Wednesday, July 23, 2014

Sky Blue Hodgepodge

Welcome to the Wednesday Hodgepodge! Grab your coffee or your tea or your ice water with a slice of lemon and settle in for a chat.  Be sure to add the link to your own answers at the end of my post.  Here we go-


1. When I look at the sky I feel ______________________________________.


...anything is possible. 

I'm completely enamored of the sky. A soft summer blue, a deeply royal cloudless October, a pale hopeful white it's gonna snow in January...they all make me feel quite a lot. 

2. If you had to run for political office, which one would you run for? Do you have any real desire to actually do this?

Sometimes I feel so frustrated with our government I think I'd like to get in there and do something, but isn't that how most politicians begin? Then somewhere along the road from idealism to accidentally-making-it-a-career they lose sight of why they ran in the first place. Not all, but most. I'm for term limits.  If there were term limits, then maybe.

When I think of which office I'd run for, I'm stumped. School board? No. City council? Even at the local local local level of government politics seems to rule the day, so no. Mayor? Maybe I'd start there. If I were starting anywhere. Which I'm not. Next question.

3. What scent makes you think of home?

freshly mown grass, laundry right out of the dryer, a turkey roasting in the oven  

4. How often do you take a step back to think about where you're headed in life? Do you need more or less self-reflection?

I think in this empty nest stage of life a bit of self-reflection is warranted. Too much is never a good thing, but I do like setting goals, knowing my purpose, and figuring out new ways to use my gifts, no matter what season of life I'm in. 

5. July is National Ice Cream Month...besides a cone, what's your favorite food item to top with ice cream?

I'm going with a brownie. A scoop of vanilla ice cream atop a warm brownie is one of the best things I know. I haven't had a brownie in eons, but when I do it will be topped with a scoop of vanilla.  

6. What might your autobiography be called?

If I tell you now, you won't be surprised when I write it. 

You think I'm kidding. 

I have a title, I just need the story, and it wouldn't be so much an autobiography, as a memoir. That's as far as I've gotten. 

7. Your least favorite mode of transportation? Why?

Ferries. 

Why? I don't know what it is about ferries, but I cannot ride one without wanting to lose my lunch.  I'm always pretty susceptible to motion sickness, but ferries really do me in. 


Here I am on the ferry from Capri to Amalfi. It was chilly up top, but I'd ridden over down below and (barely) lived to regret it. I told hubs I didn't care what the weather was doing, I was making the trip back to Amalfi up top. He thought he was hilarious taking my picture, and I look a little mad, but I'm not. It was blowing a gale and water was pelting my face. My stomach was a-okay though, and that's all I cared about in that moment. 


Here I am (barely) recovering from a ferry ride to an island off the coast of Hong Kong. I'm the one nursing a Sprite. We rode a ferry over to a fishing village. 

That smelled like fish. 

Which is not what you want to smell when your stomach is rebelling against a ferry ride.  

So yeah, ferries. 

8.  Insert your own random thought here.

So it's that time. Time to begin the great mother-of-the-bride dress hunt, and I'd like you to weigh in on something. If the bridesmaids are in long gowns should the mothers be as well? Or can we wear short without breaking some kind of unspoken law of etiquette? The only request my daughter has is that we both wear the same length. She doesn't want me in short and his mom in long or vice versa.  






27 comments:

  1. Oh geez - I remember the "mother of the bride" shopping trip with my mom, in which we were told (at Macys, nonetheless) that they "Didn't Carry the Mother-of=the-Bride LOOK" - we left just laughing... not sure what that look is, exactly! (we ended up finding my mom's outfit at a boutique 4 doors down from Macys) - My suggestion would be that you and the groom's mom go for a mid-length dress, halfway between short and floor length. Make sense? that way you don't look too risqué compared to the bride, and you don't offset each other... Good luck!!

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  2. Your answer made me think of another home-y smell. The combo of freshly mown grass and gasoline (or oil based lubricants). I smelled it a couple of weeks ago. One would not think that's a good combo, but somehow it was pleasant to me and made me smile. I have no opinion about wedding ettiquite. The amount that I know about that kind of thing would fit into a thimble. lol

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  3. A brownie topped with ice cream is delicious! It's my favorite go to dessert on the rare occasion we go out to eat.

