Recurring Series

Snapshot of My Day: Sunday, July 19, 2026

Time I woke up: 7:00 a.m.

First thing I did upon waking: I fed the girls and then sat on the couch to play my NYT games.

First app I opened this morning: Gmail.

Today’s weather: Gloomy and rainy! We’ve had a few days of nonstop rain, and we need it so badly.

Today’s mood: I was in a pretty good mood all day. I got to have some social time, some alone time, and some productive time, so that filled my cup.

Something I spent money on today: Groceries. Nothing exciting!

An out-of-the-ordinary thing that happened today: I was at my writing date with Mikaela, and this girl and her boyfriend came to sit near us. She engaged us in convo, and we found out she’s a self-published author of dark romance and very active in the BookTok community. We got to talking about writing and publishing, and she had some very interesting suggestions for us!

Something weird I said to my cats today: “I need to let you know that this little paw sticking out would earn you a deduction in the Cat Loaf Olympics.” Eloise was loafing on a pillow next to me, but I could see one of her paws sticking out, so I had to let her know it was an unacceptable cat loaf position if she wants to become a champion someday.

One minor annoyance from my day: Having to take my trash to the trash compactor myself. I emailed my leasing office last week to tell them about the raccoon problem, and I’m not sure if it’s been dealt with yet, so I’m still not using our valet trash service. I need to follow up and find out if it’s safe again!

A much more appropriate cat loaf position. 10/10

Last thing I read (not on the Internet): The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon

Last thing I read (on the Internet): J’s blog!

Last text I sent: “Mikaela stole my photo, buuuut here’s another one. Antisocial dogs with their antisocial people.” Every Sunday, we do a “Sunday Photo Share” on our book club group chat, where we share one photo from our week with an explanation. I love it so much! I shared a photo I took on Sunday.

Last text I received: My mom sent me a “pin” of a Vermont itinerary.

Last website I visited: Instagram to find the link to Penny’s cat loaf championship! (Technically an app, but I used the web version to find the link to insert.)

Last show I watched: The Challenge

Last podcast I listened to: A Big Brother live feed update on my beloved Rob Has a Podcast

Last thing I said: “Love you, bye!” I had a lovely phone chat with my Brieber as she was driving home from the airport.

Last thing I ate: Popcorn

What I was doing an hour ago: I was doing chores.

What I will be doing an hour from now: I will be watching tonight’s episode of Big Brother!

What I need to do before bed: I need to clean my tub, sigh. Not my favorite chore, but it needs to be done!

Current whereabouts of other members of my household: Eloise is curled up on a pillow on the couch (she has switched from a loaf to a bagel) and Lila is napping in her basket.

Tell me a recent minor annoyance in your world!

Categories: Recurring Series

One Photo Per Day: June 20 – July 3

I have two weeks’ worth of photos for you guys today! There is an impressive amount of cat photos in this batch, so… you’re welcome?

June 20, 2026 – Sweet girl. She’s gathered an impressive assortment of catnip mats and toys for herself.

June 21, 2026 – I enjoyed some time on the patio in the morning with my book and my girl. Eloise runs to the patio whenever I open the door. She loves that fresh air!

June 22, 2026 – The crepe myrtles lining the street where I do my walks make me so, so happy!

June 23, 2026 – Kim was in town! We had such a great day together: a cat cafe, a food hall for lunch (followed by ice cream), and then a romance bookstore before we decided to head back to her Airbnb and chill until dinner time. We went to downtown Safety Harbor for dinner, and Kim’s husband and my mom joined us. Yay!

June 24, 2026 – This is Kim’s photo, but I’m stealing it for this photo project. Thanks, Kim! We had another fun day together, and this time, we visited a cat cafe near me that recently opened. They had a quiet room for all of their skittish kitties, and this little tortie stole my heart. After Kim and I sat down at a table in the room, she cautiously came up to us for pets and then bumped her head against my hand just like Lila does. She even splayed herself out on the floor and showed me her belly! I’m in love. I desperately want to adopt her. Are three cats too many for one person???

June 25, 2026 – Speaking of cute cats… this girl. I love that she’s using this tower next to my desk more and more! It makes me so happy to have her next to me while I’m working.

June 26, 2026 – Book club weekend! We arrived early on Friday, so we couldn’t check in. Instead, we checked out the clubhouse pool! (I also really failed at getting almost any photos on Friday. I don’t know what was wrong with me!)

June 27, 2026 – Celebrating 16 years of this wonderful book club!

June 28, 2026 – A few of us were keen to get home early on Sunday, so I was so happy to be back in my space and with my girls by 11 a.m.! Look at these sweet little bebes. We missed each other. <3

June 29, 2026 – I woke up from a nap on the couch to see Lila posed like this. WHY IS SHE SO CUTE THO

June 30, 2026 – I took this photo while on a walk and then received a warning that my phone was too hot and needed to cool down before I could use it. Lovely. It’s going to be a long summer.

July 1, 2026 – The pink toe beans, the soft belly, the look of contentment on her face… all of it settles something inside me. <3

July 2, 2026 – I named her “Eloise Joy” but maybe “Eloise Murder Eyes” would have been a better moniker.

