Wednesday, April 29, 2015

good start

When you open the front door to let the dog out to fetch the paper and the air is crisp and cool. Perfect.

Happy Wednesday.

Tuesday, April 28, 2015

countdown

The oldest will be home Friday and I'll have all my chicks under one roof for the first time since January. That's a record for us.

Yesterday during my annual review, the associate executive director asked me if I had a 3 year plan. In 3 years, hubby and I will be well on our way to a truly empty nest. The boy will be in college and the girls will be out and in the world and off the payroll.

New chapters are about to begin as the oldest is starts her senior year of college. And more new chapters will follow, quickly, in the blink of an eye.

Yep. And that is what I'm thinking about this morning. Oh, and I really need to get the hummingbird feeder out, cleaned, and filled. They're back!

Happy Tuesday.




Monday, April 27, 2015

kind of, sort of, halfway pulled together

The house is functioning. We have new floors! They look awesome. I'm so pleased with the look and after leaving with icky carpet for 12 years, it is such a treat to have nice carpet to walk on and enjoy. I really like my new hardwood in the kitchen, dining, and foyer. The tile in the bathrooms is wonderful. That half carpet half tile mess is GONE. The outside work is almost complete as far as the new siding installation goes. Then all of that will need to be painted.

Up next, the ceilings in the kitchen and dining have to be finished. The master bath shower floor needs to be grouted. The new counter-tops need to be installed and the island trimmed out. Then the painting will start.

No reading this weekend. I played catch up and watched the few TV shows I follow on a regular basis. And we cleaned, moved, shifted, and then collapsed.

Happy Monday!


Thursday, April 16, 2015

too much stuff

Even with the de-cluttering effort that took place over the last two months, it seems we still have too much stuff. Books galore. Knick-knacks. Baskets. Random things.

UGH.

They start the new floors today. Demolition and installation. It will be great when it is finished, but for now, I'll be living in chaos.

I don't do well with chaos.

LOL

Wednesday, April 15, 2015

rainy morning

The rain came in just at the right time to lull me into a deep sleep.....right past the alarm and my waking up time. LOL.

Running late. Off I go.

Tuesday, April 14, 2015

fun night

Had such a fun evening last night. The ladies were all in rare form and we laughed a lot. So good to see the one who moved away. Pretty soon my real buddy in the group will be moving as well. Once her hubby retires, they are off to Savannah.

Another place to visit!!

We are having rainy season now that spring is truly here. Sort of nice to fall asleep to the sound of raindrops. The only negative is the paw wiping that must be done as Duke comes and goes.

Tuesday! One week and one day until the girl is home. I asked her if she had any final trips planned and she still wants to make it to Stonehenge and maybe Bath or Brighton. She has her last day at work on Friday.

Can't get over how quickly the semester went. Seems like we just put her on that plane to London.

Enjoy the day.

Monday, April 13, 2015

monday, really?

I woke up this morning and was totally not ready to admit it is Monday. UGH. Had a good weekend. The weather was wonderful. We cleaned out some more closets. Made a run to Costco and restocked the pantry. Made a run to Aldi for more things. Made it to church. Made it to Goodwill. Read another book from my Nook. I'm now down to two titles left until it is empty, cleaned off, and ready for new titles. I did laundry. Hubby and son helped me clean the house. We cooked some tasty shrimp on the barbie! We watched the premiere of Game of Thrones.

Good Stuff.

But, it is Monday! Tonight, I'm meeting the ladies, mostly former Friends of the Library gals, for dinner at our fave place. One of the gals moved away, her second retirement, and is back for a visit. Can't wait to see her!! It should be a fun, laugh-filled night.

Cheers!




Thursday, April 9, 2015

and it is thursday

Glad to see Thursday arrive. This week is dragging along. But, my work on the magazine is picking up as the deadline to submit for the June issue is Monday. Yeah! I have several things to do for that issue, lots of emails to send, and unexpected submissions to format and send out for review. Most of the reviewers are available and ready to go. I think only one is on vacation during crunch time.

In other news, looks like spring is here to stay. The first big storm of the spring season is going to hit tonight. We may see our first tornado warning of the year. Let's hope it moves through fast and we aren't up and listening to sirens in the wee hours of the morning.

Friday is coming with the weekend right behind it. Lots to do!

Wednesday, April 8, 2015

countdown

So, two weeks from today the girl will get home from London! Yes, the countdown is on.

Tuesday, April 7, 2015

cleaning off the nook

I had accumulated several books on my Nook. Deals or freebies, if it looked decent, I took a chance. Some have been great, others have been pretty dismal. But, I am nearing the bottom of the pile. I have one underway and three left to finish.

