March 18, 2024

Monday Morning Coffee

 


Good Monday morning! I hope you had a nice weekend. Monday dawned bright and sunny here, yet it is pretty chilly. It's one of those days that looks nicer than it actually is. Cooler days are just fine here at the beach. We can look outside and watch the reassuring sight of a never-ending rhythm.



 
We can play new games with easy-to-understand instructions that are fun for everyone.


We can snuggle with not one, not two, but three pups, this one being the smallest.


We can watch new TV shows that we all really like. This is on Apple TV+. It is about John Wilkes Booth and the assassination of one of our greatest leaders.

And we get updates from home where Madison and Nicolas visited my Mom and Facetimed me, too!


Today begins a new week. I have a menu to make and some groceries to get. There is laundry, school, and dinner, too. Tonight, on The Bachelor, Joey must send one of his women home, just like that. And then there will be two. How will he ever decide which of the women he's known for six weeks is the one he will propose to...next week?!? Well, have a nice day, my friends. I am off to get mine started. Thanks for visiting! I will be around to visit you soon.

Billie Jo


                                 

March 15, 2024

Happy Things And Recipes

It's time to wrap up another week, my friends. Here are some pictures from my camera roll that made me happy!


My Momma. Happy and healthy and happy. And my beautiful sister Margie, who visits every single day and calls me so I can visit with them. On this day, my mom won Bingo and was so happy to share that with me! Also, I found the best place to purchase clothes for my mom. I want her to be cozy, comfy, and warm, and I found wonderful options at Silverts online. They have excellent quality, soft-as-can-be adaptive clothing that washes beautifully. 



My Mocha. She is content and unfazed by all the recent changes in her life. In seven months, she lost her best friend, Kirby, moved to a new house part of the time, got a new best friend who was much more playful and then got yet another new friend who was even smaller and more playful. Mocha is adjusting and taking it mostly in stride. As long as I am in her line of vision, everything is just fine.




Good food. This week, we had two delicious meals. I mentioned our chicken bowls—I know, such a creative name—and I wanted to share them here again because they are just that good. Just put some boneless, skinless chicken breast in the crockpot, sprinkle on some taco seasoning, and then pour in some salsa. That cooks all day while you do everything else except worry about dinner. Then, shortly before you plan on eating, just wash, chop, boil, or do whatever else you need to prepare what you want to serve with the chicken. We like rice, corn, lettuce, tomato, pico, avocado, shredded cheese, lime, cilantro, and sour cream. I also set out some taco shells for anyone who wants to eat that way.



I also made this recipe this week. It is delicious! It is baked ziti with sausage, a new one for me. I will link it below. I served it with salad, using the leftover tomato and lettuce from the chicken bowls, and garlic bread. 




My bird room. I finally got around to fixing this beautiful room in the back of the house. I call it the Bird Sanctuary because so many different types of birds visit every day! I thought it appropriate to decorate it to reflect some of the ones we see often. This is ironic because I really don't like birds, but I guess I just don't like them too close to me?


This candle. It smells AMAZING. It's like cozy autumn without the autumn. Does that make sense? I got it online and will link it below. The candles are soy, paraffin-free, dye-free, and cruelty-free. This one is Momma's Kitchen, and it smells so good.

Well, there you have it—happy things. As I get older, I have learned that we can always find happiness, even when the world seems to be spiraling out of control or filled with chaos. Happiness isn't out there, on the news or on social media. Happiness is inside our family, our home, our friendships, our faith, and ourselves. That may be why I feel so much happier insulated within my little world with my people. That,  or I may just be socially awkward. Perhaps a bit of both! 

Happy Weekend!
Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Oh! One more!



Peyton and Chris had Madison and Nicolas for dinner last night back home, and she served a delicious Irish meal complete with her signature sugar cookies. While I am incredibly envious, I am also very thankful that my children are each other's best friends. 


Billie Jo







 

March 13, 2024

Sometimes You Got Nothing

 


Sometimes, you have nothing exciting to post. Sometimes you are fresh out of ideas, or you literally have one...albeit preciously cute...picture on your phone. Sometimes, nothing is happening except, well, life. Regular, ordinary, daily life. As I was saying my prayers this morning, I realized it is ok to write about nothing. I mean, life happens between all the special events, holidays, and excitement. And for me, ordinary life is the very best life there is.

