Weekending when Spring has Sprung

Boy did we luck up with the weather this weekend.  We knew it was going to be nice, but wow we were blessed with the most perfect spring weather.

There were 2 bikes rides, several walks, a beer festival, a play, delicious food, and dinner en plein air!
I ended up grabbing all the achievements on my Apple watch as well, so I felt NO guilt indulging.  It was bing-ing left and right!  There were 8.37 miles purposesly walked, 30.85 miles cycled, 18.36 total miles 29 standing hours, and 44,214 total steps.

The beef festival was a lot of fun and it benefits a local charity- Star House-FTW

Pimento cheese fritters-yea-they were that good- we also had short rib tacos that were pretty amazing too.

I finally found the exact haircut I've been looking-she was very kind to pose so I could get a photo of the front-I sorta stalked her for the other 2!  So cute!

There were 2 great bands-and this guy was definitely channeling his inner Sir Elton!

In addition to cycling and walking, Sunday featured a matinee at the Stage Door Players- Secret Life of a Soccer Mom, we weren't sure what to expect, but it was actually pretty good.

 We had an early dinner and what's becoming a frequent stop for us- Local on North.  

I had the trout which was supposed to be blackened, but was spicy at all-but completely delicious! Steve had the Local Salad with seared tuna-he was quite please with his selection.  Needless to say by the time Sunday evening rolled around we were pretty wiped out.  I managed to get some knitting done, and I'm almost finished with Chittenden.  Our storage unit is finally empty of what we're keeping, and I'm looking forward to getting the curio cabinets and grandfather clock in place so I can at last get the last few crates unpacked.  I know every weekend won't be like this, but it sure was fun.  Happy Monday.

Weekending-Walking Down Memory Lane

After some minor adjustments the anticipated 3 day weekend turned out to be a 4 day weekend which almost feels like a full week off from work!  Friday I already had plans for my Mom to come to our house for the weekend, and when she had to go to a follow up doctor's appointment I was able to schedule it so that we could come straight back to our house and get the weekend started early AND avoid Friday afternoon traffic!

Friday evening my friend Kim came over for cocktails and snacks and of course there was lots of reminiscing about Roswell back in the day.  She found a homework assignment of mine from 2nd grade-turns out I had not done my homework, nor did I have any paper so I did mine on the back of hers!  Oh boy, was I a terrible speller and my hand writing was awful.  Still, it was so cool that she found it and that her mom had saved it since 1975!  We weren't able to do our regular walking time this weekend, and the weather was forecasted to be just too yucky.  Saturday I cooked breakfast and we spent the late morning watching the recorded Westminster Dog Show.  I still have some watching to do, but Mom and I both enjoyed seeing the agility competition-there were some very fast dogs!  Late afternoon was spent getting my hair cut and colored-a 3 1/2 hours later and it was dinner time, some TV and then bed.  I did manage to finish my Essex capelet so now I'm ready for my other projects I've been waiting to cast on.

Sunday we were fortunate to put together an impromptu family reunion.  Lately it seems like we only see family when there is a funeral, so we are doing what we can to get together more regularly just for fun.  In December I visited with 2 of my cousins and an aunt [Sandra, Marcia and Aunt Betty]  Since I knew Mom would be over I was hoping we could get all the ladies together.  Seated are 2 of my Dad's sisters Betty [one, the baby, lives in California, but will  be here in July], my Mom is in the middle and my the sister born after my Dad, Rena, is on the far right.  My Dad was one of 5 and both he and my uncle have since passed away leaving just the girls.  My dad was married 4 times and the sisters always said they liked my mom the best, and they have always been very good to her. 

The next generation is standing behind the mothers, and the young lady on the far left is the daughter of my cousin Marcia-standing next to her sister Sandra, and then Sandra's grand daughter.  Carrie the "baby" of the family is with her mom on the far right.  Marcia is 10 years older than me and was my babysitter when I was little-she was the best!  I loved playing with her very long very straight hair, and she is credited with piercing my ears when I was 8 and she was a nursing student.  We talked about the "Big House" that still stands on Atlanta St, and where my great grandmother grew up and worked.  Turns out she lived in the mill village and later worked at the Roswell mill and the Oxbo Pants Factory, so she spent all of her 103 years in Roswell!  Makes me wish I would have asked her about Roswell back in the day; as a kid we weren't really taught to appreciate the history that the older generation could pass on.  I also learned that my grand parents had moved to downtown Atlanta in the early 30s where my aunt and uncle were born, and eventually moving back to live with my great grandmother at which point my dad and the next 2 girls were born.  It was truly a great time to bring 4 generations together and we hope to do so again soon even if it means we can't all get together. 

So the rest of the "weekend" will be spent running errands, a long walk with the D-O-G and meeting up with Mary's knitting group and getting my breakfast and lunch for the rest of the work week prepared.  We also ordered a piece of furniture that will be delivered on Wednesday-can't wait!  I need to blog about that and the swords and plates that are now put up.  Maybe I'll tidy up and do a photo journal of the house now that we are more settled in- Happy Monday and those of you with glorious weather today-I AM envious!

