15 June 2012

TGIF!

I love the weekends!
don't you?

I didn't always...
once, many moons ago,
I had to work almost every weekend.

It was a good job, 
some even considered it a 
"dream job"...
but it took me away from
those that I loved the most...

So,
it had to go...
I grew up and no longer wanted 
the "good life" that took me to 
exotic places...

I wanted to enjoy 
the very special
"quiet moments"

a popsicle with my son...
my dog licking my feet...
the sun warming my face....
my father's stories...
my mother's meatloaf....
laughter with my girlfriends...
all of it could not wait 
not one more minute
without me.....

So,
enjoy where you are planted....












Take care of YOU this weekend!.....
smiles

13 June 2012

Thank goodness for IKEA!

Yes,
I am an IKEA fan....fanatic actually...

Last month,
as my sweetie and I packed the 
FIT for our beach trip
I loaded linens
into my EXTRA LARGE
LLBean tote bag.
Queen sized sheets for one bed,
and King sized for the other, 
how apropos....

Then, 
on a whim,
I grabbed the un-used 
Queen duvet and shams I found 
in the "As-Is" department at IKEA.
I had not found a use for them at home,
but thought they might come in handy
at the beach.

As anyone who rents beach houses knows
you must think carefully when 
packing linens.
You just never know what you will find.

When making our reservation online this year,
I noticed that the "Queen" in the 2nd bedroom
looked rather "Full" sized.
So, I called to confirm
and was assured that indeed it was a 
Queen.

OK,
so I included a little more linens than 
I actually needed.
When I made the beds,
I didn't use the duvet......
but thank goodness I brought it!


The couches in our rental were 
flithy.....very.....really....

I am not squeamish normally,
we have three sons
I know dirt.....dirt can co-exist with me, no problem...
But 
this was awful....
sticky, even.

We didn't have the inclination to 
complain.
The rest of the house was lovely.
The kitchen was well equipped...
Bathrooms were clean and freshly painted...
The decks sported chairs of different heights and widths..
The beds were comfortable...
so,
we weren't in mood to trek down to the rental office
to complain.
Instead,
I wrapped the couch we wanted to use
in the duvet,
and draped the arm rests with the shams.
Wha-La!
Happy time!



In the future,
this duvet set will be standard issue for our beach trips
smiles....

11 June 2012

How do you spell relief?

This is how I do....

B  E  A  C  H   T  R  I  P!!!!!

Yes, all English majors can roll their eyes now...
I know....

My sweetie and I went to our fave beach recently and 
had a wonderful time...
eating,
sleeping,
reading....
more eating...
more sleeping...
and of course,
more reading......


We did adult stuff too
like 
sight
seeing...
smiles....




These first three were taken with my iPhone using Instagram,
a totally addictive ap....


We were treated to absolutely terrific storms each day in the late afternoon


watching them roll in was mesmerizing....


And every once in a while, I managed to capture just a bit....


As usual, Brookgreen Gardens did not fail to impress...














 I returned home rested and ready to tackle some much anticipated projects...
but, 
each time I browse these images,
I feel my heart tug just a little,
to take me back to the beach...
smiles