JustJenny

Years ago, when the boys were small I would wake up early to hunt for yard Sales, looking for large items like playpens, activity tables and pricey toys. I loved rushing from one place to another buying things, I would not have been able to afford otherwise, for a FRACTION of the in store prices. Well, the boys got older, my income increased, the things I purchased were not typically found at Yard/Garage Sales and I did not really have a "need" to shop at them anymore, so I stopped. Last October I was lured into a large neighborhood sale with many houses and tons of stuff. This regenerated my love for Yard sales. I got some great designer cloths including two pair of Seven for All Mankind jeans that still had the tags on them for $1 each.  I also found tons of old CD's for a couple of bucks that I was able to download to my iPod (which saved me tons of money). SCORE!  Since then I have been hooked. However, until recently ...

Cooking is something I have always loved to do with my boys. When they were still in diapers and using two word sentences, they would jump up on a chair the second they saw me start to make something in the kitchen. In fact they didn't even have to see me, they could hear the fridge or kitchen drawers open from the other room and they would come running. We baked cookies, brownies, cakes and even made some real food sometimes. These days I'd have to pass out and knock down several dishes along the way before they'd notice that I was even in the kitchen. This should upset me, but it doesn't. How could they possibly hear me over the Xbox, Wii, TV and the loud rock/rap music (the type of music depends on which kid we are talking about) blasting in their ears. Oh wait I forgot about YouTube, texting, girls and the spare teenage boys, I did not give birth too but I chauffer around and feed, hanging out in the living room. With so much going on the boys don't even think...

I have a love hate relationship with New Year’s Resolutions. The number of pounds I resolve to lose each year seams to increase, not decrease, annually and saving for that BMW I wanted decades ago is no longer appealing to me.   I do however LOVE to plan. I love to fill sticky notes, planners and journals with lists, goals, dreams, wants, thoughts, you get the idea.   However, I find that there is no longer a common thread in my daily, monthly and yearly plans. I have always been a planner. Did I mention I LOVE to PLAN! It’s been awhile since I have had a 5 year plan. I am not going to make one today because I feel like my life is in transition, again. Interesting, because career wise I am probably more stable than I ever have been. What’s different? My priorities, I guess! That is why I haven’t created a five year plan in a while. When you don’t care about Money, fancy cars or acquiring “things”, what do you “resolve” to do or plan for?   This causes a major...

Really it is!!! You would think that after 14 years of raising two sons by myself people would stop asking me things like; "Are you EVER going to get remarried?" "Don't you want more kids?" "Don't you get lonely?" "Don't you want to "you know" again?' " You’re pretty cute, nice, fun insert other complementary words here, why are you still single?" I think this last one may be implying that there must be something WRONG with me but I will assume people just think I am so awesome that they are amazed I haven't been snatched up. I could go on forever with the enormous list of questions people ask me, all relating to my choice to be single. Don't get me wrong, I am finally open to the idea of dating someone great IF that is what God has in store for me but he would have to be pretty freaking amazing!!!! Why? Because I LOVE my little family of three.  God blessed me with two amazi...

 When it comes to work I am always, well almost all ways, on top of things!! I show up, do my job, try to anticipate what needs to be done and make it happen. At home, I keep up on what matter most to me, my boys. This mostly entails me nagging them about school, friends, drinking water and other things moms worry about. So why is it that when it comes to things I do for myself, I fall behind. I often blame my commute, dedication to my sons and the fact that there are ONLY 24 hours in a day. When the boys were little I said "When they go to school I'll have more time for me!!" When they started school I said" I'll have more time when they are in Jr. High". In Jr. High, Well you get the point. I am happy to just spend every waking moment with my boys but of course they are at the age where they would probably like a break from me anyways. So I decided I should get up off my butt and take the time to do the things I LOVE to do.  "Why is this so...

It has been more than 45 days since I began my challenge. Instead of knocking myself for what I haven’t had time to do, I have decided to celebrate my accomplishments even if they are few in number. So what happened, you ask? Well first, as a result of my blog post, a very good friend e-mailed me with great news. She had some cloths in her garage passed down by a family member that she will not be able to use. Here are the “New to Me” pieces I snagged for FREE!!!!! Oh yeah, and it was a lot of fun trying on cloths in a hot humid garage while chatting with friends. Really it was!     I am very proud of the next thing I did during my 45 day challenge.   I did not spend a dime on new cloths for me. This was particularly tough at the beginning of September and October when my pockets were bursting at the seams. Okay, so maybe that never happens but I often do feel like I have more money to spend right after I get paid.   As you can imagine, this false belief ...

As the summer ends and fall approaches I can’t help but want a whole new wardrobe. I am not a very materialistic person. My style is very casual, sometimes sexy, and always simple but I still like to buy new cloths every September. With two teenage boys however, the thought of purchasing new work and weekend cloths for me is very stressful. They are still growing rapidly and I have learned that when your kids are dressed nice, teachers treat them better. Also appearance is very important to teens and I want my sons to look great and feel good about themselves at school. As those of you whom have boys know, they tear through shoes and pants quickly and a couple nights of great sleep can result in overnight increases in height. And while my oldest son LOVES to hang on to and continue to wear his favorite tees, I am not in love with the idea of my teenage son wearing crop tops! So while I would love to go out and buy some great NEW fall pieces, I must set aside as much money as I can for ...