Author: bkbailey2016

Happy Saturday everyone! It’s sure been a great day. I hope yours has been as well. It’s rained all day here today. I won’t complain because the temperature was warm for January. It just kept me from an outdoor run. I had to hit the “dreadmill” but, I got my 3 miles in. I knew I had to get my exercise in today because we had evening plans for dinner with my sister and her husband and I wanted to eat without guilt. We went to a, what I call “fancy” dinner which isn’t like me but, it was really good. Following that with a candlelight concert which was absolutely wonderful. Side note: if you ever have the chance to attend a candlelight concert just go. It consisted of 4 orchestra musicians who play music of different artists. This particular one was the music of Fleetwood Mac and it was very very good. All surrounded by candles. Intimate and romantic. We don’t get all dressed up and go out very often. On occasion it’s nice. Now The Chop House isn’t really fancy and that’s where we had dinner. It is to me. We are more of a dive bar type of couple. Tonight while we were sitting there eating our $120 meal ( yea it was that much, which is also unusual for us) all I could think of were the restaurants that we went to when we were young. I don’t remember big fancy expensive restaurants growing up. Maybe it was just my family. I don’t know. Which leads me to tonight’s little tale.

I cook almost every single day. Two meals Monday through Thursday because my husband skips breakfast during the week. Three meals on the weekends. We do go out to eat one night a week for certain. We love pizza and that’s usually our cheat meal, we live a low carb lifestyle. Folks I don’t want to toot my own horn but, I am a good cook. I had a mamaw and a momma that cooked like chefs so a lot of that was passed down and for that I am truly thankful. I can make pretty much anything from scratch. I love baking cakes (that’s a little side hustle) and I thing there’s something pretty special about baking your own bread. We don’t go out to eat a lot because to be real honest, what I fix at home tastes better most of the time. The dinner’s out are more for me to get a break from the kitchen. As I’ve said before, we spent most every weekend with my grandparents. The took us out to eat once on the weekend. Nothing fancy. We had Pizza Hut and Long John Silvers a lot. They loved (and I don’t say that lightly) a buffet. We went to Kings Table which if you didn’t grow up in our area, you have no clue what that is. It was a buffet restaurant that had plenty of southern comfort food an it was pretty good. My grandparents loved it because they had plenty of fried chicken and catfish with any side that you could think off. Rolls and cornbread were always available. The desert selection was pretty good too. I remember piling my plate high with mashed potatoes (they were instant but for some reason tasted so good) and macaroni and cheese. We loved eating there. Some weekends papaw would decide to drive to Bristol which was the next city over, so that he could eat at Duffs Smorgasbord. What a name lol. I was okay but the one thing I remember is that didnt have macaroni and cheese. They served macaroni and tomatoes which my papaw loved. That’s completely disgusting in my mind. Thinking about it makes me throw up a little. Why a southern food buffet wouldn’t have mac n cheese is beyond me. Don’t get me wrong, I love a good big homegrown tomatoes but, macaroni floating in tomato juice is just gross. Give me the gooey fattening cheese on my macaroni. We never complained because we knew the following day we were going to get delicious home cooked meals from my mamaw. She used butter and lard and a cast iron skillet to make everything. It was always delicious. I miss her cooking and I miss them.

When it came to our house, mom cooked almost every night as well. But, we did go to dinner one night a week. And I’ll let you guess…….. a lot of the time it was Ryans (a buffet). I think they liked going there because they knew there were enough varieties of food to please everyone. It was good, not great, but good. Oh and they had mac and CHEESE. We’d pile our plates high and pig out. I must have had a great metabolism back then because honestly I should have weighed a lot and I did not. I was a skinny little thing with the appetite of a bear. Eating like that catches up to you pretty quick as you get older. I can look at a dessert now and gain 5 pounds. Mom and dad switched back and forth from going to the buffet and going to a local Italian restaurant in our area. Oh my gosh it was the best. Authentic and owned by a family straight from Italy. The Amato’s were our friends and boy could they cook. No other italian restaurant that I’ve had even comes close to the food they put out there. They were wonderful people and Joe (the owner) hired both myself and my sister when we were old enough to work. It was both our first jobs. I worked there all through high school, during college, and even as a second job once I graduated college. That food though! I can remember sitting in the back seat as a little girl hoping we were headed there rather than the buffet lol.

Now, as an adult, a buffet doesn’t interest me in the least. Truthfully in this area there are none. Except for a Golden Corral (yuck) and some Chinese buffets. I will eat the Chinese buffet because well, yumm. I don’t know about y’all but for me it seems so funny how different going out to eat compares now to when I was a child. Don’t get me started on the drive thru’s. I know families that eat drive thru food almost every day and sometimes more than once a day. It’s just convenient and I know people are busy. I just think there’s nothing like a home cooked meal. I enjoy cooking and I know exactly what’s in my food. My son was so spoiled with home cooked meals between myself and my mom that he wouldn’t eat any drive thru food for years. It’s more convenient for him now but he still drops in and eats sometimes when I cook.

Eating that “fancy” dinner tonight just made me think about all that buffet eating we did when we were young and brought back a lot of memories. All good so I was thankful for the moments of nostalgia. What were your go to restaurants when you were young and little? Did y’all frequent the buffets? I hope you can take a few moments this evening and think about meals with your family when you were growing up. I hope those memories are great and make you smile. I hope that just for a few moments your thoughts wander to a great time in your life which centered around food. Even if it was the buffet.

