Finally Friday, Right?

When it seems like 12 days have passed between Monday and Friday, it's hard to get pumped up on the last day of the work week.

The week started off with 3 days of mandatory planning for the next quarter. That meant I could work from home. But at the same time be handcuffed to my desk in all-day meetings. So that put me behind because I couldn't do much "real work" until Thursday and today.

And try to work ahead since I'm off Monday–Wednesday for my annual sister getaway. I'm exhausted but am following the quote's advice and looking forward to the weekend (and beyond) and ready to have some fun!

I honestly don't know when I'll blog next. We're leaving in the morning for a wedding in Oshkosh, staying overnight, getting home Sunday in time for me to finish packing for Wild Women's Weekend, er Week Days, and head to our sister getaway location a few hours north of here. 

Hubby got home from a work trip in Florida in time to unpack and leave to take stats at the Assumption football game up in Wausau. "Hi!" "Bye!"

Pretty much both of us thriving on chaos this week. Sorry I didn't show you more love, Friday!

Y'all have a nice (and fun) weekend!

Close Doesn't Count

The saying goes that "close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades". It does not count in BINGO and doesn't count when we say it's almost a nice day.

For the last weekend of summer, we were robbed. Rain all day yesterday again forced us indoors. We racked up 2 1/8 inches between Friday and Saturday, according to my rain gauge tender. Yuck!

Today was church, a meeting with our new choir director (a talented college kid!), then onto BINGO.

I wore my mom's rings to try to channel her energy. She was always lucky – just like her mother (Grandma Flossie). I even have Royal Blue nails for Homecoming Week.

It did not work. Here I just needed that stinkin' B15 forever to form the A (for Assumption). Close does not count. Winless in everything today.

Oh except for my Vikings squeaking out a victory. Must be my purple dobber! 

Got home and bundled up and went for a walk. Did not get far. The cold wind was making my eyes water. And hubby was golfing all afternoon in this! Of course he said it was fine. No such thing as a bad golf day no matter what the score (or weather) is.

Since he and his buddy were eating at the golf course, I invented a little sandwich for myself. Pulled pork topped with Japanese BBQ sauce and honey goat cheese. Yum yum! 

Now I have to brave this "summer weather" (calendars lie) and get in a few more steps.

Hope you had a more enjoyable last weekend of summer!

Ditto Day with Extra

While today's schedule was pretty similar to yesterday's, I had some extra fun – and sadness – at church today. Today was our last day of "work" for Dave, our choir director of 14+ years. And as a grand finale, we sang Handel's Messiah (aka The Hallelujah Chorus)!

Not to sound like a choir geek, but this has been one of my favorites to sing since I was a freshman in high school which (check history books) was long before some of you were even born! It was a staple in our high school choir Christmas concerts. Then fast forward 30-some years and I learned it was a "grand finale" as well in the Assumption Golden Mass right before Christmas break. I've never joined them on stage, but I know my soprano part to sing from the seats.

This is the You Tube link to the service. Fast forward to 01:24 in the service for our performance. I'm the short one far left in the front row. I was ready to cry by the last 4 notes. I love that song. And we'll all miss our director! We had a nice pot luck brunch after church. 

Then this afternoon we had two graduation parties this afternoon. One found us a Lake Arrowhead and the other was just a mile-plus away. I came home before hubby because I needed to search through 5 years of softball images for a few "particular photos" before playoffs on Tuesday. Found 'em!

Side note! It was summer-like today!! Still 74 degrees at 8 p.m. I'll take it. Tomorrow I'll have time to actually relax and enjoy. Gotta love 3-day weekends no matter the serious reason for them!

Hope you're taking time to relax and convince Mother Nature this is how we launch summer in Wisconsin!

Holiday Weekending Close to Home

We didn't have plans to leave town for the long weekend. And that was before the spike in gas prices over the past month or so. 

But in the end, that worked in our favor. 

We have just enough going on anyway to keep us busy and entertained – with time for naps.

