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Posted in Books and Shows

What I’ve Been Reading: April 2026

Hello and happy Wednesday!

It’s hard to believe that there are only two days left in April…which means it’s time for me to share the books I read this month.

After having such a big reading month in March, I should have known that April would be the complete opposite in regards to reading.

Well, this month I read one book and one short story…but they were both good!

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{As always, book summaries are from Goodreads…}

The Book Woman’s Daughter:

Summary:

In the ruggedness of the beautiful Kentucky mountains, Honey Lovett has always known that the old ways can make a hard life harder. As the daughter of the famed blue-skinned, Troublesome Creek packhorse librarian, Honey and her family have been hiding from the law all her life. But when her mother and father are imprisoned, Honey realizes she must fight to stay free, or risk being sent away for good.

Picking up her mother’s old packhorse library route, Honey begins to deliver books to the remote hollers of Appalachia. Honey is looking to prove that she doesn’t need anyone telling her how to survive, but the route can be treacherous, and some folks aren’t as keen to let a woman pave her own way. If Honey wants to bring the freedom that books provide to the families who need it most, she’s going to have to fight for her place, and along the way, learn that the extraordinary women who run the hills and hollers can make all the difference in the world.

Quick Thoughts:

Last month, I read Book Woman of Troublesome Creek which had been on my TBR list for quite some time. When Tanya shared that the third book in the series was coming out soon, I wanted to get to reading the first two! This book, just like the first, didn’t disappoint.

Just like with the first book, I appreciated the setting of Eastern Kentucky, and I love reading historical fiction. Honey Lovett, just like her mother Cussy, is a force to be reckoned with. She makes the best of her situation, stays true to her values, and paves a way to figuring out her future.

I can’t wait to read The Mountains We Call Home.

Rating:

Leave it Up To Love:

Summary:

Ready for her big break after publishing her first novel, Lila Everwood has two fresh book ideas and dreams of quitting her barista job. She’s hopeful about her future—until her writing catches her literary idol’s attention in all the wrong ways.

Elizabeth Lancaster, the queen of regency romance, hasn’t written a word in three years. Her publisher’s solution? A ghostwriter. Specifically, her favorite coffee server. It’s either brilliance or madness—and her literary agent son Grady thinks it’s definitely the latter.

As the ideas begin to fly, so do the sparks—between Lila and Grady. And, as Lila’s and Elizabeth’s worlds collide, the two writers must lean on each other, learning something vital in the In life, love, and publishing, sometimes you have to write your own happy ending.

Quick Thoughts:

There’s hardly a KWH book that I haven’t read. As a matter of fact, I counted…and I’ve read ten of her books. It’s not a summer without a KWH book, and I can’t wait to read Summer State of Mind. That being said, I don’t know that I’ve ever “reviewed” a short story, but I appreciate that she put this one out to tide us over until her latest novel is released.

This was a quick and great read. I liked the premise, the characters and the short story line. Even with the abbreviated plot, there’s lots of dialogue, characterization and plot development.

Rating:

I’m hoping for more reading in May…but of course, who knows how much time I will have during May-cember!

That being said, it’s hard to believe that soon I will put together my summer reading list!

Do you have any summer book suggestions for me?

Happy reading,

Posted in Memes

Monthly Memes

Hello and happy Tuesday! I hope your week is off to a great start. I’m a day late sharing my monthly memes, so please forgive me.

Memes on a Tuesday instead of Monday…

Here are some memes that made me chuckle this month…

Of course my homebody self likes this one:

And…my introvert self can relate to this one too:

This one is very relateable to me:

My students could never understand!

I sent this to my brother…LOL. Man, I remember this episode like yesterday!

This applies to adults and students at school. haha

I’m always struggling with what to make for dinner. How many nights a week are too many for chicken?

The way this one made me laugh! This dog…and lots of responsibility for being the family password. LOL

I hope these memes provided you with a laugh or two!

Posted in Friday Favorites

Friday Favorites {#298}

Hello and happy Friday!

Wow! April sure flew by. It’s hard to believe that this time next week will be May!

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

Here are a few favorites from the week…

When we were in South Carolina, I went to the grocery store for a few things. While there, I spotted this S’mores coffee creamer. I hadn’t seen it in my Kroger, but Target had some. I’ve been enjoying this in my coffee ever since.

