October 2026 – I don't apologize for this mess!

Happy (almost) Halloween

Share a few recent shots from your camera roll, no context needed.

A few recent shots from my camera roll – no context needed?

I got you! ☺️

I could be here all day sharing a few recent shots from my camera roll, but these are just a few of the most recent ones.

Here’s a few more just for the hell of it.

……Anyway…..

Tomorrow is Halloween.

And you know how this goes.

Time has gone by so quickly this year.

Let’s talk Halloween. Yes?

For the last few weeks, I’ve tried to get my little dude to pick a costume already.

I’ve showed him plenty. We’ve been to plenty of stores. He hasn’t liked anything we’ve seen or I suggested.

I’ve been on Facebook marketplace where other parents are selling costumes that their kids no longer need or want, and he hasn’t liked any of those.

There were many cute ones. Many scary ones, and it was all a no!

He drove me crazy for weeks because he couldn’t decide or make up his mind, and he wanted to be a bloody baseball player. I thought that was too gory for school because he had his Halloween party coming up, and he kept telling me that his friend was going to be a bloody chainsaw guy.

That’s great, but I’m not your friend’s parent!

I’m YOURS! 😄

He didn’t like that answer, and he finally said he wanted to be one of those inflatables that look like they’re riding a dinosaur.

I found a few on Marketplace, but I was worried that they would pop or not work once tomorrow comes, so I went against that and tried suggesting something else.

We kept bumping heads in the area of costumes, and he said no to everything, and whatever he wanted – I said no to – for good reasons.

I’ve been over Halloween for a week 1/2 now and just wanted to get it over with. lol.

Finally, after many stores – many suggestions – many arguments over costumes – he went back to this bloody baseball player. He loves baseball, so after not finding anything he liked anywhere else, we decided to go check out Walmart, and wouldn’t you know it?

They had………..

He was so excited.

He loves this and asked if he could get it.

Yes! Hurry up! Before you change your mind again. 🤣

We also made goody bags for his class with some fun things inside. Candy. Pencils. Stickers. Pumpkins. Skulls, glow sticks and other things.

I’m a little disappointed in myself this year because every single year since Elijah was 5, I’ve always gotten each kid in his class these big Halloween trick-or-treat buckets, ordered a bunch of stuff on Amazon, and filled the buckets with snacks, candy, and so many other things. Cool things.

This year – I just got small Halloween decorated bags, and filled them with the basics. Nothing too cool, and I think Elijah was disappointed as well, but he didn’t say it.

I didn’t put a lot of thought into the class goodies this year because I’ve been so drained, and tired. Working so much, and if I’m being honest….I forgot. I threw goody bags together at the last minute this year, and you know what, dammit?

As parents….as mothers…. we’re allowed to forget and to just do the basics sometimes. We’re allowed to not be perfect and to not to go above and beyond sometimes. We’re allowed to mess up, and not give it our all sometimes.

Today, when I felt bad for a minute about not doing these lavish, huge goody buckets I have done every year since Elijah was 5, I’ve realized that it’s okay to skip a year of trying to be the cool mom. The perfect mom. The mom who gives the best treats and buckets, and goodies.

My inner self screamed, “Girl, give yourself some Grace!”. 💜

So, I didn’t worry about it. I took my cute little Halloween goody bags (instead of big buckets) into the school and handed them to Elijah for his class.

I didn’t let myself feel bad, or beat myself up over it. My daughter told me that the kids should be happy to be getting anything, and she was right!

Every year since Elijah was 5, I’ve brought his class cupcakes and sprite for Halloween as well. Kindergarten. 1st grade. 2nd grade. 3rd grade. All the same things, and this year for the 4th grade …I didn’t even do that and you know what?

That’s okay. I’m allowed to not go big or go home just this once, and to make sure the class and his friends got something at least – without me breaking the bank for it this time.

Parents. Mothers. Please give yourself some grace. We don’t always have to be perfect and do everything we always do. We can relax, take a breath and just do a little bit sometimes.

A lot of us parents are rocking this parent thing and doing great and sometimes …we don’t even realize it!

So, he had a good time and the class and teachers loved his costume. He loved his Costume and I was just glad we found him a costume. 💙 My daughter did his face makeup today because she’s really good at that kind of thing, and it looked like he had a big cut on his face as a zombie baseball player, with blood and all.

After we dropped off the goody bags at the school and I was grateful he had a costume for school and tomorrow (Halloween), I thought we were almost done with the madness, but as a parent – are we ever really done with it??????? 😂

My daughter reminded me she wants to be Eeyore. (Winnie the Pooh). She wanted an adult costume we saw at Spirit Halloween a few weeks ago, and I could have sworn it was $43. So, she kept mentioning it today and I went to go check it out, but it was $60.

I told her I just can wrap my mind around paying that much for just one night, and reminded her of all the onesies (just like the Eeyore she wanted), that I got her – and she never wore.

She was so cool about it and said she could grab a mask and figure something out because she really just wanted candy. 😂 She didn’t even care about the costume, so she asked if we could stop at any store tomorrow and get her mask.

Absolutely!

Hell. I was at the dollar store tonight to get a few new chargers, and they had a lot of their Christmas stuff out already, so I picked myself up some Christmas glasses, and Christmas bracelets with bells on them that jingle, and plan to get myself a Christmas necklace tomorrow and maybe a hat.

What am I going to be? The spirit of Christmas. The holiday spirit. Something like that! 😁

I’m so glad Halloween is almost over, but unfortunately…even though I’m going as the Christmas spirit or whatever – I’m not really in the spirit of anything this year.

This has been one of my worst years, and from August – up until now…things have only gotten crazier, so my heart isn’t in it. Usually, I’m so excited for this time of year and I can’t even say that this time.

Ah well.

I like to think of funny memories, and I remember last Halloween when my oldest son carved the bottom of a pumpkin out and went as the (real Pumpkin head).

We went trick-or-treating, and when we were done, we went to McDonald’s before going home.

Whenever we were at the stop lights, he’d slowly turn his head to look at people in the cars next to us, and he’d have everyone laughing. 😂

When we got to McDonald’s, the woman in the lane on the side of us looked at him, tried so hard not to laugh, and she rubbed her eyes and looked at him again.

