Sunday Scenes

Yesterday was an absolutely glorious day in the garden.  Mark and I pruned back tree limbs that have been over-shading the beds.  V and I watched the first two episodes of Downton Abbey and now understand what the fuss is all about.  Mark went ghost hunting last night and just got home a little while ago.  We bought a food processor at Bed Bath Beyond yesterday, so now I can make Paleo breakfast cookies like PJ.  Hope they will be as good as hers!   Isaac had poison ivy this week, went to the doc to get meds, so he's on the mend.  Betsy & Kyle are having a great summer visit with their cousin Carly. I'm up early on this Sunday morning, looking forward to another glorious day in the garden.  Leave a comment--I'd love to hear your news too :)

Happy Birthday to My Mama

Seventy-eight years young today!  We're having a wonderful visit here in Michigan.  We've been on a quilt/garden tour, visited the Proven Winners garden, shopped at an antique/junk shop, and today we're going downtown to Whole Foods and Lafayette Gardens.  So lucky to be able to be with my mom and sister PJ and brother-in-law Jeff. 

And lucky to have cake too!  Love love from Michigan. . .

Happy Father's Day

 Judson, Kyle, and Mark hanging out on the new truck.  Did I mention Mark has a new truck?

This Father's Day is bittersweet.  We miss Warren.  He was always so proud of Mark and he would have been thrilled with the new vehicle. 

So this year, we're thankful for each other and our memories.  We are blessed.

Happy Birthday to Isaac

Today is Isaac's birthday.  He's 28 years young and living his dream in Denver.  If you know Isaac, you know that he is passionate about crystals, agates, and geodes.  I don't really understand the difference in all those terms, but Isaac does.   

When Isaac was home at Christmas, he left this pair of geodes with this message:

Mom. . . This is called a Las Choyas Geode from Mexico.  It is extremely rare to find dark amethyst (or amethyst at all) inside of these.  Maybe they could go with a house plant?  (That's what I've been doing.)  Put them wherever you like, just know they represent a piece of how much I love you.  

And it's signed with his swoopy signature that is uniquely Isaac's.  Thank you Isaac, for the geodes and the sweet note, and sharing something that means so much to you.  You have a beautiful spirit, a tender heart, and a fierce passion for following your own path.  Have a happy happy birthday and a wonderful year.   I love you past heaven. 

Dance Recital Flowers

The ballerina design idea came from a class at ISFA's spring convention last year.  The roses came from V's yard.  They were absolutely gorgeous.  She brought them over in this white vase that belonged to Mark's grandmother.  The ballerina was a fun practice piece, but I decided to go with a fairy wand.  They are very trendy these days.

 But even fairy wands have a hard time competing with Barbie and crazy daisies!

Pardon the curling ribbon--I didn't put ribbon in my tool case when we traveled to Betsy's, so I needed a  quick substitute.  I don't think Betsy minded at all.  She LoVeD the new Barbie :)

Book Report

When She Was Gone by Gwendolen Cross.  Another missing girl.  But in this one, we get to hear all the neighbor's secrets while trying to guess "what really did happen to Linsey?" 

Tapestry of Fortunes by Elizabeth Berg.   EB is one of my favorite authors.  The only disappointment here is that it ended too soon!

The Orchardist by Amanda Coplin.  Really good story all the way thru til the end and then it was sad, sad, sad.  And depressing.  If you read this one, make sure you have a laugh-out-loud feel-good book waiting in the wings.  And if you know of a book like that, please tell me about it!

Dance Recital

A before shot as Betsy was getting ready to go to her first recital.

It was so fun to see our Betsy on stage.  She looked beautiful.  Very poised and graceful. And she did a great job as the line leader :)

Mermaid number.

And here she is, post-recital, with a tell-tale pink cupcake crumb on her mouth :)  It was a great weekend being Grannie K.

Garden Vase

This vase with an over-sized bow went to work with me last week.   All this rain (another 4.5 inches in the last three days) has made the garden happy, but there's still a bunch of plants sitting on the back porch waiting to be planted.  Maybe tomorrow.  There's always hope, right?