Friday Thoughts
Hey, friends!
How is the fall treating you??
It’s time for a quick Friday Thoughts check-in. We’ve got everything from memes to mental health today.
I love these posts because of everything you share in the comments. They’re my favorite. YOU are my favorite(s).
1. Two memes to sum up my existence right now.
That koala bear meme. Please tell me I’m not the only parent that can relate with that one.
And also, the reason I feel like a permanently exhausted pigeon is almost certainly because of the second item in today’s Friday Thoughts lineup.
2. Piglets, piglets, piglets.
If you follow my faux farm account on Instagram, you’ll know that our kunekune pig momma, Olivia, had a litter of piglets 2 1/2 weeks ago. And oh my gosh, they are the cutest things ever. But they are also so much work!
The original plan was to time the litter birth for when the kids were home from school in the summer, but the best laid plans didn’t account for the pigs taking forever to “get the job done” if you know what I mean.
So. I’ve been largely responsible for the piglets while the kids are at school. And to say these little zoomie rascals are more than I bargained for is an understatement.
We lost one in the first few days to a birth defect, another one has struggled to thrive so I’m constantly trying to keep her eating and growing, and they’re so adorable, that, yes, I spend a lot of time sitting out in the pig hut watching them play, because I can’t tear myself away. #pigsoverpeople
Three of the kids invested their savings in the adult kunekune pigs in the hopes of making their investment back by selling piglets. So, here we are. It’s been an adventure!
If you go to the PIGLETS highlights on Instagram, you’ll see all the antics from the last few weeks. Warning: turns out, piglet content is highly addictive.
3. My Friend Maria
I want to tell you about someone really amazing. My friend, Maria.
Earlier this year, Brian came home from work and asked if I still had the reading book I used when our kids were learning how to read. When I asked him why, he said a sweet lady he works with (Maria) had come to his office asking if he had any resources or places that could help her because she didn’t know how to read.
He explained that Maria is one of the most hard working employees at the plant, that she raised five kids as a single mom, and that she is also smart, kind, quiet, and a caretaker of others. Her life has been challenging in ways he and I will never be able to fully understand.
I pulled out my old reading lesson book for Brian to take to work…and immediately felt this strong desire to help Maria learn to read, even though she and I didn’t know each other yet.
After Brian helped arrange things at work, Maria and I started getting together every morning (4X a week) back in May to do reading lessons together. I doubted I’d be a very good teacher, but it turns out, this rather old-fashioned book is just as effective teaching adults to read as it is teaching kids to read!
Of course, the main reason for success is because of Maria’s heart. Her determination. Her unfailing willingness to keep trying. She persevered even after years of being told by many, many people that she was stupid because she couldn’t read and that she’d never be able to learn.
Over the last five months, Maria and I started out each lesson together talking about life and family and stresses and food and teenagers and everything in between…and…eventually we got to the reading part. 🙂
I legitimately have tears in my eyes as I’m typing this, because Maria has become such a dear friend and inspiration to me.
She’s taught me that it’s never too late to learn something new or try something hard (especially learning to read in English when your first language is Spanish). She’s taught me it’s ok to cry (she has the kindest heart in the entire world).
She’s taught me that in an era of fiery personalities, divisive opinions, and front and center merit for being “the best,” there’s a quiet, steady power in working hard every day to make your way in a world that most likely won’t ever notice, or reward, you.
And she’s definitely taught me to be more grateful for the opportunities I’ve had in life that too often I take for granted.
The first day that Maria read her first “real” word (it was ‘mat’), she stopped, shook her head, and with absolute awe in her voice kept repeating: wow, wow, wow. She couldn’t believe she was reading. (I was biting my lip HARD under my mask to keep myself from bawling that day.) Now, she’s reading full stories with dialogue and plots and characters. She told me that she feels like a whole new world has been opened to her now that she can read.
She just finished this book about brave Clara Barton. But to me, Maria is the bravest of all. She has defied circumstances stacked against her that would spell devastation for most of us, and she has done so with integrity, kindness, and endless, endless hard work. I’m so grateful to know her.
