Beach Bound...

We leave tonight for St. George Island. We'll be staying here:

http://www.resortvacationproperties.com/vacationrentals/details.php?propcode=BRISADE&SRCH=tr

We've never been to St. George before, but it sounds like a quiet place to relax, and it looks beautiful.


Much packing left to do, and I have an appointment to get a spray tan... a first for me. That should be an adventure in itself, ha.

Whew...

Time flies. We have been so busy lately. Either going somewhere, preparing to go somewhere or recovering from being there. Good stuff.

First, we went here:

http://www.holidayworld.com/

And we rode this:

Then, after arriving home, I packed to go to CHA where I got to see the newest, coolest things to hit the scrapbooking world...things like spools and spools of yummy ribbon. Seriously, this was a wonderous sight to behold, I just wanted to touch them (and buy them) all.

Oh, and while there, we were almost shagged by this guy:

(Totally kidding about the shagging part, but it was funny to see him wandering around, heckling everyone).

And now, we are gearing up to go to St. George Island in Florida. Soon, we will head off into the sunrise in search of sun, sand, and lots of good books...well, I will be reading, and Forrest will be reading, everyone else will probably be in the pool or the ocean.

I plan on updating while on vacation. Look for lots of pictures, lol.

Lazy days of summer...not.

I cannot believe that it almost time for school to start again. While on one level, I must admit, it will be nice for things to go back to "normal", because let's face it, the hectic schedule of school is 10 months, and the floundering-where-did-the-day-go bustle of summer is only 2, school-hectic is actually "normal".

And, that means during "normal" months, I mostly know what to expect day in and day out. It is all recorded in my handy-dandy daytimer, and I can look back with satisfaction and know exactly "where September went" when it flew by.

Summer does not afford me the same sense of accomplishment. I look back at my calender, and find lots of empty boxes staring back at me. No day trips exploring backroads like last year (8 such excursions), nary a mention of the park or Bounce Factory.

Yet, we have been BUSY. This has been the busiest summer in the Suffridge family history. I guess this is what happens as the kids get older. I see lots of "prep work" recorded on the calender.

Things like camp (3 total, 2 for Forrest, and 1 for Hannah) and vacations (Mark and I on our NH trip, then the jaunt to Holiday World) require planning, paraphernalia and destination specific clothing, and all of that equals errands and those errands, equal time, lots and lots of precious time.

We have 24 days left until school starts back. I will be spending 4 of those at CHA in Chicago. We will be on our family vacation in Florida for 8 of those days. 2 days will be spent running errands pertaining to each of those trips, and 1 day will be spent shopping for school supplies.

9 days. 9 days to enjoy "lazy days" of summer. 9 days to spend quality time with the kids, to meander the day away with sidewalk chalk, bouncy balls, with Popsicles on the porch, running through the sprinkler and trying to teach them...and myself, how to slow down.

Now, I know family vacations count as quality time, (although the 9 hours in the car down and back do not count, because well, have you tried riding in a car with 5 kids for 9 hours), and I know that our trip to Holiday World definitely counts, but I am craving, long slow days of sunshine and wonderful nothingness that our kids will remember, days of just hanging out together and passing time.

Mark is making pancakes for lunch, the kids are helping, and there is nothing on the agenda for the day. Here's to slowing down...

I would like you to meet

my new BFF.

I am in LOVE. This baby makes a cup of hot java in less than 30 seconds. There are no filters, beans or grounds. You just fill up that little water reservoir on the left (one fill is enough water for 8 cups of coffee), pop a K-cup in and push brew. To make your next cup, remove the old K-cup and pop in a new one. Bliss.



And, there are over 100 different coffees, teas and cocoas to choose from. Did I say I am in love?

You can read more about her here:
http://www.keurig.com

I think it's time for another cup.

Farewell to my ex-BFF...

I remember the excitement of our first meeting. It was 6 years ago, and I had been longing for an easy, no fuss relationship.

We met at Hecht's (now Macy's) in the housewares department. I caught a glimpse of you as I was searching for some trivial household item. My heart skipped a beat. I could not believe my eyes. I knew, that surely I was reading you wrong.

I didn't allow myself to get to close that day. Knowing, that looks can be deceiving, and not ready to commit to what could turn into a messy relationship, I left.

You were not far from my thoughts though. I told Mark about you. He thought you sounded too good to be true... a waste of time and energy. We agreed, I should put you out of my mind.

I tried...oh, how I tried. But, I could not resist your allure. I found myself drawn to you again and again... constantly looking for reasons to return to the the third floor of the department store...trying to figure out if you were as good as your pretty packaging made you sound.

Mark, indulging husband that he is, agreed to check you out. Usually the skeptic, and harder to win over than I, he too was intrigued.

Finally, after two more long weeks, I decided that I was willing to risk the disappointment...if it turned out as good as we hoped, the risk would be worth it.

I brought you home to meet our friends and family. You were well received by all. I had made a good decision.

For 6 years, we have been friends. You, provided me with comfort and warmth, helped me to become a morning person and overcome spells of lethargy. You were relatively low maintence...especially when compared to your High Maintenance predecessor. You were truly, my BFF.

You had your moments of course. Sometimes not responding to my gentle prodding, and at other more rebellious times, pouring yourself out in unbecoming ways. In the grand scheme of things, your less than stellar moments were easy to overlook.

Until now. I have a new BFF. A BFF that is willing to be at my beck-and-call. One that doesn't require maintenance...and is always ready with a fresh cup of steaming goodness. One without beans, without grinders and grounds and filters that need constant cleaning. One that isn't quite as LOUD.

Now, don't worry Cuisin Art Grind and Brew, you aren't being kicked to the curb...so to speak. You'll still have your moments to shine...when we have company and need mass produced caffeine. We can still be friends. Can't we?

A still house and spelling wonders...

I am really missing this one...


Forrest is in Savannah, visiting his grandmother and cousins. The house seems more...still...without him here. Three more days...

In other news, Chloe can spell now. Really.

Chloe: Momma, Daddy, I can spell now.
Mom: You can? (asked in a chirpy voice)
Dad: That's good ChlO. (same chirpy tone)
Chloe: Yes, I can spell DVD... See...D-V-D, I spelled DVD.
Mom/Dad: (laughing) Yep, you sure can.
Chloe: I spelled it right, too.

Things discovered in New England:

1. The moss is gold, not green. Once we noticed this, we looked and looked for green moss...none.

2. The seagulls are very dexterous. This one landed atop the flag pole while the ferry was in motion and the wind was gusting incredibly hard.

3. New Englanders LOVE Volvo Cross Countries...we saw HUNDREDS. Literally, 1 in 3 cars was a Volvo Cross Country. I wonder why they like them so much?

4. With the exception of Plymouth, they have an incredible sense of history, and work hard to preserve it.

5. They are very proud of their boats.

6. There are no "garbage cans" or "trash cans", instead, they have:

7. It smells SOOOOO good...roses grow wild...everywhere...and they smell heavenly.

8. Things grow better in the East Coast climate.

9. They LOVE their rock walls. Hundreds and hundreds of miles of 4' tall rock walls. I wonder who built them...how long it took...I think they should be the Eighth Wonder of the World...really, they went on forever.

9. It is impossible to find real iced tea. Now, I knew there would be no Southern Sweet Tea...but, no brewed tea??? If you ask for tea, you will get that nasty lemon-flavored Nestea. Ick.

10. My husband is silly.

There you go...New England in a nutshell.