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Jena Avital

@justjena

16.8K

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3330

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💻 Virtual Skincare Maven⁣
💙💗 Twin mom⁣
🧠 Brainiac⁣
👠 Shoe Obsessed

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Her last HOCO is in the books ✨⁣
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#seniormom #hoco by @justjena

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15 days ago

It’s national daughter’s day and I’m feeling extra blessed for my little broke bestie who steals my clothes, shoes, bags, hair supplies, etc and still wants to lay in my bed to watch a show together 💕 by @justjena

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23 days ago

Chaminade class of ’96… still got it. 😏❤️⁣
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30 years later and it was SO good to see so many old friends, familiar faces, and people who knew us way before social media did. What a night!⁣
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#highschoolreunion #classof96 taken in Chaminade College Preparatory by @justjena

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a month ago

Fourteen years.

That’s how long I’ve been divorced. And in all that time, I’ve never had a serious relationship.

Not because there weren’t opportunities. I’m just picky. 😂 And for a very long time, I was genuinely happy putting my time and energy into raising my kids, building my career, and creating a life I loved. I never felt like something was missing because I didn’t have a partner.

Then in February, my friend Tiffany texted me: “I have a guy for you.”

My response was basically: absolutely not.

I hate setups. You think your friend is great. I probably won’t. Then it’s awkward. Hard pass. 😂

But Tiffany persisted.

Derric’s sister, one of her lifelong friends, had asked if she knew someone great for her brother. Tiffany told her, “The only person I know who would be good enough for him is my friend Jena.”

Fine. Give him my number.

She conveniently neglected to mention that he lived in Northern California. 😂

We started talking. Then FaceTiming. A few weeks later, I flew up to meet him. He planned an entire weekend, introduced me to his friends, and somehow the woman who had spent 14 years perfectly content on her own came home with a boyfriend.

But the best part of this story isn’t how we met. It’s who I met.

Derric is one of the kindest human beings I know. He leads with kindness, generosity and thoughtfulness. He shows up. He loves the people I love. And over these past months, he’s made an impression not just on me, but on all of us.

He came into my life at such an unexpected time. My kids are getting older, one is about to leave the nest, and after spending so many years focused on raising them, I’m beginning to see the next chapter of my own life somewhere on the horizon.

I wasn’t looking for this. I didn’t think I needed it.

Maybe that’s the beautiful part.

Sometimes you build a life so full that you stop looking for someone to fill it.

And then someone comes along who simply makes it better.

So after 14 years, I suppose this one deserves a hard launch. 🤍

Meet Derric. by @justjena

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a month ago

Maybe I went a little overboard for her last first day.⁣
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The basket. The tiny notes on every snack. The banner. The pictures. All of it. 🥹⁣
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But here’s the thing: for years, there was always another first day coming.⁣
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Another backpack to buy. Another outfit to pick out. Another picture by the front door. Another year waiting right behind this one.⁣
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And suddenly, there isn’t.⁣
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So yes, I made a big deal out of today.⁣
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Not because she needed any of it, but because I wanted her to know that this moment mattered. That she matters. And that getting to be her mom through every one of these chapters has been one of the greatest privileges of my life.⁣
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Senior year, baby girl. 🤍⁣
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I hope you remember how much I celebrated you at the beginning of it.⁣
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And to the moms still packing kindergarten backpacks: make a big deal out of the little things. Take the pictures. Do the silly traditions.⁣
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You really do blink.⁣
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#senioryear #lastfirstday by @justjena

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2 months ago

Today is Ella’s last first day. 🥹⁣
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Kindergarten to senior year, somehow in the blink of an eye.⁣
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17 years of first-day pictures. Some blurry. Some crooked. Some with questionable hairstyles and even more questionable photography. 😂 But every single one marks a version of her I wish I could go back and hug one more time.⁣
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Today, I took the last one.⁣
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And while I would give anything to slow time down, I also know this is exactly what raising them is supposed to look like.⁣
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You spend their whole childhood preparing them for what comes next… and then one day, “what comes next” is almost here.⁣
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Senior year, baby girl. 🤍⁣
I hope it goes by so, so slowly.⁣
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#lastfirstday #senior2027 #firstdayofschool #senioryear by @justjena

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2 months ago

My daughter starts her senior year this week.⁣
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I also just opened my own neuropsychology practice.⁣
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And somehow, those two things happening at exactly the same time have made one thing incredibly clear:⁣
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I can grow a business for the rest of my life.⁣
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I get one senior year with her.⁣
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And I have one more year after that with my son.⁣
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So I made myself a promise this year: I’m not going to keep saying, “I wish I could, but I have work.”⁣
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First-day senior swag? I’m there.⁣
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Friday snack shack at my son’s school? I’m already on the schedule.⁣
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Games, competitions, senior events, school things they haven’t even decided they’ll be embarrassed to see me at yet? Already blocked on my calendar. 😂⁣
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I’m incredibly proud of what I’m building professionally. But I’ve spent enough years believing that being ambitious means work gets the immovable spots on the calendar and life gets whatever is left.⁣
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Not this year.⁣
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The practice will grow.⁣
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My kids will too.⁣
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And only one of those things is happening way too fucking fast. ❤️⁣
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#senioryear #motherhood #worklifebalance taken in Los Angeles, California by @justjena

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2 months ago

Totally worth the trip ✈️⁣
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#hairextensions #90sblowout #boisehair taken in DraperKoy Salon by @justjena

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2 months ago

Sipping tea like I don’t have approximately 47 tabs open in my brain 🧠⁣
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No but seriously…⁣
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We came together to celebrate a sweet little life on the way, but I left thinking how important it is to make time for these moments. The conversations. The laughter. The excuse to slow down for a couple of hours. Because life moves fast… and sometimes a tiny teacup is all it takes to remind you to pause. 🤍🫖 taken in The Peninsula Beverly Hills by @justjena

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3 months ago

Happy 250th, Miss America 🇺🇸⁣
⁣ by @justjena

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3 months ago

6 years to reach the top at her last company. 3 months with Boards.
The difference? Duplication that actually works.

When your team can find the answer without waiting on you, they follow up more, show up more, and recruit more. Momentum is everything in the beginning, and anything that gets in the way is kryptonite.
This is what it looks like when the system works. 🎯

Sound on. 🔊Full episode: Link in Bio by @justjena

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4 months ago

Somewhere between knowing every lyric and needing a recovery day we’ve officially become vintage Snoop fans. 😂

Last night we went to see @snoopdogg open the new @longbeachcity Amphitheater, perform all the classics, and receive the key to the city that helped shape his legendary career. 🔑🎼

The music? Iconic.
The energy? Unreal.
The nostalgia? Off the charts.

A perfect reminder that it ain’t no fun, if the homies can’t have none 🎤🔥💙 💨

@justjena @jonathan.rood.5 @marisarood @who_is_sebastian21 taken in Long Beach, California by @justjena

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4 months ago