This morning, we both ran our errands. Then early this afternoon we hopped over the Lake Wazeecha for a graduation party. Filled up on the taco bar and then came home to nap before heading to the next party at the Ridges in the late afternoon.

I'm kind of so full it's almost painful. And I haven't even had cake yet!

Tomorrow we'll repeat the same pattern. Only this time, I'll be starting with a brunch at church before the Assumption graduation parties. I better pace myself! Or none of those "new" smaller pants I bought at Goodwill will fit me come Tuesday when I return to work! 

For those camping or holiday-cationing somewhere where you're spending lots of time outdoors, I hope you stayed warm enough today. It was cloudy and cool here, but Mother Nature is turning up the thermostat tomorrow. YAY!

I mean the forecast for Memorial Day is 82 degrees, no graduation parties, and total dedication to Mr. Deck Chair 2.0. Bring it on!

Enjoy your weekend!

Gateway to Summer? I Think Not

Unofficially, many of us think of Memorial Day Weekend as the "kickoff" to summer. But if we wake up to 42 degrees the day before the weekend begins... I claim false advertising.

Most of us "office workers" are smart enough to know we have to dress in layers. If it's cold outside, will it be chilly in the office or will the heat be cranked? One never knows. Because well, like most offices, it's not consistent.

Today I knew to dress in some warm layers because I was going to be walking across the street from my office to give a bit of a walking tour about SentryWorld. Could we have driven over? Yes. But now I have my 10,000+ steps for the day. It's all about priorities.

And I was quite warm by the time we returned!

Do you know what else warms us on the inside? Special time spent with old friends who know every good, bad, and ugly thing about you and still love you to pieces.

I got to reconnect with friends tonight that I've known for almost 30 years. About how long I've been in Wisconsin Rapids. Some I see often. Others not so much. But boy, nothing warms you from the belly out like unapologetic laughter over other people's comments and stories. And firm, loving hugs!

Seriously, exactly what I needed in my current mostly stressed state of mind.

Thank you, God, for placing people in my life who enrich my soul and my attitude. And if you could do the same for Mother Nature, I'd owe you a big one!

Weekend Yarns

 

Long before I became acquainted with yarn I though a yarn was a story or a tale, especially one that is incredible and probably made up.

But then a couple of years ago my friend Julie introduced me to crocheting and what the magic of yarn can do.

For awhile after that I was obsessed with making scarves of all kinds. But since then... baby blankets.

So we have 2 sets of young adults in our life who are expecting babies next month. Contrary to popular pre-parenting practices, neither is finding out the sex of their child.

With my self-imposed deadline looming, I commenced to hooking today. With a 50-50 chance I said, let me start with girly colors. Well that didn't last long because my stupid skein was somehow messed up and in knots. So, not that it will effect the outcome, I switched to some typically boyish blues. 

Got a good start... but do you know baseball is on TV now (yay, Twins) in addition to March Madness hoops? Yup. This might take me a day or two. Good thing it was cold and windy with no forecast of me doing anything outside today!

Hookin' Away My Saturday

As soon as I woke up and was about to get up, hubby says, "You might as well stay in bed. We're at war." Say what?!

My first thought was "What did he do know?" and my second thought, as someone who avoids all news as much as possible, was "Did we know this was coming?"

No matter the answer to either, I knew I needed a day of distractions. I did watch a little news but then headed into town to Lighthouse to get a few papers for upcoming Camp Crop-a-Lot in 7 weeks since I picked up more photos yesterday and am jumpin' to go!

Then I cleaned my office "aka Oh My God Room" a bit before I earned my chance to relax.

Can't do too much cleaning on a weekend when there are projects waiting in the wings.

I have a wedding shower coming up in the same time frame as camp. The couple has many "sage" colored things on their list so I am making them a blanket that is mostly sage with a strip of white, then multi color for a wide strip, then white again close to the top – and the rest sage. 

I'm liking it. And today I realized I could close my eyes and do a whole row without looking, just feeling. I am a Jedi Crochet Master, I guess! That also means I can head back to the livingroom now and watch a Hallmark movie AND multi-task without even blinking.

