Everyday Images Hello Tuesday Edition

Hi. It's Tuesday, but I'm recapping the weekend anyway because I can. I'm linking today with Hello Monday hosted by Holly and Sarah, Talking About It Tuesdays hosted by Joanne, and Everyday Images hosted by Kym, whose most recent prompts are-

layers~current season (quarterly)~milestone~getting ready~wings~entrance~young

Also, this post might be all over the map. We'll see. Let's start with this one-

layers~

On the left a great grandmother/grandmother/mother, in the middle a granddaughter/daughter/mother, and on the right a daughter/granddaughter/great-granddaughter...the many layers of a family

Not the weekend, but this happened last week and I like the word play. Daughter1 and her Little Miss made the trek with me out to see my mama. We had a nice visit, we fed the ducks who are loud and demanding, we chatted, we looked at pictures, and then we walked with her to lunch and were on our way. The three of us stopped for lunch on our way back to the lake and little miss was an A+ car rider.

Current season (quarterly)~

We've had a rainy summer. Not necessarily all day rain, but what feels like lots of gray skies and intermittent rain. 

Friday was one of those days. I helped with a Mah Jongg class in the morning and then hit the grocery store, then hubs and I  hung out at home for a bit. We went out for Chinese food, which we haven't done in a long time because the few Chinese restaurants in town don't get fabulous reviews. 

Friends told us about a place they like so we gave it a try and we thought it was good. I mean it's take out Chinese, although we ate in, and we always go for spicy and it wasn't bad. Is that a stellar recommendation? No, but we'll go back when we want easy Chinese so that's something. 

young~

We saw this sweet thing at the entrance to my daughter's neighborhood over the weekend. There are few things cuter than a baby deer. Speaking of entrance~

We have a crepe myrtle on either side of the driveway entrance. Here's the one on the left-

and here's the one on the right. Hmmm...

These were planted on the same day, same time, and for some reason one is twice the size of the other, although both do bloom. We think it might have something to do with the electrical box on the right side of the drive, but we really don't know. 

These purslane are at the entrance to the garage. This color is called strawberries and cream, although lately there's some orangey shades in the mix too. Nature is amazing. 

Since we're on the subject of nature...

wings~

It's hummingbird central around our house and hubs added another feeder to the upper deck. The birds love it and it seems to be their new favorite spot. 

Our pet heron-

Technically not our pet, but he hangs out here a lot. Usually on the shoreline but on this day it seems he wanted a 'bird's eye view'. 

Saturday was party day. It drizzled in the morning, but cleared up (mostly) for the afternoon happenings. The Mancub's birthday party wasn't until 3 so I stayed in my pjs until it was time to leave. I have had the cough that won't quit since we got back from Florida, plus did I mention my little 'mishap'? Ugh. This year has not been smooth sailing in terms of injury. 

Last week I dropped by my daughter's house to steal from her garden (with her permission) and when I stepped out of the car, my foot landed on her soft hose, which caused the hose to roll and yep...down I went. I scraped my leg pretty good, but the bigger thing was I rolled my foot and let me tell you, it hurt. 

So I hobble in to my daughter's house and the kids come running happily to greet me and blood is gushing out of my leg, so my daughter hurries to get ice and bandaids and first aid and honestly y'all. I have been a lot this year. For everyone, myself included. 

I went to the dr for the second time yesterday and will try an antibiotic now. For the cough, not my foot. And that's if hubs doesn't smother me with a pillow first. 

I kid. 

Except he probably wants to because I'm annoying even to me. The ortho in my family and the doc today both tell me my foot is likely not broken so it's ice and the sleeve and time. 

Back to the weekend. The birthday party. My daughter should have a party planning business because she can work a theme with so many cute little touches, and the Mancub loved it. 

milestone~

Turning a year older surely qualifies. 

The Mancub's party was all things Harry Potter along with a big inflatable water slide which has nothing to do with HP and everything to do with Carolina heat and humidity and a backyard full of 9-year olds. 

There were 'Great Hall floating candles'-

pencil wands in the goodie bags, house banners hung, and Hogwarts letters in the fireplace...

Plus a  beautiful cake complete with Harry Potter themed candles-

Everyone had a lot of fun. 

