Dish Of The Day

Working my way through the alphabet in this month's A-Z blog challenge...

 Day 4-D is for Dishes 

If a pretty dish enters my home you should know it's probably not coming out. I mean if it's yours I'll return it, but if I've bought it myself or it's been handed down to me I'm keeping it possibly forever. 

Doesn't everyone need an asparagus plate? 

I live on a lake and everything is super casual here. We use melamine and plastic tumblers for the outdoor spaces, but I  think a beautifully set table in the dining room is one of life's little pleasures and I want more of it. 

I feel like people push back when you want to make something a little bit 'fancy'. Guests don't want you going to any trouble, but I say going to a little bit of trouble is part of what makes a dinner gathering special. 

I know everyone is fine with paper plates and easy clean up, but I love the aesthetic of real dishes and I don't even mind hand washing my china whenever we pull it out. Which isn't often, but when we do it feels so civilized. Hubs and I always enjoy having a debrief too, as we wash up dishes after a party. It puts a bookend on the evening.  

I have a lot of dishes, but right now I have room for them and I use them. I have my everyday dishes. I have a very full set of china chosen when I married that I still love a lot.

I have a set of Christmas dishes. I have many many serving pieces I purchased on trips to Italy and the potteries in Stoke-on Trent in the UK. 

Memorable days and memorable trips made with women who became friends as we bonded over pottery and living far from 'home'.  

I have some lovely little glass sherbet style dishes that belonged to my grandmother that I've only used a couple of times but am determined to use again. Plus they were my grandmas. Doesn't the law say you can't give away your grandmas dishes? 

My daughter1 has my grandmother's china and it made my mom so happy when she moved out of her house knowing these dishes went to a granddaughter. 

I'm a believer in using the good dishes. In the end they're just dishes and if one breaks it breaks. What's the point of having nice things if they're always tucked away in a drawer or cabinet? 

When I was visiting my daughter2 a couple of weeks ago we went into a beautiful home store and my eyes instantly landed on a set of gorgeous bar glasses that would be so much fun for summer. I hemmed and hawed and thought about how I might justify the purchase (they were awfully pricey), and when I asked myself aloud where would I put them my daughter said, and I quote, 'just buy them mom, you'll figure it out when you get home.' 

I love her. 

But I didn't purchase because they were somewhat girly and the bar area is kind of hubs domain so he might not appreciate these. Or he might be happy if they make me happy? I can always go back, right? 

Mother's Day Weekend Recap

Hello. 

Monday morning blogging always happens around here on Monday afternoon. Sometimes Monday evening. Sometimes Tuesday. 

We had a lovely at home weekend which was much needed and a rare occurrence. I had a power nap on the porch Saturday and Sunday both, which might have been the highlight. 

Friday night some new friends came for dinner. A few Sundays ago our pastor encouraged everyone to meet someone new, invite them for coffee or lunch after church or whatever, and so we did. We invited a couple we knew only very casually to come for dinner, and y'all we had the best time talking and  discovering the very many things we have in common, including both of us living in the UK for a while. 

Living life in person is how it's meant to be. 

Saturday morning hubs attended our neighborhood HOA meeting. We were electing new officers and they needed people to show up to be counted. One vote per household though, so hubs voted and I stayed home, called my momma, and washed my hair. 

Happy Mother's Day to me lol. 

It was a pretty day so we took the little red car for a spin, had lunch on the porch at a local lunch spot, and toasted the start of summer with a hand crafted Orange Crush at the lakeside cabana. 

It was for sure a convertible kind of day so after lunch we meandered around some neighborhoods looking at new construction with the radio blaring and the top down. 

Then that nap happened. On the porch with a soft breeze blowing. Perfection. 

I cooked a Home Chef meal on Saturday night then we watched some of our current binge-Succession. Who's watching this? Do you like anyone on the show? Every evening we try to decide if there is a single character we actually like and we pretty much agree no there is not, yet we keep watching. Still in season one and I think there are three but the jury's out on whether we'll make it all the way through. 

Neither of my girls were in the house on Mother's Day, but we have all been coming and going and everyone needed to just stay put. We will see both girls and all the grands in the next few weeks, and as long as I have that next visit on the calendar I'm good. 

My daughters both sent sweet gifts, and also cards where they write messages that make me feel all the feels. My two oldest grands colored a card for me which is one of my favorite things. We went to church Sunday morning, had an afternoon nap I've already mentioned at least three times now, and then hubs grilled scallops on the Big Green Egg for dinner. 

I made a lemon butter orzo and steamed spinach as the sides, and everything was easy and so delicious. 

And now it's Monday. Afternoon. Evening. Whatever. 

We had plans to get up and go to Costco first thing this morning but when we got in the car hubs noticed the tire light on and upon investigation discovered a nail. Bother. Off we went to the tire place which is not in the direction of Costco but we had no choice. We have two houses under construction on our street and I think this was hubs third trip to the tire center as a result. Everyone seemed to know him when we walked in and they're all so nice, and were quick too. 

Now to Costco. 

Wait, before we went to Costco we had to drop a return package at UPS. I ordered lightbulbs for a bathroom fixture and they were the wrong size, even though hubs and I both checked and rechecked to see if we were getting the correct shape, wattage, and style. Ughhhh! 

Does anyone else find buying lightbulbs now just the teensiest bit stressful? I'll have to worry about replacements another day because we still needed to get to Costco. 

Which is not close.

We have to drive into the small big city to shop at a Costco, so only go about once a month. We spend a ridiculous amount of money in our efforts to save money, then treat ourselves to lunch (not at Costco) before making the trek home. 

