Memorable Day

This Memorial Day weekend, Sister #2 invited us to spend the day with them at the lake. Now, I'm all about the water, if you haven't already guessed, and thought it would be a great experience for LMW. For a couple of days, we talked to him about going to the lake, and what we would do. He began to say "Go Wake" but had no idea what a lake was.

On our hour and 45 minute drive to beautiful Lake Ouachita (pronounced Wash-uh-taw) we passed Lake Hamilton. When I mentioned the lake, the "Go Wake" began in earnest and the "Wah pay wah wah" was repeated again and again.  For those of you who don't speak LMW, the translation is "Go to the lake" and "Want to play in the water"...

The camp site was not accessible by car, so we met my sister at the dock and loaded all our necessities into the boat, the first order of business being to put a life jacket on the boy.
He loved the ride over to the site and couldn't wait to get to the water.

He was fearless and we had to keep a close watch on him, otherwise he would venture out into the woods, or into the water without his floaties or a grownup. Thank goodness Nanna thought to get a little boat for him.

He wanted to ride the SeaDoo pretty badly, and get on the big tubes the older guys were riding. He did get to ride on the Doo with Nanna and Mommy, but had to be satisfied with just climbing on the tubes.

There was just too much going on, so even though he was wiped out, he couldn't take his normal nap. Kinda made for a long day for the grown-ups, I can tell you that!

Sunscreen was applied liberally several times, shirts and hat kept on to prevent sunburn. His little skin is so delicate and fair, we really had to be vigilant. But, we succeeded in that, and he was a happy boy most of the day.

Many thanks to my sister and her family for making the day very special. She encouraged us to come again, reminding us that LMW will never learn how to act, or learn about having fun on the water if we don't. Smart lady.

A Nice May Day

I don't have any photos, but thought I'd share a little bit about my day today. I had a date with the friend who has been commissioning me to do the tee shirt quilts. She's a good friend and we have a lot in common. Our boys grew up together in the same class at school, our husbands played ball together, we were members of the same church for several years.... :)

She came to pick up her quilt, and we went to eat at a little place here called The Cottage of Sheridan. Wonderful food, great prices and lovely atmosphere. When we left there, we browsed some of the little antique/collectibles places in town and she found some really cool things to buy. I found some too, but didn't make any purchases this time.

We visited, ate, shopped and just basically enjoyed being together. (I heart her and we plan to do more this summer while she is out of school) So, that was the next to the last thing on my May for Me to do list!! I do still have a date with my sister for the 29th, and maybe my son can meet us for lunch too!! And I still plan to meet with the Mammo-Masher on the 31rst. 

Re-Evaluation

After reading my friend Tonya's post today, I thought I'd reevaluate my own goals for May for ME.
This was my original goal list:
1. Recover and paint an old chair for my desk. Done!
2. Make myself a Kindle cover. Done!
3. Finish UFOs (Namely, a second tee quilt, bedding for LMW,/Done!...dish towel sets for my friend Y)Done!
4.Reorganized and clean up my fabric cabinet. 
5. Create something unique for a Christmas project.
6. Make myself a purse.
7. Get all the above done, so I can start something new and fun.
8. Meet with friends for lunch or supper.

With two of them already accomplished, this is my new goal list:

1. Finish Tee Shirt Quilt  Done
2. Create something unique for a Christmas project.  Done
3. Reorganize and clean up my sewing room and fabric cabinet.  Done
4. Make myself a Kindle cover. Done
5. Meet with friends or family for a girls day.*
6. Mammogram

I have a date planned with my sister for the 29th.

And last but not least, THE most important thing I can do for Me.... I have a yearly screening mammogram scheduled for May 31. Yes, it hurts like the dickens, but only for a second or two. They are pretty good about releasing the pressure immediately. But ladies, early detection is the key to survival. I have a story....

