A Special Visit

 

If you have been reading my blog for any length of time, you probably know that I ADORE Susan Branch. She is on a book tour for her amazing new book "A Fine Romance" and one of her stops was in my area.

 

So we hopped into the car with our super cute nametags and travelled to one of the cutest little towns in our area.

 

To this little book store that reminds me so much of "The Shop Around The Corner" in the movie "You've Got Mail" (probably one of my top 5 favorite movies). Lots of girlfriends were waiting for Susan and Joe to arrive.

 

And here they come in the Susan and Joe mobile. Poor Joe had to parallel park in front of the bookstore. I guess after driving around England for 2 months on the wrong side of the road this was probably no big deal :)

 

After waiting in line for just a little while, I finally got to meet Susan! (and Petey). She is just as warm and friendly as she is on her blog. I would have loved to have chatted for hours with her about England and Martha's Vineyard and life in general.  You can tell she has a genuine interest in everything around her, and that it was makes her such a wonderful writer and artist (and person)!!

 

 Look at the hearts!!!! :)

I am so happy I had the chance to meet Susan, and am now well into reading the book. It is a book meant to be savored chapter by chapter with a cup of tea (or coffee) and time to dream.

The Summer Market

Saturday we went to The Summer Market, which was a really cool vintage style show. The location was absolutely awesome in a park overlooking the lake, which was a good and bad thing. The weather did not want to cooperate and many of the vendors had to leave due to high wind and torrential rain. Those that remained had some truly awesome booths! Lots of shabby chic, beach cottage, bunting banners and vintage trailers.

I really am inspired to try my hand at a craft show. I'd love to design an adorable booth and fill it with all sorts of cute and colorful Happy Little Cottage quilts and pillows and bunting banners. Have any of you done a craft show? I have no idea what is involved, but I think I may do a bit of research to find out...

And I just wanted to welcome all of you who may be visiting from Brenda's sweet post at Cozy Little House! Thanks so much for visiting my blog♥

Summer In The City

I hope all of you had a wonderful 4th!! It has been really really HOT where I live, so the the past few days have been spent in the pursuit of beating the heat! (We don't have central A/C in our old house)

July 4th was spent at the Doubletree Hotel, where we got a super great deal!! We promptly turned the A/C as low as it would go!! Their rooms are so nice, and their beds are super comfy!! Pillow Top mattresses and down comforters and pillows! We spent the afternoon in the pool and the evening in our chilly room, reading my book "The Forgotten Garden" which is a great summer read!!

The next day we were off to our local water park!! Lots of sunscreen on hand, we claimed our spot

and then into the wave pool. You are able to bring the low to the ground chairs right into the water, so that's what we did.

Wait...what is that in the pool??

They are trying to beat the heat too!

They walked into the pool during the no-wave phase, but soon the waves started and they surfed their way to the pool's edge. 

Right now I am typing this with a fan blowing right on me, eating a delicious frozen pina colada fruit bar. YUMMY!! If you have an Aldi's nearby, I highly recommend buying a box, or two...

It's supposed to be the last day of extreme heat, and then we are back to perfect summer weather YAY!!

Happy rest of the weekend!!

Autumn Afternoon

When I opened the door to add my groceries this is what the backseat of the car looked like yesterday afternoon. Some of my most favorite things! Mums and pumpkins and colored leaves. And what's that on the seat? Look closely....A quilt!! In case you were wondering why everything is in the backseat, there was a hay bale in the trunk! The car still has a faint farm smell to it, not mention hay everywhere.
When I opened the door to add my groceries this is what the backseat of the car looked like yesterday afternoon. Some of my most favorite things! Mums and pumpkins and colored leaves. And what's that on the seat? Look closely....A quilt!! In case you were wondering why everything is in the backseat, there was a hay bale in the trunk! The car still has a faint farm smell to it, not mention hay everywhere.

 

It was such a lovely afternoon. Lunch at the Tea House. A trip to the farm stand. Georgeous weather. Putting lights and decorations on the porch. It makes you wish every Saturday could be as nice!

