A Few Of My Favorite Friday Things

I wrote a post Monday (linked here) recapping our houseful, but wanted to share a few more favorite things from the past week on the blog today. 

While my youngest daughter and her littles went home last Friday, my oldest daughter and her family were here with us until Wednesday. On Wednesday we loaded up in two vehicles, that is the in-laws in one car with dad and the two boys, and then hubs and I in the other car with momma and her little miss, for the trek to the Atlanta airport and their flight to the UK.  

Two kids dragging backpacks of their own, momma wearing the baby pushing a cart loaded with three huge bags, dad pushing a wagon carrying a car seat and then pulling a cart with another two ginormous  bags, and whew! They're rockstars!  

They will be living in England for the next six months, and believe me when I say one of my favorite things currently is knowing I have a trip already booked and on the calendar. 

For the record, airport goodbyes are not my favorite.

Let's talk fun...linking up today with Andrea and Erika for this week's edition of Friday Favorites. 

1. A 'Grand' Summer Bucket List- I like to ask the two oldest grands what they want to do when they visit, and then I make a little bucket list/chart, hang it on the side of a kitchen cabinet, and they can check off as we go. They enjoy the checking and remind me when I forget. 

This year's chart included the usual swimming-boating-fishing type of activities plus a few newbies as well...paddle boarding, the jumbo Connect 4...

...a trip to the Fish Hatchery, and jello pie. 

2. Jello Pie-have you had this? 

In this picture I hadn't spread the whipped cream over the top yet, but you get the idea. Hubs has very fond memories of his grandmother making him jello pie as a child. He told me it was plain strawberry jello poured into a graham cracker crust, topped with sliced bananas and topped with cool whip. I wasn't convinced, but he really wanted the boys to try it. 

First of all, I don't do Cool Whip. I know some people love it, but homemade whipped cream is so easy and a thousand times better. Also, jello pie? I went to Pinterest and found a variation of hubs grandmom's technique, and the boys helped me put it together. 

I was out of bananas so used strawberries instead and they were yummy. Hubs assures me the bananas are possibly more delicious but then childhood memories are hard to beat. The boys helped make the jello, and my 'recipe' had you add a little cornstarch and less water so it was more like that filling you get in fresh strawberry pie. I think I really wanted strawberry pie and hubs had his heart set on the jello version. This one made everybody happy. 

We stirred the sliced strawberries into the mixture, then poured that into the crust. I'd purchased a large box of jello, but the recipe only called for 3 ounces so I mixed up the rest of the jello as directed on the box. Because the strawberry mixture only half filled the pie shell I went ahead and poured the rest of the regular jello on top to set. It worked. 

I have to say, it was so tasty. Surprisingly light and refreshing and the boys thought it was a big treat. Hubs too! 

3. Paddleboarding. Y'all. My six year old grandson jumped on the paddleboard on day one and navigated like a pro from the word go. Even the four and a half year old could manage without a lot of help. We made the paddles shorter after their first try and that was even better. 

The mancub had to literally be pushed off the board and into the water if you wanted a turn. He absolutely loved it, and while he used to spend all day running off the dock he's now spending all day on the paddleboard.  I mean he still loves running off the dock, but the paddleboard is his new favorite.

4. Water skiing-

Friday night we went for a quick boat ride so Daughter1 could waterski. She hadn't skiied in a few years, mostly because she's birthed three children in the last seven, but she is her father's daughter in terms of coordination. Popped right up without even thinking about it. 

Her children thought she was amazing. 

She pretty much is. 

5. My people-

We've had no less than nine people in the house, eating, sleeping, and playing since July 14th. The level of activity from sun up to sun down has been something like mach ten. The volume too. 

There's been swimming and boating and jumping and games and books and movies and outdoor showering and indoor legos and meals eaten...so.many.meals. We've talked and laughed and applied sunscreen and reapplied sunscreen and we've sipped a lot of coffee. We tried to take a few pictures too, but this crew was not having it so we let that go. 

