Currently {September 2026 Edition}

September Writing Challenge - Prompt #15:

Right Now

Reading: 

So far this is a book I would let my grandma read, so if you're looking for some clean, historical fiction, look into this one.  

Wearing: an Aristocats t-shirt and bike shorts. It ain't pretty. 

Singing: "Time of my Life" by Benson Boone

Buying: a new fridge! After 22 years, we replaced our fridge, and we are loving the new guy. It's a little bigger than our old one.

Loving: having the kids back in school... except for the anxiety, emotional breakdowns, and sick tummies. One kid has already missed two days of school.

Hoping: that the pumpkins from my garden, which have been orange and ready to go for at least a month already, make it to fall before they go bad. 

Update: They're all rotten.

Listening to: 

I wouldn't let my grandma read this one, but it is excellent historical fiction that addresses big events of the 1930's - the Great Depression, eugenics, women's health, adoption fraud, and more. Oh, and a brothel. 

Update: I finished!

Suffering from: the heat. I know it gets old listening to me complain about how hot I am all the time, but the struggle is real! 

Realizing: that I am the age Elvis was when he died. 

Eating: taco soup. It's not soup weather, but I had taco meat, peppers, onions, and tomatoes that needed to be used up, and taco soup is the perfect solution, so I have it in the crock pot cooking. 

Planning: meals for weeks! (because we have so much stuff we need to use up, and I love making a meal plan, and then I only stick to it by 50%). 

Proud of myself for: cleaning under the kitchen sink.

Playing:

Bohnanza is one of our favorite games, and Scotty has been especially obsessed with it lately and makes us play it every game night. 

Watching: 

I don't even know with this show. What the heck am I watching?

Procrastinating: picking up some prescriptions for Daisy. We've had some pharmacy/insurance drama lately, and I just can't. 

Update: I did it. I got the meds!

Weirded out by: all the spam messages that come through the Band app.

Craving: sweater weather.

Annoyed by: the shopping habits of one of my children. I think she asks me at least thirty times a day about buying something. Will you buy me [insert dumb thing here]? Can we go to the dollar store? Can I look on Amazon? 

Feeling: old. My work moved to a new location, and we had our biggest moving day last week, and it kicked my butt! 

Missing: my boy. I wish I could pack his luggage for him and cook for him and make him wear shirts that don’t have pit stains in them.

Grateful for: indoor plumbing. I recently finished a book where the characters were being exposed to indoor toilets for the first time, and some of them were horrified and disgusted by the idea of going to the bathroom in their houses. And here we are in 2026, pooping indoors without a second thought!

Currently (August 2026 Edition)

Reading:

I’m still trying to finish the same books I was reading last month (face palm). 

Wearing: t-shirts and shorts. Survival clothes.

Singing: “Star Gazing.”

Buying: back to school necessities and possibly a new fridge. We’ve had our current fridge for 22 years, and Scotty has been jimmy rigging it to keep it working for the past five, so we’re beginning the research process for a new one. Fortunately, our current fridge still works, so our hands aren't forced. We have time to shop. 

Loving: being super busy at work. We just had a big sale, so we are filling lots of orders, and I love it when it’s busy. 

Hoping: to do an overhaul on my wardrobe soon and get rid of stuff I don’t wear. I don’t want to buy anything new, but I’d like to sort through what I have and make good use of it. 

Listening to:

Suffering from: hotness. I will let you decide if that means temperature or attractiveness. Just know that I am truly suffering.

Wondering: if people who don’t believe in an afterlife wish there was an afterlife. 

Realizing: in six years my kids will all be “adults.”

Trying: to read more and scroll less.

Eating: egg salad sandwiches.

Planning: meals for our next trip (methinks these sloppy joes should make an appearance!)

Thrifting: plates. I love finding new plates for my plate rack. The yellows are my latest finds. I was hoping for salad size plates, but I was happy enough with what I found.

I also found a green salad plate that was an exact replacement for a plate I dropped earlier this year!

Playing:

Watching:

Procrastinating: getting the laundry managed.

Weirded out by: pictures of fingernails on the socials. 

Craving: a trip to Disneyland. The only thing keeping me away is the hot weather (I love Disneyland in the winter the most!)

Annoyed by: GLP-1 commercials on Peacock. 

