Weekly Recap: Beachy Weekends, Fourth of July, and a Quick Catch Up
Welcome to 2025 where the first Just Jen Things recap of the year comes… more than halfway through the year. Good job, Jen, good job. In my defense — and I’m going to defend myself here because WHEW — life’s been feeling a little (okay, A LOT) “Lights! Camera! Bitch! Smile!” in 2025. Anyone else agree? Don’t get me wrong, I have plenty of things I’m both excited and grateful to have going for me right now, but damn, so many other things have made 2025 feel like the ultimate slog-fest so far. So it seems, my anthem of the year belongs to Taylor Swift’s I Can Do It With a Broken Heart — all the days of physical, mental, and emotional exhaustion, and yet I’ve had to put on that front because the only way out is through.
What I’ve been up to:
With the summer season in full swing, Alex and I have been spending most of our free weekend days at the beach. Though I’m a winter beach girl at heart (the number of people on the beach in summer can be overwhelming at times), I’ve actually been enjoying the hot and breezy sweet summertime days on the coast this year (who is she?). You know the kind — sunscreen days, sand everywhere, wading in and along the waterline, and enjoying the shade in a cozy beach chair under the Shibumi, a good book in hand. Beachy weekend day trips have been a literal breath of fresh air and one of my few mental saving graces amongst the other noise and chaos around me. I hope we can squeeze in a few more trips before it starts to cool off.
Last week, following the Fourth of July weekend, I took a couple extra days of PTO, and let me tell you, they were SO VERY needed. On Monday, we took our dog, Mogul, up to Pilot Mountain State Park for few hours of walking/hiking along the mountain. It was hot — I felt a little crazy being out there in the 90+ degree heat — but we had fun. We finished our hike sweaty and tired, then rewarded ourselves with Mexican food from a little hole in the wall place we discovered a couple years ago. Worth it. Then, on Tuesday, we snuck off to Wrightsville Beach for a beach day, which was 100% a better beach day than any of our previous weekend trips haha. No fighting for or frustration over parking coupled with less people = day made. We even ordered our first ever beach pizza after seeing two girls do the same thing a few weeks prior. We’ve always been the sandwich/pasta salad-eating people at the beach, but the beach pizza changes you, trust me.
On the actual Fourth of July, our friends invited us to their house for dinner and fireworks on the boat. It’s been a three year tradition, cruising the lake and anchoring in to watch the neighborhood firework show. We swam in the water, got bit by fish, and had several good laughs with good friends. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: friends that feel like family are the best kind of friends to have. We had a very patriotic meal of brats, potato salad, and pasta salad, and even snuck in a few sweet treats from Kayla Renee Cakes, our favorite local bakery (also the bakery that made our wedding desserts). And yes, don’t worry, we did sneak a listen to Miley Cyrus’s Party In The U.S.A, because “millennial America!” haha.
This past weekend, we gave ourselves our first “relaxing weekend” in a long time. After so many on-the-go weekends, and knowing we have a lot going on over the next few weekends, it felt necessary to stay put and chill for a couple days. We did sneak off to a local baseball game on Saturday night (we got free dugout box tickets through my work), but otherwise we basically chilled in the AC, caught up on a few house chores, and took it easy. No complaints from me. It was a very HOT weekend.
What I’ve been listening to:
I’ve been listening to a lot of music lately, but I’m going to highlight a few recent listens to keep it short and sweet.
I’m late to the Ella Langley train, but I’ve discovered her as an artist and really like her music — Love the songs weren’t for the wind and girl you’re taking home especially.
Virgin by Lorde — After hearing What Was That as the first single, I was hoping that a more poppy Lorde was back, but that wasn’t a wish that came to fruition. I find Virgin to be a very interesting album. I like it, but it’s not my favorite piece of work. I personally wanted something I could bop to, but again, that’s personal preference. Along with What Was That, I like the songs Hammer, Shapeshifter and Favourite Daughter the most.
Okay Hoodie! — Pretty Face is a 10/10 certifiable BOP. Such an ear worm this past week and one of my favorite songs of summer.
Surprise new Justin Bieber album? — I gave SWAG a listen at work last Friday. I think there are definitely highlights (sound, production), but there were also some really cringey moments I can’t look past. For me, like many others, I believe the standout track here is DAISIES.
What I’ve been reading:
It’s been a slower reading year for me, especially on the audiobook side. Things are starting to pick up, but it’s been slow going. I’ve finished five physical books (and no audiobooks) since the last week of May. Recapping the five books I did read though.
Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy — An atmospheric, dark, slow build-up to the ending kind of book that I just devoured every page of. When I finished reading the last chapters, I literally stared at the wall for several minutes before I could move on with my life.
Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid — I will never recover from the end of this book. No notes.
With a Vengeance by Riley Sager — Not my favorite of the Sager thrillers, but not bad either. I gave it 3 stars. I didn’t love the final twists, but I did enjoy the locked room vibes on the train.
The Ghostwriter by Julie Clark — I thought this was a well-written story. The alternating timelines really aided the reading experience. It was interesting to follow the chapters in the present day, but I enjoyed reading the past perspective of Poppy the most. Her story, her tragic ending… I loved her love for the camera.
One Golden Summer by Carley Fortune — I read Every Summer After (4 stars) last year, but I haven’t read any of her other books. I really loved One Golden Summer — the way it reminded me of my teenage summers at our cabin in the Wisconsin Northwoods. This book felt so quintessentially summer and had the best cast of characters.
What I’ve been watching:
Squid Game 3 — The show that always keeps you on the edge of your seat, that’s for sure. We really enjoyed S3, and both Alex and I thought the show as a whole wrapped up nicely. I will say — I personally don’t think we need an American spin-off, but alas. Got to go where the money is.
Quarterback S1 and S2 — We started watching the other day. It’s been entertaining to see glimpses of the back end of life through the eyes of people we really only know from game days.
Lots of WNBA games — I’ve really been into the W these past couple years!
A few other (random) things:
Our spring/summer concert schedule has been busy, busy — We’ve seen Kelsea Ballerini, Beach Bunny, Linkin Park, and Avril Lavigne since February. A couple more yet to come, too.
Wicked: For Good trailer — Has me READY for the end of the year.
Also super excited for the Project Hail Mary book to film adaptation — The movie trailer looks amazing! Trying to get Alex to read the book between now and when the movie releases next year.
Got my July Book of the Month box — Picked These Summer Storms by Sarah MacLean after seeing so many good reviews.
Our cat, Klein, turned 11 on July 9 — 11! We’ve had him since he was just a baby… where does the time go?
I finally got a walking pad for the house — My one Prime Day buy.
Blog posts you might have missed:
Hope you have a great week! After only working three days last week, it’s been hard to get into the swing of things this week. But, vacation days are coming soon.
Enjoy!
JBW