Hello America How Are Ya?

Raise your hand if you sung that? 

Some of you are too young, but I love that song (City of New Orleans by Arlo Guthrie) It somehow stirs up feelings of nostalgia in me that always surface around the 4th. 

So how was your weekend? Do you want the good news or the bad news first? I like to get the bad news over with so...

Somehow I have a stress fracture in my ankle, and I cannot think of a less pleasant month to have your foot encased in a warm and toasty soft cast than the month of July. I suppose August would be just as bad, but here's hoping I don't have to confirm that through personal experience. 

I've been walking on it for a couple of months (oops), but I honestly thought it was my achilles, and if I just rested it enough it would improve. That wasn't happening and I was annoying my hubs who had taken to saying, 'come on granny' anytime we needed to walk somewhere so I finally saw my doc. 

Also, I am a granny so no offense taken.  

My doc did get an x-ray, but not the official kind like the orthos use. She couldn't see a fracture, but said I might need a different sort of scan, so I ended up with a referral and finally made that happen last week. 

And came home with the boot. 

Bother.  

I've never worn one of these but do people need a new hip when they get out of a boot, because it feels like one hip is higher than the other when I walk? I'm going to wear one cute wedge on my left foot to make me even. 

Did you come here today to read my medical chart? Let's talk about more pleasant things.  

Blueberries. 

Friday daughter1 came over with her kiddos so we could go blueberry picking one street over. Yes in my boot and with the temperature like the surface of the sun. 

One of my neighbors has an abundance of blueberry bushes in her yard, planted by the previous owner who must have really really loved blueberries. I think there are about thirty bushes still, even after our friends had some removed. 

They're super generous and put an announcement on our neighborhood facebook page every year for people to come pick anytime because there is no way they could harvest all these berries themselves. 

So we picked our share in the summer sunshine, then went home and jumped in the lake. 

Well, Nana did not jump. Nana hobbled down the cart path in her bathing suit and her boot, then took off the boot and ever so carefully climbed down the steps into the lake, and floated. The doc said it was okay so long as all I did was float. No actual swimming or kicking or fluttering or anything that involves moving my ankle. 

I always jump off the dock at the start of summer with my oldest grandson and my middle grandson was all in this year too, but I guess it will be an end of summer happening as opposed to early summer this year.

Friday night hubs and I toasted to my bummer summer with a glass of rose and a view. I can deal. I mean I kind of have to, right? 

Dinner was a hit and this recipe for Shrimp and Avocado Bowls with Mango Salsa and Lime-Chile Sauce  is for sure a keeper. It's a great summer meal and I'll be making it again soon. So easy and so delicious. 

The recipe says you can adjust the jalapeno and the siracha if you don't like spice, but I did not cut back on the spice at all and we both absolutely loved it. 

The Lime-Chili Sauce is definitely spicy so if that's not your thing, you could use less. The mango salsa would also be good with some pita chips. 

Saturday we had painters here most of the morning. You might remember we had to cut a hole in one of the guest room ceilings a couple of months ago because we thought there was a leak happening. There was not, but we had a nice hole nonetheless, two actually because the plumber also had to cut into the master bath on the wall behind the shower. The holes were not large and were finally repaired, and then the painters came to repaint Friday and Saturday. 

It took two days because hubs had them repaint the garage while they were here. He never misses a chance for home improvement. 

After the painters left we trekked to the grocery store to get most of what we'd need for the week, including the holiday celebrations. Hubs offered to go himself, but the list was long and I needed to be in charge lol. 

It kind of wore me out though, so we came home and I was on the couch until dinner. 

Hubs grilled a pork tenderloin and afterwards we re-watched an old favorite movie-Mr. Holland's Opus. I was thinking about what an original story that was and how we don't get a lot of original stories anymore in terms of film. 

Sunday I hobbled to church and we went to breakfast/lunch afterwards with daughter1 and her hubs and our grands. Then it was home to do a few last minute housekeeping tasks because daughter2 was on her way to the lake with her two littles to spend the week while her hubs is working. 

They arrived around 3:30 and sweet baby J immediately spied the lily pad floating by the dock and said we needed to swim. So we did. 

Boys will be boys, but these little girls y'all! 

They are fearless! 

Little Miss was here Friday and she just steps right off the dock or the lily pad and comes up smiling. 