Currently, I am on the couch with two of our three pups, finishing my morning coffee and prayers. The television is off, mainly because I try to keep my mornings less chaotic and more intentional, but also because this house has some sort of special air heating and cooling system that makes the sound travel everywhere and all at once! I am an early riser, to be sure. The remainder of the house is not. 

Later, I will get cleaned up, have breakfast/lunch, and start school with Flynn. We usually watch an old game show or two, like MatchGame or Card Sharks, first. If you are looking for a break from chaos and politically correct television today, immerse yourself in GameShow Network, where it is perpetually anywhere from 1975 through 1983 and much more fun. I mean Gene Rayburn and Jim Perry?! The best!

After school, I will throw in some laundry, take the dogs outside for a bit, and then wait for a call from my sister Margie and my mom; I am so thankful for those calls and for the fact that my mom is happy and still loves to talk with me, her daughter. Next, I will head to the kitchen, where I usually play some Post Malone music on my speaker rather loudly while I start dinner. Tonight, we are having Baked Ziti with Sausage, tossed salad, and garlic bread; Flynn is making some pumpkin bread too!

After dinner, we will clean up and get cozy on the couch for a few episodes of Gilmore Girls. After that, the kids usually disperse to various places for video games or showers, and I head to one of my favorite parts of my day, my nightly shower. I have written before how I used to be a morning shower person. However, an evening shower somehow does more than make me clean. It washes away the day's stress and relaxes me way more than an invigorating morning one. I slather on my lotion...Eucerin is my current favorite, followed by a bit of my signature scent... Amazing Grace by Philosophy. Then I head back out to the family room and plop on the couch for some reading or TV watching with Steve before bed.

Of course, this is only an outline of my ordinary day. In between are mundane things like picking up one dog's food so another can't eat it, helping Flynn train a cute but feisty puppy, making grocery lists, scrubbing toilets, taming my unstyled hair into a ponytail over and over, and checking in with my sister and friends through texts. My windows need washing, the bird feeder is empty, and Easter is coming too quickly. I can, however, let all that be, because it will all work out. And if it doesn't the sun will rise again anyhow, right? 

So, embrace your mundane, my friends. That is the stuff life is made of.

Billie Jo




March 11, 2024

Monday Morning Coffee

 


Good morning! I was up extra early this morning, around 6:30, which, for me, means 5:30 because it takes me a while to let go of the whole Daylight Savings thing. Our weekend was nice and cozy and rainy. Some friends visited, and we enjoyed catching up, watching TV, and eating. There were also several outings like movies, walks on the Boardwalk, and dinner out, which I politely passed on because, having three dogs, two in various stages of puppyhood, I thought it better to be here with them. I attended mass on Saturday, which was beautiful, and it felt good actually drying and styling my hair, as well as putting on a touch of makeup. Of course, I washed it all off the moment I got home and changed into my cozy clothes, but I put forth the effort; really, I did!

Today, Flynn and I will homeschool, and I am putting chicken breast in the crockpot with some salsa. I'll shred it for what we call "chicken bowls" that I serve with all the things: rice, avocado, tomato, lettuce, corn, and pico. Easy and delicious. We will continue cheering Joey the Bachelor on tonight as he narrows down his prospective life partner from three to the final two. And if you thought it would be easy for him to choose the woman he wants to spend his entire life with, think again! I am sure drama and tears will make an appearance tonight. Stay tuned!

Finally, before I go, I want to mention that Blogland lost one of its most beautiful, strong, talented, faithful women recently, and I feel the need to thank her for sharing her thoughts on life, home, and motherhood for so many years. Sarah from CLOVER LANE was one of the very first bloggers I ever read and continued to read for years and years. She fought unbelievably hard for the life she loved so, and I ask you to pray for or send loving thoughts to her greatest joy, her six children, as they say goodbye to her today.

 
Leaving you with a real-life picture this morning, my friends.
Thank you for visiting.
This really is a wonderful place, isn't it?


Billie Jo