Good Bye, Summer!

Written yesterday… I promise I know Fall started last night, not tonight…

Today at lunch I went out back to our gardens… They are still pumping out tomatoes, broccoli, and herbs… but I tore out our squash and zucchini plants. I cut off our basil leafs to make pesto tonight.

I took out one of our pepper plants. And on and on and on… All of it went into our compost bin, so hopefully next year we’ll have some superb soil to start with.

While it is great that we can make pesto again tonight, and eat fresh veggies, this also means that today is the official last day of summer. Tonight FALL begins.

I love Fall, don’t get me wrong. It’s my most favorite time of year… but it’s just sad that our nights of being outside, and long daylight hours are going to fly right out the window. Soon, I will be waking up when it’s dark and coming home from work when it’s dark.
That’s never any fun. It feels quite unnatural. By January I am feeling a bit like a vam.pire or some sort of nocturnal creature.
BUT, all of that being said, I am the first one to allow time to fly right now. I am waiting for the day we will get to travel to Ukraine and proceed with this journey that feels like it’s been at a standstill for way too long.

My Precious Snowflake Is Sick

My precious snowflake is sick. I swear, having known the man for 13 years, he was never sick… now, for about the past year or so, I swear it’s one thing after the other…
He’s a big, tough, rugby playing guy. He’s no wimp. Chopping his hand “ehhh, minor flesh wound…”, burning his arm on the oven “Barely felt it…”, 300 pound man tackling him on the rugby pitch “No biggie”… 40 year old infected wisdom teeth that are infected… PITIFUL!
His jaw is so swollen. He looks like a chipmunk, or perhaps he looks like he has just had his wisdom teeth out.
I made the mistake of asking him why he hadn’t had them removed as a teenager, and Marie of course took that as an insult and got very defensive. Ummm, not my intentions, just CURIOUS. I guess he has “plenty of room” so they didn’t suggest it (until the year he moved out on his own and couldn’t afford to have them out, and didn’t want to ask his parents for $1600 for his teeth).
He called a dentist on Tuesday. Not the dentist whose office is diagonal from the restaurant that Ray spends 80% of his day at. Not a dentist on the island. No, that would make waaaaaaay too much sense. Nope, the dentist he wants to see is A: In another state B: Barone Boy #1’s dentist and C: Barone Boy #1’s kid’s Scout leader (So, technically he knows him, he goes to camp every summer to help out the troop, but still). Oy.
Can this family not just do ANYTHING without a family connection/recommendation? Please?
So, said dentist called in a prescription for Ray for heavy pain killers and some antibiotic. He’s been on them for 2 days and no change. The poor little dear was pulverizing his crutons in his salad last night because he couldn’t chew them.
It’s so hard to see him in pain because he’s not a complainer. He’s so sweet to thank me over and over for taking care of him. He loves it. It’s funny how even 40 year old tough guys need to be “mothered” every once in awhile…
I have a feeling Mr. Raymond is going to be having some teeth out soon. He’s terrified. He’s never had anesthesia before. I woke up from getting my wisdom teeth out (years ago) and asked him to go buy me some cheetos. It was not a big deal at all. But he’s holding on to 30 year old memories of his brother’s surgery.
Let’s hope that he gets those puppies out before our trip to NH in a few weeks. And most certainly, let his issues be resolved before we’re in Eastern Europe. I would hate to have to find out what a dentist’s office looks like there, and have him go through any procedure not knowing the language.

This is what I want…

Well, kind of like that. Jessica did this. I found her via one of the many great links on Mrs. Yellow Hat’s blog. Oh how I love that people share these great links…
So, look above. That mantle is kind of like ours (beige walls and all), except we have a few extra layers of wood between the chunky dental molding (or whatever its called, I don’t pretend to know decorating words) and the top, so it’s a tad more fancy. Oh, but our fireplace is glass doors, not black…
SO…
I actually have that exact same glass jar thing next to the mirror, and the same clock (found them in my house when we moved in… SCORE) but our clock is dark wood, similar to the 3 candle holders I bought last night… SO, I’m thinking instead of white, can I pull it off with all dark wood accessories?
On the other end, she has some sticks in a jug, like I mentioned last night, but I think I want to do more sticks than that…
And of course, we have a TV, not a mirror, but now that Ray and his friend drilled through the wall to mount it, I am afraid that baby is there to stay…
Oh, and we most certainly do not have the matching dog to display in front of the all white fire place… but that is one thing I am thankful for (me. and a furry dog… shudder…)
So what do you think… Can I pull it off?
I think my game plan for tonight (Ray will be home!) is to paint my front door red, as voted right here on Just Another Day In Paradise… See, big things happen when I ask y’all for help. Cheers!

