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Prime Purchases

Posted on February 5, 2024February 4, 2024 by jgalvinwhite

Hello and happy Monday!

How was your weekend? Mine was low key but productive….because Trav and the kids were in Orlando for my nephew’s race. They left on Thursday evening and got back last night.

What does one do with 72 hours to herself, you ask?! I had a good mix of downtime (massage, reading, Netflix) and productivity (work, errands, and helping my friend help me with the wallpaper for Hadley’s room).

It was really odd having the house to myself for three nights. Well, of course, Homer kept me company, but it was still too quiet!

Anyway, today is one of my favorite link ups, and I appreciate Tanya for hosting it every month.

This meme made me laugh…It’s very relatable!

My purchases this month include a couple of things for Hadley, an assortment of things for me, and one random purchase that Travis had.

Hadley:

If you have a teenage girl, you know their love for gold hoop earrings runs deep! As Hadley started to organize her new vanity, she wanted a place for her jewelry. She found this stackable jewelry container.

She’s put one of the trays to good use:

Hadley received UGG slippers and a couple of people suggested this protector spray. We’d like these slippers to last as long as possible…and, again, if you have a teen, you know they don’t just wear the slippers around the house!

Me:

In the winter, I don’t wear booties as often as I used to….I mostly where flats, and I have a favorite leopard pair from Walmart and another tan pair from Kohls that I wear the most. I’ve had them for years, and wanted a black pair to add into the mix. These have been great so far…nice and comfy. My regular size 9 fit, and they come in so many colors.

I bought these collagen eye gels, and I loved them. I’ve already used them all. I have an order of the ones I typically use on the way. You get more for your money with the gold ones, but I will definitely keep the marine collagen ones in the mix.

I don’t use a big wallet, so I wanted a place to hold my change and what little cash I typically have. When I searched for “coin purse,” this cute one popped up, and I couldn’t resist it. It’s around $7 and comes in soooo many cute pattern options.

I saw Amber Massey (@masseya) share these Jergen essential oil sticks, and I wanted to give them a try.

I use Awaken in the morning…

…and Sleep at night before bed.

I just enjoy the subtle scent that each one has, and it’s an easy part of my morning and evening routine to put a little on my wrists and neck.

I ordered more of my favorite Vitamin C serum.

I like to wear rings on my right hand, but don’t have a “go to” ring. I thought this stack was so cute…and they are. I mix and match and wear three at a time on my right hand ring finger.

I just wear them during the day….so I don’t workout, shower, or sweat in them, but they’ve been the perfect daytime ring…and for around $12, they definitely do the trick. (They come in gold and silver too)

Trav:

Travis needed a new shower head for his shower, and this is the one he ordered. Now, the water pressure in his bathroom is much better.

So…that’s what I “Primed” this month….something for everyone!…except Hayden who is pretty low maintenance these days. 😆

I hope you have a great start to your week,

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

Friday Favorites

Friday Favorites {#193}

Posted on February 2, 2024February 1, 2024 by jgalvinwhite

Hello and happy Friday!

Shew! We made it through a five day week.

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

Here are some favorites from the week:

Last Friday, I helped supervise a field trip to BCTC (Bluegrass Community and Technical College) for students interested in dual credit opportunities. It was really interesting, and I loved walking around the campus…and of course I enjoyed visiting the bookstore.

On Friday night, while Hadley was at a birthday party, Trav and I thought it would be nice to go out to dinner and let Hayden choose. Well, of all the places, he chose Texas Roadhouse. I think the basketball team had it as one of their meals (burgers and rolls), and the rolls really left an impression on him.

We had a nice dinner, and left with a to go order of rolls.

Hadley had volleyball all weekend, and she was on a different team (a mix of her friends and other teammates). This tournament had some tough competition and around 30 teams. Her team was one game short of the silver bracket…

…but they won the 3rd place bracket on Sunday. We really enjoyed watching this team play.

