New Blog On The Block!!!

I started it quite some time ago.....one post and then no more. My intentions were good, but I actually forgot about it until recently. The "girls" are cooking....and sharing their experiences and I thought I'd share mine. Maybe my recipes will bore you, but maybe they will inspire you. Actually, I never really use a recipe....I don't measure anything, unless I'm baking...gotta measure then! Anyway, I just figured that it would easier for you to find the recipes down the road if they are all in the same place. Go look.........!

Aprons Required....let's tie one on!

Weekend in the Mountains.....at the cabin!!!

We've just gotten in from Melinda and Brad's log cabin...........we had a great weekend, even though it rained on the way up Friday...through the night....and all day Saturday! It didn't matter because we had plans......big plans!!! Brad brought up the new cabinets for the kitchen and the wood to start the rails on the front porch and the inside stairs. It was a little late when we got in on Friday, so we settled back and caught up on what's been going on. Saturday morning we took off for the restaurant at Mabry Mill (we all love that place!).....Dennis tried the sweet potato pancakes and they were awesome!

After we got back, the guys were ready to get started on the kitchen! We cleared everything out and they sent us to the store to run a couple of errands....Melin and I stopped at Lover's Leap to catch the view......There was no view to be seen, as you can see!!! When we got back, the guys were hard at work and had already put three of the eight cabinets together! Amazingly, they installed (and perfectly, I might add!) all of those cabinets and made temporary countertops just in time for Melin and I to make dinner!!!

As they finished a cabinet, Melinda and I loaded it and we had the place back together by dinner time, so we could relax afterwards. The kitchen looks fabulous and there is soooo much room to store things and lots of counterspace! Melinda says it's nicer than her home kitchen (although I'm sure it won't be for long.....Brad is a "Kitchen Monster"!!

After dinner we all settled down to watch "Sex In The City".....well, almost all of us! The next morning Melin and I made breakfast while the guys started on the railing for the stairs and were done in no time at all....they look great and going upstairs feels alot less scary! Next they took their hammers, saws, drills, nails, screw and level out to the porch to start on the railings around the porch. Since we decided to put a cap on the top (Dennis said he needed someplace to set his beer down), we didn't have enough wood to finish the top railing all the way around or put on the bottom railing....we just added it to the "next time" list! While they drilled and hammered, Melinda and I moved furniture around, hung stuff, cleaned stuff.......and swept. Let me correct that! MELINDA swept.....ALL WEEKEND! If the guys made one cut with the saw, she grabbed the broom....her "broom muscles" have to hurt after this weekend! The Grin Sweeper!

Everything looks great!!! I gave them an old cedar chest of drawers that's been in my garage for four years....it fits perfectly in their room. Once we filled that, it really opened things up. We also put in the headboard for her bed. Their room looks wonderful!

After we had nailed the last nail, moved the last piece of furniture into its place, we had lunch and relaxed a little on the porch before we had to pack and go.....I just hate to leave that place! Sadly, we packed out cars and headed home.....I'm sure Melinda was doing the same thing on her drive home that I was....dreaming of all of the things we'll do on the next trip, and the next trip and the next. I'm just happy that there is one thing she doesn't have to dream about anymore.....owning her own cabin. This is it....it's the one.....and I'm so looking for to making many wonderful memories there. Home Sweet Cabin!!!

Melinda and Brad....thanks for an incredible weekend....it's one we'll remember always! We love you both! XOXOXO

More Pics of the Cabin!!!

Not So Calm Anymore.....definitely not bright!

We have battened down the hatches and put away everything on the deck....now my sunroom is full of begonias!

Hey, I'm not complaining.....I'm an inclement weather lover! The wind has been howling all night, but it's really starting to pick up a little more now. It's nothing major.....but I do expect to see some pine cones and pine straw all over the yard when it's over......sure wish the leaves were changing, then I could get them all up at one time. Oh well!