We all laughed and joked that she couldn’t believe what she saw the first time, so she had to make sure she wasn’t seeing things.

That was one of the best Halloweens we had in Minnesota, and I still love the house that had the coffee set up for adults! 🧡

……..

When my little dude was about 2, we went trick-or-treating in the snow and ice. It was freezing cold that winter, and we still lived in Chicago.

There weren’t a lot of kids out at all because it was so ice cold, and a lot of people were grabbing handfuls of their candy, and putting it all in Elijah’s bucket just to get rid of it because they weren’t getting any trick-or-treaters.

He had only gone two blocks and his bucket was already full, and I told him it was too cold, so we were going home. He cried. He literally cried and said he didn’t want to go home. He was truly enjoying it and we laughed as he wanted to keep going from house to house – full basket, freezing cold and all. 😄

I’ve always loved this time of year and Halloween, and the holidays that follow.

I wish I could get back into the spirit, but this year has been such a tough one for me. Still, I celebrate for the kids and keep my faith up.

Tomorrow when I get home from trick-or-treating with the kids and they’re asleep for the night, I may just pour a glass of wine and enjoy the old school movie:

I haven’t seen this movie since I was younger and I’ve always loved it! 😊

Loves. I’m out of here.

Please be safe tomorrow if you go out and as always… no drinking and driving! 🎃

Happy Halloween!

👻 Shel 👻

Sentimental grief.

What’s one thing you own that holds deep sentimental value?

I have many things that hold deep.sentimental valve to me, but one thing that came to mind when I read this question – was my oldest daughter’s leather jacket.

My Tiffie (Jordan) loved that jacket and she wore it all the time when the weather was cooler. She wore it during the winter months.

She took so many photos in it.

She didn’t let anyone touch or wear that jacket.

It was hers and only hers.

It was her favorite one.

I remember when I was doing my Christmas shopping in September / October of 2021 and I kept going to J.C.Penny because they had a really pretty leather jacket for sale – with warm wool on the inside of it.

I was going to get it for Tiffie (Jordan) for Christmas, but I didn’t know if she would like it or not, or if she was just going to hang it up in her closet and leave it there – knowing how much she absolutely loved the leather jacket she already had.

I went into J.C. Penny many times during those two months and tried to figure out if I should get it or not, but I ended up not getting it.

In November 2021 when I found out from the sheriffs that she was killed in the car accident, I was told that once the car is processed, I could go grab her things from the car if I wanted to claim them.

One thing I really wanted besides her cell phone, was her leather jacket. That was something I knew I would cherish forever because it was a big part of her and who she was.

I did get the leather jacket back, and for months – I had it hung up on one of my kitchen chairs, because part of me wanted to feel like she was just in the next room and would come out any moment, grab it and say she was going out and would be back.

Unfortunately, I knew that wasn’t true and it wasn’t going to happen. 🫤

It took me a long time to finally grab that leather jacket, fold it up and put it in – what I now call the (Jordan bin). Some of her things are in there. I have a huge case that her job sent me when she passed. A memory box and a grieving book I still haven’t been able to get through.

I have some of her clothes, hats and memorial cards in there, a few keychains a friend made us, and some other things I cherish, but that leather jacket holds a really – really deep sentimental value for me.

It’s all ripped up. There’s dry blood on it from her wearing it the night she was in the accident, and I believe the paramedics, police or fire department cut it off of her when they arrived, but I can’t bring myself to get rid of it, so it’s folded up and stays in the Jordan bin. 😒

That and the urn with her ashes hold a deep sentimental value to me. 💔

It’s all a part of grief and we all deal with it in our own ways, and for me …. It was making sure I saved a piece of her she loved the most.

It makes me feel like she’s never really truly gone.

I wish I could sit here and write so much more, but my heart and mind aren’t into it right now.

I’m dealing with some things that have me feeling lost. Exhausted. Mentally drained.

I’ll be fine. I always am, but for now – I have to end it here, and just trust God to take care of everything else.

Have a blessed weekend if I’m not back by then.

🧡Shel🧡

First ever video game (and system), Mousey’s first job, and a police department Halloween event.

What was your first ever videogame?

Oh man!

Hello world.

Let me make some of my 90’s babies smile and I’ll say:

The original Nintendo was my first and favorite gaming system back when I was younger and it still is, and my favorite video game?

I have a few!

The original Mario Bros games 1, 2 and 3 are all my favorite video games and they were my first, but 3 was the best! 😁

I also loved Duck Hunt.

My mom used to come play it with my brother and I, and Duck hunt would always make her laugh and stress her out at the same time.

We’d begged her after a while to give the gun back, but she always reminded us who purchased the system.

She used to also make us turn it off if it was 9 PM and we had school the next day, but in the middle of the night sometimes, we’d sneak back onto it if she was sleeping. 😄 Good times!!!

I have to find an original Nintendo and all the games I used to love back then. 💜

My mom had Atari and sometimes on snow days home from school, my brother and I played that system as well.

Those were the good old days when we didn’t have a care in the world, and I wish so much that we could go back to that time in our lives.

Nintendo came with Duck hunt and Mario 1, so I started off with those first.

I always say that I don’t know how kids today could spend hours on their gaming systems, but if I ever get an original Nintendo again, I’d probably be the same way. lol

……On to other things…..

I didn’t get much sleep today, so I’m about to sleep like a baby after I finish this.

I worked the overnight shift last night, came home at 6 AM, slept for an hour and had to be right back up to take my little dude to school.

I came home, made sure my daughter was ready for her interview, and we rushed out of the house – after she changed clothes 15 times, changed shoes 15 times, and tried to figure out how she wanted her hair. 🤣 Oy.

Kailani – aka – Mousey… (as I call my daughter) ….got the job by the way and I am so proud of her.

She looked so pretty, and I wanted to take a photo of her, post it and share the good news that she got her first job, but she absolutely refused to let me.

My daughter is a private person and she doesn’t like much of her life online and I absolutely understand that. I’m actually grateful for that.