Decorating Help

Once upon a time, when I was 26 and we moved into this house, I thought it would be a great idea to hang our plasma screen tv on the wall above our mantle. Now, at the whopping age of 28.75, I realize this was a pretty stupid idea….
When I was 26, I didn’t care a whole lot about decorating. I was just moving out of my toile/rest,oration hardware/shabby chic/anthro.pologie look, and was kind of getting into the Poverty Barn look, simple and clean.
And then that got boring. We became Mr. and Mrs. Beige… and I argued that it wasn’t beige, but rather “sandstone cove”… please. Who was I kidding? My house is BEIGE, except for my dining room which is sage… huge color move in there, folks… Oh who am I kidding… when we moved into this house, it was in such desperate need of help, I couldn’t think straight… beige was certainly better than 1950′s floral wallpaper… I couldn’t think clearly, what with the lack of braincells from chemicals used to re-do our hardwood floors, strip wallpaper off of 90% of our walls, and clean the bejesus out of everything… Let’s not forget the noise… hammers, sanders, saws, and then new found sound of mother in laws living too close for comfort…
Anyways, speaking of noise my mantle is screeeeeeeeeeeeeaming for some attention. It gets some ghetto love at Christmas (seriously, pre-made garland with some stockings was about as good as it got last year- pitiful) but other than that remains plain. White crown molding with what is it called… dental molding below that. Its a pretty mantle, but it needs some help.
What to do… what to do…
Tonight I bought 3 dark wood candle holders. They are various sizes. I bought orange spiced pumpkin chunky candles…. only for the color, what I would have paid for some cream NON vanilla scented ones… Not gonna happen apparently.
I dashed home, set them up, and only kind of like them. The other side looks neglected. It’s just sitting there… bare. I like symmetry and it’s not happening here… I thought of a vase with some twiggy things in it, fall-esque stuff…
I need help. I can help others, but I can’t help myself. Amy sends me pictures all the time titled “Be honest…” and “I know you will tell me what you really think… so go ahead…” And I do. And then I sit here in my own house, Mrs. Beige herself, and stare at an ugly, plain, boring white mantle against beige walls… and have no idea what to do next….
HELP!!!!
Being 26 was easier. Life was simpler then. Now I’m getting all fussy again…

You’re Only As Cool As Your Dinosaur Shaped Nuggets

So, it’s no secret… Ray and I are food snobs. And to make it worse, I’m a picky food snob. We don’t go out to eat all that often because my favorite restaurant is HOME. There I can get whatever I want cooked just the way I like it. I was a vegetarian for many years before meeting Ray. About 2 or 3 years into our relationship I couldn’t take it anymore, it just smelled so good, and I devoured a steak right then and there (and promptly got sick because my body was in shock, but that’s another story…) Now, I am a chicken addict, I could eat it every day.
Our freezer holds a ton of food, very little of it is processed food. Much of it is meals we have prepared, homemade sauces or demi glazes, and of course ice cream, my weakness. Most of what we eat is organic, locally grown, hormone free, blah blah blah. Yep, I’m one of those people.
So, since we’re food snobs, we don’t go to fast food restaurants or any of that… stuff. But that’s not to say that sometimes we don’t crave chicken nuggets and fries. But there is a better alternative. So today we’re out shopping, it’s way past lunch time, and we’re both starving. This is of course the worst time to go shopping because you put anything and everything in your cart and contemplate gnawing off your own arm if you could.
Ray mentions that he has to go to work early, so it’s too early for dinner, and we’ve missed lunch. Many folks would cruise through a fast food drive through on the way home… but not us. We decided to buy some “fast food” (GULP… processed food….) and tried to find a healthy version. For some reason the only 100% meat, no hormones added, blah blah blah were these chicken nuggets cut into DINOSAUR shapes. I always laugh at the people whose kids will only eat the shaped food, because it tastes soooo much different than the regular ones. (insert eye roll here). But here we were, buying into the gimmick. Are adults not able to eat chicken nuggets? Or can we only eat the bad for you ones? Well, I wanted my nuggets dangit, so we bought them.
There we sat at our dining room table, not a kid in the house, eating dinosaur shaped chicken nuggets. I am 28, and Ray is… well… much older than that… I say to him “This is pitiful” and he turns to me and says “Ya know… you’re only as cool as your dinosaur shaped chicken nuggets…”
I just started laughing, what a sight are we…
What are some of the ways that you are able to eat healthy foods fast? We hope to have some 6+ year olds living here soon and I imagine I’m going to have to learn how to cook… this oughtta be interesting….