Our poor neighbor put in new bulkheading this past summer....then, just two weeks ago, he had a pathway mulched all along the bulkhead. Now it's floating down the creek!! Here are some pics of the backyard:

This is a view of the neighbor's "floating mulch" from our yard.....I don't think that salty water is going to be very good for the 10 new crepe myrtles he planted all along the creek!!!

This is a view of our dock this morning.....the floor is under water about 3 inches. The tide this morning is pretty high, but we think that it will be the worst of it. It's supposed to rain and "gust" all day, so I'll let you know how the evening tide goes! Have a great day!!!

All is calm..........all is bright.......

As you all know by now, Shelby and Justin survived Hurricane Ike, which wasn't really such a feat considering that it didn't touch them at all! In fact, Shelby called yesterday morning and said, "Mom, there are 7 mph winds, it's 83 degrees and sunny....going to run errands and lay out today!". Can you believe it?? Only 200 miles from such destruction and she couldn't even feel the wind in her hair (no further comment required here!). So.....the only thing they had to survive was me!!! I have a reputation of being overly prepared for such events.....and this time was tough because I wouldn't be there to think of everything for her....and I knew Justin would be on call and she'd be by herself. So I constantly kept her updated on where it was and where it might go....reminded her to get batteries and water...in other words, I was being me again. Of course, I know she's had plenty of practice at weather events living with me and I knew that Justin would make sure she didn't forget anything. I know he loves her and will take care of her....I'm just finding it difficult to cross that line between being the Mom that looks after her to the Mom that watches someone else fill that space in her life. Fortunately, I love and adore the man she's chosen to occupy that space....but more than that, I trust that he will always love and take care of her. So, Shelby, be patient with me if I still act like the Mom I've always been.....I'm working on being the Mom I need to be now....here when you need me and silent when you don't. I will always love you....and, like you, I've fallen in love with him, too! Live life and love life.....Mom XOXOXO

Finally......

OK......you guys are killing me! Stop growing up so dang fast...this is just too much for me! If you're getting older, then so am I and that just doesn't work for me! Sooooo.......Courtney and Austin are ENGAGED!!! Surprise!!! Not.....they have been the epitome of a happy couple for a long time (Really? Eight Years??? Stop it now!). I'm sooooo happy for you guys! Congrats, congrats, congrats! Is there a new wedding planning blog in the forecast??? If you need anything....I'm here!!! Love you guys!

Like Mother....like Daughter!!!!!!!

I know it's been a long while since I've posted......no excuses! Maybe I have a few reasons, but they'd all add up to the same thing.......just like Shelby, I'm a blog slacker! I guess you all know by now that my girl has moved to San Antonio.....it has been a real adjustment for both of us and one that hasn't come without many gut wrenching tears! I just can't tell you how very much I miss her. The worst part is that maternal thing that is at the core of me.........if she needs me, I can't just jump in the car and take her a "hug" or some egg drop soup.....or just a nod that her sauce is perfect! Of course, I knew this day would come....and I had a few months to prepare for it, but I didn't. I kept pretending that it wasn't happening...and then it did. I have to admit that it did make it easier to know that in only three weeks I would be flying down to visit her.....sometimes the excitement took my breath away. I could barely concentrate on anything! We had a great time.....as soon as we landed I turned on my phone and within seconds it rang with that familiar number that makes me smile. She thought we'd landed about 15 minutes before and was a bit worried about where I was. We talked until I reached the escalator and looked down to see her beautiful smiling face! I could barely wait to feel her hug!!! We were both starved so I suggested Aldacos....I had been there four years earlier on a company trip and had taken a Mexican cooking class there. I wanted her to taste their food! Once we got there and started asking questions about their catering services, we found out that the Sunset Station (which runs Aldacos) has many venues they own within a six block area. We met the catering manager and took a tour. We fell in love with The Spire, which is a stone church built in 1884.....originally we thought it would make a great location for the reception, but then we went to visit the St. Paul Square Courtyard and fell in love!!! We then decided it would be better to have the ceremony at the Spire and the reception in the courtyard. When you step into the courtyard, you feel like you are in a tropical western town....hard to imagine, I'm sure, but trust me.....it's PERFECT!!! Below are the pics to prove it......