Have the very best night. Happy dreams

Always…….Brooke

Hello and Happy Thursday everyone! How was your day? My hope is that it was simply fabulous. Tomorrow is FRIYAY. For those of you who work a Monday – Friday job it means it’s almost over. We’ve almost made it to the best part of every week. The beloved weekend. Oh, how we all wish our lives away waiting for wonderful Saturday and Sunday. My weekends are typically spent with the ones that I love doing the things I enjoy. Saturdays are good but Sundays, for me, are always better. Today I was thinking about Sundays and so many wonderful memories flooded my mind. As a child that last day of the week (first day of the week for some people) consisted of church first and foremost, followed by a family dinner. Momma had us in church what seemed to be every Sunday. You got your tail out of bed and dressed real pretty to go sit in the pew. She was serious about it. You sat there like a little lady and listened to the pastor. You sang from them hymnal and worshiped like you were at the best rock concert you’ve ever been to. Needless to say it was no rock concert lol. Now don’t get me wrong, I loved church. I love Christian music and the older I get the more I love to worship. My church service now consists of listening tomy favorite Christian artists while I go for a run or a walk. Just a little different now. I grew up a Christian girl with a strong faith in the Lord. But, when we were little you went to church and walked the straight and narrow. You paid attention and didn’t act up. Typically, momma would sit between my sister and I. I literally think she sat between us because one peep that didn’t suit her fancy and you were in TROUBLE. God forbid you got tickled. And we did people! We got tickled a lot. Always at the worst places possible. It seemed like it was almost every Sunday. My little sister and I could (and pretty much still can) look at each other and lose it. So most of the church service I spent the 90 minutes looking at the floor praying that I wouldn’t start laughing and daring Amanda (my little sister) to look at me. I figured it was okay because all those little “old” people just thought I was sitting there praying. They must have thought I was the prayinest girl they ever knew lol. We use to write notes to one another on our church bulletin and pass them back and forth. Nothing bad of course but mostly, Wonder where we are going to eat when we leave here? I wish I would have kept some of those bulletins. I’m sure we would get a good laugh out of them now. We got in to so much trouble. The first little shake of a giggle and mom would dig her fingernail between your ribs. Sometimes I would swear she had touched my lung. She would sit with her arms crossed and pierce her lips tighter than a cats butt and then here would come that boney finger and long fingernail right between your ribs lol. You didn’t act up in church. She wasn’t having that embarrassment. Often she would say “you wait till you have kids. paybacks are comin”. I have to say she was right.

Daddy normally didn’t go to church with us. He was a good man. He was a Christian. He just wasn’t in to going to church. His church was more between him and God while he sat in a tree stand deer hunting. Or at his farm while he was farming and mowing. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. But, mom was usually the one in the embarrassing moments. I also remember being at the funeral home once and getting tickled. To the point that we had to go to the bathroom to get straightened up because I was sure we were about to get a whippin. There is nothing worse than getting tickled at a funeral. It happens. We are all human. It’s just not ideal to be shaking all over when its such a sad occasion. I felt sure that out hides were about to be tanned. Sitting in the bathroom in a funeral home trying to get ahold of yourself and then feeling like you had gotten it all out but, as soon as we sat back down it started again. I look back on it now and y’all it was so disrespectful but, in all honesty we did not mean any disrespect. We were just two little girls that got tickled and couldn’t stop laughing. I don’t know, a part of me thinks that a funeral shouldn’t be so sad and should be a celebration. I know, I know, it’s still rude to get tickled at a funeral. But it happened. Thankfully only once. But it sure did happen. Mom was the queen of the funeral home community. She did hair for all of the people that she knew when they passed away. I can remember thinking how creepy that was and she would tell us it was the last thing she could do for someone. She went and did hair at the funeral homes for years up until just a few years ago. Truth be told she probably would do it now if someone asked her to. That was her way. Our momma the saint. And I don’t say that lightly, she really is the closest person to a saint that I’ve ever know. So you can image the madness she was feeling with us getting tickled at the funeral home.

Here we are all these years later, and we still get tickled. I literally can’t go through a drive thru with my sister without looking out the window while she orders. If I as much as glance at her while she’s trying to order she will bust out. We have driven around that drive thru more than once just waiting to gain composure to order. I laugh about it right now just thinking about it. I know that the people in McDonalds spit in our food once. All she was ordering was a hot fudge sundae but when she said “with nuts” she literally busted out and screamed it through the monitor. We couldn’t even look at the people at the window. I’m sure they were smiling but we grabbed those sundaes and zoomed out of there as quick as we could. She was so mad at me but, I couldn’t help it. Lordy lou what if mom would have been with us that day? I swear I think she would have made us pull over and she would have walked home. It makes her so mad.

My husband and I are the same way. He gets tickled all over and when he puts his hand over his mouth and starts what I call “wheeze laughing” we are done for. I mean forget it for the rest of the night. We’re done. Tears rolling. Maybe its me since this need to laugh at the wrong time seems to follow me around. I must be the culprit, and I probably deserved all those finger in the lung moments. They do bring great memories.

This little life that we live deserves to be lived with a smile. Laughing burns calories and boosts your mood. There is no way you can be depressed or anxious if you are tickled. I suggest it. Even in the serious moments. Let it out. Laugh until your ribs hurt. It’s some of the best parts of my life. My hope for you, my friends is laughter. There’s so much seriousness and stress in our daily lives. So I hope there’s so much laughter for you. Even if you do get a finger to the lung lol. Annnnnnd maybe not so much at a funeral. Unless the people are fun, then it’ll be okay lol.

May we all rest well tonight and have happy dreams. I hope tomorrow is the best day for each of us. SMILE

Always…….Brooke

Good evening Friends. I hope today was all that you needed it to be. Today was sure better for me. And for that I am thankful. My days typically are just filled with rush and hurry. For someone really trying to live slowly, that kinda throws a wrench in things. But the evenings are just lovely. A time for me to pause my brain and ease my way into nighttime slumber. I just wish that slumber came easy. Sleep most nights is not my friend. I can go 5 or 6 nights on about 3 hours of sleep each night. But oh how glorious that crash night is when it finally arrives. I think I could sleep though a plow coming busting in the front door. We count our little blessings, right? Well, that crash night is my little blessing. I’d just like to sleep like my husband a couple of nights a week. The man’s head hits the pillow and its snore city. He barely rolls over at night. I don’t know whether to be so thankful that he rests so well or so mad that I want to wake him and let him suffer through it with me lol. Honestly, I’m so joyed that he can rest. It makes my heart happy that our home gives him enough peace that he can lay down at night and sleep. Don’t get me wrong, my house is my peace, I just am not now, nor ever have I been a good sleeper.