Well, I better pay a little attention. This is a gift after all!

And oh yeah, it snowed again today. Stay warm and safe, everyone!

30-Minute Rule

The good news is that I finally have a weekend at the homefront so I can attend and photograph multiple Royals sporting events. The bad news is that Mother Nature did not get the memo.

As much as I hoped the weather forecast would change for tonight, this is the current radar and we are 3 minutes from the alleged kickoff. I decided not to even chance it with my photographic equipment. Even an umbrella and rain jacket wouldn't give me comfort.

And since I'm still hearing constant thunder (which rules require calls off action for a required 30 minutes), I have doubts there'll be anyone else along the sidelines either.

Tomorrow isn't looking much better.

With hubby out of town and out of state on a guys' golf weekend, I figured I'd knock off football on Friday, cross country Saturday morning and tennis Saturday afternoon.

I figured.

Right now it's looking like the only plans I'll keep are a Saturday night concert and Sunday church choir and school BINGO. Fun still, but grrrr. 

I thought a good backup plan would be Hallmark tonight. But then the remote (which I rarely have in my hands) didn't work. Are you kidding me? Thank goodness just perfectly timed dead batteries. I swear. This is going to be a long weekend alone!

Hoping for a little sunshine for all of us! 

Creatively Escaping the Heat

Saturday was another super hot and humid day. I do love the heat, but I'll admit I don't have the stamina to handle it like I used to. So the first highlight of the day was driving in the A/C to an air-conditioned book fair at Lake Arrowhead. Found three must-have reads because of course that's what they were selling!

Got home and had a surprise Amazon package delivered. Who needs a neon ice cream sign?? THIS birthday girl! I texted Jim, Carter and my twin to see who was responsible for this cool moment of joy on a hot day... and my twin did not disappoint!

I had hoped to photograph the water ski show later, but we got hit by some pretty hard and steady rain in the late afternoon.

Quite a bit in a short amount of time. So I stayed home and turned my attention elsewhere. To Shutterfly, in fact, and their recent text that they had a screaming deal for the weekend. Unlimited free pages AND free shipping.

So look at me finally finishing a vacation album from 10+ years ago!  

I mean I could also make some headway on a Maui vacation from 2016, but I don't think the 5 hours between now and midnight is enough. On the plus side, they do often extend the "unlimited free pages" coupon another day after the holiday. So there's a chance I can start it tonight and have all of tomorrow to scrap away. 

But let's not forget, this was a 5-day weekend with all intentions of "relaxing." Ahhh, decisions... decisions...

Hope you had a relaxing and SAFE holiday weekend!

Birthday Weekend Sandwich

For this birthday girl, I couldn't ask for a better celebratory weekend than having my bday sandwiched between two rounds of golf – and celebrating actual birthday with tons of friends!

After a fun round on Friday, we headed out by noon Saturday to Delafield and a cathedral on the grounds of the St. John's Military Academy just outside Milwaukee.

What a glorious and historic venue! 

All of the stained-glass windows were gorgeous.

But none could compare to the bride of course. Claire is always beautiful!

So honored to be a part of Claire and Joe's official Gotcha Day! It was so nice.

I managed to snag a hot birthday date with hubby. The reception was at The Commodore, right on the shores of Lake Nagawicki (or something close to that). What a gorgeous venue!

We each had our assigned tables, but then they went one step further.

At each of our place settings we got a personalized card. And I think to an individual, we all shed a tear at this heartfelt sentiment. Wow. Very special.

Of course I was thrilled to have perfectly delicious "birthday" cake. Yum!

And a made-to-order sunset. God knows me and my birthday wishes, that's for sure!

After a fun evening of a ton of dancing – including a few with hubby – we were spent! This morning, though, we hit the road from Milwaukee-dom to get home by noon. 

I got some shopping done and Jim visited his dad – and then (after multiple rain showers) it was time for golf!

