my break (mostly in pictures)

My 3 week break from school has been good. Busy, but really enjoyable.

I really loved staying in Jackson for most of my break—I usually dart out of town as soon as school lets out but I decided to hang around what I now call my “home-town” and get to see all my non-school friends...

We drove up to Dresden, TN to visit my grandmamma for Mother’s Day..

I was very thankful I got to be with my beautiful mom on mother’s day (even though I pitched a fit about not being at the Wilco concert in Jackson)

Our sleeping arrangements were quite funny…..it has been years since we’ve stayed with my grandmamma and all 3 of us piled up in the back room. The boys randomly had on the same pair of boxers they had gotten for Christmas. It was just too good to resist a shot of that…

And yes, the air mattress and I had quite the adventure…..

I also got to spend several days with my aunt kakki and uncle rick in Memphis which was so lovely. Growing up I used to spend weeks with them in the summer...I realized since my Mimi died that I haven't really gotten to spend quality time with them....so, I made a little trip to visit them. Out of the 6 first cousins and 19 second cousins I have in Memphis, I got to see 4 first cousins and 14 second cousins…


Uncle Rick, Amelia (Natalie's youngest) and Aunt Kakki at Amelia's second grade graduation from St. Mary's!

At the yogurt shop—two of Dawn’s and Two of Nat’s! From left to right…Hadden, Amelia, Me, Ruthie, William

My cousin, Hunter, is 32 and he and his beautiful wife, Sarah, have 6 kids…aged 10 and under. They are the most adorable kids you’ve ever seen…I couldn’t quite get all 6 of them to participate in pictures but I did manage to get litte Russ man, Whitt, Lucy Walt, and Ellett (I am missing Darby and Hudson)

Something I never expected to happen did—I took 2 yoga classes with my Uncle Rick! And he’s a total rockstar yogi….I thoroughly enjoyed the classes at Better Bodies Yoga and can’t wait to go back!

Every time I go to Memphis, My aunt takes me to the Dixon Gallery and Gardens….i am in love with that place. The grounds are exceptional and the exhibits are always so amazing. The exhibit that is currently showing is called Modern Dialect: American Paintings from the John andSusan Horseman Collection

My brother, Brian, lives in Memphis and my brother, Clint, drove up to go see Wilco (in Memphis)...yet I had to dart back to Jackson for a wedding so I guess it was not in the cards for me that I see Wilco this tour (that's okay--I'll catch them next time). 

Infact, I should mention how proud I am of my brother (Brian) for working his tail off at being the best financial planner/adviser in the Memphis area! Brian has always been a whiz with money. He’s been trading stocks since he was about 12—So if you are looking into getting your finances on track, please call my brother! He really is the best at what he does…Call him at Shoemaker Financial...

My Aunt has the most beautiful garden ever….she started it about 18 years ago and I have loved watching it change and grow over the years….

She picked this bouquet and put it by my bedside…just for me

The second I got home from Memphis, I threw on a dress and headed to the church....our precious classmate, Anna Robinson (now Harris) got married. She was the most stunning bride I've seen.

 Her ceremony was very special and meaningful and her reception was super fun. I think at one point I had 5 photographers taking pictures of me because I was the first on the dance floor (no surprise there). 

Liza, myself, Sally, and Anna (not pictured) sit together in the back row of several of our classes—we probably have a little too much fun back there…

I dyed my hair red (or had it dyed rather)….yes it was spur of the moment, no it doesn’t mean anything (like a mid-life crisis, etc, etc).

Straight

Curly

 I have always loved red hair and when my hair dresser, Kate McNeely, suggest I go red--I said, "let's do it!". I'm really enjoying being a red head and if it doesn't fade too fast, I think I"ll stay one for awhile...

Kate really is a badass and I trust her implicitly with my hair...If you don't have an awesome hair stylist in Jackson, you should call her. She works at Social Agenda in Fondren~(601) 982-5575

My new nick name is mermaid princess (given to me by Sally and friends). I suppose I should now change the name of this blog since I’m not longer a “blonde” aquarius.