Weekending

So a fun filled weekend despite the less than cheerful weather!  Getting caught up on blogs-I have to set a timer so I don't forget there are other things to do.

Kim and I met up at the Smith Plantation to see an open hearth cooking demonstration.  The daffodils were glorious throughout the property.

Clarissa and Misha did a great job explaining how cooks used an open fire and what slave life was like in this area of Georgia.

The house on the Smith property was very different than the other founding fathers of Roswell as were the occupants.  Very serious, non-frivilous non non-sense kinda people.  The house was occupied by its owners when I was a kid so it was neat to finally go inside and learn more about the family.

Sunday afternoon was a matinee at the Stage Door Players- Last Night of Ballyhoo with Polly, Ron and Kare.  This play was set in the Buckhead [north Atlanta] area during the late 1930s. It was quite entertaining, but also has some poignant moments as it dealt with the discrimination amongst the Jewish sects in Atlanta.  The performance was excellent and is based on play by Alfred Uhry who also wrote Driving Miss Daisy.  This was followed by dinner at one of our favorite restaurants Novo Cucino-such a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon/evening.

Looking forward to more family time next weekend when my Mom comes to stay for a few days and we'll be getting together with some of my cousins and 2 of my dad's sisters.  Happy Monday y'all.

Three on Thursday-Totally Random

Today was GLORIOUS-it was definitely a top down drive home from work with temps in the high 70s in early February!  I immediately changed and headed out for a walk when I got home.  By the end of my walk Canton Street was crowded with folks who decided to take advantage of the great weather since so many of the restaurants have outdoor seating.

Tomorrow if Friday-I have some fun things planned this weekend which include an open hearth cooking demonstration at the Smith Plantation on Saturday morning.  Sunday is another production from the Stage Door Players and dinner.  Since all my chores are done I'm hoping for some knitting, embroidery and making headway on the rest of the fabric cutting that I've let fall by the way side.

I have swatched for 2 sweaters and I'm nearly finished with my Essex capelet.  I plan to knit Mountain High by Keidi Kirrmaier out of come lovely Madeline Tosh Eyre in Cove that Mary gave me, and I'm repurposing some Swans Island Worsted to knit Chittenden.  Both pullovers and both I probably won't be able to wear until the fall, but that is OKAY.

Amaryllis Watch 2019

I thought about waiting a full month for posting the progress, but these things are growing like CRAZY!  This is last year's amaryllis on January 9th.

This year's plant on the same date.

I've been moving them around since we've had some very gray days so as to ensure they get enough sunlight.  Looks like I might be doing something right!

They are doing great-this was a photo from yesterday and I can't wait to see how the flowers look and I'll be getting out the taller stakes out soon.

Tiny Moment Tuesday

Channeling my inner 3 year old with real cheese toast and apples for breakfast.  Ignore the jumbo coffee cup!

Sometimes Monday

finds me reflecting on time well spent.  Last weekend was a long weekend for me and it got started with a 3pm dismissal from work.  What a great way to end a Friday and start the weekend.  Steve and I had plans with Karen, Ron and Polly that evening, so we met for dinner at a new for me restaurant Local on North and then we went to a theatre production that was a play on the screenplay writing of Gone with the Wind.  The food, company and the play were fantastic.  Saturday included a visit with my Mom, and while the weather was crummy we enjoyed a delicious quiche [thank you Costco] and 2 very cheesy movies on the Hallmark channel - I had time for get some knitting done while she worked on her embroidery.  Simple, easy and no make up required!  Sunday Kim and I were able to get together for lunch an more catching up.  We met up at a restaurant that has been transformed over the years; it was a Burger Chef back in our day.  If you click on the links you can tell that the building hasn't changed at all.  I also got a chance to see her very cute home which I have clocked at 1/2 mile door to door!  Monday my friend Brenda came over, I have't seen her since August and this was also the first time she has had a chance to see our new place.  It was great catching up with her and I know with her daughter getting ready to graduate from college in just a couple months she is going to be very busy.  Sophie and I managed an exploratory walk on Monday, and then come Tuesday work proved to be pretty hectic, and since I had to take a day and a half off for doctor appointments I ended up working over the weekend so as not to get too far behind-this is not the time of year for that!

 This weekend I managed to begin cutting the fabrics for my very hungry caterpriller quilt.  I'm doing much better with my cutting, but did manage to mess up on a couple strips, but I think I can get those sorted without too much trouble.

Sophie and I walked on Saturday and Kim joined us on Sunday and we had a great time reminiscing about where our early years were spent.  We should have taken a selfie in front of our old elementary school-next time!  We stopped at Roswell Provisions for a quick breakfast and since this isn't a real restaurant Sophie could come inside!  We will definitely make this place a regular stop on our weekend walks.  It feels very satisfying to balance out time spent with family, friends, outside and getting things done.  With the pending inclement weather I find myself with an unexpected day off-mmmm I wonder what I can get accomplished!