Just Another Day At Work…

Yesterday my company hosted a golf tournament at one of the nicest country clubs in the region. I worked the event, and got to schmooze all day long. I sat out on the ocean all day long, froze my butt off, and my lips got burned… But it was a lovely day… Any day like this….

 

Surely beats any day in the office… And this was right next to me… just beyond the fence…

 I can handle that…

Why My Job Is Like No Other…

Today I arrived at work at 8am, just like I always do. I drove past the beach to get here, saw my mansion in the distance. I pulled into the driveway pretending I was a hot shot and own a mansion such as this one… and then I took the old servent’s elevator and burst that bubble pretty quickly.
I sat at my desk for an hour and then got up to go to a meeting. It was cancelled so I stopped by the Ga.p instead. Oops. It’s work related… right? Maybe?
I came back to my office and got called into a luncheon with the #1 local news anchor in my state. This has nothing to do with my job. I do not work with the news even kind of.
We drank champagne at 11:30am.
{I was still at work}
There were a few nuns there…
After everyone else left, myself and a co-worker got seconds. Why not, right? Dainty eating was only to not look like total pigs in front of distinguished guests. There was fillet and goat cheese salad. Have I mentioned my new love of goat cheese? Seriously obsessed as of last week.
Then my presence was requested at church. I attended church, on a Wednesday, during my work day.
Then I had a meeting.
Then there was more prayer.
I think I am full of prayer this day. Thank God, because this girl can never get enough prayers.
What a weird weird day at work today…
Ever changing.
In 2 weeks I’ll be sitting on a golf course all day. Along the ocean. For work.
For the record, my job is computer related. Can you tell how very NOT work related all this stuff is? I roll with the punches….
Just Another Day In Paradise

Because Really…

Does it get much cuter than this?

2 boys (my nephew- a 5 year old-just took my training wheels off-boy and my husband)

Matching bikes

Follow the leader up and down our street. Over. And Over. And over again.

Priceless…

Home Design Help

Ok, so when we moved into our house it was orange with salmon shutters- not kidding. Last summer (yes, I lived in an orange house for a year) it was painted Rocky Ridge, which is a taupy, putty, brownish-greyish color (that description is clear as mud, eh?). We have white trim, and black shutters. We heard the neighbors rejoicing (not Marie, who had chosen the original colors no doubt). Strangers would stop as they drove by and compliment the improvement. Seriously, it was baaaaaaaad….
Now, with that being said we need to paint the front door- until we get back from Ukraine and can start saving for a mohogany door $$$$. I have heard suggestions from black to purple, red, and white… What do you think? (I think you can click this to make it bigger…)

Once we do this, I can remove this chore from Ray’s “Honey Do” list. I will be very thankful and he will be relieved.

Hurricane A Comin’…

So this hurricane that is brewing and is set to hit the east coast has me a bit worried. I remember the days when a hurricane was coming, it was only an excuse to throw a party. Now that I am a grown up, now that I own things, now that I have a brain in my head, I know better. Our living room is full of windows, and our backyard has a gigantic tree, just begging to fall on my roof. Ray is supposed to do some tree work today, cut back some limbs. I am hoping to do an early back yard clean up (bring in patio furniture, move gas grill away from house, etc.) tonight. I’m really not looking forward to the upcoming weather at all. The flooding we had at Easter really left an impact on me. I saw our island lose so much. It was awful.
Anyone else in the hurricane’s projected path? Living on an island doesn’t seem so great right now. I have water less than a mile away in 3 out of 4 directions. YIKES!
UPDATE: I may or may not have just updated and increased our house insurance policy… Mmmm hmmmm, sure did. Thank you, USAA for always being there. Hopefully we won’t need you, but knowing you’re there sure makes me feel better.