It's Friday (it was)!

In preparing for Wes' 29th birthday, I went to the grocery store to pick up ingredients to bake some of his favorite treats. In honor of my Grandmother who passed away almost one full year ago, I now fold all of my plastic bags.

Mema would fold each bag precisely. As a family, we all joked about her doing this but it is one of those things that made her the amazing woman she was! It is a small window into how she lived her life.



Organized and put together and in its place. Makes me happy :)

I made Wes his favorite lemon meringue pie (his mom's recipe). The last time I attempted this I had a hell of a time with the meringue. After going through a dozen eggs I just gave up. Yesterday I had sweet success! Hallelujah!

Gorgeous, fluffy and thick meringue! I feel like a won a war! Yes!
I also made chocolate chip cookies and they are oh so good. I found recipe on allrecipes.com. It was their #1 chocolate chip recipe with over 600 people that reviewed and gave the recipe 5 stars.
The recipe called for a box of pudding which I had never heard of. I think that is the secret to the deliciousness!

Yes, this post is quite random. I was walking around yesterday and just kept finding lots of random things to blog about and wa-lah! These are the eggs I used for baking Wes' treats!

My mom has always kept a compost pile in the back yard. When I was a kid she actually sent my sister and I to the circus that they were having behind our house with a wheel barrel & shovel to ask the carnies if we could have the elephant poop. They agreed and we scooped. I will never ever forget that. Ever. Never, ever. And then there was the time my home room class was having a banana split party and I eagerly collected all the banana peels and wheeled them home on my bike to one proud momma. Oh and we did worms and all sorts of cool and down to earth things!
I have limited space in my back yard I don't really have a good spot to keep an actual compost pile. I decided to google homemade compost bins and found a how to tutorial for this:
The instructions had me put screen over the holes but that didn't stay in place long after a few turns of the goods. I thought the compost would start seeping out of the holes without the screen in place but surprisingly it has not, yet anyway!
Lulu is very interested in the compost. See the yellow line on the concrete? This is where Wes and I are planning on removing the concrete to add more flower beds. We had a bad storm earlier this year and it took our huge shade tree down out back. It was heart breaking! I am desperate for some more greenery so we decided to try to DIY and rented a concrete saw, went through two blades and then decided we were going to have to hire a professional. :(

The green pots: I planted some morning glory seeds about a week ago

One on both sides of the gazebo

My goal is for them to climb the gazebo!
These are my neighbors morning glory's that drape over our fence. I love to see them blooming in the AM. My mom always had morning glory's too. I thought it was so neat how they bloomed in morning. She also had moon flowers that bloomed in the moon light and 4 o'clocks that bloomed around 4 o'clock!

And speaking of blooms, here is an update on the crepe myrtle! It is now blooming!




There are many more buds on the tree which hopefully means that I will get to enjoy many more blooms!


Big, beautiful pink (they were supposed to be red-- but I'll take the pink) blooms!

Have you noticed all of the fabulous drink dispensers they are coming out with lately? Well first off you should know that I have a thing for dishes and containers of all sorts! Tupperware makes me happy. In fact,(I am starting to veer off subject) I ordered these tupperware pieces probably about a year ago and happily keep my cereal and Wes'cookies safely sealed inside. It brings back memories from staying at my Grandparent's farm house in Southwest Oklahoma.


I really not OCD at all, I just wish I was! I look at those people with perfectly organized kitchen pantries, shelves, refrigerators and oh the envy...I try, but it only lasts a few days! I'm an OCD wannabe. I wish I could live up to my Grandmother's standards! Lord knows I try!
Speaking of memories, on my last trip home to McKinney, I was helping my mom in the kitchen and came across some of Mema's old containers that she used to freeze fresh peaches in. I got really excited and mom gave them to me! ♥ (I was going to take a picture of it but Wes left it at work-rats.)
Back to the drink dispensers-- I get emails from potterybarn.com and occasionally I will open one and scan through to see what kind of goodies they have even though I know I can't afford them. And of course, I found a piece I loved, LOVED. I contemplated buying it for weeks. The price-- $69 big ones (BTW--now on sale for $55), was just too much to drop on a big, beautiful drink dispenser (that also happens to fit perfectly with my obsession for mason jars). But I just couldn't justify the price, maybe if my dreams of fabulous entertaining were more then just that.


Makes me want to back porch sit with a big bowl of watermelon!

It screams PICNICS & SUMMERTIME!

