My Contribution To Lessen The Pet Population

We found Tiger at a yard sale almost a year ago. He was just laying there watching all the people come and go. I made a comment to the woman there about how great I thought he was. She told me he had been abandoned and told I could have him if I wanted. We drove off without him but turned around and took him home. We haven't regretted that decision, but it's time to get him fixed. Little does Tiger know that in just 4 days part of his manhood will be snipped.

A Fresh New Day

It was a warm & sunny day yesterday. After all the rain we've been having, everything seemed so vibrant it's as if the gloom had been washed away. The hibiscus bush outside my house have tons of buds and flowers in full bloom. Enjoy!

My Rainy Day

At first it was just a drop here and there, next thing I knew, it dumped. Mind you, I didn't mind as I love the rain. It makes things feel fresh and new again. The smell is delicious.

Along with the rain came the thunder and lightning show. The thunder was so loud, if you can imagine bowling party in heaven and with every strike came the lightning.

Kona the dog and Tiger the cat jumped and shivered every time someone bowled a strike. It's another cloudy day and we expect more rain which is fine by me. We're on water restriction and most lawns are brown not to mention the ponds need filling.

My niece came over with the photo's from the photographer. The photographer took 700 pictures, trashed about 200 and gave her 500. Of the 500, about 375 are usable and of that, 100 pictures good enough to use in her album and blow up. We both agreed that there were many missed opportunities. The exchanging of rings were the back of their hands and the first kiss is the back of her head. Never fear I was there to capture the lip lock and caught both his and her ring exchange. I have about a dozen pictures of the flower girl compared to their 2. You know in the back of my mind, I thought I need to be inside guiding the guest to the reception and bar area that the photographer has it under control. After seeing the results, I wish I was outside helping with the pictures. When I compare her photographer to my daughters, there is no comparison. My daughters pictures came out way better for a lesser cost. I warned my niece in the beginning not to use that photographer even though she's a friend of her moms. I felt she was priced too high, well it's too late now :(

My husband came home not long after that, she grabbed him to the couch while they laughed and reminisced over the pictures. We still haven't given her a wedding gift, we want to take our time to let things settle before we decide what to give them. My husband and I are very close to her, she's like our second daughter and she and my daughter are like sister's. She gave my daughter fair warning that she had better hurry and get pregnant before the end of next year because after that, she's going for it. Ohhh the pressure my daughter is feeling.

Time to end.

Have a bloggy day!

Fathers Day

For some reason, I've started and deleted this particular blog 3 times.
The fist one was about my dads last breath and how I wish, had I known earlier that morning, I would have tried to wake him up. Thinking of the way he went, I know I'd want the same. My brother was playing dads favorite Hawaiian song on the guitar as my father took his last breath.
The second was an open letter to my dad thanking him for the life he gave me. Dad was a great man who had compasion, love, intergrity and loyalty. He with the help of mom, raised 8 great kids on a pilots income.
The third was a combination of the first 2 and was way too long.

My final....
Thank-you Dad for everything.
I love you and I'll see you someday in the heaven we all believe there to be.
Until we meet again....
Aloha,
Barb

You Had To Be There Moment...It was sooo funny!

My brother-in-law came in last night from out of state and found our house just fine.

This morning he drove to Orlando to take an 8 hour test for his FL HVAC (heating & air) license.

After my husband finished work, he drove to the testing site so his brother could follow him back to the house. His brother must have been on the phone because while they both exited the freeway, somehow my brother-in-law began to follow what he thought was my husband. Luckily the truck he followed took him to our subdivision. When the truck pulled into the driveway, my brother-in-law wondered why my husband pulled into the driveway which he knew wasn't ours. The occupants of the truck both got out pointing at him telling him they have 911 on the phone and wants to know why he followed them home. My brother-in-law was so embarrassed and apologized saying he thought he was following his brother. They all had a good laugh. The people didn't know us but knew our truck and directed him to our home.

OMG I Can't Believe I just Did That!!!!

My husband is cooking dinner tonight and asked if I could add more potatoes and eggs to last night's potato salad. I was doing so well with that until........ I added the seasoning. I didn't realize that when I took the cap off of the seasoning bottle, I also took off the shaker thing with the holes. Needless to say, I dumped almost the whole bottle of seasoning into the salad. As I write this post, I still can't believe I did that.
The seasoning was at the top of the label just above the yellow box in the picture. You can see where it is now. This is after I dumped the seasoning into the sink.
And this is what I dumped into the sink.
Not to fear, I washed off the top layer and added the potatoes back into the salad. I think I'll let my husband and his brother have the first bite before I tell them what I did! :)

I Was Just Thinking.....

Can you believe half the year has past.
Before drifting to sleep last night I thought how quickly time went by. In August of last year my niece got engaged and I was in full wedding mode. The wedding was this past June 9. Between all that, we had birthday's, anniversaries, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, more birthday's and even more anniversaries. I was in San Diego for a little over a week in February and in Hawaii for about 2 months after that. Once I came home it was back to the wedding.
After the wedding, while my niece was on her honeymoon, I had to clean and repack the wedding room (my guest bedroom). I found out 2 days ago that my brother-in-law was staying here for a couple of days while he tested for the Florida HVAC license. Since my niece has not yet come to get her things, I had to straighten up the guest room again, wash the bed linens vacuum and dust.
Tonight my husband asked me to cook his brothers favorite meal with all the fixings (his wife after all these years still can't cook). My husband also informed me that he invited his brother who lives down the road, my daughter and her husband and niece and her new husband to join in on dinner. Awwe isn't my husband so thoughtful!

All I know is that I need a total down day just for myself.
We'll talk again soon......Barb

The Beautiful Bride On Her Wedding Day

The bride looked gorgeous on her wedding day. The beach was clean, the sunset perfect, what more can a bride ask for. The drama was left behind closed doors and the guest all had a great time. By the end of the night we were all exhausted, happy and content that we pulled it off with only 2 glitches. The glitches were so minor, the only people who knew were us. I don't think the bride realized it until later the next day. The bouquets for the bride and her girls were my first attempt ever and was happy it turned out decent enough to use. Here are some of the pictures I took, please enjoy.

Wedding Rehearsal and Set-up

After months of planning, we finally pulled it off. Our family worked hard loading, unloading, setting-up both the site and the reception area. It was all worth it. The pictures following is everything prior to the wedding itself. Stay tuned for the wedding blog.

Pic's of last night

We all had such a great time.

Finally.... the graduation

In Hawaii we traditionally give a lei when a person hits a major milestone. Though we now live in Florida, as traditions go, I made 4 leis for my graduating nephews. 2 of the leis (pictured) are money leis, the other 2 are leis made of candy. I'll post more pictures tomorrow with the twins adorned with more leis (mostly money). We'll start the festivities with a family & friends BBQ then on to the graduation itself. Well gotta go for now, I need to start prepping for some of the yummy food I need to take to the BBQ.

Have a great day all :)