Enjoying: being in a stroller-free, car seat-free state of existence. 

Feeling: like I’m crazy. This has been one of the worst mental health summers of my life. My self-worth is in the shitter, I am so so angry, and I feel a sense of dread and doom. Other than that, I’m totally hilarious and an absolute delight. Who wants to hang out?

Building:

Missing: New Dragon Diner. 

Looking forward to: fall. It’s still gonna be a while til my happy weather.

Grateful for: ibuprofen.

Currently {May 2026 Edition}

Reading: 

So far, I would let my grandma read this book. 

Listening to:

I would not let my grandma read this book. 

Playing: Ark Nova always. 

Eating: leftover pizza.

Singing: Rolling in the Deep

Watching: 

The Count of Monte Cristo is one of my favorite stories, so I was very excited to watch the new mini series (streamed through the PBS Masterpiece app). I would let my grandma watch this. 

Craving: a scalp massage. 

Buying: Little People

Suffering from: seasonal allergies and a broken crown. My crown cracked in half last week, and I had a temporary crown put on while I wait for a new one, and it fell off (while at the movie theater watching Michael, of all things  - there may have been Hot Tamales involved). Now my tooth nub is exposed until I can get into the dentist post-weekend.

Wondering: why kids love to make believe that they are orphans. My kids and their friends always kill off their parents first thing. “Let’s pretend we’re sisters and our parents are dead.” I did the same thing when I was a kid. Barbies? Orphans. Stuffed animals? Orphans. Playing “house?” Orphans. Did the Box Car Children do this to us? Did anyone else watch On Our Own? Did we somehow find Miss Hannigan and Madame Medusa appealing?

Feeling: kind of yucky. I’ve had really bad allergies for about two months. At least I think it’s allergies. I’m a bit miserable. 

Surprised by: how fast the last year has gone by. All of Nicky’s friends are posting about how they finished their first year of college, and I can’t believe we’re already (almost) a year out from graduation. When I see these kids posting pictures with all of their college room mates and friends, I feel like I’m looking at the wrong people. I don’t know them! Who are they? For several years all the same kids have been in photos together, and now they’re all off taking photos with strangers! 

Nicky one year after graduation

Sad about: having to put a chicken down today. She couldn’t walk anymore, so we had to bit her adieu. It’s always a hard thing to do. 

Proud of myself for: ordering Daisy’s yearbook and registering her for her summer class.

Procrastinating: planning my Relief Society lesson and picking up some prescriptions.

Loving: baby goats. My parents’ goats birthed five babies in the past two weeks. Unfortunately they live two hours away, so I don’t get to have regular goat therapy. 

Hoping: to finish planting our garden this week.

I pulled a radish yesterday just for funsies

Wearing: a Beatles shirt and black joggers. 

Grateful for: dental insurance. 

Currently (April 2026 Edition)

 Reading:

Wearing: an Aerosmith shirt and black leggings with ankle socks. Watch out, Gen Z! This old lady's ankles are showing!

Eating: leftovers from our April Fool's dinner.

Watching: Hamnet. I've been watching it for two weeks now. Why can I watch an entire season of a TV show in one day but only ten minutes of a movie at a time?

Singing: "Love Somebody" by Maroon 5.

Buying: Easter stuff for the kids. 

Annoyed by: the two kids sitting on the couch with me currently who won't stop putting their feet on each other. 

Playing:

We got this one for ourselves for Valentine's Day, and we just had our first run through.

Listening to: 

Trying: fish oil supplements. My eye doctor recommended that I take fish oil to help with my dry eyes. I’ve always avoided fish oil because people have told me it smells bad in your breath and can even make your skin smell. But I bought some “burpless” fish oil, and so far I haven’t had any issues with smells. I told Scotty if I ever smell “fishy” he needs to let me know. 

Laughing about: the fidget intestines I saw at Smith & Edwards yesterday. 

Who comes up with this kind of stuff?

Craving: McDonald's breakfast. 

Suffering from: sore feet. I have a really boring post underway in which I tell you all about my neuropathy. Look forward to that (if it ever makes it to publishing). 

Procrastinating: picking up prescriptions, ordering Daisy's contacts, paying Nicky's PT bills from when he injured his leg a year ago, and most forms of household cleaning (though I did scrub the toilet yesterday). 