Hadley had a track meet last Saturday, and it rained buckets most of the day! Obviously, the rain isn’t a favorite, but she ran well in her individual events!

Hayden’s continued to love baseball, and I’m continuing to love/appreciate seeing the photos one of the team grandmas takes.

My mom was visiting, and she made cookies that the kids decorated the other night. She helped too, and they are delicious and cute!

Speaking of cute, my mom knows I love hydrangeas, and she brought me two of these glasses. They are perfect for any and all occasions, but I’ve been using them for my iced coffee.

After church on Sunday, Hadley convinced Trav that we should go out to lunch which we rarely do on the weekend. We ended up at Local Taco near campus, and it hit the spot. The weather was lovely, so it felt very much like springtime eating near the open windows.

When I was in Target last week, I saw these individual packs of Flav City. I just added this to milk, and it hit the spot as an afternoon snack.

Another yummy snack I had this week was this homemade PopTart Hadley made in foods class. She had a few of them, and she brought me one. It was delish!

Hadley had a huge presentation for her AP Seminar class this week. She used some free time to come practice in my room a few times during my planning period. When the time came, she knocked it out of the park! I was so proud of her, and she was happy to have that task complete.

Favorite Mom Meme:

Ain’t that the truth?!

Bonus Fave: Flashback Friday:

Look this blast from the past…2011…and Trav was pushing that double jogger! Those were the days!

Weekly Recap:

Here are my posts from the week in case you missed one:

What was a highlight of your week? I hope you have a lovely spring weekend!

Posted in Kids, Throwback Thursday

Throwback Thursday: April 2010

Hello and happy Thursday!

I’ve had a lot of fun taking a look back at 2010. The kids were itty bitty, but it’s been amazing to see their month to month milestones.

I’ve shared January, February, and March of 2010, and today we’re taking a look at April of that year.

Well, April means Easter, and the kids were all decked out for their first one. Look how excited they are about their Easter baskets! (haha!)

That Easter morning, we snapped a few pics…big smiles!

…and we even got a family of four pic!

I went back to work when the kids were 16 weeks old (or maybe 18 weeks?) which was right after Easter.

I remember loving dressing them in the spring months once it got warmer. Also, Walmart was a “go to” for clothes, and there were so many cute and affordable options.

They spent lots of time with their friend. My friend had her daughter a few days after I had the kids, and they’ve been friends ever since! Hayden was dressed to impress with his tie onsie!

He found Hadley’s hand…too cute!

Bath time was definitely a daily evening activity. We had one little tub, so one at a time, they had fun in the bubbles.

Big kids in the ExerSaucer! It was so nice when they could stand up and entertain themselves for a while.

And…the Bumbo was another milestone. Sitting up and staring at me…Hadley was a very serious baby.

Hayden looking over his first racing form. haha!

I know we spent lots of time outside as the kids were getting older and the weather was warmer. Looking back, having them in late fall into winter was hard. I mean, it was easy to stay home and away from the germs with the cold weather, but kind of like how I still feel when the warmer spring temps arrive…it’s literally a breath of fresh air!

I hope you’re able to spend some time outside today. I’ve really embraced the sunshine and going on walks lately.

Posted in Travel

Spring Break: South Carolina

Hello and happy Tuesday!

Today, I’m sharing a quick recap of our few days in the Isle of Palms/Charleston area of South Carolina.

We’ve been to that area many times through the years, and we went last year for spring break. We aren’t big planners for spring break, so going back to an area we are familiar with and one that other friends were going to as well was an easy choice. It was just Hadley and I going since Hayden wanted to hang back and Trav had work, so overall I felt comfortable going on our own.

Since our first Sunday of spring break was Easter, we decided to leave on Monday morning. Hadley was a big help on the nine hour drive…haha.

We arrived in the evening…

…and got settled into our condo.

The weather was gloomy, but we unpacked, got the lay of the land, grabbed some dinner nearby and then just chilled at the condo for the evening.

Tuesday was gloomy too! Ugh. I will say that spring seems to be the diciest time to go to this area…we’ve been many times in the summer and once in the fall, and the weather was fantastic all of those times.

