A Good Girl’s Guide
Let’s Call Her Barbie

May

I’ll Have What She’s Having
Greenwich Park

June

Bad Summer People
All the Summers in Between
One Golden Summer

July

Maine Characters
The Comeback Summer
Beach House Rules

August

Seven Summers
Dolly Parton: Behind the Seams
Parents Weekend

September

Big Dumb Eyes
The Stranger in the Life Boat

October

Paris is Always a Good Idea
Confessions of a Grammar Queen
The Academy

November

My Life with the Walter Boys
Mean Moms
Horse
The Christmas Cookie Wars

December

Blue Christmas
Christmas with the Queen
A Seagrove Christmas
The Secret Christmas Library

Honorable Mention:

Before I share my five fave books from 2025, these deserve honorable mention:

In the order that I read them:

Lilac Girls
From here to the Great Unknown
A Happier Life
All the Summers in Between

Top Five Books in 2025:

Here are my top 5 reads in 2025:

The Underground Library:

I loved that the story was told from the perspective of three different women…and I had some fave quotes that stuck with me too.

Confessions of a Grammar Queen:

I read this book thanks to Sarah’s recommendation…and it was great!

Let’s Call Her Barbie:

I can thank Sarah for this one as well…and it was another audiobook that I listened to this year. I think I would have loved it anyway, but I really enjoyed the narrator as well as the mix of historical fiction, romance, and girl power.

Christmas with the Queen:

Typically when I read holiday books in December, I’m not expecting one of the books to be a top contender, but this one was such a favorite of mine.

Horse:

Why did I wait so long to read this book? My Gma recommended it a couple of years ago, and I finally got to reading it in November. It has a little bit of everything, and I loved it so much. Gma knows best!

Previous Top 5 Books:

Happy reading, y’all!

Holidays

Christmas Recap

Posted on December 29, 2025December 29, 2025 by jgalvinwhite

Hello and happy Monday!

Is it even Monday?! haha!

This is definitely the time of the year and the part of Christmas break where the days are running together.

Today, I’m sharing about our Christmas(es)…

The last Friday of school was pj day which made it very hard for me to rally and get dressed for our friends’ annual Christmas party, but of course I’m glad we went.

I brought home a few of her family’s famous springerle cookies which are a fave.

The next day, we made Chocolate Crinkle cookies per tradition. We never got around to making peanut butter blossoms, but maybe we’ll get back to those next year.

On Sunday, Hadley and her friends met up for pizza and a gift exchange.

My Monday project was cross stitching this little ornament. When I went to World Market, I picked up a kit of three ornaments, and they’ve been fun to complete over the past week or so.

That evening, we finally made it out to the Horse Park for Southern Lights. Trav and I have been doing this for over twenty years. The kids love this tradition too.

You know you’re in Kentucky when…

On Christmas Eve Eve, we headed to Trav’s mom’s house in Louisville. Unfortunately, Hadley wasn’t feeling well, but we were still able to go.

Mamaw and all the grandkids.

On Christmas Eve, Hadley still wasn’t feeling well, so we went to the Little Clinic once we got back to Lex. Thankfully, she tested negative for all the things and got a prescription for something to help with the congestion.

She rallied for the Christmas Eve service at church.

Silent Night by candlelight is always a favorite.

Family photo which I appreciated.

The kids went home after church, but Trav and I stopped by a friend’s house for a bit. They had so many cute inflatables…now I want some. haha

I was up at 6:30 on Christmas morning…even though the kids slept in, of course.

Hadley was the first one up around 9:00 which surprised me…usually, Hayden gets up first. Anyway, even Homer was ready to open presents.

Trav and his gift tags are always something I like forward to.

I got the kids these new ornaments…how cute?! They were fun to personalize.

After presents, the kids swapped their gifts that they picked out for each other…

…and then it was stocking time.

I made a very easy breakfast of a pre-made quiche from Fresh Market, and the Sister Shubert cinnamon rolls from Kroger that are easy and delish.

