Coffee and Cocktails at the Casa

Wednesday, June 10, 2026

It’s time for another edition of Hodgepodge with Joyce today…

1.  How would you define ‘the good life’? 

I would define the good life as a good balance of time and money. You need money to live, and you need time to enjoy the people that make life worth living. You need a sense of purpose to your life, as well. Having the time to take in the sunrise and beautiful nature seems like the good life to me. Having enough money so that you aren’t kept up at night worrying is part of the good life. You need deep relationships and people you can count on.

2.  What’s the most used app on your phone (and are you proud of that)? 

The texting app/feature, the phone call app/feature, the camera, and my blog app are my most used. Yes, I feel those align with my values of connection with people.

3. ‘Every rose has it’s thorn’, ‘everything’s coming up roses’, ‘looking through rose-colored glasses’, ‘it’s no bed of roses’ or ‘stop and smell the roses’…which rose idiom best relates to something in your life currently. Explain. 

“Stop and smell the roses” would still relate to my life currently in my first year of retirement. I have time to enjoy the birds in my yard and I feed them. I have noticed more this year, taken more photos this year, and really slowed down. I was wound up really tightly each school year with the stress of doing it all and the pressure to be organized to be able to do it all.

4. How do you feel about floral flavorings in food or drink (rose, hibiscus, elderflower, lavender)? 

Not great! I do love St. Germain elderflower liqueur and a Hugo Spritz or a St. Germain Spritz. I was big into those two summers ago. Oh, and I do love putting a hibiscus flower in prosecco or champagne.

5. Over the course of your life what have you probably spent more time pondering than anything else? 

People. I have tried to figure out people. I have always had strong opinions on how people should act and this has caused me heartache. Tom says that I am going to be continually let down when I have these expectations. The Mel Robbins “Let Them” advice is good but leaves a lot to be desired for me because I can “let them” but that doesn’t mean I won’t still ponder why someone did what they did, said what they said, acted the way they did.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

I have a very good memory. This is not a good thing when it relates to number 5 above. I remember everything that a person said or did. I can forgive but I can’t forget and that sounds so bad, I do realize.

Have you heard the Rita Mae Brown quote, “One of the keys to happiness is a bad memory.” I constantly work on trying to go easier on people, if that makes sense. I have definitely come a long way. I will think “so and so hasn’t checked on me for a bit” and I am the one who last made contact so it’s their turn. Then, I stop myself and realize we aren’t keeping score and I can always be the one to reach out. I am the one who has more time right now.

Wow, Joyce, we went deep today!

Amy

Tuesday, June 9, 2026

What have you been wearing lately? Thank you for joining Marsha and I as we talk fashion today!

Red is still the color! Have you seen red having a moment in fashion? I found this blog post fun to read! I have had so much fun with my red Free People espadrille Mary Janes and my new red Archie’s flip flops…and my red nails last week!

I have been drawn to red, white, and blue this summer. I wonder if it has anything to do with our country’s 250th birthday? Nautical theme is in! Sardines are in! Lol – I bet the sardines never thought they would be “trending”.

Also, here is a podcast worth listening to. I currently have probably five different sizes of clothing in my closet. I have learned to order two different sizes online if I can easily return the one that doesn’t fit to an in-person retailer. Also, it is your choice how you want your clothing to fit. That’s empowering. Jamie talks about how clothing that fits you flatters you so much better and reminds us that too tight clothing is not good. I don’t always get the sizing right. I didn’t find everything in the podcast helpful, but I found enough of it helpful that I want to share with you.

The podcast is called The Savvy Cast and I don’t always relate to the topics but I felt this one was good enough to share. I am linking her website which also has some great recipes.

Basically, don’t feel any sort of way about your clothing tag. Sizing is all over the place. Cut it out if it steals your joy.

I wore this one day last week. I wore it with my New Balances to walk the dog then I took those off and put flip flops on to go out and run an errand. Later that evening I switched to jeans for a mah jong night I went to. This is a new this season Target blouse that I love but that isn’t the most flattering on me. The shorts are old linen Old Navy. The flip flops are Archie’s.

Since it hasn’t been hot and it’s been so pleasant I have been putting on a slightly nicer shorts outfit and using that to walk the dog and run errands.

I wore this to go to a couple of places all in the same shopping center. I was in J.Crew Factory in this photo. I didn’t buy anything but they had a ton of gauze. I was wearing my Old Navy white gauze shirt, my old Old Navy green and white skort (athletic material). I also went in Trader Joe’s.

I tried this as a set at home. These are my Old Navy gauze drawstring shorts. I feel a bit like an orderly.