4. Halloween (cough, hater)
Are you a Halloween lover or hater?
I’m in the hater camp. I’m sorry if that causes some of you shock, dismay, disappointment, and horror. I just don’t find many redeemable qualities in this holiday. I’m a Verified Halloween Scrooge.
Except for, sometimes, the food. Like, the cutesy monster cookie type food.
Some years, we’ll decorate these fun little spooky houses (or a kit from Trader Joe’s or Costco). And if I’m really on my A-game, on Halloween night we’ll do dinner in a pumpkin or these mummy dogs.
Do you have any fun Halloween food traditions?
{P.S. Before anyone gets really worried, yes, my kids go trick-or-treating, but the process of finding a costume around here is…very much a create-your-own type situation.}
5. I’ve Gotta Know
Someone told me recently you can tell a lot about a person whether they wear crocs in public or not.
So. I have to know. Do you??
I do. Unashamedly. My kids have had crocs for years. I’ve had no real strong opinion about them. Earlier this year, they got me a pair for Mother’s Day.
And.
I wear them constantly. I hope we can still be friends.
Tell me your deep, dark thoughts about crocs. This is a judgment free zone.
6. Believe it or Not
This second son of mine is turning 16 a week from today. Many of you have been around since he was just four years old. (INSANE IN THE MEMBRANE.)
He’s evolved into a hilarious, witty, smart, hard-working young man who loves to take selfies on my phone during church while I’m painfully playing my way through the hymns on the organ.
I have a few ideas up my sleeve for his birthday but I can’t type them out here, because I know from regular comments left on my blog that he and his friends often read here during math class (ahem, BOYS, get back to work!).
Please share any of your sweet sixteen birthday ideas below!
7. Catch Up and Struggles
Catching up from the last Friday Thought’s post:
- Thank you for all the planner recommendations! I seriously spent hours researching different planners for next year. I’m not sure what I’ll settle on yet, but you definitely gave me some great ideas. You’re the best. (Some of the most common recommendations were Passion Planners, Emily Ley planners, Golden Coil, Planner Pads, Erin Condren, In the Leafy Treetops, bullet journals/planners, Plum Paper, Jordan Page productivity planners and a few others!)
- Also, we started watching Crash Landing on You on Netflix like hundreds of you suggested. 🙂 My boys didn’t stick around long, but Brian and I have liked it a lot. It’s quirky and funny and unique. Highly recommend!
I don’t talk about my personal struggles much on here, but for me, 2021 has been a hard year. I know I’m not alone. It’s been a difficult couple of years for the entire world! For me, 2021 has been filled with difficulties and stresses and challenges and heartache that have kind of rocked my foundation on a lot of levels.
I deleted these paragraphs a million times because I don’t want this to be a call for attention or a sympathy plea. Mostly, I just want to acknowledge that sometimes online and social media posts do a really good job of masking real life and real challenges. But I feel like it is important to acknowledge that life (and mental health) rarely fit into a neat, pretty little box.
If you’ve had a hard year (or years), just know that you aren’t alone. I’m slowly and stubbornly learning that it’s ok to admit I’m not ok. That’s a monumental step for me. And after getting awkwardly ghosted by a therapist earlier this year, I’m finally brave enough (I think!) to try again so I can get some help sorting through the chaos in my brain and bolster some puny coping skills.
Thanks for being here. I say that a lot, but I really, really mean it.
I am certainly grateful for all of you that allow me to be very, very human even when society seems to prize and reward unsustainable and misleading perfection. I’m so grateful YOU are real and beautifully imperfect, too.
Love your guts.
Love your story about Maria. Love your recipes but most of all love you!!