While she has social media, she doesn’t really post much or do anything with it except talk to her friends, so when she said she didn’t want a picture and the fact that she got her first job ….all over my socials, I had to respect that. 🫤

Still, I am so very happy for her.

She loves kids, so she got a job at a Daycare center.

She needs to get her ID because it’s expired, go for fingerprinting, and get her background check done, but once that’s all complete, she’ll get her hours and do her training.

I did tell her I was going to write about her first job, so whoever sees it, sees it…but I promised I wouldn’t put up any photos, and brag about it on my Social media accounts, and I haven’t.

She thinks it’s embarrassing for me to brag about it, but I think she should be proud of herself and want to share her accomplishments. I still understand why she doesn’t though, and I’m okay with that.

She made me laugh when I was waiting in the car and she messaged me while she was filling out her paperwork. She asked, “Quick! What city and state were I born in?”. Something she should already know and had been told many times. First of all….she knows she was born in Illinois, so I don’t know why she asked that, but I quickly told her the city she was born in.

It made me giggle and I love when my kids – no matter how old they are or get – message me with questions, need advice, or ask for help.

It makes me feel like they still need me, and let’s be real here – no matter how old we all get…we always need our moms. I’m 44 and I wish mine was still around because I need her. 😒

Anyway, after her interview, we had to run a few places and my older son asked me to stop at a few places for him since I’d be out and about already, so I did.

See. No matter what age kids are – they always still need their moms.

I did laundry most of the afternoon after that, cleaned up a bit, and went to pick up my little dude from school when it was time.

We then went to a Halloween event at a local police department nearby and that was amazing.

Elijah and all of the kids who attended were able to play around in the police cars, a Swat vehicle, check out the firetrucks, talk to the police, hang out with them and the firefighters, get balloon animals, go on the bouncy slides, trick-or-treat, get free hotdogs, hot chocolate and pumpkins, play hockey – (which Elijah absolutely loved) – and best of all….take a tour of the actual jail. 😁

The kids there loved it, and we had to laugh when some boys started singing, “Locked up…they won’t let me out!”.

A friend of mine (Stephanie) met up with me there with her boyfriend and stepson, and we had such a great time. It was nice to get out of the house and do something fun for a change because I’m always working, paying bills, or running errands.

The event was a success and the awesome cops and firefighters who put the whole thing on …the DJ who kept the best music going and ran the games …the balloon animal guy, and all the others who helped make this event happen for families and kids …are amazing. 🩷

And, I don’t know who this cop is, but when a little girl handed him a pink cowgirl hat and he put it on happily …. I smiled.

There’s some really good cops out there!

The event was awesome.. besides how cold it started to get, so after a few hours, we left and blasted the heat in the van.

Elijah almost won the Limbo contest, (2ne place) …and he was 1st place in the Potato sack races. 😊

Kailani had a good time and enjoyed a few glasses of Mexican hot chocolate – (which was delicious by the way), and it was just really nice.

Elijah loved playing around in the Swat truck, and he enjoyed the jail tour where the cops were taking kids fingerprints and handing it to them.

We came home, had dinner and went right to bed.

Here I am ending this now with a goodnight to all of you and I hope you sleep well. 😘

Until tomorrow my loves ……

Xoxo

🌛Shel🌛

AI and Getting back to reading.

What do you think is the future of AI?

Here’s the problem.

There have been so many times I’m watching a video or watching a news clip and I think it’s legit, but one of my kids will tell me:

“That’s AI”.

I’ll ask how they know and they’ll tell me, but it looks so real, I have to Google the news I just watched or whatever it was to see if it really happened, or if the video was indeed AI and fake.

Most of the time – my kids are right and the fact that they can distinguish a real video or news post between AI should make me proud. 😄

I think AI is both the coolest thing ever made and the most dangerous as well, because anyone could do anything with just a few photos or videos, and ruin someone’s entire life, cause panic, or make anything look real.

It’s almost scary what AI can do, and yet – I’ve also seen it used for some amazing and creative things.

The fact that I can also ask Google a question and it will give me the option to get an answer in AI mode – is also pretty neat and I’ve used that a few times.

AI can be both a good and bad thing, and I think it’s only going to advance more and more over time and in the future.

Hell. AI is writing resumes for people now.

It’s wild.

While it can be used for good and for fun….I do have to share the dangers that good old Google warns about when it comes to AI.

What do I think when it comes to the future of it?

I think AI is the new normal for some people, and it’s only going to get crazier as it progresses and advances.

Just be sure whatever you’re reading, watching, etc. is legit when it comes to AI creations and other things. 😊

Other than that…. Let’s chat!

I haven’t had the time to sit down and read a good book in a while.

Anyone who knows me – knows I absolutely love to read.

I’m mostly into non-fiction, history and autobiography books, but once-in-a-while, I’ve been known to venture off into the world of romance fictions, or other fiction novels if they’re good and they capture my attention in the first few chapters.

I use Kindle on my phone, so sometimes I’ll head to the library and pick up a few books, and sometimes – I’ll download something on Kindle and read there.

I love a good book, and because I haven’t had a lot of time to sit down and enjoy one lately, I decided to get back into reading and make time for myself to sit down and read at least a few times a week.

Recently, a friend told me I had to check out the wild and crazy book:

The book started off way too fast for me, and didn’t really build any anticipation.

(It is not kid-friendly)…and has a lot of violence and sexual stuff in it, so adults only!

The whole book had me thinking, “This guy needs help!”. 😂 “What the hell is wrong with this Psycho?”.

He was doing too much. Way too much.

Stalking? He did it. Possesive? He was. Jealousy? Out of control. Crazy? Absolutely!

So, when Aria finally got away from this man and went into hiding, but then……….

No. No. I can’t tell you what happened, but towards the end – all I could think of was,“Wait until Aria sees her apartment. Her bedroom that you took your anger out on dude!”. The book was wild. Aria is insane for the fact that she actually started to enjoy this man’s behavior, and the entire book had me making the funniest faces.

Me reading this book – wanting to scream at Aria:

If she were one of my friends or family members in real life, I’d have so much to say to this woman. 👀

I don’t care how the book ended, or how adorable the author made it sound because the rest of the book was twisted, insane and off the wall.

