Summertime Fun

Independence Day has come and gone. We spent the day preparing to leave for a short visit to Boston, but made time to eat some delicious grilled meats and all the trimmings with some family. I will go back to work in 3 days until next summer when I will have a few weeks off. Don't feel too sorry for me, because I do have holidays when the students are not in school, so it makes for a great job.

We spent hours walking all over Boston. Up and down streets, stairs, escalators, traveled by car, plane, bus, taxi, subway train, and ferry in 3 short days. We saw so much beautiful architecture, shopped, admired the gardens of Boston, visited churches, historical sites, and it all climaxed with a classic baseball game at Fenway Park between the Red Sox and the New York Yankees. We took our youngest son, Connor, and his girlfriend, Lea Anna. Enjoy the photos to see what our summer memories look like.

               

                 This patriotic scene was taken at the Boston Public Library. It is a beautiful structure inside and out.

 

The ceiling on the second floor hallway is a work of art in itself.

What a perfect example of what a library should be like-lots of natural light and lots of books!

                          

Mahi Mahi Spicy Tacoes from SkipJack's were so deliciously fresh and the mango salsa-yum!

                           

The Charlton from Mike and Patty's-made fresh to order: cheese, bacon, tomatoes, and collards.
Just right for a Southern girl eating breakfast in south Boston!

 

The Boston Public Gardens have been giving Swan Boat rides for over 100 years. This was fun...and CHEAP!

Trinity Church is amazingly kept.

On the Long Wharf Ferry in some very windy weather...great fun seeing the harbor close up.

Getting to see historical sights that are over 200 years old makes us appreciate our country even more.
We visited the USS Constitution at the Charlestown Naval Yard.

Red Sox vs. Yankees
The saga continues...

A perfect ending to a great long week-end...Red Sox win over the Yankees 9-6!

We made it back home to Mississippi safely, which is quite a blessing. The sun was not shining when we arrived in Mobile at the airport, and it was only 80 degrees, but the humidity was in full force. I have enjoyed the past few days basking in the sunshine of the northeast. We may have different accents, and different ideas, but we are all Americans, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. My prayer is that this never changes. Blessings to you and yours.

Becky

I have linked to Funky Junk's SNS Pretty Scenery. Check it out!



Change Is Good!

Some of my friends at work gave me a birthday happy and I went straight to a couple of antique places that I like and burned it up quick and in a hurry. My office at work is in dire need of a change. I moved furniture, dusted, cleaned out desk drawers, filed or chunked piles of paper that have accumulated, and lots of things that I don't know why they were even in my office (mostly under my desk!). Anyway, it is still a work in progress, but now I have a wall that is 9 feet high and 15 feet wide that is completely empty. The first thing I am working on is kind of like an inspiration board, but it is really just a fancy bulletin board so I can place things that inspire me and make me happy in one location to enjoy. And, it will also be a conversation piece, as people are in and out of my office, I am sure.

This is a 20 x 28 frame and it was only $18. It is very heavy and in good condition.

I picked up some empty frames that I liked and added a little color, since the walls in my school office are a boring beige and cannot be changed. This one was beautiful the way it was, but I like the way these colors look on the high points. Then I covered a piece of foam board with some nicely woven fabric, inserted it into the frame, and it is ready to hang...am looking forward to filling it with fun cards, photos, and other memories throughout the year.

The other frame I am working on is not finished yet. I want to use it to display some decorative hang tags that have a certain theme. I am thinking about doing one on family, since that is the most important thing in my life aside from my faith in Jesus Christ. When it is finished and everything is hung, I will do another post. 

                          

                                The smaller frame was pretty beat up, but I loved the style and it was only $5.

With some paint and a wipe-down, the cracks and chips just make this little frame all the more lovable.

The other project I am working on it to repurpose some small canvas paintings that have outlived their glory. The photo below I even hate to post. Honestly, the three did look good at the time I bought them. Like I said, change is GOOD.

