Instagram Update

Some pix from IG, posted over the last couple of weeks. 

Yes, I do tend to go a little crazy on the Gideon pictures. 

But come on, does a dog get much cuter than this?!?!?

Found an Anne of Green Gables book at a thrift store that I HAD TO BUY. 

And this auction puzzle came home with me, 

a summer project that will take over the study drop-leaf table.

A summer at Chateau Gahan means lots of overnite guests, 

and because they're college-aged kids, an air mattress or sofa will do.

Still going strong at work with Jillian Michaels' workout. 

A group of us do it religiously 5 days a week.

And with a space at work like this, with the workout on a giant screen,

it's perfect.

Harleigh at home means lots of coffee time, the three of us camped out in the ken, 

the living room or the back patio.

Second Annual Summer Ahoy Dinner

This is a tradition now for us. We began it last year and like the idea of kicking off the summer with a dinner that celebrates vacations, camp jobs, warm weather and taking things a little slower. Mom's menu for our second annual event was spectacular.

Hors d'oeuvres:
-  Fresh asparagus wrapped in parmesan dusted puff pastry
-  Seashells filled with seafood salad (eaten either with a small fork or gulped down ala oysters)
-  Baked dill pickles (fried, we all agreed, would have been the bomb, but we're all eating better, and these were pretty doggone good = we ate them all)

The joke at my parents' house is that you have to arrive on time or, better yet, early if you want to get dibs on Mom's pre-dinner fare. It's always just as good as the meal itself.

Dinner:
-  Ceasar salad
-  Cioppino (Mom's made with clams and mussels in the shell, salmon and shrimp)
-  Biscuits made with fresh rosemary

Dessert:
-  An assortment of gelato and sherbet with vanilla Pirouette cookies

And always lots of good wine. It was a feast worthy of our Summer Ahoy tradition! Thanks, Mom!

For place cards this year, I must admit nothing was gelling. I googled and shopped for inspiration. Pinterest gave me one idea that I wound up settling on. They were cute. Nephew Grayson loved licking his lemon, which set us in stitches, only making him do it more. For that it was worth it!

Here is the Pinterest inspiration:

And here are mine. 

Instead of names, I used plastic initials. 

And for the mast, I used coffee stirrers instead of skewers. 

I think the inspiration sail is made from fabric, 

but I love the paper samples in my Repro Depot book, so I went the paper route.

Harleigh and Kasey will be working together again this summer. 

They are both core leaders at Camp All-American, each leading and discipling a group of counselors.

Got the house ready for Memorial Day today.

Found this mini bike (about 7 1/2" long and 5" tall) online at Cost Plus World Market. 

I knew I just had to have it. How cute will it be to decorate for all the holidays???

Didn't have time to find a teeny tiny flag to give it a Memorial Day feel,

so I opted for this basket of flowers.

At rest

I had a wedding this weekend, a big one, that was on a grand scale but intimate in so many ways: I got to know the family well (the bride's mother was hands-on and such a sweet woman to work with), the bride and groom hired me to help with the planning (in addition to handling the day-of) which forged a relationship early on, and I worked closely with the groom's mother (whose company was completely responsible for the decor of the reception). From the wedding ceremony at the Cathedral of Christ the King (which made for a Sound of Music-esque Maria walking down the aisle) to the reception at Greystone, it was an experience that brought both new challenges and the ease of familiarity.

One of the guidelines that the Cathedral had was that all of the bridal party suite had to be completely empty of personal items before the wedding ceremony. This meant that I had to gather the bridal party purses and such and keep them safe until after the wedding. I decided to use a grocery cart to corral their stuff. Not the prettiest of containers, but it fit the bill: big enough to hold everything and on wheels for easy transport. I had thought about sewing a cloth liner, but then decided that a paper liner might work just fine. A lawn bag did the trick, and with a bit of silk flower and ribbon magic in the bride's coral color scheme, it was both understated and a statement.

I got home on Saturday night after midnight and jumped into bed, a mix of exhausted and energized. Got up the next morning to church commitments (not all that happy to rise with the sun, but feeling at peace after Sunday School and a service that reminded me of all my blessings). A nice Mother's Day lunch with Grandie and Poppy and Harleigh, then home to a nap . . .  an honest to goodness smack-dab-in-the -middle-of-the-afternoon nap. Flowers left over from the reception filled every one of the 16 blue mason jars I bought the other day!

I took Monday off as a vacation day, but woke up early to do yard work, which I picked up again in the afternoon — the day was too doggone pretty to waste doing anything but outside stuff.

Despite the busyness of the weekend, the rest periods proved to be a treat. 

Blue Ball Jars

I know. 

I know. 

Cliched as they are, I couldn't resist buying these at my local grocery store. 

They'll come in handy for something.