A GARDEN PARTY

Whew!  Did everyone have a scorcher of a weekend like we did?  It was in the 90's and if it weren't for that little breeze, it would have been miserable.  For me, it's just too hard to stay inside when it's sunny and beautiful, so I made myself busy.  The Husband's best friend came up and helped him replenish the beach.  This view overlooks the small bay.  What a job that was, shoveling 4 yards of sand into the water.  I was however, in charge of food and beverages! 

I also got the front porch summertime ready.  It's so peaceful to sit out here with a book and listen to all the action on the lake.  I picked up some plants at the local florist in town and potted a few, these do well without drying out too badly.  I have matching chairs on the other side of the porch, but I need some sort of table between them so I'll wait to show you that side. 

The robin that was previously here finally went away and a new one came and built a different nest...I could tell by the material.  Of course I kept scaring it going in and out!  The Husband thinks I should put a big rock up here to keep them away but I think that's cruel...it's such a perfect place for a nest!

On this side of the porch you can see the wisteria that has gone wild.  I actually had some blooms near the bottom this spring but it is still so young.  It has finally reached the balcony above.  I believe it may just eat the house!

I potted this little basket inside.  It held ivy that I lost over the winter. 

A newly opened rose...

...and daisies that stubbornly won't open!  I want some cut flowers!  I wonder if it is because it is so dry.  I watered everything in sight but we have no sign of rain coming this week.  What's a girl to do?

This is one of my favorite plants.  I have it potted with lobelia.  It will be pretty when it spills over.  

All work but a little play, too.  I made a slab of ribs with an apple whiskey sauce...you have to try it, I think it's made by Bull's Eye.  We sat out late at night and looked at the stars through the trees.  Soon we will be having a lot of company up, so I enjoy this peaceful time.  And we are planning our two week stay next month.  How fast the time goes!

I hope all of you had a wonderful weekend.  I 'm joining Tracie's Garden Party again this week, I met so many nice ladies with beautiful gardens last week.  Visit Fishtail Cottage and see what I mean!  Have a great week! :)

I LOVE FLOWERS!

It was a weekend of gardening at the lake.  The Husband and I worked right up until we came home last night.  I found it to be so cute when he asked if he could plant a few pots.  He is usually my "Master hole digger and weeder", but I obliged!  I bought my plants and flowers here in Illinois.  Although I pay more, the selection is greater.    We went up Friday night so we were ready to work early Saturday morning.

You can see him through the palm trees, taking a break with a cigar!  He did work so hard, cleaned up the beach so we are ready for a the load of new sand next weekend.  Days were in the 70's but it got cold at night and we had the little chimnea cranked up!

I was hoping to have more blooms on the climbing rose, lots of buds though and our daisies are ready to become a mass of flowers any day now.  Aren't they healthy?  The husband sprinkles and waters epsom salts on everything, a tip he learned from our farm center.  I really think it works.

My oregano has taken over the herb garden...

...but I got my tomatoes planted. 

I threw in some lavender as well and see the lambs ear in the back ground?  It's popping up all over and I never planted it!

Remember this stake from last year?  It still makes me giggle every time I look at it!  That's my weird sense of humor!

In this tall cone shaped trellis, I am growing a hyacinth bean plant.  Is anyone familiar with it?  It is supposed to climb and get purple flowers on it.  I'm excited to see what happens.

Some geraniums on the path to the beach.

I was so excited to see some wrens building a nest in my little birdhouse!  They are darling and so fun to watch!

The Husband got his palms repotted last weekend.  This is his favorite place to sit  when he is relaxing. 

I pulled some decorative accessories out of my stash to dress everything up.  The guest house (Summerhouse) is there in the background.  I have yet to get in there and clean it out.  And I still have the front yard and porch to work on.  But I have to say, I got my exercise!  Of course we relaxed, neighbors visited and we cooked out for the first time this summer.  It really was a great weekend.  I'm joining in with Tracie's Garden Party at Fishtail Cottage!  See you soon! :)

SUMMER TABLESCAPE

Hi everyone!  I am finally feeling like myself again after surviving the 95 degree heat over Memorial Day.  It's back to the 60's and I am loving it.   I plan to plant some flowers tomorrow and it's going to be the perfect weather!  As you know, The Husband went up to the lake without me Sunday to Monday night.  He spent a lot of time in the garden re potting the hibiscus trees and our new rose tree.  My climbing rose is blooming like mad and he took pictures of it with his phone.  Sadly, I can't get them to post so I'll take my own pictures this coming weekend to share.  These are some blooms he cut off that were losing petals.  Do you recognize the ugly brown wicker tray now that I have painted it with my Driftwood Gray?  Paint is so addicting!  And growing roses.  Tracie, I hope I qualify for your garden party this week at Fishtail Cottage!

