Hawt 98!

That is exactly what my car registered late yesterday afternoon, and just what our Atlanta TV station announced for our high here today.  At least this is double digits.  We’ll take that!

This means that we will be forced to close up the house and turn on the a/c.  Bugger.  The attic fan is pulling in 65 degree cool air right now, short-lived, free coolness.  Oh well…we don’t want to sweat.

We are indeed counting our blessings that we are not plagued with forest fires, but we are dry and need rain.  The Colorado fires are lapping too close to some family members and friends, so we definitely pray for rain out there. 

We may skip the outdoor music at a local winery tonight and opt to chill in the lake instead.

Let’s see:  hot there, cool here.  Hmm, here wins!

Stay safe and cool whatever you do this weekend.  Who wants to join us in the lake?

Another week almost gone. Heck, June is almost gone!

We are dropping my car off to get detailed today. Poor thing is sooo dirty, but it will be spiffy before dinner time. I wonder if they do house cleaning??? Oh, that would be moi. Bugger.

I don't know what was in the two buck chuck we had at dinner, but MM and I were both sleepy and in bed at 8:30. We are night owls normally, but not last night. Maybe it was caused by the mussels (mine in creamy tarragon sauce; his in marinara). Anyway, we were slugs so we slept...all night. And it was good. I suppose we just needed to catch up on sleep. Maybe we are getting old. Nah!

Tonight is dinner and marbles with friends. I think we can manage to stay awake.

What's for dinner? I am not sure, but I am taking a shrimp appetizer.

Have a great weekend, y'all!

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Location:Friday sunshine buddies

Taking care of business…

Our sweet Parker kitty was widely known as being “Parker Paperweight.” Missy appears to be following in his paw prints.  Note the empty kitty bed…which is where she is now this morning, nestled in bits of catnip dreams.  KC had his breakfast and opted to head outdoors to roam, just like a guy.  Typical girl, Missy needs her beauty sleep.

Brave got thumbs up last night, even though the wee boys had to look away from the screen a time or two (bears can be veerrry skerry!).  All us big girls liked it a lot.  And the popcorn!

So it is time to get back to cleaning off my desk now that my able assistant is waking up.  Lucky me!  Can you do a little filing, after your morning bath, my sweet kitty?  Carry on.  Get groomed first.  Don’t let me interfere with you routine…

Life is good in paradise, y’all, with thoughts of yummy pasta tonight.  Remember to share some smiles today.  I sure will.

Wednesday in paradise

That may be some new sandals in that bag, but I'm not saying for sure. I did buy some whole grain scoops. MM will like that. And the wine I bought. Maybe he won't notice the new shoes. Don't tell on me!


So while I slept this morning, apparently there was a great boat caper going on. Scooter told Jason that the ski boat was missing. Yeah, right...dad thought. He also told Jason yesterday that the ski boat was sinking. Yeah, right.

Scooter was right! Sorta. The boat lift was indeed leaking pressure and the boat floated off into the cove...and this morning was foggy as can be.

Jason ran over here yelling for MM to come help him, and now all is well...and tied up? I assume.

Thank you, Scooter. You rock! Dad and Grumps are in your debt big time.

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Free lunch!

Compliments if the chef at Maggiano's Restaurant! Apparently if you buy a pasta dish, you get another full dish to take home, so we did use our Marriott Residence kitchen after all.

Carrot cake recipe

 

I did post this recipe on Dyer Dining, but here it is for those interested:

Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

In a medium bowl, sift together:
2 c cake flour
2 tsp of each: baking soda, baking powder, and cinnamon
1 tsp salt
Set aside.

In a large bowl, combine:
1 ½ c oil  (can use ½ c oil and 1 c apple sauce)
2 c sugar
4 eggs, adding one at a time
4 c shredded carrots
1 ½ c chopped pecans
raisins, optional

Gradually add flour mixture to the above.  Pour into 3 8" cake pans that are greased and lined with wax paper, or a greased and floured 13x9" pan. Bake @ 325 degrees for 45-60 minutes until sides start to pull away from pan. Let cool 30 minutes before icing.

Cream Cheese Icing

1 stick butter, softened
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 tsp vanilla
Box Confectioners sugar

Whip together butter and cream cheese.  Add vanilla and powdered sugar.  If too stiff for spreading, thin with milk.  Sprinkle with nutty topping, if desired.

To market we will go

Gene and Janelee say HI from the farmer's market. It's hawt and a happening place!!!

Lots of good stuff here.

Wish G and JL could stay longer, but we take what we can get.

Life is good, y'all!


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Friday in paradise

 

Yes, that carrot cake was delish, and the cream cheese frosting was only tinted yellow to go with the John Deere theme to please our wee boy.  If you biggify, you will notice “sand” in the buckets.  It was edible sand—vanilla wafers!  There is NO cake in this house today…or ice cream either.  Dang.