Loving: seeing people get pulled over for running red lights. It’s gotten out of hand around here. Last week there was a death nearby due to someone running a red light. Occasionally the police will monitor certain intersections and pull people over, and I’m always glad to see it. 

Feeling: tired. I got sick twice in a row a few weeks ago, and I’ve had very little energy since. I don’t know if I have some lingering fatigue from being sick, or if it’s something else, but this girl is tired! 

Grateful for: stability.

Currently (March 2026 Edition)

Reading:

I was finally starting to read again, and then Scotty downloaded Viticulture and Everdell (two digital board games), and I started using every spare minute to feed my gaming addiction instead of my reading addiction. So I’ve been reading the third book in the housemaid series for almost a month now!

Wearing: black stretchy pants and a Yellowstone hoodie (which I will soon have to remove because it’s too warm for hoodies).

Eating: Chicken Pesto Tortellini Soup

Watching: 

Right now my favorite shows are Shrinking and The Pitt, but I cannot recommend them because they are both very much not PG. 

I was a diehard Scrubs fan back in its prime, so I am obligated to watch the reboot. They have released two episodes so far (I’ve watched them both twice because I watched them at work and felt like I was cheating on Scotty, so I rewatched them with him later). 

I don’t know if the series will do well or not, but I will say that I wept for the first five minutes of the first episode because I felt like I was meeting up with old friends after years of separation. 

(Random fact: Scrubs and Shrinking are from the same creator - Bill Lawrence - and the shows have many overlapping cast members and cameos. This is something I have to geek over in silence because being a fan of a TV show can sometimes be very lonely. I realize there’s an entire fandom online I could participate in, but that’s not the same as interacting with a real human and sharing a common interest).

Last week while I was sick I rewatched Tess of the D’Urbervilles and Wuthering Heights. 

Angel and Heathcliff make me so angry!

Hoping: that everything I currently have saturated in stain remover will come out of the laundry with success (working with grass stains and pork grease).

Happy about: finding a loophole to make it possible to post photos from my phone. I have to use a different browser, and there are some inconveniences to that, but it works!

Update: Never mind. It worked for a few photos, and now it’s not working anymore.

Singing: “Lucky” by Colbie Caillat and Jason Mraz.

Worried about: Mexico, Iran, the entire world being ran by perverts, technology, AI, my children, everyone’s mental and physical health, how we will take care of our eight aging parents, medical bills, the weird sounds our pipes make when we flush the toilet, a million Church things, and my high blood pressure that won’t go down even though I’m on the highest allowable dose of two different BP meds. 

Buying: butter from Sam's Club because it's unusually cheap right now. 

Annoyed by: loud cars.

Playing: the newest expansion of Wingspan.

Baking: Tres Leches for Game Night (I started this post on Friday. Right now it’s Saturday. But I probably won’t finish and post it until Monday, so the concept of “currently” spans across many days and is usually a lie by the time my post is actually published).

Grateful for: all of my working limbs.

Currently (February 2026 Edition)

 Reading:

Wearing: a Beatles shirt, jeans, and leopard print slippers. 

Annoyed by: the sound a salad makes when being stirred. This is a new annoyance I discovered this week while eating Cafe Rio with my family. The misophonia is alive and well within me. 

Singing: "Death Wish Love" by Benson Boone

Aside: I have a song stuck in my head at all times. There are some songs that have been there my whole life. One example is the song from The Sword in the Stone that goes, "To and fro, stop and go, that's what makes the world go round!" But what's funny is when I actually pay attention to it and identify what song is stuck in my head (like I do every month when I write these posts) sometimes it slips right out of my mind, and I can't get it back. It drives me crazy because I know I was just singing a song, but as soon as I pay attention to it, it goes away, and I can't remember what it was. 

Craving: nothing because I just ate (sweet and sour meatballs over rice and dill carrots, if you're wondering). 

Buying: a new lamp for my nightstand. I never use my lamp because it's annoying to turn on, and I'm lazy, so I finally ordered a touch lamp that has charging ports. I feel like it will change my life, and I should have done it ages ago! (By the time this post publishes, hopefully it will have arrived via Amazon and been found suitable).

Eating: Jolly Rancher Jelly Hearts. And I don't like cherry flavored stuff, so I would normally be avoiding the cherry ones, but I'm too lazy to pick them out today, so I'm just going for it - cherry and all!

