Blog Feed

Posted in Everyday Life

2022: Year in Review

Posted on by jgalvinwhite

Happy last day of 2022! I can’t believe another year has passed.

This is a post I start in January and just add to each month. It’s a fun way to take a peek at the year.

Here’s a look back at 2022:

January:

We started the year in Cincinnati cheering for the Chiefs (vs. the Bengals). It was a heartbreaking loss for our Chiefs.

Per usual, we got our first snow day(s) of the season. Sledding with friends is always fun.

On my birthday, I went to see my fave, Heather McMahon, with some of my friends.

February:

We were still cheering for those Chiefs in February.

We celebrated Valentine’s Day with a festive lunch.

Hadley had her first dance competition of the year.

March:

In March, Hadley had her second dance competition of the season.

6th grade basketball wrapped up for Hayden with a heartbreaking loss (why are those our ‘thing?’), but it was a great season none the less.

We *finally* were mask free at school! Look at those smiles.

We cheered on my school’s boys basketball team in the sweet 16 at Rupp.

April:

April started off with Spring Break in Asheville.

While there, Hayden and I visited the Biltmore.

Hayden’s final year of baseball started.

I’ll treasure all of the baseball memories!

Travis and I were able to go to Keeneland with friends.

Middle school track started for both kids.

We celebrated Easter.

Travis and I went with friends to the Chris Stapleton at Kroger Field.

Hadley had her final dance competition of the season, and they came home with lots of awards.

Track season continued.

May:

Travis and I started May by attending the Oaks.

We celebrated Mother’s Day.

Baseball continued…

Hadley had her end of the year chorus concert.

The kids had their 6th grade championship meet for track.

Sixth grade went by in a blink!

June:

With June, came the end of baseball for Hayden.

Hadley had her dance recital.

We spent lots of time at the pool.

Hadley had swim team.

I had Covid (and cleaned my closet!)

Towards the end of June, Travis and I celebrated our 17th wedding anniversary.

We went to the lake with friends.

Hayden took another trip to the lake and realized his love for fishing.

I went to the New Kids on the Block concert with friends.

July:

In July, we took a fun family vacay to Mexico.

Hadley went to camp for a week.

Then, we visited family in Kansas City.

We had family photos taken.

Then, we celebrated my Gma’s 90th birthday.

Before heading back to Kentucky, we made a stop at the Lake of the Ozarks with friends.

August:

Before heading back to school, we enjoyed a family dinner at Jeff Ruby’s.

Hayden finished up summer basketball.

…and the kids started S E V E N T H grade!

Cross country began (with Travis as the coach)…

and dance started back up.

September:

In September, cross country continued.

We attended many UK football games. (Well, I attended one…the rest of my crew went when they could)

October:

In October, we took the best trip to 30A with our friends for Fall Break.

Love this family photo.

Right after break, Hadley got her braces off after two phases with phase two lasting almost two years.

Of course, we went to the pumpkin patch.

I got to see Heather McMahon again! She taped her Netflix special in Lexington.

Travis, the kids and I spent an afternoon at Keeneland.

Hayden had state cross country. The boys team did amazing! (Hayden made the all area team and Trav was the area Coach of the Year!)

The kids had fun on Halloween.

November:

Basketball picked back up again in November.

Hadley reignited her love for volleyball.

We had fun with friends at the Breeder’s Cup.

Both kids ran in a meet in honor of Trav’s dad.

We went to McDazzle with friends.

…and the kids turned T H I R T E E N!

Hadley had her Winter Showcase for dance

We celebrated Thanksgiving.

We went to our favorite place to pick out our Christmas tree.

December:

Volleyball continued (& the professional pics finally came in)

We attended a few holiday parties and carried on traditions (like baking cookies and going to the Horse Park to see the lights)

Right before break, volleyball wrapped up and Hayden made the school basketball team. Also, the kids finished their science fair projects.

We spent the first week of break finishing up Christmas shopping, baking cookies, watching movies and more.