Different shoes can change things up.

That day I settled on this. I kept the shorts on but paired them with an old consignment button up and my lace up sandals. I walked EO in my New Balances and then switched shoes again.

I went back to Old Navy and bought this orange skort:

and this fun summer printed skort:

I’m not sure why I am standing that way – at attention!

Close up:

Wait – is that a sardine?

Fun athletic shorts – do you see how they have little wings on the sides?

and a short-sleeved chambray blouse that I thought would be practical to have. This was Jenn and I influencing and enabling each other. She shopped the day before at Old Navy. I can’t wait to see her post today. I’m telling you that Old Navy is pretty good this season!

Finally, this is what I wore to my niece’s graduation party. I repeated the dress I got for my day at the track – Churchill Downs Derby week.

I would say I am doing a good job of wearing and rotating through all of my shorts and short sleeved tops. I really don’t have that many but it seems to be enough for my lifestyle. I haven’t worn many dresses yet. I haven’t worn many printed pants or skirts yet, either. I am going to challenge myself to wear more of those things.

I also did another clean out of my closet. I was pretty aggressive about things I wouldn’t currently buy and what I wasn’t excited to wear.

I did a mini-Target impulse shop. I listened to a couple of influencers. I am going to decide what to keep. Even when I do get influenced I am getting better about knowing what to keep and what to return. I will show you those next week.

Link up here!

Amy

Monday, June 8, 2026

How was your weekend? Let’s link up with Sarah and Holly to share!

Friday was a really nice day! I was going to go to the library and maybe stop by a store by myself but Eddie Otis seemed to want to go in the car with me so I took him with! He waited in the car while I got my requests and then we walked around the library and the surrounding neighborhood. I think he loved it because we came home and I actually put on my bathing suit and read outside and he napped for a long time.

I took some photos of the pretty little yards around the library.

I ordered Domino’s pizza for dinner (it was gross) and Tom and I watched our shows. It was a super chill and relaxing day.

I got another Kroger delivery at 7:45 am Saturday morning.

I think this is the bread Tanya talked about. You bake it the rest of the way and have a fresh baguette.

I got a surprise visit from Jack and made chocolate chip pancakes for him; he was on his way to work.

I had a little project. I separated out all the red gummy bears because my high school mascot were the Cubs and we were red and white.

I had a themed cocktail I was taking…

to a high school pool party – my high school friends. I didn’t crash a current high schooler’s pool party.

I made the cream cheese and red pepper jelly dip with Wheat Thins and…

Mexican layer dip.

This is Ruby Sue in her pineapple bikini.

It was so nice! My friends Beth and Mike host this every year. They live about 20 minutes from me and we have local high school friends and some friends that travel to come to it.

It was one of those days where you don’t have your phone on you to take photos as it should be. We stayed from about 1-6.

The drive there is very “Kentucky”.

And Sunday meant a road trip for Eddie Otis!

We made the drive to Columbus, Ohio for a niece’s graduation party!

Sister picture – I didn’t have a drink.

Don’t forget that Fashion Files is tomorrow! Show us what you have been wearing or buying for early summer. Show us what you want to wear. Show us anything fashion adjacent!

Amy

Friday, June 5, 2026

How was your week? Let’s link up with Andrea and Erika to share some favorites and some things that made us smile.

I finally went in Kroger. I think it had been a month or so of just doing pickups. I just needed four things so it didn’t feel hard. I had to stop and admire this heirloom tomato.

Even though I live in a big city, my city has a small-town feel. That may seem crazy to read. Of course, I have my little pocket of the city – my house, my job, my kids’ schools, their orthodontist, our gym, my Kroger, and several restaurants were/are all in walking distance.

While in Kroger I ran into two people, an old friend and a former student. I see someone everywhere I go.

In my continuing nail saga, I went back to press ons Sunday night and admired them at the gym on Monday morning. Red is speaking to me lately! I heard red is a neutral.

This may not seem like a big deal, but I can take EO to the vet by myself now. I used to need help (usually Mason). EO has calmed down and he made me so proud at the vet. We love our vet and have gone to him for 26 years – our whole marriage! It makes it sound like I married a canine, no? Dr. Hill complimented my calm dog mom demeanor. I have rarely been complimented on being calm, by the way. Our boy is 96.6 pounds. Lordy!

I try to reward him with a new sniff walk after a traumatic vet visit. I actually don’t think he thinks it’s traumatic but it’s different and people are messing with him.

This book is so cute and what I needed after a pretty heavy book. It includes a hunky Brit, food talk, tea and coffee talk, small town charm, and the stuff I like in a light summer read.