Suffering from: a sore neck. I've been having trouble with my neck for a few months, and I think it might be from cutting canvas at work. This is a theory I am currently exploring. 

Excited for: some upcoming plans with a few different friends. I love my people. And if you are my friend, and we haven't seen each other for a while, I hope we do soon! 

Cooking: Chicken Corn Chowder with Sweet Potatoes. This is on my meal plan for the month (I have the whole month planned out because I did a "shop from my pantry" session, and we have so much food we need to use up that I was able to plan an entire month's worth of dinners and still have a few additional dinner ideas "on call" in case we need to make a last minute change). I've never made this soup but have long been curious about the sweet potato content, so I'm excited to try it. Daisy is not excited because she hates soup, and she has already talked me out of making this twice. 

Procrastinating: taking care of a really messy medical bill situation. I spend a few hours a week working on this issue, and it's not yet resolved. I took this week off because I needed a brain break, but next week, I need to get back on the phone. It has to do with being billed by the wrong name, getting sent to collections, and the medical company not being able to provide me with an itemized bill. It is a NIGHTMARE. 

Listening to:

Enjoying: the spoils of my birthday. I really was celebrated all month and have a great stash of things like body scrub and gum that I get to enjoy across many months. I redeemed my final free birthday food on Saturday (three free Krispy Kreme donuts). 

Feeling: fine. Just fine. 

Wanting: some "matches everything" church shoes. 

Laughing about: the snowsuits my friend Christie bought for Laurel and me.

Needing: to replenish the toilet paper under the sink in the upstairs bathroom (note to self... note to self... note to self...)

(I'm going to forget and wind up in a wiping predicament, this I know!)

Playing: Everdell and Viticulture, which we now own the digital versions of, and I am completely addicted. I was starting to get in a good place with reading books again, and then I started playing these games on my phone in addition to Wingspan and Ark Nova, which I was already playing a ton.

Grateful for: emojis. I might write a post about this, so I won't elaborate here. 

Currently (January 2026 Edition)

Reading:

Wearing: a black sweatshirt and black sweatpants with brown socks.

Annoyed by: everything about my hair.

Singing: “What’s Up?” by 4 Non Blondes

Craving: something noodle-y and possibly teriyaki-y.

Watching: nothing. I’ve started several shows and haven’t found The One. But I’ll be watching The Pitt on January 8. 

Buying: makeup for Daisy. We just placed a Walmart delivery order a few minutes ago. 

Eating: grilled cheese sandwiches. We had two loaves of bread to use up.

Suffering from: cold feet.

Excited for: our upcoming family vacation.

Cooking: beef stroganoff tortellini. 

Procrastinating: making a phone call to the junior high.

Listening to:

Enjoying: my birthday presents. 

Feeling: defeated and discouraged. The world is getting me down.

Wanting: a 72 hour nap that I wake up from feeling refreshed and ready to start anew. 

Laughing about: Eva telling me I smell like Cafe Rio (I have an herbal oil in my hair that she says smells like cilantro).

Needing: to keep my mouth shut in a situation where I really don’t want to keep my mouth shut. 

Playing:

I got Everdell for my birthday last year, and we just barely learned how to play it.

Grateful for: new days. 

Currently (December 2025 Edition)

 Reading: 

I'm half-way through with the eBook, and it will get sucked back into the digital vortex tomorrow. I don't think I'm going to finish it. 

Wearing:

I call this my vitamin B shirt, and if you want to know why, you can ask me in person or text me. 

Annoyed by: influencers posting, "Normalize..." followed by something that's already normal. 

Singing: "Me" by Toby Keith

Craving: everything. I am so hungry today! I just ate a piece of chocolate chocolate chip bread from Kneaders. 

Watching:

TV-MA

Buying: laundry supplies, toilet paper, fruit, and dry shampoo.

Eating: hot dogs on King's Hawaiian rolls (delicious!)

Suffering from: December busy-ness. Two days in, and I'm completely exhausted!

Excited for: Christmas and New Year.