I really want to go into May with a clean slate, or Nook.

New resolution, to be a bit more discriminating.

I've added several titles to my list for 2015. I have now read 15 books this year. Number 16 is underway. Yes, I am on track.

Tuesday. Here we are!!

Monday, April 6, 2015

day 9 home again

We woke on day 9 not quite ready to go back to the States. Hard leaving the city I love. Harder leaving the girly to finish her semester.

But, we packed, had breakfast, straightened up the flat, and walked to the hotel to hail a cab. As we said our goodbyes to our girl, yes, I did cry. I really didn't want to leave! The cab came much too quickly and whisked us off to Paddington Station so we could get the Express back to Heathrow.

We were quiet on the trip. I was lost in my thoughts about the amazing week we had. I was already thinking of how soon could we get back!!

The trip home was uneventful. Easy. Comfortable for a 9 hour flight. My hubby even let the flight attendants know it was my 50th birthday and they brought us first class dessert plates! Delish.

We arrived back home, after our layover in Atlanta, about 11 PM. It had been a very long day. We did some basic unpacking, gave the two kids we'd left in the States their gifts, and collapsed into bed.

Sunday was a blur of jet lag and laundry. Off to work on Monday.

It was an amazing trip. I can't pick a favorite day or activity as each day was wonderful and everything we did was so much fun.

I do want to go back. My hubby is right, England is my Hogwarts. It is my magical place and I love it so.


Thursday, April 2, 2015

day 8

Our final full day in London started with an eclipse. Not that you could see it as it was overcast, but an eclipse did happen. I think it got a bit darker, but that was about it. We planned on tackling the V&A and do some shopping, so we set out in that direction.

I adore the V&A. It is by far my fave museum. I'm not sure why, but I just have an attachment to the place. Last time I was in London, I spent a day by myself in there, had lunch, and took my time. We didn't have a full day to spend, but we did stroll through for the whole morning, had a wonderful meal, and then went on our way. For me, spending time in the V&A is a must if you are in London. I love the casts, but didn't get to see Henry and Eleanor's effigy casts as they are working on that room. Darn, guess I need to go back to see my fave queen's face one more time! David was there in all his glory though as was the amazing boar and bear hunt tapestry, the fairy cup, and Thomas Beckett's reliquary.  We missed the wedding dress special exhibit by days, but the Alexander McQueen exhibit had just opened and they were queued up for yards to see it.

When we left we went down the road to Harrods. Not much more to say about that. The food court is mind blowing. The watch section had my hubby drooling. The window scenes outside were all about Cinderella and the glass slippers on display from a host of shoe designers had my young 20ish feet drooling. Could never wear a pair of Jimmy Choo's now, but darn, those heels were FINE! We did leave with several bars of Harrod's dark chocolate as gifts for friends and coworkers. Tasty!!

We then took the tube over to Oxford street and went to Selfridges. A grand old department store that looks like a huge government building from the outside. Fun to wander around there.

It was getting to be late afternoon and we went on back to the flat to start to pack. The girly was going to come over and get us so we could go out for dinner and drinks.

We picked a Thai place on Charolotte street, trendy, hip, young. Good food! After dinner we walked back towards her flat and wound up in another restaurant and sat in the bar and had some after dinner drinks and talked for hours.

It would be an early day on Saturday for us and her. UGH. Vacation was coming to an end.

Wednesday, April 1, 2015

day 7

Day seven in London arrived and we had plans to have all three meals with our daughter. We met her at her flat and walked towards her office. Breakfast stop was at Pret a Manger. These little coffee/tea/food places are all over London. Think of a Starbucks with good meals. We then walked on to her office, said goodbye, and headed to Covent Garden. We strolled around there, bought a few things, and then walked to meet my pen pal's sister for a late morning cup of tea. We had a great visit with her and spent and hour chatting away. She had to go back to work though, so we went on to meet our girl for lunch as Shakespeare's Head pub. Fun!

After lunch we went to the British Museum and spent the afternoon wandering around in there. We saw the Rosetta Stone and a lot of other artifacts. The place was crawling with students on field trips, so it was a very loud and busy afternoon.

When we left the museum we wondered home by a different route and enjoyed walking along some very historic streets. The buildings where famous people lived are all marked with round, blue, engraved markers telling all the details. Pretty neat! Bloomsbury is loaded with such places, so the walk was educational as well.

Once we arrived back at the flat, our girl let us know that our lunch plan to secure tickets to see Wicked was successful and she showed up with those in hand and we made our way to dinner and the show.

While I am not a fan of musicals, at all, this was entertaining and fun. We fell into bed and realized that the next day would be the final one in the city I love.