Let’s talk about peace for a few minutes. When I was a little girl I would spend the weekends at my grandparents house. We loved them so much and looked forward to heading home with them on Friday evenings after my mom would “fix” my mamaw’s hair in her beauty shop. Mamaw was a night owl. She stayed up every night until way up in the morning. She would watch her tv programs and read recipe magazines. She’d do her laundry and wash her dishes. She did her house work at night as well minus running the vacuum as to not wake papaw. He was certainly not a night owl. As soon as the sun went down he was ready for bed. And he woke up at the crack of dawn literally no later than 5 am. I remember smelling coffee early in the morning and just rolling over and going back to sleep. He would have drank an entire pot of coffee before we even thought of showing our face. We were snoozing away and most of his chores were almost complete. I always thought I wanted to be like my mamaw when I became an adult. I figured I would stay up to the wee hours of the morning and do all the things. Then sleep until noon and not miss a beat. Weeelllll…… life laughs at you sometimes. My weekly routine has me out of bed and getting ready for my day at 4:30 am every week day. I’m out in my yard at 4:45 with the lights all bundled up taking the dog out to pee. Dale is defiantly not laying in the bed if I’m not in the room. Yes, my little schnauzer sleeps in the bed with us. Yes he is extremely spoiled but, when I adopted him I promised to give him the best life and that’s what I will do. Honestly I’m probably up and going before anyone else on my street even rolls over to hit snooze on their alarm. My siblings make fun of me because I’m cozied down in my bed by 8:30 or 9 at night. No staying up to watch the eleven o clock news for this gal. I go to bed when I’m tired because I cherish those few hours of sleep. I need my time to meditate and relax at night before I finally drift off. My mamaw didn’t work. She was a housewife for most of her life. She worked early on but once she had children she took care of them and their home. And she did a damn fine job at it if I do say so myself. She was extremely particular with her home and she worked every day to keep it where she wanted it to be. By the way, being a homemaker is a job. It’s a very important one. And I truly admire women (or men) who choose to stay at home and care for their families. It just wasn’t in the cards for me. As I said I look forward to my slow evenings and weekends. My down time is so important to me. Now, as a middle aged woman, I think back on the late nights my mamaw spent doing her chores and I think she just enjoyed the quiet. The silence that comes along with being the only person awake in the house. Just breathing and meditating while taking care of your home. I understand why she did it.

Aren’t we blessed to have a home? Each morning when I wake up a I pray over my day. I don’t have a good or productive day if I don’t bless it first. My time to do all the chores is in the morning. Its my time to scrub my kitchen down and get everything aligned for the day. I get my meals prepped for the day and the evening. And those bundled up mornings taking Dale out to do his business even though cold and dark, they are quiet. We live in the county so there aren’t dozens of street lights and there’s not a lot of traffic. Some mornings it’s just the moon and the stars. Most days we get a deer or five in the field in front of the house and if we are lucky we will have some in the yard. No noise. Its peaceful and its still. It’s quiet. In the summer I take my cup of coffee and just sit on the porch to just enjoy the quiet. It’s an unwind before the day starts. And when I feel the fresh air and look up at the moon I understand why my mamaw longed for the quiet.

My husband and I vacation in Hilton Head, SC. It’s our place. Our paradise right here on earth. For me, it’s the closest place I have to heaven. We’ve vacationed there twice per year for the last almost 10 years. We stay in the same condo complex. We’ve become friends with locals and folks that live in the complex full time. It really is our second home and truth be told we’d love to make it our true part of the year home in the future. For the last several years, I’ve made it a point to rise early and walk on the beach to watch the sunrise. Then, if I’m tired, I will come back and go back to bed a while. If you’ve never experienced a sunrise over a vast ocean, please do yourself a favor and do that. The color that the sun spreads across the ocean is pretty spectacular. Its like God just opens a blind on the day. His way of saying “it’s time to wake up and by the way look at what I can do”. Typically those early morning walks are only accompanied by a hand full of other folks. Most people go on vacation to sleep in so the beach s rarely crowded that early in the morning. You can hear the waves so much more vibrantly. That constant roar that’s similar to white noise. Calming and soothing. It just makes me want to inhale the salt and exhale anything negative that has impacted me for my entire life. It’s just quiet.

Have you ever sat outside and just felt peace? Of have you even enjoyed the early am or late night when you are the only person awake in your house? If I could encourage you to do anything, it would be to take the time in your day to enjoy quiet. Early or late. Mid day even. Quietness brings peace in a way that I can’t explain. Turn off the tv and for goodness sake put down the phone. Grab a cup of coffee or whatever it is you sip on, and find a quiet place to just sit and breathe. Use that time to pray or meditate or just calm the hurry in your brain. To me that quiet is self care. And the older I get the more I crave it. No talking. No noise. No screens. Just quiet.

Tonight as your drift in to slumber I pray that each of you experience your quiet. I pray that if gives you inner peace and a renewed strength. Happy dreams sweet friends. Happy dreams.

Always…….Brooke

Hello and Happy day! I’m writing this on a late Monday evening after one of the Mondiest Mondays that ever Mondayed as far as my work day went. Everything that had the audacity to be frustrating today well……did. And you know something? That’s completely okay. Momma said there would be days like this. The good thing about it was that my day flew by. I looked up and it was time to clock out. What are Mondays? A new start to the week. A brand new beginning. A fresh look at the days ahead. Sometimes you hope the rest of the days that follow won’t be the same lol. But, you know what? We made it! We persevered. we knocked it out of the park and now it’s over. I’m proud of us for keeping our heads above water. Even bad Mondays are a blessing. See now don’t you feel better? I do. The key to any situation is to press through and find all the good. I had a thought today during all the madness. I couldn’t stop thinking about writing and blogging. And I decided that the blogs this year will be titled by one word. One word that I (or you) can take with me for the day and give it some meaning. A word to focus on for that day and to remember all the goodness that surrounds its meaning. Sounded great to me so that’s where today’s little tale begins.

