Did It Again!

Monday night we had some friends over for a casual dinner, early enough that we could play cards after.  I tried to get most of the preparation done early in the day so I wouldn't be rushed.  I made a peach pie (should have taken a "before" picture, cause there's not much left), pickled cucumbers & onions, and this:

It's peach chutney (with dried cranberries).  At the beach a few weeks ago with these same friends, we were served a cranberry chutney with our fish & it was delicious.  So I thought this would be a nice topping for our salmon.  I made it early in the day so it would have plenty of time to chill.

I found the recipe in this trusty cookbook & actually had ALL the ingredients on hand... a rarity for me!

I had to bake the salmon in the oven since it was pouring rain so hard that I couldn't grill it outside.  After it was done, I squeezed some fresh lime juice over it; cooked up the zucchini & onions; baked some corn muffins; & we sat down to dinner.
After enjoying dinner, we began a quick clean up so we could play cards.  As I put some left overs in the refrigerator, I noticed... the chutney sitting in its pretty dish, covered with plastic wrap!  Oh yeah, it had PLENTY of time to chill....  I'd like to say I've never done this before, but that would be an out & out lie far from the truth.

SO, I'm thinking maybe the chutney would go nice with the pork tenderloin I have in the fridge...

Anyone?

Hello-o-o-o, is anyone out there?

Basil Be Yours...

I've been trying to get out to trim my basil blooms forever more than a week, but I can't seem to get out there early enough or late enough...

Obviously they need it!  See the little bit of green peaking out the right side?  That's a gardenia that is getting totally crowded out by the basil.

So why haven't I trimmed them as I should???  Well, this furry little fellow and thousands about 30 of his cousins have taken over the bush, & they don't know that they're only supposed to be on it from mid-morning till late afternoon.  Since they seem to be working the 24-hour long shifts, I have turned it over to them.

I keep this on the shelf right near the back door & have used it 4 times this summer just on myself from yellow jacket stings, & a few times on the kids, too.  It works great!  But I don't want to experience the bumble bee sting, so I'll do without more pesto this year...

Rain, Glorious Rain!

I don't even remember the last time I heard the sounds of rain...!  We have had the longest string of 90+ days in history, dry as could be.  The ground had cracked, the trees were drooping, yards are brown, & I am really tired of lugging jugs of water to plants that the sprinkler doesn't quite reach (gave up on "sprinkling" the lawn long ago... just using it to try to keep the blooming plants alive.)
   But late yesterday afternoon the drops began to fall from the sky... Thank You, Lord!!!  Hearing the pounding rain as I dozed off last night, hearing it when I awoke during the night just long enough to turn over, & waking to it this AM was pure bliss.  I am NOT going to complain about a week of dreary, cloudy weather!  And don't let me hear you complain about it either!!  I might be tempted to say something I'd be sorry for later.... Just sayin'...

Sunday Reflections

"The grass withers & the flowers fail, but the word of our God stands forever."
Isaiah 40:7

"All Your words are true; all Your righteous laws are eternal."
Psalm 119:160

"Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path."
Psalm 119:105

"I have hidden Your word in my heart that I might not sin against You."
Psalm 119:11

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God  He was with God in the beginning."
John 1:1,2

Last Hurrah

"My" summer has been extended quite a bit this year (I say, "My" because apparently I'm one of the few that hates to give up the heat...).  But we are now into autumn according to the calendar, & our weather forecast is for a dramatic change tonight (from a high of 93 today to a high of 73 tomorrow!)  But when I walked outside this AM with my coffee as I always do, I beheld a beautiful sight...

My perennial hibiscus, which had looked like it was dying back from the drought, put out a beautiful morning bloom (the blooms only last one day).   You might be thinking, "Oh, a nice pink flower..."

 

But to give a little perspective, the white bloom on the mandavilla is 4 1/2" across from petal to petal...

However, they put out more blooms & they last longer.

Since this is my view every AM as I come out of my bedroom, I love seeing the new blooms, and thinking that they were finished, it was a lovely surprise.  Hopefully we will  get the rained predicted for the next few days, it likely will beat down the blooms.  But that's all part of the changing seasons that I love.  And rain would be an answer to so many prayers!

In case you are wondering or even if you aren't, the hibiscus bloom is 9" across... When they are described as having "dinner plate size blooms", no exaggeration is happening.

Grace & Beauty

Today I saw grace and beauty, both in two young women.  At the end of a memorial service for Susan's husband, those there were invited to come back at meet with the family.  The line was very long, but being near the end was a benefit since we had a bit more time with Susan & her cousin, Kim.