We celebrated Christmas early at home (with snow and frigid temps outside) before heading to Louisville…

…and then KC.

Like any year, this one was filled with highs and lows. We were busy, but were able to do quite a few things as a family. I continue to feel grateful for health and happiness for all.

Now, we are ready to bring in 2023! See you next year! 😉

Posted in Me, Other

2022 Blogging Recap and Fave Posts

Posted on by jgalvinwhite

Hello! Wow! (unfortunately!) this week seems to be flying by…the same can be said about 2022!

Today, I’m sharing a little blogging recap for 2022.

I don’t spend a lot of time looking at stats, but the end of a year is the perfect time to look back, and WordPress makes it pretty simple to take a look at posts, viewers, etc. It’s also fun to see how much this little site grows year to year.

A few stats from the year:

  • Posts: 221
  • Words: 157k + words written
  • Best day: Friday; Best hour: 7am

I started this blog in August of 2019, and some all time stats include:

  • Views: 208.5k
  • Visitors: 62.8k
  • Posts published: 705
  • Countries – People from 84 countries have read at least one of my posts. That just blows my mind.

There are some “big time” bloggers, and that isn’t my goal. If one person or 100 people read one of my posts, I appreciate it. Truly. This is definitely a fun hobby for me, but it’s also rewarding to see growth every year (and the same can be said for every “like” or “comment”). Blogging is more fun and rewarding when I’m able to engage with readers ☺️ I can’t say it enough how much I appreciate “my readers.”

Today, I’m sharing some of my favorite posts from the year. These posts, to me, were the most meaningful and/or fun to write.

Favorite 2022 posts:

1.

I loved starting the year off with my Not Just a Mom friends…

…to share our favorite bloggers.

2.

We finally did the shiplap project that I’d wanted to do for years.

3.

I changed up my “beauty routine” this year, and loved sharing my favorite Dime beauty products.

I actually received a quite a few comments and messages afterward with many saying they tried the products after reading the post and loved them.

4.

I loved sharing about our day at the Oaks races. Kentucky is a special place…especially the first week of May!

5.

I always love linkups, and the Let’s Look with Shay and Erika with the topic of “my hometown” was fun to write.

6.

It was the end of an era for Hayden as he wrapped up playing baseball as a twelve year old. I loved my years as a baseball mom, and it was fun looking back at all the teams he’s been on and how much he grew as a player.

7.

We loved our Mexico vacay, and the recap posts were a great spot to share about our trip and keep all the memories in one place.

8.

I also changed up my makeup routine this year. I’m still not a master of makeup, but I still love using the Seint products.

9.

Somehow I blinked, and we have a couple of teenagers in the house. I loved taking the stroll down memory lane.

10.

One of my favorite posts to write every year is sharing my top 5 favorite reads.

I shared that one yesterday! It was a pretty good year of reading.

Bonus: I also loved sharing about our Fall Break trip to 30A this year. It was the kids first time there, and we loved going with our friends.

As always, thanks so much for reading! Let me know if there are any blog topics/suggestions. Sometimes I get writer’s block, so I’d love some input on ideas.

I should be back tomorrow with a recap of 2022….which is another one of my favorite posts to write every year.

Posted in Books and Shows

December Books + TOP 5 books of 2022

Posted on by jgalvinwhite

Hello! How has your week been?

Today is one of my favorite posts of the year. I’m sharing the books I read this month (Christmas reads!) as well as the Top 5 books that I read in 2022.

I love reading and always enjoy seeing what books others are reading.

For the past couple of years, I’ve read Christmas books in December. To me, these are usually pretty light hearted and perfect to read this time of the year.

December Books:

This month I read:

{As always, book summaries are from Goodreads…}

With such a long post, I’m just sharing the summaries and my rating. My quick thoughts are the fact that these are perfect reads for December. Most were light-hearted and festive while others did have a sad moment or two. That being said, I thought this was the perfect mix of books for my December reading.

