Jennifer Apodaca's Blog, page 5

Wednesday Reading

We are having a pretty decent thunder storm as I write this on Tuesday evening. Unfortunately, I took Maggie to boarding for the night as Wizard’s having a minor procedure this morning. She’s terrified of thunder and I hope she’s okay. I’m such a dog mom, LOL, and really fretting about her. Hopefully she’s okay.

You know what I’m not doing? Reading many books right now. I’m mainly reading research stuff online, mostly. However I did finish Rebecca Yarrow’s THE LAST LETTER. Wowzer, she had a twist at the end that I did not see coming. Serious warning: If anyone is thinking about reading this book and is looking for a traditional romance only, don’t read this book. This book has a romance, but it’s also a heartbreaker and the sad stays with you. I loved it, and have been thinking about it this week. But it’s not for every romance reader.

I also have been listening to the nonfiction book, THE POWER OF REGRET by Daniel H Pink. I heard him on a podcast and he caught my interest, which  is how I impulse buy of books these days :-). I mainly listen to that when I’m cleaning, otherwise I’m listening to podcasts.

What are you reading or listening to? Is anything new or different catching your interest?

Happy Wednesday!!

 

The post Wednesday Reading first appeared on Jennifer Lyon.

Weekend Roundup

Happy first Monday of June!! Now let’s talk about the weekend.

I can’t remember Friday, LOL! Oh wait, I found the memory! I worked out, cleaned and played around with my blog ideas. And with that, I really thought about what my regrets are, the time I took off once I stopped writing to find my joys outside of writing and my family, and I really concentrated on forming a clearer picture of what my goals are now. So yep, that was Friday and the pondering continued through the weekend and beyond…so that’s a work in progress I also had fun with using AI as a tool for feedback. I love the logic of it. AI is not where I look for emotion for the heart of my story or ideas, nor where I go for writing. But it’s a fun and useful tool.

Saturday was a good day. Youngest and his wife came over. Youngest measured and estimated the cost of the deck in the back he’s going to build for us. Once we revived Wizard after his heart stopped — he agreed. Nah, just kidding. Wizard had already mentally estimated the costs, and just played the outraged dad for fun. We all chatted, then youngest just had to drive the Mustang with Wizard and that, somehow, turned into a trip to the hobby store. They were gone awhile, and that gave my daughter in law and I a chance to talk. I loved have that hour and a half with her!  Later that day, Youngest sent me a picture of the wood he’d brought. I’m not sure of the timeline, but I’m guessing soon!

Saturday evening, we drove out to CeeGee’s to celebrate Middle’s birthday. CeeGee woke up for a nap right after we got there, and guys, you’ll be so proud of me — I didn’t run in to get her! I let Wizard do it since he hasn’t seen her in a while. See, I can be a good wife sometimes! Wizard brought her out, and she was still half asleep. But then she saw me and her face lit up with a big grin. I loved it! She also had a ton of fun with Grandpa, but that moment when she saw me was one of those fleeting special moments that I tried to mentally capture and cherish.

We all went out for Italian food, where in Wizard got his second shock at the bill.  Bwhahaha!  There is only so much a retired account’s heart can take! The dinner was good, I tried wild boar in a wine reduction sauce with gluten free noodles. I liked it as something different, and am willing to try other versions of wild boar. All the other had lasagna and loved it. Daughter in Law brought a truly lovely bottle of wine too. We also shared some chocolate mousse dessert as well.

Sunday Wizard raced, I did stuff. The day was quiet and peaceful.

How was your weekend?

The post Weekend Roundup first appeared on Jennifer Lyon.

Friday Five

TGIF!! Friday is here and it’s time to share five random things about our week. Let’s get started!