The Teahouse

The Teahouse at the Treehouse Gallery is my favorite spot for lunch during the summer.  This house was built in 1850 and now is a gift shop filled with really cute housewares and collectibles. But if you walk around back you will find this delightful patio that feels like someone's back yard.

There are only a few tables surrounded by potted plants and herbs, and it is the perfect spot for an outdoor meal and a fruity sangria. The door leads to a side porch which has inside seating, and is so lovely in the winter. But in the summer, I am all about dining alfresco!

The food is so fresh and delicious and wonderful. The staff is so friendly and make you feel like family. My salad had gently sauteed chicken, with fresh greens, homegrown tomatoes, feta cheese and candied pecans, topped with the most delicious balsamic vinaigrette.

Becky's wrap was delicious, and was served with fresh fruit, and the cutest and tastiest tiny muffin. I have to admit, that even though this is a tea house, and serves tea and delicious baked items, I am always so full after lunch that I have never ordered dessert.

The weather was absolutely gorgeous and the kind that you savor knowing that fall is rapidly approaching. The gift shop was decked out in all things Halloween, and we spent most of our lunch deciding how to decorate the house for fall. We even bought a few things on our way home to get ready for the fall holidays. Call me crazy, but I can hardly wait :)

Summer Fun

This is how I spent an entire day. I grabbed an inner tube

 and drifted round and round on the lazy river.

Took a short break to snack on a sandwich and then it was off to the wave pool.

I got a kick out of the lady in the corner of this picture. I think she spent the entire day right in that spot getting an awesome tan, and relaxing on her inner tube when the waves were not in action. Her swimsuit was adorable too! I chose to be a teeny bit more active and actually rode the waves in the deep part of the pool. I felt like a kid again :)

I did NOT go on this. The day was devoted to total relaxation and enjoying the sun. It felt like we were on vacation even though we were only about an hour from home! We went through an entire bottle of sunscreen. We arrived when the park opened and left when it closed. I slept like a log when I got home!

The County Fair

Scenes from our county fair. A glorious blue sky behind the ferris wheel.  We ended up spending the evening. Eating our fill of funnel cakes and cotton candy. Listening to the entertainment. Watching people being flipped upside down on rides.  Getting a henna tattoo with your daughter.

Enjoying the gorgeous end of the summer flowers.

I love visiting the animal barns. The 4-H kids are always so proud of their animals.

Baby pigs are adorable. The mama, not so much :)

 

 

For a city girl, it is fun to be a part of farm life for an evening. The county fair is always such a juxtaposition of country beauty and carnival atmosphere, and a reminder of small town America at it's best!

Road Trippin'

I am such a lucky Mom. I love the fact the Becky likes to spend time with me and that we have fun together. One of the true joys of grown children is that they can also be your friend! We planned a road trip to Pittsburgh to go to the Knit and Crochet festival.We stopped for breakfast at George's and filled up on coffee, eggs, toast and hashbrowns.
It's always a bit of a gamble planning a road trip in February, but we set off early in the morning and the weather tried to cooperate. We made it to the festival and had fun looking at all the beautiful yarns, rovings and gorgeous samples. Becky picked up some really PINK sock yarn and handmade needles.
Then we made these

They are pins done with this really cool needle felting machine. It looked like a sewing machine, but had a special attachment that "felted" almost anything you put underneath it. Loved making these!

Our next stop

 I get ridiculously excited every time I see that blue and yellow sign!

I usually am attraced to the bedrooms, but this trip I loved the living rooms. The soft blue paint was gorgeous! Love the white coffee table! And I bought the chandelier on the last trip but it is still in the box.

Red, white and blue. LOVE. See the little heart shaped pillow? Becky bought one for her room. $4.99!!

Swedish meatballs for lunch. EVERY TIME we go.

Some red and white gingham. I love the kitchen stuff!

And our cart at the end of the day.  Well at least one side of the cart!

 

I loved every minute of this day!

Amish Country

Sometimes a day in the country is just what you need. A Saturday on a holiday weekend. Temps in the 60's after four days of 90 degrees. Wearing a cute sweater, but still warm enough for flip flops. All four of us together having a wonderful day. Delicious food. Tourist traps. Gorgeous farms. Sunflowers. Laundry flapping in the breeze. Peanut Butter Pie.