Road Jes Traveled

A few weeks ago I was contacted by Ginny at Centime Gifts . She was incredibly sweet and after reading about some of the things I've been through within the past year, she asked me to send her a few handwriting samples. I sent her my signature and some of my favorite words. A few days later there was a gift in the mail from her. A ring that says "Duke" in memory of my sweet boy who went to doggy heaven in August , and a necklace that says "Jessica Stronger" in my handwriting . How cool is that?! My favorite quote is " What does not kill me will make me stronger. "... because I truly believe it. I'm stronger because of the things that life has thrown my way. So the word "stronger" reminds me of this. It doesn't get much more personal than that! I was speechless. The necklace is stunning and the ring makes me smile. Both items immediately went to the top of my favorite jewelry list. And they are always conversation starters. ...

I got a ton of feedback from my very personal post about my divorce . More than I could have ever imagined. And more positive than I could have ever hoped for. I've been so inspired and uplifted by the stories that I've heard about people in similar situations, the words of encouragement, the prayers, the kindness that has been shown to me. I've really just been blown away by it all. Sharing my story not only helped me, but helped readers too. And that means more to me than I can put into words. Along with the countless comments, emails, messages, and phone calls, I received a gift too! Whitney (the hilarious writer behind I Wore Yoga Pants to Work ) sent me a fun package that included the sweetest note, a fearless koozie, and a Fearless tank that she designed. Besides the fact that it's super comfy, it has a ton of meaning behind it for me. I'm so grateful for Whitney and the many people that I've met along this little journey of mine. Thank you al...

Home. It's a funny word, right? A tiny word that has a whole lot of meaning. I've had several "homes" but one always remains, wherever I am. TEXAS, y'all. I was trying to describe what it was like to be a Texan to a friend from Pennsylvania. He said he was more of a Texan than I was because he's from the "country" in PA. Ummmm no no no. This obviously enraged me (my fellow Texans know what kind of pride we have) but as I began to explain what the difference was, I kind of hesitated. I didn't even know where to begin. Because being Texan is a feeling. It's hard to describe. It's country music and dance halls. It's beer. Lots of beer. It's BBQ and sweet tea. It's breakfast tacos and Tex-Mex. It's Spanglish, y'all, and ain't. It's jeans and cowboy boots, big hair and belt buckles. It's southern rap (hello H-town chopped and screwed!) and southern swag. It's southern accents, southern gent...

I'm super excited to announce that I will be covering Fashion Week San Antonio 2014! Events will take place November 1-7 and the official schedule can be seen below. Let me know if you'll be attending any of the events!

The San Antonio Beer Festival took place this past weekend at Maverick Park. With over 80 breweries and 250 beers, live music, and yummy eats, I was pretty much in heaven. The weather was perfect and there were even games to play if you didn't have your hands full with beer and food. This was my first year to attend SA Beer Fest and I was a bit hesitant about the $40 price tag on the tickets. The website and facebook page didn't make it very clear about what exactly the ticket price included.  Now that I've been, let me tell you --- it's worth it. The ticket gets you: + entry into SA Beer Fest + 10 drink tickets which you can use for any drink (beer!) at the festival + the official SA Beer Fest cup to use for said drinks You do have to pay for food but the prices are very reasonable. Especially for the yumminess that comes with it. There were booths and food trucks that were difficult to choose from. I finally settled on a food truck and tried ...

Swiffer is spreading the #SwifferEffect with the Big Green Box!  I've been a Swiffer user for years and since my new home has stained concrete floors, I feel like my Swiffer is part of my weekly and sometimes daily routine. Especially with pets in the house! Most of you know that my sweet Duke went to heaven a few months ago. He shed like crazy! And my recent foster baby sheds too. Swiffer helps me not go to completely crazy with the pet hair that seems to be everywhere. And when I found out that Swiffer has partnered with the ASPCA , my support of them was pretty much a done deal. Did you know.... Swiffer Sweeper picks up 3x more pet hair, dirt, and dander than a brrom and dustpan  38% of pet owners say the leading source of pet "cleaning tensions" in their home are hair dust bunnies and/or shedding challenges 50% of Americans say that concerns about pet hair in their home is one of the top reasons why they are worried about getting a pet, wouldn...

Losing Duke was hard. I didn't know, and I still don't know, if I'll ever get over the hurt of losing him. But I will tell you that I've found something that has helped. After weeks of dealing with my little broken heart, I finally decided to be proactive about healing. I signed up to volunteer with San Antonio Pets Alive (SAPA), a local organization that puts their efforts towards making San Antonio a no-kill city. Naturally, I followed them on all of their social media accounts. This was both the best and worst decision. Seeing their daily posts on Facebook is heartbreaking. The city of San Antonio euthanized over 4,000 animals in 2013 and has euthanized over 2,000 animals so far this year.  One Friday, after a really emotionally tough week, I came across their post on my Facebook newsfeed. They posted an album with pictures of 92 animals that were scheduled to be euthanized that day. 92! They were pleading for fosters or adopters to help. I scrolled t...