Weekly Recap: Sweet Summertime Fun
After a late Saturday drive home from Raleigh, it was a two-big-cups-of-coffee and a mid-afternoon nap kind of Sunday for me. You know it’s never good when your husband says, “What time do you want me to wake you up?” Hello, let me sleep! I can’t just stay up after midnight without experiencing all the side effects the next day!
What I’ve been up to:
Okay, so… hear me out. The summer season’s flying by… and for the first time in… basically ever… I don’t know how to feel about it. Coming from someone who’s not exactly a “summer girly”, I find myself having more of a love than hate relationship with summer this year. I’m actually enjoying the weather (hot as it is), loving all the beach and boat outings, and, drumroll… I’ve even got a (very slight) tan. Who is she, this “Summer Jen”!?
Over the last month, Alex and I have been to 3 concerts. We started summer concert season at Coastal Creek Amphitheater for Sam Hunt, then genre-shifted to Blink-182 a few days later. Last night we were back at Coastal Creek Amphitheater for Dan + Shay — and had blast as usual! We saw Sam Hunt back in 2017, following the release of his debut album. Both Alex and I enjoy Sam Hunt’s music, so we were very excited to get back to another one of his concerts (we missed the last one because I won suite tickets to a local baseball game… that ended up being rained out… wish we’d have done Sam Hunt instead). The Blink-182 concert was my birthday gift to Alex. I bought the tickets back in October last year and surprised him with them on his birthday. Alex has been to many, many Blink-182 concerts, including the show in Charlotte we went to last year, but Blink’s his favorite band, so “one more time” never feels like enough. They put on a great, high energy show. As a casual listener, I had a good time.
Last night’s concert for Dan + Shay was SO much fun, and probably my favorite so far this year. This cute little 2-year-old with a purse and sparkly cowgirl boots (do they come in adult sizes — asking for a friend) was dancing beside us at what her mom called “her first country music concert” and she was simply adorable. Brought a smile to my face. Alex and I have seen Dan + Shay three times now — the first as an opener, the other two as headline shows. They’re one of my favorite duos, hands down. I’ve been a big fan from the beginning. The energy they bring to the stage is so contagious; they put on a great show every single time. The way the crowd went FERAL during the mid-set cover of “Mr. Brightside” by The Killers… fantastic moment. And of course…“Tequila”. It was so cool hearing the crowd SING along. You could hear the echo of the crowd, it was so loud. As an artist, I can’t imagine how awesome that feels from the stage.
Also, big news, a couple weekends ago, Alex and I celebrated our first wedding anniversary! How crazy that it’s already been a year since our wedding day? Talk about fastest year ever. For our one year, Alex and I booked a long weekend trip to Asheville, North Carolina and spent a very equal parts restful and outdoorsy weekend in the Blue Ridge Mountains. More to come on our Asheville trip, but I’m so glad we chose the mountains as our anniversary destination. We had such a great time taking in the views all around us. North Carolina is a beautiful state and making memories as husband and wife… well that’s priceless!
Aside from a short nap and a trip to a local park for a walk with the pup, it was a pretty chill day today. I made us a breakfast bagel sandwich for brunch and we ended the day with some bbq chicken and a garlic pasta side dish (highly recommend trying this recipe). Now to relax and get ready for another work week. Not trying to live for Friday, but I sure hope the week goes by fast. I’m already ready for next weekend, haha.
What I’ve been reading:
The God of the Woods by Liz Moore — Book people have been raving about this new release, so I had to grab it in my Book of the Month box last month. I will say — I loved it, but in a very slow burn kind of way. I see why people LOVED it, but I also see why some find it boring. It’s a very take-your-time-reading-it kind of book, but also a don’t-take-too-much-time-or-you’ll-talk-yourself-out-of-it kind of book. It’s dense and there are lots of backstories, but the way it all comes together in the end… very satisfying. The last 200 pages had me hooked!
The Bromance Book Club by Lyssa Kay Adams — Was a good reading experience, but the FMC wasn’t my favorite. She refused to meet her husband halfway! Pretty middle-road romance, though I love the premise of a bunch of bros reading romance novels to spice up their relationships. I’ll probably ready more of the books in the series when I have the time, but won’t prioritize them anytime soon.
The Martian by Andy Weir — A book that’s been on my reading list for so long! I saw the movie when it came out, but never got around to reading the actual book. Decided to listen to the audio book because I loved the narration in Project Hail Mary and, well, I don’t understand space anyways, so I might as well be entertained by an animated narrator. I finished earlier this evening during my grocery errands and gave it a solid 4 stars. Will probably run the movie back sometime soon.
What I’ve been listening to:
It’s been alllllll Eras Tour over here — Of course the real deal, but also my playlist of The Eras Tour (Jen’s Version)! All the songs I’d put on the setlist if it were mine to craft. I should write a blog post about the method to my madness.
Goes without saying, but The Tortured Poets Department has been my whole lifeline since its April release — I was obsessed back then, I’m still obsessed now.
Breakup Over Breakfast by Avery Anna — Loving this new album I came across on Spotify!
I’ve been back in the Hunter Hayes archive again — Haven’t so much loved his new music, but the first albums had some really good stuff that I still find myself going back to.
Will be listening to the new Hoodie Allen song as well as Posty’s new double album — Post Malone out here doing God’s work experimenting with a new twangy country sound that sounds SO good on him in my opinion. Hard to not love the guy. He’s having a record year. So many great collaborations.
What I’ve been watching:
The Summer Olympics — I was SO INTO the summer olympics this time around. Many tears were shed watching elite athletes get their medals. The way I got so emotional hearing everyone’s backstory. And watching them run to their loved ones after winning… ugh, my heart! Of course, women’s artistic gymnastics is a personal favorite of mine, but all the sports were really fun to watch! I was rooting for Simone and Suni and I’m so happy they both got their redemption medals! Super sad about Jordan’s bronze, though. Such a bummer.
WNBA — Big WNBA fan over here. It’s so cool watching the league views explode this season. The future is really bright for women’s basketball. We’re witnessing history this 2024 season, and I’m proud to be a part of it. The rookies are showing UP.
A few other (random) things:
I bought Sabrina Carpenter’s new cherry fragrance — it smells so good. Definitely recommend. I’m so excited for her new album to drop next week. Looking forward to hearing the album live in concert in October, too!
I’m usually a fall-starts-after-Labor-Day kind of girl, but Krispy Kreme’s pumpkin spice cake donuts are back (!!!) and I couldn’t help myself. Had to grab a box.
Blog posts you might have missed:
Hope you have the best week ahead.
Enjoy!
JBW