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  4. Loved this Hodgepodge, Joyce! Thank you!!

    As for the dresses...the last really formal wedding we went to (our nephew was in his Marine Corp dress blues) both mothers wore knee length dresses, and all the brides maids were in long gowns. It was lovely. What was unusual, but actually nice...both moms had the same dress, but in different colors. I'll try to find a photo and email it to you. Keep us posted!

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  5. I LOVE that picture of you on the ferry, OH MY WORD!!!!!
    My only advice about your dress is to be comfortable. After The Boy's wedding I swore to N.E.V.E.R. wear any spanx like thing again. I would look everywhere for something that didn't require it.
    I agree with your assessment of our politicians. Very sad.

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  6. I feel your pain concerning motion sickness! Ugh. Love that first photo :)

    As for your dress for the wedding, I don't know much about mother's dresses and wedding etiquette. For some reason, I always leaned more toward the longer length though. Good luck!

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  7. So sorry ferries make you sick. I love riding a ferry! Although, I've only done it a few times.

    I know both mothers wore short dresses in my wedding, although the girls wore long dresses. Of course, that doesn't mean it was proper. I just never thought of anything like that rule before. I'm also learning with my daughter's wedding that a lot of things have changed since when we got married. Good luck!

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  8. I see no problem with wearing a short dress even if the wedding party is in long. BE COMFORTABLE and LOVE your dress! What time is the wedding? Etiquette rules used to be that at 6:00pm you went from short to long. I think. Now, thankfully it doesn't matter! I hope to hear what you choose. Do you have a color in mind?

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  9. Brownies with ice cream-yummy! Weddings I have attended this year, the mother-of-the-bride have worn the same length as the bridesmaids. I had not thought of this-but I went back and looked at pictures. I am sure not law of etiquette would be broken if the length of your dress is not the same length as the bridesmaids.

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  10. Is it possible to shop for your dresses together with future MIL? That way, you'd both get the same length as the bride wishes. AND I think the length is just about as you please...in other words no real protocol....today, it's anything goes.

    The brownie and ice cream is Bud's favorite. And ferries...I don't mind them, but for the same reason I mention on MY answer to me ferries would be filthy too.

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  11. I wore a short dress to both of my daughters' weddings. They were a little more casual especially my oldest one. She had a reception and BBQ in a barn. Everyone was casual. For my son's wedding I wore long. It was also a winter wedding at a golf club so long was appropriate.

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  12. Oh, Joyce, I so feel your pain when it comes to motion sickness. It.is.the.worst! I finally found a medication that works without all the yucky side effects. A Dr. prescribed it for me about 20 years ago. Blessed relief is what I call it!

    I think a long dress is in order myself and I'm not sure there are any rules, so you can likely wear which ever makes me happy and be quite alright. Good luck! I found both of mine in no time.

    Happy rest of the week!

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  13. Nope.. you don't HAVE to be in long if the bridesmaids are in long. Mothers can do whatever. You get to make the call. But if the girls are in long, is it a more formal wedding? Go with the style of the wedding more then what the other girls are wearing. Doing wedding photography, I've seen it all... so find something you're comfortable in - period :)

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  14. Love the ferry picture. And the places you were visiting must have made the ferry ride worth it!? Lol.
    So exciting to shop for your MOB dress. Hopefully it will be as easy as finding the wedding dress! I much preferred ordering several (several!!) online and trying on in the comfort of my own home, but that's just me. Also, I don't think your length must match the bridesmaids, so I would choose what is comfortable. And YOU get to choose!! I'll be shopping for a mother of groom dress soon. It's the third son, and I know that my job is to keep quiet and wear beige. :)
    Thanks for the HP, and have a great day.

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  15. Yep, turkey roasting in the oven brings us home and having that ice cream on a brownie is the best! I haven't been on many ferries, didn't even cross my mind. Enjoyed your answers. I think if your both in the same length it would look great either way.