Love the pigs! So cute! The story about Maria is truly inspiring. I would like the world to feel more like that story and less like the daily news cycle. Halloween? I don’t know if I LOVE it, but I like it. The foods are fun. We ALWAYS make pumpkin shaped (or other Halloween shaped) peanut butter cut out cookies. We frost with simple icing and then decorate with melted chocolate and sprinkles. Yum! It’s a tradition carried over from my childhood and the recipe still holds up as a fun and delicious treat. When the kids were younger, I’d bake up a big batch and they’d have their friends over to decorate them. We’ve had a blast over the years creating our kids’ costumes since they always seemed to pick something that you couldn’t buy (e.g., Hedwig (that was a lot of feathers to sew on) or a blue morpho
butterfly or Handy Manny before there were Handy Manny costumes. ) You get the idea. Now, I’m kind of sad because they are beyond the trick or treating years. Crocs? I used to manage a large retail business. (Now I manage a very small blog 😉 My old New York design team would scoff at anything that didn’t come from either Barney’s or Bergdorf’s. So Crocs would easily be worthy of a fashion arrest, lol! But, let me tell you, Crocs’ business is on FIRE! And while neither you nor I are looking at these particular celebrities for our own personal fashion cues, they’ve had super successful collaborations with Justin Bieber, Bad Bunny and Post Malone. I also believe there’s beauty in practicality. I haven’t worn traditional crocs out, but I have worn other versions at the beach. So much better than flip flops to protect your feet from frying on a long walk on hot sand. Finally, I have to say that, even with tough posts, you always seem to bring so much hope and light to my day. Being ghosted by a therapist is a shocking new level of ghosting. No sympathy…Instead I’ve got a universe full of empathy. I hope you find someone worthy to help you work through whatever you need to. Someone like you, who cares enough to reach out and help someone else simply because you know she needed it.
Hi Mel,
I relate to pretty much everything you wrote. My youngest son, of four children is Mr Koala. He bugs about how terrible school or just life is then you ask how you can help and he says never mind he’s fine. AARG!! I want to pull my hair out. This same son is turning 15 on Halloween. Btw, He hates Halloween and so do I. My kids and I have made a deal, they can dress up but they stay home and pass out candy while we celebrate my sons bday. In exchange I buy them multiple bags of candy they share. No trick or treating here, thank goodness!!
I also, love the story of Maria. She reminds me of my mother in-law. She came to this country with her husband and four children. Soon after he passed away at age 48, so my mother in-law had to go to work not knowing the english language. Such a hard life! The story I relate to the most is your last, mental health, I have four children, three of them have mental health issues. It has been alot of work getting them to doctors that they liked. This was the best way to get them to open up so the drs could give an accurate diagnosis. Good luck on your mental health journey. Remember there are people all over that care about you 🙂
So impressed how you were able to get doctors your kids liked and could help them! bravo! So hard to see our kids suffer, and so beautiful you could do this hard work to care for them and get them care three times over <3
Thank you Tina! Yes I was very grateful to find good help, my kids relate to happily 🙂
Well, my friend, (may I call you friend?) there is a lot to unpack in this post, every letter of it well worth the time and effort you put into writing it, and the time (and no effort) I spent reading. As a survivor of 2 years of weekly therapy, I always think everyone would benefit from at least some therapy, so no judgement on that here. Your darling friend Maria’s struggles and successes moved me to tears, too! So wonderful to read that one. The piggies and donkeys are too much fun, and I expect I’ll be wasting/spending lots of time watching & laughing at/with them. Can’t wait for the wee cow to appear! I live on half an acre in a slightly rural, mostly suburban are of SW Ohio, and we can’t have any farm animals at all. Not even chickens! When we moved here from SoCal, we had 3 great dogs, but they all died tragically within the first 3 years. Now we have a slightly crazy doxie/golden/??? mix who thinks he’s a cat and the floor is lava. Can’t stand to be on the floor if there’s a lap to occupy.
Sorry I’m meandering here, but your post moved me to write. I hope you’ll get some rest and some therapy, and that we’ll all (or most of us) will get through this godawful plague (and soon, please). Take good care of yourself while you take such good care of all those men and critters. God bless you real good.
Love,
J
Mel, you are just the best. Thanks for being vulnerable and keeping it real. You got this!!!
Ok this one made me cry. Maria?? Oh man.
I’ve already seen all the piglet content and can’t get enough!! So dang cute.
Crocs have been a staple in for home for the last 22 years. My 19 year old daughter has 13 pairs. That she bought with her own money. Their flip flops save my feet.
