Two Years Left

I'd be lying if I said I wasn't sad this morning when Alise left for her first day of her junior year. Every. single. day. I have taken Baby Girl to school. She started a wee school when she was one. She went to a private Catholic school when she was three and we started the school she now attends at age four. Some of our best mother/daughter moments were in the car on the way to school. And some of our not-so-great mother/daughter moments. When she was a baby, we would look for ducks or horses on the way to school. We would pass the manger scene at a local church and talk about baby Jesus. And during all those early years, and probably not until eighth grade, I never thought about the day when she would finally be old enough to drive herself to school. I was oblivious. 

I'd be lying if I said I didn't video her leaving and then shoot the video to Wayne, who said she was driving too fast. Spoken like a true dad. 

I'd be lying if I said I didn't give her my credit card to buy school supplies on her own. One chore that I did NOT mind giving up! There's just not anything fun about buying binders and loose-leaf paper. Alise could stand in front of a wall of binders all day! 

When Alise was younger, I would go to her school's peprallys with her and on Friday nights, we would go as a family to watch the home football games and she was just so mesmerized by the "older" kids. All the cheerleaders, the drumline, etc. and when they would speak to her, she would just melt. I reminded her earlier this week that now, SHE'S the big kid. And again, it's a scenario that I never thought about her being in. A friend of mine told me that her daughter was very nervous about making the transition to middle school so I told Alise to make a point to say hi and keep a check on her. Middle school memories are not as kind. 

Two years. We have two years left with Baby Girl and I feel like I have SO much to cram into this short time. But then, there's a part of me that doesn't want to cram, doesn't want to even think about it. I just want to enjoy my front row seat. 

                                                                   Kindergarten, August 2010

Things I Have Been Loving This Summer - Part 1

Like I said in my last post, we've a great summer! And it's gone by so quickly! Today I'm sharing round one of some of the things that I loved this summer. 

{We're having make-your-own pizza night with one of Alise's friends and I just burned the bacon because I was writing this post. 😠 Ugh!! The family isn't going to let me live this down! I'll hear about it all weekend. Now I need to wonder why the smoke alarm didn't go off?}

We discovered a new frozen pizza that we really, really like and I found it at a non-chain grocery store, but I think Walmart may have them, too. It's the California Pizza Kitchen brand and it's the Sicilian Recipe pizza. It kinda reminds me of a meat lovers, but the flavor is just fantastic.

I found out about Tom Brown's Body podcast by listening to the Big Boo podcast with Melanie Shankle and Sophie Hudson. I especially love crime/who dun it podcasts and this one was a FIVE star. I even told Wayne about it and he ended up finishing it before me. 

Speaking of media, we watched Cruel Summer as a family in July and we enjoyed it. It had been a long time since we've watched a series together. Alise normally likes the young adult shows, but they normally don't hold my attention and I give up. Needless to say, this one did and although I really didn't care for the ending - for reasons that I won't give away - it is definitely a series worth watching. 

Unfortunately we were very late getting our pool up and going this summer. Everything started out well and then we discovered water behind our liner so we knew we had a leak. Two weeks of waiting for the new liner to ship turned into nearly a month, and once we DID finally have it installed, then it decided to rain every weekend for about three weeks in a row! But I'm loving the new darker look of the pool.

Absolutely LOVED bringing out all the red, white, and blue this summer and flags just make me so happy! 

Lastly, I have been loving my Vitamin D. What, you say? Well, this spring I had my annual visit with my doctor and I told her how tired I was all the time and how I didn't have any energy. She did some blood work and prescribed me a weekly dose of 50,000 grams of Vitamin D. And I also take a daily Vitamin D and  - because I'm a doctor, too! - I decided to take a B-12 vitamin.  Y'all, I can't begin to tell you  how much better I feel! I go back in a few weeks to have my lab work done again and I can't wait to see just how low I really was and what the improvement numbers are. I haven't felt this good in a really, really long time.

Have a great week, Friends! Hoping to resume a more regular schedule after school starts next week!

I'm Still Alive!

I feel like I should give myself a great big hug and say, "Welcome Back, Sista!"

Not so fast, though. I'm certainly not going to make any promises that I can't keep.

Truth is, it's been a hot minute since I've been here in my little space on the internet. WHEN I thought about blogging, I sometimes felt guilty for not and other times, I had a peace about it. Peace that I was living life and enjoying my time with family and friends and not feeling like I had to write about every. single. thing. And guilty because I didn't. How could I go from blogging for nearly sixteen years and not even mention Baby Girl's Sweet Sixteen birthday?