Yesterday it was back to just me and the hubs, and the silence is deafening.  

The house needs cleaning from top to bottom, every sheet and towel is in the process of being either washed or dried and folded, the frig needs wiping down, the windows too because little hands and noses need to press against the glass for a really good look at the world around them. 

Not gonna lie...the transition from full to something less than that takes time. We give ourselves a lot of grace and space to reset the house and our heads too. It takes a few days to get back into the rhythms of regular life, but we'll get there. We always do. 

Girls who grow up and grow families of their own, who keep touching home plate whenever they can... definitely one of my favorite things. 

It's Hodgepodge Day! Bienvenue!

Bonjour mes amis! Welcome to the games of the five hundred and sixty first Wednesday Hodgepodge. If you've answered today's questions add your link at the end of my post, then leave a comment for the blogger before you. Or after you. Or all the bloggers on the list. 

On your mark, get set, go...

1. The Olympics kick off this coming weekend. Will you be watching? If you could watch just one event in person, which one would you choose? 

We'll definitely be watching. I always enjoy the Olympics. 

If I could only see one event in person I guess it would be swimming. I've always loved the gymnastics but we know more now about what goes on behind the scenes as well as the toll the sport takes on the body, so it's less appealing to me than it once was. 

2. Have you ever been to Paris? Is this a city you'd like to visit? What's your favorite 'French thing'? 

Ah, Paris. I love it. I've been a few times as it was an easy train ride from the UK. I cannot imagine the traffic with the Olympics on tap, but I wouldn't say no to a trip. 

My favorite French thing? Impossible to choose just one. France is a beautiful country and while I love Paris I love the small villages and countryside more. 

I also love the language, the food, the wine, the champagne...

... the architecture, the cheese, the bread, the Alps...                                                 

3. Macaron, creme brulee, chocolate souflee, mille feuille, or an eclair...your favorite French patisserie from the ones listed? 

Yes please. 

Okay, if I must choose-Creme brulee is my favorite dessert, but I do love all of the above. Europeans know how to do afternoon coffee and cake. 

4. July 24th is National Cousins Day...do you have many cousins? Are you close to them? Will you see any of your cousins on July 24th? 

I have a lot of cousins, but have never lived geographically near them, and most of my cousins are older than me. One of my dad's brothers had two sons nearer the age of my younger sister and I, and we did see them from time to time, as they were at least on the east coast. My parents grew up in Colorado and New Mexico so most of my cousins lived on that side of the country, and people didn't travel the way they do now. 

This was taken on my grandparents Colorado farm. My grandpa is the one who looks like a farmer and I'm standing beside him with my brother, younger sister, and two of my cousins. My uncle is the one with his shirt unbuttoned. It was summer so I guess maybe he was warm? 

Whenever we visited grandparents we spent time with our cousins too. It wasn't often, but I liked knowing I was part of a big extended family and still appreciate that today. Thanks to Facebook I've reconnected with some of them there. It's been fun to see their growing families and share a little bit of our lives that way. 

5.  Last time you went somewhere that felt like 'everyone and his cousin' was there? 

Hmm...I pretty much try to avoid huge crowds these days. How about my dock on the 4th of July lol! If you don't know what I'm talking about I mentioned it here-A Post Holiday Hello Monday

We'll be at the Atlanta airport this week and I can pretty much guarantee there will be a crowd. 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

I've recently added a follow me by email option on my sidebar. If you'd like to be notified via email of new posts here, just put your address in the box and click subscribe. 

Also, I'm wondering how you respond to comments on your blog? Do you reply to the commenter by email or do you reply to them right under their comment on your own blog? If you ask a question in the comments section do you go back to the blog to see if it's been answered? 

If I respond to a commenter under their comment I'm not sure the person will be notified or will come back and see my answer.  Email replies feel more reliable, and I usually end up doing both. 

Happy Wednesday everyone! 