Hadley went back to bed, and Hayden watched Home Alone with Trav and me.

We took it easy most of the day, and of course made sure to call family and wish them a Merry Christmas.

For dinner, Trav grilled steak that he received as a gift, and I made Bob Evans mashed potatoes and green beans. Easy and delish dinner.

I finished another ornament off and on that day…

I actually found the same pack on Amazon, so I can complete the other three patterns. Don’t be jealous of all the fun I’m having. haha!

This past Saturday, we finally connected with my brother’s family and the cousins exchanged gifts.

And that’s a wrap on Christmas. It’s always different when we don’t go to KC as we don’t have as much going on, but it was nice to have some time at home…and since Hadley wasn’t feeling well, it worked out for her to have time at home in her bed to recoup.

Tis the season for all the things…including germs.

Every year seems to be a bit different as the kids have gotten older, but overall, it was a very Merry Christmas. I hope the same for you!

This week, I plan on recapping 2025 and sharing my favorite books of the year too.

I’m also clinging to break for dear life! I have to remind myself that I still have one more week full of downtime and productivity.

2025 Blogging Recap and Fave Posts

Posted on December 26, 2025January 1, 2026 by jgalvinwhite

Hello and happy Friday!

How was your Christmas? Ours was good and very uneventful. We had a fun Christmas Eve Eve and a lovely Christmas Eve. Christmas Day was just the four of us at home not doing much.

I can’t believe it’s already Friday. Why do the weeks of break seem to fly by?

I’m joining Andrea for the final Friday Favorites of 2025…

…to recap some of the favorite posts I’ve shared this year.

A few stats from the year:

Posts: 195 (it seems I blogged a bit less this year…probably due to the fact that in 2024, I posted every day in January for Bloganuary and the same in November of that year sharing gratitude posts). Anyway, still a great year of blogging for me!
Total words: just over 138K
Average words per post: 709
Best day: Friday, Best hour: 8 am
Most popular day: I think it will forever be March 14, 2023 with 931 views.
Most popular post in the past year: September 10th’s Let’s Look “managing teenage life” post.

Some all time stats include:

Views: 610, 963
Visitors: 158, 760
Posts published: 1,381
Countries: (This always blows my mind!) At least one person in 153 countries has read one of my posts. So crazy cool.

As I say every year, blogging is a hobby of mine, and I still really enjoy finding the time to share my thoughts and share a snapshot of my life. I’m still really grateful for those who choose to read my posts, ask me about my favorite books, comment and support me via links. Thank you!

New in 2025:

One thing new to my blog this year was I decided to recap the end of every month. Traditionally, I share a recap of the year, and I still plan to do a condensed version of that next week, but I loved the little snapshots of every month…

Now, on to some of my favorite posts from the year…

1.

With all the snow we got in January, it made me reminisce on snow days in the past.

2.

In February, I shared a few simple things that I love …

3.

SSYS is still where I find so many of my clothes, and I had fun sharing a Fashion Files post all about what I’d been wearing that was SSYS.

4.

We had lots of fun in Isle of Palms, SC for spring break…

5.

After the spring break recap, I shared what I wore on vacation. Of course, I over packed, so I like having this post as a reference for future vacays!

6.

I enjoyed writing the May Let’s Look post where we looked at wellness.

7.

I love a “recap” (can’t you tell?!), so I enjoyed writing a Teacher Talk post about the end of the school year.

8.

We hadn’t done a “major” renovation/update project in a while, but I’m oh so thankful we *finally* tackled the hall bathroom. It went from drab to fab, and I still love it so much.

9.

May was just a really good month. The kids had track, and both got their driving permits. We finished the hall bath project, and we also finished the school year! We had a few other things going on as well, so I enjoyed writing that Monthly Moments post.

10.

June’s Share Our Lives topic was to share unique things about where we live. I think Lexington has a lot to offer!