It's coming. Later. 

We've had a wonderful summer, but the truth is, I kinda lost my mojo for writing. And when I DID feel like writing, I had nothing to say and didn't have the heart for a recap post. I filled that time with awful books - except the Bible, of course! - podcasts, Life 360, and pool time. I have thoroughly enjoyed my summer. 

It's hot now - very! - and I'm over summer. Bring on fall and sweaters and boots! Soups and Christmas! Pumpkins and candles! 

I'll be back soon. 

Currently ~ April 2021

I'm joining Anne today for this month's Currently link up. 

arranging// I have found the best flower wholesaler in our area and I think it's a secret hidden gem. Although their selection is sometimes limited, I've been very pleased with the purchases I've made so far this spring. Having said that, I've been doing some floral arrangements throughout our home as well as making small arrangements for friends and my desk at the office. One of my favorite arrangements is this one beside my bed. Years ago, my best friend gave me this unique vase and it's my favorite. These carnations are nearly four weeks old and STILL look beautiful and it brings a smile to my face everyday. 

craving// March has been the month for PIE and yummy salads. What a combination, right? I picked up a delicious strawberry pie on PI Day (March 14th!). On weekends we like to entertain or grill and eat outside by our pool and I have been trying all the Pinterest salads! So far, we have enjoyed them all, except for the Green Jacket Salad.  Wayne and Alise didn't like the dressing that went with that one. This one is still at the top of our favorite list and I even made it again on Easter when I cooked for us and my mom and dad. 

discussing// I'm trying to determine if my prayers need to be more specific or if God just has a really crazy sense of humor. Our family is praying earnestly for direction and guidance in regards to a situation that we're facing. And Wayne and I both feel that we have discussed the topic to death. So much so that we've both said we're sick of talking about it, yet we KEEP talking about it! Not in the sense that we don't know what to do, just the everyday turn of events. We trust that God's will is always perfect, even when we don't understand. 

enjoying// We visited the ranch in Texas mid-March. Such a fun and relaxing weekend for our family and plus one. Lots of fishing, ATV riding, reading, food, and March Madness. The weather was a little cool, but perfect! Wayne is actually taking his college group over there this weekend for a small retreat. 

preparing// We visited the vineyards this past weekend and I had a fun time preparing our picnic basket. The friends that went with us - who had actually never been before and so they didn't quite know what to expect - were amazed at all the food I brought (which really, wasn't very much!). Let's just say that even my charcuterie board made an appearance! Anyhoo, it was a fun night being outside with friends and listening to the band.  And the food was good, too! 

Prime Purchases ~ April 2021

I have to confess that March Madness and prime shopping do not mix well. Wayne enjoys watching the games, so I watch with him, but there were several games that sheer boredem sent me browsing and "adding to cart." 

I got so many comments about the "coasters," aka exfoliating pads from last month's prime post. I hope you decided to try them because it has been one of my favorite prime purchases so far this year. They work great and leave my face feeling so smooth and soft. 

Here are a few things I bought in March.

Shower Steamers// These are good y'all. The perfect aromatherapy pick-me-up that is not too strong or overpowering. Wayne even likes them. The key to them lasting even longer than just one shower, is not putting them directly in the shower spray. I've set the disk on the side of the tub and one lasted four showers! 

Bangle Bracelet Key Holder// Have you seen these because they are quite popular in my area. I bought this for a friend's birthday last month and stuck a gift card in the holder. She loved it! I loved it so much that I ordered three more for friends that I knew would enjoy them, too. The key holders come in a variety of colors and they make the perfect little happy gift. 

Letter Board Letters// I have a small letter board that my dear friend, Andrea, gifted me a few years ago and the letters I had were too big so I got these 3/4-inch size and they are perfect! 

Kitsch Satin Pillowcase// We got new sheets for Christmas so I decided to chunk my old satin pillow case.  I decided to replace it with this pillowcase because it kept showing up in my feeds and all the influencers were raving about it. It has a very luxurious feel and I love the leopard design, but my final verdict is still out because I'm not quite sure if it's worth the price point. 

Lounge Pajama Set// Love, love these pajamas! I use them as a lounge set and wear them lots of days to "work." Unfortunately, I can't wear them to bed. The material just doesn't work with my weighted blanket and peri-menopause, but they are leopard and so comfy that I decided to keep them anyway.

I hope your April is off to a wonderful start! It's going to be a great month!