Our weather has been the stuff that dreams are made of! I have been outside as much as I can be. There was an unfortunate “wasp rave” going on in a hole in my porch railing, though. I watched as wasp after wasp entered the party. They were about a foot away from me and I remained calm (there goes that word again!). I did tell Tom we needed to break up the party, though, when he got home.

One thing that might surprise you about me is that I don’t freak out about bugs – except for ticks and mosquitoes. I am not scared to touch or move a bug and would always simply put them out my classroom window and not kill them while my students shrieked.

I made myself a fab bagel sandwich for my brunch one day this week. I like to wrap it in foil to melt really well.

I got several IG comments asking where I bought it!

I made a yummy romaine, feta, dill, green onion, lemon juice, EVOO, salt and pepper salad this week a few times.

I made a sheet pan dinner of turkey sausage, onion, pepper, and potato this week.

The photo is blurry but I made funfetti cupcakes, iced them, and rolled them in non-pareil sprinkles this week. I gave some away to friends. This is apparently a viral trend right now? What’s new about sprinkles? I really don’t know!

I played mah jong this week! It had been three weeks and I was rusty. Dang, this game!

I won once so that gave me a confidence boost.

Look at all these people playing mah jong and there was a lower level, too.

I found this really funny…

I thought I had a stain on my shirt or my mirror when I shared this on Fashion Files. When I zoomed in, I realized it was my sunglasses! Duh!

This is my favorite face cleanser I have ever used. Don’t let the name Vanicream brand name fool you – it’s a facial cleanser. I love the consistency and the clean smell. I am very picky. This will be a re-purchase for me. A little goes a long way, too, and makes the best lather.

This winter/early spring I was into my “colors”. My mom had my colors done in the 80s and I was a “summer” and she was a “winter”. I still have my palette. One thing recommended for summers is brown mascara. I’m in love. This looks so natural, but I feel like it enhances my eye color and my skin tone. I have been using this along with brown eye liner.

Another easy meal this week was jacket potatoes. I feel that you have to devote almost two hours to get the right texture. I wash them, poke them with a fork, squirt EVOO, massage sea salt, then wrap in foil. Perfection. I think I checked them at 1.5 hours this time and they were done because they were a little smaller.

I bought this Trader Joe’s meatloaf, did corn and brussels sprouts during the last 30 minutes of potato cook time. Tom gave the TJ meatloaf his approval which is a big deal! He is picky ’bout his loaf.

Jenn and I did some enabling of each other one day this week and it was fun! She went to Old Navy and found some awesome things; I can’t wait for her Fashion Files next week.

She found things I didn’t know about like this linen skort. I couldn’t find white like she did, but I found orange and loved it!

I also got out my old lace up sandals!

I had tried to find this skort before but they didn’t have my size and I didn’t want to order it. I found it in my size this time! It is the cutest print!

Close up of the print:

I said I was set for summer but summer clothes are so fun! I can’t help myself! The shorts, skorts, flip flops, coverups – ahhhhh! They are so much more fun to buy than winter clothes, in my opinion.

I think the weather was the highlight! It’s been so beautiful here!

And I will leave you with niece Lena in her itsy bitsy teenie weenie yellow polka dot bikini! She is 16 now and I sent her this photo!

Cheers to the weekend,

Amy

Thursday, June 4, 2026

Grammar and spelling are very important to me. I know my grammar is not always perfect and Mason says I need to embrace the comma. I tend to write on my blog like I would speak is what I tell him. He is not a regular reader, but I have asked him for advice! My kids are absolutely better writers than I am, by the way.

Are you in a work setting where grammar might matter?

I would regularly receive emails from higher ups in my field (of education!) with really unprofessional grammar. I did judge them! They also were not taking advantage of using editing features and spell check.

Once one is an adult, the red ink pen corrections are no more, so where does one go to learn? Professor Google?

I sometimes don’t edit well enough and make mistakes even in words like “hear” and “here” and I am mortified! It’s easy to do when you are typing quickly. I always give people passes on things like that. I hate typing on my phone and I know that can cause errors.

Even though I was a Spanish teacher, I taught some English grammar that was imperative to the learning of the new language and if they ever had to write in English, I also wanted them to be the best they could be. Jen, my English teacher and blogger friend, let me know what I forget!

I absolutely think grammar should still be taught. It goes hand in hand with reading and writing and comprehension of a text.

Here we go…

Their, They’re, and there are homophones – words that sound the same but have different spellings and meanings. Apostrophes are used to replace/represent missing letters in a contraction.

Their – is a possessive so you would use this spelling for “their house was simply gorgeous”

They’re – this is a contraction which means a morphing of two words – they and are. “They’re just adorable!” You could have also said, “They are just adorable!”