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  16. I really believe it's based on the formality of the wedding. If it's after say, 5:00, I think a longer dress would be better. Afternoon or a more casual wedding, short. However, this is just my opinion.

    I'm for term limits as well and I could eat a warm brownie with ice cream for breakfast. Everyday.

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  17. I've never tried ice cream on a warm brownie, but now I'm hungry for one!!

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  18. Hmmm...your question is very interesting. I would think that length should be determined by how formal the wedding is. If it's a gala-style wedding, Oscar night type of wedding, then I'd probably go long. Honestly, though, I'm so informal and anti-"rules" that I'd go with whatever I preferred. It's interesting that your daughter wants you and her future MIL to match lengths. I don't think I would have ever thought of this. I'm sure whatever you decide on will be perfect because you are the epitome of class.

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  19. My bestie, the one who helps us with our family weddings, has a daughter who got married last year. Bestie is very southern and holds to tradition in nearly everything...I know, long set up...anyway, she had two dresses picked out for her MOB dress, one long and one short, the bridesmaids wore long dresses. Bestie decided on the long dress for herself but only because she liked the way she looked in it better. All that to say- if it was one of those unspoken 'rules' Bestie would have worn long just because the bridesmaids were in long dresses. I'm all for term limits too. And I think it's their ego that gets inflated once in office that causes all the trouble.

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  20. Boy, I would love it if there were a turkey roasting in the oven right now. Still trying to think of what I'll make for dinner tonight. I don't like ferries either. And term limits are a MUST.

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  21. Oh man, I could go on forever about motion sickness and ferries for that matter. Ugh.
    I do agree with the bride in that both mothers should wear the same length. And I agree that YOU get to decide which that will be. With it being a winter wedding, long seems fitting and fun too. We get so few opportunities to wear full length. I do like the idea of just at or right below the knee too, so you are both not the same as bridesmaids but not long like the bride. Keep in mind that long dresses can be shortened. Depending on style, that is. :) And shop the small boutiques so you're not inadvertently wearing a dress a guest might show up in. {gasp!}
    What fun!

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  22. Hi I am a little late than usual today, i had to go to the city (SF) last night. It was too wild for me especially at night! ;0 I heard the Giants vs Phillies had one heck of a game. I'll be watching that on replay soon! Take care.

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  23. I am right there with you on searing for the mother-of-the-bride dress. My first reaction in looking at dresses is "Why must the mother look like a frumpy dumpy?" I mean, really! I am only going to be a 43 year old mother-in-law ... not 80. I personally think long dresses on the mother is a bit much. I am going for a flattering lacy thing, but not old lady. My daughter's wedding is rustic lace. She has picked out some amazing dresses for me, but I don't want to draw attention to me. I want all the attention to be on her. So I am going with something a little more "me" and more subdued in a more subdued color.

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  24. Oh I totally agree with you on the motion sickness...suffered from it all my life. Good luck finding your dress. =) I went with tea length for my daughter's wedding. I nice in between! Blessings and great questions this week. Valerie

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  25. Sorry, but that picture of you on the ferry is hilarious! But I'm pretty sure I'd feel the same way as I get motion sick too. My first trip on my brother-in-law's small plane didn't end well. That's why I'm a little nervous about ever taking a cruise. The dress? I think a nice below the knee but not to the floor looks nice and still can be fancy or formal.

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  26. Ferries...ugh. I had one thought when I saw that photo of you with the Bkack hoodie and sunglasses :you look like the uni bomber! As for the dress, I would go for either midcalf or floor length, and in a color that you love on yourself . Let his mom know the color you're going for . I think moms in winter weddings need a little bling, velvet and lace. Heehee . The groom's mom will be taking her cues from you. So the sooner you choose, the sooner she can make her choice . It stressed me out but once I found the dress that made me feel pretty, elegant and happy, that was it.

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  27. I love the smell of freshly mowed grass.
    However, where we live, we have more dirt than grass.

    Congratulations goes to the mother-of-the-bride and to the bride.

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