10.

In June, Trav and I celebrated our twenty year wedding anniversary. That’s hard to believe!

11.

In July, I had fun creating this this or that summer template and sharing my answers.

12.

4th of July is still one of my fave holidays, so this was a fun recap.

13.

Another favorite Share Our Lives post…all about vacation memories. I’m thankful we’ve been able to go so many places and show our kids so many different places as well.

14.

Trav and I traveled to the Lake Michigan area to celebrate our 20th wedding anniversary. We’d always wanted to go, but we weren’t sure which town to visit. So, we visited four towns in our five days that we were gone. We loved Michigan and definitely hope to go back there sooner rather than later. (Part one, two and three)

15 and 16.

Right before the kids started their sophomore year of high school, I started thinking about when they were about to start kindergarten. I spent a day with each one doing things I thought they’d like to do. That was a sweet time for sure.

Throwback Thursday: Hadley’s day and Hayden’s day.

17.

I can’t imagine living somewhere that didn’t have all four seasons. I love something different about each one, so that was a fun topic for Share Our Lives in September.

18.

The “unfortunately I do love” trend was all the hype on Instagram, so I loved writing this post about random things I love.

19.

We had another awesome fall break in Seaside, Florida with friends, and I always love writing those recaps. (one and two)

20.

Home from fall break, and immediately finished decorating for fall.

21.

Reading is one of my favorite things to do, so I loved sharing some of my reading habits.

22.

It’s really still hard for me to believe it, but the kids turned 16 in November. We had a nice family dinner, and then Hadley celebrated with her friends. Overall, I think they felt loved and celebrated!

23.

Just like with the fall, I look forward to the cozy Christmas decorations.

24.

I think Enneagram posts are fun, and my 5w6 tendencies were confirmed with this post.

25.

I had a really great first semester of school, so I enjoyed writing this recap too.

Weekly Recap:

Here are my posts from the week:

Monday Memes

Merry christmas

These favorite posts were a fun way to look back on the year. I know the time between Christmas and the new year can be quiet in the blogging community, but I still have a couple more favorite posts to share next week…including recapping our Christmas and the books I read this year!

I hope you have a great weekend. I’m going to spend today trying to get this house back in order!

Holidays

Merry Christmas

Posted on December 24, 2025December 23, 2025 by jgalvinwhite

Hello and happy December 24th.

Merry Christmas Eve.

I’m just stopping by to wish you all a very Merry Christmas.

I continued our Christmas card tradition by sending a card from Shutterfly. Since we were dressed up a couple of times this summer for family weddings, I used the family photo my brother-in-law took of us in July which made for a great family photo without me having to pester my family for another photo.

From my family to yours…

Merry Christmas and happy holidays!

As always…I know not everyone’s holiday season is merry and bright. Even for us, every year is a bit different depending on our plans with family and whether we are traveling or not. I know others have suffered loss or are struggling in other ways. You’ll be in my thoughts and prayers in the coming days.

Sending love,

Memes

Monday Memes

Posted on December 22, 2025December 21, 2025 by jgalvinwhite

Hello and happy Monday!

Well, today is a really great Monday because I didn’t have to set an alarm…and all my Christmas shopping is finished…and I might have only a couple things left to wrap. Coming down to the wire…no matter how much I plan.

I know we still have one more Monday in the month, but I’m sharing some of my favorite December/holiday related memes today.

It does seem like sometimes things get marked up to be marked down…

This one is so relatable. No matter how organized I am with all my supplies, I’m always scrambling to find tape.

Also, why am I like this?! I do save wrapping paper scraps in hopes that I can use them on someone’s present! (I do throw away the scraps during my final clean up of the season.)

This one can be true too! haha

Thankfully, I mostly kept to my list and got everything I needed.

You know I can relate to this one…lol

Last Friday at 3:30 couldn’t come fast enough. haha!…

….and this was my attitude most of last week too!