There – is an adverb of place so it is used like this “There are lots of kids in our neighborhood”

Some common contractions:

I’ve is “I have”

Isn’t is “Is not”

Doesn’t is “Does not”

Won’t is “will not” – can you imagine teaching this one to a non-native speaker of English – confusing!

It’s and its – Ok, this is one I see so many people use incorrectly and I distinctly remember when a teacher corrected me and that’s why I know it now – Thank you, Mr. A! I really wanted to impress him, too.

It’s – It’s is a contraction – a morphing of the words It and is “It’s a long way from here to there”

Its – this is the possessive – “We adopted a puppy but its mom is not done weaning yet” – this does not get the apostrophe because we are not saying “it is”

Who’s – this is a contraction of who and is – “who’s the chairperson of the committee?”

Whose – this is a possessive – “She is Mary whose daughter is Sarah”

Your – this is a possessive – “Your daughter is Sarah” – no apostrophes are needed

You’re – this is a contraction of you and are “You’re the apple of my eye”

Her – “Her daughter is Sarah”

Hers – “He is a friend of hers” – this does not get an apostrophe.

Mary’s – you use an apostrophe to show possession.

The kids’ – if more than one person owns something, your apostrophe goes after the “s” – “This is the kids’ playroom”

Here is a tricky one – if the name already ends in “s” you can choose – James’s or James’

Last names also don’t take an apostrophe. If you write a card to a family you would say “The Scotts” or you can say “The Scott Family” to avoid the “s”. The Jones’s or the Jones’ would correct. That’s a tricky one.

Plurals don’t take an apostrophe. All you need is the “s” at the end – “There are two girls in the group”

What trips you up? Do you have any grammar questions? My mom was an English and Art major and she taught both subjects during her long career. My Dad was the one that corrected our grammar, though. He was an excellent student and an excellent writer.

Thank you for attending class today,

Amy

Wednesday, June 3, 2026

Today is Currently and Hodgepodge with Joyce!

Let’s start with Currently…

Enjoying:

Open sun roofs – I was stopped but it is quite challenging to get a sun roof photo!

Deep thoughts by Amy – wouldn’t it be sad if you were worried about your hair and couldn’t open your sunroof? Or the windows? Or get your hair wet? I know some people have difficult hair, but it makes me sad. My mom spent her whole life never wanting to mess up her hair and letting her hair rule her schedule, really. She wouldn’t go places due to her hair, even. I remember her always talking about what she couldn’t do because of her hair.

Flip flop weather

Summer reading stacks

Outdoor reading

Ahhhh – if that doesn’t say summer I don’t know what does!

Wearing:

Shorts!

Watching:

With Tom – this is pretty good! I think the main character is so pretty – naturally pretty.

And, then, my shows…

This is simply charming. I am anxiously awaiting the rest of the episodes.

You know that I love some blind love! My friend lived in Poland for a year so I am excited to talk to her about what I noticed about Polish culture.

I am at a standstill with this. I really liked the first few episodes but then I kept falling asleep and now I need to back track. It’s for the young ones and sometimes I’m in the mood and sometimes I’m not.

Also, I watch all my Bravo shows – Below Deck, Real Housewives, etc.

Listening to:

My dog’s soft snoring as I type! Why is dog snoring cute but grown man snoring so not cute?

My fan. I bought a small fan last season, and this thing really moves air – lol. I was at an inn in Spain and didn’t know the word for “fan” when I went to the front desk, so I asked for a “machine that moves air”. It worked! I always told that story to my students as an example of how to work around words you don’t know. One day during the rainy spell the house felt stuffy, and I set that bad boy up and it just felt better.

The neighbor’s ex-husband use the leaf blower or something else noisy. Come on, you would miss it if I didn’t talk about him, wouldn’t you? He is there almost every single day. Tom doesn’t think he’s allowed in the house. We have lots of theories. Lots of theories. He blows.

Buying:

I have been buying some “summer staples” from my post! I bought a new sunshade for my car and now I just have to remember to use it.

I have been buying gauze from Old Navy. Now I have enough!

I bought a $6.95 Kroger delivery this week because Tom’s bread is not available in our Kroger anymore and only available from the warehouse where the deliveries come from. How do you like that? So, I had this week’s groceries delivered. There is a no tipping policy when it gets delivered from Kroger and not Instacart or another third party. I must admit that it was kind of nice. Please don’t tell me to tell Tom to find a different bread. Tom is extremely brand loyal. It’s weird. I pick my battles.

Link up here for Currently!