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Hodgepodge Questions-Volume 561

Here are the questions to this week's Wednesday Hodgepodge. Answer on your own blog, then hop back here tomorrow to add your link to the party. See you there! 

1. The Olympics kick off this coming weekend. Will you be watching? If you could watch just one event in person, which one would you choose? 

2. Have you ever been to Paris? Is this a city you'd like to visit? What's your favorite 'French thing'? 

3. Macaron, creme brulee, chocolate soufle, mille feuille, or an eclair...your favorite French patisserie from the ones listed? 

4. July 24th is National Cousins Day...do you have many cousins? Are you close to them? Will you see any of your cousins on July 24th? 

5.  Last time you went somewhere that felt like 'everyone and his cousin' was there? 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Summertime And The Livin' Is Easy And Also Loud

We've had a full house all week and we still have a mostly full house this week, but I want to put some of the happenings here on my blog while they're fresh. It's not short so buckle up. 

Before I dive in I do want to let you know I've finally added a 'follow by email' option to my sidebar. If you'd like to be notified of new posts here via email, just add your address in the box there and hit subscribe. 

I'm joining Holly and Sarah for their regular Hello Monday link party to talk about the week that was. 

There has been lots of merrymaking with both daughters and their littles here at the lake this past week. It has been loud messy fun and we're all exhausted and ready for bed at an early hour, but we are truly loving all the minutes spent together. I have washed at least 100 towels and cooked 1000 meals. Nine people in and out of the lake and the pool means a lot of towels and all that swimming means we need fuel. These boys can eat and I'm not even kidding. 

I made myself a calendar of menus before everyone arrived and that's been so helpful. I did have to run to the store once but mostly I shopped ahead and hubs has been doing a lot of grilling. My girls appreciate home cooking, plus dining out with five small children might be too much, even for us. 

Going all the way back to Tuesday for this recap...we declared Tuesday a boat day. Sounds simple, right? Y'all. The amount of gear we needed to pack, take down to the dock, get on the boat, as well as five children swim-suited and sunscreen-ed, buckled into life jackets, hats and sunglasses on, water bottles in tow, not to mention our own selves, plus noodles and water saddles and fishing poles, beach towels and lunch in a cooler, well it does make one wonder for a minute if it's worth it?

Totally worth it. 

There are lots of islands in our lake and many have sandy beaches so we headed to one of those. Once hubs set the anchor the process of getting everyone and everything off the boat and onto the island begins. Hubs totes most of the gear while one daughter puts the swim diapers on the babies and the other daughter gets off the boat and then I pass the kids to her and she escorts them to the island. 

Is it worth it? 

100%!  A morning in the sand and sea with little ones is not a walk in the park, but we don't care because it is way more fun than not. 

We got home in time for naps for some, although probably not for the ones who needed it most-ha! Hi hubs!, and the older boys watched a movie while the three littlest slept. 

Hubs had to attend an event Tuesday evening so I made spaghetti and meatballs and we got everyone in bed on the early side. Daughter2's hubs arrived from working nearby so we hung out on the deck until Pawpaw aka 'the hubs' got home. He had just sat down to finally relax with his favorite bourbon when I ever so gently reminded him he was grilling a pork butt for Wednesday's dinner. 

Which means he has to prep it on Tuesday night. 

As in right now.

And also get up at 4 AM to get it on the Green Egg. Hi hubs! 

Wednesday morning he and my son-in-law were up before the sun, so when I came outside with my coffee at 6:45 am the smell was already so good. We swam in the lake that morning, and then late afternoon my older sister drove the hour and a half out from her house to mine with my mama. 

My mama is in town for a few days while my younger sister and her family (who she lives with) are traveling. It was wonderful for her to be here the week the girls were both in town. 

Wrangling everyone for this picture might have been trickier than boat day, but I wanted a pic of my mom with all of her great-grandchildren, and with my girls too. 