You can’t convince me that the jealous, crazy, possessive, stalker cop changed overnight.

There’s a difference between any man getting a little cute, possessive and jealous over the woman he has feelings for and wants, and a man flipping tables and beating on people if a guy looks at her or talks to her.

Anyway, I’m not sure how I feel about this book, but if you want to know what happens, or the wild things I’m talking about in it – go check it out and download it on Amazon Kindle.

The book left me thinking, “What the f***?”.

I’ll say that much.

I haven’t figured out what I’m reading next, but I am happy that I’ve started reading again and making time for it, even if it’s just a few pages or a chapter a night or three nights a week. 💜 Y’all know I love books.

Anyway, I slept in today, and my daughter and I made cinnamon rolls after I woke up and showered.

I work the overnight shifts the next few nights, and it’s something I have to get used to again. I haven’t worked overnights since 2024, but I like the fact that I’ll have all day – every day – free to spend with my kids or do whatever I want.

I can help with homework. I can have dinner with them. I can hang out and watch Football games or the news. I can do whatever I please without having to work during the day or evening hours.

So, I’m not happy about working overnights again, but I am happy about my days being mine and not having to rush around.

I’m over here watching the news right now and not really paying attention to this, so I’m going to end it here and wish you all a beautiful day.

Xoxo.

🥰Shel🥰

You must watch Calamity Jane.

What’s the most underrated movie you’ve ever watched?

The most underrated movie I’ve ever watched would definitely have to be: Calamity Jane.

If you haven’t seen this movie – Please do!

It’s such a cute one.

My grandma (Yia-yia) and my mom loved this movie when I was younger and I watched it with them one day.

I did NOT regret it. I loved it, and I still love it.

I think as generations of people get older – they either forget this movie exists, or have never heard of it and that’s sad.

No matter how old you are – if you’ve never seen it, give it a try and I hope you love it as much as I do. 🥰

A little bit about it:

Set in the west, Calamity is a tough gunslinger trying to win the heart of the man she has wanted for a while now – (Lieutenant Gilmartin) – who ends up falling for another woman – (Katie). Calamity is heartbroken and jealous as she tries to run Katie out of town, but eventually realizes that Lieutenant Gilmartin may not be for her after all.

She runs into all kinds of trouble while causing all kinds of trouble.

The movie is hilarious. Sweet. Sad. Fun. 💜

I definitely recommend it, and it’s absolutely underrated.

With that being said…. Let’s talk as always my loves.

I just got over being sick. Really sick. For weeks.

It was awful.

I was sneezing and coughing like crazy. Couldn’t sleep. I was hot, then cold, hot, then cold. I was so tired and weak. I was in bed for days. The damn cold kicked my ass and took me all the way out of commission for a while. 😄 On top of that – I lost my voice.

I finally got over the cold and started feeling so much better, and then I woke up with the right side of my face swollen. I went to the ER and we all know how much I hate that, but I wanted to see what the hell was going on.

Sinus infection. 🫩

I was told it’s normal right after getting over a bad cold like I had, and I was given medications for it, but these things usually go away on their own much of the time.

You know how our parents used to say, “If it’s not one thing – it’s another?”. I absolutely understand that now as an adult myself. lol

It’s always something!

I had a long day. No, I don’t want to talk about it…but I will say I went and grabbed a bottle of wine because I need to just decompress and watch a movie tonight to get my mind off things.

I went into the store to grab the bottle and the guy promised me he was only dirty because another liquor store closed close by, had a bunch of bottles of alcohol and wine they weren’t going to use and didn’t want to throw away, and they donated them all to that store. He told me they were all dusty.

I joked with him and told him I’d give him my address, so they could make a few deliveries there. 🤪

Loves. I’m not going to make this too long today.

If you want to giggle though, my little dude has a project for school where he has to make a parade float with a string (to pull it in the little parade the school is having), and his parade float has to be on the state of Minnesota. Go figure! 🤣

So, we’ll be working on that soon and thankfully – it’s not due until the middle of November.

I had a dream about ducks last night and my daughter thinks both of these are signs to go back to Minnesota. ha.

Parent / teacher conferences are coming up soon and I’ve been waiting for that because I have some things to say, and I want to know if Elijah is doing amazing like he did in his last school out in Minnesota.

Did I mention I want to go back there? 👀

That being said…. I’m out of here for today.

Go check out the movie.

Here’s a little sneak peek.

XoXo

🩷Shel🩷

My girl (Cardi B), Saying NO to being a Cougar, and Minnesota chat.

If you could switch lives with a famous person for a week, who would it be and why?

Ohhhh. Ohhhhh. I know the answer to this one. 😁

If I could switch lives with a famous person for a week, it would definitely be my girl, Cardi B.

Y’all know I Iove Cardi!

I’d love to see how it feels to live as her for a week.

Wearing her cute, fun and fashionable clothes / outfits.

Living in and walking around her big mansion, and the other homes she owns.

Changing my wigs daily, and all the cute colors and styles that come with it.

Blasting music and dancing on my kitchen island like she has done before.

Getting on the Internet and making people laugh with my playful, sarcastic, silly self like she does.

I’d love to live Cardi’s life for a week.

I’d love to switch lives with her.

Travel the world and see how it feels to not really have to worry about money, and let my security and assistants handle everything. 😄

I think it would be wild, fun, and interesting.

I’d love to hear my own songs played on the radio and I’d turn them up and sing them loudly every time.

I can definitely get down with being Cardi for a week or switching lives with her. 💜

I heard she’s going on tour next year, and let me tell you something……

I never got to celebrate my graduations.

Not in 2023 when I graduate with my associates degree, and not in 2025 when I graduated with my BA degree, so best believe if it’s true and Cardi goes on tour next year, I’m going to save up and treat myself to her concert in 2027 – as my late graduation celebration / gift to myself.

🤗👀

(Photo taken from Vogue)

So, this year ….she had her (Little Miss Drama) tour and I missed it because my daughter was graduating and wanted to go see Romeo Santos and Prince Royce, so I used the money to take her and celebrate her graduation.

I’m celebrating me if the rumors are true about next year. 🤍

And with that being said…….