We’re in the middle of what I call the “blue” season here in my neck of the woods. A time where everything is hibernating including the grass and trees. It’s cold and windy and gray. I love being outside, and I still bundle up and go but, the chill that gets in my bones is just gut wrenching. I hate being cold. I often feel like I need a full sweatsuit with built in hot hands just to take my dog out to do his business. And off topic, but WHY does this dog think he needs to smell of every inch of my acre yard before he can decide on a place to pee? Really Dale (I think I’ve told you my dogs name before)? I honestly think he tries to find a spot that’s never been peed on before. A 15 minute break turns in to 12 minutes of my king of the house finding the perfect sprig of brown grass and dirt to pee on. Then he comes in like he’s just achieved this huge accomplishment and stands there waiting for his pee or poop trophy lol. I do love him though. I call winter the “blue” season because I loathe January and February. I’m strange. I love snow. I love winter. I love everything that even minorly has to do with Christmas but once that bell tolls on new year’s eve I’d love a fast forward button to about mid-March. I think a lot of people get the winter blues. It’s just a stagnant time for those of us that live in areas that get the cold, dead winter. I shouldn’t complain as we’ve really not had tons of freezing cold weather this year. Its really been pretty mild in Tennessee. A few cold mornings. One tiny little snow. Friday is forecasted to be 68 degrees. If I could explain what 68 degrees does for me just imagine dancing around the room with confetti and complete jazz hands. I would take that temperature every day. Long ago my grandmother use to say, things have to wilt to grow. Now I don’t know if there is any truth to that. She also said we needed a cold winter to kill all the bugs that get you during the summer. I do kinda think there is truth in that. Not sure about the “wilt” theory but, I can say, for me, when the winter comes and we have days upon days of blue, it sure is exciting when those first sprigs of fresh green growth come popping out of the ground in the Spring. It’s like a breath of fresh air. In instant inhale of the suns glorious rays and an exhale with a smile. Maybe the ground needs the stillness period to “Bloom”. Maybe we do too.

I’ve already said before that I don’t make New Years resolutions. And I don’t. Most of the time they last for a few weeks and they no longer make sense. On January 1st I went to the gym… and now before you think well don’t most people, I do go to the gym not just on January 1. On my way to the gym I called my little momma. Momma Jude as we call her. I call her several times a day just to check in and make sure she’s okay. My siblings do too. Honestly, she’s probably tired of the phone ringing 20 times a day just for her four children to say “what are you doing”. We don’t care. We call anyway. I think we just want to hear her voice. Anway, on my way to the gym I called her. She was saying how she bet the gym would be so crowded and proceeded to tell me that she made a new years resolution to go to the gym and that it lasted about 5 minutes. She said that the drove though the parking lot and drove right out. The fastest broken resolution in history. Lol. No, she doesn’t go to the gym. Bless her heart, she gets out and shops and goes to eat with friends but, as the years go she is becoming more and more unsteady. No, I don’t make resolutions. I do however, open new chapters. I follow new paths. Ones that I can stroll along for as long as they bring me joy. Once the joy is over I close that chapter. I stray from that path on to a new adventure. Isn’t that what life is all about? Finding your path. Finding the correct road to go down to bring you happiness. Writing each page of my chapter in this life. Filling them with each adventure. Trying to make myself the best I know how to be. To grow and to bloom.

Spring is so beautiful and its just around the corner. Flowers need encouragement from the sun and the rain. Their roots grow strong and sprout to yield beautiful blooms that scatter the ground like a Bob Ross painting. The trees burst with leaves and fruit all on their own year after year. The shrubs and flowers in my landscaping go from the worst looking mess ever to well manicured all on their own. I think about all of this growth and see the similarities that we share with the land. We all go through rough patches. Nothing is ever always perfect. But we have survived 100 percent of our bad days. We did. And we will continue to. Just like the beautiful earth we all wilt and wither at times and then we bloom and grow and thrive. The key is to come back even more magnificent after each “blue” period. To know that your winter, whatever that may be, will only last for a season. It comes and goes just like the spring and fall. We need to tend to ourselves just as we would tend to our plants. Plenty of water and sunlight to encourage growth. Sometimes that nutrition that we need comes in the form of self care and a positive outlook. And believe it or not, we all have inside of us. On the worst day possible, there is always something positive to be thankful for. Even if you have to search for it. So search for it. Search for even the tiniest glimmer of light in each day.

Today as my ugly Monday comes to a close, I count my blessings and thank the Lord for all of the good that came out of this day. I have a home, food in my refrigerator, clothes on my body, and the love of my family. Even though today was tough, I woke up this morning. I get to go just one room over and work from home at a job that I do like. I talked with my momma today. She’s still here with me and I get to hear her voice every single day. I get to go to the gym (not have to, I get to) and try to keep myself heathy. Yes, my little Dale has to find the perfect place to pee but, I have the ability to walk him all over our yard so that he can be content.

Before I sign off to sleep I just want you to know that I’m proud of you! I want you to know that your attitude and the outcome of your day is only decided by you. Even if the day is tough you can control your reaction and response. There is nothing that you can not do if you set your mind to it. My wish for every person is to find their correct path and pursue it. To write the next chapter of your life and fill it with things that make you happy. For your minds to be cleared of any negative thoughts and overflowing with all of the positives. You are the gardener of your life. Tend to it and Bloom.

Have a very blessed Monday night. Happy dreams. I hope tomorrow is all that you ever wanted it to be.

Always…….Brooke

Well hello friends! Gosh it’s been a while since I’ve tended to this blog. I guess it needs to be my New Years resolution. I don’t make those by the way. I call them journeys. And this past year we sure have had a few journeys. My husband retired from a 30 year job……and then went back to work full time at a different company with a position much less demanding. For the first time in 30 years he actually was off for 2 weeks at Christmas. He seemed so much more relaxed and actually enjoyed his time with our family and friends. It just goes to say, don’t ever give up hope when it comes to your job. All those years working, sometimes even Christmas day, to deliver packages to retire and take another position that allows him the work/life balance that I have prayed for many many days . If anyone deserved it, he sure did. Granted, he still works 40 hours a week but, the benefits at this position were hard to pass up. We are truly blessed.

Second, we are now grandparents!!!!! I can’t tell you how wonderful this has been. Our son has been dating a sweet, beautiful girl that gave us a built-in grandson. We are completely gushing. This Christmas brought us a new joy for sure. Seeing his little face while opening gifts and just getting a glimpse of Christmas through a child’s eyes really shows you the true meaning of the season. We are now a Nan and Poppa Moon. It’s funny how you raise your own child and think how it will be when they get older and have a family of their own. It seems almost surreal as to how fast the time goes. I can remember when my son was 4 years old and wanting to just hang on to that age forever. Our grandson is 4 and I know that his momma wants the same. They do grow and mature in the blink of an eye. But I’m so thankful to the good Lord for every single phase of being a parent and now a grandparent. Our son also bought a home this year which is a big step. Proud of him is an understatement. So needless to say, I’ve been a lot busy and the blog and writing has taken sort of a back seat.