And, now for Hodgepodge…

1.What’s something you find extremely difficult that most people would say is simple?

I’m not sure most people would say this but these are some things that come to mind.

Gardening

Home decor things like picking out tile

2.  “And so with the sunshine and the great bursts of leaves growing on the trees, just as things grow fast in movies I  had that familiar conviction that life was beginning over again with the summer.” 

~F. Scott Fitzgerald

Does the season of summer make you feel this way? Elaborate. 

In the past, yes! Summer was the chance to get my life together, clean up my act, and be a whole and new person for the next school year. Since my life is no longer running on a school calendar, I think summer will no longer be my favorite. I will be glad my sisters are out, my nieces and nephews are on break, and my teacher friends are out, but I don’t think it will hold the same meaning as before. I did feel such an awakening in the spring this year, though. I was so happy to see the world come back to life after a long and cold winter. I think I would replace “summer” with “spring” in that quote.

3. Pickles. Love ’em or no thank you? What’s your favorite type of pickle? What’s something you eat that definitely needs a pickle added?

I love pickles! I love them on burgers and sandwiches and dill are my favorite. I love them cut up in my sub in a tub and my burger bowl. I love fried pickles but only if they are the chips, not the spears. I will ask for your spear if you are wasting it.

4. Tis the season…do you know any June brides? Are there any weddings on your summer calendar? What’s your favorite movie wedding? 

I don’t! We don’t have any weddings this summer. I think I would have to go with Father of the Bride because it’s one I watched with my mom and sisters multiple times.

5. June 1st is/was National Say Something Nice Day…say something nice here. 

Joyce comes up with the best questions! The blog world is so kind. What a nice thing we have here, no?

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Summer is the time for simple foods, right? I know this isn’t earth-shattering, but I made this romaine, fresh dill, green onions, feta, lemon juice, evoo, salt and pepper salad and it was so good.

I am excited for good tomatoes. I am going to try my first tomato pie!

Have you heard of the “viral dot cupcake trend”? It’s so simple and it’s nothing new. I had a funfetti cake mix and some frosting. I leveled off the cupcakes to make them flat and then frosted and rolled in non-pareils sprinkles. Then, you are supposed to scrape your spoon on top? I had to refrigerate my cupcakes to get the satisfying scrape. We live in a weird world.

I changed my Instagram name to be more like my blog now that I’m not a teacher. @coffeecocktailsamyscott is my account. I tried to do a separate blog account years ago and couldn’t keep up with it. I share what I’m reading, eating, local businesses, and happy stuff.

Amy

Tuesday, June 2, 2026

Can you believe I am typing “June”? This is crazy, but it means that the summer clothing is going to be on sale soon! Today is Fashion Files with Marsha and myself and we hope you will link up with us. Let’s keep “fashion” blogging alive! Maybe you will “meet” a new blogger. Maybe I will stop using quotes? Probably not!

Last week I had a good old-fashioned wander around Target. I took advantage of their mirror to show you that I wore my Crocs Miami in black, my Aerie cut offs(click on this link and they are $9.99 in pink petal colorway), and my navy Old Navy blouse (that’s fun to say). It appears the ruffle blouse is sold out in every size and every color, but you might be able to find it in store.

I did not buy any clothing, shoes, or accessories. I bought cleaning and food stuffs and only spent $40. Am I growing up?

One day last week Tom and I had an appointment with our financial advisor dude and I had been wanting to wear some of my dresses. I wore this Umgee dress, very old Target buckle sandals, and a J.Crew consignment cardigan. I have thought about upgrading my flat buckle sandals but there really wasn’t a need.

I went to visit my old school in this – old Target olive green Universal Thread shorts, Marshall’s floral embroidery blouse, and my Kork Ease buckle sandals. I also wore this to happy hour with a friend later on in the afternoon.

Let’s talk about gauze now. I ordered brown and white gauze tops that are identical to my mustard gauze. I am on the fence about if this style is flattering on me. I’m on the fence if I care because they are great tops for summer. These are $15 each. I have already washed and dried the mustard a few times and it did well. Bonus, if I eat a hot dog with mustard and spill I will be ok.

I wore this out to dinner – the white one with very old printed pants and Aerie gold flip flops. I am confused about the stains in the photo – there is nothing on my mirror and nothing on my shirt in real life.

I also bought the corresponding gauzy drawstring shorts in mustard, brown, and white – thinking that I could create “sets”. Sets are hard when your bottom half ain’t the same size as your top half. In this very bad photo example below of the “peppercorn”, my bottom size is 3 sizes smaller than my top size. I could have gone up a size in one and down in one probably. Who is getting lotion on my mirror? I think it’s a good reminder that sizes are not gospel. Sometimes you want to try multiple sizes and choose how you want something to fit.