You continue to put out goodness in a time where it’s hard to find- thank you!!!
I do not wear crocs nor do my children but I’m definitely not mad at you or your family for doing so. When you can cook like you do, you can wear whatever you want!! I’m an enneagram 3 so wearing crocs does not sit well with my own personal style Also, this year “pushed” me into therapy as well and fortunately I’ve not been ghosted and found some great tools and dug deep and opened wide some of my thoughts and issues I didn’t know I had! Once you find the right therapist your life will be better for it!
Oh Mel. Thanks for sharing. And I’m so happy to know there are fellow Halloween Haters out there. I could write a book about how much I loathe icky yard decorations and gag at the smell of rubbery plastic masks and wigs. Don’t even get me started on fake gore. No other holiday gets a solid two months. Nope. I feel robbed and outraged when I see halloween paraphernalia in August. I digress.
You are an inspiration. Thanks for sharing about sweet Maria, what a fabulous story that keeps going! And pigs. I need a pig. And a donkey. Any time I need a recipe I type Mel’s… and it turns out great. Thank!
I’m sitting in a bit of shade, ever so grateful to be off my feet for a few minutes. I’m not feeling at all guilty that my husband has the kids (all finally old/tall enough to go together) on a ride at Disneyland. Grateful we can be here. Exhausted. Not looking forward to the drive home with tired peps and all their stinky shoes and laundry. Read your post and chuckled that for me “opportunities” to learn and grow have been covered in many layers of work, tears, mental, emotional, and spiritual exhaustion. My usually sunny disposition has had a really hard time keeping a “let’s learn from this” instead of just “let’s survive this” attitude this past 1 1/2 years.
Ah well.
Grace. That’s what we all need for ourselves, and to give (especially in the middle of our own hard days) to others. So hard to do sometimes – but worth consciously cultivating that characteristic in myself – even if right now it doesn’t come naturally like it used to. Thank you for your Friday thoughts. Thank you for giving my family so many new family favorite recipes (Hawaiian chicken and coconut rice are the most requested by all.).
FYI: Ive used your recipes to teach people (including my 10-year old daughter) to up their cooking/baking game during this last year and a half. It’s been a blessing to distract our minds, and use our hands and hearts to develop skills – so in our small ways we could serve and help ourselves and others (especially for my kids when there was so many circumstances on the news and around them in the world during COVID they had no control over affecting)
Grateful for you!
Love your guts, Mel. Love how real your posts are. The story about Maria brought me to tears, how amazing that you were able to open up a whole new world for her!
Mel, let me make your dream planner. I do it for several others. Everything you want can be done. I love you, miss you and we need to plan that girls trip to North Carolina!!
I can TOTALLY relate to the Mr. Koala meme! I just don’t usually admit it. And I’m so happy about Maria’s story! Wow, she is really inspiring! Maybe I should look into those piano lessons after all……
Ghosted by a therapist?! That is terrible! Find a good one and it will be one of the best hard things you do for yourself. Sending a big hug to make it through the final months of a trying year.
I remember reading about some of the very hard things you’ve gone through this year and the fact that you took the time to teach another woman how to read is really nice. I was raised with the philosophy that serving someone makes your own problems diminish. Smart woman going for the teach someone to read thing, what a blessing. I love the pigs and piglets. Thanks for sharing your fabulous recipes and family with the world. You are brave. ❤️
We will be out of town the weekend of Halloween and get back Sunday evening. We don’t live in Utah anymore, so I think there will be lots of people trick-or-treating when we get back but i told my girls we won’t be doing that since it’s Sunday. Anyway, I’m actually very relieved because trick-or-treating is my least favorite part of the holiday! Costumes can be fun and little parties with limited candy, but TorT is too much.
Thank you for sharing these wonderful parts of your life with us!
Ok, have to say that you CAN tell a lot about someone who wears crocs in public. But that may have been before it became so trendy a couple years ago for teens to wear them with socks! Argghhh!! Haha. But I have a pair I wear when I’m gardening and they are just right for that. To each his own I say and now I know better: who cares what other people wear anyhow! 😉
My daughters fav animal is a pig and she is wiggling in delight at those sweet babes!!