Let’s chat my loves.

I’ve decided to try to get back into dating.

So, if you want to laugh with me….. Let me share how I’ve been talking to a guy I really like for about two weeks now, and for some reason – age never came up. He looks like he’s in his late 30s maybe. A good looking guy. Works out, and eats right.

I joked that I can’t remember the last time I went to the gym and ate right, and we laughed about it, but he swore I still looked good. (Damn liar!). 🤣

I’m old.

I don’t get much sleep, so it’s easy to see it under my eyes.

I haven’t dyed my hair in forever, so my hair is a pretty cool three-toned color of brown, black and grays.

I could afford to lose a few pounds.

So, him telling me I looked good – I think our first date should have been going to get his eyes checked. Maybe some new glasses. 😁 I’m just being funny, but I really – really do like this guy.

Neither of us knew what we wanted, so we decided to just talk, get to know each other and see what happens, or where it goes. We weren’t expecting anything, but if it went well – we’d figure it out.

I haven’t dated in so long, I’m not used to it anymore and I’m not expecting anything, but I’m going into it enjoying life, and having fun if I meet someone worth… because life is way too short and I’m over 40, so enjoy life to the fullest, right? 👀

So, we were talking last night and having a damn good conversation and for some wild reason, I thought about age – as I finally asked him, “How old are you by the way?”. He thought it was the funniest thing in the world that I was just now asking him after two weeks of talking, but when he replied, “Age is stupid!”. Of course, I wanted to know even more.

He asked how old I think he is, and I replied with his late 30s. When he said, “25“…. I dropped my phone. No. I tossed my phone onto the bed, laid down and looked up at the ceiling because what – the – hell?

If my oldest was still here, she’d be 26! He’s a year younger than my oldest would have been.

That means…….I’m old enough to be his mother!!!!! 🫩

I’m not okay with that, and listen – I have a friend who sent me this damn meme when I told her:

Now – while this made me giggle… I’d feel better if he was 28 at least..

I sat up and went to reply to him, but I couldn’t even do it. I didn’t know what to say and I put my phone back down. I picked it up to reply again, and sat there looking at the screen, and put it right back down.

I still haven’t replied.

He sent me a message this morning asking if it bothers me that he’s 25, and said he doesn’t act like it. He promised he doesn’t act like it, but that doesn’t change the fact that he’s a year younger than my oldest would have been, or two years older than my younger son.

It’s weird. 🫤

Maybe I’m making a big deal out of it, but I almost feel like I’d be dating one of my older kids friends, and to me – that’s just not okay.

I haven’t been able to get over the age gap. I’m 44!!

You ever see the movie (How Stella got her groove back?). If not, it’s one of my favorite movies, but I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t date someone that young, and be okay with it. She went on vacation and met a much younger man and she was in her 40s.

When she found out his age, she was bothered by it at first.

The youngest I’d ever felt comfortable dating is 34-35. So, I don’t know how to tell this man, but eventually I know I have to let him down and tell him I just don’t feel right going that young, which really sucks – because I did mention I really like him!

Ah well.

So, that’s where I am in life right now.

Besides trying to date again, finally meeting someone I like and vibe with and finding out he’s too young for me (in my opinion), I don’t have tons going on right now.

Life is life. Work. Bills. Parenting. The usual.

I feel like I’m on repeat and I really should try something new soon, but until then – I like being able to crawl into bed by 8 or 9, read a little, catch the news and mind my business.

I’m laughing as I write this because during Cardi B’s tour …. She showed one of the tour buses where her dancers were partying after a show, and having the best time – music turned up and all.

She then went to her tour bus and I’m not sure if it was her best friend or assistant but there was a woman making popcorn I believe it was, and Cardi joked that she wanted to go back to the dancers bus because her tour bus was boring.

Her best friend / assistant joked with her and told her to take her ass back to the dancers bus because that was the 40+ bus and “it’s boring over here”. She had Cardi laughing so much. ☺️

I’d be on that 40+ boring bus.

My good friend Ashley and I always joke and say, “Remember when we used to be getting the house or backyard parties started at 8 PM and they’d be ending at 4 AM? Now, we are in bed at 8 PM and still sleeping at 4 AM”. 😂😂😂

It’s sad. I know.

I used to make fun of my aunt for going to bed so early and now – I’ve turned into my aunt.

I get it now. It’s relaxing. It’s peaceful. lol

We can’t party like it’s 1999 anymore. Ha.

In all seriousness, there’s nothing on the streets for us once it gets dark, except trouble, drama and nonsense.

That being said, I’m sorry I’m on the boring tour bus 🤪 or I’d have more to write.

Am I responding to the 25 year old? Yes. I’m going to let him down gently because it just doesn’t feel right. Am I going to keep trying to jump back into the dating pool? Also yes – because my life is boring and I need some excitement, and you know what?

Part of me was thinking about Minnesota today.

I kind of miss it. (Random subject change..I know!).

I remember when I used to be so sad being out there for the holidays and wishing that we were back here in Illinois.

I used to say that one day, we will be back here in Illinois, and now that we are – I was thinking about how excited I used to get when I’d be driving around this time of year – by the lake we lived near in Minnesota and I’d see the guys putting up the Christmas lights – and their metal or plastic Christmas tree – getting ready to light up the lake area right after Halloween.

I used to love this time of year in Minnesota, and today – I realized I’m missing it, and maybe after all this time of wishing we were back home in Illinois…….maybe Minnesota was our home now.

Maybe we should go back.

I thought I’d be happy to be back in Illinois and part of me is for certain reasons, but part of me misses the boring, quiet, cold state I left.

Anyway, that’s all the excitement I have for you today.

I’ll figure out what else to rant about tomorrow.

Love y’all!

😴 Shel😴

Something I’m super proud of and Truck-Or-treating.

What’s something you’ve done that your past self would be proud of?

Earning two degrees in Criminal justice.

I always said college wasn’t for me. I’ve gone to college for different things when I was younger.

Medical.

Massage therapy.

Psychology .

I never finished. I left college those times because I just wasn’t into it, and felt like none of those fit me. I didn’t know if college fit me, so I wasn’t interested in going back to try something else.

