whoa

now that's what i call a disappearance.  complete and total silence on my end.  it wasn't intentional ... really it wasn't ... i just somehow got caught in the undertow of the summer pace and the days went by faster than i could keep up with.  in fact, i still find it unbelievable that summer vacation has come and gone.  it all happened so fast - was i even there?  my blog sure wasn't ...

with three whole months to catch up on, i'm not even sure where to begin?  and do i even have readers anymore?!  i see that my last real post was on father's day - followed by the blooming of our gorgeous roses that always mark the arrival of summer vacation.  and then i was trampled by a pace i just never saw coming!

*****

Our summer vacation started off with a visit from one of my most treasured girlfriends.  She and I met when we were just starting to date our husbands (former college roommates) back in our mid-20's - the 4 of us seemed to do everything together ... weddings, first homes, first babies (due dates were 3 days apart!), even the second babies (8 weeks apart!) ... our timing was always hand in hand.  Having them right here in town for those special years was great - from bachelorettes to new moms, through it all we forged a bond we'll never break.  We were heartbroken when they moved away 11 years ago, jobs have forced a couple of moves on them, so face to face visits only come every couple of years or so.  And this was one of those special times!  It was the very end of June - she flew up from Atlanta with her 2 boys and spent the week reconnecting in her old hometown ... and the kids picked up like no time at all had passed ...

and my girlfriend and i got to spend lots of time catching up like old girlfriends do ... what a fabulous way to start our summer break ...

They pulled out of town on Friday July 2nd, so from there we jumped right into the 4th of July weekend ... the little ladybug was sure to accessorize as only she can do ...

Her star spangled mani/pedi was done 100% on her own - the kid amazes me - what 10 year old has that level of patience?!  And the strawberries?  Got that idea on pinterest ... dipped in white chocolate, then rolled in blue sugar ... delicious does not even begin to cover it - so so good!

So are you starting to see how i was already being pulled down by summer's undertow and it was only the 4th of July?!  I knew I had fallen a few weeks behind in blogland, both as a reader and a writer, but there just wasn't a moment to spare - the computer was collecting dust inside the house while we did our thing.  And I had to be ok with that.  Because by the time the 4th of July had passed, sailing camps were in full swing (different half-day schedules for both girls - a real knife in our schedules), big ladybug's BIG birthday was getting closer, our annual summer visit from our Charlotte NC "cousins" was 2 days after that, and Race Week (the biggest busiest craziest week of all) was starting 2 days after that ... it exhausts me to think of how many things we packed into the 31 days of July ... but I wouldn't trade a single one.

 As for the remainder of my summer, I'll try to do a couple of weekending-style posts to get caught up ... or maybe a 10-on-10 type of thing ... because in spite of the whirlwind pace, I still managed to have my camera in my hands.  Phew.  Proof that it was all real!  Hope you'll stick with me to see ...

survival

Whoa ... 28 days without even so much as checking in to blogland - neither as a writer nor as a reader.  It seems the summer season came rushing out of the gate and trampled me ... between the chopped up sailing schedules for the ladybugs, the total and complete lack of daily routine, a steady flow of out of town friends visiting, plus the jam-packed activities and subsequent shuttling, the summer pace this year has been more than I can keep up with.  I feel like I'm barely holding on, completely exhausted by the time the sun sets each day.  My mantra of the moment ...

Of course, just to complicate things as I take my first peek onto blogger in 4 weeks, I see that they've massively changed their interface.  I have no idea where to go or what to do, yikes!  Totally disoriented and unable to navigate ... sigh ... a learning curve for another day I'm afraid ...

At some point, I'll recap our first half of summer in as few words as possible ... à la weekending ... but right now I have about enough time to figure out where the new 'publish' icon is and sign off ... I miss you all and look forward to calmer days where I can sit with my tea and read and write amongst my blogland posse ... hope you all are enjoying fabulous summers!

stop to smell the roses ...

I mentioned last time that our yard was blooming with zillions of roses and I wanted to show you that I am truly not exaggerating ... I've blogged before about how our tiny parcel of property was subdivided about 60 years ago - it was formerly the walking garden of the (far more grand) house next door.  Sixty years ago, they sold the very back end of their backyard off and an adorable cottage was built (our house!) without disturbing too much of the gardens that already existed - including many of the amazing roses that line the street front still today!  Our 4-foot picket fence is completely engulfed every year in late June by the zillions of roses that come into bloom at this time each year ... but enough of my chitty chat, the proof is in the seeing ...

road to the left - about 3 feet of grass leads you to the fence on the right that you can't even see beneath all the roses!

there are about 4-5 mature peony plants - gorgeous!

And roses in every shape and shade from pink to red!

they stretch out toward the street AND toward the house on the other side - did I mention how huge they are?!

so dense you can't even see the fence that's right in front of you ...

Seriously, the last couple of weeks of June are a real sight to behold at our house - incredible, isn't it?!  We can't take any credit for the planning or placement, but Manbug definitely gets all the credit for the very rigorous maintenance of these fussy (but oh so worth it) plants ... these gorgeous couple of weeks make all those late nights of spraying and clipping after work all worthwhile!  And yes, if he is able to find the time to deadhead all of these zillions of blooms once they drop their petals, we will have a FULL second blooming in August!  But in the meantime, what's next on the garden cycle at our little cottage by the sea?  Would you believe it I told you we have hydrangeas so large they block windows?!  We have 6 in all (though not all as large as this one) - can't wait to photograph them in full bloom - usually right around the 4th of July!

father's day weekending ...