Anyway, Hadley slept in and I took my time having coffee and watching TV. Then, I went for a walk on the beach.

I always love seeing the seashells.

This gate caught my eye…

…as did this bright green house. I don’t remember seeing it last year. This house was “Casa Margarita!”

After I got back, we got ready to head into Charleston and meet some friends. Hadley looked cute dressed and ready to shop on King St.

Once we got to Charleston, we ate at a cafe, walked around a bit…and we even passed the Charleston Library.

These girls were having the best time popping in and out of shops.

My friend and I tried to keep up, but we popped into some shops that caught our eye. I almost bought this Rainbow Row candle, but I resisted.

We were on King Street for about four hours with hundreds of our closest friends. ha! I’d wished we made it down to Battery Park and Rainbow Row, but we needed to get back to my expired parking meter!

That evening, we met the same friends at Sunsets on Shem Creek.

…and let’s just say that the name of the restaurant is appropriate.

Hadley and friends hung out on the dock after we ordered.

Ahh…so pretty.

Wednesday provided another slow morning. Honestly, it was weird being there without Trav and Hayden as both of them tend to get up and moving early. Again, I let Hadley sleep in, and I sipped my coffee on the deck with a view of the water just under those palm trees.

Then, I went for a walk as the sun was rising…

So pretty!

This day was sunny (yay!) and warmer (yay!), but it was oh so windy (boo)!

Hadley needed to get a track workout in, and Trav found this College of Charleston track near Mt. Pleasant last year.

She was ready to run, and I walked a few laps.

Beautiful day for a run (or so she said!)

Then, early afternoon, we headed over to the Wild Dunes area where some of our friends have a condo. Their back patio view is so pretty!

We drove to a part of the property for lunch, and this was our view as we walked to lunch…

And our view as we ate lunch. Again, it was a pretty day, but man it was windy.

On our walk back to the car, we saw this guy…

Back at their condo, Hadley hung with their kids, and I hung with my friend for a bit. We were going to walk on the beach, but seriously…it was soooo windy! This view was pretty, and we turned around and sat by the pool for a bit. The dunes blocked the wind, so the pool area was nice.

Sitting by the pool reminded me of the summer (2013) that we stayed at Wild Dunes over the 4th of July. This is one of my fave pool pics of the kids…

Late afternoon, we headed back to our place, and Hadley napped, and I sat by the pool and read for about an hour.

I did walk for a bit at sunset…

…and then we grabbed pizza dinner…and a pic near the Isle of Palms sign (I’m so glad she humors me).

Unfortunately, I wasn’t feeling well for most of this trip, so we decided to pack up a day early. It was a hard decision to make (especially since Thursday looked like the best beach day), but Hadley understood. We headed home Thursday instead of Friday because one of my friends rode home with us since I wasn’t feeling well.

We made the most of our time, and I hope to get back there again for a proper vacation.

While we were gone, Trav and Hayden went to Gatlinburg, TN for a day/night to hang with family who went there for the week. Apparently, there was a bear on the front porch as they were unpacking, but the neighbor told them about it because they didn’t see it. Then, Hayden saw this bear 😉

Have a great day!

Posted in Not Just a Mom

Share Our Lives: April 2026

Hello and happy Monday!

How was your weekend? We had a rainy Saturday and a beautiful day of sunshine on Sunday. We tried to make the most of the sunny day after dealing with rain all day Saturday at Hadley’s track meet.

Well, I’m a week late to my own (co-hosting) link up…so please excuse my tardiness.

…but I still wanted to write about the topic.

So far this year we’ve discussed…

  • Ways to stay warm in winter in January
  • Binge worthy shows in February
  • Grocery list frequent buys in March

This month’s topic is…favorite cleaning products

You know who should have written this post? My husband. He’s the cleaner in the family while I tend to be the one who tidies up.

Anyway, a few cleaning products we can’t live without include:

These Swiffer dry cloths. Trav uses these to sweep our hardwood floors at least twice a week. The Homer hair is real, y’all.

I always joke that I didn’t read the “fine print” on his little adoption description.

Anyway, he’s cute, but he sheds like nobody’s business.

