Ruth Ann and I started out Tuesday in the early afternoon with a trip to Lovely Nails for a pedicure.
She and I both agree, that for as long as we can afford it, we will get pedicures!
From there we drove a few blocks up Beltline to Thrift Giant and then Goodwill.
I truly scored at Goodwill!!!
8 Tracy Porter Octavia Hill Garden dinner plates and 2 salad plates!
The plates were $0.75 each and the smaller ones just $0.50!
I love them!!
I took all my heavy Pfaltzgraff Village dishes to the camper. They now live on the top shelf of the pantry that Louis Dean made out of a closet. I have a service for 12 and lots of extra pieces that we can use when we entertain down there.
I couldn't resist the sunflowers and they are now in an old coffee pot in the kitchen.
The pumpkin pillow was a no brainer! No question that it should live with me!
At Thrift Giant, I picked up three tops - the pink one for pajamas!
Brand new aprons!
$2 each! They have really long ties which I like so I can wrap them around and tie in front.
We stopped at Aldi's - which is just across the street from Goodwill - and then headed home to prepare for art class.
We started out with Frozen Strawberry Bellini's!
Super simple. Blend frozen strawberries with a bottle of Strawberry Bellini Cocktail - add a slice of fresh strawberry and a sprig of mint straight from my planter and - sip!!!
They were heavenly!!
This Mango Peach Salsa was also good!
Served with chips and.....
THIS! Yum!
I made BLT's for our dinner.
Sherry sliced up onions, peppers and cherry tomatoes from our garden.
I picked the first ripe ones on Monday and saved them for this special occasion!
Now I will always remember this year's first taste from the garden!
We set up the art table, opened the turp and enjoyed our evening.
I forgot to take pics but Ruth Ann finished her cottage painting and we chose our next project - a seascape! Complete with palm trees, sunset and beach - and waves, of course!
Plus we picked out our Santa painting for 2017!
It's something a bit different!
Last night I was pretty tired but stayed up with Louis Dean and watched a couple of shows.
Bull and Madame Secretary. He said, "One more? I'm too tired to sleep just yet - and I would love you to keep me company!" Of course he gave me that sad brown eyed puppy dog look......
He had worked way too hard!
ALL the beards from the pecan trees had fallen while we were at the ranch and they had made a mess of the ponds. Our small fountain by the sandbox had run dry and burned the motor up so he had to replace that.
Plus he had hung my new Boot Bird House up and it didn't work there so he took it down and added a perch before securing it on another limb of the Yaupon Holly tree.
It was 3:00 this morning before I went to sleep and I was up at 10:00!
It's been a long day.
Summer came by for a little visit after she had taken Sabrina to the airport.
She and Sunshine flew to Puerto Rico - first class!!
Sunshine is my grand dog and she did so well.
Summer an Rayne will be leaving at the end of the month.
Anyway, Summer looked really cute with her navy blue and white outfit and blue toenails and a cute haircut, I'm seriously thinking of going back to super short hair!
Wish I had taken her picture!
She and I visited and she put this cool app on my phone for Walgreens so I can handle our prescriptions easier and better with less hassle. It's awesome!!
I hadn't made the bed yet so she and I went back to bed and just chatted for awhile.
I love that!
Then I left her to take a nap while I went back to work on filling a month's worth of medicine in our pill boxes.
Summer looked good and is feeling better - but she has come to grips with the fact that she will be on disability now. Life can change so fast and she did not see this coming.
I'm so proud of her and the way she is handling it and continues to cope with a good amount of pain.
I'm cleaning and starting to get out the red/white/blue things for summer decorations.
I spent a good amount of time cleaning the sewing room.
We've had a visitor who has made himself quite at home here.
It's a baby possum.
I noticed when I came in to my desk this morning that there was a pile of cookie crumbs beside my laptop. Hmmmm...
On further investigation, I found he had set up a little cafeteria under the table in here.
Plus he didn't know where the bathroom was so he left his business where it didn't belong.
I can tell you one thing.....the sewing room is super clean now!
Is the possum gone? I'm not sure. Louis Dean has a critter trap thing that he's baited with sliced apples. We love our possums but he needs to go back outside!!
We have both worked hard today.
I cleaned the gazebo as well as the sewing room and you will be so proud of me when I tell you -
the trunk of my car is FULL of donations to Goodwill!
I'm taking them there tomorrow!
Now I want to ask a question.
Does anyone know how to pick a good watermelon?
I bought one at HEB last week and it was pretty but had absolutely NO taste whatsoever!!
