Oh Hey, Friday - Nearly Half Way

Messy Messy Fail - My hanging baskets are really starting to flourish.  Guess who else discovered my beautiful baskets?  Darn those pesky Japanese beetles!  They especially seem to be enjoying the purple sweet potato vines.  I hate to put up a Japanese beetle bag, that just draws more and is a last resort.  I'm going to try some Sevin Dust, we'll see how it goes........

Tidy Victory - We had to dig up some plants and bushes to make way for the front yard revamp and they have since been sitting in their rootballs or make shift pots around the backyard.  We have an ugly water meter on the side of the house and have been looking for something to plant in front of it that looked appropriate.  How convenient that we have a fluffy looking Dwarf Alberta Spruce laying in our yard that needs a new home!  BOOM - water meter covered.

This summer is going by so fast, I feel like it was just yesterday I was yacking about my first week of summer!

There is plenty going on around here as I type and watch my 92873408927340th episode of the Pioneer Woman (I DVR her cooking show).  

<One> Blueberries - I was driving to drop off the toddler with my in-laws for a fun camping trip at a local private campground when I saw the sign "U-Pick Blueberries up the hill".  Hands down the easiest berry to pick - you just hold your bucket under the branches and delicately roll your fingers together over the berries and they just fall right in.  You can fill a bucket easily in a half hour.  The baby loves them fresh off the bush and the toddler will eat blueberry muffins until he's sick.  I like to freeze a big ziplock bag of them to use throughout the winter for pies, pancakes, waffles, breads and ice cream.  Happy national blueberry month!

<Two> Hot Air Balloons - Often times, we'll see hot air balloons taking their occupants for a gorgeous ride over the lake and through the hills of our beautiful country side.  If the toddler is in the car when we see one, we chase it, and that is not an option.  Luckily he was not in the car when we (the baby and I) came across this one this evening, but we still chased it a bit anyways.  When I yelled up (they weren't that high) and asked how the view was, they replied "It's okay."  Yeah right.

<Three> Shrimp - A special treat for dinner at our house - my husband and I love grilling or baking this festive seafood during the summer months.  Be it with linguine, baked with breadcrumbs and garlic or with cocktail sauce, the adults love this refreshing meal.  A nice change from beef, venison or chicken.  Sounds like a good idea for a round up post......  I went to grab a family pack bag of frozen cooked, peeled, and deveined shrimp at Wegmans when I saw the price and about fell over ($29.99).  Good thing the bag next to it was raw EZ peel for $19.99 - a glass of wine will make that prep work go quicker. 

<Four> Cards - You'd think this would happen in the opposite order now that I have two kids, but I used to love buying funny cards at the store to have ready.  Now, I've found how creative I can (or can't ha!) be by making my own.  It's amazing how expensive cards can be at the store - I've seen a price point of $8.49, but that had lots of sparkles, bows, and sound.  I still do buy cards that I just can't resist purchasing for that special someone, but I have also accrued quite the collection of scraps, stickers, odd and ends for making cards.  I love making people feel special by spending the extra time to create a card just for them.

<Five> Weddings - I have the honor of playing at a co-worker's wedding tomorrow and cannot tell you enough what a MARVELOUS job they have done organizing and decorating.  The couple is getting married at the bride's parents' house which is set on a few acres in the hills with an apple orchard and pond.  They built a magnificent arch in front of the pond from trees on the property and used burlap, lace, tree stumps and antiques for decorating.  There are signs everywhere painted on wood pallets with the menu, wine list and games available to play on the large side lawn.  I'll put more pictures on my Instagram account so you can check out the awesome job they did.  Congrats in advance you crazy love birds!

We'll be spending time at the campsite with the kids this weekend, enjoy your weekend with your family as we pass the halfway mark!

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