Whew!!!

 I am back from our whirlwind "Girls' Road Trip". We had so much fun and fit in so much that I'm guessing everyone is feeling much the same as I am right now-a bit tired (especially since we lost an hour) but still exhilarated! We headed to granddaughter #2's home in Summerville, SC on Thursday and then spent all of Friday in Charleston and then all of Saturday in Summerville before heading home on Sunday.

I'm going to try to just hit the highlights in this blog but once I get everyone's pictures where they need to be for me to access them on my computer, I will share many more of the beautiful sights including the breathtaking architecture and natural beauty that these historic areas have to share.

Daughter #1 arrived on Wednesday afternoon and we headed to two lacrosse games which made for a kind of late evening so no pictures to share-just remember the others I have shared and it would be pretty much the same. LOL

We headed to Gainesville the next morning, picked up the rest of the gang and we were off! We are missing daughters #2 and 3 and granddaughters #4 and 5 who had work or school responsibilities so they couldn't join us.

After arriving, Caitlin greeted us with a beautiful charcuterie snack before heading off for a walk around the pond in her neighborhood to let our legs have some exercise after the car ride.

Back to the house for a Mexican dinner and then a hot and heavy game of Yahtzee before presenting me with my birthday cake which made it safely all the way from Wright's Gourmet Deli in Tampa! Thankfully some things never change as this is my all-time favorite coconut cake and they have given it to me every year since forever-except for the year someone made the mistake of taking it off of their menu and they heard about that rather quickly and put it right back!!!

We also got the chance to spend some time with the mama cat and kittens that my granddaughter is fostering after they were rescued from their birth in an apartment building stairwell during the last snow storm in SC.

We were off to Charleston early the next morning and let's just say thank you for Ubers. Luckily Caitlin knows all of the pitfalls of not only trying to cope with the traffic into the city but trying to find parking as well so we just got dropped off right in front of Church and Union where our reservation for brunch was waiting.

Fanciest coffee I've ever had-I could get used to this. Lol

The restaurant is in an old Baptist church and the ceiling is covered in the entire text of the book "The Art of War". The owners of the business apparently consider that message a model for running a business.

After brunch we started walking. First we hit the Charleston City Market.

 It is always fun to see what is happening here and, as with every vacation, I look for a Christmas ornament to commemorate the trip. I already have a number from Charleston so I was excited when I saw this.

I bought one for each of us. They are magnets so my job now will be to turn them into Christmas ornaments.

After the market we headed to the water. Since this is a culmination of everyone's' photos, they are out of order because I am just too tired to get them right. LOL

There was a wonderful breeze down there and we enjoyed a little rest just sitting in the park area and chatting before heading off again-this time to Rainbow Row.

Next we headed to King Street after another short stop in a pretty downtown park. King Street is loaded with many unique shops and we did lots of window shopping but no one felt the need to purchase. Lol

And soon we were off to Henry's-known for being the oldest restaurant in Charleston. We had some time before our dinner reservation so we decided on a few appetizers and some beverages.

And, before we knew it it was time for dinner. Caitlin tried to pick iconic places for our visit-some she has tried and loved and others that are just well known in Charleston and she did a wonderful job. Let's just say that none of us went hungry this trip. Lol

I had tempura flounder which was delicious but several others tried their fried chicken which is a house specialty I guess.

And by now we had done a complete 360 of the city and were back about where we started that morning. Time for another Uber ride home to a night of more laughter than I can remember in a very long time.

The girls wanted to play Uno Attack and I had to admit that it had been a VERY long time since I had played and, for whatever reason-maybe the thousands of steps we had taken that day-I could NOT remember what the symbols on the cards meant and went through the entire night pretty much oblivious until...

I actually won and was awarded a crown and an Uno trophy!!! Still not sure how that happened but I'll take it! lol

And, always more kitten therapy involved.

I honestly had to curb myself to not post every picture I have and others I am still waiting on so there will be more. I honestly thought I could get the whole post in one blog but I am seeing for both my benefit and yours, I can not. And so, I will try to get back tomorrow so you can see the rest of the fun. Time to try to catch up on a few things around here before calling it a day. Stay safe and stay tuned.

Once a Designer...

 I am just here for a very quick minute but I just had to share my chuckle of the day. Yesterday was my birthday and with many, many lacrosse games happening this week I really thought I would probably be having a very quiet day and my celebrating would start when we got to Charleston. I knew I would get some messages and perhaps a phone call or two but I truly was ready to give myself the day and binge a bit more on my new obsession-"The Lincoln Lawyer"-recommended to me by my brother and SIL.