Today was our final week of Couples League, which meant we were doing a scramble format, then dinner. Except the rain was not done. So we switched up the plans and ate our year-end dinner food first, then headed out. But it was still a soggy several holes before it quit.

We were lucky to have our friends Sean and Michelle be part of our foursome! One, they're awesome people. And two, they're awesome golfers! This is our Eagle Selfie on the par 5 4th hole. That was all Sean. Great drive, great second shot to land it close to the hole, then we gave him honors to knock it in a few feet for eagle.

Needless to say, we finished 8-under par for our 9-hole round. And won the scramble. I have a lot of wet stuff to dry out in the sun tomorrow. But with a little prize cash in my pocket, I can say it was worth it!

What a fun weekend! Maybe aging isn't so bad after all.

Birthday Weekends Start on Thursday

When you work from home on Fridays, a Saturday birthday becomes something you celebrate on Thursday. And I'm OK with that!

Was a nice surprise to see my desk decorated for my birthday. I take pride in my role as the Birthday Fairy for our team. But I love that everyone pitches in when I can't. I mean obviously I wouldn't decorate my own desk. But another team member has her birthday on July 1 and she's on vacation next week, so they took care of her, too.

For my part, I brought in a trifle for the July 1st birthday girl. She said she likes éclairs. So I did my best to match those flavors. Like most of my trifles, every one if a new combo of flavors and ingredients. This is what created this one...

I had a graham cracker crust type layer throughout, interspersed with French Vanilla pudding. For the middle layer I figured I should add some Cool Whip and Hershey's chocolate chips. I repeated a few layers and on the top I melted some Hershey's chocolate frosting, let it firm up in the fridge, then added more whipped cream and some Hershey's chocolate bar squares for decorations.

Not my personal preference for flavors, but since I came home with an empty trifle bowl... mission accomplished. 

Now I just have to figure out how my birthday can stay top-of-mind through Friday! Unlike college years, birthday "weekends" can be a bit long when they start on Thursday!

Happy Summer Solstice

For the longest day of sunshine, I certainly didn't spend much of it outside. Darn work!

Still, the way the forecast is looking, I might want to purposely stay indoors for the days after the solstice, too.

Looks like a majority of my family will have it even worse. Stay hydrated and be smart! 

I'm pretty sure I'll limit my post-solstice outdoor activities to a required photo shoot late Saturday and 9-hole round of golf on Sunday. Otherwise, I could hang out indoors and watch my Twins on TV – but after seeing the beat-down from the Brewers tonight, that's not top on my list either.

Happy Summer Solstice! Be careful out there!

Something in the Air

Between pollen "dust fairies" and the smoke sneaking down from Canadian wildfires, it's not a great time to spend lots of time outdoors. 

But well, that was pretty much our weekend! 

Saturday we went to a cancer benefit for our friend Jeanne, then went to a graduation party, and then I went down to Lake Arrowhead to watch the Shermalot Water Ski Show Team perform. Since they were short quite a few team members, they didn't do the show they plan to do this summer. But still there was plenty of jumping, twisting, and pyramid building!

I don't know how they do any of it. But it's fun to try to capture. I kept looking over my shoulder, too, because the sun was setting behind me and it was getting colorful. The top photo was taken at the end of the night.

This was earlier in the evening. I call it "Smoky Sunset at the Ski Show." Crazy, right?

I took so many pictures that I got to bed well after blogging hours. Sorry.

Today was another day outside. We both sang in our church choirs (indoors) but then we went to a potluck year-end choir gathering (my choir). It felt like summer. Thanks for finally showing up on June 1, nice weather!

This afternoon/evening we had couple's golf league. We have to use at least 3 drives from each player in our two-person couple scramble format. Thank goodness I had enough that worked. I felt like a good contributor. And even did a par dance when I sunk the par putt on the par 5! 

Fun afternoon but it took us nearly 3 hours to get done so we grabbed pizza at the clubhouse and got home after 8:30. I'm beat. So much fresh air (not quite fresh) so I should sleep well. 