Hubs grilled again Sunday night making fried rice on the griddle with the leftover tenderloin. Everyone enjoyed dinner outside and bonus, it made the clean up of a 16-month old feeding herself rice fairly easy. Hubs got out the hose and the blower and voila...good as new. 

The whole crew will be here this morning for blueberry pancakes lakeside and more swimming and summer fun with the cousin crew. I will try to keep up and as hubs says, 'try not to end up in a real cast before summer's over'. 

#Goals y'all. 

So what were you up to this weekend? I love the days leading up to the 4th because it feels like summer is really here. I hope the weather cooperates so we can spend a lot of time in the water. Enjoy your week and God Bless America! 

Linking today with Holly (Pink Lady) and Sarah (Sunshine and Books) and their weekly Hello Monday blog hop. 

Hodgepodge Questions-Volume 609

Here are the questions to our regular mid-week Hodgepodge. Answer on your own blog, then swim back here on Wednesday (July 2nd) to add your link to the party. See you there! 

1. What does freedom mean to you? 

2. How will you celebrate Independence Day this year? If you live outside the USA answer this question as it relates to your own country's patriotic holiday, wherever that may land on the calendar. 

3. This or that...red, white, or blue? Stars or stripes? Watermelon, home made ice cream, or blueberry pie? How do you feel about fireworks?  

4. What have you purchased recently that made you excited? 

5. I'm thankful to live in America (or fill in whatever country you call home) because____________.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Montly Musings-June

It's too hot to think deep thoughts. Plus today's my volunteer day followed by a trip to see the orthopedist,  so keeping it simple. I'm linking with the Monthly Musings girls, Holly (Pink Lady) and Patty (Good Better Best), who offer ten topical questions to answer on the last Thursday of every month. This month we're talking Summer Vacation Guide, and everyone is welcome to jump in...here we go- 

1. Share your summer trips for 2025. 

Our backyard is a summer destination so we try not to do a lot of traveling this time of year. 

We love company in the summer months and typically have a lot of it. We prefer to do our own traveling in other seasons. 

That being said, this year we've booked a house in Hilton Head for a family beach vacation late summer, and I'm looking forward to that. All the grands will be there, along with their parents and I'm sure it will be crazy fun. Have you ever been to Hilton Head? 

Fun fact...this is me on the beach at Hilton Head, aged 3. 

We lived in the nearby area that year. I've been several times as an adult and the island has a relaxed, family friendly vibe, great restaurants, fresh seafood, and plenty of sun, sand, and water for everyone to enjoy.

2. How do you manage the post vacation laundry? 

Pretty much the same way I manage laundry year round. Just get it done. If we're in a rental with a washer and dryer I'll do laundry before we head home, even though that goes against my personal motto NOT to do laundry while on vacation. 

Also I feel like hubs and I have a lot of laundry for two people. Not the point of this question, but true nonetheless. 

3. Most memorable summer vacation? 

Ooh, this is a toughie. From my childhood or my grown up life? How about one of each? 

We didn't take a lot of summer vacations when I was growing up. We belonged to the local swim club and spent our days there, lived an hour from the 'Jersey shore' so always had a couple of day trips there, and went to sleep away camp for a week which we loved. 

But! My grandparents all lived out west and every so often my parents would buy six plane tickets and take their whole crew to Colorado and then New Mexico. 

We absolutely loved these trips. My dad grew up on a farm outside of Denver and my mom grew up in Albuquerque so the landscape, the food, everything was big and exciting and so different than our East Coast life. 

We loved seeing some of our cousins on these trips too. Everyone was spread out far and wide and people didn't travel the way they do now so it was all very special. 

Now as an adult I've had some pretty fabulous trips so picking just one favorite is nearly impossible. Our family trip to Lago Maggiore definitely makes the top five. 

We spent the mornings taking the wooden boat taxis out to various islands in the lake, exploring and lunching and shopping. The afternoons were spent at the pool reading stacks of books. The food was fabulous and we ate our weight in gelato. 

It was 2007 and my oldest had just finished her first year of uni, my youngest was getting ready for her senior year of high school. 

Time moves fast in those young adult years and I'm so glad we hit pause and just enjoyed being together in a beautiful place. A core memory for all of us. 