My sister was a big hit with the boys especially and they had so much fun with her. I didn't take a single picture of her while she was here because there was a lot going on (possibly a giant understatement! lol). Hubs made maybe his best BBQ ever and I added coleslaw, baked beans and roasted veggies to the meal, with a peach and blueberry cobbler for dessert. So good!

Thursday morning we went back up to the neighborhod pool and everyone had such a nice time playing in the water. We came home for lunch and naps (so grateful these little ones sleep the way they do!), then had an early taco dinner before loading everyone up in two cars to get ice cream in town. Making the fun happen with littles of various ages is something of a production but we all dig in and make it happen. 

And we don't take a lot of photos but we're definitely living it. 

This spot does the Nitrogen ice cream which is exciting to watch, and they loved every single bite. When we got back to the house Daughter1 and I took the big boys to the lake to swim again, and Daughter2 and the younger three hung out on the deck with Pawpaw. 

Divide and conquer is not a bad motto for managing kids of varying ages and stages. 

Friday morning daughter2 and her sweeties headed back to their home in Tennessee.  After they got on the road we went for an easy boat ride with daughter1 and her kids. 

Still a few things to carry but we just brought towels and snacks and opted for lunch at home. 

We hung out in a cove and jumped off the swim platform and had a grand time before the clouds rolled in and we made a bee line back to the dock.  Hubs made popcorn in our big popcorn machine and the boys watched a movie with him while little miss napped. Daughter1 and I sat on the porch with our iced coffee and solved all the problems of the world. 

Maybe not all, but a few. 

It was leftovers for dinner Friday night because this cook needed a break. And my next door neighbor brought over a blueberry pie for dessert which was so sweet and so thoughtful and we all really enjoyed that. 

Which brings us to Saturday. I needed to do a grocery run so hubs took the two older boys (the mancub and Max as they're known on the blog) to a fish hatchery not too far from here. He encountered a detour so it ended up being further than anticipated, but he made it and they had a ball. 

They were allowed to feed the fish which was exciting and it was a great way to spend a drizzly morning. 

Hubs treated them to lunch on the way home and they came in laughing and happy and full of fish stories. 

I had ordered some legos for the boys and they arrived midday Saturday, which kept them busy the rest of fthe afternoon. They were anxiously waiting for their Daddy to arrive as he wrapped up his Fellowship in Cincinnati on Friday and will hang out here for a few days before they all head to England for their six month stay (you can read more about that on Daughter1's blog linked here-Sincerely Shannon). 

Whew. Who's tired? 

But in the very, very, best way. 

Hodgepodging With My Favorites

Welcome to this week's edition of The Wednesday Hodgepodge. If you've answered today's questions, add your link at the end of my post then go say howdy to your neighbor there. 

Doing something a little different today...my two daughters are both in the house, same time-same place (whoohoo!), which doesn't happen nearly as often as we'd like. They're going to answer the HP questions with me today. They both have blogs (linked in my sidebar), but not a lot of time for it in this current season so we're all in it together this week. I didn't let them do too much thinking (as opposed to my ever overthinking), they just answered on the spot.  

Here we go-

1. What is an adult problem nobody prepared you for? 

me-how many difficult decisions need to be made as our parents age, the weight of that. 

D1-the ridiculous number of times I've had to change my address on all my mail, cards, billing, licenses...it's not really a problem but it is annoying. 

D2- this is parenting specific, but how inconvenient it is to run a really quick errand with two kids in car seats. For instance if I need to drop something at UPS I can't just run in and do it in 30 seconds. I have to unbuckle two kids and bring them in with me. No more just popping in someplace for a quick second. 

2. Without mentioning any tech, what's your most prized possession?

me-thinking what would I grab in the event of a fire and I always come back to my wedding album. I'm sure I own many more valuable items, but that's always the first thing that comes to mind. 

D1-I can't think of a thing. Even my photo books I could reprint if something happened to them. But I would miss those books. 

D2-pretty much anything can be replaced. I'll say my wedding rings...if there's a tornado watch when I go to bed I wear my rings so I don't have to fumble around for them if a watch becomes a warning. 