When I was working at the medical clinic, there were four of us gals who were very close and did a lot of things together when we were off.  One of them was very diligent in getting her Mammogram done every year, and convinced the rest of us to go along. We all scheduled mammos for the same week, but I had to go to a different place due to insurance. One of us hadn't had her Mammo done in several years. It hurt, it was inconvenient, it was a bother... Well folks, they found a mass. The big C. She underwent total mastectomy and chemo/radiation. That was about 8 years ago, give or take and she has survived and conquered. Can you imagine if she had put it off another year? Two years? She'd probably not be here. So, if you are undecided, putting it off, refusing to do it...DO IT! It could mean your life.  As for me, I will endure a couple minutes of pain for 20 years of life any day!

May is shaping up to be a very constructive and productive month. Yayyy May for ME!!!

My Mother's Day

This year, SR and I spent several hours with his parents. We always enjoy our time together and they have always been like my second parents. Since my own are now gone, they ARE my parents. We get along greatly and I love them dearly.

We ate a simple lunch with them, then his mother told me to choose up to five of her decorative things to take home with me. She's so generous and loving. Back before I knew them, and even after Steve and I married, they were both into collecting antiques and depression glass. It was in big demand then and they felt they were making an investment.

Alas, the market has taken a nose dive and it's not worth what it was. (Although I saw some outrageous prices on some of it in the flea markets last week.) I'm thinking about trying to sell some of my glassware. It's hidden behind closed doors and just taking up space. I'll never decorate with it and my children aren't interested in it either. 

Here are the items I chose from my MIL's collection.

She and I share the love of blue, as you can see!! A couple of these are pretty old, but the other things are not. That's ok with me, I just like the color.

My Father-in-law wanted to get into the act, and told me to look in his shed and take anything I wanted. I really was drawn to this.

A beeYOUteeful aqua colored jug. Yes, it's nasty looking, but SR cleaned it up for me. I have an idea I want to try with it, and I'll share with you the final result of the cleaning and sprucing up as soon as I implement my plan.

Fleas

No, not the biting kind...the market kind. *grin*

SR and I spent three days in beautiful Heber Springs, Arkansas this weekend and we did quite a bit of flea market browsing. That is one thing we both enjoy. Most of the time I have an agenda, and know what I'm looking for, so I scan. If I don't see it, I'm ready to go. SR on the other hand likes to go slow, handle things, study them, and take his time.  This particular trip, I knew what I had in mind, but was slow and meticulous anyway, having a lot of time, and not wanting to miss something really cool.

These are the fleas I returned with.

I was in a nautical state of mind, and found several things. Some of the pieces are vintage, some are not, but that wasn't a big deal to me. SR always wants vintage or antique pieces.

The little crab is a brass ash tray. Now, I normally wouldn't buy an ash tray because of my deep and abiding aversion to smoking, but I just couldn't pass that little guy up.  ( No offense intended for you smokers) I plan to hang the large shell in my bathroom, but I needs find me a decorative hanging apparatus first.

I was immediately drawn to this beauty. The color caught my eye, and it sort of reminds me of sea grass. Had to get it.

Don't you love the pattern in this dish? I fell in love with it.
In my next post, I'll try to share some photos of our explorations and discoveries.  In the meantime, enjoy my little treasures.

Celebration!!

For those of you who might be interested, I've created a page with photos and video of LMW's second birthday celebration. You can view it here.

Goals for May

Since I'm planning to participate in the May For Me Celebration 2012, I decided to jot down my goals for the month. Don't hold me to them all, but I am a list maker and need it to remind me of all I really want to accomplish.

Here goes...

1. Recover and paint an old chair for my desk. Done!
2. Make myself a Kindle cover.
3. Finish UFOs (Namely, a second tee quilt, bedding for LMW, dish towel sets for my friend Y).
4. Reorganized and clean up my fabric cabinet.
5. Create something unique for a Christmas project.
6. Make myself a purse.
7. Get all the above done, so I can start something new and fun.
8. Meet with friends for lunch or supper.

Sounds like a lot to me. I will have to do these things in between the days of having LMW. He is at a stage where he wants and needs undivided attention. I'm hoping that some of the gifts he receives at his birthday party will help me with that.

Even  if I only get one or two finished, I'll be happy. 

Linking up with May for Me at Marcia's blog.