Before

 

Step 1 was to spray with some black paint because I did not want the vivid colors showing through the burlap.

    

              Step 2 was to cut some burlap the same size as the canvas and apply. The Mod Podge is not dry, but you get the idea. Boy, do I need to work on my photography!

So far, so good. I still feel like I need a third element at the top, but nothing I tried looked right, so I will leave it alone for now and come back to it later. I have two more of these to do and they will be hung as a group, so I need some more ideas. Of course, I had some ideas, but you can't spell W-I-S-H without an "s" and you can't spell H-O-P-E without an "e".
Hobby Lobby, here I come.

Well, it is time to go to bed so we can maybe get to church on time in the morning. Try to stay cool if you live in the south. Our Mississippi sunshine is pouring down the beams. Blessings to you all.

Becky

Back to the Land of the Living-Graduation is Done!

It has been almost two months since I have written anything on my blog. It has been a whirlwind around The White House. We have had two major parties at our home, a baccalaureate ceremony, and the graduation of our youngest son, Connor. He was the class Historian and shared a speech at graduation. I was on stage with him, since I am a school administrator, and was so proud of how he was able to share with his classmates and those in attendance. Our family of four and extended family and friends enjoyed being together at his graduation party and other ceremonies. It was 2001 when our oldest son, Jameson, graduated, so we had to get used to the idea of having a senior all over again. We are a blessed family! 





Con's graduation invitation photo was shot in the field of oats by our home.

Connor at around age 3

We did a frontier style party that was so much fun!
 Connor always thought he was a cowboy when he was little, so we thought we would reminisce a little bit.



Stu's mom and our other family members shared lots of old collectibles to make the party so much more realistic and the items were interesting to admire. Trying to figure out what each old piece was used for is part of the charm of collecting things of the past. It is something most of our family enjoys. 







This is my husband Stu and my sweet nephew Michael. He is our sound guy in the family and did an awesome job providing a microphone for "roasting" Connor with old stories, running the slideshow from birth to graduation (tears-yes), and providing some fun music for everyone to dance by. And yes, he looks like Sully from TV.

Time for me to share how Connor named himself "Con-Con". It is a long story. Oh, and check out the little beverage stand I made ALL BY MYSELF. The front piece is an old pallet and my sweet sister-in-law lined the stand with burlap so we could use the shelf inside for storage and it would not look so messy. All the old spools were salvaged by one of my brouther-in-laws from a burn pile at work. They are easy to roll around and make great tables.



Here we are after Baccalaureate in front of  East Central High School: Jameson, Becky, Connor, and Stu. Celebrating the ECHS Class of 2012

                                                         

Con and Lea Anna after graduation at the Biloxi Coliseum.

We also had another graduate in the family. Makayla Mae, my precious niece, is on the left of Connor. Her baby sis, Macy Cristine, will be graduating next year. Are they not a beautiful threesome???

Well, graduation is over, parties are done, and I am back at work for most of the summer. I am only off for three weeks and one has already been spent, so my days are few to relax. Today I am going to nap and hang out by myself then join family for dinner this evening. Then tomorrow I am going to go antiquing and yes I am taking my TRUCK. Maybe I will find some good deals. Blessings to you and yours as you begin a warm summer under the Mississippi Sunshine.

Love,

Becky

                                                                                                                  

Colors of Spring

To me, spring is about new life. It is about repurposing what you have on hand. My husband asks me all the time why I move stuff. It may be a piece of furniture or a wheelbarrow full of rocks. He just does not understand the need I have to create something that looks different or is used in a different way. Now granted, sometimes he is right about the furniture moves and I end up changing it back. And sometimes not. This year I've come across some new and old glass that says SPRING to me. The soft colors remind me of how the green leaves begin to fill the earth with an eventual shock of color. I understand why God started things out in a garden.  

 

After the full mantels of Christmas and then winter, I wanted a cleaner look for spring. I know Easter is done, but a dear friend gave me the Lladro bunny as a gift and I haven't found another place for her yet.

