Welcome!

Gosh, y’all. It’s been a while, hasn’t it? 

I’m so thankful and grateful for those followers that have joined me on my adventures over on Instagram and are now back here again full circle. Why you guys want to hear about my silliness like awkwardly biting it hard three times on the very first date with my husband or setting a legit fire in my kitchen while trying to cook a Martha Stewart recipe (all hilarious stories for another time) is beyond me, but for some reason you do, so it’s up to me to indulge you I suppose. 

I’m happy, nervous, excited, and scared to be back. All the things. I’ve been speaking with other blogger friends and while I want this to be a happy place, I recognize there is a fine line between cheerful and fake. I want to touch on things that brighten days and make me happy, but right now we are the in the middle of a pandemic and live in a divided country, and I’m aware of that. I hope that I can toe the line between being realistic and being hopeful while trying to carry on a normal life.  

Speaking of that, if you’re new here, I’m Jennifer. I’m a diehard Texan, say y’all and fixin’ to a lot, have the sense of humor of a fourth grader, but cringe when people cuss in front of me. I want to bring white gloves and manners back in style, and could eat pizza every day if you let me. In a past life, I used to take photographs professionally and am hoping to do some much needed practice with this blog. I’m claustrophobic and terrified of drowning, but beach vacations are my jam. I un-apologetically love the Dave Matthews Band. And all of my labels are quintessentially Jennifer- Type A, Taurus, first born, Enneagram 3, Myers Briggs ENTJ-T.

If you must know the important parts of me, I’ll start with my faith. I’m a born and raised Catholic. My faith is paramount to me, and I want everything I do, and everything that I am, to spring forth from it and from Him. (newsflash: I’m not always successful.) I have a wonderful husband who asks me what I need and how he can serve me several times a day. For a Type 3 who needs to feel secure and taken care of, that is everything to me. He’s a wickedly bad dancer, but he knows it makes me laugh and dances anyway. We just celebrated our one-year anniversary! He came with a goofy blonde named Mabel, who steals food off the counter, digs in the trash, but is the most loyal pup ever and I love her dearly. My doggy soulmate, Matty, is still kicking at 14 years old. He’s my elderly ride or die and has the worst nighttime gas.

After five years of teaching fifth and sixth grade in Title 1 urban schools, I moved to teaching gifted and talented students in a Title 1 suburban school school setting. This job was one of the best, unexpected surprises of my life (a true God story if there ever was one) and I was shocked at how quickly I fell I love with it. I’m also the GT coordinator which means I do some admin work like testing for referrals and presentations to teachers. I love seeing both sides of the educational coin, so to speak. I’m privy to admin and leadership meetings, but I still get to be around my students. It truly is the best job and a win-win for someone who isn’t ready to leave the classroom just yet. I’m currently in grad school at SMU in Dallas (Pony up!) and while it’s challenging, I’m a true nerd at heart and I love it. 

I want this space to reflect all the interests I have in my life, namely my faith, entertaining + hospitality, teaching, homemaking, and some style posts sprinkled here and there. Sounds like a big mix, but those are the things I truly love and am passionate about. I’m so happy that lots of y’all are still here from the last round, and I’m excited to have new people following, too. I’m going to be kicking off this little celebration with some wonderful posts + giveaways from amazing companies I am excited to talk about. I know you’re going to fall in love with them, too! So stay tuned next week for all the details and thank you again for your support; I’m so happy you’re here!