Sunday morning I was up early to make ham and cheese sliders for a bridal shower daughter1 and I were attending right after church.  A sweet young couple were celebrating their upcoming wedding and I do love a bridal shower. The food was delicious and there was an ice cream bar for the bride who's been scooped up : ) So cute. 

getting ready~

...for the sun to set. 

Sunday night hubs and I kayaked over to a nearby island with a couple of neighbors to watch the sunset. It was an absolutely gorgeous evening and the air was hot, the water just right. A nice way to begin a new week. 

A Few Days With My Favorites

Hello friends. It's Friday. Yay! 

We're retired so I'm not sure why the fact that Friday's here is still so exciting, but it is. 

I'm going to recap the past few days which definitely falls under the heading of favorite things, and I'm also going to try to meet the Everyday Image photo prompts at the same time. Mine might land a bit out of order (and I may have missed a couple) but I think that still counts. 

My daughters very rarely post their children's faces online so I have to get creative with my blog pics. I take plenty of their faces for our own enjoyment, and all you need to know is they're the cutest humans on planet earth. 

The most recent prompts Kym (A Fresh Cup Of Coffee) posted were-

wildflowers, water, neighborhood spot (quarterly), nature, adventure, favorite, twilight

We've had our Tennessee grands and their momma here this week and the local grands spent most of the week with us too, so lots of noisy fun was had by all. My favorite thing is having all the cousins together. There's a six year age gap between the oldest and the youngest and plenty of personality to go round. 

Daughter2's hubs had an out of town work commitment all week, so she brought her two sweeties, plus her big puppy to the lake for a few days. They arrived around lunchtime Monday and their Carolina cousins were in the driveway shouting their welcome. Did you hear them? I feel like you might have heard them. 

We had lunch then hit the lake. The lily pad is a great thing if you have little ones around open water. Everyone wears a life jacket or some other type of Coast Guard approved device at Nana and Pawpaws, and they all know they aren't allowed on the dock without one. The oldest (aka the mancub) asked me recently how old he has to be before that rule doesn't apply and I randomly said 18 ha! Maybe? 

Anyway the lily pad is great fun and they all love playing sea monster or alligator where hubs shakes it and tries to grab their feet and they try not to fall off. You can literally stand on the lily pad which makes it especially great for the smallest grands. 

Daughter1 took her kids home for dinner, and I'd made cold shrimp with cocktail sauce, cucumber and tomato salad, and crock pot chicken for dinner. Easy peasy is the name of the game with a houseful. 

After Daughter2's kiddos were tucked in she and I watched the second to last epsiode of last season's The Great British Baking Show. It's only taken us three months but we were determined to finish it up while she was in town. We watched the finale Tuesday night and were happy with the outcome. 

Tuesday was a beach and boat day. Let me just say here that getting five kids under the age of 8 into life vests, sun tan lotion applied, toys, drinks, snacks, towels, and floats all safely on board the boat is not for the faint of heart. Oh, and four adults too. Can't forget the adults. 

The weather was fantastic and we had the best day. All the grands wanted a turn as co-captain so half drove us out to the island and the other half motored us home. 

~adventure~

~wildflowers~

~favorite~

This particular island has a nice long beach and everyone swam and dug in the sand and collected shells and explored the local habitat. 

I wonder if this is our beaver's handiwork or one of his buddies? 

~nature~

We had lunch at home, the littlest cousin had a nap and everyone else rested until we were ready for round two, which was a trip to the neighborhood pool. It's literally about ten houses up from mine, but we still took two cars, several bags, and a trunk full of noodles because go big or go home, right? 

~neighborhood spot~   ~water~

We pretty much had the pool to ourselves which was so nice. Our pool is never jam packed because we have a lake in our backyard.  Also, we definitely sound like more people than we actually are. 

Once home the kids watched a show while Daughter2 picked her pup up from doggie day care and hubs and I got dinner going. My son-in-law arrived in time to eat with us, and hubs grilled brats, we had corn on the cob, slaw, and a big veggie tray. 

Then it was time for birthday presents and ice cream cake celebrating the newly minted four year old. His birthday was the week before but we wanted a family celebration at the lake. 

The cousins went home and the two staying here got so excited when our sprinklers popped up. Whoohoo! Ran through in their clothes like it was the best day of their lives. We'd been boating, swimming in the crystal clear lake, and playing in a huge pool but nothing could top running through those sprinklers in their clothes. Life's simple pleasures are usually the best. 