This has been a nice week for me — calm. I’ve been mostly home, just running around in town doing normal things. I love the weeks when I feel like I can catch my breath.Turbo’s last day of school was yesterday. He’s done with first grade and on his way to second. Time sure moves faster when we’re grandparents! Turbo is also going to Canada on a family vacation soon — the boy travels more than I ever have! What cracked me up is when I was talking to Oldest about his trip, he was most excited about unlimited time to play with his son. I approve of his priorities.So I’ve been kicking around an idea — that’s not writing a book Today I did a little research and also snagged a domain name. But will I follow through…that’s unclear Right now, it’s a fun project to think about, and that has it’s own value.I need to reach out to some friends. Procrastination Jen is, well, procrastinating. You know, I keep waiting for life to give me the updated schedule with some stuff, and that’s just dumb. I think it’s better to make plans with friends and force life to go around us!Yesterday was Middle Son’s birthday. He’s such a joy to us and I’m so proud of him! Saturday, we are going out there, and taking him, his wife and CeeGee to dinner to celebrate. I’m really looking forward to spending time with them, and then again on a mini vacation on July 4th.

That’s my five, now it’s your turn to share!!!  I hope you guys all have an amazing weekend!

The post Friday Five first appeared on Jennifer Lyon.

Wednesday Reading

So Wizard gave our daughter-in-law (CeeGee’s mom) a book, and now she blames him for igniting her love of reading Before this, she was an  occassion reader, but now she’s hooked. Which is awesome for me, because she loaned me a couple of hers that she loved. And we get to talk about books!

Right now I’m reading THE LAST LETTER  by Rebecca Yarrow and loving it! It’s fully of tragedy and hope, and involves a sick child (I mention that as a caution for those who don’t want that story line in their reading entertainment). I think it’s a cross between romance and women’s fiction. I’m about 3/4’s of the through it and look forward to reading it when I can.

On Audio, I have BUTCHER & BLACKBIRD by Brynne Weaver. It’s about two serial killers who fall in love. So…different and a little funny for the who can occassionally be a little dark and twisted like me. However I’m not so engaged that I’m rushing through it. In fact, at times, I get tired of it and switch to podcasts.

What are you reading or listening to?

The post Wednesday Reading first appeared on Jennifer Lyon.

Weekend Roundup & Memorial Day

I want to take a moment to remember all those who have served our county. Today many of us have BBQs and parties to celebrate life. But I think it’s important to take a second and remember those who paid the ultimate price so that we can live and celebrate. So to all those who have served, those who were wounded or lost their lives, and to all their families: THANK YOU. It matters to me, it always has and it always will.

Now for the weekend — all went well.

Friday, while I cleaned, Wizard took Maggie to get a bath and picked up something I needed from the grocery store. He really pitched in so that I could have a little time to repot a plant I’ve had for a week now

Saturday, I made apple pie. Biker Witch and Hubby came later in the afternoon and it was great to see them. We had Balsamic Flank Steak, Lemon Greek Chicken, Cilantro Lime Rice, fresh fruit that Biker Witch brought and pie with ice cream. The best part was just getting to talk and hang out. I nixxed the idea of inviting others so that we could just have some time together. When my kids or Biker Witch’s kids show up, it’s a blast but hard to relax and just visit. Next time, I’ll invite others.

Sunday, Wizard went racing, I worked out, then took my shoes back to the mall, and came home with two more pairs of shoes and two pairs of shorts. A 40% sale motivated me, LOL. Hopefully everything fits, or I’ll be making the trek back. In shoes, I’m focusing on casual, comfortable, and affordable sandals. Other than my walking shoes (which are very pricy but worth it) I live in sandals for 6 to 8 months of the year. I try to find some support to protect my feet as best I can. Walking so much–often 2 or more miles a day–can take a toll over time.

Today, I’m not sure what we’re doing. But since we had our fun Saturday, I’d be fine staying home and doing regular stuff.

How was your weekend?

The post Weekend Roundup & Memorial Day first appeared on Jennifer Lyon.

Friday Five

TGIF!! It’s time to share five random things about our week. Here’s mine:

