Weekending - May 5, 2023

Are you ready for the week?  I'm so excited I can hardly contain myself!  My friend and I are flying off to Savannah this afternoon for a little girls' trip.  This is my last gap week between jobs and I've been making the most of my time off.  So basically all last week was like one long weekend.

So many articles that I've read over the years talk about the importance of taking some time off when changing jobs.  In my entire adult life, I've never done that.  Until now!  I decided to take off a couple weeks between jobs and it was the best decision ever!  This past week I was able to spend time doing so many of the things I love.  Eric and I enjoyed going to a Cardinals game and hiking.  I spent time shopping, reading, and cooking.  I'm definitely going to start my new job rested, relaxed, and ready to take on the challenges of learning a new company and position!

Thursday Eric and I drove south of St. Louis to conquer a couple hikes.  We hiked Pickle Springs and Hickory Canyon.  Between the two hikes, we had a picnic at Hawn State Park.

I'll walk about anywhere to see a waterfall.  We found a couple small ones on these hikes and it made the effort totally worth it for me!

Friday we celebrated Cinco de Mayo with our son and daughter-in-law.  We dined on Chicken Enchilada Casserole that I've blogged about before (recipe HERE), Mexican street corn, and Spanish rice.  We spiced things up with spicy margaritas from Sam's.

Saturday we ventured to my hometown for a friend's wedding.  It felt great to be sitting in a row with my family.

My parents won the anniversary dance.  If you've not heard of this before, the DJ will call all the married couples to come to the dance floor.  The music begins and the DJ starts announcing for all couples married less than 5 years to sit down, then 10 years or less.  He continues on until only one couple remains on the dance floor.  My mom and dad were the last couple remaining, having been married for 60 years!  

Sunday we went to church and ran some errands.  Thank goodness we got home and had our cars in the garage before a hail storm came out of nowhere and pelted us with ping-pong ball-sized stones.  Unfortunately, we ended up with a broken window and a couple ripped-up screens.  We need to take a closer look at the siding to make sure there aren't holes in it.  

After all the storms had passed, we went to the theater to see a movie.  While the majority of people were seeing the new Guardians of the Galaxy moving, we headed to Love Again.  It was predictable, fairly shallow, and not great acting.  But I still liked it!  It is one that you don't have to rush out to the theaters to see.  I'm sure it will be streaming fairly soon.  

When we got home, I finished packing for my trip this week.  Like every trip I take, I've way overpacked.  I've made peace with the fact that I'll never be a light-packer.  

We had taped the coronation of King Charles and watched pieces of it every spare minute we had.  What a spectacle!  I know if we were in London, we would have been in the throngs of people standing in the rain hoping to get a glimpse of the Royal Family.  

I'm so excited to have another week to enjoy no work email.  And I can't wait to share my trip to Savannah with you!  Hope to see you back soon!