3. It's National Peach Ice Cream Day (July 17th). Will you be celebrating? Do you like peaches? 

me-I love peaches, and we've been celebrating all week. We made homemade peach ice cream on Sunday and still have some in the freezer.  

D1-Yes I love peaches, they're my favorite fruit. And we have peach ice cream. Peach is my favorite flavor of homemade. Will I celebrate? Yes I'll eat more peach ice cream. 

D2-I won't because I'm currently not eating dairy. We're getting some Nitrogen ice cream later this week and they have a non-dairy option, but I probably won't get peach.

Given a choice would you prefer peach ice cream, peach pie, peach cobbler, or just hand me a peach? 

me-of the choices mentioned peach cobbler is my favorite. I am planning to make one tomorrow (Wednesday) as my mom and sister are coming for dinner. I like Paula Deen's recipe (linked here). It feeds a crowd! 

D1-peach cobbler, that's my go-to dessert to make for people

D2-peach cobbler with ice cream. 

Do you own anything that is peach in color? 

me-there's a bit of a joke in my family about a peachy colored shirt I owned that seemed to be in every photo I was in for a few years. I think it was more tangerine than peach but I do like the color peach. Actually the bridesmaids in my wedding wore peach dresses. 

When I lived in the UK someone from a bridal magazine there stumbled across a blog post where I posted a picture of the dresses. They contacted me and asked if they could use my picture in an article. It seems peach was making a comeback in the wedding world, but of course as she put it, 'an updated touch of peach'.

D1-Do I have anything peach? No.

D2-Mom are you going to say that peach shirt? I don't think I own anything peach. 

4. What makes a friendship successful? 

me-making the effort to stay in touch for one. We're all busy, personally we've moved a bunch so some of our friends are geographically far from us, but we talk on the phone periodically, we text, we ask about one another's lives and genuinely care and want to hear what's going on with that other person.  And then the characteristics that make any relationship successful apply to friendship as well-kindness, compassion, common interests or seasons of life, selflessness...

D1-A successful friendship is one that can survive distance and time. My oldest friend and I try to speak on the phone once a week or so. We haven't been able to see one another in person since before either of us became mothers and yet it doesn't matter.  I know when we are finally able to sit down in the same room it will feel like no time apart. We've now just said goodbye to the dear friends we made in Ohio that I promised myself we'll stay close to. It will require intention and putting things on calendars in advance and inconvenience but it's worth it. 

D2- I would say being understanding of one another's life seasons. Meaning I'm in a season with babies and some of my friends have older kids or no kids, so understanding that. A lot of my friendships are long distance, so making an effort to stay in contact, but also not putting too much pressure on anyone to be in constant contact. Be the friend you want to have. That's good advice for children and works for me too. 

5. Let's give our brains a rest and do a little summertime this or that...beach or pool? ice cream or snow cone? amusement park or camping? burger or hot dog? watermelon or strawberries? get up early or sleep in late? sunrise or sunset?

Beach or pool? 

me-it's a tough call, but probably the beach
D1- beach  
D2-pool...no wait, the beach.

Ice Cream or snow cone- 

me- snow cone  
D1-  ice cream 
D2-ice cream

amusement park or camping- 

me-camping 
D1- camping
D2-camping 

well, look at us with the same answer, and it's camping no less

burger or hot dog-

me-burger 
D1- burger
D2-hot dog

watermelon or strawberries-

me-watermelon
D1- strawberries
D2-watermelon 

get up early or sleep in late-

me-early 
D1- sleep in late 
D2-sleep in late

sunrise or sunset-

me-I love a sunset, but sunrise is my favorite 
D1- sunset..if I'm not getting up early I'll miss the sunrise

D2-sunset (see answer above) 

6. Insert your own random thought here.  

Having so much fun with these girls and their busy adorable noisy offspring in the house and on the water  this week. 

Happy Wednesday everyone! 