However, I did eventually get through medical…but that wasn’t where my heart was.

I was 39 when I moved to Minnesota and decided since I knew what I wanted to do with my life, I needed to finally finish college. I knew if I wanted to do probation and to get into that, I need my degrees.

Even if I wasn’t going to do probation, I knew I wanted to be in the field of Criminal justice – doing something. So, at 39 – a few months after moving to Minnesota and really having nothing else to do because we were in such a small, boring town – I enrolled in college. 🤗

In 2023, I graduated with my associates degree and I went back for my Bachelor’s in Criminal justice as well. I graduated with that in 2025.

Life happened along the way, and there were many times I wanted to give up, or didn’t feel like I could get through it because of the things that life was throwing my way. Or – because I worked overnights and I was exhausted. Or – because being a mom and always on the go – kept me busy.

Still….I kept going. I didn’t quit this time and I think my past self – who quit college three different times – my past self – who was a bratty out of control teenager and partied well into her 20s… My past self – who was wild and didn’t want to go to college –

would be so proud of myself now.

I am proud of myself now.

I got through it and I now have two degrees I never thought I’d have. 💕

I’ve thought about going to Law school now because many people call me to help with their legal issues, or if they get into trouble, just need legal advice because I usually know how to handle it and I’ll help – but that’s another 3 years, and I’m not sure if I want to go that route.

I joke that I just want to hand out my card, and know that my friends and family can say, “You’ll be hearing from my attorney”, or know that they have an attorney to call if they need it, but my kids are so serious when they tell me they think I’d be a great lawyer and they try to push me to go to Law school. 👀

I told them I am too old to be going to law school and I won’t finish until I’m 47 or 48. My son told me he’s seen 70 and 80 year old lawyers out there, but if I’m that old and still working – maybe I do want to be making lawyer money, huh? Ha.

It’s something I have thought about, but maybe I need to really sit down and think about it fully to either say, “Okay! Let’s do this!”, or – not.

Anyway……

It’s Saturday and for the first Saturday in a long time – I don’t have to work.

I just went back to the medical field, and left the job I was at where I was constantly working weekends.

Anyone who knows me – knows I’ve been in the medical field for so long and when I got out of it, I didn’t want to ever go back to it, but I have.

With two Criminal justice degrees, my heart is set on probation and helping youth change their lives the way I had people help me change mine when I was younger, but out here in Illinois – you have to be on an eligibility list to become a P.O. and I do plan to put myself on that list this week. (Pray for me y’all).

I was recently working at a Drug and Alcohol recovery and treatment center out here in Illinois, but my heart wasn’t in it and some of the things that went on there – I couldn’t get down with.

Now the center I worked in when I lived in Minnesota – I absolutely loved that one and I miss all of the tenants that lived there. (I’ll make another post about them another time).

So, I applied to a few medical jobs and one replied back right away saying they think my experience and skills are amazing and they wanted me. ❤️ I’ve worked different positions in the medical field over many years and memory care had always been my favorite. (Alzheimer’s/ Dementia).

Is it tough and stressful sometimes? Absolutely.

Seeing the patients so happy and full of life one minute, and then trying to swing at their CNAs and nurses the next because they don’t recognize us, or fighting with us because they say one thing and reality is another – is definitely difficult, but they are such sweet people and I loved working in memory care for that reason.

I remember a few years back working M.C. and one woman was crying because she wanted to leave. She was trying to go for a ride on her motorcycle and go get her nails done. She had to go to Walmart she said – to pick out some nail polish.

I sat her down and told her we could order nail polish online, have it delivered and I told her she sent her motorcycle to be serviced. She just said, I did? Oh. Shoot!”. I had her sit down with me at a table and pick out nail polish colors, as well as having her show me what kind of motorcycle she used to have.

I learned a long time ago that if someone suffers from Alzheimer’s/Dementia – you have to live in their world and just let them think or say whatever they want, and agree with them as long as it doesn’t hurt them or anyone else, so me telling her that her motorcycle (that she owned for years and her adult kids sold) – was being serviced – it calmed her down and made her forget about going anywhere. 🤗

M.C. can be a fun unit to work on, and so – I’m actually excited I’m back to medical for a while. It may not be for long if I get myself on the eligibility list for probation or anything else, but I plan to enjoy it while I’m back to it.

It also means I don’t have to figure out what I’m wearing to work anymore because I’m back to the scrubs life. 🩺 I work overnights, so if I want to go to work in leggings and a cute scrub top – I totally can!

So, today with me being off of work – I took Elijah and Kailani to a Trunk-Or-treat event at our local outdoor movie theater. Yes, we have a drive-in right near us. How awesome is that? 😁 They’re constantly changing movies, too!

The place was packed and so many people signed up to hand out candy. So many amazing companies were there doing the same and it was a lot of fun to see the way people dressed up or had their kids dressed up.

I was trying to suggest some cool costumes to Elijah that I planned to buy or have delivered before the event, but he wanted this …..

Listen.

I’ve been a mother for 26 years now, and I’ve learned long ago to pick and choose my battles, and this was not a battle I was about to have.

My daughter had a fit and said there were so many other things he could have gone as, and she tried so hard to get him to pick something else and change his mind. I had to hold my hand up to her, ask her to leave him alone and to tell her about the (pick and choose your battles) motto I live by.

So, eventually – we went to the event, and he enjoyed himself, got a lot of candy and of course – businesses were using the event to not only hand out candy – but to promote themselves.

We came home with tons of flyers to different businesses, a toilet plunger from a plumbing company 🤣 and some kind of long stick that allows you to put it down a clogged drain and pull up whatever is stuck.

They were passing out different things free, and Elijah just grabbed whatever he was handed. lol

Still, he had a good time and so did we.

No idea what he was supposed to be but he loved it.

I was looking at this guy for a good few seconds wondering if he was real or stuffed, and it wasn’t until I went to take a photo and he waved at me – that I realized he’s very much a real person.

Well played, sir! Well played! 😄

Someone had a beautiful cutout of Dolly (Rest in paradise beautiful butterfly), and she was promoting Dollys book club for kids. For those who don’t know – You can sign your child up to receive one free book a month as Dolly’s reading club keeps going. 💜

Go to – Imaginationlibrary.com to sign up.