Also. The health issues are very real and sometimes the hardest for me when I have some mental setbacks is when they happen for seemingly no reason. No large event or bad thing I just fall into a slump. I am so grateful that this is becoming more normalized now! It’s ok to not be ok! So many great resources to help and lift. And Maria is truly inspirational! So proud of her for asking for help. I want to be humble and strong like her.
Thanks Mel! Your food and blog is one of my favorite things.
Piglets and Maria
Halloween (I do Fall)
Crocs (Each to their own- I wear Chuck Taylor)
Mental HelpLife is hard so sometimes we need a helping hand..
I’ve had Mohs Surgery twice- the price I pay for no sunscreen in my teens.
Thank you for being a bright light to others.
Love your Friday thoughts, it’s just like sitting down with a friend for a few minutes. Thank you for sharing the highlights, but also for opening up to all of us that may be having a difficult time. No one can help if you don’t let them in. Have a great weekend.
I just love what you share on these Friday posts. I cried reading Maria’s story. What an inspiration she is! What an inspiration you are, too, for reminding us that we can serve others. I love reading and it is one huge component in keeping me mentally healthy! I’m so happy Maria has that outlet now too.
I have croc flip flops and they are so comfortable.
Halloween is fine. We decorate and trick or treat. All of the other stuff stresses me out needlessly. I like that you have your kids create their own costumes. I pulled out our dress up box last week and told my youngest daughter to get creative, you made me feel better about that choice.
My second oldest just turned 16 too!
Thank you for being so transparent about mental health. I have my own struggles too. I have realized it is just going to be something that I have to contend with. Like with physical health. I exercise, try to eat healthy and get regular check ups on a routine basis so I need to do daily things to keep me mentally healthy too. I have found exercise and healthy eating actually help mental health too and journaling, therapy, and medication too. You got this.
Thank you for sharing your Friday thoughts! I just LOVED your story about Maria! As my youngest child just started preschool, I’m starting to think about what I want to do when I grow up and how I want to invest my time. I have zero desire to return to the working world, but I have strongly considered doing something in literacy because once someone can read, their whole world opens up! What a gift you have given her! Even though I know you give her the credit, she couldn’t have done it without you – and the friendship is just the most beautiful cherry on top!
I’m so so sorry for the mental health struggles. I have become acquainted with the agony of that struggle through one of my children this year and it is so grueling. I’m cheering you on.
No crocs for me, but we’re in the same camp for Halloween!
Love your guts. Can’t believe that Walk will be 16?! When did that happen?!?!
THOSE PIGS! Oh my gosh SO CUTE!!
I am so sorry to hear but this has been a rough year, and I feel so bad about your previous therapist. Thumbs down to that! Your next one will maybe just be exactly what you need. I applaud anyone who takes the time to do something so important for themselves – you are worth it! And I still like you even if we don’t share a love of Crocs. But I am totally a permanently exhausted pigeon.
I love you, Mel! I’m mainly here for the recipes because they are super scrumptious and relatively simple! However, over the past several years, I have started to read more of your blog and I just really appreciate the person you are and all you share! Long ago you posted about your skin cancer experience and then a few years later, I had almost the exact same procedure and drama. I remembered your post and it really helped me! Same for so many causes, etc, that you post. I use Kefir because of you! You are so relatable and real! Honestly, you’re a good friend, but you don’t know it- ha ha.
Anyway, I am so thankful you gave your time to help Maria! Such a blessing! It has been a very hard few years for many of us. I am just processing much of it myself and feel your struggles. Know that you have not failed, but have loved and touched so many. Take time to heal yourself- even hanging out with piglets some is therapeutic, ha ha.
I do love Halloween! It’s a time to dress up and use your imagination! Hope you can still like me:)
Just had to say a big thank you!!
Also, I forgot to say- Love your Guts, too!!
This reminds me of the movie Ramona and Beezus- it’s the best!!