I bought this one at Aldi and it was good. Not delicious but GOOD!
I'll take that.
We each had a big bowl of watermelon for our afternoon snack while we rested in the now clean gazebo. But I would love to know the secret of getting a good watermelon more often than not!
Well, it's a little after 10:00 and I am going to visit with Louis Dean for a little while before we go to bed. I told him if he gets a second wind - he's going to have to blow all by himself!
I have heard that the melons that have a more yellow area (where the melon rested on the ground) are the sweetest. I usually pay a bit more and buy a half melon...if it smells like watermelon, it will taste like watermelon!
ReplyDeleteFirst, here is how to pick out a good watermelon!
ReplyDeleteFirst, find a melon that’s dull, not shiny.
1. Pick It Up: Big or small, the watermelon should feel heavy for its size.
2. Look for the Yellow Spot: Watermelons develop a splotch where they rest on the ground. The deeper in color, the longer the fully grown melon was on the vine getting sweet. Yellow is better than white, but white is better than no patch at all. When this splotch is creamy yellow, it's ripe.
3. Give It a Thump: Tap the underbelly of the watermelon. A ripe one will have a deep hollow sound. Under-ripe or over-ripe melons will sound dull... How does the possum get in? your Bellinis are beautiful! Your tops are all so pretty! And I love your Goodwill haul! I am so sorry about Summer! Madam Secretary was good, as usual. But I am getting quite tired of her husband walking into danger all the time!!
The new plates are super interesting. Poor LD, pecan whiskers are a problem. Glad Summer is better but very sorry to learn this means disability for her. Oh my, healthcare could be a real problem for her in the future. Also funding for the disabled. She's too young to suffer back pain the rest of her life. Are you going to miss what your garden produces if you're at the camper?
ReplyDeleteI am so glad that you share so much of your life with us through this blog. I feel as though I know you and Louis Dean and yet we have never met. Glad Summer is feeling better.
ReplyDeleteGinny gave you excellent directions for selecting a watermelon!
ReplyDeletePossums? You love them? Why? What benefit are they?
I dislike them intensely. I am also none too pleased with a woodpecker thumping away on my new fence. It might as well be thumping on my temples. Wildlife and I may not be too companionable.
Awwww...I wanted to see Ruth Ann's finished cottage... This has been one of my favorite projects.
Glad that Summer is feeling a little better, though I am sad for the health changes in her life. No, one never sees something like that. Praying that the move goes very well.
You do always look cute in your perky short hair...a summer cut and then let it grow for winter?
Linda, You have a busy life...friends make it nice..plus that good man of yours. Oh no that possum is a glorified rat.LOL get the fly swatter or broom. He needs to stay outside and eat grubs. I hope Summer will have a good life when she and Rayne move. Tell her to send lots of pictures of Rayne so you can post them...she's a sweet little girl. You sure treat your art class well. Fresh good food and drinks. Blessings to you and LD. love you guys, xoxo, Susie
ReplyDeleteI just want to come to your art get-togethers so badly. You have the most fun whatever you are doing. That's the way it should be.
ReplyDeleteLinda, my daddy grew Watermelons and the season is still too early for a truly tasty melon. I think when they developed the seedless variety that it took some of the good old fashioned flavor away. So watch for a man on the side of the road selling melons he grew and you ask him to pick one for you!!:) I picked up an Athena Cantaloupe the other day and I think it is a bit early for them as well as it was just good, not great. So sorry to hear that Summer is still in pain but as an old nurse I can tell you that Back issues are the hardest to solve. I do not think the back pain ever truly goes away. I am glad she has a good attitude as that is half the battle.
ReplyDeleteyou really got a beautiful haul this time, I love the 3 glasses for your drinks and watermelon makes me hungry. sorry Summer will have to stay on disability but glad she is better than she was and the pup did good on the trip.
ReplyDeleteWhat great finds at the Thrift stores. I do love aprons with long ties..I like tying mine in the front.
ReplyDeleteMy dad always said you had to "thump" a melon and smell the end...if it was a hollow sound and had a sweet smell at the end..it was good...Hasn't always worked for me...haha.
I'm craving melon now! I wish I could buy plates as cheaply. I like to have variety for my food posts but it can get expensive. Cheers
ReplyDeleteLove coming back to catch uo with you on your blog Linda, I miss reading when I fall behind as I have the last few weeks. Like you I love a manicure, and occasionally have a pedicure in the summer months too. Makes me feel presentable. I am laughing at the thought of LD's big puppy dog eyes, he has you wrapped round his little finger! X
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