Red, White and Blue!

Happy Independence Day!

Flag on my back deck a couple years back!

Star on my backyard fence!

Read more about them on Earrings Everyday!

Long Time, No See...Ramblings

Hello, friends!  Time has flown by since I last posted anything...a lot of family activity this month and I have had a hard time sitting down and documenting anything.

School ended, B finished 5th grade!  He received a Presidential Certificate of Excellence!

We immediately went to the beach for a few days...had a blast, although the weather was not optimal.

We got a bit of sun, but it was mostly cloudy...

and windy!

B found this on the beach for me!

After we got home, we celebrated Father's Day, and our 13th anniversary on the 20th.  J got me 2 books I had on my wish list...Mixed Metal Mania by Kim St. Jean and Foldforming by Charles Lewton Brain!  I love them both...be prepared for new metal pieces!

Since then, it has been 9-5 work, house work, yard work, Boy Scouts (B got his Scout badge, so he is official!).  We are getting ready for him to go to Boy Scout camp for a week...his first sleep away...yikes!

Not much jewelry making going on...have some things started, and simmering, but not ready to show!

Here are some pretties from around my yard, however!

Stay tuned...I will be introducing my Bead Soup partner soon, and hopefully unveiling some new Melismatic Morsels!

Happy Friday...hope you have a fabulous weekend!

Miss me?

Wow, June has just been flying by! When last I posted, we were sweltering and miserable after our AC had broken down.  A couple days later, though, a brand new HVAC system was installed and we were cool again, although broke!

The day after, was B's last day of 4th grade - J went to get him and attended the flag lowering ceremony...here they are!

Then, that weekend, we headed for Ocean City for a few days!! Lots of fun, but unfortunately, mostly stormy and rainy...we finally had about a day and a half of sun.  We found things to occupy us, though!  The boys wanted to go see a movie, so we caught The Green Lantern, which was entertaining enough...luckily, Ryan Reynolds was pretty hot ;)  We went to an Arts show that I knew my friend Shelby of Sundown Bead Designs was going to be at.  It was fun chatting and admiring her gorgeous jewelry!  We also visited nearby Berlin, MD and had fun going through the antique shops there.  I found a Westmoreland "Old Quilt" milk glass S/P, which I snagged to add to my collection.  J found a gorgeous old brass dragon wall plaque that I decided he needed for his Father's Day/12th Anniversary present!

Finally, we made it to the beach and got a bit of sun!  The surf was amazing...waves were really big  and the water was cold!

 

B made a new friend from Ohio who body-surfed with him and played at the pool!



Back home to clean house, do laundry, buy groceries, get B ready for Summer Day Camp, and more!  The only jewelry I have had a chance to work on was for a deadline and custom orders, but I hope to remedy that some this week!

How is your summer going so far?

I'm mellllltttttiiiinnnnggg!

Just a quick post to say hi and let you know that we are in the midst of an AC meltdown, in the hottest week you can imagine in Maryland!  We have a pretty obsolete HVAC system in our house and knew that it was going to need to be replaced, especially the furnace, after numerous pilot light re-lights this past winter and a visit from a reputable source.  We were hoping to replace everything in the fall, but little did we know that the AC unit was also a goner! 

Woke up to a hot and sticky house last week, but rather than call a repairman and pay a big ticket to get it repaired, we just moved ahead on our big purchase...a brand new HVAC system!  The obvious catch is that it doesn't get installed until mid-week, next week! AArrrgggggghhh!  We have lots of fans going, and  all our windows/screened doors opened, but it doesn't help that the temps in our area have been 95-100 degrees pretty much all week!  Not very conducive to creativity, right?

Even my very cold-natured boy, B has been hot!  He is the one that we have to remind to bring a hoodie to restaurants and school so he won't freeze!  He and his dad have been going to the pool everyday after school, so that helps..luckily there is not a water ban 'cuz we have been sprayin' that hose a lot!!

This is one of our favorite things on days like this...

Disclaimer..this is not a paid advertisement for Flavor-Ice, or I would be demanding a bigger check!  We buy them by the crate at Costco all through the year...several of these actually make both my boys, ages 9 and 54, quite happy for dessert. Yay me!!!

Memorial Day...

Took a day off my day job on Friday, so we have had a glorious 4-day weekend! 

Friday I got up and took B to school, let J sleep, and worked in my studio (dark, dank basement) enameling and soldering and playing.  It was fabulous...will do a show and tell later.

Saturday, we made an impromptu decision to go visit J's "Pop" at Arlington Memorial Cemetary.  Primitivo Mabborang Meman, 1910 - 1996, was born and raised in the Philippines. He joined the US Navy and served in World War II and Korea...he was a Pearl Harbor survivor.

We were happy to see that all the stones had gotten their Memorial flag...it was quite a sight to see the rows and rows of head stones decorated with the red, white and blue!

B has on his game face...his dad and I reminded him to be respectful at all times and he took us seriously...my boy!

Since we were in the area, we decided to go to visit the Pentagon Memorial, honoring the 184 victims of the crash of American Airlines flight 77 into the Pentagon on September 11, 2001.  It was a beautiful day and the water in the little reflecting pools under the benches was sparkling in the sun and reflecting up onto the metal above...very moving.

Today we are celebrating J's 54th birthday!  We went to the pool this afternoon, and will be having birthday cake and ice cream later, along with a few adult beverages, I envision.  That is, if the cake hasn't completely fallen apart...J asked for German Chocolate cake, with the pecan and coconut frosting.  I made it, but I did a half & half...using chocolate frosting for 1 half.  The chocolate side is fine, but the pecan and coconut side keeps sliding off the cake.  I think I am just going to scrape it all off and serve it in a bowl on the side!

How about you...how is/was your Memorial Day?

Wordless Wednesday,,,