Before I move on to the tablescape, I wanted to share these heirloom tomatoes with you.  Aren't they funky?  I haven't planted my tomatoes yet, but I am going to try some heirloom tomatoes myself.  Tonight we are going to have these babies with some fresh Mozzarella cheese  and basil which is going crazy in my herb garden. 

Okay, I sneaked one into the tablescape!

I have a simple table set this week...it really belongs outside but my patio furniture is still in the shed, so this will have to do. 

I have some simple weedy flowers in a cream pitcher on a burlap runner.

I love these, does anyone have the name for them?

Just the flowers and a candle for the centerpiece.  The napkins are white hemstitch and my silverware is mismatched.

The dinner plate is from Pier 1.  I think it is my favorite of all the dishes I have and that is partly because The Husband and kids picked them out for me for Mother's Day a few years ago.  The salad plates are from Target. 

I love this pattern and wish the dishes at Pier 1 weren't so bold this spring.  I love old fashion flowers.  I am joining Katleen's party, Let's Dish, at Cuisine Kathleen.  Visit and see some beautiful tablescapes and make some new friends! 

I am enjoying this short week.  I thought we had a wedding to go to this weekend, but it's the next so I am anxious to be back at the lake.  Hear it calling me?!  Not much else is new, I am back to the routine now that I am home from vacation.  A lot of reading and working on my herb garden.  Emily is off tomorrow and we have some serious planting to do.  Hopefully The Husband will bring out our umbrella, table and chairs and I can start whiling away my afternoons outdoors!  Heaven! :)  See you soon!

HOME SWEET HOME

The Husband made it home intact from his fly fishing extravaganza no worse for the wear, but a little smelly!  He caught the biggest trout of the week and made it once again to the Wall Of Fame at the outfitter's shop!  Now you know the REAL reason we go to Asheville!

Friday we spent the day exploring Black Mountain, which boasts more of that small town vibe that I love.  Coffee and a sweet roll at a cute little cafe, some shopping for locally made jewelry for the girls and then lunch at a little pub.  The drive was so scenic but because the roads curve so much, it's hard to get a shot of the mountains.  They are breathtaking!

We had a wonderful dinner Friday night at Ruth's Chris Steakhouse.  We have one of these in Chicago, I didn't know they had branched out.  Delicious steak and lobster and flourless chocolate cake for dessert!

All of these pictures were taken at an outdoor fair/flower and plant sale in downtown Hendersonville.  We checked out of the inn in the morning and explored this cute little town on our way to the airport. 

Here is The Husband examining a cool planter.  I have been seeing  lot of these.  I wonder if he could make me one?  ;-D

I saw some very unique birdhouses and once again wished I had a larger suitcase!  After another scenic drive through the mountains and a stop for ice cream, we headed for the airport and said goodbye to Asheville.  What a wonderful week it was and I hope I didn't overload you with pictures and long tales!  I enjoyed every minute of my trip, especially meeting these sweet ladies...

Meeting Mary and seeing Penny and Penny again makes me feel I will always have a foot in North Carolina.  And many sweet memories!

Now it is Sunday morning and I took a pass on going to the lakehouse with The Husband.  If you could SEE my house!  Well, I'd never let you at this moment.  With both girls working (Abby just started waitressing at a little pub called Cork And Kerry), they didn't have much time for cleaning up after themselves!  But it's good to be home and I have tons of energy I will use to get things back in order.  June is just around the corner and I am looking forward to many peaceful weekends at the lake.  And, we have a weekend coming up in Galena, Illinois, where we will be meeting up with Cindy from Applestone Cottage, along with her husband, Dan.  This will be our fourth get together!  I'm so looking forward to it!

