A Trio of Treasures

July is almost over. I am not going to whine, because I have been blessed to feel like I was given a gift of summer this year. My favorite season has been missed for a couple of years now. 

My beach days have been wonderful. 

All my senses soaked up the beach: 

the smells of salty air, 

the warmth and beach breezes on my skin,

the views and colors, 

the sounds of wave action, and

even taste... I always carry a salty snack for beach time.

I hope to have a few more days there before the action of the school year begins. 

Stitching

I am down to my last 3 calendar pieces. I should finish pretty close to the end of July which will be perfect. That should give me plenty of time to put it altogether in a quilted hanging piece without being rushed.

As I stated before I have been thinking about the new grandbaby and the pieces I will stitch for the arrival next year. However, I have also been thinking about the Florida wall I am envisioning. I have all the patterns bought and kitted up and that should keep me busy for a good long time. I am ready to stitch daily again. There is another Florida sampler, a space stitch, some pipers along a beach, and a sampler with a sentiment I like all in that Florida wall mix. #thingstolookforwardto

Garden Notes

My roses seem to be bouncing back from the wrong fertilizer. I am happy to see that. I should get some nice fall blooms in October and November. I have shared that I have really downsized my growing pots, but it has all been good. For the first time in a long time, I feel I have a manageable amount to piddle with and I derive such pleasure in checking on them...not a burden.

Jeff sent me an Instagram post of a lady walking around in her flowers and plants early in the morning with her coffee and robe on with this sentiment...

"When you realize the real luxury in life is a morning cup of coffee while checking on your plants."

I said that fit me to a tee.

Family

Little Palmer turned 3 this July. He is the cutest most precious little fella. 

Those 3 are a true treasure.

The past 2 weeks have been quite busy, so Jeff and I are slipping off to Auburn today to REST. I really cleaned up last time to be ready for fall, so I am taking stitching and my latest read and plan to just rest for the weekend. We will be back for Sunday, but it will be the same amount of time as a weekend away. A little reset for the mind and body.

The first picture is where you will find me until sometime Saturday:)

Until next time,

Sandy 

Stitching and More

A mostly stitching post... 

I am still mostly prioritizing my Advent calendar for my son's family. I plan to do it basically the same as I did for my daughter's calendar. My head is spinning with all the upcoming stitching I GET to do. I am honestly giddy thinking about it all even though some of it will be things I have stitched before. 

With the arrival of a new grandbaby in January, I will be stitching their name like I have done for the 3 boys. I will need a new first Christmas ornament for 2025 and a new stocking for my growing family. For now though, the Advent calendar is first priority.

I am on number 20 of the 24. I am hoping to complete them all by the end of July. That will give me adequate time to put it all together into the hanging pocket form. I have enjoyed stitching each of the numbered motifs. They are just so cute and with each finish I get a feeling of accomplishment. My linen is sized so that I can do 3 across and when they are complete I cut them off and cut to size and add them to my stack of finished stitches.

*The linen I use for these is the best. It is called opalescent linen and I order it from 123Stitch. I love it for all things Christmas.   

I am also dreaming of my Florida wall. I have several really great ideas for it. So many ideas...need more time. All of it does give one something to look forward to though.

I thought I would share my drawers of small stitching. I use my daughter's dresser which is mostly empty to store all the seasonal small stitches. 

First up is a portion of my summery stitches including patriotic and late summer ones. There are many more that will go in this drawer because some of these were still on display as I was swapping out the patriotic ones. I always put most of the patriotic ones away after the Blue Angels home show the second week of July. (Some stay out until Labor Day). That show is a big deal in our parts. I have missed it for the second year in a row. I hope not to make that the new routine. Lindsay and her family did go and they boys are all heavily into planes this week.

Then some of the Christmas stitches. Some of the ornaments are in the Christmas decorations bins.

Next is the January through spring drawer.  Opening these drawers are always so much fun. You see all your work and a new season to come.

The fall drawer and my one winter piece. I need some more Thanksgiving pieces. I love Thanksgiving and feel it doesn't always get its due.

