Friday Favorites Or Something Like It

Linking with Andrea and Erika today for their Friday Favorites hop. 

I've had a houseful this week and have been off my blog game. I always remind myself it's more important to live life than to write about it, but I do love to write about it too. Doing a little catch up here as we roll into the weekend.

With my ankle propped up on a cushion because it's still achy achy, hopefully not breaky. 

Here are a few snaps and snippets from the week that was...

Lake life. Hubs can spot a snake from the second floor deck. We don't see many, but occasionally one crosses the cart path and slithers over to the rip rap along the shore. I've been assured he's one of the good guys and since I've never seen a copperhead on our property I'm going to say that's true. 

I ordered new melamine dishes to keep in the outdoor dining space and I love them. My daughter2 had seen some really pretty ones at Walmart which I almost bought, but then I went down the rabbit hole that is the Internet and found these I liked better.  They're Pfaltzgraff and were also a great price, so I got a service for 8. 

Last Friday my daughter had to go to the DMV to sort out her new license and tags so we said we'd stay with the kiddos while she was out. The DMV is challenging enough without three little ones in tow. We brought donuts. 

So fun to be close enough to do little things like this. 

Friends we hadn't seen in a while came for dinner Friday night. We opted for heavy hors d'oeuvres and dessert and we sat outside and used the new dishes. I know the calendar says we've got another 28 days before summer is officially here, but they came by boat which means summer is officially here. 

Don't you think we should just declare Memorial Day weekend the start of summer and get on with it? 

Our butterfly bushes have started to bloom and we've seen quite a few butterflies too. 

Quick topic change...I had bananas that were a little too ripe so I did what everyone does and made banana bread with them. This recipe (linked here) is my absolute favorite-

It's got a little bit of coconut in the bread and a lime drizzle over the top which sounds odd but trust me it's delish. I don't add the optional coconut extract, just fyi. In other food related news I made the Ina Garten orzo salad one evening and it's a keeper.

 Orzo, red onion, cucumber, scallions, feta, fresh parsley, fresh dill, and a lemon vinaigrette. So good! 

The grands arrived. 

All of them I mean. Three live nearby but daughter2 came with her two to spend the week and it's been a fun sort of loud chaos. 

I have four chairs that rock and swivel in my keeping room and when the grands are here no two chairs face the same direction ever. 

Having both girls here is such a treat. You never get over that. 

Tuesday morning we went to Daughter1's house to play while she took her oldest (the mancub) to his new school for a reading assessment. He reads like a boss so it was basically just a box to be checked but they were out for an hour and the rest of us hung out in her play room. She's still getting that space organized so basically every single toy was fair game. 

Pretty sure we played with them all. 

Tuesday afternoon we took the kids to a park just a couple of miles from our house and spent the afternoon playing in the sand and sea. Technically the sea is a lake but you know what I mean. Also five kids along with sand toys, towels, sunscreen, hats, chairs, snacks, plus the kitchen sink but totally worth it. 

This park has shade and a playground right beside the beach too which is nice. I mentioned this in my Hodgepodge on Wednesday and someone asked if there were sandy beaches on our lake. The answer is yes. The sand on some is better than others and we have our favorites, but kids don't care as long as you give them a bucket and a shovel. 

On Wednesday we met for coffee and breakfast in a cute little shop one town over from ours. We love this little burg and spend a lot of time here. We did a little shopping afterwards and it was a fun outing. Maybe I'll call it an event, because with five under seven pretty much everything feels like an event. 

Daughter1 made dinner for us that night which was a treat. Course hubs and my son-in-law missed it because they were guess where? Baseball! Whoohoo! The season ended on Thursday evening and it will be nice for her family to be able to check out some of the other things there are to do in their new home town which is also our home town. 

My grandson is sad the season's over so that's something. It's not easy to be 'the new kid' and he really enjoyed playing on this team. 

Thursday we had big plans. Or another event if you will. Boating.

Our maiden voyage and everyone was along for the ride. 

Some enjoyed it more than others lol. The littlest grand is a mover and a shaker (pretty sure I've said that about all of mine) and she wanted to walk around as opposed to sitting while moving, which Nana and Pawpaw put the kibosh on, plus lifejackets and that age are just not great. 

I mean they're great in terms of doing what they're supposed to do, but they're designed for safety, not comfort. 

We got back to the dock and everyone had lunch and then the littlest three laid down for a rest and the oldest two hopped on the paddle boards. Hubs got a workout in terms of pulling out all the gear, but it's gotta happen sometime and I guess this was that sometime. 

Let me just add here that whoever came up with the swim shirts for kids was a genius. 

The mancub would stay on that board all the day long if we let him, he loves it so much. His momma got in the kayak in case anyone started floating out of the cove, but no worries. They had so much fun and I suspect will be over here a lot this summer doing this very thing. 

And that brings us to Friday which I'll save for next week's Monday recap happening on Tuesday due to the holiday. 

I never like to let this particular weekend go by without acknowledging the brave men and women who've given their very lives for the freedoms we continue to enjoy. On this Memorial Day holiday I not only want to honor them, but I want to live in a way that makes their sacrifices meaningful. 

My Dad was a career Marine and while he did not die in battle he did serve in three wars and is buried in Arlington National Cemetery. I always think of that very special place on this very special day. Sitting beside row upon row of white crosses puts many things in perspective. 

May God bless America and may He pour out His wisdom on our leaders and citizens alike.