How cute is this little card made by my big ladybug for father's day?!  It shows our Manbug over on the left with all his ladybugs (I'm the third) scurrying toward him ... note the ballcap and that his manbug tail is wagging ... I love seeing the world through their ladybug eyes!  So the weekend ... first weekend of summer vacation ... busy busy ... how can that be when there were no plans in the calendar?!

summer skating

manbug sailing

ice cream trucking

downtown hanging

summer friends appearing

 aimless bike riding

rose garden bursting

early-to-bedding

father's day-ing ...

breakfast in bedding

little ladybug room rearranging

2x opti* repairing

BLT-ing (farm fresh tomatoes - yum!)

swimmingpool overcrowding

2x opti* launching (sailing camp starts friday!)

outdoor grilling

sunset biking

wonderful ... 

one of literally a zillion roses that burst open this weekend at our house

I want to publicly thank Pam at Views from My Kitchen Sink for this fabulous "weekending" format that she uses ... I fell in love with it and openly steal it from time to time - I'm getting better at condensing, Pam, aren't I?!  ... *and ps, for anyone who wasn't here last summer, an opti is a child-size sailboat (picture a bathtub 7+ feet long, 3+ feet wide, and 18 inches deep ... with a sail ... and yes, they are sailed single-handed (solo) from the time the kids are about 9+ years old) - let the sailing season begin!

image from here

the crinkled heart ...

image via pinterest

Have you heard me mention that little ladybug's 4th grade teacher might just be the most fabulous 4th grade teacher on the planet?  Well, she is ... the best ... fabulous ... incredible ... brings tears to my eyes to think that our journey with her is over now that she has taught my youngest child ... deep deep sigh ...

On the first day of school last Fall, in the first 15 minutes in fact, Mrs. M tells the children the story of the crinkled heart.  I know a lot of my bloggy friends are teachers, so some may already be familiar with this one?  The story starts out with two freshly cut paper hearts that represent each one of us ... then Mrs. M asks the children to think of how hurtful words might impact a person's heart.  As the kids volunteer their ideas of hurtful words, Mrs. M crinkles one of the paper hearts with each example until it's all crumpled up.  At this point, Mrs. M asks the kids to share positive words instead and as each example is shared, she uncrinkles the heart until it lies flat again.  But the lesson is, of course, that no matter the amount of uncrinkling you do, that heart has been impacted and will never look like the one that was left untouched by hurtful words.  Thus, the school year starts with a beautifully illustrated lesson about the power of our words.

After the lesson, the pair of hearts are hung in the front of Mrs. M's classroom and remain there for the entire school year as a constant reminder of the impact our words have on one another.  On the last day of school, a lottery is held to see which lucky student will get to take home the pair of hearts ... and guess who the lucky ladybug was who came out of school grinning ear to ear as she held her prize?

They will be hung in a place of honor right over the desk in her bedroom - a constant reminder of the best school year a little bug could ever ask for ... thank you so much for your magic touch, Mrs. M ... we'll be forever blessed by your impact ...

going going gone ...

This is it.  The last day of ladybug school.  One morning it's business as usual with the morning school routine and the next morning there's no routine whatsoever ... summer vacation is just hours away ...

Above are our end of year teacher gifts ... this year we packed a "summer vacation survival kit" for the teachers and filled it with a small book, a bottle of root beer, a handful of fresh baked brownies and cookies, a package of microwave popcorn, and a handwritten note from the heart (one from me and another from the big - or little - ladybug).  The last 2 gifts in the lineup were packed in pretty reusable oilcloth lunch sacks - we gave one of those to little ladybug's "lunch buddy" teacher ... somewhat like an advisor, little ladybug's lunch buddy was assigned to her last Fall and ate lunch with her - just the two of them - every Tuesday all year long!  The lunch buddy program is such a sweet one, unique to the 4th grade ... it's really wonderful to have that special one on one time, little ladybug will probably miss that more than anything else next year!

As for the class gift ... I was a 4th grade room parent this year and we followed a long-running tradition at school: collecting a single flower (we ask that it come right from your own garden if possible) from each child in the class on the final day of school.  This is another gift that falls under my "personal, affordable, and practical" umbrella ... all I had to do was supply the vase and stand there this morning as the kids trickled in ... one by one, each child put their own unique flower into the vase as they came into the classroom and placed their own special card nearby ... within 20 minutes, we had a full colorful vase and the homemade cards were overflowing nearby - good one, right?!

saw this one on pinterest and love it - how cute are these simple extra touches?!

oh happy monday!

Never thought I'd put the words happy and Monday in the same sentence, but today is happy again ... my baby is back from the Cape, healthy and in one piece!  And even better, she had an incredible time on her Girl Scout retreat, never struggled at all ... nothing but happy memories an an extra dose of confidence for having taken the step (meantime I've aged 5 years).  Want to know the sweetest part?  She brought back gifts for each of us from the Audubon gift shop, the sanctuary where her troop did some volunteer work.

This is what she chose for me ...

A mommy turtle and her baby ... perfection.  And it didn't stop there ... she brought an emperor penguin home for her dad, complete with baby penguin tucked underneath ... "because daddy protects me" ...

Little ladybug chose this fawn for her big sister ... "because she's so beautiful".  It was a wonderful evening last night to have all four of us sitting to dinner together and hearing all about our Girl Scout's proud adventures ... lots of laughter and love - the moments you wish you could freeze forever.

So the ladybugs are off at school this morning - and I'm heading out to get the spare tire taken off my car.  And to replace the perfectly good tire that sits across from it as well ... grrrr.  But despite my fate to waste half the day sitting at a tire warehouse and spend half our monthly budget in one swoop, it's still a Happy Monday ... our little ladybug is home ...