As another mom with 5 kids (one’s a baby and only two are homeschooling), who also is involved in church and all the things, I’m so proud of you for seeing a need in another adult and making time to meet that need. It’s easy to make time for our kids’ and their friends’ needs, and the husband’s too, but it’s hard to take on helping another (seemingly) capable grown up. Great job, you!! The world is such a better place because you’re in it.
I’m making your ham and cheese crepes for supper tonight, just one more case in point.
A big thank you to your family for reaching out to Maria to teach her to read. She must be an amazing person and a strong woman to learn a new skill and you are an exceptional friend to teach her. I read 2 to 3 books a week and cannot imagine how difficult it would have been to raise a family and hold down a job without reading skills. I am overjoyed that Maria will now have the ability to lose herself in a good book.
I thank you, too for all of the great recipes you share with your readers. Many of my favorite recipes have come from friends (and blogs) that I would never have discovered if they hadn’t shared them with me. Recipes bring back memories of family dinners, holidays and friends.
I love these posts and all that you share. I am a Halloween hater too, and I’ll still like you even though you like crocs. As far as mental health goes, it has been a struggle and journey for me the past 3 years. I am so grateful for medication & therapy. Finding a therapist you click with is so incredibly daunting, and I’ve had my fair share of not so great therapy experience through the years. But it can be super helpful when you find the right one. Personally, I think anyone can benefit from therapy. I also know that when my mental health was at it’s lowest, the Lord led me to get help so that I would already be on medication and have a therapist in place when I went through some extremely difficult things in my family just a few months later. I don’t know that I would have survived otherwise. Good luck to you in finding the right therapist, and way to go for being proactive about getting the help you need.
Happy Friday to you Mel, your pigs have been such a fun distraction for me! I love them! How wonderful to help someone learn to read. I’m sure it’s opening whole new worlds for her. You are both strong women!
With regard to Halloween I’m in the hater group. It’s been a holiday I could do without! I’ve always been that way- even when my kids were little.
I got to see my son this week when he came for a visit after covid kept him away. It’s been almost 2 yrs and now I feel like I can breathe again. I’m a happy mom!
Happy Friday Mel! Thanks for your thoughts! Always love to hear what is going on with you. Loved hearing about the piglets and Maria. Fun and inspiration in one post!! Halloween: I like “fun” Halloween, hate “scary” Halloween! I cannot celebrate gore, death, creepy, evil, etc. But the fun pumpkin, ghost, silly witches, etc decorations are enjoyable.
I have never owned Crocs, that kind of shoe just doesn’t fit my foot. But I have no problem with people who wear them!
Happy birthday to your son! It is amazing how they change and how we can love that they are 16 but wish we could still hug that 8 year old!!!
Mel, I love you and your blog! Because of you I ran a half marathon and have kept on running ever since! Your recipes are all winners in my family!
Love your high top sneakers in the post. I would love a source if you have one!
Happy Fall!
Hi Mel! I love your blog, and I’ve made a ton of your recipes. Im only twelve, but I love baking and this is my favorite place to get new recipes. I love anything chocolate, but mostly dark chocolate.
Oh man, I can absolutely relate to “painfully playing my way through the hymns on the organ”. I have to do it this Sunday, just as a sub this time, but I’ve done it as my calling too. I’ve gotten better at not making faces every time I make a mistake. We are all works in progress. Very slow progress. 🙂
Mel I just love you! I reached out to my therapist a couple months ago and she said she wasn’t doing therapy anymore. I think it’s pretty common. I had another therapist in a support group for postpartum depression who was either fired or just up and moved and nobody knows where she went so we can’t have our support group anymore. But the other day my friend recommended doing therapy on a place online called Better Help and she said it’s been really good for her. It matches you to a therapist and you can do online chats, texts, etc. I’ll have to check it out. But I’m looking at a therapist who is close to my house too. Long story short, I’m all about the therapy. ♀️ It’s been so good for me. And anxiety medicine is pretty much my elixir of life. I really can’t live a healthy life without it. The last few years have been horrid for everyone, and you’ve had it especially hard! We all deserve some mental and physical TLC. Let’s normalize it. Love you, lady!