I can wear them as a set or separately.

I ordered Archie’s flip flops in chili last week that you see in the above photo. They are good quality but I almost think my arches aren’t high enough for them. Anyone tried Archie’s? This was honestly such an impulse purchase.

I popped into my consignment shop and found some J.Crew simple lightweight black shorts for $7 and they are in this photo with the brown gauzy top:

And here:

I already had turquoise and orange gauzy shorts from my local boutique’s sales rack and I wear these quite a bit.

These are the new mustard, peppercorn, and I also have white.

I wore this graphic tee with the mustard:

Do you feel comfortable wearing shorts out of the house for non-exercise outings? I do, but I do hate the feel of my legs sticking to a chair or a booth so I prefer not to wear them to sitting down things.

I am trying to either wear what I have or let it go. I am more comfortable with a smaller selection.

Don’t forget that Currently is tomorrow! I hope you will join me to share what you are: enjoying, wearing, watching, listening to, and buying!

For today’s Fashion Files,

Link up here! Thank you!

Tell me your thoughts on any of my outfits or your thoughts on gauze. Are you a gauzy girl? Or boy? I don’t want to leave my two male readers out.

XOXO,

Amy

Monday, June 1, 2026

It’s June! How did that happen? Let’s link up with Sarah and Holly to share our weekends…

Let’s start with Thursday…

After visiting my school on Thursday around lunchtime and having some feelings surrounding that, I was ready for a happy hour. My high school friend Beth came to my house and I drove us to a place I had been once several years ago but had wanted to try again called South Seas. I knew they had the trend of the soft serve alcohol drinks, and your girl was having FOMO (Fear of Missing Out). The bartender was so friendly and nice to us and explained how they made them and let us try some samples.

We both picked blueberry margarita…

I liked it, but you have to eat it with a spoon and it melts really fast, so the jury was still out on this trend for me.

We also had some plantain chips and dips:

We had some nice conversation, and it was really fun!

We got home in time for dinner and I had prepared early. We had orzo with chicken and spinach and I didn’t eat much, but I was glad I had prepped it ahead of time.

Friday morning I was excited to go get some new library books since I had decided to abandon my last book and my other books weren’t appealing to me.

Look at my fun summer stack:

I love my library!

After the library, I stopped at Whole Foods to get some turkey, sliced sourdough, bagels, and a couple of other impulse purchases.

By the way…

I think Dazzle Dry nail polish is really good. I am not the best at polishing perfectly, but I enjoyed the red color for about 5 days and then took it off:

Next, I decided to just do a traditional OPI mani on myself. My nails are damaged from about 1/3 of the way to the top of the nail from my two gel manis. I am letting that grow out and just keeping them short. They are not strong at all right now, so they are breaking quite often.

I started this and finished this over the weekend. The story hooked me and I really enjoyed it.

Friday night has meant eating at home lately. I decided to try to make fried goat cheese balls (as one does, you know?) for a salad and they turned out great! I made a homemade dressing.

I also made these tater skin rounds and they were delicious. Tom had some leftover pizza from lunch, too.

We watched a couple of shows together and it was a nice evening.

Saturday was gorgeous and I opened the sun roof!

I went to see how high the river was…

You should be able to walk on that ramp to the dock.

I think this photos shows it better:

So, sadly, even with such a gorgeous day, the river is not safe for recreational boating. There is lots of debris, too.

I called Heather and she said she was on the way to Sassy Fox so I met her there. I have never seen so much summer consignment. Good stuff! I put out an APB/Instagram post to tell my friends to go check it out.

Weird photo:

I left with a pair of black J.Crew shorts for $7. I could have bought more, but I am being very practical.

Did you read this? I couldn’t tell you any details but I know I read it.

I watched the movie in the afternoon and it was ok.

Tom and I went to a new to us Mexican place that was really good and had a really lively decor:

I had to try this one, too:

Here’s my verdict on the soft serve alcohol: You have to eat it with a spoon. I wasn’t excited to do that while trying to eat my weight in chips and salsa. It’s very cold. It’s very strong. It was $16. I have determined that I shall drink my alcohol and eat my ice cream with a spoon. I was only able to eat about 5 spoonfuls. So, I believe I now have JOMO (Joy of Missing Out).

I ordered a chicken burrito and we were glad we hadn’t ordered queso because we were both dipping chips into the vast amount of queso on my burrito – lol.

Tom got birria tacos and we brought home two big boxes of leftover food. We both wished for Mason to be here to eat it.