The Spire Inside The Spire

The Couryard (this is only once SMALL part of the courtyard - we think it would be a great area for cocktails and then later for dancing)

When you stand in the courtyard and look up, this is what you see....what I don't have pictures of YET is what you see standing IN the courtyard.....beautiful mesquite trees, tropical palms.....a gorgeous fountain. I love it.....

Soooooooo.....our first day together in San Antonio was a very productive one!!!! After we left Sunset Station, we headed to the Riverwalk.....it's become a tradition for me to have a cactus pear margarita at the Zuni Grill on the Riverwalk. My first trip there was with Dennis and we discovered this fabulous drink. Shelby sent me a phone pic of her having one on her first trip there with Justin! Wow..........what a great family tradition!!! I think we should have a traditional cocktail for every place we go!

I love Shelby's and Justin's apartment......what a great job they have done at setting up their new home....and it feels just like a home. When I put my bags in my room, I found Texas postcards on the bed.....Shelby's little way of welcoming me to Texas.

I just can't tell you what a great time I had there in my five days....it was the happiest I had been in weeks! It was also wonderful to be able to spend so much time around Justin and I fell more in love with him while I was there. He's such a good human being.....great heart.....sensible.....funny (ohmigosh....I love it when he sings!!!!!!!).....and he is so good for my girl! It was good to see that he loves her.....but it was also good to see that they are real with each other....there's no pretense.....they care a great deal about each other, themselves....and more so, their relationship. I'm a proud mom and a lucky one.

So, leaving was just the most awful thing I'd felt in such a long time. This time it was harder to leave her than it was for her to leave me. I don't know when I will be able to see her again. She's found a great job and so it will be tough to take time off. It's also hard to take off to visit here, when she and Justin want to spend as much free time as possible traveling....and I really want them to. They are in a great location in the US and there is so much down there to see...they need to spend every minute enjoying where they are. In the meantime, we'll call and much as possible.....email our ideas about everything, including the wedding, food and other stuff....and we'll miss each other (yep, the tears are flowing......).....we'll miss each other alot. But knowing how much she misses me is my reward for having loved her all of my life. If she didn't love me back, she wouldn't miss me, would she? So, I'll take that thought, dry my eyes and go have a margarita.....to my Texans, Shelby and Justin....I love you every day, all day......Mom XOXOXO

Wow....it's been a while!!!

We had a great trip to Charleston.....a couple of mishaps, but everything turned out beautifully! To start with, we picked up the 1100 carnations, 200 rose, the peonies and hydrangea and started out 7 hour trip to Charleston. Melinda and Anna followed us and we made a couple of stops along the way to grab a bite to eat, go to the restroom and stretch our legs. When we arrived, we went immediately to the condo we rented.....great place...plenty of room for all of us and lots of space to work on the flowers. We immediately immersed all of the flowers in fresh water, unpacked and relaxed. The next morning we started working on the arrangements and the carnations were almost all buds AND they were the tiniest carnations I'd ever seen. Panicking, we started calling every florist in town and rounded up more carnations and then bought more roses, just in case. All of the flowers turned out beautiful, but poor Lindsey's bouquet suffered immensely after taking pictures all day in 80 degree weather. The peonies held up find, but the hydrangea went completely limp!!! I had actually ordered more of the hydrangea, but when I picked up the flowers there was a lady there who had forgotten to order her hydrangea and I shared mine with her!!! Argh! Since we were stuck in traffic (horrible in Charleston!), the girls walked to the reception area and grabbed Lindsey's "throw bouquet", which was made of white mini carnations, and redid her bouquet....it looked great, but still broke my heart that it wasn't what she had wanted. Lesson learned!!! She loved the reception area, the food was delicious (especially the shrimp & grits!). As soon as the photographer releases the photos, I will post them. We had a great time, although it took me a few days to come down from all of the excitement! Stay tuned for photos!!!