Weekly wrap up & a recipe for peach pie ♥

 

Hello Friends!

 

Can you believe it's the last weekend in July?  We have reached the mid point of summer around here which means two things: John has exactly one month of summer vacation left and I am starting to get antsy for fall! I'm holding back my urges for pumpkin spice and everything nice for just a bit longer to enjoy these last few weeks of summer, but I can tell you my heart is starting to yearn for cool crisp days and the smell of burning wood. Ahhhh.....  Ok, not yet, but soooooon.....♥

 

 

This past week we celebrated Christmas in July.  It was wonderful, but that's not all we celebrated. 

 

I had a birthday this week!

 

On Tuesday I celebrated turning 44!!!

 

 (Yikes!!)

 

My very dear friend sent me this necklace for my birthday. 

 

 

I  absolutely love the sentiment on it!!

 

 

 

 

 

It's how I feel about her and all of you!!! ♥

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cards and gifts from friends and family made me feel very special!

 

 

 

 

 

And so did this!

 

Rob and John took me out for boiled lobster!!!!  It was so delicious.  I went all out.  Wore the plastic bib and everything.  It was messy but worth it!!

 

What a treat! ♥

 

 

 

 

 

Happy birthday to me....♥

 

 

 

 

 

The weather here has been unbearably hot and humid!!  On Thursday we finally had rain!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 All the plants were very grateful for a nice soaking. 

 

Unfortunately, it's still humid.  We haven't spent too much time outdoors lately.  I miss my walks, but it's just too hot.  Another reason I'm anxious for fall : )

 

 

 

 

 

  Spending time indoors has it's perks! Like baking. 

 

Today I made a peach pie.  It was my first time making one. 

 

I was very happy with how it came out!!!

 

Wanna see....?

 

 

 

 

YUM!!

 

I used 6 large peaches (actually 5 and 1/2 - I ate the other half :). 

 

I didn't even bother to peel them.  I just sliced them up. 

 

I got the recipe out of an old recipe book I've had since the 1980's.

 

Here it is in case you want to give this pie a try ♥

 

 

 

 

 You will need:

 

double crust pie dough - either homemade or store bought

I made my tried and true recipe with butter flavored Crisco ♥

 

5 cups fresh peaches (5-6 large peaches), sliced

3/4 cup sugar

1 1/2 tablespoon quick-cooking tapioca

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1 tablespoon butter

 

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. 

 

Grease and flour a 9 inch pie plate

 

Roll out and fit bottom crust into pie plate.

 

In a large bowl add peaches, sugar, tapioca, salt, cinnamon,  & nutmeg.  Toss to coat the peaches. 

 

Pour into unbaked pie shell.  Dot with butter. 

 

Roll out top crust and fit over peaches. Flute edges as desired ♥ 

 

Brush with an egg wash and bake for 50-60 minutes.

 

 Enjoy!!!! 

  

 

It was so delicious and you all know how I feel about pies!!! ♥  

 

This one is a keeper!

By the way, did you see the full moon last night?  Even though I've seen dozens of full moons in my days it's always breathtaking to me at how large and beautiful they are.  I wish my phone captured it's likeness better.  Her color was a deep yellow.  It was stunning! 

 

 

And that was pretty much my week.  It started with Christmas, had a birthday and some lobster in the middle, and ended with pie and a full moon ♥

 

 

As I type this (on Saturday evening) I'm about to make myself a cup of tea and settle in to watch one last Hallmark Christmas movie.  The marathon is ending tonight and won't be back until October.  I've been full on obsessed with the Hallmark channel for the past 2 weeks.  Rob is over it....and so is John.  If their eye rolls get any bigger I think their eyes are going to pop out of their heads! As long as I have a TV in my bedroom then there is no need to panic.  Everything is a-ok! LOL

 

 

Happy weekend, friends!  Hope you're having a good one! ♥♥♥

 

 

 

 

Merry Christmas in July

Hello Friends! 

My life is all about traditions, and this one my dear friends, is one of my favorites! 

