Feed Your Mind: R&R is not an option

[Enjoy this guest post from Mrs. Swanky]

I am a little embarrassed to admit that my family has not taken a vacation in about eight years! We have had some long weekends here and there, along with some holidays off work, but a proper vacation? Too. Long.

I did not want to acknowledge the burnout you can feel from dealing with the day in/day out of work with no real rest.

We recently had the absolute privilege of sailing on the Disney Destiny with my parents.

My mind needed the break from the chaos of work, and we gladly welcomed the chaos of a Disney Cruise with two teenagers, a preschooler, and a toddler.

10/10 would recommend this cruise line and this ship.

I am already looking forward to booking our next cruise … and the one after that!

* Obligatory disclaimer: We are not paid to promote these items. We just happen to like them.

Our guest blogger,
Mrs. Swanky, posts
on ways to Feed Yourself
— in body, mind, and spirit.

The swanky lowdown on eggplants

Chef Swanky is here to educate us on eggplants. I’ll be honest — I’ve avoided these in the supermarket because they look weird and I don’t know what to do with them. That’s why this FYI is super helpful. Take a look y’all!

Got a question for the great Chef? Drop us a comment below, and we’ll pester Chef Swanky to impart some more wisdom.

Follow Chef Swanky here and on Instagram at chefswankyhw.

Brags and Hugs: I love it when people love my books

Hey, check out these reviews:

They’re talking about the book I worked on with my dad (here’s a copy of the cover), the collection of his “sea stories” – or, as the description reads: “The fun frolic through the sea stories of a Navy lifer (seen partly through the eyes of his Navy brat daughter) includes a series of adventures and misadventures when he commandeers an Army jeep in Vietnam, discovers that some side work in New Jersey was mob-related, and commutes to the ship via helicopter.”

These are the tales I’d been hearing all of my life – and so had everyone else, because my dad was a born storyteller – and I decided to get them down on paper and print them.

I was delighted to spot these reviews. All five stars except the second one, and that person gave me four exclamation points (which is almost as good!!!!) along with a promise to find more of my work (even better!!!!).

Check out the book and, if you like it, leave a review. If you don’t like it, keep it to yourself. (Haha, just kidding. I’d be grateful for an honest review.)

Feed Your Soul: give your inner child a hug

[Enjoy this guest post from Mrs. Swanky]

In the hustle and bustle of daily life – with family, and jobs, and bills, and responsibilities – don’t forget about your inner child. They need nourishment, too.

As the Fourth Doctor once said, “There’s no point in being grown-up if you can’t be childish sometimes.”

* Obligatory disclaimer: We are not paid to promote these items. We just happen to like them.

Our guest blogger,
Mrs. Swanky, posts
on ways to Feed Yourself
— in body, mind, and spirit.

Feed Your Body: reunions make us feel older and wiser and possibly thirsty

[Enjoy this guest post from Mrs. Swanky]

My parents took me on a cruise to the Bahamas after I graduated from high school, and in a purely coincidental quirk of timing, my family was recently on another cruise during my 20-year high school reunion.

I just had to celebrate now as I did then: with margaritas and nachos.

Here’s photographic evidence of my long-ago visit to the Bahamas, having one of Senior Frog’s famous “yard margaritas.”

What you do not see (because we didn’t take a photo during the recent trip): my hair is no longer blonde or short.

The photos at the bottom are what I enjoyed on this trip. I also had two other drinks after that one. But because I am older and wiser now, I made sure to drink plenty of water to stay hydrated.

* Obligatory disclaimer: We are not paid to promote these items. We just happen to like them.

Our guest blogger,
Mrs. Swanky, posts
on ways to Feed Yourself
— in body, mind, and spirit.

26 in 26: August

[Note: I’m doing a 26-word post on the first day of each month of 2026. It’s an exercise in concision and precision, which every writer should attempt now and then.  Also Note: This explanation is separate from the 26-word count.]

August has a strange personality: dog days, cat nights, and sweltering temperatures that make us glance at the tropics with fingers crossed. We love it anyway.