Changes have been around every corner for us. Mostly all good but, of course there have been some speed bumps. Early this year my husband and I sort of had a little wake up call about our health. Between his high blood pressure and my issues with my joints and inflammation we both knew it was time for a change. Time to take our health into some consideration. So together, we decided to take on a new little health journey. After a few years of barely even wanting to move my body, not sleeping well, so much inflammation that I was waking up with my eyes almost swollen shut, and spending time in physical therapy I knew (we knew) it was time to make some changes. Now y’all know I live slow. It’s important to me. So we decided to slowly change our habits. To eat better, to become more active, to continue to live slow, to get more organized and to try to make our home as minimal as possible. Yes I know minimal sounds crazy to most of you. Honestly it does to me a wee bit. And for me minimal is different. It just means for me to get rid of so much to keep clean, to be content with what I have, and to get rid of so much clutter that honestly was causing triggers.

After a lot of hard work this year, my husband is down 37 pounds. He’s always looked amazing to me but, he feels better and says its nice to have his clothing fit better. He’s still with his band and is playing as much as he wants to. Its his outlet and he’s happy. I am down 40 pounds and holding. Exercising and eating better. Most important, I feel so much better and am in less pain. That’s a plus. Still immersing myself in my job, my baking, and in my sewing. I also began making jewelry this year and I love it. Yes, those side hustles are work but they are relaxing work. Creating. Doing things that I love. I’ve always said, and I still do love my real job. It pays the bills. It gives me benefits and will allow me to have a good retirement eventually lol. The side hustles are not for income, they are to express creativity. to let me express myself, and to have something to “look forward” to. So, you see, we’ve been busy.

I think we all need that balance in our lives. Don’t you? We all need something to enjoy. A reason to look forward to each day. I believe each person should look forward to every single day. Even if its one hour of that day. One second truly. We are so blessed with this tiny little life. I just feel that we truly should enjoy every single day of it. This year has sure been different. A blessing to me. A time of growth. Aren’t we all allowed to grow? The is no limit to how we can grow. The ability is left solely to ourselves. Is there something out there that you’ve always wanted to do? A hobby? A new career? A new you? Well times a wastin. Get to it. Do all the things that makes you happy. Its worth it. Get out there and Grow.

Although todays post was a little catch up please keep visiting the blog. My goal is to post a lot this year. I have lots of little tales to share. Always positive and always uplifting. I hope everyone has had the best year and I wish you nothing but the best 2026 ever. With all of the Growth that you desire.

Always……. Brooke

Hidey ho friends. Happy Sunday. Hope today has been just amazing. The weather is to be absolutely beautiful here this week through the weekend with temps reaching the mid 60s which is my favorite. I am looking forward to opening my windows and letting this house air out. My son had covid two weeks ago complete with a trip to the ER and I’m ready for these germs to be out of this house. Air it out! He is much better and my husband and I did not get it thank the good Lord. It’s always a little scary with him because he has asthma so we got some steroids and antibiotics and he was on the mend. Hopefully spring is finally here and all this sickness that has been going around our area will be gone.

How long has it been since you’ve gotten a letter or card in the mail? I hope not too long but, I’m sure its been a bit. In the age of email, text messages, messenger and everything electronic folks just don’t “write” much anymore. I can remember as a child getting a card or a letter in the mail and just being so excited. About the only time I get them now is at Christmas from those that send out cards. I send about 80 out at Christmas time. If I have your address, you’re getting a card from me. Confession: I am obsessed with cards. Typically, the ones that are blank inside. I buy them from bookstores or when I’m out and find them with neat or different art on the front. I’ve accumulated so many.

Don’t you think it’s important to see someone’s handwriting? For a person to take the time to write words inside of a card to me, is very special. That person felt fondly enough of me to write a note to me and put a stamp on it and send it in the mail. In a time where we pretty much get just bills and advertisement in the mailbox, on occasion, it’s nice to get a card from someone you care for. My momma has the most beautiful cursive handwriting. I have kept several cards from her because I don’t want to ever forget how her writing looks. After our daddy passed away, we dove in to old dining room cabinet drawers trying to find notes he had written down just to have him a little closer still. Searching for his words on paper to try to remember his voice. Folks don’t think those words written down are important until they are all you have left to hang on to. Of course, we have many photographs and those are great too but there’s just something about words in his handwriting that matter. When I journal I try to write it on paper rather than type it out. One day, when I’m long gone, my son will find those journals and hopefully they will mean something.

Over the last couple of years I’ve tried to make it a point to send cards more frequently. I send them to my family for certain but, I’ve also been sending them to others that appreciate getting something in the mail. One friends little girl gets a card on the holidays from me and another friend has a sister who gets them as well. Someone will always appreciate a pretty card with some encouraging words inside. You don’t have to be a poet either. You can simply write “I was thinking of you today and I wanted you to know that I hope you have a wonderful week”. When someone is having a hard go just a note to say you are sending good vibes and prayers can mean the difference between a really hard day and one that goes smoother. It costs hardly anything. Maybe about 2 dollars if you buy a pack of cards.

I’m not sure why we have gotten so far out of had written letters and cards. Sure, its much easier to send a text or an email, but when you send words that way there’s nothing else there. They are just words. Words against a blank screen and to me it just seems so impersonal. Handwritten words on paper tells me that you took the time to sit down and communicate. You put thought in to choosing the paper or card. You grabbed your favorite pen so that the writing was enjoyable and looked pretty. You thought about what you were going to say before you wrote it down because you couldn’t backspace and start over. What ever communication is to me it should be personal.

Here’s a little challenge for you. This week grab a box of cards that are blank inside. You can get them at a fancy bookstore or card shop or you can grab some inexpensive ones at the dollar store. Purchase a book of stamps. Yes, it’ll cost you twenty dollars but you spend more than that on your lunch sometimes. Decide who you want to communicate with and write them a note. It can be as simple as “hello I just wanted you to know that I was thinking about you” or you can really communicate the words that you want to say to them. Beautifully write the note and get it in the mail. I 99.9% guarantee you hear from your person before the weekend. This is a great way to grow a relationship with someone who you haven’t gotten to spend time with for a while. Maybe, you even need to write a note to someone where there have been some bridges burnt. I challenge you to slow down a little and just enjoy the experience of sending someone a hand written note in the regular mail opposed to electronically.

I hope that each and every one of you have a very blessed week ahead. Remember that you can handle just whatever this week throws your way.