I have some really cool patterns for the Florida wall and just summer in general, so I am not lacking ideas...just time. 

I am at a stage of life where I just don't want to rush though.

Gardening note...

I mentioned my lack of blooms on my roses and honestly my daylilies this year. I also said I had figured out the cause... a poor choice of fertilizer. I have corrected that, moved some of the pine straw from around all of those plants and added new fertilizer. I popped out on the deck this morning and saw 2 new summer rose blooms. I didn't kill them, but so glad I caught the error. Even the daylilies are looking so happy and hopefully will pop out some more blooms too. Lesson for me is to go with the tried and true...and to look at the percentages on the bag.

Fashion...

I don't think I shared this, but if I did just remember age and being too busy makes you do crazy things.

The quote below is from a book by Fannie Flagg. I remember reading it years ago and chuckling because it was right on the money for me. Not the numbers but the sentiment. At just over 5'2", my numbers are small but still I feel the sentiment.

I have always been one who wears more than one size in bottoms either due to the style of pants, my need for nothing tight and the occasional bloating or up and down about 4 pounds. That 4 pounds often lands me in 2 sizes. Tops- I have been the same forever, but pants not so much. I like to have 2 sizes in my favorites due to that 4 pounds. I detest tight...always have so due to my being right in between 2 sizes sometimes I end up buying a size up or down depending on the times. I am sure some of you are shaking your head at me.

I can assure you my mother did when I was growing up. She spoiled me in that I grew up when mamas sewed everything for us. I just saw a picture, showed it to mama and voila...she recreated it and it fit perfectly.

I have bought more new pants in the past 18 months or so due to the style change than in ages. I love the wider legs. I am all about it and will not go back so I have let myself purchase new pants to last me thought the next style change and YES, some of them have been in 2 sizes. HA!

One I loved was below...

I normally stick with navy, khaki and olive in chinos, but this fun blue color caught my eye so I got it and navy and I have loved them. I have worn them over and over and the only photo I have is one where I was getting dressed and sent a photo to Lindsay to ask her what she thought about the tucking in and the belt and was my stomach to poochy. I mean how do you not have pooch at our age?

BTW, the belt is at least 20 years if not much older. Pays to be a pack rat.

Three cheers for something besides skinny jeans! I am sticking with straight and flared legs.

A final thought...

I saw a post the other day in which the young man was missing his deceased grandmother. He said something in his post that made me stop. He said his grandmother had lived life for the people in the first two rows of your funeral. Something along those lines...I am butchering it. 

I taught for 31 years and put so much time in on that job that when I retired I had time to realize that while my intentions were good I had put a lot of emphasis on people who won't think of me again. There are some, yes, but I had guilt feelings about working to hard to the exclusion of my health and my family. They won't agree with my assessment, but I had those feelings nonetheless. I am getting an opportunity in life to pour into my family and I am so grateful. That line really made me think about how important this time in my life is to me. I am enjoying this stage of life even though it is not always easy. 

We take the road in front of us and walk it. We do the best we can.

Three cheers for...

summertime, 

stitching, 

reading good books, 

doing long put off tasks, 

eating watermelon and peaches,  

straight and flare leg pants, 

playing with grandsons, 

spending time with the ones we love, 

walking the cutest most energetic 7 year old Springer Spaniel

and mostly for my Heavenly Father who walks with me.

Busy with Summer Chores This Past Week

     Summer...my favorite time of the year. I know I am almost alone in that sentiment, but that is ok. I am soaking up this summer with everything I have in me. When you feel like you skipped an entire summer, you will cherish the one in front of you like it manna from Heaven, and hey, it might just be for me!

I will share about Jacksonville at the end. For now, let's just do one of those old fashioned blog posts that women like to see or at least me on this point. Topic - cleaning and sorting and just all the random stuff of one's week.