But we do have something even better: some long-time friends are arriving today for an overnight with us.  I’m thinking a pontoon boat ride, then grilled chicken.  Haley is bringing smoked potato salad and Asian salad; Amy is bringing cauliflower and carrots.  And I have green beans.  Dinner is shaping up, but what’s for dessert?  Not that we need it…but still…

What’s for dinner at your house?

May each of you have a day that is blessed with family and friends.  Life is good in paradise, y’all!

Thursday with the girls

I have these two precious gals today while their mom is taking a continuing ed class, lucky me.  But they forgot their swimsuits, so we shall go out to lunch, then pick up their suits so that they can spend the afternoon in the lake.

Who wants to join us???

If you are not here, what are you doing?  Girls just wanna have fun in the sun (but not me!  I will be in the shade.).

Outta the office!

I am leaving these two in charge today.  We may be in trouble!  Oh, someone asked how much KC weighs?  He got to be a porker cooped up in the moho this past winter, so he is about 14 pounds.

They both have spent the night outside for the past two nights, so hopefully he will be exercising a bit more and lose a pound or two.

Joan, Jennie, Linda and I are off shopping (Joy, we’ll miss you…sing pretty tonight at the show!).

Summer officially begins today.  Woohoo!!!  We’ve got it here in paradise.

Life is a journey…enjoy, y’all!  KC and Missy, you two behave!

A new e-reader

Somehow or other this arrived in the mail at our house yesterday:

I think I shall enjoy this...until some munchkins arrive and want to give it a try. I will share, but of course!
And now there will be two e-readers for the travelers. Happiness is...well, except for that learning curve!
Does anyone have a fave Kindle app they want to tell me about???
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Welcome summer!

 

Nothing says SUMMER like time spent on the lake with a gaggle of girls.  And boy do they giggle while they gaggle!  Girls just wanna have fun, and fun they all had, including that wee boy, who appears to be warding off monsters from the deep with his mighty water gun.  Protector of the women and dogs…who got totally waterlogged all weekend…that was our boy.  Yes he did, and he also got totally worn out!

Long live chivalry, and big cousins who allow tag-along boys to share their birthday party…and cake.

Barb asked what kind of cake was served.  Well, it was Triple Chocolate Cake, which is oh, soooo good, and easy peasy.  Every crumb was enjoyed.

So how was your weekend?

It is beautiful here in paradise today.  Life is grand…and I hope yours is, too, but where has June gone???

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to all the fathers out there, especially MM, Logan, and Jason. We are blessed! As a matter of fact, MM and I were sitting the shade yesterday, enjoying watching all the kids playing in the water...and remembering days gone by when it was US out there with young kids, and US out there skiing.


We are just grateful that we are still here to enjoy our family, despite creaky knees keeping us sidelined from favorite sports. We adjust. And "remember when."

May you all be blessed with love and smiles today!

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Saturday snuggles

Sitting on the glider, snuggling with shy Scooter, drinking my coffee...watching all the birds flitting here and there and listening to their chatter. Priceless way to begin a day, my friends!


And birthday cake this afternoon with Miss Ansley. Can it get any better?

Life is grand in paradise, y'all!

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Caption this!

KC sitting on the bathroom scales:

Happy birthday, honey girl!

I don’t know how it happened, but this sweet, beautiful, talented young lady turns 14 today.  It feels like her mommie was this age about 10 years ago.  Time soars on by, entirely too quickly.

Enjoy your Flag Day birthday.  Grumps and I love you very  much, and are sooo proud of you!  We will always be “balcony people” for you and all our grandchildren, cheering you on.  You can do anything you choose to do.

Laugh when you can,
apologize when you should,
and let go of what you can't change.
Life's too short to be anything...but happy.

…thanks for the photo that I “stole” from Haley…

A pearl by another name

A foot pearl, known as a plantar wart. Wart? Ewww, that sounds gross and makes me think of the wicked witch in the movies, but that is what was causing the pain.

I had heard of these warts but had no idea what they were and boy did I get edjamacated. They are caused by viruses...sorta like an oyster having a grain of sand that irritates and eventually becomes a pearl. I had a foot pearl. I told the RN that I would prefer pearls around my neck, thankyouverymuch, not on my foot!

The treatment was cryosurgery, freezing that little bugger off. She did; and we hope it is dead and will just slough off. Not much to do except not go barefoot, soak in warm Epsom salt and get this, in a few days, put duct tape over it! Srsly. Won't MM love that! New fashion footwear...duct tape. Maybe I will buy a roll of something spiffy and start a new trend.

By late evening a not-so-lovely blister had formed.

I will manage, but today's shopping got postponed!

Marbles, anyone?