Always…….Brooke

Happy St Patrick’s Day and Happy Monday evening everyone. I hope today went smooth as silk for each of you. It wasn’t horrible for me other that just being tired. That’s becoming my new normal. If you read yesterday’s blog you know my sweet husband let me go to bed at 7 pm and he handled the evening chores so that I could try to get some much needed rest. I’m forever thankful for him but I was wide awake from about 11:30 until time to be out of bed at 5 am. Oh well. I tried. Eventually my system will shut off and I’ll have a good 8 hours of sleep. It’s the getting to that point that really sucks. If you are someone that struggles with not being able to sleep, I feel for you. And I pray that you get several restful hours tonight and for the nights to come. It’s hard to work and concentrate when you feel like a zombie all the time. It’ll run you crazy. Which brings me to today’s little tale.

If you’ve followed my blog posts for very long, I’m sure you know that my daddy passed away 11 years ago. I’ve missed him every single day since that day. I, like so many others, have to say that I didn’t realize how much I needed him or how important he was to me until he was no longer here. Don’t get me wrong, we were and are a very close family. My siblings, mother and I see each other several times a week. And the days that we aren’t able to see each other we have a group text that we check on each other all times during the day. I work with my younger sister so we are in contact more. As far as momma, she expects my phone call around 10:30 every morning and again in the evening. Today, in fact, I was a bit late calling her due to getting caught up in a case at work and when she answered she said “I was thinking it was getting about time for you to call me”. She would have been fussin if I had forgotten lol. When daddy was alive it was similar. He wasn’t the affectionate, talk to you on the phone an hour type of man. He was more of a “you know where I am if you need me” kind of person. And he never failed that. He was always there if you needed him. Truth is, I need him so much more now than I ever did before. I find myself wondering what he would say to me about certain things in my day to day. Or how he would react to my son as he’s now an adult. If he would approve of the home that we live in now. I know in my heart that he would have a chair down by our creek and would just be sitting there eating his peanut butter crackers, smoking a cigerette, and drinking his RC cola. I think about that every time I take our little dog out there to do his business during the day. Today was no different. I thought about him on and off during my day. Folks say losing someone gets easier over time. I’m not so sure about that. I just think it gets different and more “normal” for them to be gone.

It has been a little chilly here today. The temperature only got to 55 degrees and we’re getting some tail end winds from some nasty weather that they had Saturday and Yesterday in Arkansas and Mississippi. Bless their souls. They had tornados and severe storms. One area of Mississippi even had an earthquake during one of the tornados. If you are reading this and you are from that area, I sure prayed for you all. That’s scary business. Mid day today I took Dale out for his potty and the wind was just whipping. He was taking his usual slow time and I was just following him around on his lead while he ate leaves and carried around stick rather than finding his spot. Like I said, I’ve been pretty much a zombie the last few days so I looked like an electrocuted chicken wandering around aimlessly behind my dog. That’s when it happened. Now, y’all. I thought I was going crazy. I very distinctly heard my daddy’s voice say “it’s alright, we’ll get it all done”. My legs went like jello and I thought for a second I might pass out. I haven’t heard my dads voice in 11 very long years. My first reaction, after I looked around in complete shock, was that I was crazy out of my gourd. I seriously thought I was delirious from no sleep or that menopause was finally making me flip my lid. I finally looked over at our pup and he had stopped dead in his tracks and was looking all around. He heard it too. I couldn’t do anything except pray that he would say something else. I just stood there with tears rolling down my face. Then I heard it again behind me. I couldn’t make out what he was say this time. Finally, I realized I wasn’t crazy. There was a man on the other side of the creek. We have neighbors that live there behind us and they have had folks working on the vacant lot beside of them for what seems a year or more. It was someone there working that sounded exactly like my daddy.

Immediately after realizing I wasn’t hearing voices of dead people, I began to feel a lot less shaky. I looked through the woods and saw a few folks standing there talking. I couldn’t hear them anymore so I assume that their voice had carried over to me on the wind. He looked nothing like my daddy but, I’m telling you he sounded exactly like him. I just stood there hoping he would talk some more so that I could hear. I almost had the notion to call out across the creek and ask him a question so that I could make him talk to me directly lol. Then he would have thought I was crazy. Here this electrocuted chicken lady is with her house pants on and rain boots with a big long coat following her dog around aimlessly in her yard and she’s yelling across the creek to some man she doesn’t know and saying “will you come over here and sit a while and talk to me” blahahahha. Lordy Lou. I almost did it. I wont lie.

My biggest fear after losing dad was that I would forget. The way he walked. Or that I’d forget the way that he looked (even though that one would be hard as my son looks more and more like him the older that he gets). The way he smelled of cigarettes and soap on a rope. That doesn’t sound too good but it makes me think of him. More than anything I was afraid I would forget his voice. Sometimes I think when I am on the verge of forgetting those things he sends me a sign. I’ll have a vivid dream about him or I’ll hear a song. I’ll see a red bird or a deer in my back yard. Or on a small occasion I’ll be out somewhere and smell cigarettes and soap on a rope lol. I think its just him saying “I’m still right here”. I’ve never deleted any pictures of my dad from my phone. And even though he hated talking on the phone, I still have his phone number programmed in there. I just couldn’t get rid of it. 11 years later and I still can’t. Frankly, that’s completely okay.

So, here’s what I’ll say about today. After I finally realized I wasn’t crazy, I received a real blessing today. For the first time in 11 years, I heard my daddy’s voice. Now, I know, it wasn’t really him. But it sounded just like him. For the first time in 11 years, I felt like he was right in my back yard with me. And that little happening made my day. A big thank you to the worker across the creek in my neighbors yard for filling my heart with a lot of joy. I have no idea who you are sir but, you made me a very happy daughter today. And I think God for the reminder that I will never forget.

If you have your daddy, squeeze him a little tighter tonight. Listen to him talk or even record it. One day you’ll be looking for the little reminders the way that I do every day.

Have the very best night. Happy Dreams!

