Sunday Six...

This has been a good week, with so much as always to be thankful for.
So here are the top six that come to mind.

1- Strawberries! I adore berries and we have the best stand near our house that sells strawberries that are so sweet you think they're candy. I often eat a couple on the way home before I even wash them because they are just that irresistible. A favorite fruit dip if you want to serve something extra special is mixing a 8 oz cream cheese with one jar of marshmallow creme. It is soooo yummy!  But I love them just right of the cute green boxes.

2- We met up with our three kids Friday night for dinner to celebrate Ashlyns birthday. They just returned home from a 10 day trip to Hawaii and they looked great and rested. We went to "Phils BBQ" which has been on our list of places to go for long. But the line is always at least two hours long!  We found out that if you sign up online you get a free "front of the line pass" on your birthday so last night we went right in and felt like such a big deal! We had pulled pork sandwiches,onion rings and ribs.It was delish and most importantly the birthday girl loved it!  And we LOVE her!

3-Our bathroom remodel is almost done!  Steve worked so hard on it as he does everything for our house. He put in crown molding and we painted the walls a  pretty mocha color.The guys almost finished the tile today but will be back Tuesday. So our little bed and breakfast will be open for company soon. So come on over for a sleepover! Fresh flowers, coffee, magazines and crisp sheets are always included!
 
4-Another fun day with Thia Mary. We have so much fun together and she is the next best thing to having my mom with me. We went out to lunch and had a foot massage. We ran a couple errands and just enjoyed the day. She still cracks me up. She told me one day she couldn't come because she had to shop for "brassieres" Now seriously who still calls them that? She is hysterical and doesn't even know it.

5-One week from today I will be landing in NASHVILLE!  And I can hardly wait to see my family and wrap my arms around that silly Sara. And of course the other "little" fun thing called the CMT awards!! This gal is sooooooo excited

6-I am thankful that I start to get anxiety about being away from Steve for that long. Crazy after all these years that I still enjoy his company so much and feel sad that we will be apart for 8 days. Everything to me is just more fun with Carter ! And that is a BLESSING!

Well I wish you all a happy week filled with love,joy and giggles! And time to stop and say "Thank You" for all the blessings! Life is never  perfect but if we train our eyes we will  find the daisy's  growing through the weeds.

And just because I think they are the cutest....Dont they look like a magazine cover

A love of books!

 

I seem to go through stages how I spend my leisure time.But reading is the stage  I love the most! I am always so happy and content when my face is absorbed in a great story and I can escape for a while. I just finished "Sara's Key" and it was such a moving story. The kind of book where you just want to steal every spare minute to read some more. Ashlyn is quite the reader too and she is going to borrow "The Glass Castle" which was another absolute favorite of mine.She just finished " The Help" and loved it too. When I loan a book out I always ask if the borrower would write a small review in the back cover before they return it. I love to read what everyone else thought of the book.My copy of The Glass Castle is filled with great reviews and observations.
So how about you? Have you read anything really great lately?
I would love to hear all about it!

I am sure going to miss her!

I am so sad that her show was canceled! I watched the last show on TV when she said her goodbyes and cried. I went to the 2nd to the last show which was the Mothers Day special and she was so incredibly generous to all us moms. We left with so many wonderful gifts! Jewelry, luggage, darling aprons, and many more sweet things. But the highlight for me was seeing her mom Alice sitting up there with Bonnie. What a precious lady she is.The set was fantastic and the staff was so friendly and welcoming. I was trying to remember all the fun people we have seen on our trips to her show. I  just LOVED  going to the Culver Studios and spending  the day with her.I will miss the hot dogs and root beer, her funny opening dialogues and great interviews! The fabulous live band and vintage photos on the walls. Luckily my friends and family became big fans too so it was such a fun way to spend the day together. She has the most down to earth personality and my three o'clock hour will never be the same.
I adore you Bonnie Hunt and Thank you  for the memories!
If you remember  when we first started going they were not as strict about searching for cameras etc, and we got into a  little mischief. You can read that post here.  
Here's the the roll call of fun people I got to see { from what I can remember }
Dick Van Dyke
Bob Barker
Mario Lopez
Kathy Bates
Hank Azaria
Kate Gosselin
Common
Mary McCormack
Amy Brenneman
James Denton
Josh Kelley
Melinda Hill(comedian)
Madison Pettis
Boyz to Men
Mary Louise Parker
Sinbad
Mira Sorvino
Phill Koegen
And of course Alice Hunt and Don Lake

It's the little things...