I was almost over the "I love the huge mason jar antique looking pottery barn beautiful drink dispenser but it's too expensive and I don't really have anyone to entertain" thing when I happened across a similar much less expensive version at World Market:

Granted, it is not AS cute but for $14.99 and a savings of $54? You can't hardly beat that with stick!! And no, I have not had any fabulous dinner parties to use it at, yet, but I did get to fill it with icy cold water and set it on the back porch for the roofers (ya we got a new roof, more on that later) to drink out of a couple weeks ago. And right now it is full of cold tea and sitting in the "beer fridge" out in the garage. So I am content now that I found my cute little drink dispenser and will patiently wait for the day I can use it at my fabulous dinner party that I WILL have one day!

Do you see my OCD fail? That fridge is nasty dirty! oh well~ Wine anyone?
And just for fun check out these other gorgeous drink dispensers:

I absolutely LOVE this one too. They just marked it down from $129 to $52! Help me justify why I should have two drink dispensers!!

Isn't it so pretty!?





Oh and a quick shout out for all my birthday friends~ Matt- TODAY! HAPPY BDAY! Christi- MONDAY--HAPPY BDAY! CAL-- June 4th-HAPPY BDAY! Love yall!

It's Friday, Friday, Gotta get down on Friday!- if you have heard this song say "heeeyy!"

I just hate how fast weekends seem to go. For example: FINALLY-- 5 o'clock Friday afternoon comes around and in the blink of an eye you are suddenly woken by your alarm clock blaring in your ear Monday morning and all you can think is "how did the weekend already end??". Well maybe it doesn't always go that quick but they just never seem to be long enough! All in favor for a 3 day weekend, 4 day work week say I! I! We would accomplish so much more in 4 days after a good long weekend! Think about it, you would have a little time to have some fun and a little time to get your chores done and a little time for some R&R! Instead, we try to cram way too much into 2 days and then try to make up for what we don't get done on the weekend either while at work or after work during the week. It's a vicious cycle I tell you.
Speaking of weekends I thought I'd share this past one with you.
Let's see.
Friday: work, home, water plants, put away dishes, pick up dog poop in backyard, visit Kenny & Melissa, eat, sleep.
Oh btw, the crepe myrtle I planted is getting buds all over it! Can't wait to see it all in bloom! I took these Friday night.

Nope, that didn't do it, need the flash.

Much better!
Saturday: wake up, coffee, laundry, water plants, clean floors, clean up after Wes, pick up dog poop in back yard, Corpus for lunch, run, grocery store, friend Julie comes over, wine, tuna, sleep.
Sunday: Up at 8AM, couch, history channel, fall back asleep, up at 11AM, swim suit, eat, mall, pool,


home, clean kitchen, clean up after Wes, garden pickin (look at all the tomaters--just from yesterday, more salsa, Yes please!)

, laundry, cook, eat, sleep...sorta, why?
Today: burn, lobster red burn, the kind of burn where any bit of clothing or movement is painful. So STUPID! I always put on sunscreen and at least an SPF 8 or 15when I am trying to get a tan. But yesterday...for some reason I decided to revert back to my teenage years and go naked. Big mistake. I am going to have those horrible old lady chest wrinkles after my skin blisters then sloughs off like a snake. Never again! Sunscreen is my friend!

And that's what my little weekend was all about, how 'bout you!? What did you get into?

In the past three-hundred and sixty-five days....

This past year alot of has happened and I am going to try and catch you all up to date!
Wes' childhood buddy got married in New Jersey and we attended their wedding, it was a blast (and of course my friend Katie caught the bouquet!)

Wes and I took a trip to Playa del Carmen in May.




Landry graduated highschool in June and we had a sweet family get together. It was 3 weeks before my precious Grandmother passed away.





Two weeks later we all gathered again in Norman at Mema's house. We had the most special weekend. I will always hold this weekend with my family close to my heart. It was the last time I got to see my Grandmother and it is when I told her goodbye. She passed away a week later.











Mema had a memorial service in Norman that was truly celebratory of her life. She was a very well liked lady and I am honored to have gotten to be her Granddaugther. Yes, our family takes pictures at funerals- weird? Maybe. Just a little bit. But we don't mind, Mema was always the one behind the camera at relatives burial sites having us all squeeze together and saying "cheese"! I know she'd be proud :)

Look very close, it's a blue bird!






Family genetics.. hyperhydrosis-- check.

Believe me people, this would make my Grandmother's day. She would have been very disappointed in us if we left all of those beautiful flowers there where no one could enjoy them!




The day ended with a beautiful sunset.

Sister married Hal Nall in July. They had a beautiful and sweet wedding out at my Aunt Stacey and Uncle Doug's beautiful home in the country.
At her brunch the day of...
Here Jen is prepping Lynley for the 10 minute bachelorette party. Gotta cover all the bases, shotgun wedding or not! (love you Lyn ☺ )



The evening of her big day :)...