4. Do you cook or eat out on vacation? 

Depends on what sort of vacation we're having. If we're in a rental house at the beach with five littles ages 8 and under, then we'll definitely be preparing many meals at home. Our plan for the summer beach trip this year is for each couple to plan one dinner, eat one dinner out with the whole group, pizza on the beach one night, and take out seafood at some point. We'll mostly do breakfast and lunch at home too. It's just easier and more enjoyable in this stage of parenting/grandparenting. 

Now, if it's just me and the hubs then I'm all about eating every meal out. 

5. Are you an overpacker, underpacker, or a just right packer? 

If we're traveling by car there's no such thing as overpacking lol. I'm a just right packer when it comes to air travel. 

6. Beach, lake, or mountains? 

Yes please. 

7. Road trip or fly? 

I prefer a road trip, but sometimes flying is necessary so I deal. 

8. Favorite vacation activities? 

A book and a beverage and a beach chair. 

Walking on the beach. 

Walking the countryside.

Exploring foreign cities. 

Going where the locals go. 

Eating where the locals eat. 

museums and history 

Coffee or wine sipped in a European city square.

9. Best packing tips? 

I'm a fan of packing cubes and use those when I'm trying to save space. For road trips I like to pack in tote bags, which hubs is not super keen on, but I feel more organized this way. 

10. Favorite road trip songs? 

I like a mix of 70's (best music ever), country, upbeat, and laid back. It might depend where we're going too. For a beach trip there will be lots of beach music which is one of our favorite genres anyway. On car trips we usually listen to Sirrus radio and switch between the 70's, 80's, The Bridge, and Y2country stations. 

Also, we listen to books on Audible when we have long car trips, and break it up with music. 

Enjoy your summer travels everyone, wherever you may roam.

Adventuring Through The Hodgepodge

Welcome to the weekly 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. Here we go...

1. What does adventure mean to you? 

This word is used a lot today, so I looked up the definition because I was curious. Here's what I read-' an unusual, exciting, and possibly dangerous activity, such as a trip or experience, or the excitement produced by such an activity'

I'm not what you'd call an adventurous person, yet I've lived a somewhat adventurous life. I'm a mostly cautious person married to an adventurer, and as a result I'm often out of my comfort zone. Once I'm back on level ground, so to speak, I'm almost always thankful for the adventure, or at least for what I've learned from the experience. 

For me personally adventure has helped grow my confidence, it's shown me I have hidden strengths, and it's definitely given me a greater appreciation for the wider world and all it's possibilities. 

I think adventure looks a little different in the various seasons of our lives, but even in this 'third act' it's still exploring new places, trying activities new to me, and learning new skills. 

2.  What are your thoughts on tipping? What businesses or service providers do you regularly tip? Do you resent being asked if you'd like to add a tip? What about when a suggested amount is presented? 

I'm not opposed to tipping and try to be extravagant when the occasion and service calls for it. I love to leave a 100% tip now and then, especially if the server is having a bad day, but is doing their best anyway. 

I always tip my hairdresser because I know I take up a lot of her time when I come in for an appointment. The nail technician always gets a tip. If our yard guy goes above and beyond and does something extra for us I'll add a tip. And I always tip in a sit-down restaurant. 

After that it gets murky...I don't feel like I need to tip when I'm ordering at a counter and carrying my own food to a table. I dislike the cashier watching me opt for no tip though so sometimes I'm guilted into it. I don't really mind suggested amounts because math. But! I don't think the suggested amount should start at 25%.  I realize prices have risen, but 20% of the bill is still 20% of the bill, right? 

3. I scream you scream we all scream for ice cream...do we? Is ice cream a favorite treat at your house? What's your favorite flavor? Regular, soft serve, gelato, sherbet, or some sort of non-dairy version of ice cream...what's your pleasure? 

Ice cream is hubs favorite after dinner treat so I try to always have some in the freezer. I very very rarely have ice cream at home, but I do enjoy going out for it now and then. I love home made ice cream so if that's on tap I'm in. 

My favorite ice cream flavors are rocky road, strawberry, coconut, and peppermint. If we're talking gelato I'd definitely opt for stracciatella and that's my answer for the last part of this question. That's my number one. 

4. What's your 'back in my day, we____________________ ' story or saying? 

Well there's a thousand things I could say here, but lately I'm wondering why we get heat warnings for 90 degree weather? When did this start? 

Back in my day summer meant it would be hot. Really hot. It was summer and it was supposed to be hot. We didn't have ac in our house until I was in the third grade. School was never cancelled for heat. 