*Taking Brody to the "laundered mutt" for a bath, then stopping off to share a frozen yogurt on the way home. We sat together outside in the sun content as can be...
We both ate our bowls clean ! He had vanilla and I had watermelon sorbet

*Being at a wedding with my sweet hubby, holding hands during the vows and always saying them again to ourselves under our breath.

*Sara calling me at least 10 times to say how excited she is to see her auntie in June!
                I love my silly Sara~

*Knowing this Sunday is the 'Survivor' and 'Apprentice' finales. I plan on being cozy in jammies watching TV for hours.

*Mothers day cards  from Kaitlin and Abby, my darling girls who make me feel like such a special second mom. Oh how I love them.....


*Chad's facebook status read...
"made my day when I snuck on the roof and dropped a bucket of water on Alec while he was peacefully gardening"
I can imagine Chad being so giddy running down the hall ! He is such a prankster and I cant help but question  "Why does that make me so proud? "

*Met a new sweet customer friend named Ruth. She was married for 65 years and her husband passed two years ago. We chatted for quite a bit, & when she left I gave her a hug  and she hugged me back so tight and said " Thank you"  It literally brought tears to my eyes.   

Yep its the little things that add up to so much love and joy!  What little things made your life extra sweet this week? 
I would LOVE to know..... 
   

A Happy Mothers Day...

I often feel like the luckiest mom ever~ After yesterday I'm convinced I truly am !   It was a busy weekend with a wedding Saturday night and a post wedding brunch Sunday morning that I had offered to cook for,and I was battling one of the worst colds I have EVER had. So Saturday night I called Travlyn and suggested we celebrate another weekend instead because I just couldn't see myself getting up,dropping off the dishes, meeting them in Carlsbad for church and then lunch after. I was wiped out and in a Sudafed Slump! They said they understood and we would all meet up soon. But no sooner than we got it all squared away, I looked at Steve and said "It's sure going to be sad not seeing the kids on Mothers day" But I  felt so crummy I really had no choice.So I got up Sunday morning and started getting ready to drop off the food and I heard Brody barking.I looked out the front door and screamed with delight...........

"Its our kids...our kids are here!!

  

What an amazing surprise!! Ashlyn had packed up her waffle iron and all the ingredients and they had come to make us breakfast and celebrate with me! They brought berries and whipped cream, bacon, fresh flowers, wonderful gifts and homemade cake lolly pops! 

 

It was a perfect day hanging out with my precious son & daughter in law! {Chad was hard at work but I am meeting him for lunch this week} Ashlyn and I did a little shopping and the boys started a shelf project, but mostly we laid low,rested and chatted. The puppies played outside for hours and had a ball! I am still basking in the joy of such a great surprise!  Mothers Day is still tough for me because I miss my Mom so much.But thanks to my precious family for always creating new memories and filling my heart to overflowing!  Ya Ya's joy  was with us too in the beautiful, blooming rose bush planted in her memory! It never fails to bloom on Mothers Day and this year it was extra happy and full ! Like me

Yee Haw!

Now this post is the stuff that dreams are made of!  So sit yourself down with a  glass of sweet tea and listen cuzz I'm gonna tell you a fabulous story! Last week my friend Katie called and asked if I was planning on going to Nashville to see Dave and the family this summer? Which of course I'm always dreaming of going to see them!  Well, she went on to tell me she had won tickets to Nashville including a driver for three days, and lots of festivities prior to and INCLUDING the Country Music Awards! 
And she wanted to know if I wanted to join her and her daughter Bridget on the trip! {Insert screaming,crying and almost throwing up from the excitement of it all here}  So I called Steve right away and asked if he would care if I went? Of course Mr. darling said YES without a seconds hesitation.Then I asked if I could get the week off work and that came back a YES too. So I called Dave and said "hey ya'll gonna be home in June? and he said YES!
So I called Katie and said " YES YES YES " 

So I will be flying to Nashville for a week. I will be spending a few days of amazing fun with Katie and Bridget and then spending another four days with Dave, Sandy and my precious niece and nephew!  Now you probably already know that I  can be a bit of a "spazz fan" so can you only imagine me at the CMT awards! It is going to be a dream come true ! Plus I am so excited for the girls to come visit the Thrift store with me and meet all the kids and see the amazing ministry my family has there. Katie said "she won the trip" but I know better. She probably made a huge donation at a charity auction because we all know that's the kind of people she and Dan are! Always so generous! And how amazing that she invited ME to take part in this trip of a lifetime! I feel like I won " Queen for a day"    

So I am going shopping for some new duds...maybe some denim and diamonds, A Dolly wig, a Minnie Pearl hat, and a zoom lens cause if I see " Keith"  I am going in the for shot!  And God help us if I see my Vince!