Last August Wes and I went on my very first cruise together with my brother-in-law Cal, his girlfriend (fiance now-as of 3-18-11!! Congrats guys!) Tiffany, and another couple Katy and Trevor. We flew to Ft. Lauderdale (compliments of free airline tickets the Winchester's gave us--Thanks again!) and then took a taxi down to Miami where we stayed in a little posh/euro style hotel for the evening.


The next day we boarded Royal Carribbean's Majesty of the Seas.
First stop of Key West.




damn shark, bit my leg.

Second stop was Nassau, Bahamas.



Third stop-- some small island Royal Carribbean owns in the Bahamas.




I was pleasantly suprised that I enjoyed the cruise as much as I did. I really enjoyed relaxing out on deck in the middle of the ocean. I enjoyed going to a few different places, oh, and did I mention the food? The food....I gained a good 6 pounds on that cruise. Food EVERYWHERE 24/7. I couldn't help myself!



In September the parentals came for a visit. We had a really great weekend together! Catching live crabs for their pretty shells. Poor crabs. One is still incognito in my back yard somewhere (We recently got rid of the hot tub and when I was cleaning it out there was some strange specimen covered in goo in the bottom.. crab? maybe.)





We took a little tour through King Ranch

I spy with my little eye something ....green with really sharp teeth... it's not the cow!



In November, Sister had her baby shower for the precious Miss Claire Parker. Ton's of pink! Cute tutus, hats, flowers, socks, onesies. It might have given me just a snige of baby fever.







For Thanksgiving Wes and I drove (like 20 somethin' hours) to South Carolina to be with his family for the holiday. Wes' Grandfather lives in this crazy old historical home in North Augusta, SC. It even has an old slave house on the premises. Kinda creepy? A little bit. Really neat? Oh yes! I wish I would have gotten a photo of the basement that was converted into a little shooting range.


That is the old slave house out back.

So I went just a little bit crazy photographing the donkeys. Oh, & goat--gotta give props to Butthead Billy (no I am not name callin'.. that is his name!)







It is a real jackass.

Morning Hike around the pond.


In the beginning of December we decided to have our ceiling repaired, it had a long crack down it for the last year and we had kept putting off fixing it. We decided to put DIY aside and leave this to the pros. While we were having that work done we decided to go ahead and scrape the popcorn off the ceilings. Wes and I did DIY the dining room awhile back and realized quickly how awful it would be to scrape the ceilings ourselves through the rest of the house. We also replaced our cracked tile floors with these purty things... I have really enjoyed them. Although I never realized how nasty my floor was when we had the tile. I can see every white Scout hair floating around. And I thought he wasn't supposed to shed?

Christmas came and went. The Winchester's came down and spent the holiday with us. We had a shrimp boil at the water front airstream rv park and opened lots of fun gifts Christmas morning.





We went to San Antonio for New Years and saw Chris Robison at Gruene Hall.

Lynley had precious baby Claire Jan. 25th. I got to see her in labor and the contraction charts and all of that good stuff. It was such an amazing experience. And wow-- I am an Aunt now to this itty bitty baby. She is so sweet. She is also an amazing trooper. Look at what my mom and I put her through when she was just a few days old...









Look, she already has a great sense of humor! :)


I miss her all the time, Lynley sends me flip videos and pictures and man she has changed so much already. I hate that.


Need I say more? :)

My dearest friend Leandra moved back to Maryland March 12th. I am hating that. She was my buddy down here in South Texas away from everyone. We had some really amazing times together! I miss her all the time and will continue to do so. I already went to visit her March 31st and she was back down here at the beginning of May.

Here is the famous Maryland blue crab her sweet family treated me to!

It was great seeing where Wanita (my nickname for Leandra) grew up!
In the meantime I have taken up (or attempting to) crochet! This is my first masterpiece!!!!





I have really thrown myself into gardening this year. I always plant every year but this year I have really done alot of research and reading and preparing. I hope it pays off because I have been working my buns off! Not really, my buns are definetly still there, but you get the drift.

I made the back yard flower bed curvy and built it up for better drainage.


Some of the things I planted are okra, yellow pear tomatos, salvia, pink verbena,zinnias, pentas, mexican sage.

And no, my grass is not that crazy green. I played with the photoshop app on my iphone and up'd the saturation! :)
This is what is really looks like-- but hey a gal can dream can't she!!?





And speaking of gardens...I planted 7 tomato plants this year and have had an abudance of fresh fruit! I decided to make canned salsa with all the tomaters last night. It's no where as good as my mom's homemade stuff but it'll do-- and I'll change it up the next round.