I watched copious amounts of Breaking Bad and Sherlock season 2...


...so much, infact,that I have a big little crush on both Aaron Paul and 
Benedict Cumberbatch.

I started running again and thankfully (gasp) no injuries to date.

I got a little nostalgic. Went on a few trips down memory lane. 

 And I realized (yet again) that I’m sincerely grateful for every event in my life. Both good and bad.

I chuckled to myself when I thought about how dramatic and chaotic my life was for so long. I remembered things I didn’t exactly want to remember (like how psychotic I was, for example). To think that people tell me how pragmatic and rational I am now is almost too hilarious for words. 

I ran into an old friend a few days ago—it wasn’t long into our conversation before this person looked up with a puzzled expression and said,

 “How did you change your life so fast?”

“First of all,” I said, “It wasn’t that fast.”

“Second of all, I finally figured out that if you quit participating in drama, it goes away”.

It really is as simple as that.

Anyway…

I’ve had a really great 3 weeks and I’m not almost ready to hit the books again….

Our summer schedule doesn’t look that bad…..I think we're doing geriatrics this summer.

It’s weird to think we’re already in our second year…

but of course, what i really enjoyed the past 3 weeks was spending time with friends....


Lydia

I enjoyed yoga and meals with Julia…she’s moving to Puerto Rico to get her Ph.D in Spanish—we will miss her here dearly when she moves in July…

Maddie and Jason

My kindred spirit--Rachel

My new friend, Adam—who is in India for the summer. Hope you’re having a blast, Adam!

Tricky and Patrick

Dakota and Eric

I can’t wait to meet my niece (Dallas Rae Aycock) in September/Oct! Dakota is the most precious little pregnant thing you ever did see.

Eric and I are the friends that have experienced “real life” (for clarification, message him. Ha!) together—despite our ups and downs and ins and outs, I’m so glad I have him in my life.

And of course no school break would be complete without a trip home.

My dad bought a used ski boat when I was about 10 years old. We named her Ruby Begonia because she was red. Believe it or not, my Dad has kept her up pretty well and after a several year hiatus, she made her return to the water this weekend. The boys and I had a blast tubing and skiing like in the good ole days…

Not only was it Memorial Day Weekend—It was also Irwin’s second birthday. I love that little man so much and it has been the greatest experience in the world to be his aunt and to watch him grow. He is ALL boy. If there's something to kick or punch, he's on it. He also loved all the sugar he got this weekend--courtsey of his aunt;)

Since he is obsessed with Curious George that was the theme of the party. One of Caroline’s friends’ mom (Julie Lee) painted this cute little piece.

And that’s about it, folks.

I hope all of you enjoyed the month of May as much as I did and are ready for summer time, baby...cause it's here. It's already pretty damn hot. Make sure you stay hydrated!


all my love,


Jen Jen

p.s If you go to the beach, please take me with you:)

local happenings

There are always tons of events during the month of May. But besides the usual recitals/weddings/graduations there is just a ton of culture going on right beneath your nose.

Here are just a few of the many events going on in the next week..

Beginning with TONIGHT…

7pm

Hal & Mal's

$25 at the door

As most of you know, I got my second start in life at The McCoy House and it means so much to me. It has helped so many women over the past few years to learn to live without alcohol and drugs.

I will be the emcee for the event so it is sure to be a good time;)

THURSDAY NIGHT –May 10

Belhaven Movie in the Park—Blue Hawaii

Come on over to the park across from my house and bring your lawn chairs, bug spray, cooler, and snacks as we sit on the lawn and watch Blue Hawaii—beings at dusk (which is around 7-7:30pm)

also going on Thursday night....

The final concert of the High Note Jam series in The Art Garden!

5:30-7:30

 Cody Cox & Furrows will perform on the C Spire Stage. Cash bar available. Special thanks to Southern Beverage Company for their beer sponsorship. 