After getting back from Jacksonville, I really began to feel like my old teacher days. Oh no, the 4th is over and the summer will almost be over. I need to put my tail in gear and get some things done that hade been saved for summer. I kind of decided I would leave off the beach for the week and get back to that next week. I wanted desperately to clean my windows which got ignored last year entirely. That is not a good thing on the back with the salty air, and they were driving me crazy. I had attempted to clean the ones that I could get to on the upper deck by hand, but I wasn't satisfied. In fact, I wasn't even sure if my old way of doing it would work after a full year of neglect, and that I might have to hire a professional. I have used the kind of Windex that you put on the end of your hose twice a year and that has always kept them clean. I ended up trying the spray kind, but I had to do it two days in a row. Basically, it got off the top layer of grime the first day and during the day looked great, but the next morning I could tell it would take more. I did the same routine again the next day and it is much better. I have two windows downstairs on one side that still have a layer of salty grime. I am going to have to figure out another plan of action for them, but TRUST me I will be back to my regular spring and fall routine. It makes it a much easier job and I have spent entirely too much time on windows due to not doing it last year. One of the perils of waterfront living.

Then I set myself on cleaning out a storage room which we call the "Fishing Room." It is not air conditioned, but just a storage room downstairs with a quick entry from the water. My in-laws kept their Christmas tree and wrapping supplies in there, but for the life of me I don't remember much else being in there. It has a shower in there and that was used by Paul Allen and crew back in middle and high school. We have always used it as the storage for fishing, boating supplies, etc. 

Over time it had become a disaster. Jeff is not one to put things back after using them and I won't rat on him too much, because I have my own things to take care of, but that room was killing me. Even though it is not in my line of sight, it was just a royal mess. I set out to tidy it. Not really deal with everything in there, but hopefully get it to a point that Jeff would be interested in organizing it and dealing with the clutter. Now,  if I really wanted to show you the bad I would show you a full before, but I actually started before I thought to do that.

You can see the entry door at the bottom of the stairs ajar. The little short door goes under the house. On the other side of the house is a full sized door and we keep yard tools and lawn mower in there. On the fishing room side of the house, it is not tall enough for one to stand up completely, but I almost can. We have some outdoor Christmas decorations in there. Although, I have downsized so much of that. We aren't getting younger, so I have gotten rid of much of those decorations. 

It has a big sink and the shower. That paint sitting on the ledge is gone now. I had really planned to paint this room a decade ago and this was leftover paint I had planned to start using. It is toast now.

Wondering what the shower looks like. A very nice shower filled with fishing poles.

This is the other side of the entry door from the stairs. More just stuff AND fishing poles. I can't say anything because I have way too much in my craft room, but he says some of them are freshwater poles from as far back as college and some belonged to his dad.

Then into the larger area... 

The double doors lead out the back side of the house right, so easy access for when Jeff returns from fishing. I must say that Paul Allen uses the room too. He did notice that I had worked. He said he had not let Miles go in there because there were hooks all over the place. He would be right. Lots of stuff was on the floor.

Our home has one of those in-house vacuums. It is really nice and I like it much. I don't use it as often as I once did. It doesn't seem to cut off and that unnerves me so I keep it unplugged. I would have to go plug it in to use it and you can imagine how that goes. I had someone look at it and they found nothing wrong. It does an amazing job though. 

Of course, Gus had to approve of my clean up job.

Oh and that curtain drives me nuts. You can't see from the outside that it doesn't fit the window because of bushes, but I really need to deal with that. I am going to try to find some coordinating fabric and sew something on the bottom.

Along with lots of stuff on the floor that table had so much stuff on it. I cleaned it off as much as I could and put it back in the cabinets.

As you can see it is a nice storage room and I am lucky to have it. It keeps all those fishing poles out of the garage. I wanted to tidy it enough to bring back in the 2 plastic tubs of inflatables and extra life jackets that are just in the playroom. 

I have always wanted to paint it, but that still hasn't happened and it is not happening this summer as I have more pressing things I want to do with the time I have left.

Windows and cleaning out that room have swallowed 3 full days of my time and energy.

*****

I read a blog post the other day. I think it is one to read. I loved the message of blogging. She called it the old fashioned way, but for those of us who still like blogs I think it is what drew me to them in the first place. I want to get back to that. Even though my time is limited and I am not able to comment and communicate as much as I would like, I think I am going to hop back into it as much as time will allow. I am not going to let my inabilities to do as much as I want to hinder me anymore.