We walked EO when we got home and then watched some tv.

We capped off the weekend by going to see a late Sunday afternoon matinee of this:

It exceeded my expectations. Tom and I laughed through the whole movie. He is really clean and I told my sisters it would be appropriate for their 6th and 7th grade boys, too.

Yes, we do take our leftover popcorn home with us.

I started this:

It seems cute so far!

A couple of reminders…

Fashion Files is tomorrow! Show us what you’ve been wearing, what you have dug out for the season, what you hope to wear, your summer shoes – anything to do with fashion. You can show one photo or multiple photos. Maybe participating will force you to wear and evaluate your summer clothing? What do you think about us adding themes throughout the summer like “white pants” or “linen” or “Pinterest copycat”?

Currently is Wednesday, June 3. If you also do Hodgepodge with Joyce, feel free to combo them.

The prompts are: enjoying, wearing, watching, listening to, and buying.

What was the highlight of your weekend? I would love to know!

Amy

PS – I did a Saturday post. If you missed it, click here!

Saturday, May 30, 2026

Today is the last Saturday of the month and I’m joining in with Jenn for her Share 4 Somethings link up…

Something I loved

As my first May not in school, I loved enjoying the weather and soaking up the sun. This is my favorite place to read! I am not using self-tanner right now. I went to Suntan City and cancelled my membership that I had had on freeze. I am not trying to “tan” but have a little natural color (while using sunscreen) from my little pockets of sunshine.

All the walks I can take with EO during the day. I still struggle with leaving him and going to walk alone. I haven’t figured that out, but we walk usually twice a day and my step count is way up since winter.

I loved getting to take the boat out in mid-May!

Something that sustained me

My little social activities – mah jong, or a happy hour or meal out with a friend. I am spending so much more time at home and these little times to be social give me something to look forward to and a little time out. I like to be home in time for dinner with Tom most nights and we eat and watch a show together.

Chatting with my friend Dan!

I don’t always have a cocktail. This one was just the yummy dip with my friend Jessica!

It was so fun to get to hear about Beth’s daughter’s time in Germany!

Lunch with Mason in a garden was such a treat!

This week I tried the trend of soft serve alcohol with another friend named Beth – this was a blueberry margarita. You have to use a spoon. The bartender gave us a sample of the soft serve espresso martini, too. I want to try one other place, but I’m calling this a trend that isn’t for me. I would rather drink a cocktail and have a non-alcoholic tasting ice cream treat.

I usually am the asker/inviter these days and it works well to just meet up with one person because when you start trying to mesh multiple schedules it can be like a math story problem.

Something I’m carrying forward

I am working on a post, but I am carrying forward the adaptation to my retired lifestyle, I suppose. We have now hit the one-year mark which seems impossible.

I walked EO on my school grounds a couple of weeks ago and this week I visited my school to say happy retirement to some old colleagues and to visit my department – the other world language teachers. It was nice to see some people, but I also left with the realization that life goes on, your job goes on, and you aren’t imperative to an organization when it comes right down to it.

I didn’t feel sad. I felt like that was a whole other lifetime ago. I didn’t miss the industrial feel and the hard floors and the muggy humid building and the talk about meetings and initiatives.

I think I struggle more with the great number of life changes that happened all at once in my life.

Something I’m making space for

My motto as a teacher was “people before paper” which meant to drop tasks when I had the opportunity to connect with a student or a colleague. I tend to thrive on checking off tasks and I am a pretty efficient person, so that needed to be a reminder that some tasks could wait.

The way that looks now is having time for family and friends in person, via text, or via a phone chat. I want to keep space in my calendar for spontaneity. I want to be easy and flexible to schedule things with.

It also looks like being present when kids stop by and being present when Tom wants to talk.

What about you? What would you share?

Amy

Friday, May 29, 2026

Happy Friday! How was your short week after the Monday Memorial Day holiday? I’m always thrown off a bit – yes, even in retirement!

Let’s link up with Andrea and Erika to share some favorites from the week.

On Memorial Day, I finished cleaning – I cleaned a ton on Sunday – and then did an old fashioned Target wander. It was nice! I returned the two coolers I had bought and I am in search of something a little different. I want it to be more tote bag-like, I think.

Then, Tom and I decided to go to lunch! We were going to go out for fish and chips, but the place was too busy, so we ended up at Five Guys! Yum! I hadn’t had a burger or fries for that matter in a really long time. So, this was basically our Memorial Day cook out! I reminded Tom that the junior is quite big enough but he ordered the regular sized and then stated, “this is just too big”. Always listen to your wife, Tom!