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Hodgepodge Questions-Volume 560

Here are the questions to this week's Wednesday Hodgepodge. Answer on your own blog, then hop back here tomorrow to share answers. See you there! 

1. What is an adult problem nobody prepared you for? 

2. Without mentioning any tech, what's your most prized possession? 

3. It's National Peach Ice Cream Day (July 17th). Will you be celebrating? Do you like peaches? Given a choice would you prefer peach ice cream, peach pie, peach cobbler, or just hand me a peach? Do you own anything that is peach in color? 

4. What makes a friendship successful? 

5. Let's give our brains a rest and do a little summertime this or that...beach or pool? ice cream or snowcone? amusement park or camping? burger or hot dog? watermelon or strawberries? get up early or sleep in late? sunrise or sunset? 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Hello Monday-ish

Or maybe it's already Tuesday, but regardless, hello.  

I'm joining Holly and Sarah today for their Hello Monday link up. Here's the 411 on our weekend-

We had a meeting Friday morning with a local landscaping company as we are trying to sort out an enormous project in the back yard. It did not start out to be enormous, but it's grown as these things do when you're married to my hubs. We have a slope in the back that needs improvement/correcting and next thing you know we're adding a patio, a water feature, and an outdoor kitchen. 

None of that was in the original budget so now we're negotiating. Hubs is negotiating. We'll see how this goes. Stay tuned.

I had a mani/pedi Friday afternoon which is always so nice, and also felt necessary after the morning meeting.  

Saturday morning I finished pulling out some of the things I keep put away when the kids aren't here. The pack n' play, the toddler bed, stools for the bathrooms, the toy box and, this year I pulled out a bin of beanie babies I've saved that the littles haven't ever seen. I knew it was in the attic and when I lifted the lid the first thing I saw were four mostly naked Barbies. 

Question for you-Barbie and co. have amazing wardrobes. Why are they always unclothed?  

Look at all the beanies! I remember my girls cutting the tags off but most of these still have the TY tag. My daughter said she remembers Aladdin and the Mermaid were bathtub Barbies so maybe that explains the state of dress here.  

Hubs and I were going to take the boat out on Saturday to meet friends, but the meet up spot was too rough for my liking so we came home and I called my sister to catch up instead. Then of course the news broke about the tragedy at the Trump rally so we ended up mostly watching news the rest of the evening. 

What a world we are living in. 

The kids rolled in Sunday. Daughter2, her hubs, and their crew arrived from Tennessee and my daughter1 and her crew from just down the road as they'd been with the other grandparents the week before. Daughter1's hubs is finishing out his fellowship in Cincy, but we'll have a couple of days with him at the lake before they leave for England later next week.

Can you tell there are people in the house? 

We made homemade peach ice cream for dessert and spent some time just hanging out on the patio while hubs grilled dinner. 

The littlest ones played in the wading pool and the big kids played ball and tried out the hula hoops. 

His momma still has serious hula hoop skills so he's learning from the best. 

After dinner we jumped in the lake and everyone had a big time and were good and tired for bed. 

The kids too. 

Monday morning daughter2's in-laws came by with her grand-in-laws in tow. That would be the in-laws parents, so her kids great-grandparents. I made a sour cream coffee cake and everyone embraced the crazy that is five kids under seven in the house. 

They left around 11 and we loaded up the pool bags, the noodles, lunch in a cooler, everyone's personalized towels Nana orders as soon as you're born-

...the goggles, sunscreen, the stroller, babies in car seats, plus four adults (we were outnumbered by one) and headed up to our neighborhood pool to spend a couple of hours. 

Lots of fun was had by all, then the girls and I brought the three littlest home for naps and Pawpaw stayed with the two big boys to swim some more. They walked home from the pool then spent another hour in the lake on the paddle boards. 

It helps to have a low center of gravity. Just sayin'. The girls and I had iced coffee on the porch and the boys chilled with a movie while the babies napped. 

Fun in the summer sun with my favorite people. 

I highly recommend.