And this one:

Hadley and I watched The Holiday on Saturday night, so this one made me chuckle…and I’m officially not checking my school email until 2026!

Currently me…

No rest for the weary. That being said, it’s already been nice to have some time at home, but also some time to run last minute errands and finish wrapping gifts.

I hope these memes started your week off with a chuckle.

I plan on blogging Wednesday and Friday this week.

Until then…

Friday Favorites, Holidays

Friday Favorites {#285}

Posted on December 19, 2025December 18, 2025 by jgalvinwhite

Hello and happy Friday!

Today is a great Friday because only a few hours stand between me and winter break! I’m very much ready to turn off my alarm clock, have some time to finish up Christmas things, and embrace a slower pace for a couple of weeks.

As always, I’m linking up with Andrea and Erika for this week’s Friday Favorites.

I have lots of favorites to share this week…

Last Friday was a snow day, and Trav and I had a quick breakfast before an appointment I had scheduled.

I rarely eat breakfast, but this bagel hit the spot.

My mom and Gma came to visit, and we spent a few hours on Saturday decorating cookies, and making our traditional waffle cookies. My Gma brought the waffle iron that my great-great-grandfather brought from Germany.

Everyone was in on the fun…

These kids were busy cookie decorators…

The grandkids with GG and Gma….

Sunday afternoon we went to my brother’s house to celebrate an early Christmas.

One of my gifts from my Gma was some Betty White stamps! I immediately sent a pic to one of my friends who had told me about them when they came out…and I’d forgotten about them. If you’re receiving a Christmas card from me this year, the Betty White stamps will be the chef’s kiss!

They left on Monday morning, and we had yet another snow day. Truly, I don’t think I’ve ever had a December snow day as a teacher, and this year, we’ve had three in December!

I’ve been loving my holiday icon glasses from Target, but I wished I’d gotten a couple more while they were in stock.

Well, Amy shared about the ones she found at World Market, and so I went there on Saturday and got a candy cane and holly one. I also got a couple for my mom as one of her Christmas gifts. Since then, Hadley broke my holly one. ugh! #thisiswhyIcanthavenicethings

On Monday, we had some “Merry Mail” as our new ornaments arrived. A few years ago, I ordered quite a few ornaments from Shutterfly with the kids with Santa through the years and pics we used for our holiday cards. The shipping price is stupid, so I just wait until I order my Christmas cards and then add in the ornaments to that order.

Anyway, since we looked nice twice this summer for our niece and then nephew’s wedding, I ordered two ornaments.

The Monday snow day was also what I needed to get started on wrapping. How cute are my new Etsy gift tags? Jen Reed had shared about the labels she’s used the past few years, and I thought they’d be a fun way for the kids to know which gifts are theirs. I probably should have ordered some for Trav too!

The biggest news of all on Monday is that we officially have another new driver! Hayden passed his driver’s test! He then drove himself to the gym and then to Walgreens for a snack. haha!

Y’all, if loving peppermint is wrong, I don’t want to be right!

It was my first time using it, but I baked the Trader Joe’s chocolate peppermint cake mix, and I took it to the English department lunch/gift exchange last week. It was a hit!

Last Friday, Hadley went to Chick-fil-A and the only thing that sounded good to me was the seasonal peppermint milkshake. I usually get one or two a season.

Speaking of CFA ice cream…I then saw on Insta that you can order a cup of ice cream, and add crushed peppermint (and cookie crumbles) to the top. This is definitely a lower calorie option. Hayden and I got some ice cream after school yesterday.

Lastly, I always make Shay’s peppermint Bundt cake for Christmas, and the past couple of years I’ve made it to share with my KC family. Last year, I baked the cake in KC, and this year I took it to my brother’s house when we opened gifts.

I actually went to Trader Joe’s the other day to pick up another box of the cake mix to make a smaller cake for Christmas Day, but it seems they are out of stock? This is my lesson learned to stock up on seasonal items when they were available.