A pre-1900 bottle my dad brought from Natchez. I guess I get my love of "old stuff" from him.

I love the purples, blues, and greens of spring. And the vintage garland I found last fall for Christmas has not left my mantel since it arrived. I have found ways to make it work, because I love the way it shimmers in different colors. See below how it worked through three different seasons?

Christmas

Winter

Spring

I now see that I need something green that is alive on this mantel! Oh, so what's new? Change is good. Blessings to you and yours for good times and sunshiney days to share with those you love.

Becky

Linking to:

Spring Break Is Bursting Out All Over!

This week there are no discipline problems for me to handle, no teachers to observe, and no piles of paperwork to sort through on my desk because it is SPRING BREAK! It comes late this year, and in south Mississippi the weather has been perfect since Good Friday, which was our first day off. My spirit has soared both spriritually with our Easter celebration and creatively, while working on multiple projects.

 Yesterday I worked on planting a new bed in front of the screen to our "used to be" dog pen. I had an old fountain that did not work well anymore, so I filled it with verbena, asparagus fern, and vinca. When it fills out and the lion face is covered, I will like it a lot more and it will flow with the rustic look around the barn out back.

Gate latch updated with an old spade

  Since I gardened yesterday and worked on a few signs for an upcoming outdoor movie night by the barn, I found the need for a work apron to hold my tools, screws, and whatever I need at the moment. So this morning my first chore was to replicate a work apron of my husbands I found in the barn. Mine was going to be quick, simple, and plain. That just did not happen. It turned out really cute and so cute I probably won't wear it outside because I go from sawdust to paint to dirt without thinking. It fits me so well I will have to make that plain one after all!

Oh So Cute Apron

A tea-dyed muslin rosette along with some hand-stamped muslin ribbon for packages I made a while back were the perfect finish for my apron. The three deep pockets leave plenty of space for whatever my hands find to do.

I learned a few things from my first attempt at this apron, so next time I will do a little better job. My grandma taught me to measure and pin everything and sometimes I get in a hurry to move on to the next project! In fact, I think I will make my niece that is a hairdresser one. She has lots of stuff she can put in those pockets! :)

Well, it is time to go outside and garden some more since I have a helper here for the day. Best wishes to you and yours for good times and lots of sunshine!

Becky

This week I linked to these parties: 

  

Easter Is for Family

My Easter Weekend began Thursday when I got off work and went to an elderly friend's house to pick up her tax work for my husband. Her home is down a country road, and then down a single gravel lane that crosses an old wooden bridge. It is one of the prettiest homesites in our area. My only sadness in doing this is that my friend is not in good health and that I missed her azaleas in bloom. As you can see from the photo,  I would be almost emersed in springtime glory if I had only gone a couple of weeks sooner.

When I left my friend's house, I headed straight home to a beef tenderloin dinner that was out of this world. Then Friday was filled with yardwork and that night was Mexican at The White House (what we jokingly call our home, since our last name is White) where we started off with homemade guacamole and very spicy bean dip.

Family and friends were all talking and laughing at once while sharing stories so funny you could not make them up if you tried. And they were all TRUE! It was a great night. Saturday was a quick trip to town for some last minute Easter clothes and browsing for props for our next party. We had a great outdoor Sunrise Service at our church at 7 a.m., then had breakfast prepared by our Men's Minstries team, and finally an early worship service. Lunch followed at my mom and dad's home, where the day ended relaxing under my brother's shade oak trees while watching the grandkids and great-grandkids play softball. What a great day for counting our blessings!

We actually returned home with enough sunlight left to finish up photos of a completed project. I showed you the before a few weeks ago...whoa. That is one sad little settee.

After a couple cans of spray paint and a new cushion, it is once again one of my favorite spots to spend a few moments alone resting or reading.

Tomorrow I begin a full week of Spring Break and my to-do list is very long. The weather man says we will have several beautiful days of sunshine and I am planning on filling them with good times.

 Blessings to you and yours,

Becky