Wait, I thought there was going to be somewhere we could help Maria? Send her books? Help in some other way? I hope so! Thank you so much for sharing such a feel good story!!
There are probably programs in your own town for the many people like Maria. Try your local library. Ask your priest or rabbi. There are so many people out there that we are not even aware of.
I too was moved by the compassion shown by Mels husband to share the books with Maria and then for Maria being willing to accept Mel’s (gift of service). It made me reflect back to when I worked at a library and a 70+ year old man came in for reading lessons. I was a young adult at the time and was both in awe and saddened that he was there weekly. It was a joyous day when he graduated from the help. As I read Maria’s story and thought back to this gentleman’s desire to learn to read, I too became curious as to what we can do as a society to help remove the stigma and judgments and get in to help teach others to read. I will check with my library but if others have any other suggestions (besides just word of mouth) I would love to hear them.
Like another commenter said, I believe we all need to
Give more grace; to ourselves and all others.
Mel, you are a genuine, real, amazing human. I pray for you to find what you need to feel peace and joy along the journey.
Loved the story about Maria. What a sweet experience for you both. I have used that book to teach all my kids to read as well. It is the BEST! Love how systematic it is. Hoping you find a more worthy therapist. I often find it easy to push aside the idea of getting help because of the extra time and cost that it entails, and have to remind myself that with the right person the benefit to be gained is priceless. Life is hard. ❤️
I don’t have anything to comment on about the specific things you asked but just wanted to say we need more Mels in this world. Thanks for being such an inspiration and for sharing your light to others even in the dark days. I don’t know specifically what you are going through but I just want to let you know that you are loved. You’ve lifted me on many many occasions and I don’t even know you personally. It takes an amazing person to reach out across the internet and be personable enough to touch individuals. Thank you for being you.
<3
Thanks for this, Mel! Love your cute piglets and your Crocs. Can’t believe your boy is that old!! (Yes, I’m a long time reader). Love Halloween – I can’t help it. And that section about Maria….aww…..you are changing the world by helping her learn to read. Your blog is simply the best. And I’m no expert on mental health, but I sure love listening to Jody Moore’s podcast “Better Than Happy.” It’s helped me sort out a problem or thirty. She’s great! Her “Be Bold” program is also amazing and I highly recommend. Love your guts – thanks for all you do.
I love Halloween and I think it’s because it’s for everyone. (Mostly kids, of course.) I’m single and Thanksgiving and Christmas can make me feel very lonely because they’re so family-focused. I still love those holidays too but Halloween feels more inclusive to anyone who wants to celebrate it. It doesn’t make anyone feel lonely! It’s just fun and a nice kick-off to the holiday season! 🙂
As another single person, I love this idea. I’ve never thought of Halloween that way before but it’s true that you can celebrate without kids, if that’s your thing. Personally, I like to watch old, non-scary Vincent Price movies and eat candy. 🙂 I hope you have a great holiday!
This is why you’re the only food blog I continue following. You are REAL, thank you!!!
You are simply the best. Thank you for being real. Several years ago, my husband and I were going some really heavy times, and I didn’t feel like we could be open with very many people about what we were going through. What would the world be like if we were all transparent about the things we are struggling with? I think we would be much more apt to treat each other with love. I appreciate your openness about your struggles with mental health stuff and your beautiful story about working with Maria. Right before the pandemic hit I started working with a mental health professional and it has made the world of difference. I am in a better place now than I ever have been before. Keep looking! There are better days ahead.
Those pigs are so darn cute (the babies and the adults), I made my husband lay in bed one morning and look at them with me a week ago. Thanks for sharing.
Love that you helped Maria learn to read. Sounds like you got as much out of it as she did. So happy for both of you.
I don’t really hate Halloween, but I don’t understand why adults love it so much. I mean when you’re a kid….candy, right? but now? I don’t get it.
Try to ignore the haters, easier said than done, I know, but really if you give them any time at all they win and they don’t deserve the victory.