Once home you still have to deal with all the purchases. The meat has to be broken down into smaller packaging, and I have to rearrange my too full freezers to make room for it all, and the whole thing makes me think I might need another nap. 

Instead I blog. 

Hey, did you know Costco sells jelly bellies in a jumbo sized container? 

I thought my season of jelly bean overindulging ended with Easter, but discovered today it in fact did not. Whoohoo! Happy Monday everyone~

Come On Over

Good Monday morning. I hope you all had a joyous Easter Day. Ours was lovely with beautiful weather, a really great church service, and a delicious meal shared with several couples from our church who also happen to live in the neighborhood. 

Hubs came home and washed my car. I came home, put on my yoga pants, and took a quick nap. 
Hey, we all have our superpowers. 

Continuing now with this month's A-Z Blog Challenge...

Day 15-O is for Out Of Town Visitors 

I know not everyone feels the same, but we love company. When you move around a lot you end up with friends in every corner of the world, and connecting when they pass through town for a night, a weekend, or a few days mid-week is something we welcome and enjoy. 

That being said unless you're related to me, a few days is good. Ha! We have the room so physical space isn't an issue, its more the mental space for me. I like activity and then I like quiet. I love seeing friends pull down the drive and I love waving goodbye when it's time to go. 

We've had a lot of company in this house. Our many visitors have been great, turning up with wine and treats and sometimes even their own bath towels (less laundry for me) and rolls of Bounty since paper towels are something we seem to run through when company comes to town.  

One thing I've learned is I'm far more anxious about the menu, the plans, and the accommodations than my guests are. I want everything just so and they want to go for a boat ride, sit on the porch with a glass of wine, and catch up. I try to remember this and not overly stress about something that in the end isn't important. I love make ahead dishes that allow me to hang with my guests rather than spending a lot of time in the kitchen while they're here. 

People almost always offer to bring something and rather than saying no thanks, I've learned to say sure...bring boat snacks or a fruit salad or bagels for breakfast. People want to contribute and I need to let them. We love our charcuterie boards and if I'm having a big group here I tell everyone I'll do meats and crackers and they can all bring a favorite cheese or 'relish item' to add to the tray. This has worked really well. 

While we do have room for a large crew here we, more often than not, have a larger than large crew come to stay. This year we added a Murphy bed to my office, designed, built, and installed by our cabinet makers. We couldn't be happier with the end result. 

It hides a queen-sized mattress and the design makes it feel like the bed has always been a part of the room. 

I still need a chair and a small table for the sitting area, and we still need to hang some art, but this bed has been slept in more than once since the install and it's not even summer yet, so a good investment. While the room may not be 100% done, people are sleeping in there because they don't care that I haven't hung the pictures or landed on just the right piece of furniture to add between the chairs. They just want to come hang out and we want them to come hang out. 

In this age of social media we can start to feel like our homes need to be picture perfect and our guest accommodations over the top luxurious before we invite friends to stay. But once upon a time people would come to your house and kids would give up their beds and enthusiastically move to a pallet on the floor or a blanket on the couch to make room. More chairs were squeezed around an already crowded table, hamburgers were cooked on the grill, and the bathroom was shared with whoever lived in the house.

We're all a bit spoiled in this new century. We need hotel quality pillows and a private bath and soy milk- no gluten options wherever we go, and honestly that can be a little bit intimidating to a host. 

Host anyway. 

Welcome people into your home and your life and your heart. Make memories. Build relationships over cups of tea and a lazy afternoon spent floating on the water. It might not solve all the problems of this world, but it definitely solves a few.  

Lake life is meant to be low key and casual. If you need a special pillow or a certain kind of bread bring it with you. Come enjoy the spectacular view, the serenity of nature, the quirkiness of a small rural town, and most of all your people. Come and enjoy your people and the gifts of time and togetherness. 

The door is open and the kettle is on. 

Five Minutes At The Table

Table? Huh?

We've hit the halfway point in the ten day writing challenge and today's word is a head scratcher. I mentioned our old kitchen table in yesterday's post which is unfortunate. Should have looked at the word for today before I hit publish.

Today's prompt-TABLE

When hubs and I built this house we had much discussion over whether or not there would be a formal dining room. Formal in the sense that it would be its own space with all the bells and whistles as opposed to us having one great big kitchen table where all meals would be eaten.

Hubs was inclined to nix the dining room from our blueprint, but I dug in my heels and was adamant there would be a dining room in this house. Where would our great big extended families sit when they came to visit?

Where would we eat Thanksgiving dinner? Store my china and all those rarely used but dearly loved serving pieces?

Celebrate a grandson turning two?

How would we solve all the problems of the world in a house without a dining room?

Because y'all. I'm pretty sure most of the world's problems could be solved if people ganged up less on social media and gathered more often around a dining room table with a plate of food and face to face conversation.



Of course a kitchen table works too, but meals eaten in the dining room take me back to childhood and a simpler time. My dad at the head of the table, carving knife in hand. My mom smoothing the last little wrinkle from her perfectly pressed cloth. My siblings and I using our very best manners because something about dinner in the dining room made you sit up a little straighter and listen a little more.

It gave me an extra oomph of love for these people who were mine.

Time spent at the dinner table can do that. It connects us to one another in a way very few things can, especially in this 21st century immediate-hustle-hurry up way we often live.

Don't we all need to tap the brakes and slow the pace once in a regular while?

Let's linger around the dining room table just a little bit more. Let the love we feel for the people gathered there flood our hearts and fill us till we're full.