Ten Summer Memories from Growing Up...

There are just some things that do more than just remind me of summer...they MEAN summer to me. Here is my list of "ten" that mean summer to me:

1. Summer vacations....usually camping (for DAYS) and poofy hair.


2. Gardening. We always planted a garden. Beans, Peas, Corn, Potatoes, Radishes....there is NOTHING like fresh veggies from the garden.

3. The smell of alfalfa. Can you smell it? Ah...it reminds me of home and summer....and it's even better when it's raining.

4. Birthdays. My birthday is during the summer. In July, to be exact. That means birthday parties at family reunions or at the park. (do you like the hair and jumpsuit?)

5. Summer jobs. My summer job was cleaning buses with my Dad. Now, before you go, "ew", it was the dream job for a teenager for summer. 7am - noon. Then play, play, play. The best part was doing it with my Dad. (he is still the best bus mopper I know of. AND - he let me take as many Mountain Dew breaks as I wanted.)

6. Fish. We went fishing during the summer. I can still remember looking forward to my mom frying up the trout. In butter. Mmmmmm....

7. Open windows. We had no air conditioning (say what?), so all windows were open at night. To smell the alfalfa, of course. And to hear the sprinklers in the fields.

8. Allergies. From the alfalfa.

9. Sheep. Oh, yes. I did sheep 4-H. And hated it. How could I with that cool shirt and belt?


10. Peas and Potatoes. My mom is the bomb at making peas and red potatoes from scratch. All from the garden and so delicious.

Ten for Tuesday

Okay - I miss blogging. I thought I would try something different for a while. Why not 10 for Tuesday. We just got back from Hawaii, so I am going to list my top ten favorite things about our trip to Kauai (in no particular order.)

1. Hiking - we took a hike every morning. The great thing about the island of Kauai is that every shore seems like a different island - different terrain and climate. So weird. (this is a picture of our first hike on the Nepali Coast.)

2. Swimsuits all day long.

3. Listening to the ocean. This was the view from our room.

4. The weather - 80's the entire time.
5. Mermaid's cafe - the best Ahi Tuna wraps on the island.
6. Time with just the hubby.
7. Billie Madison Pizza. Smoked Fish. Onions. Gorgonzola. Brought new meaning to bad breath.
8. Laying by the pool...reading...drinking limeades.
9. The roosters. Had to be mentioned. They are everywhere. It is the most bizarre thing ever.
10. Laid back nature of the islanders. Brought a piece home with me which lasted about 45 minutes. Must go back to get more.

Someone is now four....going on sixteen.

She insisted on a beauty salon birthday party (making Grandma Susan proud, I'm sure).

The festivities included make-up, hair, painting nails, making headbands (Emma's had 2 flowers on each side, of course....) and frosting cupcakes.

Our special friend, Kristen, who helped us. (she and I were exhausted by the time the party was over!)

Why is it that the birthday girl is always super grumpy by the end of the party?

Love you Miss Em!