Their championship game ended right as the Chiefs game was starting…so we hurried over to my brother’s house, per tradition. Hayden was already there. He didn’t come to Hadley’s Sunday games because he didn’t want to risk missing a single minute of the AFC Championship game.

We are so excited to cheer for our Chiefs on Super Bowl Sunday.

Sunday morning, I made chicken tetrazzini for dinner, so we’d only have to warm it up after the Chiefs game. While I was at Hadley’s volleyball games, I texted Hayden to put the lid on the casserole dish that I’d left out on the counter.

When we came home to have dinner, this is what I found in the fridge:

(This is not the lid that I left out for him to use…haha!)

It’s hard for me to get action shots, so I’m thankful for a teammate of Hayden’s dad and the pics he takes:

Our nephew is running in an Olympic qualifying marathon race this weekend, and my friend’s daughter’s girl scout troop was practicing etiquette and made him cards…they were so sweet!

Last night, I had a nice sushi dinner with a friend that I don’t get to see often enough! It was so nice to catch up.

Favorite Kid Quote:

While Hadley is usually my more quick-witted child (she gets that from me ;), the other night Hayden said something funny.

I was in bed reading, and Travis was too. Hayden came in to tell us goodnight, and without missing a beat, he said, “Dad, you are reading?! Uh…you are not mom!”

It’s a pretty rare sighting to see Trav with a book. haha

Favorite Mom Meme:

One word: teenagers!

Weekly Recap:

I had another full week of blogging thanks to Bloganuary:

Speaking of blogging…I might scale back on my blogging schedule and try three days a week for a bit. I really want to find a bit more time to read and also feel less scheduled every minute of the day…and maybe taking out a blog post or two a week will help with that for now. I have a feeling I will continue to post on Mondays and Fridays and then another day (or two) in between.

What are your weekend plans? My weekend is starting off with a hot stone massage, and I can’t wait!

I’ll be back on Monday with my Amazon purchases for the month.

Health and Fitness

Workout Diaries: January 2024

Posted on February 1, 2024January 31, 2024 by jgalvinwhite

Hello and happy February 1st!

November and December always feel like the most hectic months of the year for me, but I still try to get some workouts in as much as possible.

With the start of the new year, I really wanted to start tracking my workouts, and Bodi had printable that I thought would be fun to use for 2024.

I don’t know if I will recap my workouts every month, but knowing I was going to share my January workouts was some accountability for me this month.

I’m not sure what it says about me that I’m pretty motivated, for now anyway, to color in the day on my 2024 Bodi workout calendar.

I was bummed to start January off sick…so I really didn’t get started with consistent workouts until Monday, January 8th….like it really bothers me that the “J” has no days filled in. Oh well, I guess it is what it is.

Here are my workouts this month:

January 8th: Job One -HIIT It

January 10th: 21 Day Fix Real Time – Dirty 30

January 11: 21 Day Fix Real Time– Upper Fix
January 13: 21 Day Fix Real Time – Lower Fix

Then, I really picked up the pace with a solid streak of workouts. It helped that Hayden’s basketball games hadn’t started yet, so we had more free evenings.

January 15: 21 Day Fix Real Time: Cardio Fix
January 16: Job One: 20 Minute Sweat Session
January 17: 21 Day Fix: Total Body Cardio
January 18: Upper Body Fire 1

January 19: Restorative Flow 1
January 20: Lower Body Fire 1
January 23: Job One– HIIT It
January 24th: 21 Day Fix Real Time: Dirty 30
January 27: Job One: Legs
January 30: Sure Thing: Body weight Burnout
January 31: Sure Thing: Strength and Stability

Also, I did walk one day bringing my total to 16 workouts this month. I’d love to always workout five days a week, but during busier times, four is a reasonable goal I think for me.

I’m still a big fan of Bodi…can you tell? It’s still the easiest thing for me to go to my basement and get a 20-40 minute workout in depending on what I have time to complete. While I like following a program from beginning to end, it was fun to pick and choose workouts that I’m familiar with in January.