The Holiday Switch:

Summary:

Lila Santos is ready for her last winter break of high school. The snow in her small town of Holly, New York, is plentiful, the mood is as cozy as a fuzzy Christmas sweater, and she’s earning extra cash working at the local inn—AKA the setting of the greatest film of all time, Holiday by the Lake—while moonlighting as an anonymous book blogger.

But her perfect holiday plans crash to a halt when her boss’s frustratingly cute nephew, Teddy Rivera, becomes her coworker. Lila is type A; Teddy is type “Anything but Lila’s Way,” and the two of them can’t stop butting heads over tangled icicle lights and messy gift shop merch. But when they accidentally switch phones one afternoon, they realize they’ve both been hiding things from each other. Will their secrets—and an unexpected snowstorm—bring these rivals together?

Rating:

Always in December:

Summary:

It started with a letter. It ended with a love story.

Every December, Josie posts a letter from her home in London to the parents she lost on Christmas night many years ago. Each year, she writes the same three words: Missing you, always. But this year, her annual trip to the postbox is knocked off course by a bicycle collision with a handsome stranger–a stranger who will change the course of Josie’s life.

Josie always thought she was the only one who avoided the Christmas season, but this year, Max has his own reasons for doing the same–and coincidence leads them to spending the holiday together. Aglow with new love, Josie thinks this might be the start of something special.

Only for Max to disappear without saying goodbye.

Over the course of the next year, Max and Josie will find that fate continues to bring them together in places they’d never expect. New York City. Edinburgh. The quiet English countryside. And it turns out, Max had every reason to leave and every reason to stay. But what does fate hold for Josie and Max as Christmas approaches again?

A devastating, romantic, life-affirming love story, Always, in December will stay with readers long after they’ve finished the last page.

Rating:

Christmas in London:

Summary:

A charming, glamourous love story set at Claridge’s in London during the magical week before Christmas starring a sweet NYC baker and the Cooking Channel Producer who could change her life.

It’s a week before Christmas and Louisa Graham is working twelve hour shifts at a bakery on Manhattan’s Lower East Side. When a young cooking show assistant comes in from the rain and begs to buy all the cinnamon rolls on her tray, she doesn’t know what to do. Louisa is just the baker, and they aren’t hers to sell. But the show burned the rolls they were supposed to film that day, so she agrees.

The next morning, Louisa finds out that her cinnamon rolls were a hit, but the star of the show was allergic, and the whole crew is supposed to leave for London that afternoon. They want Louisa to step in for their annual Christmas Eve Dinner TV special at Claridge’s. It’s a great opportunity, and Digby Bunting, Louisa’s famous baking idol, will be there. Even if he does seem more interested in her than her food.

And then there’s Kate, the show’s beautiful producer. On their first day in London she runs into the skinny boy she jilted at St. Andrew’s in Scotland ten years ago. Now he’s a handsome, brilliant mathematician, and newly divorced. Their familiar spark is still there, but so is the scar of how they left things. Kate and Louisa are busy preparing for the show, but old and new flames are complicating their work.

Set during London’s most festive time of year and filled with delicious food, Christmas in London is about love and friendship, and the season’s most important lesson: learning how to ask for and give forgiveness.

Rating:

The Christmas Wedding Guest:

Summary:

The Somerville sisters believe in love, but they’ve lost faith it will happen for them. Reggie hasn’t been home since the end of the world’s shortest engagement. When her parents decide to renew their vows, she buffs up her twinkle to help with the Christmas wedding. Unexpectedly, Toby, her first love, is back too, and the spark between them shines as brightly as ever. In the spirit of the season, will they let go of past hurts and greet the New Year together?

Done waiting for the one, Dena is pregnant and on her own—on purpose. But then a gorgeous, sad-eyed songwriter checks in to a room at her inn. Micah, unable to write since he lost his wife, finds inspiration in Dena’s determination to be a mom. One snowflake-speckled kiss and he’s a goner. But Dena is afraid to believe that a rock star could fall for a cookie-cutter small-town girl like her.