Monday, I worked in my little garden. That was fun and hot! Maggie’s always happy when I’m in the backyard with her. What wasn’t so fun — I learned what root rot smells like. Whoa!!! I tried what I guessed would help to rescue the plant, and repotted it in a better pot that I can see in to make sure I’m not over watering so much. I later learned I may not have done enough, but we’ll see. The good news is, that I’m learning! So far, the plant looks pretty good. As for me, I’d rather not smell root rot again anytime soon!Wizard saw me working out there and came out to chat, when he noticed I was using a small side table to work on my plants. A few days later, he suddenly needed a new folding table, bought one, and gave me his old one to use as a gardening table. This is classic Wizard move — finding a way to make things easier for me without making it seem like he went to any trouble   The table can stay up on the side of the house where no one sees it and it’s out of the way.Wednesday I saw CeeGee!! She is a delight. She’s nine months old and getting super active. She isn’t crawling yet, but her brain is now in “Go” mode and she’s doing all the right moves to be crawling soon. She now weights a chunky 18 lbs. This baby started life a bit underweight, and made up for it swiftly (thanks to mom’s and dad’s care). The pediatrician said she’s exactly what they like to see as she’ll be burning it off  soon crawling, walking then running. All true! And I loved spending time with my daughter in law too. Plus she sent me home with two books, I started one last night and already like it!I began the two day process of making sourdough bread yesterday. It’s been a while. I also worked out, did stupid chores, ran to Trader Joes, and founds ways to get super tired, LOL. I also made an appointment for Maggie to have a bath at the groomers today. Maggie heard her name and bath, and was instantly concerned enough to get up out of her bed, sit and stare at me while I finished the call. I’ve been giving her in-between baths but the groomer does a better job.This weekend, we’re having Biker Witch and Biker Hubby out for and early dinner on Saturday. Sunday, Wizard should be racing, so I get some time alone, but I also need to run out to a mall to return some shoes I ordered. I’m looking forward to seeing Biker Witch and Hubby, but the mall is not high on my list of fun things to do Monday I’m not sure if we’re doing anything for Memorial Day — we’ll see.

Now it’s your turn to share five random things! I hope everyone has a great weekend, and a good Memorial Day!

The post Friday Five first appeared on Jennifer Lyon.

Wednesday Reading

Whew, we’re already at hump day! And that means time to talk about books.

I listened to a romance I really liked. Lately, that’s a real win. First, I don’t generally like listening to romances, I prefer reading them because I’m weird. And second, romances just aren’t catching my interest as much anymore. I’m pretty sure it’s a season of life thing where my interests go in another direction now. Anyhow, I stumbled onto JUST FOR THE SUMMER by Abby Jimenez, and I really enjoyed it. I liked the characters, the banter, the fun and some of the darker threads of real life (or as real as we get in romances). I will look for more of her books!

I’m staying busy enough that I’m too tired when I sit down to read print books without falling asleep. But audiobooks are a great way for me to do two things at once. Also, I (usually) like being busy and finding hobbies besides reading. I spent so many years sitting at a computer writing about other lives, and now I’m making up for lost time living mine Ok seriously, I don’t regret a minute of writing — I truly loved it. Now I’m loving being more active during the day and trying my hand at things like NOT killing every plant I get.

All that said, I still love books! I always will!

What are you reading?

The post Wednesday Reading first appeared on Jennifer Lyon.

Weekend Roundup

It was a good weekend. Saturday we headed out to Turbo’s, Wizard gave him the RC race car…and it broke in the first 10 minutes, LOL! That is RC cars. Wizard brought it home to fix the issue and will probably drop it off this week when he’s out there for other stuff. But Turbo was excited about it! And he didn’t even blink about Wizard needing to take it home and redo something on it. He and his dad have RC trucks they play with, and his dad is always fixing them, so he wasn’t at all surprised or upset. We didn’t stay long, and left to head towards home then stop somewhere for lunch when we were closer to home.

But the freeway was closed due to an accident involving a runaway propane tank. The tank’s house — a food truck — was involved in an accident and the propane tank saw it’s opportunity to escape and rolled out onto the freeway (I didn’t said it was a good plan, LOL). This freaked out the authorities since they didn’t know if it had been punctured and was ready to spectacularly self destruct in a massive fireball and take out everything around it. And this led to the freeway closure.

Fortunately, we were able to get it around it fairly quickly since they had just closed the freeway a few minutes before we got there, and we went on with our day. We went to lunch, came home then headed back out to drop in on Youngest unannounced. Because we wanted to see the finished back yard! And we did! They have an oasis that is just lovely after a year or more of work. It was worth all the sweat and money they put into it. But Youngest had planned to show no one until he was ready for his Big Reveal in what I assume will be a family swim party. Which is why we dropped in We’re the parents, we get away with stuff like that all the time. But he’s making the rest of the family wait and there was a long text chain about this in which Youngest told his siblings and family that we had to pay for an early preview. Then he showed a picture the Mustang in his garage, implying we gave it to him for the privilege of seeing his backyard.