I didn’t get too many photos, but it was good to get out of the house and even better to be off this weekend.

I don’t have much else for you right now.

My life isn’t too exciting.

Have a blessed weekend.

🩷Shel🩷

Celebrity meet ups and chats. I vote for Katt.

Which celebrity would you love to meet, and what would you talk about?

Hey there my loves!

What celeb would I love to meet?

I’d love to meet Katt Williams.

I admire how he says exactly what’s on his mind and doesn’t care who gets mad at him for it.

Things other people are scared to say or talk about, he’s on it and ready to speak on it. He’s ready to use it in his comedy specials, sit for interviews and speak the truth, and piss the world off one subject at a time.

The guy is hilarious and even when he’s talking about serious things that should make us all think – he’s still making us all laugh. 🤗

I watched him on the Shannon Sharpe interview and that man did not hold back. He said what needed to be said, what he wanted to say, and kept it real about some of the craziest things nobody thought he’d actually talk about or share, but he did!

A few times during that interview, my jaw dropped because “Did he actually say that?”, but he sure the hell did. He spoke whatever he wanted to speak about in that interview and had many of us shocked.

He gave no damn about consequences!

That man has no filter and told it like it is, despite knowing he was going to anger some people, but that’s why I admire him so much.

He’s not a people pleaser and he doesn’t care if you like him or not, he’s going to say what he feels and thinks and if you don’t like it – that’s a YOU problem.

I had to laugh a few days ago because he was doing a show and he talked about being on the Shannon Sharpe show, how he pissed some people off, and how he should have just shut his mouth, but then joked that he wasn’t going to! 🤣

The man is wild. He’s his own person, but – despite angering celebrities and Hollywood and speaking up on what’s really going on – he gives some great advice and motivational speeches as well.

He tries to inspire people and he wants to see others doing well as he’s said many times in interviews.

He remains humble, real, and loves his fans.

Not to mention that he’s adopted so many kids and loves them like his own. I have a huge soft spot for people who adopt kids and give them a family, a parent, lots of love and a home. ❤️

Y’all know I want to adopt one day if God has it in the cards for me.

What would we talk about if I did get to meet him?

What wouldn’t we talk about? I think Katt is someone I could talk to for hours about anything and everything and still have so much to say when we’re done talking, but I’d also be busy asking him to be patient with me as we take 1,000+ photos until I like some of them. 😊

Anyway, I have nothing else for you today.

I’m kind of feeling a little (blah) emotionally, so I’m just going to end it here and send you all big hugs and lots of love. 💜

And – I’ll leave you with one of the best things Katt said in the Shannon Sharpe interview that I have incorporated into my own life because sometimes – people who did you wrong or know they messed up with you – think you owe THEM something.

Not a chance!

Katt once said:

Now, someone needs to tell his agent to get a hold of mine and let’s make this meet and greet happen. lol.

If only it were that easy, huh?

Love y’all so very much.

🥂Shel🥂

The one country bucket list topper and talking about bullying and computer repairs.

What’s a country that’s at the top of your bucket list?

Good afternoon my loves!

On the top of my bucket list – is definitely Greece.

I’m half Greek, and my grandparents on my mother’s side have been there. My aunt and uncle have been there.

They all say it’s lovely. I’ve seen photos.

I love authentic Greek food. I have loved Greek music since I was a little girl sitting in my grandma (Yia-Yias’) living room listening to her Greek records, and I used to know some Greek when my Yia-Yia and Papa (grandparents) and my mom were teaching me the language growing up.

Sadly, I forgot much of it, but I would still love to experience the people, the places, the food, the beauty of it, the language, the music and all that comes with Greece – at least one time in my life.

How beautiful is this!

Greek people are also very friendly and sweet.

Most of the ones I’ve met, anyway!

It’s definitely on my bucket list. Will I ever get there to see it? I don’t know, but I do know that it’s on that list as I get older, and would love to go one day when the kids are fully grown, and work slows down, or shall I say – when life slows down? 👀

There ya have it!

Let’s move along to other news.

My little dude informed me Saturday night that some of the kids at his new school are saying he’s annoying and that the school would be better off without him there.

I absolutely hate when he tells me things on a weekend, and I have to wait the entire weekend to handle it. I like to deal with things right then and there when my kids have an issue and I couldn’t, so you know it bugged the hell out of me these last few days.

They didn’t have school yesterday, so I had to wait, but I did email the teacher today and make her aware that I’d appreciate it if she dealt with it.

I didn’t want to make a big scene and go to the principal right away, but I don’t tolerate bullying and nonsense and if the teacher can’t get the kids to act right, I’d gladly enjoy sitting down with the parents of these students and seeing if they can put a stop to it or if it’s learned behavior and the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.

Some parents are the type who don’t tolerate bullying, either and will absolutely ground their kids, make sure it never happens again or make sure their child knows they don’t play that shit, and then there’s some parents who are bullies themselves and of course – learned behavior – the kids get it from them.

So, upon deciding how to handle this situation, I wanted to take it straight to the teacher who has access to these kids every day, and to maybe talk to the class about feelings, emotions, bullying, mental health, and so on.

Elijah said it was almost everyone in the class except three students who have become great friends to him.

I couldn’t get any specific names out of him until this morning – when I told him I emailed the teacher.

He then gave me the names of the two main boys who are saying these things to him.

I had a little talk with him before school, and let him know that while the teacher had been emailed, I needed him to know that in this life – as he gets older and goes on to different grades, high school, college maybe, goes on to work when he’s old enough – that not everybody is going to like him.

I told him I’m 44 and not everybody likes me.

I smiled and joked that I could write a list of people who don’t like me, but my hand would start to hurt – and he started laughing. 😁 I told him, “And that’s okay, but we’re not going to like everyone either”.

I told him that the friends who treat him well and are nice to him, we hold friends like that close to us and we just worry about them and how much we love them. The people who don’t like us – we pray for them, we treat them well no matter what and we keep it moving. We don’t worry that they don’t like us because we have people who love us, and that’s all that matters. ❤️

I gave him the little pep talk and he seemed good with that.