Wednesday hubs played golf with some friends. It was good lol. He's the king of fun and his back needed a rest. To answer your question, yes. Golf is less taxing on the back than slinging five kids in the air and on and off your shoulders into a pool. 

We girls plus their kids hung out in the lake for a while, then everyone changed clothes and the sisters took all the kids to Daughter1's house for lunch while Nana stayed home with the dogs and made sauce for dinner. 

Nana may have also sat on the porch in the quiet for a quick minute too. Just sayin'. 

The oldest two boys had piano lessons late afternoon so their momma took them to that and Daughter2 and I took the three youngest back to the pool. 

I told you grand parenting wasn't for weaklings. 

After piano lessons the boys moved on to baseball practice, but their dad took over there so daughter1 and her little miss could have dinner with us.   

Which brings us to Thursday morning. Hubs had a work meeting so we girls took the kids to our neighborhood playground to play for a while before lunch, and then daughter2 and her crew got on the road to head home. Boo. 

~everything's an adventure when you're two~

I did laundry and managed to get three sets of sheets washed, dried, and back on the beds, along with two loads of towels, then hit the grocery store to grab a few things I needed for company coming on Friday night, picked up dry cleaning and two library books that were on hold and then back home to put away the 'kid gear'-stepstools, a small table and chairs, the toybox, toys and games, books and more.

For the record...it's all worth it.

Linking today with Kym for Everyday Images 

and 

Friday Favorites with Erika at A Little Bit of Everything) and Andrea (Momfessionals)

Hey Monday

A quick reminder I'm hosting a Day In The Life linkup for anyone interested on Thursday, June 18

Good Monday morning friends. How was your weekend? Ours was a scorcher filled with fun, family, and livin' the lake life. I'm linking as usual with Holly and Sarah for their weekend recap hop, and here's how ours looked-

My younger sister was in town with her hubs and son for the weekend. Well, nearby anyway. They're here mainly to visit my mama, so staying with my older sister who lives about an hour from me. They had plans to come to the lake for dinner so I spent Friday morning baking dessert, making an appetizer for Saturday's activities which are unrelated to Friday night's activities, and getting the house ready. 

Speaking of dessert...

pre-glaze

This recipe is a keeper. Everyone loved them. They're a strawberry lemon blondie made with fresh strawberries and freshly squeezed lemon juice. 

The strawberry glaze is made with pureed strawberries and it absolutely takes an already yummy bar to the next level. The glaze is sweet but the bars are not overly so and they're scrumptious. 

Family arrived here about 4 and my sister and her hubs and son immediately jumped in the lake. It was hot and humid with temps in the 90's so the water was welcome. I sat up on the porch with my other sister and we caught up. It was a fun and relaxed afternoon and evening. 

Hubs grilled wings, hot wings and teriyaki both, and they were delicious. I'd made a big pan of baked ziti on Thursday, and I love this recipe. I tweak it a little, but mostly prepare as written. I wanted something I could make ahead so I could hang with my family. The ziti just needed to be baked and then I added a salad and garlic bread to the meal. 

After dinner we went for a boat ride. 

It was still steamy but there was a nice breeze as we were cruising. 

The sky was so pretty, and as they pulled out of the driveway to head home the sunset did its thing. 

Saturday morning hubs and I sipped coffee on the deck and watched a lot of videos of Europeans visiting America for the first time and absolutely loving it. The messaging they get from their home country's news isn't matching up with the beauty, the wonder, and the kindness found in America, particularly the south and the heartland which is where many of these travelers are visiting. What they're seeing with their own eyes and experiencing in their interactions with people is giving them a new narrative and I am here for it.

There's a portion of Americans who could learn something from them, but I guess I won't get on my soapbox today. 

We were invited on Saturday to celebrate a friend's retirement with a ginormous lake float party. They were serving BBQ, but everyone was asked to bring something based on the first initial of their last name which meant an appetizer for us. I made pickled shrimp which is always a hit.  

Friends picked us up on our dock and we motored over to join 100 of our closest friends for an  afternoon of floating, great music and delicious food.

Fanciest port-a-potty ever-

The band was fantastic. Seriously so good playing a mix of 70's-80's and 90's music. 

It was a scorcher too so hanging out in the water was perfect. 

Sunday we went to church, then came home and had lunch and a rainstorm. 

