Skip to main content

Hulk Smash!

 "Hulk smash!"

--The Incredible Hulk


On Father's Day, my family gathered together at my parent's house for a cookout. The kitchen door opened repeatedly as people arrived. One person caught both my and my husband's attention. My three-year-old nephew was wearing an Incredible Hulk mask. We were torn between laughing and feeling slightly uncomfortable as he stared us down, mean mugging and unblinking. J is his own brand of awesome. I may be biased, but I think all my nieces and nephews are.

Lately, I've been feeling particularly thankful for my siblings and their littles. I'm amazed at how personalities can shine through such tiny people in big ways.💚I want them to embrace every beautiful part of themselves, to discover and grow and flourish.

Too often we get disconnected from those parts of ourselves. Take some time today and think about the things that made you happy when you were a child. Was it painting? Did you love to climb trees? Were you the person who stood up for the kid getting bullied? Get out your paint brushes again. Go outside and walk around in nature. Use your voice to speak up for those who can't. The beautiful parts of you are still there. They might be stored in a corner of your heart, dusty and temporarily forgotten. But I'm betting they work and that you'll find an unexpected joy in them you would have otherwise missed out on.



What I've been reading . . .

The Heart of Betrayal and The Beauty of Darkness by Mary E. Pearson

The Remnant Chronicles

Books 2 & 3

YA Fantasy


"Some scars took longer to heal than others, and some scars, I knew, were necessary. Some things you should never forget."

--The Beauty of Darkness


If you're looking for an un-put-down-able series, this is it!

*Warning for sensitive readers: Contains some language and adult content.



What I've been listening to . . .

"Stay Strong" by the Newsboys

An oldie but goodie.


"Dark Side" by Bishop Briggs

Sometimes I come across a song that feels like it should go on a project playlist, but I don't have a project that it fits with. It often leaves me wanting to create a playlist of these songs, including this one. I'd call it, "Someone please use this!"😆



Currently enjoying . . .

Hot chocolate! I know, who drinks cocoa in the summer? But I've been looking for the right cocoa to sweetener ratio for some time. And I finally found it!


Hot Chocolate

1 2/3 C heated milk

2 TBS unsweetened cocoa powder

1 TBS natural maple syrup

Top it off with almond milk and a dash of cinnamon (if you're into that . . . #oncersforever).



Blessings,

J 🤍






Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Spring is Here!🌷

 Happy spring, friends!🌞🌱 We've had a lot of rain here in the Hoosier state. It's getting warmer, and things are greening up. I can't wait for sunny days when I can go for walks and start working on my garden. This year, I'm planning to try my hand at container gardening. My garden plot is pretty small to start with. I like things that are straightforward and practical. So, this seems like it might be a good fit. And less weeding! Which is good, because I'm continuing to work through final tweaks for Champion's Sword . I should be done by the end of April. Then I'll move on to formatting, followed by one final read to check for commas and such. I'm looking forward to refilling my creative well and returning to drafting after so long in editing land.😉 Reading . . . This month, I re-read Spells for Forgetting  by Adrienne Young. And I finally got my hands on Ignite  by Kara Swanson. If you've read Champion's Key , you'll understand why this ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Happy December!

  Happy December, friends! I don't know about you, but I drink hot drinks all year round. I love to start my day with coffee and end it with tea. As the weather has turned colder, I've found greater enjoyment in it. There's just something about cozying up with a warm drink. But to be honest, as I've gotten older, a fair amount of the shiny parts of the Christmas season have been overshadowed by the frustration of societal expectations. Less is more, I say. Yet I've realized this isn't about me. Shocker, I know. So, I've set out my few minimalist decorations. I've embraced a tree this year (a tiny Scandinavian-style one, but even so). And strangely, I'm finding that I don't mind the twinkle lights so much this year. Even if the silver garland I placed on the mantle is driving me bonkers. Reading . . . Heir, Apparently  by Kara McDowell The Prince and the Apocalypse, Bk. 2 YA Fiction/Romance Bully Pulpit: Confronting the Problem of Spiritual Abuse ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Behemoth

  Guys, I have three chapters left! Theoretically, I should be able to tackle these last chapters next week. I will say, though, that I've learned things often take me longer than I expect, and chapter fifty-one is a behemoth . Seriously, it's double the size of a lot of my chapters. After I've finished with edits, I'll read through the entire book to check everything one final time (and fix em dashes in the first half😐) before moving on to formatting, cover design, and publication. Yay! Reading . . . This month, I read So That Happened  by Katie Bailey (Donovan Family, Bk. 1), a grumpy-sunshine romcom that was super cute. And I finally returned to the Hawthorne Brothers series (Jenny Proctor) and read How to Kiss Your Grumpy Boss  (Bk. 2) and How to Kiss Your Enemy (Bk. 3). Somehow, I unintentionally picked three workplace romances . . . and movie star ones for my upcoming blog🙈, with the exception of Beg, Borrow, or Steal by the amazing Sarah Adams. I'll be repe...
Post a Comment
Read more