Both of them were teary, but radiant.  God's grace in their lives shone from the inside out.  They have shed many tears, had long hours of talking, made so many plans, and dealt with details, all while caring for 3 children (with help from Kim's wonderful husband, Andy, and other family members).  But they both were beautiful today, and such an encouragement to those who came through to encourage them.

 That's inner beauty!  And that's grace!

Now they await the birth of Susan's baby.... another example of God's grace & beauty.


  Click here to visit Susan's blog &, then click on "comments" on her last post to leave her a word of encouragement.

Goodbye/Hello

It's time to say, "Goodbye" to the beauty of summer...

To the delicate pastels...

And the vibrant colors...

It's time to say, "Goodbye" to sandals, swim suits, & barefeet...

to summer memories of fun...

And to say, "Hello" to Autumn!  But... it's supposed to be...

96 degrees today in NC!

The Cost of Freedom

When I hear on the news that another American has made the ultimate sacrifice...

I am moved, and sad for their families.

When I am more directly confronted with it at the USO (where the Honors Team provides an awesome ceremony to honor the fallen hero every time one comes in through RDU), I am moved to tears, and sad for their families.

But yesterday when I learned that this time it was the husband of someone I know, I was shocked, moved to lots of tears, and sad for his family... a beautiful wife, waiting for the birth of their son in a couple of weeks; a beautiful little daughter who is too young to understand that her daddy won't be coming home; parents who realize they will not have the opportunity to watch their son be "daddy" to his children; and all those who love this man and his family.

It's called "the ultimate sacrifice"... the last sacrifice one in the military family can make.

Because all of their service time is a sacrifice.  Not only is it their sacrifice, but a sacrifice by their families... lonely times of separation, not knowing exactly where their loved one is, not being able to pick up a phone & talk to them just anytime they want to, not having emails answered "in a timely manner", frequent moves, limited income, knowing that their loved one belongs to the military (vacations can be postponed/cancelled/modified), and always the possibility of the ultimate sacrifice.

Let's never take lightly how precious our freedom is!

Please, join me in praying for this precious family who are grieving and who intimately know "the cost of freedom".  

(NewEveryAM.blogspot.com has a touching post about this in her 9/20 one)

"Beauti-flies"

Is this part of an owl?  Like its eye?

                                      Well, this owl is blind.....

But no, this is a butterfly (henceforth known as "beautiflies")!  God created this one in such a way that a predator would go for the spot, thinking it was an eye, yet if it attacked that spot the beautifly would not be hindered from flying.

Now this is a real beauty... sitting on the back of a lady who did not even know it was there!

and from there it lit on my daughter's arm... notice that her watch band is exactly the same color?  Wonder if the beautifly thought it was a friend, or a leaf?

From neon color to velvety black these were so "tame".

Definitely not the backyard variety, all these are from tropical areas of the world.

What a rainbow of colors (this one was actually a beautiful shade of aqua that doesn't show up very well in the picture)!  yet almost chameleon like, hiding in the foliage.

Speaking of foliage...

Whether on leaves, flowers, tree trunks, or visitors these creatures seem happy & comfortable in their environment at the Museum of Life & Science in Durham.

And this one seems perfectly happy in my backyard...

Put on the Brakes!

Last fall my sweet hubby borrowed two kayaks & took me out on Falls Lake to try it.  I enjoyed it & he was thrilled.  He now had an excuse to get one for each of us!  After a couple of months of researching which kind would be best;(light enough for him to carry by himself...( after all, a girl has to set some limitations...); easy enough for me to steer that I would want to continue doing it; reasonable in price; good quality, etc.
About the time he decided & purchased them, I started having trouble with my hands & had to have surgery on both of them.  So it knocked out biking & our new sport, kayaking for many months.

At least he got me a pretty bright orange one!

I finally got the doctor's okay to do it, so we took them to the beach.

We went kayaking on a "bayou" that led to a canal, & we kayaked for 2 1/2 hours.  It was beautiful & so much fun.  I went with three other guys & my sweet hubby... yep, just me & the guys. 

  I have no pictures, because I didn't want to take a chance on my camera getting wet.  But if I'd had it, I would have had some scary "interesting" pictures... We saw two snakes gliding from one shore to the other with heads above water up ahead.  I quit paddling until they were safely ashore...  Then near the end of the trip, I found out that kayaks have brakes!  I was in the lead, paddling like crazy when I spotted a huge snake that was most likely a water moccasin.  It was also gliding to the shore, but I very quickly gave the lead to the "boys"!  My sweet hero furiously paddled over to it & tried to whack it with his oar.  Later he said, "If that snake would have latched on to my oar, the oar would have been history!"