We had no plans. Kids had to work and many of our friends were out of town. Boating was out due to the high river from all the rains. Ho hum. Tom mowed and I watched some tv and then I was able to sit outside and read until it started raining – again! Oh well.

I posted my May books yesterday but I hadn’t finished this at the time of the posting and I don’t think I will finish it now. This might be an unpopular opinion, but it’s too far-fetched and southern cheesy. Spoiler coming so scroll to after the paragraph after the photo of the book jacket.

Parents of 3-year-old twins leave them to be watched by a woman they have met like twice to go on a trip out of the country! The main character wants to lie/not reveal information about the birth parents of a foster baby so she can adopt said baby! She gets an Easter basket for a couple week old baby! Lol – the last one is not that big of a deal. It’s just crazy. I read many far-fetched books but this one is apparently my limit. I am sorry if you are a fan of this author.

SPOILER OVER!

I made Memorial Day manicotti – Maria talked about it and I thought I would try it – with brussel sprouts and turkey sausage. The manicotti is vegetarian and Tom requires meat at each meal thus the sausage.

It’s hard to get the filling in the tubular pasta – I used both a baggie with the tip cut and a long spoon. Neither was very easy. It turned out great, though!

I also had a glass of this:

If you belong to Costco, you can’t beat some of their wines for $8!

While at Target, I discovered they now carry three flavors of Laundry Sauce so you no longer have to buy it “sight unsmelled”. It’s too expensive. Have we gone too far with our scented laundry needs? I need to look at my household products and opt for cleaner versions, I know.

The Dollar Spot/$5 Spot at the front of the store had some cute things but I resisted:

I am thinking of decorating my porches in red, white, and blue or nautical themed items but can Eddie Otis handle my accessories this summer? That is the question. I will test out my old lemon pillows and see if he can resist.

Favorite blog comment I received this week…

“I increasingly suspect the last interesting people on the internet are hiding in corners like this, quietly exchanging thoughts while the rest of civilization live-streams itself eating drywall.”

It made me laugh and I took it to mean that I am interesting? I really love the blog world. I am hanging tight to the old school blog style.

I have been telling you/told you that we got a bakery chain right by my house. There is a line out the door every time I pass! It’s crazy! This photo was taken at 6:00 am on my way to the gym so this would be the only time I could go! They are open from 6 am until 9 pm. Wow!

I am enjoying this type of clip in my hair. I got this one and a pink pearlized one.

I broke out my fan, and it reminded me how great fans are. Lol. Duh. Get you a fan if you don’t have one!

I made a coffee cake because I was craving it and this brand is so good.

My umbrella broke so I ordered a clear one from Target. Clear are so great! You can still see!

I didn’t realize the NYX Butter Gloss came in clear – speaking of clear – so you can turn any lipstick into a gloss.

I like a coral in the summer so I bought this:

It is Revlon Dewy Peach and a nice light formula.

The topic of our names on Hodgepodge was really fun on Wednesday if you missed it! I should have also mentioned that I love my sisters’ names – Kate Eileen and Molly Anne. Kate is not short for anything and she is not a “Katie”. Sometimes one of our cousins calls her that but she is simply “Kate” and it really fits her. Molly has always thought she had a dog name. I took horseback riding lessons and my horse was named “Molly” and that really ticked her off. Molly totally fits her as the baby of the family, the one who made all of us laugh, you know?

Speaking of dogs and horses…

This thing is amazing! My basement stairs and basement are carpeted and even though EO is not allowed in the basement yet, his hair migrates to the stairs. It was $6.99. I plan to use it before vacuuming in the future. You do not want to know the amount of hair this got up for me.

A big change to our daily routine already is the fact that school is out and that matters to me because I live in front of an elementary school yard!

Eddie Otis trotting around the playground like he owns the place now:

I made a homemade tick spray with stuff I already had at home. I did leave out the geranium oil.

Yes, I am kind of nervous about the ticks this season.

And I will leave you with something just too cute for words, in my opinion.

Eddie Otis is not allowed in the basement yet. We keep a baby gate at the top of the stairs. When Tom is home in the evenings, I can go down. Yes, it’s crazy the things we do for our dogs or the things we sacrifice for our dogs.

We have these rungs and when I go down he likes to “play” with me. I stick my hand through a rung to him and he “guesses” which one I am going to go through and he sticks his paw through to me. It’s hard to get a photo of this but you will have to trust me that his big ol’ furry paws are so cute and I just love playing this with him. I know he hates that he can’t come down yet. I am going to EO proof it soon. We are gradually leaving more doors and spaces open to him.

Tell me something that was a favorite of yours this week!

Thanks for reading,

Amy