Cooking: Instant Pot Creamy Spaghetti  (one of Eva's favorite meals - she calls it "orange" spaghetti)

Procrastinating: everything. Tomorrow is my day off and I have a very lengthy to-do list that I probably won't even make a dent in

Listening to: 

I was listening to Not Nothing by Gayle Forman, and I didn't finish it before Libby sucked it back in. 

Enjoying: sweater weather. Although, for me, it's sweatshirts and not sweaters. I don't actually wear sweaters because they are itchy, and I feel shrink-wrapped in them. 

Hoping: that I can get our Christmas shopping done within the next week so I can chill the rest of December. 

Wanting: to sleep through the night just once a week. That would help so much! Just once a week is all I ask!

Embarrassed by: how many times a day I accidentally take a screen shot on my phone. 

Proud of myself for: getting a few loads of laundry put away late last night.

Tired from: being on my feet all day. My work has been busy, and I filled some orders today that had my back aching.

Addicted to: Ark Nova, my phone, dried mangoes (no sugar added), Diet Dr Pepper (or Dr Pepper Zero), videos of pandas, and breakfast sandwiches. 

Playing:

Grateful for: streaming services. 

Currently (November 2025 Edition)

Reading: nothing. But I did finish a book a couple of weeks ago for the first time in a long time. 

Wearing: brown jeans and a cream hoodie.

Annoyed by: everything. It's PMDD week. 

Singing: something by Adele, but whenever I'm trying to identify the song in my head, it vanishes, so I can't recall the song. 

Craving: water. I'm a little dehydrated, and I think one of my medications might be causing dry mouth. 

Watching: 

Buying: little gifts for Nicky's Christmas package. I am sending him a gift to unwrap each day in December. Just small things that a missionary can use - most of which are food. 

Eating: leftover potato dishes from Zoe's potato themed birthday party Sunday night.

Suffering from: feelings of dread and extreme irritability due to the aforementioned PMDD. 

Excited for: bedtime. This time change is kicking my butt. How can it still be today? How is this day not over yet? I need to be done. 

Cooking: Western Omelet Quiche . I love it - probably more than the average person. 

Procrastinating: making a few doctor appointments. I feel like any efforts to improve my health or treat my medical issues are fruitless. I just go in circles and get nowhere, and medication never does what it's supposed to for me. That's one of the biggest reasons I stopped giving a rat's ass for a while, but now I'm trying to give a rat's ass again. Just a little rat, though. 

Missing: the good old days. I've officially become one of those old people that longs for a different era and can't handle the modern-day trends, slang, and technology. GET ME OUT OF HERE!

Listening to: Benson Boone. His concert made me a fan. And let’s be honest, my mini van stereo makes those drums really roar!

Enjoying: any day that I can wear a sweatshirt and feel comfortable. But since it's still in the 70's, that is not happening currently. 

Hoping: that Zoe and Eva will love each other someday. 

Wanting: a break from everyone needing me. 

Feeling: fatigued and sad (once again, it's the PMDD, and since I know that's what the problem is... it helps, at least).

Proud of myself for: not going to McDonald's today (let's just say I have a bad habit fueled by soda and various free items I've won in Monopoly).

Tired from: Halloween, feeding the Sadie’s kids, hosting game night, and throwing a birthday party all in one weekend. 

Looking forward to: the can of Holiday Creamy Vanilla Coke Zero (how's that for a long name?) that I am currently refrigerating and will sample tomorrow. 

Addicted to: Ark Nova on my phone. As of today, I have played 199 rounds. I should probably go for 200 before bed just so I can go to sleep knowing I ended the day on an even number. 

Celebrating: Zoe's thirteenth birthday! With a potato party in Daylight Saving lighting. 

Avoiding: anyone I know in a grocery store. I'm so sorry. I love you, but if we have been at the store together in the past week, I have probably gone out of my way to dodge you. 

Needing: a new banister on the front porch. Our current one has rusted through in several places and is likely to injure an elderly visitor or Amazon delivery person any day now.  

Wondering: if I will like the new full-cast audio Harry Potter books - the first of which is released tomorrow. The Jim Dale narrations are so good, I feel like I'm betraying him by listening to the new ones, but I have to give them a try!

Loving: any hint out there that people are still good.

Feeling bad about: not wanting to do anything with my kids. I don’t want to play games with them. I don’t want to take them places. I don’t want to watch their shows. I don’t want to listen to them talk.

Grateful for: having enough.