random

Girlfriend is a for real hiker.  We traversed some rough terrain this weekend and she was a pro.

The summer is going entirely too fast.

Salvation Army is my new favorite store.

My house is full of suitcases.

And sunscreen.

And lists of things to pack.

Ellie is loving SafetyTown and today she gets to ride a school bus!

Sunshine is my friend.

I have 4 pimples on my face right now. 

WTH?

Am I 14 or 34?

Ellie is going to be a flowergirl this weekend.

She is beyond excited.

Super 8 is a fantastic movie.

I have been married 10 years.

Holy Moly.

Rory McIlroy is a stud.

Found some new babysitters this weekend.

Score!

Been reading lots of good books.

Smut.

Romance.

Intrigue.

Summer is my time for easy reading :)

My reading list just keeps getting longer and longer.

I love that.

I have lots of food to use up to empty my fridge.

It's going to be an interesting dinner week.

Mexico cannot come soon enough.

What?

I didn't tell you we were going to Mexico?

Well.  We are.

Ellie is staying with family in Indiana.

And Chris and I are celebrating 10 years in style.

Adults only all inclusive.

Sand.

Water.

Beverages.

Swim up pool suite.

Woot!

Want to know what I am most excited about?

(Besides 5 days alone with my husband)

The in room fridge stocks candy bars.

All you can eat!

I am going to gain 10 pounds in candy bars alone.

be jealous

This is the best thing ever.

Beer Bread with homemade strawberry jam.

OMG.

It's like I am in 1700's Scotland.

And I should be eating parrich with it.

With a wolfhound at my feet.

And Jamie by my side.

(What?!? You haven't read Outlander by Diana Gabaldan?  Shame on you.)

If Chris doesn't stop eating it, we are gonna have words.

 With Dad being so sick, a lot of people have been asking what they can do to help.

Which is so sweet.

My cousin Lori (the maker of the jam) asked the same question.

I think she meant for Dad.

Like, "what can I do for your Dad?"

But before I even thought about it, I shouted...

JAM!  I NEED JAM!

She came through beautifully.

I included the pic above of Chris and I in all our Fresman in College glory in honor of our

10 YEAR ANNIVERSARY.

Love that man.

Beer Bread:

3 cups self rising flour

3 T sugar

1 12oz beer

(the kind of beer does make a difference.   I have found I like darker beers in the mix better)

Stir with a wooden spoon.

(very important. must be wooden)

Throw some butter on top.

(I have used everything from 1/4 stick to a whole stick.)

Bake at 350 for an hour.

It is heaven I tell you.

Jam Recipe:

I have no idea.

And I don't think Lori's telling.

It's a secret.

a girl and her cat

These two.

Peas and carrots.

Peanut butter and jelly.

Ice cream and a cone.

For sure.

Some mornings, I put him on her bed to wake her up.

They both love it.

Nicknames for Atticus include:

Atty

Fatticus

Evil Incarnate

Lover Boy

Attackicus

Flirt

Kissapottamus

and

Shithead.

(The last one used mostly by Chris. There is an alpha male struggle going on in these parts.)

What did we ever do without him?

a day in the woods

I am gonna take every little thing this summer has to offer.

For some reason, starting real school in the fall makes this one seem like the last.

Isn't that silly?

Today, my girl and I headed into the woods.

You know how every child goes through phases, the good and the bad?

We are in a real real good one right now.

She is kind.

And thoughtful.

And funny.

And sweet.

What is it about green space and water that makes everything better?

Makes you forget whatever it is you are worried about.

And just be?

We walked and talked.

And looked for birds, squirrels, and chipmunks.

 We told secrets.

And wished wishes.

 We were both brave.

 And then very proud of ourselves.

 We giggled.

And made funny faces.

And climbed to places we shouldn't have been.

 We planned for the days to come.

And then went for ice cream.

It was a lovely afternoon.

indiana

Did y'all miss me?

I missed you!

Ellie and I headed home for a week and had a great time!

As she gets older, these trips become more and more enjoyable.

Just us girls.