I’m glad I have a solid plan…because the Girl Scout cookies we ordered just arrived on our doorstep a couple of nights ago!

What's up Wednesday

What’s Up Wednesday

Posted on January 31, 2024January 30, 2024 by jgalvinwhite

Hello and happy last day of January!

I’ve seen lots of memes, like this one, suggesting that January feels like the longest month, and while I agree, I still think it’s one of my favorite months. January provides a bit slower pace, it’s my birthday month, and we usually have a snow day (or five!)

Y’all, I did it. I blogged for the entire month of January for the WordPress Bloganuary challenge. While I knew I’d continue with my regular content, I did end up finding other things to write about, but I didn’t use many of the WordPress prompts. That’s ok though…I still liked writing about a little bit of everything this month.

Thanks for reading my posts…including the weekend ones!

I don’t do it often, but today I’m linking up with Shaeffer and Shay for What’s Up Wednesday.

What we are eating this week:

This week we are having:

Sunday: Chicken tetrazzini and green beans. (I got the recipe thanks to @myteacherface on Insta)
Monday: Sunday leftovers and bagged Caesar salad
Tuesday: Chicken Parmesan Meatloaf Muffins, Bob Evans potatoes and fruit (Please note: Hadley said the meatloaf muffins were “bussin” (and that’s a compliment from my picky eater!)…Also, next time, I will double the recipe to make more)
Wednesday: Beefy cheese soup
Thursday: I’m having dinner out with a friend!
Friday and Saturday: Mama doesn’t cook on the weekend!

What I’m reminiscing about:

Valentine’s Day pics through the years. Since the kids were babies, I always got a Valentine’s Day or snow day pic to use for Valentine’s Day cards for family. It’s getting harder and harder to get one of these pics with kids going in opposite directions, but I’m hoping to get a pic of them this week, so I can order my cards.

What we’ve been up to:

Snow days and sports!

Middle school basketball for Hayden and club volleyball for Hadley are how we are spending most of our time lately…and I love it.

What I’m dreading:

I’m currently working on our week of after school credit recovery…and it’s just overwhelming sometimes. There are a lot of moving parts and pieces of the puzzle to get into place.

What I’m excited about:

I’m loving watching Hadley play on her club volleyball team, and I can’t believe it’s Hayden’s 8th grade basketball season. I’m always excited to watch them do what they love.

I think I’ll put out my Valentine’s Day decorations this weekend.

I’m excited about finishing up Hadley’s room soon. The wallpaper arrived, so I’m hoping to get that put up soon.

We’re excited for our Chiefs to go to the Super Bowl (again!) this year.

What I’m watching/reading:

I have a couple more episodes left of both Fool Me Once and The Crown. Maybe I can finish them this weekend?!

Also, Travis and I loved The Night Agent.

Yesterday, I shared the books I read this month. Although I only read two, I’ve started off 2024 with two books that I enjoyed reading.

What I’m listening to:

I haven’t been listening to much of anything – besides whatever is on the car radio. I did catch a couple of episodes of the “Amy and T.J”…and basically I was just being nosy.

What I’m wearing:

I haven’t taken any pics of school outfits, but I’m slaying my casual outfits.

I’m still loving my cardigan from Walmart that I wear around the house.

My mirror is dirty, but I’ve loved wearing my favorite cardigan with leggings and over-sized t-shirt for long days watching the kids play sports.

I’m still loving my new zip-up sweater/sweatshirt jacket from Amazon. I like that my regular size large works with jeans or leggings, but I also think a medium would have worked.

I’ve worn it out to dinner, to school, and out running errands, so it’s definitely a win in my book.

As you can tell from the photos above, I’m really loving the Air Maxes that Travis got me for Christmas.

And…I’m still loving my new Lululemon bag!

