rivulets of sweat.

News Flash: I'm hot!

As in burning hot, not smokin' hot!

Somebody, anybody...send some cold air my way!

How am I supposed to survive down here? It's not hot enough to run the air-conditioning, but not cool enough to not sweat.

I need some chill, man!

For the love of Pete (I don't really know what that means), send me some air!

breakfast, lunch or dinner.

I love salads.

Just about any kind of salad...steak, chicken, fish...

Sometimes I eat salad for breakfast. I don't eat eggs. Or pancakes. Or waffles.

BLTs are great for breakfast...because they're part salad!

My guys are in the living room watching crazy guy shows and I'm checking out my favorite blogs.

I clicked and lo, the angels sang...

Smitten Kitchen is a beautiful food blog, well written with lovely photos.

This steak salad will be on our table sometime this week...

Not sure if it'll be for breakfast or dinner.

It doesn't really matter.

Salad is its own food group.

brand new little boy!

Meet Liam Charles.

He's my new little bundle of goodness nephew.

Great-nephew.

More importantly, he's the grandchild of my brother Tom and his wife, Melany. Their first grandchild.

And our parents' first great-grandchild.

But certainly not the last.

We love this little guy...I love looking at all his photos.

I want to kiss him!

As his Grandma so beautifully said, "Fresh from God."

How I love that statement!

I'll be hopping a plane early next year to go meet this handsome bundle of all that is sweet and good.

I love being "great!"

beyond redneck and I love it!

I have a new favorite show.

Swamp People.

It's all about inter-personal relationships and how families work through issues of doubt and family resentment...NOT!

No, the show is about gator huntin' and how the patriarchs don't put up with no poutin' from their younguns!

No cowtowing or worrying about validating offspring's self-worth.

This is a show about testosterone and ammunition and blood and gore and jaws full of teeth!

Here's Troy, one of the characters on the show:



Troy is very endearing, the kind of guy you'd want to hang with.

But he's not, by far, one of the more colorful characters on the show.

My man Bruce, is...

How could you not love a man who feeds his faithful dog Little Debbie Zebra Cakes?

For a Little Debbie Zebra Cake, I'd go gator huntin' with Bruce!

Who would have ever thought that you'd find Little Debbie on the swampy bayous of Louisianna? 

There is nothing prettier than anniversary flowers.

 I'm not a rose-type girl. I like bright, happy flowers.

Thanks, Honey. I'm loving this big, beautiful bloom!

This is Angel's bag...she requested I make a college bag that covers all the schools her daughters attend. It's a pretty big bag, as big as she. 

I found this particular bag challenging...I wasn't "into" the colors, the patterns. I lacked the normal inspiration of pretty patterns and bright colors.

But I managed to finish it and it's kind of cute, now that it's grown on me.

Angel designed it, I executed it.

Collaboration is a dynamic thing!

living the lazy life.

The Orlando hotel room Jason and I stayed in was amazing.

It's too bad that the only decent photos taken were of the bathroom (the kitchen and living room were lovely, but the photographer wasn't able to capture those very well...she's so fired!!!).

 The tub. What an amazing feature...the water flows down from the ceiling.

Glass sink counter-top. Loved it!

                            

 The bedroom was lovely. Simple bedding, yet elegant. So easy to make the bed in the morning.

Yes, I made the bed...maids love me!

 Poolside. Two pools, fountains everywhere.

 Happy children splashing...see the slide? It's in that dome-shaped thing in the middle of the picture. While the children play, parents sip refreshing drinks...

The view from our balcony. I imagine within a few years, those lovely green trees will be gone.

And that's it!

Now, where is housekeeping? 

My bed is waiting to be made.

....oh, wait.  I am housekeeping!

backyard adventures.

Jason and I took off this past Wednesday on a trip to Orlando. We had purchased a three-day getaway and the opportunity to use the trip was about to expire.

It's the first time I have left my six-foot-two "baby" alone for more than one night.

He didn't have a problem being left alone. He was excited at the prospect.

I'm the one who experienced separation anxiety...it's what happens when you have only one child. It's a series of "firsts" and "lasts."

We were driving right past Red Robin on the way down, so we stopped and combined lunch and dinner...yum! It's a fun place. Very colorful. Friendly. Clean. We enjoyed it.

Next stop...IKEA. What a fabulous adventure!

So much to look at.

Bargains galore!

We bought a much sought-after over sized bathmat for $10. Bargain!

Dishtowels, six in a pack for $2. Priceless!

The colors in this store are unbelievable. So bright, so innovative. Storage solutions...I don't think there are enough of these boxes in IKEA to satisfy my need for storage!

