Mid-August

Hello everyone!  I hope you are enjoying the summer.  It's really hard to believe it's mid-August.  We've stayed close to home this summer with a few day trips here and there, but mostly home.  I'm definitely missing normal life, and I hope that next year brings more normality our way.  I'm planning to homeschool our daughter for fifth grade.  We are going through an online classical Christian school program where she will have live classes throughout the week.  This will start up in September.  I'm excited for this new adventure.  We feel that it is the right choice for her and us for this upcoming school year.  

I made a strawberry cake, which was just delicious!  I ordered a new lampshade and matching pillow cover from Peony and Sage.  I just love it!  Also, you will notice in the last photo that little Rosie had her first grooming appointment and got a nice summer haircut.  She's feeling much cooler now, which is nice since it's 90 degrees almost every day.  

 

Take care and stay safe!

 

Happy Fourth of July Weekend

Happy fourth of July!!  I hope everyone who celebrated had a wonderful weekend.  The fourth looked a bit different this year, of course, but we still had a nice weekend at home.  I made a strawberry vanilla cake and we grilled hotdogs along with some yummy, traditional sides.  It was a nice and relaxing weekend.  Very hot I might add at 90 degrees.  We spent most of it indoors.  I started a new book "Little Cafe in Copenhagen" which I am just loving.  I love to read, especially in the summer.  

And our newest addition - sweet little puppy Rosie is adjusting to life with her new family.  She's just precious - even though she is biting and chewing on almost everything.

I hope you are enjoying summer wherever you might be.  Please comment and let me know what you are up to this summer - I'd love to know!

Happy July

Happy Fourth of July, friends!  It's very hot here - 90 degrees to be exact.  We are celebrating at home today.  I made sheet pan chocolate chip cookie ice cream sandwiches - they are currently in the freezer and will be dessert tonight.  We are also planning to grill burgers for dinner and watch fireworks on TV a bit later.  What are you up to on this Independence Day?  

Lovely May

Hello!  What a lovely May it's been so far.  I celebrated my birthday earlier in the month.  I had a fun day celebrating with a nice lunch out at one of my favorite cafes with Charlotte and my parents, and take-out pizza for dinner with chocolate cake for dessert that I made earlier in the day.  It was a very happy day indeed!  I know 44 is going to be an awesome year!!

I've been doing a bit of gardening here and there.  I planted zinnia and cosmos from seed and they've already started to sprout.  I'm looking forward to lots of lovely blooms this summer.  

Next week is Charlotte's last week of school before summer break.  I'm definitely ready for a more relaxed schedule.  Also, looking forward to spending the first week of June in Charleston.  Happy almost summer!  I'll be back soon!

Summer!

Our summer days are filled with swim lessons, play dates, gardening, errands, cooking, playing, watching movies, visits to the library, day trips here and there, lots of slow mornings (Yay), and that just about sums up our summer days.  

My plants are doing really well, as long as I remember to water them daily.  I planted my sunflowers and zinnias from seed this year and it's been fun to watch them grow.  It's been so, so hot here this summer, but it's hot here every summer.  I think I try to forget just hot and muggy our summers are, but July always reminds me again.  

I've been eating lots of blueberries.  I made a berry cobbler for the fourth of July and Smitten Kitchen's blueberry crumb cake yesterday.  I think we have one slice left, so everyone loved it!  

I hope you are enjoying your summer!

Charleston

We took a trip to Charleston a few weeks ago and we had a great time!  I love Charleston for so many reasons - it's just such a charming, historical city.  The food is always fabulous in Charleston and the homes and gardens are breathtaking.  

We stayed on Isle of Palms by the beach which is about a twenty minute drive from downtown Charleston.  Our daughter loved spending time at the pool at our resort and we all enjoyed taking walks on the beach looking for shells.

We can't wait to visit again!

May

Hello!  It's May - my favorite month and it's also my birthday month!  All the flowers are blooming, Mother's Day is this coming weekend, we are winding up the school year in just a few, short weeks and looking forward to summer! 

I requested the black and white cake from Whole Foods for my birthday and it was as delicious as it looks!  I would highly recommend it.  We spent the day in Asheville on Saturday and enjoyed a yummy lunch for my birthday - it was a really fun day.

I've also been doing a bit of gardening and I bought these beautiful, hanging baskets for our front porch.  I planted a few pots with geraniums, snapdragons, and a few other plants.  I still need to buy some herbs and do a mixed herb garden.

Happy Mother's Day to all the wonderful Moms out there!