Alway…….Brooke

Happy Sunday evening. I hope all is well for each and every one of you. I wont lie, on this end, the last week and a half have been a little rough. My husband lost his older sister after a short battle with congestive heart failure. I believe that my husband was in shock for a few days. I really do. He is feeling much better after time to grieve. He’s worked pretty hard the last couple of weeks and I think it was his way of just trying not to allow memories in to his mind. He has had lots of time with friends the last two weekends which has really helped. His favorite beverages didn’t hurt the matter as well. We all expect to lose our grandparents and even our parents but, I believe the loss of a sibling just hits hard. I cant imagine really. I have one brother and two sisters (my husband has the same) and I can not think of this life without them in it. We all grieve differently and I’ve just tried to make sure that he had everything here at home that he needed from quiet evenings, to time to himself, to good meals. Also, just trying to be a listening ear when he needed to talk or vent. Unfortunately, the situation with her son was not good so much sweet husband needed to fume a little. Death often brings out the best and the very worst in people. That’s a sad take on it but, true. These last two weeks have held a lot of restless/sleepless nights. For him just missing his sister and being in disbelief. And for me just hurting for him and worrying about him. I’m queen worry wart. It’s what I do best. And it’s exhausting.

That brings me to today’s blog. As I said, worrying about the ones you love is exhausting. Mix that in with taking care of your home, a dog, your child, your husband, trying to stay healthy and going to the gym, late weekend nights, and working quiet a bit of overtime, well it kinda leaves you feeling somewhat like a zombie. I always say it’s okay to rest and just how important it is but, I dont always practice what I preach. Tomorrow begins a new week of unlimited overtime at my job, cake orders, and a lot of other work. The thought of it this afternoon almost had me feeling anxious and overwhelmed. So much so that my husband could see it in my face. I finally just looked and him and asked if he’d be too upset if I showered and went to bed to try to wind down. Yes at 7pm before the moon even began to show its light. Without hesitation, he said for me to go rest. He agreed to feed our dog his dinner and take him out and that he’d close all the windows and lock up for the night when he was ready to join me.

Folks, that doesn’t sound like a lot. Not to most people. But, to me it was heaven sent and exactly what I needed. To know that I could go lay down and enjoy some time writing with no other responsibilities except for closing my eyes to sleep. It meant the world to me. He has needed me to be there for him a little extra these last two weeks but, he also saw tonight that I wouldn’t be able to complete the week ahead if I had an empty cup to pour from. He offered to handle the evening responsibilities because he cares.

If you are the do’er. The one that takes care of everything for everyone else. Please know that its okay to ask for help. To delegate some of your tasks so that you can rest. Again, you cant pour from an empty cup. My husband and I are a team. I make sacrifices when he needs me and he does the same when I need him. You must or marriage is difficult. Lean on your partner. Lean on a family member or friend even. Just dont allow yourself to get to the point of complete exhaustion before you ask for help and rest.

Tomorrow is Monday which means a fresh start and a brand new week. Please remember that you (we) can handle any ole thing that this week throws at us. You’ve survived all of your worst days. You will make it over the hills ahead. Have a very best Sunday

Always…….Brooke

P.S. I’m still on my journey to a healthier me. Of course I’ve had some hiccups. We all do. But, this morning I weighed 180 pounds and I’ve been going to the gym 3 – 4 times a week. Slow and steady but I will get there.

Hello and Happy Monday. This is your friendly reminder that you can handle any ole thing that this week gives to you. It’s a reminder for myself as well. I think most of us that work a Monday – Friday job dread this day. The weekend goes by so quickly then here we are again. If it’s gonna go wrong, it’ll go wrong on a Monday. Typically for me its some kind of computer problem lol. Let’s make a pact. Let’s focus on the good that Monday brings. It’s a new week. A fresh start. It can be exactly what you make it and if done correctly can set us up for a really great week. So let’s just think of it like that. There’s no need for dread.

It my previous posts I’ve told you all about our new little dog. I say new but he’ll be a year old on April 10th. It’s hard for me to believe that it’s went by that fast. He sure have changed our lives and for the better. Duckie Dale sure is my little buddy. He’s always right by my side and has made my days alone so much better. He is my first “in the house” dog. I’ve had outside dogs before. One several years ago and also several growing up but, never one in the house all day every day. There sure is no personal space with this one. He follows me around everywhere that I go all day. When I take my break, he goes out and we walk around while he does his business. And that’s where our little tale starts today. Oh and by the way if your are trying to decide on a dog breed to have as your next companion, I do highly recommend a mini schnauzer. He is super smart and potty trained within a week after we brought him home. He sleeps all night (in the bed between my husband and I). He’s super snuggly. They only negative is he has separation anxiety and you will never ever again poop alone lol.

Why do dogs take fooooreeever to go potty? We walk around for 10 minutes before he decides “yep this is where I go” lol. I guess all dogs are that way but since I’ve never had experience with it I just wonder why? This morning we were out at 5am and he walked around with his nose to the ground for 11 minutes before he decided to pee. And don’t get me started on the number 2. He goes around and around in circles until I know he’s bound to be dizzy. I get so tickled and frustrated all at the same time.

Do you experience this same issue as a dog owner? Are there any tips or tricks to make it quicker for those of us that are newbies? I get two 15 minute breaks and a 30 minute lunch every day and it seems we spend most of that time outside waiting for him to “Find his spot”. I’m always like “come on buddy, hurry up and we’ll get a treat”. It doesn’t help.

There are so many wonderful things about owning a pet. I promised when I adopted him to give him his very best life and I think I am succeeding. He’s very well loved by my entire family and he knows he’s the king of the castle. If you are thinking of giving an animal a piece of your heart, do it! It’s work but its very worth it. I wish I would have done it sooner.

Have the very best Monday night and week ahead. I hope it’s full of blessings and everything that you need it to be.

Always…….Brooke

P.S. For those following my healthier me journey. I have stayed steady at 184 pounds. A plateau and that’s okay. I ate a horrible meal on Friday. And that too is okay. There’s no shame in a bad meal. I just try not to do that more than once a week. I had a big burger and tater tots. It was delicious and I enjoyed every bite but, I paid for it the next day with an upset belly. I have made the decision to join a gym that is about 6 minutes from my house with a goal of going 4 days a week before my husband and son even get off and get home from work. My work schedule allows me that and I’m thankful. I begin today so who knows if I’ll be able to even move around tomorrow lol. I’ll let ya know. I did walk 2 miles at the park yesterday. It was very hard as a former runner. I wanted so badly to jog but, knew my joints wouldn’t have liked it very much. That’s the beauty of arthritis. Those joints don’t particularly care for pounding the pavement. So, I walked with purpose and made sure my heart rate stayed around 125. I meal prepped for this week for lunch and dinner with fresh veggies and healthy meat. I seem to do better if I prep rather than trying to cook when I’m hungry or just grab something. If you are trying to be a healthier you, I wish you the best of luck. It helps me to write it out and talk about it. Maybe that will you too. We can do this. One tiny step at a time. We will get there. I just know it.