I am going to stop this post here with a little update on our Mayo visit, but I have more to share about the things I notice in just daily life being home. I will say that the past few years have renewed my love for my home. Home is that place where you feel comfortable. I have really embraced home.

*****

We made it to our Mayo appointment for Jeff. As I said, I didn't know that I would hear anything super special and that turned out to be true. We are trying to adjust to this new thing in our lives. I did enjoy meeting the doctor and while nothing "new" was added I was glad we went. There are different perspectives here in this diagnosis. There is Jeff's, mine, and the kids. Those perspectives are all different. I am working on mine so that I can help with the other's. 

I thought the appointment went as well as it could and the doctor is one I am glad we have. We will stay with the Mayo Clinic for now even though it is a long drive. I don't think anything over here is going to match it not even in Pensacola. The medication dosage has been upped which I expected. He has some trials with it and can even up it more and will then meet on a video appointment in 3 months. A wee bit of physical therapy has been ordered to just show him some techniques to help with balance and the kind of shuffle and freezing of feet. The doctor thinks Jeff can do this on his own if he is shown some techniques. We are working on getting that set up in Pensacola where there are more resources than here for such PT.

I wish I could type more about where we are in this journey, but I am just not ready. I am going to share more in the future as I sort out how to best share useful things and honor Jeff. 

*****

Like I said, I plan to blog more even if it is short posts. I will be back in a few days with some stitching and more stuff happening over here in Home Ec Major Land.

Grateful and blessed,

Sandy

Family Vacation

 How do I even begin this post as my heart is so full?

I have had a hard year since last June. The events of the last 12 months have taken a toll on me, and I am sure it is obvious even here on the blog where I try to post my happiest of days and thoughts. I certainly got my cup filled and my body and mind recharged this week. I am so grateful, so indulge me while I post tons of pictures for my family to relive our vacation.

We went to our favorite place to recharge on the beach and bay of Cape San Blas. It is a unique place left in a state that looks so different even from my 60+ years. The bay is not fed by a river, but is actually Gulf of Mexico waters so it makes for a unique ecosystem and such amazing beauty. Over the years we have stayed on the bay and gulf side of the cape. This year we actually stayed at the bottom of the U which is shown in red on the following picture. This area was breached by Michael which is coming up on its 6th year anniversary in October. It will always be easy to remember its date due to Tucker being born a week later, but honestly, here in the south we know our storms by name.

We arrived to the rental on Wednesday about 4:00 and immediately the boys wanted to go to the water, but the adults were thinking what a view we had. We really didn't know we were going to be that lucky.

The screened in porch was across the back and became a hot spot of activity when we were at the house. You could hear the waves and soak up that salty air. I only needed a bed out there and I would have slept there each night.

One only had to walk down the boardwalk and then sandy trail to the beach. Even Gus got to see the beach for the first time. He only gets to go by boat to our bay, but dogs are not allowed on beaches here.

The vibe and the amount of people is nothing like our beach. It is not prettier, just a whole lot less crowded. More about that in a bit.

As soon as the word was given after unpacking and getting supper on the table, the family headed down and although the boys were in shorts from the drive they were in the water despite any objections from parents.

Now, Jeff did not try to walk that path to the beach, but he was able to do so much. He just didn't want to try and wade through the sand with his foot which is a story too.

In this next picture, you may notice Palmer's head is under water. I am not sure if he meant to do that, but he never said a word. Katie noticed it after the pictures were made. He is right in front of Tucker. 

Gus got to go down 2 days and swim and walk. He behaved very well and was very good at the house. I think he had a good time too. He didn't particularly like getting left for the boat rides, but he and Hallie (Lindsay's elder dog) did well.

The next 2 days we got up and after breakfast headed out for a boat ride on St. Joe Bay. All we had to do was drive to the state park which on the map is the northern third of the cape. We loaded on our pontoon boat and on the first day went to multiple spots on the bay. Paul Allen and Tyler handled everything so Jeff got to sit back and enjoy the ride. I truly can't say enough about how grateful I am for my children. They have helped me so much and made this trip one for my history book.

