Wednesday Workday

Ok, so it's already Thursday, but I have been busy since Wednesday getting ready for the big Saturday soiree.

Menu planned - check!
Groceries purchased - check!
Guest room and bath cleaned - check!
Lights hung in the carport - check!
Flowers picked up - check!


There is still plenty to do tomorrow,

cut the grass,
arrange the flowers,
sweep and dust (and hopefully pick up the rug from the carpet cleaner).
make the Boozy Baked French Toast - yes, Jane, of course -
meet Elizabeth at the train station...

but I have taken the day off and hope to fit in a mani-pedi.  (Can't have company with bad nails, can I?)  Getting ready is so much fun!  See ya later!

Implementing the Plan

We don't entertain - at least not CROWDS.  You know, a couple or two for dinner; once we had eight.  But since we moved to this smaller house [only 11 years ago] we have not had a big party.  But a big birthday deserves a big party... and Mitchell is celebrating a big birthday next weekend. 

Imagine putting on a party for grown-ups with a child's touch.  "Can I pick the guest list?" "Of course.  It's your birthday."  "Can I invite my tennis team?"  "Of course."  "And, Hank?  and the little girls?"  "Of course."  "Can we play bocce?"

So, it will be a blend of old friends and new, tennis partners, a few from work, family, BFF's, and the nice couple across the street.  About 20 in all, so not a mob, but way more than we can manage inside, so a picnic in the carport, with games in the yard.  Wine, beer, pulled pork, tomatoes, of course.  And a very special birthday cake - the honoree's favorite.

Menu picked, colors decided - hot lime, hot citrus yellow, orange and aqua.  Lots of Gerbera daisies to arrange [sorry, Jane, I shouldn't use that word, when I really mean "stick into available vases"!], enough plates and wine glasses.  I've collected votives in green (citronella) and orange and an assortment of small vases.  Plans well underway.

I spent the morning deadheading in the garden and then we spent the afternoon hosing down the deck, the driveway and the car port and washing off the yard chairs.  Elizabeth and her husband will be here on  Friday to help me with final details and a week from now we will be sitting down to dinner.  It'll be fun.  I can hardly wait!!

Getting Back to Life

After three months of pure hell at work, life if finally starting to return to normal.  Tho I've been keeping up by reading sporadically, the last thing that I have had energy for is finding something to write about.  I guess I have been so focused on work that it was all I could think about, and the last thing I wanted to write about. [Clearly still too tired to clean up the grammar above!]

We did accomplish a project that was huge and complicated, but which took its toll on everyone.  Mitchell worked a zillion hours taking a load off of me, but still it has taken nearly two weeks to finally catch up on sleep and discover there is a world outside.

So, May has slipped into June; June disappeared into July; and July baked into August.  It seems like the heat wave might dissipate some this weekend and I hope to get into the garden - at least to deadhead a bit... ok, a lot!

Flowers in the House

Late July and finding something nice to cut is a real challenge.  A week of soaring temperatures followed by a wonderful downpour last night did not really leave me many choices.

I should have been cutting phlox for three weeks.  It has been lovely in the border, but as usual I waited until the rain had beaten it down.  There are three shades here - names unknown.  The spiky stuff is Agastache 'Ava' aka Hummingbird Mint and the dark leaves are Eupatorium rugosum 'Chocolate'.

Initially I put this little bit in the guest bath, and it looked darling.  The more I thought about it, tho, the more I wanted to be able to enjoy it.

So I moved it to a small table next to my chair.  No more dew on the petals, but it's right here where I can enjoy it... now!

Thanks to Jane at Small But Charming for hosting this little visit into many flowered homes today.  If you haven't checked it out, please do.  You are in for a treat!