Wrote this one earlier last week bit forgot to post. You know, life gets busy. Enjoy

Good day friends! Happiest of Thursdays to you. I hope your day is going well and will continue to be all day long. For those of us that work Monday – Friday, our work week is almost over and we’ve almost made it. I say that like working is the worst thing in the world when actually it’s a blessing. I took a moment this morning to thank my God for allowing me to wake up healthy and warm and for allowing me to be able to work a job. I try to always give my thanks every morning. It seems to make my day go much better. I do my devotion and then get on with my day. I hope there’s something that you can do each morning to make your day start on a good note and give you a reminder of just how blessed you really are. Today I have had my grandmother on my mind all day long. She passed away 16 years ago but for today she was still right here in my heart. I just had the strongest urge to pick up the phone and call her. She was always there to answer and let me tell ya, she loved to talk. More than anything in this world the precious woman loved to talk. So because I couldn’t get her off of my mind, that’s where this little tale begins.

My grandmother was born in 1922. That seems so so long ago. She lived until her 90th birthday which to me is a life well lived. Now we’re from southern Appalachia area so of course we called her Mamaw. Not grandmother or gigi, or grandma but plain ole Mamaw. Her name was Martha which I think is just beautiful and to me a little different for most woman born in 1922. Most ladies her age were name Grace or Ethal or Beulah or Lucille. So to me she got a win with Martha. I was named after her. Her middle name was Elizabeth and that is my first name. She was a little short funny woman who everyone who met her just loved. She was a hell of a cook, and she loved the holidays. Especially Christmas. Sometimes I think that’s who I get my Christmas obsession from. She decorated to the rafters. And she loved anything pink. He carpet was ping. Some of the walls in their house were pink. The windows were covered with only the best heavy drapes, and they were or course pink. My siblings and I spent so much time with her and our papaw. They were our second parents and their house our home away from home.

My younger sister and I use to head to my grandparents’ house and stay almost every other weekend from Friday until Sunday. We looked forward to it and honestly, I think it was the highlight of their week too. Mom would “do her hair” on Fridays and they would let us grab our bags and head home with them. We were so lucky to have them. My younger sister and I never really knew my dads parents. My older sister and brother did and I’m sure they have lots of memories with them as well. They lived next door to us so they saw them a lot. They past away when I was an infant so I don’t remember anything at all about them. My sister was born 5 years later. So, we were raised with just one set of grandparents. We would have never known the difference honestly. Mom’s parents were 100% present in out lives. On a weekly basis and even more during the holidays and the summers when school was out. My Mamaw was the best. She fed us well and she loved to take us shopping.

There was bever a bedtime at my grandparents house. Isn’t that just loke grandparents. You eat what you want, watch what you want to on tv, play in the mud, and stay up as late as you want. One day when I have grandchildren, I plan to be exactly the same way. Sugar and hype those babies up and send them home lol. The bedtime was never an issue. Our Mamaw stayed up until 2 am or later. She was surely a night owl. Papaw on the other hand, was in bed as soon as the sun went down. And he was wide awake at 4 am with his coffee made and his first cigarette of the day smoked. Sometimes they would literally meet in the hall with his “good mornin” and her “good night”. I’m not kidding. It happened more than once. She wouldn’t sit up and watch tv. She read magazines and recipes. And she read them to us. We didn’t mind because on occasion she would fall asleep reading and we’d get so tickled.

The best memories that I will hold near and dear were the saying she had and the way she talked. “You tell that ole devil to get off your shoulder” she would say to me any time I was upset or heart broken. She thought things shouldn’t be depressing or bad. We’d tell her stories about all the things , good and bad that we would do and she’s say “I hope to my never”. I have no idea what that meant but, that saying was probably my favorite. Hence why I named todays blog what I did. They would sit on their porch with their neighbors on the warm evenings and talk until dark. Of course then Papaw would shew them off because well, it was dark and that meant bed time. They did that almost every night with the folks on their street. It’s sad really how most people don’t even know their neighbors any more. Life’s just too busy now.

Today when I wanted to pick up the phone and call her I just wanted to here her say “Myyyyeeelo” once and hear that care in her voice. (and yes she said hello just like that). Her voice was like a big hug. She was thrilled to get a phone call and to talk. I would talk to her about her day then she would want to know what all happened in mine. Even as a grown adult married and with a son, she wanted to know all of the things that happened. She didn’t get out a lot in her later years and I think those phone conversations were a way for her to live life through whomever she was talking to. She’d listen attentively and say “I’ll declare” about every 15 minutes. I don’t know what that means either but, she said it all the time lol. She’d get tickled and laugh so hard but no noise would come out. Just a little wheeze. It was the funniest thing ever. I smile just thinking of it. Today I sure do miss her. I was lucky. We had her a very long time. Papaw died 7 years prior but he was old too so we count ourselves very lucky. I just hope and pray we have we have momma for that many years.

My son was 9 years old when she passed. He got to enjoy her as well. He called her mimi. And he was the love of her life. I’m so thankful that he had the opportunity to have that time with her and that he gets to enjoy some of the same memories that I did.

Were you lucky enough to be able to spend time with your Mamaw? I sure hope that you did and that your memories are as wonderful as mine are. Take time today to think back about your time with her. Did she have some good old sayings that she used? Even if they didn’t make a bit of sense, do you still use them today? I do lol. If you still have your grandmother call her up and just talk. Let the sound of her voice just sink in so that you may never forget. Go see her if at all possible and take your kids if you have any. They might not love it but boy she will.

I hope today’s little tale has jogged some wonderful memories for you. Thank you for letting me share mine.

Always……Brooke

PS: For those following my heath journey. Yesterday was good. I didn’t eat a bite that I shouldn’t have. Its tough to cook dinner for your family and only eat portions of it but it can be done. It takes a lot of willpower, but it can be done. Just take it one day at a time. I got plenty of exercise in today outside walking my dog. He loves to jump around in the snow so I spent every break, my lunch and some in the evening out there with him. I weighed in this morning at 184.4