The second day we pretty much anchored at one location that was shallow enough for swimming and near the grasses for snorkeling. The darker water in the pictures has grass with tons of life in it. Scallops, sand dollars, starfish, and sea urchins to name a few.

The pictures of our boating are in no particular order...

When we left on the first day out on the boat, the guy at the launch kept talking about how crowded it would be. We smiled and were polite. I know he thinks it is crowded. He just has no idea. We go there to see the old real Florida; the Florida that Jeff and I remember. We may have seen 40 boats over the course of the day. Fort Walton Beach and Destin have exploded. That is nothing like what we have here. 

We boated from 9:30 to 1:30 and actually less the second day. Children are supposed to take naps. Not a lot of that happened but truthfully, they were amazing and so happy.

Each of the kids and their family took a night to cook supper, so no one had a ton to do. We ate sandwiches for lunch. I started breakfast each morning, but everyone chipped in with clean up, so it was not too much on anyone. That is the thing about the cape, if you go there you will not be going out for meals. There is one restaurant on the cape and a store for beach gear. It is full of houses to rent and camping grounds. 

We put puzzles together and played Phase 9, a card game. The kids played some game outside Paul Allen brought, used bubbles, and made up lots of fun activities led by Tucker.

                                     

Lindsay brought sparklers for the 4th. Since, CSB is on Eastern time, no child could wait until dark. Even the adults didn't wait up after a day on the water.

Much fun was had by all of us. The boys played hard, the kids relaxed and much more than I am sharing occurred, but I think enough is here to remember that it was a wonderful family vacation. I hold all plans these days loosely and this is one that I will be forever grateful that we got to do together.

The biggest news came on the first evening, with this being found first by Jeff and Lindsay. It didn't take me as long this time to catch on....

Paul Allen and Katie are blessing us with grandchild #4 in January. Truly blessed!!!!!!!!!!!

A few individual family shots to end up this post.

Palmer had worn himself out but he was doing his best to hang on for the grandparent picture.

I can't take credit for the cute pajamas. Lindsay got them.

I did get the cute shirts though. 

That is a wrap on a family vacation. We arrived home today and leave for Jacksonville on Monday to go to Mayo. I am hoping for lots, but at the same time I don't know what to expect if anything. We just have to find a way to move forward with hope that there are still good days left for Jeff. I won't go into more than that at the moment. For now, I am just thankful for the family time we had.

Sunday Afternoon, June 23, 2024 AD (in the year of our Lord)

Stitching 

I have been doing some stitching. Not as much as I want, but as much as I can squeeze in. I am still working on the Advent calendar and have finished 12 of 24 of the items.

At the rate I have been stitching, it takes 2-3 days to stitch one of the little items that will make pockets.  I have laid out the book and all the floss colors on my counter in the sewing room which has made the stitching go faster or easier. The pattern is in a book which sitting in my chair in the living room can be cumbersome. I can leave it all out in there and pop in whenever I want to stitch. 

I have started a new big piece. I am still considering myself a one stitch person because these days that fits my mind's attention best, but this one I keep by my chair in the living room for time when I am not reading.

Here is the pattern. I will not frame it like this. I think a compass rose or something like that would be a great addition to the upper left corner so no need to try and make a mat finish it off.

Here is my start. I am in no hurry, but one day I think I will have a Florida wall in my master bedroom.

Reading

I finished another good book. The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon was another intense read. I say intense because it had lots of action and the subject matter reminds me I am glad I was born in 1960. It follows a midwife in the 1700's in Maine. The one who recommended it to me said it would make a great movie. Yes Arlene, you were so right. Between this latest read and The Women, I read some inspirational books to lighten the load. I have another by the author of The Women to read this summer, but I am going to read a lighter one for the next 2 weeks and hold off on the other until July. I have been on a reading kick lately and am enjoying the distraction it brings.