Favorite Mom Meme:

LOL!

Bonus Fave: Flashback Friday…

Oh…I miss these days…

Weekly Recap:

I was a busy blogger this week. It felt nice to have some fun posts to share. (Sometimes, I feel like I’m in a writing rut!)

MoNday Memo

Teacher Talk Tuesday

Monthly Musings

I hope you have a fabulous and festive Friday.

Holidays, Monthly Musings

Monthly Musings

Posted on December 18, 2025December 17, 2025 by jgalvinwhite

Hello! It’s hard to believe that this time next week is Christmas Day. I feel like December has been a blur.

Holly and Patty are hosting their last Monthly Musings link up of 2025 a little bit early, so I’m joining them today.

This month’s topic is about…holidays and ringing in the new year.

1. What holidays do you celebrate?

This time of the year, we celebrate Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s. I love something different about each one…Thanksgiving is always time spent with family while feasting on a great meal. Christmas includes many family traditions, and New Year’s Day brings a fresh start and one of my favorite months…January.

2. Scale of 1-10…how into the holidays are you this year?

I’m probably between a 7 and an 8. I always look forward to decorating for Christmas, and it’s been a bit more “festive” this year with the uncharacteristic snow that we’ve had in December. I don’t love wrapping gifts, but I do love when loved ones open gifts that they are receiving. I appreciate traditions that we have like baking cookies and going to the Horse Park lights. I’m close to a 10 when school is out, and I have a bit more time to relax.

3. Favorite things to make/bake during the holidays?

We typically decorate some cookies with family.

Then, I usually bake a few cookies with my kids…typically Peanut Butter Blossoms and Chocolate Peppermint Crinkle Cookies.

I always make a Chocolate Peppermint Bundt cake for Christmas dessert.

4. Favorite holiday movies?

I don’t typically watch holiday movies until winter break, so sometimes I’m watching Christmas movies after Christmas, but it’s still a fun tradition to watch some of my faves. Home Alone is my favorite Christmas movie, and we always watch A Christmas Story on Christmas morning. The Holiday is one I tend to watch on my own at some point, and You’ve Got Mail and While You Were Sleeping are two of my faves that aren’t necessarily Christmas movies, but I tend to think so.

5. Most random holiday tradition?

I guess it’s not that random, but the white elephant exchange at Trav’s mom’s house feels that way since we get random things. It’s always funny to see what other people bring.

6. Are you hosting the holidays?

No, I’m not hosting, but my mom and Gma were in town last weekend, and I hosted cookie decorating after we went to lunch on Saturday.

7. Favorite way to ring in the new year?

Honestly, I’ve never been a huge fan of New Year’s Eve…I’m happy not to stay up late…haha

That being said, the past few years we’ve gotten together with friends which has been fun.

8. Any new year’s resolutions or word of the year?

I don’t typically do a new years’ resolution…but on NYE, we’ve drawn words and that’s been fun.

This month, I started tracking my eating using My Fitness Pal and making a point to get back to working out. September-November were hard in regards to finding time for workouts. I don’t feel like I was eating too poorly, and I’m not going to say no to a Christmas cookie, but I just wanted to go into the new year feeling a little more in control. I saw someone on Instagram mention treating December 1st as January 1st, and I liked that line of thinking.

I’m really looking forward to a fresh start in January. 2025 wasn’t really what I thought it would be. I’ve had to be brave this year…as a mom, wife, and even for myself at times, and I wasn’t really expecting that. I know a new year isn’t a magic wand, but I’m hoping to regroup a bit to kick off 2026.

9. Favorite holiday songs?

I’ve always loved “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” and “Walking in a Winter Wonderland.”

10. Favorite holiday memory?

I feel blessed that there are so many, and I know that I’m creating memories for my kids.

I love the Santa pics through the years…

…and the tradition of the kids picking out gifts for each other. Even that tradition isn’t what it used to be, but it’s still fun.