I spent the afternoon catching up on my blog and resting up for Sunday evening when our Vacation Bible School would kick off. I'm doing preschool and kindergarten crafts so it should be fun chaos. VBS always is. 

If you recapped your weekend hop over and add your link to the party. 

The Weekend

Good Monday morning friends. My blog and I are out of sync and need to get reacquainted. I spent last week helping get my mom moved which entailed, among other things, driving more than 700 miles (all local!!), and I have either a whole lot to say about it or nothing at all. I haven't quite decided. 

It was a bit of a tough week, with some bright spots too of course, but I think I'll put that on the back burner for now and just chat about my weekend, pretty blooming things, and how much joy motherhood has brought to my life. 

Backing up to Wednesday because the day was a beauty and for dinner I made this delicious one-pan chicken and spinach orzo which needs to be mentioned. 

The recipe calls for rotisserie chicken but I brushed a couple of chicken breasts with Italian dressing, roasted them, then shredded, and I liked the flavor this brought to the dish. Really good!! Hubs loved it and ate the leftovers for lunch the rest of the week. 

In other news I am in love with everything blooming in our yard right now.  

The color of these azaleas is so delicate. 

Thursday was my volunteer day, then I came home and washed my hair, made stuffed peppers for dinner, and crashed on the couch. 

Friday I spent most of the day with my mama who now resides in the Palmetto State. My older sister and my niece both live just a few minutes from my mom's new home and the three of us joined her for  a lovely Mother's Day luncheon there. 

I got back to the lake about 3:30 and met hubs at our local wine shop for a tasting. A vintner from Italy he’d met on one of his earlier visits to the lake was in town, so hubs wanted to stop by the tasting. I was exhausted so didn't stay long and we came home and had a low key Friday night. We had leftover peppers for dinner, then watched a movie-Solo Mio, which we thought was really cute. 

I'd love a trip to Italy right about now, please and thank you. 

Saturday morning we made a trip to Lowes to pick up more potting soil, dirt so hubs could repair the yard where the sprinkler repair happened the day before, and lightbulbs for our outdoor lanterns. I wanted to sit outside and blog and read, but it was a little too cool and cloudy so I planted myself on the couch instead. 

Hubs did a million things like clean the boat bimini, fix the yard where it needed fixing, repotted some tomatoes, and got ribs going on the Big Green Egg. Happy Mother's Day to me. He knows I've had a month week and has pretty much let me be. 

It warmed up some close to dinner time so we sat by the waterfall with a glass of wine which felt like a great big much needed exhale. The lake was quiet and the sound of the waterfall soothing. 

Also these ribs y'all. 

He has mastered it.  

Sunday. Mother's Day. We went to church and heard a really good message taken from James 3 about the power of the tongue, which I think gave everyone something to think about, or maybe that's just me? Right after church daughter1 and I sent the guys home and she and I went to see Devil Wears Prada2. A quiet theatre with chairs that recline and a tub of popcorn to share for our Mother's Day lunch. 

What more could a mom ask for? We both liked the movie and it confirmed my need for a trip to Italy. Also a pair of super chic sunglasses which I'll be adding to my birthday wish list. 

I bought both of my girls the same thing as a little Mother's Day gift this year, and went all in with my hedgehog theme. I ordered this wrapping paper from Zazzle and it was so cute and of great quality. I dislike flimsy wrapping. 

Both my girls have gardens and you know how we feel about hedgehogs. 

These watering cans are from Uncommon Goods and I saw them at Christmas time, but they sold out fast. I remembered them and went back and looked a couple of months ago and success! They're sturdy and  adorable both so I might have to go back and get one for myself too.  

My girls both gave me sweet gifts that confirm they know me well. I appreciate when there is thought behind a present.  

I came home after the movie and hubs and I finally!! took the boat out for this season's maiden voyage. The sun was shining and it was a gorgeous day to be on the water. We motored by a house hubs recently sold so he could snap some pics from the water to send the soon-to-be new owners, but mostly we just moseyed around  nearby coves before coming back to the house to get dinner going. 

Hubs grilled steaks and they were delicious. After dinner we took a short walk before deciding to jump back on the boat to try and catch the sunset-

A beautiful ending to the Mother's Day weekend and always a sweet reminder that God is faithful. 

Visit Holly (Pink Lady Blog) and Sarah (Books and Sunshine) to read more 

or to add your own weekend recap.