A Friendly Visit in Connecticut

Last weekend I got visit a very dear friend of mine and her adorable 9 month old son :-)

Isn't he just the cutest?! His favorite pastime right now is doors. The bigger the better but he will settle for a cabinet or drawer if you make him. ;-)

August Thoughts....

September is slipping away from me - the days drag on by the weeks keep flying by. I still can't figure out how that's possible! We are so jam-packed/scheduled! Pretty much through the end of the year at this point which is hard for me to believe but I think it's Matt's Grad school schedule that keeps us planning so far out.

In any case, my computer died (again) around the second week of August. It was frustrating at times for sure, but then because I had no laptop I could focus on other things, which was wonderful!

Here's a post I wrote just before the laptop broke:
The house is very quiet now. All house guests have departed. July was a wonderfully crazy-full-awesome month! I feel like I always have a do-to list before family shows up for a visit and this year was no different.

I finally finished planting the gardens I created last summer!

Once again, I switched study and guestroom so that 

Oliver, Melissa and LadyBird had more space while they were here.

I managed to get some holes and dings patched before they arrived. 

I was hoping to get them painted as well, but oh well!

Then, while they are here I focus all my time and energy on soaking up every moment and house stuff falls behind. I don't mind - family is way, WAY more important than laundry or hanging shelves in the basement, etc. Lucky for me, I have a handy brother who likes to help out while visiting:

This is his impression of ghost busters.... what he's really doing is applying a garlic spray to the yard. It's a natural bug/mosquito deterrent that works great and we love it! It's our third year using it.

He also hung Matt's shelves in the basement

AND applied the privacy sticky paper to the front door

We learned the hard way this summer that the garlic spray does wonders but it doesn't keep the horse flies away, so Oliver went online to find a solution. He copied one that we all thought was crazy - but you know what? it worked like a champ! He took to counting how many flies he caught each time and then would make us guess :-)

Also? He's also great with Reese who really REALLY hates his toe nails being clipped.

All in all, he's one of a kind and I'm so lucky he's my brother :-)

PS. His wife Melissa is also totally awesome ;-)

PPS. We are going to see them for Thanksgiving this year! I can't wait!

September

I've been reading a lot lately. Some silly books, some more serious, some about interior design, some about families and some just because I wanted to. This summer has left me in a pensive mood and as we head into Fall, my favorite time of year, I find that I'm grateful. For family, friends, good books and new dreams.

I was reminded of this quote today, one I've always loved and thought I would share it with you.

"Beginnings are scary, endings are usually sad, but it's the middle that counts the most."
                                                                                                  ~ Ramona Calvert, Hope Floats

Sending huge hugs & warm thoughts your way!