Monthly Musings is always one of my fave link ups, and now I’m really in the holiday spirit!

School

Teacher Talk Tuesday

Posted on December 16, 2025December 15, 2025 by jgalvinwhite

Hello and happy Tuesday!

Well, yesterday’s snow day was just what I needed to (finally) get a few things crossed off my list. I was able to order the last few gifts, wrap gifts, and work on some things for school.

Now, at the end of this four day week, we’ll be on winter break!

Since the first semester is wrapping up, I thought it would be fun to take a look back on the semester.

I always feel like first semester flies by, and this one was no different. Overall, it was a really great semester too!

New classroom:

I started the year by moving classrooms. I’d been in my previous room for about six years, and it was in an entirely different part of the school building. It was a bit of an adjustment moving rooms, but I have a really spacious room that I’ve made my own.

Classes:

Last year, I only had three classes of English 1, and then I had a couple of intervention hours. This year, I’m back full time, and I’m teaching English 1 and English 2.

I had such a great co-teach situation last year that I requested co-teach English 1 again this year. I have a different co-teacher this year, and she’s been wonderful to work with as well. Co-teach classes mean many students in the class have an IEP (individualized education plan), so they receive additional support from myself and my co-teacher. Half of one of my classes has IEPs while the other co-teach class only has a few. So, even those two classes tend to work at different paces; it’s ok though…I just make adjustments: reteach/add enrichment when needed.

I also have two Advanced English 1 classes, and I really enjoy those students as well. I have a few of my kids’ friends in those classes, and I think it’s always more odd for me than for them. haha!

My other two classes are English 2, sophomores (and a few freshmen who took English 1 in 8th grade). I hadn’t taught English 2 in a few years, and we have a new curriculum, so it has been a bit of an adjustment for me as I plan lessons. That being said, I enjoyed teaching both units this semester, and the kids have been great.

I don’t want to jinx it, but when I tell you I really love my schedule and my students, it’s just a great feeling to have a good year…and no classes that take all my energy. I honestly think I’ve only written one referral this entire semester…and it was for a student who didn’t return from our class restroom break.

I don’t know if I’ve gotten lucky with a good year, if it’s experience that makes things easier, or if we’re seeing kids who weren’t as affected by the Covid years. This year’s freshmen had a full fifth grade year in the classroom, so they wrapped up their elementary school experience rather routinely.

Block Scheduling:

One of the biggest changes this year is that we moved from a traditional six class day to block scheduling with four classes a day. So, we have an “A” day and a “B” day with ninety minute classes. I really love block scheduling, and wish we’d moved to it sooner.

I thought with block scheduling there might be one day that I prefer over the other, but that doesn’t seem to be the case.

It’s so nice to have a big chunk of time with students, and I haven’t had any issues with planning lessons for a larger amount of time. I thought I’d have to be more intentional when planning my lessons, but we’ve gotten through the curriculum, and every class period has had a variety of learning opportunities with whole group and independent instruction.

I’ve always heard (there’s actually math and numbers to it) that with block scheduling even though you see students for a longer amount of time, you see them for less minutes in a semester. Around fall break, I felt that. I felt like we should have been further in the curriculum, but by the end of the semester, everything evened out.

Tech/phones:

In my October Teacher Talk post, I shared about the new house bill that banned phones during instructional time. I honestly didn’t even have to be too strict about it. I guess as a school we were probably more cohesive with our expectations, so that helped. I’ve been surprised that I really have had zero issues with students being on their phones when they shouldn’t be. Again, I hope I’m not jinxing it, but I do appreciate that we had a great first semester without issues in regards to technology.

Looking back, this semester really was all about change…and it’s been good changes. New classroom, new schedule, new rules, and new students/courses. I hope second semester is just as good as the first one.

Even with it being a great first semester, I’m ready for a break! Four more days!