My brother started the day off with a lovely call and we chatted for a bit. As I was finishing up with him. I saw a truck pull up and in came a beautiful bouquet from Daughter #2 and her family. I love flowers but this came as quite a surprise because I know I am going to celebrate with them on another day soon.

Then, I heard a text come in at the same time the phone rang and it was grandson #1 calling from college. I really don't get to actually talk with him too often because his time is super busy but we chatted on and on for a long time and I got to catch up on all kinds of things.

When I finally got to my daughter's text she asked if she and granddaughter #5 could bring over dinner and help me celebrate. It seems as if her very important lacrosse practice was at the same time as her brother's game out of town so my daughter and son-in-law divided to conquer and the girls got to stay in town.

Of course, I am not one to often turn down an invite like that and before I knew it, a delivery from one of my favorite restaurants was at my door with Jen and Presley a minute or two behind. It was lovely to have someone to share my day with in person and it was late by the time they left.

I was just climbing into bed when I got another text-this time from granddaughter #1 asking if I was still awake. I couldn't help but laugh because it was only 8:30 PM but I guess at my age one never knows. Lol We also had a wonderful chat and by the time we were done, I was raring to get to my show and then stayed awake much too long!

Fast forward to just now when I was in the kitchen at the sink and noticed the window frame that I have in my dining room not centered as it usually is. Of course, that would drive the "symmetrical" me crazy so I went around to center it and had to laugh!

You see, last night my interior decorator daughter had gotten up to go to the kitchen while we were eating in the dining room. When she came back I knew she was doing something behind my chair so I turned to see her holding the window frame up to the wall on the left of the opening. She knew that I wasn't crazy about this big, blank wall after we moved things so I guess she was trying to give me an option.

It seems that she forgot her mom is a fan of balance and I immediately said "no" because the other part of the wall would then be empty and, in my opinion, look wrong. Of course, she gave me the "designer" reason that this would be a good solution but I held my ground and, I thought she put it back and sat back down and dinner continued.

Fast forward to this morning when I spied the off center frame and went into the dining room to see this...

I seriously just started laughing because apparently if I wasn't going to go along with her wall idea the "least" she could do for me was to rearrange the vignette. This is how I designed it...

The funny part is that being caught in my "balanced" perspective, I probably would never have tried her layout but I actually like it so much better than what I did so it will remain...still don't like the frame on just one side of the wall though....Lol

That's actually all I have to share. I have to get busy with choosing outfits for my trip and making sure I can fit them all in one small suitcase because with five women heading off for four days, suitcase room will be at a premium. lol And then I'm off to my granddaughter's next lacrosse game. Daughter #1 arrives tomorrow and we're then off to two lacrosse games-one for the girls and one for the boys but thankfully they are both at a school not too far so we can "kill two birds with one stone" so to speak. 

Thinking I won't visit again until after my trip. Stay safe and stay tuned.

Going Green

 I'm having a fairly easy day today with a bit of free time so I thought I would take you into the dining room for a quick look. Honestly, I think most of the decor is the same as last year. The only things that have changed are the changes due to bringing in a few of the "new to me" pieces.

I am still loving my "Belles of Ireland". They are so hard to find. I usually find them in boutiques that carry higher end faux flowers and they are not inexpensive but I just love them for St. Pat's decor so I grab them when I see them. Note to self-since I will be in Charleston and Summerville next weekend and possibly browsing some cute stores, I need to be on the lookout for more. I truly never know where they will pop up. Lol

This is a vignette I added last year. I had kind of steered away from all of the "shelf clutter" things but, for some reason, the coziness of an Irish cottage kitchen just seemed right for here and even more since I have all of my mom's Irish themed bone china that my dad used to find for her when he traveled for his job. And, I have the Irish blessing that I cross-stitched many years ago along with the one that daughter #2 did for a school project when she was in middle school. And then there's the cute cottage teapot and cream and sugar set that I picked up somewhere along the way. I always felt like I would be very content living in a house that looked just like that.

If you're really observant you will probably notice one of the concrete signs from the living room now leaning on the floor here. It definitely needed to come down from its former home but I really love it. I bought it from Ballard Design many, many years ago and I know it must be up in my house somewhere-probably back in the living room but on the opposite wall. I am just waiting to see what I end up with in that recently vacant corner of the room and where anything will then hang. 

So, that is the dining room for this year. Not sure if I'll make it back before I head to Charleston because I have a birthday and four lacrosse games before we leave so my days will be a bit busy. If not, rest assured that I will be returning with many more things to share-girls' road trips are always fun-at least with my gang! Stay safe and stay tuned.

I forgot one more thing I wanted to share. Since I use this blog as a bit of a family history for myself, I like to make note of important things and this is right up there.

This is granddaughter #1 and I am so proud of her. Her students are definitely lucky to have her!