As the Christmas wedding draws closer, these two sisters just might unwrap the most treasured gift of all—love.

Rating:

Christmas Shopaholic

Summary:

Becky Brandon (née Bloomwood) adores Christmas. It’s always the same – Mum and Dad hosting, carols playing, Mum pretending she made the Christmas pudding, and the next-door neighbours coming round for sherry in their terrible festive jumpers.

And now it’s even easier with online bargain-shopping sites – if you spend enough you even get free delivery. Sorted!

But this year looks set to be different. Unable to resist the draw of craft beer and smashed avocado, Becky’s parents are moving to ultra-trendy Shoreditch and have asked Becky if she’ll host Christmas this year. What could possibly go wrong?

With sister Jess demanding a vegan turkey, husband Luke determined that he just wants aftershave again, and little Minnie insisting on a very specific picnic hamper – surely Becky can manage all this, as well as the surprise appearance of an old boyfriend and his pushy new girlfriend, whose motives are far from clear . . .

Will chaos ensue, or will Becky manage to bring comfort and joy to Christmas?

Rating:

Recap of Books 2022:

This year my Goodreads goal was that same as last year: 40 books. I was able to read 41! Thank goodness for a couple of vacations and winter break to get me across the finish line. There were a couple months this year that I only read two books, so I wasn’t sure I would hit that goal.

Here are my Goodreads stats:

  • 41 books read
  • 14,824 pages read
  • The shortest book I read (Lucky) was 232 pages
  • The longest book I read (Katie Couric’s Going There) was 736 pages (was it?! I really don’t remember it being that long of a book!)
  • Average book length in 2022: 361 pages

My 2022 Reads:

Looking back, I realized that I’ve read by the fire, in the mountains, poolside and with my toes in the sand. That definitely makes for a great year of reading.

January:

  • Katie Couric’s Going There
  • The Royals Next Door
  • We Are the Brennans

February:

  • Our Woman in Moscow
  • Becoming Mrs. Lewis

March:

  • Lucky
  • Rock, Paper, Scissors

April:

  • Such a Quiet Place
  • Pack Up the Moon
  • The Rent Collector

May:

  • Save Me From Dangerous Men
  • A Stranger’s Game
  • The Summer Getaway

June:

  • Summer Love
  • The Summer Job
  • Harry: Life, Loss, and Love

July:

  • The Sweet Taste of Muscadines
  • One Italian Summer
  • Meant to Be
  • The Lifeguards
  • The Hotel Nantucket
  • This Tender Land

August:

  • Under the Southern Sky
  • Book Lovers
  • Every Summer After
  • The Chain
  • This Time Tomorrow

September:

  • The Younger Wife
  • The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo
  • Twenty Years Later

October:

  • Smells like Tween Spirit
  • The Beach Trap
  • The Masterpiece

November:

  • The Things We Cannot Say
  • One True Loves
  • A Magical New York Christmas

December:

  • The Holiday Switch
  • Always in December
  • Christmas in London
  • The Christmas Wedding Guest
  • Christmas Shopaholic

Top 5 books of 2022:

I felt like I started off 2022 strong with reading, but then wasn’t reading as much. From July on, I felt like I was reading more books that I enjoyed and was able to find a bit more time to read.

Before I share my Top 5 reads of 2022, these deserve honorable mention recognition:

  • One Italian Summer
  • This Time Tomorrow
  • Every Summer After
  • Our Woman in Moscow
  • Summer Love
  • Meant to Be

Here are my 5 favorite reads of 2022 in the order I read them…

Becoming Mrs. Lewis, (also my fave of the year, I think. My Gma recommended it to me.)

The Rent Collector.

The Sweet Taste of Muscadines

This Tender Land

The Things We Cannot Say

I clearly lean towards more serious books with a side of historical fiction.