Thanks for your efforts on this blog, I’ve learned so much from you and know that your recipes won’t fail me, well, unless I screw it up…. 😉
Thank you for opening up and being so honest with everyone. It has been SO HARD. My goodness.
Bit please know that my whole family is thankful for YOU.
We are still taking covid very seriously around here and even though my husband and I are vaccinated, I still live in fear of somehow going out in public and bringing home this virus and infecting my children. We wear masks constantly and greatly limit our outside activities. I just could never live with myself if one of my children caught it and I knew it was simply because I stopped being vigilant.
Anyyyyyyyhow…..
That means we haven’t stepped foot in a restaurant and over 2 years. And since we hate takeout food because it never tastes as good as when it’s delivered piping hot to the table….
That means I have cooked SO MANY DARN MEALS IT’S NOT EVEN FUNNY.
My husband does not cook. Bless his soul, but he does not cook.
So that has rested so much responsibility on my shoulders and that’s where you come in.
I have said it before, but I have tried a gazillion of your recipes on your site and have loved pretty much almost every single one of them. And my family has loved almost every single one of them.
And in a year where I have cooked more than I have everrrrrrrrr cooked in my life, trying new recipes and knowing that the odds are it’s going to turn out great because I got it from YOUR website is such a huge relief.
No one likes wasting their time. No one likes wasting ingredients… Especially in a world right now when both money and time are very tight
So THANK YOU, MEL.
I hope you find some help with a therapist, (and shame on your other therapist for ghosting you, how absolutely horrendous!) Because a good therapist can make such an incredible difference in your life.
You are such a good person. A truly loving soul. A wonderful mother. I know I don’t really know you, but I feel like I know you.
And just know that a little family of four, far away in Buffalo New York, greatly appreciates you!
I could take or leave Halloween. I do like fall, but I HATE pumpkin flavors, so I am always glad when this season is over and all my favorite food bloggers stop posting pumpkin recipes. 😉
Your piglets are just precious and I love watching them on Instagram.
I don’t own any Crocs. Forgive me, but I think they are ugly. No hate, though, to anyone who wear them in public. You do you.
I am so glad you will be trying to look for another Therapist. Finding a Therapist that fits you and your personality can be challenging and sometimes you have to try more than one to find the right fit, but don’t give up.
Thank you for making this little part of the internet a happy place to visit!
I love the Crocs sandals that I have. They are not like the Crocs most people wear. Never cared for them.
No, I do not like Halloween at all.
What a sweet story about Maria and you helping her to learn to read. How precious!
Mel, I love your story about Maria. A good picture book about an adult learning to read is “The Oldest Student: How Mary Walker Learned to Read” by Rita Hubbard.
Thanks for your posts!
I was ghosted by a therapist, too. My new therapist said it happens a lot and many times it has nothing to do with the client. Three cheers for good therapy!
Glad you’re enjoying Crash Landing on You. You should watch Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha after. Thank me later. 😉
I could take or leave Halloween. My favorite is Thanksgiving!
Hi Mel and Happy Friday! (made even happier after reading my fav Friday thoughts posts!)
3 comments:
1 – The koala post – yesssssss
2 – I HATE HALLOWEEN
3 – 1 good thing about 2021 is that I took a serious look at my mental health and decided that it is just as important (maybe even more) as my physical health – I am proud of myself for recognizing this and (finally) doing something about it
I’ve been reading your blog since it was just me and a couple of others plus some of your family members. I can’t believe how quickly time has passed. You have teenagers! Your recipes have been blessings and you have helped so many people feed their families! I can’t thank you enough for sharing and caring. Know that you are appreciated and loved by many, many people you will never meet. That’s an amazing accomplishment in this world! Wishing you and your family all the best.
I struggled with planners for years. I have tried many different kinds. Finally, I researched planners for people with ADHD and “built” my own planner on an excel spreadsheet. It’s basically a daily/weekly birds-eye view of what I need to accomplish and it has helped me tremendously. The downfall (if you can call it that, is that is covers my work day only. I can’t muddle work and personal life stuff. So, I’ve got one for work and one for personal. Two sheets per day.