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Tuesday with sunshine

Welcome back, Ms Sunshine. We've missed you!


I would love to miss the lump on the bottom of my foot that appeared this morning, but it won't let me. What's up with that??? I have no idea what caused it. Dr. MM looked at it (what a way to begin HIS day with a foot in his face), but there is no obvious splinter or anything...just an obvious lump in the middle of the outside edge. I think a visit to the walk-in clinic is in my future. This was sooo not on today's planned agenda! Bugger.

But, that is life and we roll with whatever is dealt us and go on. This is minor in the overall scheme of things. And I am pretty well ready for the BSP meeting here tonight.

D fer done, right? Right.

Life is good, y'all! Get out and enjoy it.

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It’s Monday again…

This famous bull elk wintered on the National Elk Refuge for several years, shedding unusual and rare “double drop” antlers each season.  The antlers displayed here were removed from the Refuge.

The size and shape of antlers can be affected by nutrition, genetics, and age.  Antler abnormalities are generally caused by genetics or injuries.

Both the above and below photos were taken at the Jackson Hole (Wyoming) Visitor’s Center, which is quite an interesting and educational place.  MM and I always stop in there when we visit the area.

So it is Monday again…the beginning of a brand new week, starting with a visit this morning to the hygienist for my semi-annual teeth cleaning.  Not fun, but necessary for good dental health.  Have you scheduled yours yet?  Go ahead…do it!

It was great having the kids over last night…lots of good food and laughter.  The banana pudding was a big hit, as always.

Today there will be some house cleaning going on, since my BSP sistas will be here tomorrow night for a meeting.  Not that any of them arrive with white gloves!  But still…

Enjoy your day!

If you can't be a good example, then you'll just have to be a horrible warning.  ~Catherine~

Rainy day in GA

This was our sunset at the ceilidh Friday night.


No sunshine for today's opening of the games. Bugger. Maybe by afternoon there will be clear skies. Now I regret not going yesterday. Double bugger. Coulda shoulda, but I was waiting to go today to have my gals go with me. Oh well...

All the kids are coming over for dinner tonight, so that is the highlight of my Sunday.

What is yours? There is always a bright spot in every day, right? Right!!!

Life is soggy but good, y'all. Enjoy it!

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Of kilts, and bagpipes and food

Last night’s ceilidh was a whole bunch of fun, from the Scotch eggs (delish) to the Fruit of the Forest dessert; from the Parade of the Haggis to the entertainment; it was all good and plentiful.

The bagpipe video failed to upload, so play a little bagpipe music in your head for a moment and picture all those handsome men in their kilts.  There were a lot.  And ladies displaying their lovely tartans.  They were everywhere.  It was a bit too warm to wear my Night Watch cape, so I just laid it over my arm…not that they are MY clan colors.  Wait, the English don’t have a clan, but Scottish I am for this weekend.

Ceud Mile Failte – a thousand welcomes to all things Scottish…and fun.

Happy Saturday, y’all!

Happy Best Friend's Day!

And World Ocean's Day. This is the only body of water my BF and I will be seeing today, but it's not such a shabby view. And that water isn't salty. Yeah, I like this better than an ocean...unless there is a cruise ship involved! And speaking of...


There will be a river cruise for us in August that MM and I are excited about, but that's a long way off. There will be other smaller adventures before that one, beginning with the Blairsville Scottish Festival and Highland Games event this weekend. Food, games, musical groups, bagpipes...the weather promises a warm, toe-tapping time. Thirty-six clans will attend.

I haven't found any Scots blood in my family tree, but I will surely be Scots at heart this weekend, beginning with a Ceilidh (pronounced kay-lee) dinner tonight. With my best friend.

Be kind to one another, and the environment. Life is good, y'all!


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Antler arch

 

Notice that there is another arch on the other side of the park from this one that Lynne is standing under.  It is located in beautiful downtown Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

After looking around town a bit, we walked into the Million Dollar Cowboy Bar, so named because there are supposedly a million dollars worth of silver dollars imbedded in the bar (impressive)…and true Wild West saddle barstools.  Hmm, my derrière wasn’t tempted in the least to give one a try.  It was too dark for good photos inside, so here is at least the plaque on the outside of the historic building.

But get this—they didn’t serve draft beer!  How can it be a true cowboy bar with beer in bottles?  Tsk, tsk…

So Scooter got his little tractor replaced with working tires yesterday.  Both boys were coached not to have the “I wants” before entering the store, but you know how long that lasted!  And yes, there are lots of big toys around here for the wee boys to grow into all too soon!  They both love coming in the shop road so they can see all the equipment (and krap) parked there.  There are lots of “iron” with tires and tracks parked there—eye candy for all the males.

