Happy Homemaker Monday

Hi there Friends! 

Happy new week to you.

For those in the States I hope you had a lovely Independence Day weekend. 

We went to the lake to spend it with Matt's folks and Annie came with us. They love when kiddos come and especially love the fact that my kids have embraced Matt's folks as other grandparents to them. 💗 Matt and I love that too! 

The weather was a little rainy/stormy on Saturday. But we had fun playing games, watching a movie, and then later it cleared enough that we could watch some of the fireworks across the lake. 

Then Sunday was gorgeous out and we got in a pontoon ride before lunch and then heading back home. 

Another lovely July 4th in the books ❤️🇺🇸

I know my fellow Autumn loving Friends feel the same way I do though. That once July 4th comes and goes we allow ourselves to let in a little Fall thought here and there. Lol In the northwoods July is the epitome of summer and then August becomes pre-Fall so it's easy for me to think that way. 

But don't worry my Summer loving Friends. I am still all in on Summer vibes. I still have a lot of flowers and garden to love, walks to be had, iced coffee to be sipped, golf to be golfed, BBQ's to be grilled, sunsets to be watched by a fire, swimming to be swam in the lake, and pontoon time to be relaxed upon. I just needed to be honest for a moment about who I am and that I do enjoy the allowance of an Autumn thought because it's always in my heart. As well as, I plan on some Christmas in July to be shopped and celebrated too. 😉❤️💚

But that's another story....

THE WEATHER OUTSIDE IS:

ON THE BREAKFAST PLATE THIS MORNING:

ice protein coffee, whole grain toast with a little natural peanut butter

ON MY TO DO LIST THIS WEEK:

errands & groceries, getting ready for an Aunt to visit that is having surgery in the area and will convalesce here overnight (need to work on menu as she has a gluten allergy), check in with my Mom, projects, yard work, hospice work

THINKING ABOUT: 

As a Taylor fan (my daughter & I saw her in concert before and she was amazing!) - I'm glad she got her happy ending and that she had her big wedding with Travis over the weekend. It will be fun to see photos when they release pics of the big day. 

THINGS THAT MAKE ME HAPPY:

fun bonding chats with my Annie boo

CURRENTLY READING

I'm happy to report I'm back to the book I was reading a month ago and making a dent on finishing it. Then I can dive into my new pile. (still finishing it 🙈)

 

ON THE TV TODAY:

  Jeopardy, old seasons of big brother Castle Impossible (we have several yet to watch), AGT, Sweet Magnolias (I need to finish this one), new Big Brother starts this week!

ON THE MENU THIS WEEK:

    MONDAY - green goddess pasta salad (for Annie & I), Matt will probably have a turkey sandwich too as he doesn't like to eat only vegetarian Lol😂

TUESDAY - maybe breakfast for dinner? (eggs, breakfast potatoes, I will make pancakes if Annie wants, fruit)

WEDNESDAY -  chicken salad low carb wraps

THURSDAY -  grilled chicken, roasted regular or sweet potatoes, romaine salad with fruit veggies & feta with balsamic viniagrette, gluten free rice krispies bars

FRIDAY - out for dinner?

TO RELAX THIS WEEK I WILL:

projects, maybe read, work on a craft for a future Christmas gift

TIPS OR SOMETHING TO SHARE:

 

FROM THE CAMERA:

A few shots from around home - including my goofy Hubby's humor. He put this monster plant in my garden for me to find. Lol Also some pics of the pretty glow at night. I love solar lanterns everywhere. 

Some pics from July 4th weekend at the lake. Crazy clouds before it got stormy. And the July 4th tradition Matt loves is to watch and see if Joey Chestnut can defend his hot dog eating contest title each year. I made some patriotic goodies for the weekend including chocolate covered strawberries. And this cream cheese berry french toast bake that was SO good. I will share the recipe this week. 

Sue (my MIL) wanted to take a pic of all of us to send to her Bestie back in AZ who always sends pics of her grandkids to Sue. I love that we always need take 2 because in the 1st one Matt is always being such a dork. That's my goofy Hubby. ::sigh:: It's never dull. 😂 

Also, you gotta love that I always look like I'm standing in a hole because I'm so short compared to everyone else. Lol 🙈

The weather cleared up enough to give us a pretty sunset and allow for us to watch some fireworks going off across the lake. 

Then Sunday was nothing but blue skies and a lovely day to take a ride on the pontoon. I love the last pic of a Mama Loon we came across that had a baby on her back:

PRAYER LIST:

 For an end to the conflicts all over the world and anyone living in war & fear, especially everything going on in the middle east right now. For peace and unity in this country, especially from hate and shootings or violence.  For anyone sick, suffering, in pain, fear, loneliness etc ... that God bring them comfort and peace. For healing for my Mom. For my Aunt's surgery this week to go well.

For the Lord's love and peace to fill 2026. ❤️ 

For Christ's Light and Love to cast out the darkness everywhere and help the world find its way to loving our neighbors as ourselves. 🙏🏻

PRAYER, INSPIRATIONAL QUOTE OR DEVOTIONAL:

See, still mostly iced coffee and summer thoughts around here. 💗 Blessings on your week ahead. 

I'm sharing this with Sandra of Diary of a SAHM for Happy Homemaker Monday.