What I really enjoyed were the size-challenged living spaces set up throughout the second floor. Their concept of space-saving solutions for small living spaces were genius. It almost made me wish we had a small house. Not really. I just think that because then I would have more ideas on how to creatively utilize space. And if I had a tiny house, I could use their ideas. But then my guys wouldn't fit in my little abode and life for all of us would be miserable. So I will live in my "big" house. And solve my own storage problems.

We left IKEA with $30 less in Jason's wallet, but it really could have been much worse. I think he got off pretty light...

IKEA is only about 2 hours from Jacksonville...dangerous!

I guess this means I can go shopping and spend more money?

Jason....just kidding, honey! I wouldn't do that.

Or would I?

new slimey netbook!

Jason bought us a Dell Nickelodeon netbook. It's green, slimy and bright. I wasn't too sure about the green slime at first...but it was on sale and cheaper than the other netbooks, so we went for it!

We love the little booger. It's handy, convenient, compact. No more balancing the laptop on your knee/pillow/armrest. In fact, I'm blogging from it now.

There's one problem, though. We both like it so well that we have to take turns with it.

How to solve this problem...maybe we should wrestle for it? I like it!

periodic boost.

Living in Florida isn't all glamour, ya know.

The sun can be pretty devastating to the epidermis...

That's why I insist on periodic manicures.

It just makes me feel pretty!

I spy with my holiday eye!

I made a quick trip to the St. John's Town Center Sunday to do a little birthday shopping. As I was coming out of the store, Pottery Barn beckoned to me. What the heck. I dashed across the street and did a little looking. As always, I found the in-store catalogue and brought it home with me...

...and hyperventilated when I found this cardinal salt and pepper shaker set. I really adore this little nest. Cardinals at Christmas remind me of the cold winters in Buffalo, as the real birds perched on snowy branches, puffing out their feathers to stay warm. I think this little set just may find its home on my dining table.

These are the ever-popular, whimsical reindeer dinnerware. Very cute!

And back to the cardinal theme. Love these salad plates. And the table runner. I love it all.

It won't be long now...I feel Christmas coming!

I'll post more great seasonal "finds" as I find them. I hope you'll find my finds to be helpful in finding unique and inspiring finds for the hard to find gifts for those people you find  difficult to shop. For. **let's ignore that writing rule**

let's chat!

~You may recall how a few weeks ago, "someone" was complaining about the oppressive heat in Florida and why, on God's green Earth, would anyone want to live here?  Well...the weather is absolutely gor-ge-ous right now in the big city of Jacksonville!  So I guess that "someone" won't be complaining unless, of course, the temperature spikes and we're back up into the 90s.  Then "someone" is going to start her whining again...

~ A little alarm incident this afternoon...no problem and the officers were as nice as could be! They let me off the hook and no paddy-wagon for me!

~Here is a link to some adorable Paper Dolls. Too cute! Throw some card stock in your printer and make these for your kids. Yes, boys can play with them...there's nothing manlier than a pirate!

~This is an awesome project using dollar store pumpkins. I think it's a beautiful vignette. Go here for the project. I just might tackle this pretty pumpkin project myself!

~How do you like my unconventional pastel Halloween Blog banner? I don't like spooky stuff, so I figured happy colors make the whole vibe much less threatening.  Is it too soon for Halloween decorations?

~Christmas will be here soon...I love Christmas!  I think I'll start my shopping soon. We already know what we're getting Dad.  One down, lots to go!

Alrighty, then. I enjoyed our little chat. 

I'll see YOU soon...

50th Birthday Party!

Not my 50th...our friend Carl's 50th!

It was a surprise party at Mudville and what a great evening it was!

So here's to you, Carl.  Even though there are more photos of Suzy...there would be more of you if you were my girlfriend, but you're not!

Entering the Party Room...surprise!

These two were little babies together...they're not babies any more. 

I often told Carla when she was a little girl that if she married Jonathan, I'd spoil her rotten!  I would...rotten! The offer still awaits you...

The Thurson Boys.  Big, tough.  TEDDY BEARS!

Love them!

A dancing Teddy Bear...dancing with his fun-loving lady.

We love the lady Thursons! 

There's an original Lady Thurson, in the black.  She's just as much fun as her sister Suzy!

These three are my dear, crazy girlfriends.  Audrey, Suzy and Kathy. 

They're the best girls a girl could ever hope to have as friends.  Loyal, trustworthy and fabulous!


Next up: more photos of the party and if I can figure out how to get them off of my camera , a few movie clips of the party.