Life Update & Answering Your Questions

Happy February! It’s Valentine’s month, Women’s Heart Health Month, and Black History Month. Whew! That’s a lot to pack into the shortest month of the year! 😂 January is a reset month for lots of us, and with February, the hopeful promise of spring feels right around the corner!

I haven’t done a life update in a while, and so much has happened, so I thought it was time! I’ve also gotten lots of questions from you, so I wanted to answer those as well! (Look for those in italics throughout the post.)

As always, click the pink text links or any image for more information.

Grandparenting

First things first! On Wednesday, January 18, our first grandbaby, Lily Anne, was born! Our son and daughter-in-law have kindly invited us to share so many intimate moments with their little family, and we are so grateful. (To watch my Instagram Reel about Lily’s birth, click HERE.) We love that little baby so much, and our joy is doubled to see how precious our son and daughter-in-law are as parents. They are amazing. Of course, the granddogs have needed extra love and attention, so we’ve been trying to help with that as well! 🤗

What grandparent names did you decide on, and how did you come up with them?

Great question! Well, we wanted something that was unique to us, and we wanted our kids to like the names too! Your grandparent name pretty much becomes your actual name 😂once the grandkids get older, so we needed to really like them! I chose LouLou because my middle name is Louise, and Bob calls me “Suzy Lou.” We had a hard time with Bob’s name! He finally decided on GrandBob, which is fun and unique!

Bronchitis and Fractures, Oh My!

I didn’t talk about it a ton, but I caught bronchitis two days before Christmas and pretty much spent the next week in bed! Then Bob caught it too, and we were a pitiful twosome. If you’ve had bronchitis, you know that full recovery takes a couple of weeks, and I didn’t feel 100% for about 3 weeks!

“Always the Optimist” Cotton Terry Lightweight Sweatshirt (40% off with code FRESH this weekend) | Similar Jeans | Faux Fur Collar Quilted Jacket (Was $229, now just $72!) | Wool Fluff Sneakers )Also in black.) | Handbag |Earrings | LouLou necklace | “S” Initial Pendant necklace

Also, in early January, I ran into the wingback chair in our family room because I was looking at my phone while walking to the bedroom, and I fractured two ribs! 🙄 One thing you may not know about me…I’m clumsy! I’m also a spiller! I literally cannot carry a drink from one room to the next without spilling it. (Bob cannot get over this and is not very sympathetic! 🤣)

Simple Modern 40 oz. Tumbler

This week on Instagram Stories (and also in my January SO in the KNOW post, I talked about how much I love THIS I like this Simple Modern 40 oz. Tumbler. In fact, I like it WAY BETTER than my trendy, of-the-moment Stanley tumbler. It’s lighter-weight, leak-resistant, and $20 less! (Which is good if you’re a spiller and you like a good deal!)

Why do you always talk about things and then try to sell us a product that is related right after it?

Hahaha! First of all, YES, sometimes people are not very nice when they leave comments or questions! That’s okay! It’s their problem, not mine! My worth is not in what they think of me or even in what I do here at ENB, my worth is in Christ. Secondly, the reason I do that is because, if I don’t, I get lots of emails, texts from friends, and social media DMs asking me about whatever I just shared, what I was wearing, what shade of lipstick I have on, etc.! So it’s pretty much a preemptive measure! 😂 I only share what I truly use and love. Honestly, there is no way to do what I do without being myself! My job is to hopefully encourage, inspire, and bless you all by sharing my life, my heart, and the things I’m learning and loving. Of course, you never have to click on any links!

Interviews

I did three interviews in January! Two were for two different YouTube series, and one was for an Empty Nester conference. All are coming out in February! I talked about things like parenting adult kids, finding purpose in the empty nest, and my faith. I can’t wait to share them with you. Be sure you’re subscribed to my newsletter, so you don’t miss a thing!

Tall Ceramic Heart Mug | Silicone Tea Strainer | Artificial Green Apples

What are you and Bob doing to celebrate Valentine’s Day?

Actually, not much! I’m heading to Florida to visit my parents that week. I haven’t seen them since September, and a visit is long overdue! While I’m there, I’ll definitely fit in a visit to our beautiful Sanibel Island. Bob and I were there right before Hurricane Ian made a direct hit on September 28, 2022. Our condos fared pretty well, but the resort community where they’re located had a lot of damage. 😢 (I shared more about it in THIS recent post.) We’re hoping things are up and running before the end of the year, but we’ll see. Let’s just say Bob and the insurance company are very good friends these days. 😬

Good Scoop & Fabulous Finds

Here’s a round-up of some stuff I think you’ll love…💗

We Love a Good Freebie!

Our pals at Joy Creative Shop have done it again! They put out a helpful FREE printable every month, and in January, it was THIS Celebrations Calendar. Use it to keep track of all of those special events throughout the year! For February, it’s THIS Heart Printable. If you print it out on card stock, it would make cute gift tags! (Use a hole punch to punch a hole and attach it to the ribbon of your gift!)

Travel Scoop

My travel advisor (and empty nester) pal Shannon Leyerle, owner of Vacations by Shannon, puts out a short and very informative travel newsletter each month, and this month’s issue is full of so much good scoop! Here are some highlights:

• A recent Travelzoo survey found that a whopping 78 percent of respondents said they plan to spend disposable income on leisure travel in 2023. Travelers are going to continue to prioritize vacations in 2023! Bob and I are heading to Kauai in late August! Where are you headed?
• Multi-generational travel is coming back stronger than ever. 
• Europe is one of the hottest vacation destinations, along with Japan. Cruises are still a top choice.
• Shannon says her clients are booking their trips much farther ahead. This means that availability is an issue much earlier! 

You can subscribe to Shannon’s monthly newsletter HERE.

Healthy Recipes

You may remember how much I love Mighty Health, the health & fitness app (endorsed by AARP) just for empty nesters and the over-50 crowd. They’ve just put out 7 easy heart-healthy recipes, and I know you’ll love them! If you want to learn more about Mighty Health, you can check out my blog post HERE. (If you decide to join, you can get a great deal by using ENB60 for 60% off the program.)

Coming up on ENB

Next week on ENB, I’m giving you some great ways to make extra money in the empty nest! (I’ve been working on gathering info on this topic for weeks!) Coming up after that, I’m introducing you to the , telling you how to care for cashmere, why it’s a great time to buy, and sharing some of my favorite sources for cashmere, and I’ve got some fun beauty content coming up as well!

Don’t miss it! If you’re not a subscriber, sign up for my newsletter HERE, so you don’t miss a thing!

Have a wonderful weekend, my friends! Love on your peeps! xoxo