What I’m doing this weekend:

I’m looking forward to a low-key weekend. I’m having dinner with a friend, using a gift card for a massage, planning on getting the house in order, and hopefully finishing The Crown and Fool Me Once.

What I’m looking forward to next month:

More possible snow days?! haha

Then, once it’s March, I’m ready for spring and the countdown to summer!

What’s up with you lately?

Books and Shows

What I’ve Been Reading: January 2024

Posted on January 30, 2024January 29, 2024 by jgalvinwhite

Hello!

I always like to have a reading goal for the year, and the past couple of years that goal has been to read 40 books. In 2022, I read 41 books, and last year I read 38. So, 40 books a year is a good average for me .

I’m off to a slow start in January, but I liked both the books I read this month.

This month I read:

{As always, book summaries are from Goodreads…}

The Last Love Note:

Summary:

Kate is a bit of a mess. Two years after losing her young husband Cameron, she’s grieving, solo parenting, working like mad at her university fundraising job, always dropping the ball—and yet clinging to her sense of humor.

Lurching from one comedic crisis to the next, she also navigates an overbearing mom and a Tinder-obsessed best friend who’s determined to matchmake Kate with her hot new neighbor.

When an in-flight problem leaves Kate and her boss, Hugh, stranded for a weekend on the east coast of Australia, she finally has a chance, away from her son, to really process her grief and see what’s right in front of her. Can she let go of the love of her life and risk her heart a second time?

When it becomes clear that Hugh is hiding a secret, Kate turns to the trail of scribbled notes she once used to hold her life together. The first note captured her heart. Will the last note set it free?

Quick Notes:

I’d never even heard of this book, but Shay mentioned her book club that she was starting, and this was the first book.

I really enjoyed it. It had a little bit of everything: sadness, hope, love, and happiness.

Rating:

All the Light We Cannot See:

Summary:

Marie-Laure lives in Paris near the Museum of Natural History, where her father works. When she is twelve, the Nazis occupy Paris and father and daughter flee to the walled citadel of Saint-Malo, where Marie-Laure’s reclusive great uncle lives in a tall house by the sea. With them they carry what might be the museum’s most valuable and dangerous jewel.

In a mining town in Germany, Werner Pfennig, an orphan, grows up with his younger sister, enchanted by a crude radio they find that brings them news and stories from places they have never seen or imagined. Werner becomes an expert at building and fixing these crucial new instruments and is enlisted to use his talent to track down the resistance. Deftly interweaving the lives of Marie-Laure and Werner, Doerr illuminates the ways, against all odds, people try to be good to one another.

From the highly acclaimed, multiple award-winning Anthony Doerr, the stunningly beautiful instant New York Times bestseller about a blind French girl and a German boy whose paths collide in occupied France as both try to survive the devastation of World War II.

Quick Notes:

This book has been on my list for a while, and when I saw that the drama series was on Netflix, I bumped it to the top of my list. I didn’t want to watch the series before finishing the book.

I enjoy historical fiction books, and this one fits the bill. I loved reading about Marie-Laure and Werner’s lives and how the story goes back and forth between each one. This is definitely a long read, but it’s worth it. I can’t wait to watch the series now.

Rating:

I’m hoping to pick up my reading pace in February. Do you typically set a reading goal every year?

Memes

Monday Memes

Posted on January 29, 2024January 28, 2024 by jgalvinwhite

Hello and happy Monday!

How was your weekend? From volleyball to basketball to a big Chiefs win, ours was pretty good!

Did you catch my Saturday and Sunday posts?

I can’t believe the month of January is almost over. Of course, I have to share a few memes that made me laugh this month.

Oh I used to love playing MASH when I was a kid. If only I lived in a mansion as an adult…my childhood dreams would come true!

My basement clean up on our recent snow day reminded me how great it is to complete a task that’s been on my list…but I will probably learn nothing from this. haha

Can you tell that I’m back to work with these next two memes?

So many emails that I need to get to!