I’m seriously worried my kids are strange. Just saying…

Sunday Wizard went to practice at the track and see his friends. That left me home unsupervised, so I went to Lowes and spent money on more pots, soil, plant stands and one plant. I need to do some repotting and such. Maggie went with me and had a great time with that adventure! She loves going anywhere.

Oh, and back when we were at Turbo’s, oldest son said he’d take paddle board lessons with me (stand up paddle board), and I am going to hold him to it! It’s a bucket list thing that I really want to try. My daughter in law said she and Turbo will Kayak while we paddle board. I’d totally do kayaking too, but I really want to try paddle boarding.

Today I’m working out then gardening in the back.

How was your weekend?

The post Weekend Roundup first appeared on Jennifer Lyon.

Friday Five

TGIF! I didn’t do much this week, well, I did do stuff but it was all boring chores and errands. But I’ll try to come up with five things to share about my week, then it’s your turn!

Wizard’s still dealing with his cold, but definitely feels better than he did the first couple days. So far, no cold for me.I’m loving my plants in the back yard! I want to do more, but I’m kind of waiting to see when Youngest will be able to do the decking. He’s finishing his backyard by putting in sod this week. He and his wife have turned their back yard with a pool into a lovely outdoor space! They did all the work themselves, but worth the effort! The stuff in my backyard can wait, we are really enjoying it as is.In less than exciting news, I bought 15lb dumb bells, slowly and steadily increasing the weight in my weight lifting program. Oldest suggested I pyramid sets, which means I start with a lighter weight with more reps, and work up in weight with each progressive set, lowering my reps with each increase. Doing this has reduced my fatigue and joint pain, which I had no idea would work. I don’t know the exact mechanism of why it works, but I’m happy it does. I know this is boring for the rest of the universe Wizard and I went to a big box home goods store yesterday, where we brought a few things, including a throne (aka a plant stand) for Prince (the orchid). I named him Prince for the song Purple Rain This weekend, we are going to take Turbo a RC racecar Wizard built for him. There’s a slight chance that I won’t go with Wizard if Youngest would like my help putting in the sod in his backyard. We’ll see what he says, but my kids tend to be squeamish about me doing lift and carry work even if I can do it and don’t mind. Plus I’m torn, go see my grandson Turbo or get dirty and sweaty helping youngest? Hm…  I’ve missed seeing CeeGee this week, but I really didn’t want to share Wizard’s cold. My poor daughter in law fought that cold for three weeks, she really doesn’t need a repeat of that.

That’s my boring five. I’m pretty sure you all can show me up sharing your five things! I hope everyone has a great weekend!

The post Friday Five first appeared on Jennifer Lyon.

Wednesday Reading

I finished THE GIVER last week, and I generally loved it. However, I didn’t love the ending. It was abrupt and ambiguous. Literary Fiction does this a lot, and in certain contexts I have no problem with it. In this one, I felt too invested to have a sudden ending. It could be that I was reading it on Kindle, and the device told me I was only 80% into the book so the quick ending was unexpected. The reason Kindle told me 80% was the author had included other material in the back of the book and I hadn’t realized it. I’m going to say what I really felt: For such an intense, well written book, I thought the ending was lazy writing. Tons and tons of readers will disagree and that’s okay. We all have opinions All that said, I still highly recommend the book! The viewpoint of an 11 or 12 year old boy really gives an interesting perspective on a dystopian (or highly controlled might be a better description) society. Totally worth the read.

I’m listening on and off to a mystery, THE GUILTY ONE by Kiersten Modglin. I like it, and the twists are pretty good so far. I do find some parts hard to listen to due to subject matter. But I’ve been also listening to various podcasts, so that helps me disengage for a bit when I need a break. That may be weird, but that’s me, LOL.

What are you reading or listening to?

The post Wednesday Reading first appeared on Jennifer Lyon.