Speaking of Swiffer, these dusters are great too. We use them to dust before deep cleaning…or even to dust off the Homer hair off the leather living room couch.

Lastly, I love the Mrs. Meyer’s products. A friend gave us a set over ten years ago when we moved into our house just as a little house warming gift, and I’ve been buying the products ever since. I love that they are seasonal options including peppermint in the winter, but then I love lavender and mint in the spring and summer.

What are your favorite cleaning products?

Have a great Monday!

Posted in Friday Favorites, Kids, Travel

Friday Favorites {#297}

Hello and happy Friday!

Long time, no talk! Life has been “life-ing” around here, but I’m happy to link up with Andrea for this week’s Friday Favorites.

Here are a few recent favorites

Last week, Hadley and I spent a few days in Isle of Palms/Charleston, SC. I plan to do a proper recap, but here are a few favorite pics…

Beautiful sunrise…

Pretty walks on the beach…

Dinners as the sun sets…

Happy Hadley!

Shopping on King Street with friends…

Hayden’s baseball photos came in, and I had quite a few favorites including this one…

Last Friday, the weather was beautiful, and I went to my brother’s house to watch the Artemis landing…we sat on the back patio which was nice.

Hadley and friends headed to Keeneland on Sunday. They looked so lovely, and their sunglasses game is strong!

…and Trav was in charge! Hadley had fun with her dad!

Favorite Mom Meme:

Honestly, this now applies to their car too. lol

Short and sweet, but I wanted to write a Friday post since it had been a minute.

I hope you have a great weekend!

Posted in This and That

Wednesday Hodgepodge

Hello and happy Wednesday!

I’m linking up with Joyce for this week’s edition of Wednesday Hodgepodge.

Here are my answers to her prompts this week:

1. Egg on your face, putting all your eggs in one basket, a good egg, walk on eggshells, nest egg, or a tough egg to crack…which eggy idiom currently applies to your life in some way? Explain.

Well, I try and tell my own kids not to “put all their eggs in one basket”…but parenting teens means sometimes I’m “walking on egg shells!” haha

2. April 7th is National Beer Day…are you a beer drinker? If so, do you have a favorite? Beer battered fish, beer bread, beer can chicken, beer brats…which one sounds good to you? Have you made any of these?

I’m not really a beer drinker. Occasionally, I will have one on a hot day, at the beach, or at a Mexican restaurant. I only like light beer, and Blue Moon with a slice of orange is probably my typical order if on the menu. I like beer battered fish, but I don’t have it very often. I’ve heard of beer can chicken, but I’ve never made it or the other items either.

Trav enjoys a cold beer, so maybe I should have told him to celebrate yesterday!

3. Do you have siblings? What’s the best thing about being your sibling? If you don’t have siblings, what would you say are the pros and cons of being an only child?

I do have a sibling…one brother who is three and a half years younger than me. Growing up, I always picked on him, and my mom would tell me he’d be bigger than me one day…

…that happened in high school, and thankfully we started to get along around that time.

My brother is a great guy…he’s funny, smart, knowledgeable, patient, and understanding. He remembers the most random things or knows the most random facts that just keep me rolling my eyes or laughing.

I don’t take for granted having a brother, and it’s nice that he lives so close to me. We see him and his family pretty often, and I’m glad my kids can grow up with their cousins.

He’s so randomly funny, that he’ll send me random memes, reels, and even pics like this when visiting friends in California (this was quite a few years ago)

4. How do you feel about floral scents in products? Do you have a favorite?

I don’t think I have much of an opinion on floral scents in products. You know I love a candle! I like lavender or mix like this garden party one from Trader Joe’s.

5. What’s one thing in your home that begins with the letter G that you would saw is a keeper, something you’ll hold on to? Tell us why.

The first thing that came to mind was “garden flag.” I love changing out my flags for seasons and holidays. I’ve had this same flag holder for twenty years; I probably need a new one. When we first moved into this house, the garden flag and front door wreath were the first things I put out. The inside of the house might be a mess, but at least the outside looks nice. haha

6. Insert your own random thought here.

Talk about random, but here are a couple of photos I meant to include in my Easter recap.

Easter related with a nod to Diet Coke!