Fun fact about me: I love to chop up veggies.

ha!

I have no self-control when there’s just one more cookie or bite of a donut!

I do the same when meeting someone new. I immediately forget their name.

I hope these memes get your week started off with a laugh or two.

Inspiration

Pinned on Pinterest

Posted on January 28, 2024January 28, 2024 by jgalvinwhite

Hello and happy Sunday!

Do you use Pinterest? I use it pretty often, but I mostly use it for meal and baking ideas.

With 4,545 pins on my Pinterest boards, I thought it would be fun to share a few of my favorite things that I have…

I’m sharing a few favorite boards as well as some of my favorite pins for those boards.

Yum-O Recipes:

I turn to this board quite a bit for dinner ideas. I try to plan healthy-ish dinners, but this board has lots of yummy meals.

A few recipes that I make fairly often are:

Ritz Chicken Casserole

Cheeseburger Biscuits

and…Chicken Pot Pie Casserole

I want to try this Lazy Enchilada dish. I’ve made something similar before, but I don’t think it had refried beans like this one does. Yum!

Reading Quotes:

Who doesn’t love a reading quote?

Some of my favorite are:

Delish Desserts:

I like to make desserts whenever possible. Last year, I made a dessert once a month, and that was fun to do. Some desserts I make are more seasonal like apple and pumpkin recipes in the fall.

Here are a few of the favorite desserts I’ve made:

Oven Baked S’mores

Apple Cider Donut Cake

I want to try these Peanut Butter Brownies.

Kids’ Room:

It’s funny to think that this board spans years of kids’ room ideas…from toddler to teens! We’ve pinned some things this past year to prep for ideas for Hadley’s room refresh.

These two pics were inspiration for ideas for her room…

This one and…

…this one.

{P.S. I’m just waiting on wallpaper, and then I hope to share Hadley’s room update.}

Who knows if Hayden will ever let me update his room, but I really like this room:

House & Home:

Once we moved into this house almost ten years ago, I really started pinning ideas for updating our house. We’ve looked at this board many times as inspiration.

I love to change up our front porch seasonally, and pics like this one serve as inspiration.

One day, I’d love to change the columns on our porch to something like these cedar ones:

This beautiful entry way hall is one I love.

I’ve been thinking about adding lanterns on either side of our primary bedroom tv. This pic serves as inspiration.

I have lots of ship lap idea photos pinned, and I love how our living room turned out when we did this update almost two years ago:

I also use this board for things like cleaning and organization:

What’s one of your favorite Pinterest boards that you have? It’s a great place to get ideas and inspiration, that’s for sure.

Thanks for reading,

Friday Favorites

Friday Favorites {#192}

Posted on January 26, 2024January 25, 2024 by jgalvinwhite

Hello and happy Friday!

TGIF! Well, I made it through this four day work week…It was a good one but weird. Besides getting back in the swing of things after being off for a week, my room was used for testing this week, so I was “displaced” from my room. I’m tired of carrying my stuff around. Also, the kids’ activities are in full swing, so we had some busy nights as well.

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

Here are some favorites from the week:

Snow! The snow we got last Thursday to Friday was so pretty.

This week, we’ve had nothing but rain, so all the snow is gone now.

“How bout those Chieeefffsss?!”

My house was pretty happy with the divisional win on Sunday…and now we get to cheer for the Chiefs in the AFC championship this weekend.

I don’t think I’ve ever made the Trader Joe’s Blondie Bars…

….but I made them last week, and they were so good. I went to Trader Joe’s this week, and I already picked up a couple more boxes.

Hadley is really loving club volleyball so far. This is our first time doing club, and while it’s a commitment, it’s pretty low key compared to other volleyball clubs. She has great coaches and has had so much fun playing with friends.

My #14!

We love watching her team play. Hayden even came for the games on Sunday 😉

These girls took 2nd in the gold bracket last weekend which is amazing!

And…it’s school basketball season for Hayden.

