Kristin Hill Taylor

Seeking God as the Author of Every Story

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8 Things I Learned in May

May 31, 2016 by Kristin Leave a Comment

May is my favorite. Honestly, even for as much as I love summer, I’m a little sad my favorite month has gone by so quickly. There were birthday parties and soccer games and days at the lake. The temperatures changed from cool to humid. And hooray for my big kids finishing up kindergarten and third grade!

Here comes days at the pool – when we aren’t packing up our belongings! But, first, I’m going to share 8 Things I Learned in May …

1. Bacon tastes really good when it’s cooked on the griddle.

We got a big griddle to cook pancakes for Cate’s Pancakes & Pippi Party. After making four batches of pancakes, Greg threw bacon on the griddle. And it was delicious.

Admittedly, clean up isn’t as easy as baking the bacon on a foil-lined cookie sheet.

2. I may have been looking forward to Summer Break as much as the kids.

Summer is still busy but in a different way. There’s lake house management. And we are still trying to sell our house. Plus I’ve been purging and packing and organizing.

Admittedly, I tried to stay on top of things as much as possible the first week we were out of school because the pool wasn’t open yet.

And, yes, “we” are out of school. It’s a family affair!

3. Trying to sell a house is no joke.

We posted some pictures and info on Facebook at the beginning of April. Then a few days later we put a sign in our yard. We showed it many times and got several phone calls about it.

And then we didn’t for a week or two so we ran an ad in the local newspaper. We got a few more calls and showed it some more.

I will say this: My kids are champs at getting their rooms cleaned and beds made in preparation for a showing.

We listed it with a realtor last week. And the house was shown some more. Hopefully we will get an offer and the perfect buyer soon.

4. I love the color of my new kitchen. It’s called refresh.

Refresh may be the theme of our new house, actually. Pictures coming soon-ish.

5. Mango salsa is back at Qdoba for the summer. Y’all. It’s the best.

(I love it so much I wrote a post about it a couple years ago!)

6. Netflix and I are email friends. 

Just the other day I got an email to inform me the second season of “Bloodlines” is now on Netflix. I also recently got one that say the third season of “Graceland” was on Netflix. Sorry, but I already watched it on Amazon Prime. I couldn’t wait.

Speaking of TV, we are finishing season 10 (!) of “Bones” on Netflix and catching up with “The Blacklist” on our DVD. We recently also caught up on “Madam Secretary” and “Blue Bloods.”

(And, speaking of email friends, I like email friends. Want to be mine?)

7. People like the freedom to say no. I’ve had such good response to The Summer Not-To-Do List printable. Hope you enjoy it!

(Download it here, if you haven’t already!)

8. In the summer, I’m better at letting go – especially of what time dinner should be on the table, bedtimes, and the frequency of my kids’ showers. My most recent Mom Confessions {The Memorial Day Weekend Edition} reminded me of that.

How’s your May been?

_____________________

I’m linking up with Emily Freeman like I do at the end of each month. 

Subscribe to get new posts and/or a monthly newsletter with content not available on the blog in your inbox. When you subscribe, I’ll send you a FREE #choosingJOY printable.

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Filed Under: food, motherhood, summer, Things I Learned

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About Me

Telling stories is my therapy and I love sharing them with friends on my porch.

The main characters in my stories are my entrepreneur husband, our eighth-grade girl who never forgets, our have-no-fear fifth-grade boy, and our joy-filled preschool girl. As we live out our stories, we seek God as the author of them all.

Learn more about my story here.

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On Instagram

A week into Peggy’s recovery at our house, and t A week into Peggy’s recovery at our house, and these two have spent a lot of time together. Rachel encourages her and stays close. Peggy plays games and watches movies with Rachel.

Honestly, this #thirdchild of mine was probably my biggest concern with having Peggy recover from open heart surgery here: I didn’t want Rachel to hug too hard. I didn’t know if she’d understand that her Gran-Gran looks fine on the inside but hurts on the inside. She’s been booted from her room, but she’s been sleeping well on her mattress in the back living room. She’s actually probably not going to know what to do when Peggy moves back home.

For now, we’ll let them make memories together. That’s part of caretaking I hadn’t considered. #bettertogether #weekending #choosingJOY
I’ve been in a reading slump. I returned one lib I’ve been in a reading slump. I returned one library book I couldn’t get into and then couldn’t decide what to read next. So I went with this library book — and I’m glad I did.