That’s about all the news from paradise.  My assistant KC is asleep with his head propped on the keyboard at the moment.  And the occasional stretched paw gets in my way, letting me know that he loves me.

Kids and cats…a little bit of heaven here on earth. 

Life is good, y’all!

Wonderful Wednesday

Two happy boys! Unka Brian hit a home run with this new motorcycle shirt.


But a couple of the John Deere toys were defective, so Amy and I are taking care of business this morning and heading back to the place of purchase. Yes sirree, we had a disappointed little boy.

May all of life's problems be this serious! Make today a good one, whatever you do. We sure will!


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Rainy Tuesday

 

We had just filled up with gas next to the Old Faithful Lodge and were rounding the corner, heading to the lodge when I spotted this bison leisurely enjoying a snack on the lawn.

That big boy can munch anywhere he wants to…he didn’t pay us a bit of attention when we stopped to admire him.  We kept a safe distance between us, of course.

Unfortunately, Old Faithful Lodge was closed, so we had to move on and not enjoy a Mother’s Day lunch there as planned.  That is the rule on the road—adapt and go on!

KC gave me a bit of a scare by not coming in last night, and then by not appearing when I called for him (again!) this morning.  I left the kitty door open overnight and figured he would wake me up some time during the night when he finally wandered inside.  No kitty all night.  Rut roh. 

I walked out on the deck, and there he was, all dry…and yawning…and not a care in the world.  What a stinker!  Yes, he is a cat alright…and just wanted to remind me of that.

So now back to the unfinished paperwork instead of kitty searching.  That is a much happier choice of work!

Life is wet but normal here in paradise…whatever that is!

Monday, Monday

Did I mention three-week’s worth of snail mail?  Oh yes, I think I did.

Bank statements, quarterly stuff, monthly stuff, meeting/schedule notices, and filing.  Everything is piled up and needs to get done.  Oy…remind me again of why we were away?  It is time to pay the piper, literally!

Yesterday was fabulous, watching Macey at her dance recital, then the family gathering for birthday cake and pizza afterward.  Thanks for all the birthday wishes for our sweet boy.  He had an exhausting day with all his cousins!

Today will be a busy, but productive day.  And that’s A-OK.  I’m in a git-er-done mode.

Life is good in the ‘hood, y’all!

Happy birthday, precious boy!

Fours years have flown by!

This same boy not only is riding his bike without training wheels, he soloed on his motorcycle last month.  Oy!  He is a cute, gray-hair generator…along with his older brother!

Happy birthday, Scooter.  Grumps and I love you very much! 

Zoom, zoom……………

Saturday in paradise

OK…if you insist…I’ll stop eating and pose for you if you make it quick.
This is just one of the many bears we saw on the Al-Can Highway.  The biggest thrill for us was earlier in the trip just after we left Jasper National Park and saw a mama and 3 cubs walking out of the woods.  That was awesome, but they were too busy to wait for the camera lady.

The rain finally passed on through here and the sun appeared, so Jason captained the pontoon last evening for a pizza cruise on the lake.   Doodlebug told me that he was “so glad” that I live next (door) to him.  Oh, sweet boy, Grammie is the lucky one for sure!  This little fella begins kindergarten this fall…and before I know it, he will be graduating high school.  Srsly.

So the suitcases are now empty, but not stored away yet.  Laundry is drying…and will all be put away today, so that is progress on the domestic front.  Snail mail, not so much progress other than being sorted into appropriate piles.  That kitty sitter only collects the mail and bears no responsibility in the sorting department, but that is OK.  The kitties were well loved while we were away…and are totally underfoot now that we are home.  They love (and missed) us.

Sunshine is back this morning…a very welcome sight…with just a bit of cool.  The windows will be back open soon.  We love living here in this little piece of paradise.

Whatever you do today, put a smile on your face…and then share it.  It’s free!  Life is good, y’all!!!

Home Sweet Home!

These are some of the loose horses we saw and a pretty good view of a section of the Al-
Can Hwy through the windshield.  We were amazed at how good the road actually was…notice how far back the trees are.  This is done on both sides of the road, we assume to help keep the animals away from the road.  Or to have an empty spot to push a bunch of snow.  It certainly made for better viewing of the animals for us!

Chauffeur Haley and the girls promptly picked us up from the train station upon our arrival at 6p, so we thanked them by taking all of the out for a nice dinner.  We showered and crashed pretty soon after getting home, very happy to be back in our own bed.

Amy brought over fresh banana-nut muffins and two jammie clad boys this morning, so I am a happy and blessed Grammie.  No one wanted to stick around for unpacking and laundry, however.  Me either, but its gotta get done and I am elected.  And all the electronics updating and recharging.  Sheesh.

We also had two sweet kitties mighty happy to have us home.  And it is a new month has rolled over.

Happy June, y’all!  Get out and enjoy it.