I understand there are people who work out of doors, but in general they understand what they need to do to manage the heat. People need to bring their pets inside when it's super hot, but the ones who don't likely won't just because a weather person tells them they should. 

This is super trivial I know. 

Also...because this blog is nothing if not educational... heat warnings and advisories started in 1979, which in my mind feels like just a few years ago, but in reality was almost half a century. Specific heat-health warnings started in the 1990s. 

Also...back in my day only old people said back in my day. 

5. Somehow this is our last Hodgepodge in the month of June. Next week's Hodgepodge lands in July. Wow. Sum up your June using three adjectives. 

celebratory~family filled~chock a block 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Hello summer...

A Summer Bucket List

The calendar says summer which means it's time to revisit my spring bucket list and move on into this new season. This was my spring bucket list...

I kept it short and sweet and still didn't do all I'd planned. I did a lot though, and there were so many fun spring happenings that didn't make the list which means I pass. 

Not that it's a test, but I don't like leaving lists uncrossed. 

Go to a Farmer's Market...not yet. I'm adding this to my summer list because I still want to get there. We just did not have a weekend where it worked this spring, but summer's my favorite for fresh produce and lots of grilled fruits and veg. 

Tackle the attic. Oops. Nope. And now it's hotter than h e double hockey sticks up there so I think we'll push this task off until autumn. Pretty sure last winter I moved the task to spring and since I'm not worrying about it in the heat of summer I guess you'll see it again when autumn rolls around. Hi hubs! 

Kayak. Done. Once but at least we got out there. We'll do more kayaking this summer and nobody will love it more than the little brown dog. 

Dye eggs with the kids. Celebrate Easter. Host dinner. Wow, raise your hand if it feels like Easter was a hundred years ago? In reality just two months. Well, technically a lot longer than two months, but you know what I mean. 

Anyway, this one was done-done-and done and I loved it all. 

Write a love letter. Hmmm...I'm going to say yes because I wrote my grandson a birthday letter four days before summer rolled in. I think when I put this on my bucket list I was thinking more of the hubs, so maybe I can still make that happen. I like writing letters and we still need to officially celebrate our anniversary. 

Hike a trail new to us. Nope. I wish we'd been able to do this, but between the weather and my ankle we didn't get to this one. We don't do a lot of hiking here in the summer because it's so hot, but never say never. 

Host a Derby party. Yup. Whoohoo! It was lots of fun too. 

Pick strawberries and make jam...fail. There's always next year, and thankfully daughter1's mother-in-law makes strawberry fig preserves and always shares. 

Visit a garden. Does my daughter2's raised beds count? Ha! 

Probably not, but I loved seeing all her plants and look forward to tasting something she's grown. 

See a ballet. This was one of my favorite springtime activities. Daughter1 and I went to the International Ballet's performance of Don Quixote to celebrate her birthday. The costumes were beautiful, the dancing exceptional, and there's nothing quite like a mother-daughter day to bring the smiles.  

Spring was busy. While I only managed to complete half my list, there were lots of fun spring events that happened, but weren't listed....my sister and niece came out to the lake one weekend for brunch, the 'kids' moved out and into their own home, we had a whole week with both girls and all the grands in the house, took our first boat ride, celebrated a soon-to-be new momma, a grandson turning three, 41 years of married life, and more. It wasn't dull. Or quiet. 

Now bring on summer...

Linking today with Joanne for Talking About It Tuesdays...hop over to her blog (Slices of Life)  and see what everyone else has to say on this last Tuesday in June. 

Hey there Monday

Good morning friends. Hope you had a fun summery weekend. Here's how ours looked...

It looked full. It looked like a lot of miles on the car. It looked like bluegrass and bourbon. It looked like young love and old friends. It looked joyful. It looked like taking the long way home. 

It looked like summer. 

We were up bright and early Wednesday morning to make our way west and then north to Cincinnati via Kentucky. Friends we've known for more than two decades had a daughter getting married and we were headed there to celebrate her big day on Friday evening. 

Daughter2 and the bride have been friends since second grade and we parents have been friends that long too. Daughter2 was in the wedding so she and her hubs were there too which was fun.

But first! Kentucky. Friends we met while living in the UK who now live in Texas have a lake house about an hour from Cincy, so that was our first stop. We arrived mid-afternoon and hung out on their porch, had a wonderful dinner together, played cards, and caught up on all the things. 