“The Unhoneymooners” by @christinalauren is a funny romance novel that helped distract my mind from heavy thoughts. It also made me want to go to Maui. The dialogue is delightful, the story of quirky from the get-go, and I definitely found myself rooting for Ethan and Olive.

I also discovered by reading the acknowledgements (possibly my favorite thing about books!) that @christinalauren is the pen name for a writing duo. What fun to write novels with a friend! 

As always, I’m happy to accept your recommendations on what to read next. I may also be pondering what friend with whom to write my next book. 📚 #amreading #fiction #authorlife #bookstagram #bettertogether #romcombooks
My friend Delana called before she brought us dinn My friend Delana called before she brought us dinner yesterday and asked if we liked chocolate pie. Um, yes. Turns out both Peggy and I love chocolate pie. Delana gave us chocolate chips cookies too, you know, just in case we didn’t like pie.

My friends are loving on us so well this week with dinner & dessert, obviously. Yes, the food is good, but the way they saw a need and met it is even more gracious. (I wrote a book about gathering & nourishing your people!) Having someone provide dinner has freed up some mental space I’m able to use for taking care of Peggy and parenting my kids, some of whom have needed a little extra love and guidance this week. 

Peggy is nine days removed from open heart surgery with quadruple bypass and is doing well. She had a good check up with her primary care provider this morning. We’re thankful for our community of people who continue to pray for us, feed us, and provide help, like today’s impromptu preschool pickup when an appointment ran long. (Thanks, @katie_cunningham85 & @tstanger25!)

#bettertogether #momlife #reallife #morethangroceries #choosingJOY
We are all happy to feel some sunshine today! ☀️#thirdchild #catsofinstagram #winter #choosingJOY
Sweet @ashleelyoung brought us delicious dinner to Sweet @ashleelyoung brought us delicious dinner tonight and the dessert became a craft. I’m so thankful for the way our people love us. 💛 #bettertogether #reallife #choosingJOY
Today is National Milk Day, so Saputo, which has a Today is National Milk Day, so Saputo, which has a dairy plant here in Murray, donated chocolate milk for all the kids at @ncca.lions. This girl has never turned down chocolate milk and basically celebrates milk every day. #momlife #reallife #thirdchild #nationalmilkday #preschool
Honestly, I’ve been in a reading funk. I’ve qu Honestly, I’ve been in a reading funk. I’ve quit one book and started another today, so we’ll see how that goes. 

I did finish this one by @booksbyheather last week and enjoyed it. I loved the Southern setting, charm, and magic. And I loved how the characters untangled assumptions and expectations from their pasts to find where they belong.

What are you reading these days? #amreading #bookstagram #fiction #recommendedreads
I’ve said “I don’t know” more times the pa I’ve said “I don’t know” more times the past few days and months than ever before. I’m a planner, and I’m apparently raising kids who want to know the plan for the day and what’s coming next. Perhaps, really, that’s human nature. 

But I don’t know. 

I don’t know how Covid will affect school, basketball, and summer vacation plans. 

I don’t know how long Gran-Gran’s surgery recovery will take or what she will need from us. 

I don’t know if it will snow. 

I don’t know ... 

There are at least one million things I don’t know. But I do know this was a good weekend to hunker down inside, meet our new cousin/nephew/grandson, eat warm food, and praise God for the way my mother-in-law is recovering from quadruple bypass surgery.

#TeamTaylor #weekending #reallife #livingfaithfully #bettertogether #choosingJOY
I’m happy to report my mother-in-law Peggy is ho I’m happy to report my mother-in-law Peggy is home ... well, at our home, which is her recovery home for the next several weeks. We are grateful for all the prayers, so keep them coming as she recovers from quadruple bypass heart surgery. 

We are also grateful for all the offers to help. Today I accepted them from the @puperson27 (and @carolinemaetompkins & @norah.grace.t), @megandelaneythomas, and Julie because I needed a whole village to get my kids to and from various places and various times. 

And these flowers are lovely, courtesy Friendship Church of Christ and @serenityhcarr. Thanks, y’all!

#TeamTaylor #reallife #weekending #bettertogether
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