The Frozen River's midwife kept a journal and I loved the entries. It reminded me of how much I like keeping a paper journal of sorts myself. Hers kind of reminded me of a Daybook with her entries of weather and where she went and the babies delivered, but also noting that she was just at home some days. Home - I love days at home too!

With that daybook in mind, I will make the remainder of the post similar.

Weather

It has been a nice start to June here in the Panhandle of Florida. I have thought the mornings and evenings have still be quite delightful, although I sensed this week brought the heat with it. I may not be able to spend the mornings and evenings outside on the deck as much.

What Is in My Ear?

I am into podcasts. This is not new, but I am pretty much loving this format. I have tried to read more fiction as of late, so listening to my informative newsy things in podcast form feeds my need to learn and know more. I stuff my phone in my shorts pockets or apron and away I go while attending chores. My topics are usually health or just plain informational. It feeds my nerdy side. Probably need a catchier title for this one rather than What is in my ear? I didn't want to end with a preposition with What I am listening to?

What I am Watching?

For awhile now, I have been watching The Gilmore Girls. Seasons back then were 22 episodes rather than 10 like today so I have finally made it to Season 5. I was ready for something else, so I went back to Sweet Magnolias.  I have one more episode there to be finished with it. That one is straight up soap opera. I miss my old soaps. I was a Guiding Light girl.

What I am Wearing?

My summer uniform is chino shorts and a cotton or linen top to be cool. Not a lot of variety but it is my favorite season for weather and fashion.

My To Do List

Washing windows outside. I don't do anything fast anymore. I am more the tortoise than the hare. I clean two rooms a day thoroughly and then devote the remainder of my energy or time to such objects as cleaning outdoor windows or any other similar project. I missed cleaning my windows last summer with the crazy summer I had and I am paying for it big time. Sea spray is really bad on the back ones and it is not going to come down with the Windex stuff you put on the end of the hose, so I may be cleaning windows for a while. YIKES...

Pondering

How much I love watermelons and peaches...another reason to love summer!

I don't think a lot of people share my love for summer, but that is ok.

Change comes - like it or not...

I am preparing for some change, but not worrying about it...just trying to prepare my mind for it. Like looking for homes. I don't think it is real soon, but it is most likely coming so we have driven around a lot and looked at neighborhoods. I am coming to some conclusions about what I would like vs not like when the time comes. I will say I really like Fort Walton Beach rather than some of the surrounding areas where finding a smaller home would be possible. I like my big trees dripping with Spanish moss and I like that we have lots of access points to the water for the public. 

Like I said, I am not worrying over it, but pondering it and PRAYing over it for down the road. 

Our previous home which is walking distance from our current home is not for sale, but was the perfect house plan and size. It was so pretty and now...

It looks awful. It has been through 3 owners and is on its 4th. The yard that we worked so hard on and was quintessential southern has been destroyed. It was once outline with white dwarf azaleas, flanked on the sides by sweet olive and camellias  and at the end of the drive you were met with big pink Pride of Mobile azaleas. Lush St. Augustine grass was sodded by hand by us WHEN we were young. Lots more too.

You know what is there now? No grass...not one blade, one lone plant remains. A camellia. All the other is gone. Sad huh?! I sometimes I wish I could get it back and take it back to its former glory. 

Mostly, I don't like to walk by it. I let Donna who lives across the street from there walk to our house, so I don't have to look at it.

Here it was back in the 80's.

The little girl on the front is Kristan and Lindsay is in the chair. I can't tell who is holding her, but she was a baby. Maybe it is Aunt Donna who lives across the street from this house.

***

I am also pondering how much I hate Parkinson's!

In the Garden

Oh my,  the flowers this year! I have had a major run of tough luck. Gardening can be like that but this problem I think I have finally figured out and I think it all comes down to fertilizer. I purchased something new on a quick trip and I didn't look too closely at the percentages. I was so frustrated with my flower pots on the front and then it started affecting my roses. I was just not getting it, but then it hit me. I took a look at the label and I really do think that is it and that all is not lost just yet. Frustrating, but not done yet.

Jeff and I went to Auburn for a few days. It was good to get away and check on the house up there. That is about it here in my little world.