I think I can, I think I can, I think I can…

Enneagram, Holidays

Monday Memo

Posted on December 15, 2025December 14, 2025 by jgalvinwhite

Hello and happy Monday!

How was your weekend? Ours was really good. Did you read my post on Friday? I shared a few gift ideas, but I also mentioned that I was waiting to hear if we’d have a snow day…well, we did! Then, we got more snow over the weekend, and bitterly cold temps followed, so we have yet another snow day today.

My school district is going to use the non-traditional instruction this year again, but they decided not to start that until after winter break! So, we’ve already had three traditional snow days in December. Hopefully, we don’t have to make all of these up in June!

Anyway, we had family in town for an early Christmas. We decorated cookies, opened gifts, and had dinner together.

It’s been a while since I’ve shared an Enneagram post, but @mirabellecreations shared this one about prepping for the holidays, and I thought it was pretty accurate for my 5w6 self!

Enneagram 5:

Researching the history of every family tradition– I’d say this is pretty true. I love traditions, and appreciate some of the ones we have in our family. Just this weekend, we made our traditional waffle cookies using the waffle iron that my great-great-grandfather brought from Germany.

Choosing thoughtful gifts that are exactly right: I do think I do a good job with this. Of course, I end up ordering many things online, but I still think they can be really personal. I ordered my mom this tote from Bauble Bar and she really liked it. I like giving something personal. Recently, I went to a local boutique, and it was fun to shop in person. I got a few things including a cute tea towel and notepad for my Gma. It’s nice when you’re out shopping and you see things that remind you of loved ones.
Planning quiet pockets of rest: Uh…yes! Now, sometimes those pockets of quiet time don’t happen until after Christmas, but I do try and factor in time to wrap presents, watch a movie, bake cookies, etc.
Staying up late reading by the Christmas tree: Well, is there anything better? Actually, I couldn’t really sleep yesterday morning, and I got up early and decided to finish the book I was reading. It was nice to have the glow of the Christmas tree as I sipped my coffee and read. (I will share December books before the year ends, but I will go ahead and say that I highly recommend Christmas with the Queen. Loved it SO much!)

Observing all the chaos with a warm cup of something: Yes! You know I love my cup of coffee, but lately, I’ve been an iced coffee girl. I’m just really enjoying using my new festive glasses.

Enneagram 6:

Keeping track of all the traditions being completed: That’s definitely me, but I also don’t think we overdo it which is nice. Typically, we bake cookies one day, go to the Horse Park lights, the kids each get a gift for each other, and a few other things we do. Just last night, I told Trav we need to go see the Horse Park lights this week.

Triple check travel plans and weather forecasts: This is definitely me. I’m a worrier about the weather as we’ve definitely had times where we are traveling to KC at the holidays and there’s snow in the forecast. Just this weekend, I worried about family getting to and from Lex safely with our forecasted weather. Obviously, if the weather is bad, we can pivot and probably adjust schedules by a day or two. We’ve always made it work somehow.
Brings emergency kit and snacks: Any travel needs snacks, of course!
Watching all the classic holiday movies: I tend to watch holiday baking shows in December. That being said, I have many movies I like to watch in the holiday season or on break like A Christmas Story, Home Alone, and The Holiday. Some movies aren’t necessarily Christmas movies, but ones I tend to watch during this time like You’ve Got Mail and While You Were Sleeping.

Feeling extra grateful for the people who feel like home: I know the holidays can be stressful, and sometimes they are hectic, but I’m always grateful to spend time with extended family, but I also really enjoy the time at home with my family of four too. When we go to Louisville and KC, we’re able to spend time with family we don’t see as often as we’d like. When we stay home for Christmas, we have a few traditions like hanging with friends after the Christmas Eve church service. I like that our holidays are predictable but vary a bit year to year.

Overall, these were pretty accurate for me.

Today, I hope to spend some time making one final list of the last few things I need to buy (mostly stocking stuffers and a couple of gift cards) and maybe I can get some wrapping accomplished?!