I did hear there be Northern lights tonight but I don't know what the smoke will have to say about that. I'm sure I'll check it before my head hits the pillow. Just because I hate to miss out!

Have a good week and be careful out there!

Happy Holiday Weekend Sunday

I'll admit the 3rd day of a 4-day holiday weekend can be pretty boring when you're just doing normal life things. So today, being it Sunday and all, I went to church.

Also mid-morning Jim, Casey, Clay and a friend went golfing. By early afternoon we were all home and I headed to a graduation party while hubby relaxed on the couch and watched golf.

When I got home, I realized the temps were close enough to 70 so I could bond with Mr. Deck Chair for a bit. He was so happy! And it turned into a gathering of 3+ neighbors by our deck. (While I tried to hide my over-exposed body!)

Tonight, after I ran an errand in town, hubby had a backyard fire going.

He had some added color thanks to our many expired, etc., strings of holiday light strings. Always looks pretty. And it's nice before the mosquito season starts, too!

Enjoy the great outdoors however you want or however you can this holiday weekend! 

Memorial Day Weekend "Weeds"

My mission every Memorial Day Weekend is that I'll buy hanging flower baskets and try my darndest not to turn them into weeds by the end of the summer. Says me and my 2 black thumbs!

With so many people talking about their spring planting, I thought I was one of the few who actually wait until Memorial Day Weekend to purchase their flowers. I was so wrong. 

By mid-morning, the parking lot was pretty much full. And by the time I picked out just 5 hanging baskets that could handle full sun exposure to survive, I was 10th in line!

Then out of the blue, an angel appeared. A friend of ours I didn't know worked there in her post-retirement years. She whispered, "Robyn, there's no line at Customer Service." I'm sure that literally saved me a good half hour.

I weed-whacked around the front bricks when I got home then hung our fading Reds and Twins flags and our hanging flower baskets. We should be set for the summer. Except for a few other spots I think could use some color. 

After that, it was graduation party time and more.

While hubby went to church in Rudolph, I went to a grad party for the son of a co-worker who also spent a lot of time in the hockey "media" platform the last few years. From there, I met Jim and the 2 oldest boys and Becca for a pizza dinner at B's Tap.

Casey and our grand-dog Rey are in town for the weekend. I hope Rey lives to be 50 because she's the best pup ever!

After dinner, we went our separate ways and Jim and I headed to the Grand Rapids Lions Club where there was a combined graduation party for 6 of the Royals graduates. Quite the special group of girls. And of course we saw a bajillion people we know. Fun evening!

Now I just hope the weather dudes are correct in that it's just going to be in the low 40s – not some freezing temperatures. I want my flowers to survive.

But, of course, selfishly I won't no judgment I turned on my electric mattress pad. Again.

About to Catch the Weekend

Just like last night's catch at second base wasn't quite on time, my weekend wasn't quite there either. But after a fast, productive day at work, it's here.

Not that anything exciting was planned for today. I did some quick shopping to put another raffle basket together for my friend Jeannie's upcoming cancer benefit. Then I got home and my neighbor Marigene and I got a quick 2-mile walk in while hubby was mowing the lawn.

I guess that's a sign of spring if anything!

Tonight I'm surging social channels trying to figure out where Jim can take me for brunch or lunch on Mother's Day. Hey, he offered. 

Apparently, most places think moms love prime rib. Not for me! I think I have it narrowed down to Anchor Bay – I mean, who cares if you have to wait if you can sit outside on the river? But if YOU know of something NOT of the rare meat variety, let me know!

Also, now that I got the sports pictures done from last night, I have to share this series of pix where Anna "possibly tripped" to throw out the runner at first. It makes you realize how two teammates are obviously BFFs.

And that's why I love what I do in my "free time!" These two are seniors and I'll miss them so much. But I'll save the mushy sentiments until those last pictures.

For now, we have a big day ahead tomorrow (can't wait to share) and Mother's Day. Make sure all you mommas are spoiled like you deserve!