But he's still my hero!

Last Summer Vacation

Waiting till after Labor Day for a week at the beach significantly lowers the price & the crowds... So that's what we have done the last couple of years with some friends who, like us, don't have to worry about school schedules anymore.

And the one young couple who comes along (with built-in babysitters 24/7, who wouldn't mind hangin' with "old folks" for a week?!) isn't to the stage of school schedules yet.

Being a block from the beach means no sand in the beds!  Each of us had our own bedroom/bathroom, & there are two "living" areas, an ample kitchen, and a table that seats 16!  There's also a table for 4 that saw MANY rounds of cards played last week!

The view from the wrap-around porch outside our bedroom wasn't too shabby... & the cool breezes out there made it a great place for AM time with the Lord, then later reading time.

The one day (yep, that's right...) that I went to the beach, the water was so calm that it was like a lake, so two of our guys went kayaking on the ocean in regular kayaks.  I've never seen it this calm!

The ladies enjoyed the shade of the umbrella & a bit of sunshine (gotta get that vitamin D...)

One nice thing about this house is that the entire lower level is enclosed but without rooms, so it is a great place to leave our bikes.  That's why I only went to the beach once: I rode 8.5 mi. one day (same day I went kayaking), 13.5 another day, then 8.5 again another day.  Now you'd think I really made some progress with my weight loss with all of that... NOPE!  Gained 3 lbs. back!  Well, "they say" that muscle weighs more than fat..

However, eating dessert every night & other things that I haven't touched for the last 3 months made a bit of a difference.  And those desserts were worth every bit of it!

Our "entertainment" for the week was provided by this beautiful little gal...

and her "big" brother.  He kept us laughing so hard that we surely must be more healthy for it!  There is something so sweet about the innocence of a child who thinks everything is fascinating & takes joy in ordinary things.  He sure does love his "Dede"!!! and his Grandad!!  Of course, after watching them with him, it's no wonder.

Since the pool water was cooling off, I only swam one day... but getting into the hot tub after my swim, then back into the pool was "invigorating"...  I love having a pool at home, but I've never had a desire for a hot tub, even though I love a really hot bath in the winter. And though I enjoyed this, it didn't stir up any longings at all.

Packing up to go home meant another summer season over.  We were so thankful to avoid "Earl" or any other hurricanes & to be there the week after "Earl", which usually means absolutely beautiful weather: & it surely held true this year!

What Works, What Doesn't

I rarely endorse products & I do not get paid in any way for doing so on this post.

Now that my disclaimer is out of the way....

I recently decided to try once again to get some  peed-on-my-carpet "pet stains" out of my white dining room rug.  I know, who would have a WHITE dining room rug?!  But I've had it for at least 15 years, first in my sun room, then for the last 8 in my dining room.  It's been through the baby/toddler/young child stage of 3 grandchildren, numerous eating events involving lots of people, & many family dinners. Yet, I've always been able to get out any stains.

But I had to bring in the everything I could think of big guns for these resistant stains.  I don't know why boys (dogs, that is...) have to raise their legs & mark their territory.  I only know that once ONE of them does it, the other two have to follow suit.  I have yellow-at-the-bottom bushes to prove it.  And for some reason, they seem to think my dining table leg has to be marked.

I tried ALL of the above products, alone & in combination, & though they got out a  lot of the dirt, none of them got out "those" stains or the little bits of NC red clay mud spots.  I was on my butt hands & knees scrubbing after the alloted "soak" time & did it more than once, all to no avail.

 

But THIS one did it!!

Just in case you need to do any rug cleaning...

Pictures Can Say So Much

Where would such a lovely "road" lead?

                        to the Taj Mahal....

of "chicken houses"...

Goodbye to Summer: Part 2

As much as I love the blooms of summer, what I'll miss the most is the fun, relaxing times that go with the season:

picking blueberries (our annual early July tradition)

roasting marshmallows (for s'mores!)

beach time....

and pool time...

ball games (making a memory on one of the hottest evenings of the hottest summer)...

three trips to the beach,... & 3 trips to the mountains...  I love where we live!

Goodbye to Summer

I'm probably one of the few people who loves summer in the hot, sunny south.  But it's time to say "goodbye"... to all the beauty...

to the big & bold...

to the lacy & fragile...

to the bright & spiky...

to the tropical....

and the pristine...

to those who will not return & those that will...

     to the exotic....

that started out pink, then went to white, then back to pink over the course of the summer.

But there's always next summer when the palette will be fresh & new colors will bloom once again...