Have a great Monday!

Friday Favorites, Gift Ideas, Seasonal

Friday Favorites {#284}: Fave Gifts

Posted on December 12, 2025December 14, 2025 by jgalvinwhite

Hello and happy Friday!

TGIF, am I right? I’m typing this on Thursday when there’s a good chance for snow and a possibility of a snow day on Friday. What could be better than that?

As always, I’m linking up with Andrea and Erika for Friday Favorites.

Today’s Friday Favorites post is a little bit different, but with less than two weeks until Christmas, I thought I’d share a few favorite gift purchases from the past and a few that are on current wish lists.

First of all, have you heard of the Giftful app? This is the second year Hadley has used it, and it sure has come in handy. She added some ideas for her birthday and Christmas, and they are linked with sizes. Then, you can “claim” the gift, so no one else purchases it. Also, you can follow people on Giftful which makes for easy shopping.

Her little captions are too funny…and she has a wish list for car accessories too. (FYI – the kids don’t have a car…yet) She’s a hoot!

So, let me start with her…

Teen Girls:

This sunrise alarm clock is on her list…and honestly, she needs some help waking up in the morning! haha

She loves hair tools, and this hair waver is something she has her eye on.

Are you even a teenage girl if you don’t ask for a portable speaker?

This compact vanity mirror was a hit a few years ago. She did get rid of it once we updated her room and got the bigger vanity, but this smaller one worked well too.

Teen Boys:

Well, Hayden is definitely harder to buy for, and certainly doesn’t give many ideas.

He didn’t ask for Ugg slippers, but I see so many boys wearing them. Of course, there are more budget friendly options too.

He hasn’t really entered the cologne world, so I thought this pack of solid colognes might be a good stocking stuffer.

I can’t remember a time when Hayden hasn’t had a mini basketball hoop. He had an over the door one forever, and then a couple of years ago he got one for the basement. Even though he doesn’t play basketball as much as he used to, he still will play on the mini hoop.

Are you even a teenage boy if you don’t ask for a Nike hooded sweatshirt?

I don’t even want to tell you how many water bottles I’ve purchased through the years, but this stainless steel one is very durable and has lasted him quite some time.

Husbands:

I bought Trav this “Battery Daddy” a few years ago, and it truly was a favorite. We keep it stocked and in the hall closet for whenever we need batteries.

I got Trav some “Goodr” sunglasses from a local running store a few years ago, and I see so many people wearing them. Some shops have quite the variety of colorways and styles. These seem popular too.

My brother had these joggers last year, and highly recommended them, so I bought them for Trav last year too. They are great! The fabric is smooth and stretchy perfect for jogging and working out. They have side and back pockets that zip as well. Trav wears them a ton.

Joggers (affiliate link)

These beer mugs are perfect for a frosty beverage. Trav loved this gift.

These grilling baskets seem popular.

A few other ideas:

Trav has horse sales in the winter, and these rechargeable hand warmers are something I got him a few years ago.

I gave a similar fleece wrapped shawl to my mom or Gma a couple of years ago. I love the pockets!

This electric tea kettle was something I asked for a few years ago, and then I got one for my mom. We use it quite a bit for things like Ramen and hot chocolate, and it’s perfect for tea drinkers.

A few other ideas: candles, pretty stationary, Story Worth subscriptions, and photo calendars are other favorite gifts I’ve given through the years.

These wireless earbuds are my current faves. I purchased them for myself last summer, and they have worked perfectly for my needs. They are wireless, waterproof and noise canceling. I love using them to listen to podcasts or my audio books.

Wireless Earbuds {affiliate link}

I feel pretty good about where I’m at with gifts, but I still need to purchase a few more. Mostly, now I’m just waiting for gifts to arrive. Then, it will be time to wrap everything…which isn’t really a favorite, but I did buy a couple of new rolls of wrapping paper….maybe that will put me in the spirit.