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I love following the Seaside/30a accounts. It’s always fun to see the post office decorated through the different seasons.

How cute, right?!

I hope you’re having a great week!

Posted in Holidays

Easter Recap

Hello and happy Tuesday!

Today, I’m just sharing a quick little Easter recap.

First of all, I can’t believe how different Easter mornings feel now that the kids are older. Weren’t we just here?

On Saturday, the kids dyed their eggs. Of course, the day got away from us, so then it was Saturday evening, and we had to squeeze this tradition in between the final four games! (Well, for Hayden, anyway!)

Ten minutes of fun…and some pretty eggs.

Sunday was a beautiful day…

I had purchased a few things over the past few weeks, and I was happy everything fit just right in their baskets. Their baskets included candy, a gift card, and a few odds and ends like Chapstick.

When the kids were little, the Easter Bunny would always bring them a swimsuit and PJs, but now, they’re pickier about those things, so I went with tanks, t-shirts, baseball cards, skincare, etc.

The church service was beautiful.

Then, we snapped a few pics per tradition.

I appreciate the smiles on this beautiful Easter morning.

After that, we went to Trav’s sister’s house in Louisville…and I didn’t take any photos! Per usual, she (as well as Trav’s mom and other sister) out did themselves with the food. Also, the older cousins are such adults, that they help bring side dishes now too! Anyway, it was a busy day from start to finish, but it was a good one! I appreciated the morning at home, the church service, and time with family.

Posted in Amazon

Prime Purchases

Hello and happy Monday!

Well, Mondays sure “hit different” when it’s spring break! It was so nice to not set an early Monday morning alarm. How was your weekend? We had lovely weather Saturday for a track meet, and then Easter with family was great yesterday.

Did you catch my Friday post? By accident, I set it to publish at a later time?! Whoops.

Anyway…on to April and taking a look back at my Amazon purchases for March.

Amazon was my “go to” spot to pick up a few Easter basket items for the kids.

Hadley loves all things skin/body care, so I picked up these sponges for her to use with body wash.

Someone shared this game, and I thought it looked fun. If we are playing games, most likely it’s a card game, so we’ll see how this one goes.

{Over 30k bought in the past month}

Hadlley had been wanting to try the Medicube brand, so I thought these toner pads would be a good place to start.

{Over 100k purchased in the past month}

Hadley has a couple of these tanks, and she wanted one more. They are great quality, and similar to more expensive brands.

I’ve seen this car goo, and have been been curious about it. Let’s just say that one of my kids keeps their car tidier than the other. Maybe this car goo can help with the crumbs??

{Over 20k purchased in the past month}

Hadyen is constantly looking for his phone charger…maybe adding to more into the mix will help his cause?

{Over 10k bought in the past month}

When I started making Easter baskets for the kids sixteen years ago, I didn’t consider that one day I’d be putting car supplies in their Easter basket. They both like having a vent air freshener in the car.

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I love a set, and this one has surpassed my expectations. I’ve already worn it a couple of times, and I’ve worn it as separates (the shirt is a good length to wear with leggings).

I have a pair of sunglasses that I love and wear all the time. I wanted a less expensive pair to have handy, toss in my purse, etc. These are super cute and just my style.

{Over 30k purchased in the past month}

Y’all, I thought I lost my favorite tumbler at a track meet, so I “panic” purchased another one. Well, I ended up finding my original one, but I decided to keep this one because apparently I need a back up! This is the third Simple Modern tumbler I’ve owned in about three years, and I love them. I had a purple one that I lost, so then I purchased a green one. Now, I have the green one and this almond colored one.

I’m always looking for practical spring/summer heels, and I can’t remember who shared these, but I quickly added them to my cart. I wore them yesterday for Easter, and they were so comfy. (I did size up half a size)

I’ve only recently started using face towels to dry my face after washing it in the morning. I originally picked up a box at TJ Maxx (the check out line gets me almost every time!), and when it ran out, I found these on Amazon. They’ve worked out perfectly, and I like how the lid closes shut securely.

{Over 10k bought in the past month.}

So, those were my purchases this month! What’s your latest Amazon purchase?

{This post contains Amazon Affiliate links. Thanks for supporting my blog.}