As he walked out the door for his first game on Monday, I kind of did a double take…Why does it look like he could drive himself there?

It’s hard to get action shots in kids’ sports…but #33 is my favorite when he’s on the court.

Favorite Kid Quote:

I told Hadley that I’d read a People magazine article about Trader Joe’s 2024 most popular products and that her favorite Chili and Lime Rolled Corn Tortillas were the favorite snack. She said, “Obviously!” haha…She does love these things.

Favorite Mom Meme:

Hadley got a new Stanley for Christmas…and lost it at volleyball tournament a couple of weekends ago. Ugh.

Weekly Recap:

I can’t believe I’ve kept up with my Bloganuary posts, but I have. Here are my posts from the past week:

Bloganuary: Kroger

Bloganuary: All About Books

Day in the Life: Snow DAy

Tuesday Talk

Bloganuary: Homer

Monthly Musings

What are your weekend plans? Hadley has a volleyball tournament, and of course we’ll be cheering for the Chiefs on Sunday!

I will have a Share 4 Somethings post tomorrow.

Happy Friday,

Monthly Musings

Posted on January 25, 2024January 25, 2024 by jgalvinwhite

Hello!

I’m excited to link up with Patty and Holly for the first Monthly Musing of 2024!

This month’s topic is winter self-care.

Oh I’m all about self-care…but sometimes I wish I had more time for it.

1. How do you care for yourself in the winter?

Around December, my skin starts feeling so dry. While I could use body butter all year long, I typically use it the most during the winter months.

My morning quiet time is important to me year round, but I love it in the winter months too…feels extra cozy.

Exercise is another way I take care of myself year round, but during the winter, when it feels like I’m less active outside, I try to be intentional about getting workouts in.

I also try to enjoy a less hectic pace that the new year brings.

2. How do you fight the winter blues?

Honestly, my answers to #2 go along with #1 as well….especially my quiet time and exercise. Also, it’s easy to hunker down when the weather is cold and snowy, but I try to make a point to get out and run errands, grab a cup of coffee, make dinner plans, etc.

3. Tips for making your living space cozy.

Candles make everything cozy.

Last year, I bought a set of flameless candles, and have enjoyed them year round.

Also, this year I decided to keep out my pretty trees from Walmart at least until Valentine’s Day.

4. Suggestions for winter time activities

Well, the kids play outside and sled when it snows.

Hadley had fun ice skating with friends recently.

Honestly, my winter activity, when I have time, has been catching up on tv shows I want to watch.

5. Exercise routines in the winter

My exercise routine is mostly the same as what I do year round…Bodi workouts in my basement. That being said, if the temps are mild or not too cold, I try to go for walks when I can as well.

6. Tips for restful sleep

Well, I’m a high-maintenance sleeper. I like my weighted blanket and sound machine. I still swear by Olly melatonin when needed.

Also, I’m liking this Jergen’s essential oils stick. I put a bit on my wrists and neck after my evening shower.

7. Favorite warm beverage

Hadley likes to ask to go to Starbucks on Friday after school. I’ve tried the pistachio latte recently, and I like it.

In general, coffee is my favorite warm beverage.

8. Best winter skincare tips

I find that I need body butter when my skin is dry. Also, I make sure to use a bit more moisturizer for my morning and night time skin care routine.

I also continue my monthly facial appointments, and my skin feels so hydrated afterwards.

9. Flannel sheets: yes or no?

I love flannel pjs, but I think I’d get too hot if we used flannel sheets….so no.

10. Favorite winter pjs

Well, I could probably have an “all about pjs” post.

This season, I’ve purchased three new pairs of pj’s.

These are light weight and perfect to wear without getting hot. They run big, so size down.

Last year, I donated a few pairs of pjs at the end of winter, so this year I replenished my pjs supply with two new pairs of flannel pjs…one from Walmart and one from Victoria Secret.

This is such a fun link up to kick start the year!