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Are You Really Going To Put Me On Your Prayer List?

Monica E. Simmons

Are You Really Going To Put Me On Your Prayer List?

As much as I hate to admit it, I've been guilty of telling someone I'd put them on my prayer list and then forgotten to include their need when I prayed. It's not that I didn't mean it when I said I would, it's just sometimes life gets a little crazy and . . . okay, there's really no great excuse for it. My friend Lisa has a sure-fire way of making sure she won't forget. If you're talking with her and express concern about something in your life, Lisa will stop whatever she's

Are You Driving Like A Fish?

Monica E. Simmons

Are You Driving Like A Fish?

Hey, I appreciate a cool set of wheels as much as the next gal! Unfortunately, the slick, hybrid BMW E3 (above) doesn't belong to me and neither does this vintage Shelby (below). I've driven Lincoln SUVs for the past few years—and no, it's not because my fellow Texan, Mathew McConaughey endorses them. It's because I really like the look of these vehicles. As you can see, I'm sporting magnets displaying my company name. I picked these up for a recent parade. Ordinarily, I'm no

How Long Would You Be Willing To Wait For Magnum PI?

Monica E. Simmons

How Long Would You Be Willing To Wait For Magnum PI?

In the eighties, tall, tanned, and super hot, Tom Selleck (a.k.a. the original Magnum P.I.) was all the rage. For those of you who don't remember this, here's another shot of the actor from that era: Yeah, the guy was pretty impressive! I was thinking about him while I was working on my book, 30-Love. Not that Tom is in the story, but I did write about Ceilia Valdez, Charlie's younger sister who's always running late. (Don't worry, I promise to weave Mr. Selleck back in here,

Bringing Scrunchie Back

Monica E. Simmons

Bringing Scrunchie Back

Ordinarily, I save pulling my hair up in what my husband, James refers to as "Show Pony Hair" for any time I'm not in the office. The perfect tool for this is a scrunchie. You can check out my colorful collection in the above photo. Since we've been working from home for the past few weeks now, I think I've had the chance to wear every scrunchie in my "scrunchie basket". (Yes, that's a thing!) I should share that James is not a huge fan of "Show Pony Hair". But, then again, h

Confessions Of A Closet Worrywart

Monica E. Simmons

Confessions Of A Closet Worrywart

As much as I hate to admit it, I'm guilty of worrying about pretty much everything! People who know me well, know this—it's actually a little mortifying. (I like to think of myself as being a "Let Go & Let God" kind of person!) I realized this a few years ago during a gathering of family and friends for one of my birthdays. This is no joke—at that party, I received two copies of Don't Sweat The Small Stuff and one copy of Don't Sweat The Small Stuff With Your Family. (Great b

Don't Ask The Question If You Can't Handle The Answer

Monica E. Simmons

Don't Ask The Question If You Can't Handle The Answer

When my youngest son, Nick returned home from college, he noticed the crazy amount of clothes in my closets. “I bet you could go the rest of the year without wearing the same thing twice!” he remarked. This got me to thinking . . . I do have a lot of stuff! Like most women, I have clothes that range in several sizes – from the things I wear when I get a little on the "fluffy side", to my skinny jeans. I remembered years ago, hearing a motivational speaker say that we should g

Why Camo Kathy Never Ages

Monica E. Simmons

Why Camo Kathy Never Ages

My beautiful friend and colleague, Kathy Gibbs (aka Camo Kathy) has informed me that if we can't celebrate her birthday together tomorrow, she doesn't have to count it. In other words, Kathy will continue to be thirty-nine. (Full disclosure, Kathy's been thirty-nine for as long as I can remember!) "Hold on," I told her this morning. "You know my birthday was last month. Even though a "shelter-in-place-birthday" is nowhere near as much fun as our usual celebrations, it's still

Wearing My Birthday Suit On Easter . . .

Monica E. Simmons

Wearing My Birthday Suit On Easter . . .

Spring is definitely my favorite time of year! I love everything about it—okay perhaps not all the pollen, but overall spring has a lot going for it! Since my birthday is in late March, Easter celebrations were never far behind. As a kid, sometimes my parties would have Easter-related themes (this might explain my love of rabbits and jelly beans!). I have fond memories of my three sisters and me in matching Easter dresses (sometimes handmade by our mom, Franny), church servic

Seriously—Don't Give Me Any More Pigs!

Monica E. Simmons

Seriously—Don't Give Me Any More Pigs!

Buying gifts for my mom, Franny was super challenging! My sisters and I shared a little friendly competition on holidays to see who'd gift her with something she'd actually keep. Don't get me wrong, Mom adored receiving presents and would "ooh" and "ahh" as she opened whatever you'd given her—but everyone in our family knew to enclose a gift receipt in the box. The fact was, if Franny wanted something, she'd just go out and buy it. It was kind of a running joke among my siste

No Cats Were Harmed In The Making Of This Post!