We discovered we were all doing The Bible Recap this year so we listened together on Thursday morning which was special. Then we made our way in the general direction of Cincy in two cars so they could head home after our excursion and we could go on to the hotel. 

We had lunch in the General Store in a little town called Glencoe. There's not a lot in this area, but they served the owner's grandmother's chicken salad recipe and the guys had pizza which they said was really good too. From there we went just a few miles down the road to  Sparta for a tour of a small family owned distillery (The Neeley Family Distillery)

When in bourbon country...

The tour was interesting. We've been on the Bourbon Trail a couple of times before and have done a lot of the big distilleries, but this one was definitely different. You start with a video giving you the story behind the family and it's a little bit like the Hatfields and McCoys. They started as moonshiners but are making bourbon the legal way now. 

After the tour we said our goodbyes and hubs and I went on to Ohio to check in to the hotel. The groom's family hosted a welcome party at a fun brewery and everyone was invited to attend. They had a taco bar and the groom's parents made a sweet and funny speech in honor of the soon-to-be marrieds. A fun night for all. 

Coincidentally the wedding reception was in a venue just a few blocks from where Daughter1 and her hubs lived the year they were in Cincy, so we had to do a drive by of their old house. We sent a picture and she was happy to see the rope swing was still swinging. 

We went to breakfast at a place called Wild Eggs before driving in to the city to a section known as Over- the-Rhine. We walked through Findley Market, browsing the stalls, then headed back to our side of town so I could get my hair done. I always book an appointment to have my hair washed and dried when we travel to out of town weddings. 

It was a hot day and I needed the professionals to help battle the humidity and smooth it all out. 

The newlyweds were married in the bride's church and I love a church wedding. We rode a shuttle with the rest of the guests out to the church and the ceremony was lovely. If you were a June bride you were given a white rose as you entered the church and I thought that was a really sweet gesture. 

When we came out of the church they had a coffee bar set up for guests to enjoy while waiting on photos and the shuttle ride back to the reception venue. 

You could have regular coffee, cold brew, or an iced honey latte which is what I opted for. Yummy! 

The hydrangeas were beautiful here...

The reception was in a park (Ault Park for any locals reading) and it was a beautiful spacious venue. Everything was lovely. 

There were stations, seafood-beef-and mac and cheese, then assorted desserts rather than a wedding cake. Hubs and I wanted to plant ourselves beside the crab claws but we resisted. I didn't try the mac and cheese, but the seafood and beef were both really good. 

My favorite thing about a wedding reception is the father-daughter dance, and this one did not disappoint. I feel like the months and days leading up to the wedding are more about the mom, but the day of is where the dad's emotions really hit hard. 

My forever wedding date...

We were up and on the road with a cup of coffee to-go from the hotel lobby, because we knew the ride home was going to be a long one. There were big storms across the south on Wednesday night and sadly there was a rock slide on I-40 right around the Tennessee-NC border, aka our route home. It was already still a mess from Helene, but they've been working hard to get all lanes up, open,  and repaired, and now another setback. The road is closed again for another two weeks, which meant we had to take the long(er) way around to get home. 

We didn't run into any other snafus, just a much longer drive mile wise. We stopped for Mexican food close to home, then pulled in to the driveway to be greeted by Little Miss and her momma who were dropping off the little brown dog. They'd kept him at their house while we were away and while he was a good boy, nothing makes him happier than seeing his favorite person, the hubs. 

Sunday we declared a day of rest. Hubs back has been a problem for a couple of days and my ankle continues to be a problem (seeing the ortho on Thursday to hopefully figure it out) plus we were absolutely pooped. June has been chock-a-block full of all kinds of everything and we needed a day. Maybe more than a day, but we're starting with a day. 

We sat on the lower patio, I blogged, read, and relaxed, and hubs periodically asked how I was enjoying my vacation lol. We don't have any road trips on tap for July, although one may pop up, but mostly we plan to stick close to home, take the boat out, swim, and refill our tanks so to speak. 

And that was the weekend. How was yours? What did you get up to? 

 

I'm linking today with Holly and Sarah for their regular Hello Monday blog hop. Drop over and add your own weekend recap and see what others are saying too. Hope your summer is off to a great start! Or winter if you're reading from Down Under...I know there are a few here : )