July 3, 2026 – Let the birthday festivities commence! My mom’s birthday is next week, and we kicked things off with game night and chocolate cake last night. 🙂 (Also, please appreciate how Lucy is using her tail to hide her girly parts in this photo. How ladylike!)

Categories: Recurring Series

One Photo Per Day: June 13 – 19

June 13, 2026 – In case you thought I lived an exciting, glamorous life, I spent Saturday night sitting on the floor of my office while I tried to troubleshoot my printer, which decided it didn’t want to print anymore. Thankfully, I had a cute assistant sitting nearby!

June 14, 2026 – A lazy Sunday means hammock naps in the sunshine.

June 15, 2026 – The last page of my mystery coloring book! Don’t you worry, though. Once I discovered I was getting near the end, I bought another one so I could start it with no interruptions. Muahaha!

June 16, 2026 – It’s been nice to start my day with a walk. The heat isn’t as oppressive (although the humidity surely is), and it’s calm and peaceful.

June 17, 2026 – Trivia night! Thank heavens for smart friends because we came in FOURTH! Since we’re usually in last place, this was very exciting for us.

June 18, 2026 – Around 10pm on Thursday, I exclaimed to Lila, “I need to take your picture, so I have a picture for today!” And she posed purrfectly.

June 19, 2026 – I had a lovely nap on Friday after a very interesting day that I will explain in detail on Monday. The nap was very much needed and very much restorative.

Categories: Recurring Series

Currently in June

I wasn’t sure what photos to sprinkle throughout this post and decided it had been too long since my boy Dutch got any space on the blog. He was the bestest boy and died in 2018, a month before his 16th birthday. I love and miss him every day.

anticipating therapy tomorrow, where we will most likely start EMDR

researching everything I can to build the perfect New England itinerary for our fall road trip

buying another bookshelf because I can do what I want and what I want is MORE SPACE FOR BOOKS

thinking about my upcoming cardiology appointment (Friday!) and hoping it won’t be too overwhelming

reading a book about laundry (Laundry Love by Patric Richardson) and making a lot of notes

happy that work is picking up after a slow few weeks

excited every time I get to work on the novel I’m writing

using two different Zevo filters to deal with a very annoying fruit fly infestation, along with some bowls filled with apple cider vinegar + dish soap to catch even more

committed to making sure I tell my girls that I love them multiple times a day (they’re probably like “alright already!” after the 10th time)

hoping to spend some time at one of my THREE apartment pools this weekend

loving my new twice-weekly grocery shopping routine – it’s working out so well!

needing to get to bed earlier, especially since my body thinks 6:30am is an appropriate time to wake up, no matter what time I went to bed

proud of myself for setting boundaries, even when they feel uncomfortable

relieved that lowering my medrol dose hasn’t impacted my pain levels

loathing the freaking weather. It’s so hot and we’re still in a severe drought.

obsessing over all of the metrics I’m getting from my Oura ring (in a good way, I think?)

watching The Traitors Canada (sooo happy they finally released all three seasons on Peacock!)

wondering when my tooth sensitivity will go away (I miss ice cream)

listening to Noah Kahan’s latest album, albeit very slowly

savoring sweet moments with my cats, like when Lila curls up next to me when I’m in bed or when Eloise jumps up on the table and sits right in front of me because she wants attention from her favorite person

What is something you’re obsessing over?

Categories: Recurring Series

One Photo Per Day: June 6 – 12

June 6, 2026 – It was dance recital day! This is Olive’s second year in dance (she’s six, just finished kindergarten), and she was in seven dances in the morning session, including their big performance number with all of the big kids. At the spring performance, they do a parent/child dance routine, and it was adorable to see Nick (Mikaela’s husband) dancing with Olive and Eleni. So cute!

June 7, 2026 – A new lamp for the shelf in my dining area. I love it!

June 8, 2026 – Started my week off with a morning workout. This is my apartment gym – pretty snazzy! I’m excited to start using the weights soon. Today, I did a 25-minute workout on the elliptical, although I had to keep slowing myself down when my heart rate went bonkers. Blergh.

June 9, 2026 – Sweet Eloise. This is currently her favorite spot in the morning while she waits for me to sit down and start my workday. I think it’s because of the way the sun hits this spot because she gradually moves to the other side of the window as the morning progresses.

June 10, 2026 – Lila positioned herself like this, as if the corner of my monitor stand was the fluffiest pillow to lay her head. I love this girl!

June 11, 2026 – A lovely afternoon walk! I really need to move these walks to the morning before it’s a billion degrees outside, but there’s something invigorating about taking a walk in 95-degree weather!

June 12, 2026 – A lovely night out with friends! We saw Beetlejuice the Musical, and it was so good. I went in completely blind because I had never seen any of the Beetlejuice movies. (It was definitely not the type of movie allowed when you grew up evangelical!) While I wish I had gotten the disclaimer that it was about a dead mom, I still very much enjoyed myself. The actors were incredible!