Monica E. Simmons

No Cats Were Harmed In The Making Of This Post!

So, I've had a few people ask me about the cat on the cover of my romance-novel, 30-Love. The adorable feline is non-other than Cabbit, our eighteen-year-old white and black cat who rules the roost around here! As you can see from the photo above, Cabbit is not a happy camper when it comes to posing for the camera. I had to turn his little cat head while my husband, James took the shot. You can see by the set of Cabbit's ears that he is miffed by having to endure this incredi

What I Would Have Worn To Work . . .

Monica E. Simmons

What I Would Have Worn To Work . . .

Closet ClotheSure continues . . . Well, here we are finished with Week 9 of my 2020 Closet ClotheSure Challenge! As I mentioned last week, this challenge is still providing me with an opportunity to clear my closets of items and create much-needed space. (Remember, if an outfit doesn't make me feel like a ten, it gets the boot!) Monday - Love the colors in this stretchy dress by Jennifer Lopez. I also like the mid-length sleeves and it's great on a cool spring day. Paired wit

I fell in love with a tennis pro . . .

Monica E. Simmons

I fell in love with a tennis pro . . .

It's hard to believe that thirty-five years ago today, I married James. We met at Oakwood Country Club in Enid, Oklahoma. At the time, I was overseeing the servers and banquet staff and James worked as the assistant tennis pro. As part of his compensation, the club allowed him to hit the daily lunch buffet. Here's where it gets interesting! So, I'm working in the club's main dining room one day and in walks this tall, tanned Adonis-looking stud. I'd just ended a long-time eng

The Disintegrating Dress

Monica E. Simmons

The Disintegrating Dress

In my ongoing 2020 Closet ClotheSure Challenge, I reluctantly wore this short-sleeve sweater dress from Ann Taylor to work on Monday. Although it's never made me feel like a ten (the determining factor as to whether or not it goes back in my closet), I've held onto the dress for years. The best thing about this dress was the "pleather" trim down the sides—other than that, it was ill-fitting and hung like a bag on me. I paired it with my favorite black boots and headed out the

Bedazzle me—not!

Monica E. Simmons

Bedazzle me—not!

Here's a little bonus shot before we began taking a look at this week's Closet ClotheSure Challenge. Like a crazy person, I was thinking that I might wear this ensemble to work on Monday. Thrilled that I'd worked ahead for one of my Monday-Thursday outfits, I had my son Nick snap this photo. "Your dad will be super thrilled that instead of taking four photos of me on Sunday, he'll only need to take three!" I shared with Nick over lunch. "Wait! You're wearing that to work?" Ni

Shining Some Light On Incredible Fat Suckers

Monica E. Simmons

Shining Some Light On Incredible Fat Suckers

In life, we learn that you can suck in your belly, but you can't suck in your thighs! So, like most gals, I'm happy to have a little help "smoothing things out" underneath figure-hugging dresses and skirts. I love this gif showing Tina Fey in 2015 when she revealed her Spanx on the Late Show with David Letterman. She explained: "I don’t know if you’re aware of the contraptions under here. It’s almost medical.” #tinafeyrocks #lastdressever #boldlady Since I've been promising a

From The Ready Room

Monica E. Simmons

From The Ready Room

Okay, full disclosure—I call it The Ready Room, but it's actually just a secondary bedroom with a "wee" small closet where I hang this, that & the other thing! I love this room because it overlooks our backyard, a cool, wooded area that hill and dales down to a creek. (okay, the word "creek" may be a generous description since it's mostly just a drain-off for all the neighborhoods in our subdivision to Lake Grapevine) We love it here because we see all kinds of interesting bi

Finally Friday . . .

Monica E. Simmons

Finally Friday . . .

It's been a long, "short week" for me! So happy it's Friday and it's definitely time to unwind! But first, let me fill you in on the three work outfits I chose for Tues, Wed & Thurs. I'm happy to report - sort of- that we're three for three this week as far as closet keepers. In fact, the only thing that's going away will be Thursday's shoes—four-inch, black pumps from White House, Black Market. While they still look great, they've never been a great fit. As you may recall, p

Meal Prepping vs. Outfit Prepping

Monica E. Simmons

Meal Prepping vs. Outfit Prepping

Above are the three work outfits I chose for Week 4 of my Closet ClotheSure Challenge. I'm loving that I outsmarted my closet this week, knowing that by the time I got home tonight, I would not feel like Outfit Prepping. In fact, here's a little peek behind the curtain of where I am right now: It's a cold, rainy Monday morning here in Blaine, Washington. I've spent the last couple of hours reflecting on the life of my Bob Dad, listening to the howling wind and the seagulls. O