Previous Top 5 Books:

2021
2020
2019

What’s the best book you’ve read this year? I’d love to add it to my Goodreads list!

I have two more posts this week: a blogging and 2022 recap.

Happy reading!

Posted in Holidays

All About Christmas…

Posted on by jgalvinwhite

fun, traditions, and festivities.

Happy Monday! How was your Christmas? We had a hectic but good one. Once school was out on December 16th, we started to pack in all things Christmas leading up to the 25th.

We baked cookies. Hadley made Chocolate Peppermint Crinkle cookies, and Hayden made Peanut butter Blossoms.

I joked that the Life Essentials class sure is paying off. They basically did all the baking on their own.

I picked up a couple of cookies from one of our favorite cookie decorators. This is always a fun tradition.

Last weekend, we went to a couple of Christmas parties. Travis and I went to one that our friends always host. Then, last Sunday, Hadley and I went to a mom/daughter pj and popcorn movie night with friends. Hadley insisted that we match, and we so happened to have similar plaid pj pants…and Merry and Bright sweatshirts.

The mom who hosted had fun socks, popcorn, hot chocolate, (and wine) for us to enjoy while we watched Spirited on Netflix. The girls lasted half of the movie, but the moms finished it. It was a great night.

We went to the Horse Park for Southern Lights.

Hadley made a gingerbread house. Again, times have changed…she did this all on her own.

Hadley also went to a cookie decorating class with friends. It was a fundraiser for a friend’s little sister’s Girl Scout troop.

The tradition continued with the kids picking out a gift for each other. I took Hadley one day and Travis took Hayden one evening to pick those out.

We had dinner out on Wednesday night. This isn’t really a tradition, but we planned ahead to make a reservation, and I’m glad we did. It was a nice evening out.

Once we got home, the kids convinced us to let them open their gifts from each other. We figured, “why not?”

Then, we watched Home Alone.

And enjoyed some cake.

Earlier in the day, I made Shay’s Peppermint Mocha Bundt Cake per tradition.

Speaking of Christmas movies, once break started, I got my movie watching game face on. I made a point to watch at least one Christmas movie a day.

I watched:

  • The Noel Diary (on Netflix)
  • Spirited (mom/daughter night)
  • The Holiday
  • While You Were Sleeping – Hadley watched this with me (and Hayden watched the last half) It’s one of my all time favorite movies, and Hadley had never seen it. While many may not think of it as a Christmas movie, it’s set during Christmas, and I watch it every year)
  • Christmas with You (on Netflix) – This one popped up in my feed. I crushed hard Freddie Prinze, Jr. in high school and college. This movie was cute!
  • You’ve Got Mail- Again, not really a Christmas movie but one I watch every year on break. Hadley watched it with me.
  • Home Alone– a family favorite
  • A Christmas Prince (on Netflix)
  • A Christmas Story– a Christmas Day tradition

Christmas Eve Dinner:

We had to celebrate our Christmas early, so I thought about trying something different and maybe just have appetizers instead of a full dinner. Hadley White wasn’t having that idea. So, we had our traditional salmon, Bob Evans potatoes, Caesar salad and then more cake for dessert.

Christmas Morning:

We had a nice “Christmas” morning. The kids slept in a bit. We opened gifts, stockings, and had a simple breakfast. Times sure have changed since the early wake up times with the kids along with Legos and Barbies for presents. That being said, it still was a great Christmas, of course.

I always look forward to Trav’s gift tags. He always writes funny things on mine. This year, Hadley elf helped him write them.

I didn’t know he’d ordered these watercolor images of the kids. They loved them, and I cried. We can’t wait to hang them up.

We had frigid temps and snow (like much of the country) so it was a good day to stay inside until we visited Trav’s family and then my family.

I always think of break as two halves – before Christmas and after Christmas. I really enjoy the week leading up to Christmas because we pack in the Christmas fun and traditions. Also, I like having the time to wrap presents, run errands, stay home if I want, watch movies, and more. After Christmas, it’s time to get organized, put decorations away, and at some point start thinking about school again. Anyway, I still have a whole week left of break, and we’ll make the most of it, I’m sure.