We:

(in no particular order)

swam

rode horses

played with cousins

went to the fair

visited

ate copious amounts of ice cream

pet puppies

and kitties

and butterflies

played t-ball

missed Daddy

won a goldfish

(that lived for 2 whole days)

visited some more

played front porch UNO

relaxed

and had a great time.

(except for the 3 hours one night I spent vomiting.  WTH was that all about??)

Anyhoo, just see for yourself...

And a special shout out to Ann Meister, who gets mad at me if I don't blog everysingleday.

Hi Ann!

Another shout out to Wayne and Linda. 

We stayed that their home and were treated like royalty.

Again.

Love you guys!

And for those of you so inclined,

my Noonie (dad), is feeling really poorly.

The treatments are starting to kick in,

and he is just not doing well at all.

Prayers appreciated.

summerland

We've melted into summer like ice cream melts down a cone.

We have entered the world of impromptu backyard bbq's

and dirty feet.

The land of baby pools in the front yard

and picnics in the sun.

The land of beers on the front steps

and windows open.

The land of quick trips to the zoo to see the elephants

and a ride or two at the kiddie park.

The land of watering the maters

and pulling the weeds.

The land of sunscreen

and tanlines.

The land of waving to your neighbors

and inviting their dogs to have drink out of your front yard baby pool.

It is a good place to be.

Ellie and I are heading home to Indiana for a week.

(Chris will be here, so don't come rob my house...)

My next post could be a while in coming.

Just so you know.

golfing

Nearly my entire family plays golf.

It is a huge part of my life.

And I love it.

Chris and I had our courtship on a golf course.

We played daily in high school and college.

It was our date more often than not.

We even made out on a golf course a time or two.

Shhh.

Some of my best memories are the trips Chris and I would take with my parents to different courses playing.

Losers buying dinner.

On any given day he could beat my Dad...

and I could beat my Mom.

But put us on a team against them, and they beat us nearly every time.

They found it hysterical.

We did not.

We ate at McDonalds a lot.

Then we moved away from home

and played just as much, if not more.

New, different, harder courses.

For me, it was a link to home, that I desperately missed.

Then we had Ellie.

And I nearly stopped playing altogether.

It is time consuming.

And expensive.

And just not conducive to a baby or toddler.

She is older now.

And we are getting her out there as often as possible.

As for my game?

Wow.

I hit the ball further than I ever have.

But my short game sucks.

Like, bad.

Put a wedge or putter in my hand and I have no idea what is going to happen.

And it is frustrating.

Maybe this will be the summer I play a lot more, and get some confidence around the green.

As for Chris...

This is going to be his year.

He is playing great.

I can't speak for him,

but I desperately want Ellie to love it as much as we do.

I envision afternoon rounds.

The three of us puttering around the course.

(pun intended)

I can't wait for the day she beats me.

Or the day she beats her Dad!

Imagine that?!?

When we were in Indiana, we fit in 9 holes.

 This is how close he came to his first hole in one.

 I think she made this one.

 Writing down her score.  According to her, she birdied every hole.

 Like father, like daughter.

 Check out my form.

Looks great.

But very very unpredictable.

 And we always have to check for lost balls.

And frogs.

memorial weekend

We had a great long weekend!

Hope you did too!

We played a cool "throw the ball on the roof and see how many times it bounces" game.

And for those of you that don't know him...

that is my cuz Anson.

He is extremely crazy.

And fun.

 We spent some quality time.

 We lunched at the Chocolate Moose.

It is nice to come from a town small enough to still have a soda fountain.

And the best homemade chips this side of the Mississippi.

 We played Gin at Starbucks when it was too cold and rainy to do anything else.

 We visited my mama.

 And brought her some dandelions.

 We lunched on the front porch.

The best way to lunch.

And we did not have your standard hamburgers and hotdogs this year.

Paige and Andy made pulled pork and coleslaw burritos and fish tacos.

Yeah.  They did.

And enough fresh salsa to drown in.

It was good!

 We spent some more quality time.

 We played pong in the front yard.

Cause we're classy like that.

And Chris and I totally dominated the games we played.

Our inner college kids came roaring back!

 We sprinklered.

 And we took the best family picture ever!

The indian is C. Heif Steve.

And the picture of the birthmarked dude is a story for another day.

Happy Summer my friends!