Play Day

Today is play day on the lake. The recent hot weather has undoubtedly warmed the water to a temperature I can tolerate. My youngest and I went swimming down at the lake in my neighborhood Thursday night and it was like bath water - but it was still nice.

Last night we had a campfire in the back yard - we have strung little round paper camp lights between the two trees out by the pond, right over the bird bath and I have put solar light caps on the posts on my deck, and my really pretty four globe solar lights that change colors in my flower bed by the deck. So all of the lighting back there is soft and pretty and the globe lights are like mini gazing balls that change colors - so it is very relaxing to sit out by the fire. The sky was full of stars and somewhere over on Tippy someone was having a party with a live band. We could hear the music. (Bring back memories Danny?) We sat outside til well past midnight just relaxing.

Today, after I get a couple of reports emailed out, we are going to the lake to play on the jet skis and hopefully soak up some sunshine. I am excited! And then tonight is the Tippecanoe Lake Property Owners Fish Fry. Its the best fish ever. Dan's out of Huntington. Which used to be the fish that was at the Mt. Etna fish fries when I was a kid. We are all going over to my sister's for the fish fry tonight, probably she and I will go over to Camp Crosley (where the fish fry is) and pick up the carry out.

Tonight my daughter has to work and my oldest son will probably go to the Tippy Dance Hall.

If all goes well, tomorrow should be a repeat day on the lake!

Summer is truly here.

A Boy. A Lawnmower. And A Pond.

My 16 yr old son got a new lawnmower on Thursday. He has been wanting this new mower for over a year now and has been saving his money. His present lawnmower just hasn't been doing as good of a job as we would like for all of the jobs he now has. So my parents decided to loan him the money to get the new mower.

They went to Kokomo on Thursday to get it. On Friday he mowed the lawns he is contracted to mow over by the lake. On Saturday he finally got to mow our yard. It is the standing joke with our neighbor whenever Kyal comes over to see him its because his mower is in the pond. When they saw his new mower they wondered out loud how long it would be before it went in the pond.

Well you guessed it. First lap around the yard......

He went marching right over to the neighbor and he came over to help. I was on camera duty, I was greatly amused by this. Kyal was not so happy, he said he rode it right down the bank, he was going to go in with it if it went all the way in, and I am sure that he would have too! And being the good mom that I am, well, I took lots of pictures!

So there you go. A Boy. A Lawnmower. And A Pond.

Pretty

Graduation, Hydrangeas, Open House and other things

Life has been crazy around here lately.

I survived the graduation thing. I only cried all day on graduation day. It was after all my baby girl!

I have been working on my yard and flower gardens. I purchased three hydrangea bushes at half price this weekend. I was so excited. I have wanted these hydrangea bushes every year for years. Now I have a special place for them and they are beautiful! They bloom all summer long and the best way to encourage blooming is to cut the flowers and bring them inside to enjoy so more blooms will come in. It is the little things that make me happy!!!

The graduation open house went very well too. It was a week of complete chaos and stress. I got it in my head that I wanted everything in my house in order too even though the party was at the clubhouse down by the lake. So I spent the week trying to work, juggle a kid in summer school and assign chores and tasks to each kid. In the end, not everything came together at the house the way I had hoped, but the party came together beautifully and the decorations were adorable.

So now I am finally seeing a light at the end of the tunnel and looking forward to some rest and relaxation.

I found a beautiful "lacey" crocheted hammock for my backyard now I am trying to find a stand for it.

One of the nicest flower shops in town has its annuals and perinials on sale for half price so I am guessing there will be some more floral purchases made this week and pictures posted here also.

My son took the puppy for her first swim in the lake yesterday. She liked it apparently.

Now I have to get her a life jacket so she can go on the jet ski with me.

My pomeranian I had before her used to ride the jet ski with me all of the time. I hope Macie will like it too.

I rearranged my bedroom so my bed is in front of my windows facing the backyard, I lay in bed and look out at the yard and can see my flowers and solar lights and hear the frogs. Last night there were lightning bugs all around the pond, the first I had seen this year.

And would you believe, I have not been out on the lake yet this year? Hmmm, I think its time I should do something about that!

Graduation

My daughter is graduating from high school this Friday night. My first baby. My only girl. My little girl.

The hopes and dreams I have for this child are endless. She is smart and beautiful. The world is at her feet she can do anything and be anything she sets her mind to. Her greatest cheerleader on this earth is me. I know my daughter and I know the potential.

For now I am breathing a sigh of relief. A huge sigh of relief. So thankful she made it through. So thankful she made it through unhurt and beautiful and smart. So thankful for so many things.

It's crazy, but as a single parent you feel so much pressure. (yes, I know, all parents feel a great pressure, a pressure to teach their children the right things, to give them the right things, to set the right boundaries, to set the right example, etc., etc.) But as a single parent I always felt due to the intensity of our divorce and the eagerness to point fingers and place blame an extraordinary amount of pressue. I felt and still feel as if we live our life under a microscope and someone somewhere is just waiting for one big mistake.

And oh how I love my daughter, but believe me, she is a strong willed free spirit who is going to speak her mind and do as she pleases. I am quite certain the fact that I am now coloring my hair every three weeks is due to her. So today, as the first full day of her new life as a young adult, I am breathing a huge sigh of relief. And I know, my job as a parent to her is not done, we are just entering into a new phase of our lives in which I more often have to stand back and keep my mouth shut and let her learn on her own. Thats the hard part. We don't want our children to have to learn life lessons the hard way, but it is how we all learn.

Kelsay, I love you and I am oh so proud to be your mother.