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas and a great week ahead.

*Linking up with Sarah and Holly for Hello Monday.

Posted in Holidays

Merry Christmas!

Posted on by jgalvinwhite

Hello!

With only a couple of days left until Christmas, I just wanted to take a moment to wish you all a Merry Christmas.

The past few years, I’ve sent two cards out because there are so many cute options. Also, I love sending them, but I hate waiting for them to arrive. So, I’m able to start addressing the ones from Walgreens while waiting on my Shutterfly order.

This blog (and the readers) bring me a lot of joy! I appreciate all of the comments and readers I’ve gotten to know in this Show Me and Sweet Tea space.

My hope is that everyone has a Merry and Bright holiday season….

…with warm wishes for a wonderful 2023!

I know the holidays can be difficult for some. Even in the best of circumstances, this season can be overwhelming and filled with many other emotions. I know quite a few people who’ve lost a loved one recently, and I’ve certainly been thinking of them this holiday season.

December is filled with so many traditions, activities, parties, and more. I feel like the hectic pace makes the time pass by quicker than I’d like, but I try to enjoy this time the best I can with my family. I hope you are able to do the same as well.

I can’t let the Christmas season pass by without sharing my most favorite Christmas card that Travis and I have ever sent:

Christmas 2009 was pretty special!

I hope you have a wonderful and blessed holiday. Many bloggers take this time off, but I hope to have a few posts next week including some of my favorites: a blogging round up, the books I read this year, and a recap of 2022.

See you then.

Merry Christmas and happy holidays,

Posted in Holidays

Winter Solstice

Posted on by jgalvinwhite

Happy Winter Solstice Wednesday (#workingtitle)

It’s officially the first day of winter.

I love winter. (My dad will read this and shake his head). I’m not sure if it’s the holidays or the fact that I have a January birthday, but I have always loved winter. On top of that, January is one of my favorite months (Again, probably because of my birthday, but January also feels like a fresh start, and it is considerably less hectic than December.)

Here are five of my favorite things about winter:

Snow! Even better…a snow day! I love the beauty of freshly fallen snow. If it’s going to be cold, I want there to be snow on the ground. The kids (and Homer) love to play outside.

Sweater weather and flannel/fleece pjs!

Sweaters and pjs on repeat with the cold temps of winter.

Candles!

Don’t get it twisted, of course I love candles year round, but I love seasonal winter scents like peppermint, fireside marshmallow, and cranberry. They make the house feel extra cozy.

Comfort food! Bonus- I feel like meal planning is easier in the winter months because soups and chili are favorites in my house. Also, they provide leftovers which is another bonus. I use the slow cooker the most in the fall and winter which means getting dinner on the table quicker.

Celebrations!…followed by a fresh start. Of course, December is jam packed with Christmas festivities, and then I just love the quiet that January brings. It’s a time to start fresh, have a bit more down time, and ease into the new year.

What about you? What’s your favorite thing about winter? (if you have one) 😉

Posted in Holidays

Some of my favorite…

Posted on by jgalvinwhite

ornaments!

One of my favorite things about Christmas is putting ornaments on the tree. It’s always fun to open the ornament boxes and take a trip down memory lane. The kids always have a few faves, and I do too.

I will say that I wish that I’d done a better job through the years getting the kids ornaments every year. I’ve even been “bad” about picking up ornaments from places we have traveled. Maybe I can focus on that in the coming years. I just know when Travis and I got our first tree in December 2004, I was able to put a few ornaments from my childhood on the tree. I’d like the same for Hayden and Hadley. The kids definitely have ornaments because my mom is good about getting them for them, but I just wish I’d think of it throughout the year.