So, I'm off to do what I do best and I will see you later in the week.  Enjoy your holiday weekend! :-)

A LUNCH WITH BLOGGER FRIENDS

It's hard to believe that our trip is almost to an end!  Today The Husband went on an all day fly fishing excursion and I have been puttering around our suite, drinking coffee and eating Oreo cookies.  I think later I may go read by the pool.  It's a little cool here for swimming but I think I'll just lounge.  

Every day has been interesting and fun.  Yesterday we visited Maggie Valley and we saw the most incredible sights while driving through the mountains and valleys.  We stopped in Cherokee and browsed through all of the shops with handmade items.  We also visited the Cherokee Indian Museum

These pictures are from Monday when we went shopping in a little town called Waynesville.  So many cute, cute things.  I wish I had room in my suitcase!

I took this picture for all of you ladies that like blue and white!

Wednesday I had lunch with fellow bloggers, Penny, from The Comforts Of Home and Penny from Lake Lure Cottage Kitchen.  They are both from Asheville and I was so lucky to have met them last year.  Mary from A Breath Of Fresh Air drove in from Raleigh with her husband Bob.  The Husband joined us as well.

We ate a The Corner Kitchen and the food was excellent...

...the company even better!  There was a lot of picture taking...

...some gift giving...

...and laughs all around!  How I love these ladies!  They made this trip so worthwhile!

After lunch the clouds opened and we had a tremendous amount of rain.  Thankfully it cleared up by evening and we went downtown for dinner at The Lobster Trap.  We ate there last year and I was so looking forward to it!  And I had the Lobster Newburg again!

I'm not sure what we will be doing tomorrow, each day gets better and better!  We fly home on Saturday.  So far my adult children have been good.  Emily is a little lost lamb with her fiance away on business in Indianapolis and me here.  Abigail texts me constantly to tell me Emily is moping around and not cleaning up after herself (she includes graphic pictures of a filled kitchen sink!!).  So as you can see, I am really enjoying my time away!!  See you in a few days! :-)

BLONDIE IN ASHEVILLE

We are on our 2nd day in Asheville, North Carolina...well, ending it anyway by going out to dinner.  It has been a whirlwind of activity since the plane touched down Saturday afternoon.  We dropped our bags off at the hotel and went and had dinner at Luella's. 

It's this sort of place.  The Husband LOVES barbecue and he had an assortment of chicken, turkey and pork.  I had the andoullie sausage with fried okra.  I love Southern cooking!  Rumor has it that President Obama ate here everyday when he was in town but according to the waitress, it was his secret service people. Very popular place!

The greenery around our hotel is just beautiful, especially since there is so little blooming in Chicago right now.  I snatched a bloom off this hydrangea and have it in a glass on my night stand!

Off we went to downtown Asheville on Sunday morning.  There were a lot of local artisans selling their art all along the streets and sidewalks.  The husband was really interested in these terrariums but they were close to impossible to ship home.

Aren't they awesome?!

Remember the 70's?

We ate outdoors at this restaurant.  The food was outstanding.

We had Italian meats on flatbread and...

and we shared a salad.  It was all so good and everything tastes fresher when you are outdoors, don't you think?

It's so lively downtown, lots of street musicians...

and stores with their wares spilling out into the street to entice you to come inside.

I thought these would look good in my garden, but I learned last year that you can't bring anything sharp on the plane.

Pretty flowers everywhere!

Another blogger that recently visited Asheville, Sue, from I Need Mom told me about this place, so of course we checked it out. 

Two chalkboards filled with so many combinations, it was hard to choose, but I settled on a paper cone filled with the best chips you have ever had with herbs and spices and little chunks of goat cheese.  It was called the Parisian.  Oh!  They were SO good!

The we stopped at Kilwin's for fudge...

...which we had with coffee!

Oh, heaven!

It seems all we did was walk and eat!  Soon it was dinner time and after a short  stop at the hotel, we ate at this Mediterranean restaurant nearby.  Along with an onion and leek bisque...

I had seared scallops and dolmas, rice rolled up in grape leaves.  

So that ended our first full day.  I probably gained about 10 pounds but we did do a lot of walking and my calf muscles hurt!  The Husband was sweet enough to give me a foot massage last night...with lotion!  He's definitely a keeper.  Today was another full day but it would be picture overload so I will post again soon.  I just wanted to touch base and I will be back in a few days.  :-)