I did hear back from the teacher and she was confused because she said these two little boys and Elijah sit nicely together in class, but she said she would have a talk with them and get to the bottom of it, so I appreciated that. She did tell me Elijah likes to be the funny kid in class, and she thinks that some kids aren’t reacting the way he wants them to, but still – No KID needs to tell my kid that the school would be better without him, so I just hope she handles that.

I’m glad it was just two boys and not everyone like he first told me, and I’m glad that he does have some great friends there that do love him.

So, we’ll see how it goes moving forward and if this stops or if I’m taking a trip up to the school to talk to parents.

Parents! Please always teach your kids that some of the things they say can have such a mental health effect on other students, and that’s just not who you want your kid to be, is it? I know if I found out Elijah was saying these things or being rude to another student, I’d be all over his ass and teaching him right from wrong the moment I find out, but – my kid thankfully knows right from wrong because we’ve had discussions about bullying and being nice to everyone.

I don’t tolerate him bullying and he knows that, so I’ve never had an issue with it, but if there was, I’d be that parent to correct my kid real fast.

I hope if you’re reading this and you’re a parent, you join me in preventing and stopping bullying and sometimes, all we can do is make sure we teach our kids, and keep in contact with other parents to make sure their kids are also aware of how serious things can escalate and become when it comes to this kind of thing.

With that being said, I don’t think I have a lot going on today besides work.

My daughter and I went for a walk this morning and that was nice.

Nature really is beautiful, especially this time of year. (Autumn). The leaves are changing colors, and the weather is nice and cool.

The sky was lovely this morning.

I wanted to sit here on this bench, but my daughter insisted I didn’t because it belonged to the people who own the property. I still feel like they put it right there for a reason, and it would have been a great selfie opp – but – she wouldn’t let me. lol

Once we got back from our walk, we ended up driving to three different places to find somewhere to fix my laptop that I truly need up and running again to write the book I’ve been working on, and to do my own work on.

It’s been down for a while and just does whatever it wants to.

I think the mouse needs replacing as well, as it’s built in and dented in,and when I finally found a guy to fix it this morning – he showed me the side of my screen is cracked as well. I had no idea about that, but he promised to take care of everything – including updating my windows. Oy.

All I heard in my head was ching – ching. More money that needs to be spent, but I need my laptop, so what can I say?!

The first place we drove to – was someone’s regular house they work out of and I wasn’t okay sending my laptop into someone’s house and not knowing if they’d do something with it or if I’d see it again.

The 2nd address we got online – was a roofing shop, and no longer a computer shop, and the 3rd one was the guy who I left it with – that promised he’d take care of everything.

I can’t wait to get it back and start working on everything I haven’t touched in so long, but I had to laugh when he asked if I had anything on there I wanted to make sure to save before he worked on it. I told him I have tons of photos on there and he told me, “Then, I’m going to make sure to back up all those photos on a drive before touching anything else!”. He was so awesome! 🙂

I hope to get it back soon!

Other than that – I wish I had something interesting for you today, but life is pretty boring at the moment – aside from apartment or house hunting, and preparing for the holidays.

XoXo.

💕Shel💕

The weirdest movie, and my broken mama heart.

What’s the weirdest movie you’ve ever watched?

This 👇

I watched this as a teenager, so maybe if I were to see it now …I’d think differently about it, but this dang movie was so weird and confusing.

The scenes are scrambled and all over the place, and you really have to pay close attention to know what’s really going on.

Nothing happens in order, and there’s a lot of back and forth.

I’ve seen a lot of weird movies, but this one has always been on the top of the list. 😆

Do I want to see it again as an adult to maybe be able to try to understand it? Absolutely not.

No, thanks!

Any way….

I have nothing interesting going on today, but I will tell you that my little dude broke my heart today.

My aunt wanted to take the kids to a Pumpkin patch.

My older son didn’t want to go because he does some pretty heavy labor work all week removing boat docks, fishing docks, and other equipment from lakes and people’s properties, and his body and one of his knees is killing him.

He has the weekends off and he likes to rest.

My daughter loves Pumpkin patches, so she was all for it, but my little dude had a fit and said he was being forced to go. I told him nobody is forcing him and he didn’t have to go if he didn’t want to, but I told him I think he’d have so much fun.

My aunt said if he didn’t want to go, she was just going to take my daughter out and do a few things, so I went to look for my little dude and found him hiding under his blanket in the bedroom. 😂

I sat next to him on the bed and asked, “This is what we’re doing now? Hiding out?”. He said he didn’t want to go, and I told him we’ve established that, and I asked why not. I told him that he used to love Pumpkin patches whenever I took them, and he told me, “Yeah, when I was three!”. 🥺

My mama heart was crushed!

I remember when he was three and we went to a pumpkin farm and I thought he’d be scared to get on a toddler train by himself, but he ran to it, got onto it, buckled himself in and fully enjoyed it as it drove around the farm and I watched.

I have that photo somewhere. I have to find it. 😭 He’s growing up so much and he’s my last baby. I’m not ready for him to grow up this fast!

I’ve been planning to take them to a pumpkin patch this month and the fact that he told me this morning that those are “boring”, made me a little sad.

My daughter is 18 and she absolutely loves them, so I guess it just depends on the kid or person, but hell – there’s adults like me who absolutely love pumpkin patches / farms, so he’s a little goofy one.

The problem is – my boys are pretty much homebodies. They love going out and doing things, but they absolutely love their video games and hanging out having nothing to do.

If I say we’re going to an arcade or bowling, or to do anything else boys like – they’re in the car faster than I can blink, but anything they feel they can pass on – they’re passing on it. 🫩

And again I say…parents…if your kids are still little and still enjoy pumpkin patches and doing cute little fun things like that – enjoy it while it lasts because they’re going to get older, lose interest in certain things and it will break your own mama / dad heart.

Oy.

So, there’s that!

My last baby is getting older, learning what he likes and doesn’t, voicing his options more, and no….I didn’t force him to go.

My aunt and my daughter went out and they enjoyed time together.

Until next time – have a beautiful Saturday my loves. 💜

Xoxo.

🤗Shel🤗