Also, I love the look of an assortment of ornaments. I don’t need the tree to be “matchy matchy.” That being said, both of the pencil trees are filled with neutral unbreakable ornaments because those are easy to put up in November when I pull those trees out. This year, I did add a few faves to the other pencil tree once we started decorating.

Here are some of my favorite ornaments on our living room tree:

My childhood ornaments.

I have quite a few from my childhood including the 1980 silver bell (that could use a good polishing), two angels (one of which I painted when I was a kid), and an ornaments from Mrs. Overby, my 3rd grade teacher.

While the one of Trav doesn’t hang on our tree, I love it (and look for it every year on his mom’s tree.)

From the kids…

The kids have made quite a few cute ornaments through the years at school. We always loved receiving those. The snow globes are faves and you can’t beat a salt dough ornament.

I love the snowman family hand print.

Also, we used to make an ornament every year to give to the grandparents, and I always had them make one extra for our tree. One year, we made the little present to give to family.

Other faves:

My grandpa used to carve, and he made the Santa ornament. We all have one. Last year, my friend gave me the Betty White ornament, and I love it. My dad’s cousin who hosts Christmas Eve, always gives us a nice glass ornament. I love the cardinal one, but we’ve received so many beautiful ones through the years.

Of course, I love the “first Christmas” for the kids, and this was the main gift I gave in 2009! The kids were one month old, and I couldn’t really do much shopping. We have a few other “first Christmas” ornaments for them, and I also love our wedding ornament someone gave us.

My mom cross stitched this ornament…

Newest ornament

Shutterfly helped me out with a few new ornaments this year, and I decided to get one of Homer because we don’t have one for him!

What about you? What’s your favorite ornament on your tree? I plan on having blog posts the next couple of days, so come on back!

Posted in Memes

Monday Memes

Posted on by jgalvinwhite

Hello and Happy Monday! I can’t believe it’s the Monday before Christmas. We’re definitely in full on break mode which makes for the best kind of Monday.

The month wouldn’t be complete without a few laughs thanks to some memes.

To keep it festive and fun, all of these memes are holiday related.

My aunt sent this in a group text, and I literally LOL’d.

Haha…truth!

Actually, this meme has probably been true for at least the past couple of weeks…

Classic Christmas with Nutcrackers.

Well, this is actually close to true…but I know how it goes with chocolate Advent calendars.

Me…yesterday. (I’m very behind on my Christmas movie viewing…so my goal is to watch at least one Christmas movie a day this week. Yesterday, I watched The Noel Diary on Netflix.)

Of course, the kids sleep in a bit later now that they are older, but even when they were little, I’d set an alarm to get up early and have that quiet time before they woke up.

I sent this one to a few of my friends. I try to be the gift that keeps on giving 😉

Food for thought. haha

I think I see this one every year, and it’s funny.

So, these are a few of my faves! I hope you have a great week full of holiday fun.

Posted in Friday Favorites

Friday Favorites {#139}

Posted on by jgalvinwhite

Hello and Happy Friday! We made it! After today, we’re on a two week break.

This week has been filled with many tests at school for my kids, activities, science fair projects and more! I feel like we had to plan out every second of our evenings for studying, schoolwork, and activities. Anyway, we made it to the weekend (and break for some).

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

Here are some favorites from the week.

While it’s not a favorite that the volleyball season is over, it’s been a favorite to watch Hadley play these last couple of months. I told her that I’ve never been happier that she took a leap of faith and tried something (newish) to her. This team was so fun to watch, they supported each other, and they all improved so much!

Trav’s work had their Christmas party on Saturday. The kids let me snap a pic before we left…

…and then we got a pic with Santa at the party. It was a nice evening, and Travis has been at this farm for 15 years. They always speak a bit about the employees at the five, ten, fifteen, etc. year milestone. Of course, we’re proud of all of his hard work!

Both kids needed others to help them get their science project data. Hayden chose to focus on resting heart rate/heart rate of kids who play various sports. Hadley baked cookies for three different times to see which time makes the “best” cookie. So, the runners were able to eat cookies after that part of the science experiment. No cookies before running!😆

They finished their projects last night. We are happy to check this off our list.

