A Butterfly Meadow Tablescape and Farewell to Summer

Can summer really be over?  Surely not.  It doesn't feel like any time at all since I planted the flowers on our front porch after our Charleston trip.  Now here it is almost Labor Day weekend.  This feels like the fastest summer on record to me.  I think my dad being in the hospital for five weeks has made our family feel like we lost part of our summer.  Thankfully my dad is doing much better now.

Kathleen has issued a challenge to us for her Let's Dish party -- a "Farewell To Summer" tablescape.  I'm happy to be joining the fun this evening (even though we've probably still got some summer days ahead here in North Carolina).

Walt Disney World for Mosaic Monday

Hello Friends!  How has your weekend been?  It's been hot and humid here in North Carolina, and so I was reminded of our visits to Disney World when our son was in high school.  :)

"Dog Days"

Hi everyone!  I haven't given you an update on Duncan in a while, and he's now seven and a half months old!  I can't believe it; I feel like life is just whizzing by at the speed of light.  Remember how long and slow the days and weeks seemed when we were children?

My Parents' New Sunroom

Happy Monday everyone -- can't believe it's here again already!  :)  I'd like to share a renovation from my parents' house this week.  I think you'll enjoy seeing this cheerful, cozy room.

On Saturday, I paid a short visit to my parents.  I delivered some groceries that my mom had asked me to get for them, and it was so good to see them.  I think my dad is making some progress towards getting better, but it's very slow right now.

Last fall, my mom and dad decided to turn their screened porch into an enclosed sunroom.  You can see how this room looked as a screened porch in this post from 2012.  I just love how it turned out, and so do they.  Thankfully, I remembered to take my camera along yesterday, so I took some pics to share on my blog.

Our Son's Birthday

I was just re-reading the post I wrote for Will's birthday last year, and I can't believe how quickly this year has passed by!  Earlier this week, we celebrated his 24th birthday.  Another year come and gone, and we're all a year older.  Sometimes, I wish I could slow the clock down!

I've never shared this in my blog before, but two years after hubby and I got married, I had a health issue that reduced, by half, my chances of getting pregnant.  But God was good to us, and very soon, we found out that we were expecting a baby.  It was a really smooth and easy pregnancy until about six months, and then I started having early labor -- our boy was anxious to be born.  :)  I was put on bed rest and medication, and the day after the doctor took me off the medication, our son was born.  He was small, only weighing 5 lbs. and 7 oz., but that wasn't considered low birth weight.  He had all of his fingers and toes, and everything was fully developed.  We were proud parents of a healthy baby, and I never imagined I could be so happy.

A Small Update To The Dining Room

Happy Monday to you -- hope you had a nice weekend!  My dad finally went home from the hospital on Friday, after spending five weeks there.  I know he was so glad to get back home to his own bed, comfy chair, and his yellow lab, Gracie.  I appreciate all of you who kept us in your thoughts and prayers.

We made a little update to our dining room this weekend, and I'm sharing it today at Metamorphosis Monday.

Mountain Wildflowers

You've probably figured out by now that I really, really love flowers.  Yes, I'm smitten with them and have been for as long as I can remember.  Not only do I like to plant them and watch them grow, take pictures of them, and put them in my house to enjoy; I also like to try and identify them when I see them in a garden or growing along the roadside.

A few weeks ago when we were in the mountains, we drove across the Cherohala Skyway from North Carolina to Tennessee.  We did this a few years ago, and I wrote about it Here.  This year, I was just bowled over by all the wildflowers we saw growing along both sides of the road almost the entire length of the skyway.  It was amazing!  I've never seen such a profusion of wildflowers -- it's like they were on steroids.

I was able to identify 11 different varieties of wildflowers this year (I had to look up some of them online); that's the most I've ever seen in one area.  These flowers were so pretty, I felt like most gardeners would be pleased to have them in their own gardens.  Yet they were just growing wild with no one tending them but Mother Nature.  Have a look and see what you think... 

   Wild Phlox

The Church on the Hill

Last year when we took our trip to the mountains, we visited Highlands, North Carolina.  I wrote about Highlands the year I started my blog in 2011, and I shared some images of the pretty churches there.  Most of my readers were really taken with the Episcopal church in Highlands (You can see the Episcopal Church in this post.)  I think it's very pretty, too; but I was intrigued with the Presbyterian Church, which I didn't get to see up close in 2011 because we ran out of time.  I finally got a chance to view the church at close range, and I wasn't disappointed.  Founded in 1885, it really is a charming little church.

Summer Touches Around The House

This summer is flying by for me.  For the first time in several years, I haven't found myself wishing for it to be over by July 5th.  :)  We've had some of our normal hot weather this year, but we've had some very nice, milder weather too.

When we were raising our son, I never gave much thought to changing things up in the house throughout the different seasons.  Even if I had thought about it, I didn't really have the time or resources to make a lot of decor changes.  Christmas seemed to be the only time I made a real effort to make the house look different.  Now I'm not one to follow the trends, but I do enjoy a fresh, new look for the different seasons.  Switching things up throughout the year allows us to display (and enjoy) our various treasures and usually doesn't require buying a lot of new stuff or calling in a professional decorator.  ;)