SATURDAY--May 12th

Greater Jackson Arts Council is proud to showcase the work of Jackson artist Carrie Roebuck in the main galleries at The Arts Center of Mississippi. Join us Saturday May 12th from 2-4 for the opening reception. The exhibit includes wax batik, sculpture, collage, and figure drawing. You do not want to miss Carrie's beautiful work, which will hang through May 31st. This exhibit and the reception are free and open to the public.

also....

Stray at Home—Art and Music Festival in Fondren

We are thrilled to announce the first annual Stray At Home Art & MusicFestival! 

Come enjoy a day of art and music on the grassy area at the corner of Old Canton Road and Duling Avenue in Fondren (next to Babalu)

10am-6pm

and then as you all know, Mother's Day is this Sunday (or if you didn't know, you do now). I'm sure there will be a ton of cool gifts to buy for mom at the Stray at Home festival--you should definitely check it out.

That should keep you (and me) plenty busy this coming weekend.

I hope I see some of you around town!

1 year down, 2 to go!

And it’s a wrap!

First year of Occupational Therapy School—DONE!

Whew!—they told me it would be hard but I had no idea just how hard it would be—not just academically but it was just so…. grueling. But we did it and I am SO proud of my entire class. Everyone worked so hard and yet remained so kind…I really do have the best class. In fact, they are now much more than a class—they are my best friends and family. They are the people I have to be with while I’m in school but that I choose to be with when I’m not.

And it looks like my plan of being a "B" girl worked out pretty well. I just found out my final grade in two of the classes I was most worried about and I managed to pull out B's on those finals. Still awaiting the other 3 but so far it looks like I'll have all B's and one A.

and it really was worth it. I did a lot of extra-curricular activities and kept up with my social life pretty well and it really was worth it to make those B's. 

I am now officially an OT2! If the next two years go by as fast as this year has—I’ll be a working professional in no time!

Speaking of professions—

I’ve realized a lot about myself this past year. I am SO grateful I choose the profession I did because I love it. And it totally fits me. I’ll get to do something I love and have so much variety and so many options and settings to choose from…

BUT….

The real reason I choose Occupational Therapy to begin with was because of the strong component in mental health. In fact, way back in time, that was our first line of work—in the mental health field. It’s actually taken a back seat to that field in the past few decades but it’s still there.

It’s no secret that I love to study people. I love to dig and prod and figure out why people do what they do. I guess I have always been obsessed with the human condition. I love studying behavior. I love studying assessments. I really love studying different profiles (Criminal Minds is my favorite show after allJ) I love studying what makes people come alive—I love watching people come alive.

So, I’ve realized that my ultimate dream job is to become a Cognitive Behavioral Therapist—which is a more specialized field of Clinical Psychology.

Which means---I have to get yet another Masters and Doctorate and then a ton of specialized training to be a certified CBT.

So this is definitely my 10 year plan. I will most definitely work as an OT for a few years before I go back to school. But I just get so excited thinking about it—I’ve been studying different methods and techniques (at night when I was supposed to be studying for finals).

Anyway—back to real life:

I have 3 glorious weeks until I go back to school for our summer term.

And what I am most looking forward to is getting back into a routine.  (I know, hardly what you expected to hear from a student, right?)

I just got so out of my normal routine the past month with my leg being injured and the extra stress of school and I literally fed my body poison (in the form of Ben & Jerry’s) and stayed stressed out to the core.

I’m ready to start jogging again, go back to Pure Barre and yoga on a daily basis—go back to eating my normal plant based diet (I’ve eaten out for the past 2 weeks—wait, month! I seriously don’t want to eat out again for a long

time). I’m ready to get on board, baby!

I have lots of fun activities and dates coming up with lots of people I love. My weekends are already full—of festivals, weddings, parties—May is such a celebratory month.

To all of my class, CONGRATS!!


To all of my amazing friends and family that encouraged me and held my hand through this first year--THANK YOU! I could not have done it without all my many cheerleaders!

I look forward to this coming year.

But until then,

I’m about to sit back and watch Sherlock, The Wire, and Breaking Bad.

Both Images were found here