Cooking Thursday on a Friday: Italian Grinder Sliders

 

Hello my dear lovely, wonderful, beautiful, blogging Besties!

August is here! Up in the north it's such a dual month. The first few weeks still feel a lot like summer - but by mid August, some kids go back to school and it begins to feel more "pre"Fall than summer.  More signs of this include: the geese start showing up on the bay again (to work on their practice runs), pre season football begins (we actually watched the first game a bit last night!), nights start getting cooler, and things in the garden really start producing and even fading. August becomes a true glimpse at the change of season ahead. 

Speaking of seasons, we had such a fun moment yesterday!! My Mom came over and along with Annie & I, had a girlie Christmas in July day. :) We squeaked it in just in time! We had a fun lunch, listened to Christmas music and colored in Christmas coloring books, and we talked a lot about the seasons ahead and Annie going back to school etc. 

I even had little gifts for everyone (including Matt - who sneakily got me something too). It was such a fun day and reminded me of when we used to do it every summer when Annie was little. Back then we'd bake cookies, do a Christmas craft and watch a Christmas movie. Love time with my girls so much and appreciate how they humor my love of Christmas. ❤️💚 

Today, however, I wanted to share these delish summer sub kind of sliders. You cut a pack of Hawaiian buns in half. You layer cheese and meats inside and put the tops back on. Then brush a yummy Italian garlic butter concoction over the tops and bake. While they bake you make up a yummy grinder salad with veggies of choice(I did lettuce, tomato & onion), some mayo, red wine vinegar and olive oil and seasonings. When the sliders are done baking you take them out...take the tops back off and put the cold salad inside. They were absolutely scrumptious!! Matt said they were his favorite sandwich he's ever had. High praise indeed! 

They would be perfect to take for a beach picnic or on the pontoon. We just enjoyed them on the deck as a lovely summer dinner. Truly they would be good any time of year...but for my summer lovin' friends - I don't want you to think my love of Fall has me skipping out on summer just yet. Still enjoying all the fruits of summer! 

Including breakfast this AM: frosted mini wheats with amazing sweet strawberries & raspberries. I promise I continue to soak up these summer days. 

We went golfing with Annie a few days ago

And there are still a lot of pontoon rides, summer walks, lounging and reading on the deck, and yard games to play yet.

Are you a summer lover? Or ready for Fall to begin?  I'm enjoying summer fruits, but I need to honestly admit that a little part of me feels like this:

Whether you cling to summer, or can't wait for Fall - you will love these sliders! They can be found under my pinterest board "sliders" you can find if you click here.

But here's the recipe for you:

Enjoy! And have a blessed weekend ahead. 

xoxo

Five on Friday: Spring Dreaming

 

Hello and Happy TGIF Friends! 

And welcome to March!! 💚💚💚

I was busy up at the hospice house working today. But I have some rest time this late afternoon and I  thought about the fact that I haven't done one of these kinds of posts in ages. So today I wanted to share five Spring dreaming moments with you. 

ONE

First of all, what made me even think about this post is how beautiful it is outside today! It's been in the upper 50's and sunny - which is unseasonably mild for the northwoods this time of year.  And I have been loving it! We've been taking a lot more outdoor walks for this time of year than we usually do because the weather continues to be so mild. So you know Ruby loves that too! 😉

   TWO

We've got our bakery booked for the wedding, and I've been looking at lots of inspiration for picking out our cake and other goodies to go with our sunflower kind of theme. And that makes me think how Spring is so close now and how this year is flying by already! I have a lot more wedding details booked and sorted already and down the road I will share a big post sharing everything with you my dear Friends. 💗

THREE

I was thinking about my daughter's hockey finishing up soon. That is always a sign that Spring is close. Her regular season is done - but she was asked to play in some extra games and tourneys - like this all star game poster shows. She will have a team banquet and then her high school sports will be all done. She has had a wonderful sports career through all of her years playing very competitive level soccer and hockey. She has also played volleyball and golf. And now going into college she was approached by some division 3 schools to play hockey for them...but she just wants to play sports more for fun now. So she is looking into some club hockey and rec sports at the university she has chosen. I don't blame her. She has been playing sports since she was 4 years old! Playing for fun sounds great! ☺️

FOUR

I have been looking at old pictures of Easter decorations past. It's going to be here soon since it's early this year! So I'm already Spring dreaming on the decorations, menu, and I even ordered my Easter ham a few weeks ago already. The Spring dreaming will turn into reality soon. 🐰

FIVE

And I love to spring dream on my pinterest boards. These decorating and yummy ideas are all from my board "spring/easter" which you can go to by clicking here. I love to use pinterest as inspiration for each season. 🌸

I feel the Spring in the air today and it's getting me excited for the season, so thanks for letting me share that with you today. I was one that was never a very big fan of Spring - I'm such an Autumn girl forever. But the older I get the more I find that I dream on and appreciate a lot more about this beautiful season directly ahead. How green the grass and leaves become. The bay opening up. Gardening and digging in the dirt. So many gifts to look forward to in gratitude. 🙏🏻

Wishing you sunshine, peace, and joy for your weekend ahead (& a little Spring dreaming) 

🌸 xoxo ☀️