I had told Travis not to worry about outside Christmas lights because I’d been striking out finding my Trader Joe’s garland and just really hadn’t had the time to tackle the outdoors. Well, I found some on Friday after school, so I told him I changed my mind about wanting lights outside. Thankfully, he obliged and took creative license with the extra strand of garland. He put in on the railings and added lights there too. I’m glad we made this happen. Now we are festive both inside and outside.

Look who was comfy and cozy inside…looking oh so merry 😂

I don’t have a pic, but on Tuesday the hospitality and culinary arts classes hosted teachers for lunch. We had a choice of two dishes that were served with salad and dessert. Well, I didn’t know that it was going to be such a formal occasion. I arrived to a dimly lit classroom, a hostess who seated me, black table cloths, tea lights, and fancy dinnerware. My vegetable lasagna was so good, and it was the best experience. I told them that the ambience was “giving proposal vibes” and that they’d outdone themselves.

Narci shared that she was making Santa pics again this year. Even though my kids are older, I still love putting these in frames during the holiday season.

The package included three images, and this one is my fave!

Y’all. The fact that I have wrapped presents this “early” in the season is some kind of Christmas miracle and certainly a favorite. I love having a little something under the tree now.

When Amy shared her Christmas traditions post, I remembered how much I like the idea of displaying our Christmas cards from previous years. Anyway, I need to find some of those, but in the meantime, I went to put a few cards in our card basket, and decided to pin a few on the arches that I have on the entryway table. It’s a festive touch and nice way to see some of the cards. Maybe next year this is where I will put our cards from years past.

Favorite Mom Meme:

This was basically my Monday. (kidding, kind of)

Bonus Fave: Flashback Friday:

How cute is Hadley elf in 2015? Never trust a toothless elf! 😉

Weekly Recap:

I blogged all week. Here are my posts:

Not Just a Mom
Holiday This or That
Let’s Look
Blog Challenge Part 3

What are your weekend plans? We have a few festive things going on including a couple of get togethers, possibly some cookie baking, and I would definitely like to watch a holiday movie or two.

See you back here on Monday.

Posted in Blog challenge, Me

Blog Challenge Part 3

Posted on by jgalvinwhite

Happy Thursday! How is your week going? Our evenings have been a bit less hectic which has given the kids some time to work on their science fair projects and study for tests. For them, unfortunately, it’s a glimpse into the next few years with end of unit assessments as the semester wraps up.

Anyway, today I’m writing about a couple more topics for the…

So far, I’ve shared posts one and two…

Today, I’m taking a look at topics #6 and #7.

6. Three personality traits I am proud of:

Yikes! Why is it so hard to write about myself?

The first personality trait that popped into my mind is that I’m loyal. I’ve kind of always been a “quality over quantity” girl as far as friends go, and that’s certainly even more true as I’ve gotten older. I’m not over the top with my emotions, but if you need me, I will be there.

I try to bring humor to most situations. So, I guess I think I’m funny. I’ve always said that I think my humor is a mix of both of my parents. I can be sarcastic but quick witted. I try to lighten the mood when I have the chance to do so.

I think I’m a thoughtful person. I try hard to remember birthdays, check in on friends, say thank you and more. I know I’d want people to do that for me as well. So, you know how it goes…”treat others how you wan to be treated.”

**Honestly I struggled with this a bit…It’s difficult to write about myself!

7. 10 favorite foods:

Now this topic isn’t difficult for me to write about. I like to eat!

I love…

  • cookie cake
  • chips and guac/queso
  • sushi
  • macaroni and cheese
  • Rice Krispie treats
  • gnocchi
  • small McDonald’s fries
  • mint chocolate chip ice cream
  • Taylor Farms Dill Pickle salad
  • mashed potatoes

What are some of your favorite foods?

See you back here tomorrow for Friday Favorites.