So on Monday, one of the hottest days of the summer, we celebrated Christmas in July : ) 

I wore my reindeer slippers just for the occasion! 

On Sunday night I went up to the attic and pulled down John's little 4 ft. Christmas tree along with some of his favorite ornaments.  

We spent Monday morning decorating the tree while listening to our favorite Christmas CD's.  

Some of our favorite snow people decided to join us too! 

I swapped out my summer candles for Christmas ones.  The scent of Hollyberry filled the living room as we watched Christmas movies and sipped our frozen hot chocolates. 

We also exchanged a few small gifts.  

Just like Christmas morning....only without the eggnog.  

John loved his Incredibles POP figure! 

Later, we made cookies.  Sugar for us and oatmeal chocolate chip for Daddy.  

Cookie decorating was the highlight of our day!

I don't even want to tell you how many we ate....eek!  

Later that evening we had dinner with my parents.  It was turkey dinner! 

So appropriate for the occasion ~

The smells of turkey and stuffing are holiday smells! Am I right? 

We had a really fun time celebrating Christmas in July. It took very little money and effort to create a magical day.  

John gets such a kick out of it and I hope that he will remember it always and maybe pass it on to his kids someday. 

Isn't that what traditions are, after all? 

Last night I packed up the tree and put all traces of Christmas away and just like that we are back to the dog days of summer.  

As I was boxing up the ornaments Rob reminded me that the real Christmas will be here before we know it.  He's right....and I can't wait! 

xoxox

Weekly wrap up ♥

Hello Friends!

 

July is moving swiftly along, isn't it?  The summer is flying by! 

 

 I didn't post a weekly wrap up last week so here are a few random pictures from the past two weeks. 

 

 Nothing fancy, nothing exciting.  Just easy July days....as they should be ♥ 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My friend Jen and her family were in town last week, visiting from Ohio.  I've know Jen since 1st grade!!  We went to the July 4th fireworks together and one night the weather was so beautiful we decided to have a picnic. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One of the best parts of old friends is that there is no need to impress.  We are completely ourselves ♥

 

Isn't that the best feeling ever?

 

We got ice cream after our picnic and took a long walk along the water.   It was a fun night!

 

 

It's been unbearably hot and humid the past few weeks. 

I am grateful for air conditioning.  So are my houseplants : )

 

 

A little treat for myself after a morning of yard work! 

 

(this drink was probably more calories than I should have in an entire week, but at the time I didn't care.  It was SO worth it.  If you saw how many weeds I pulled that morning you would have agreed : )

 

 

 

 

I made up for it in fresh fruit during the week.  

 

The best strawberries are summer strawberries! YUM ♥

 

 

  

One evening I did a little browsing at Anthropology. 

 

 

  

Funny how I like the home section better than the clothing section. 

 

I spent all my time looking at mug & aprons! LOL

 

 

Now here's my kind of shopping! Rob came home with 4 lbs of Dunkin Donuts coffee for me!

He knows me so well! ♥

And this....Are you watching the Christmas movie marathon on The Hallmark Channel? I have been binging on movies all week! I just love them!  I know they are corny & predictable, but that's my favorite kind of movie!  They are playing for another whole week if you are interested ♥

 

And speaking of Christmas, we'll be celebrating our annual Christmas in July tomorrow! 
It's something we've been doing for the past few years and it's super fun.  I set up John's little 4 ft tree that we'll decorate tomorrow morning while we watch A Christmas Story.  It will be an all day PJ's kind of day.  We'll decorate Christmas cookies and make frozen hot chocolates, which are delicious by the way (recipe here). 
 

John is so excited. And I have to admit, after seeing so many Christmas movies this week....so am I!

  

I hope you are having beautiful days and starry nights!  Happy new week friends! ♥ 

 

Current favorite beauty products...Summer edition ♥

Every season I seem to add something new to my beauty routine. This summer I've been spending a lot of time at the beach.  This has made me want to lighten up my make up routine a bit.  I am the type of girl who will never be able to go completely bare faced, but I do like to have my makeup a little more sheer and natural in the summer.  

I've made a few slight changes in products the past month.  I've been really happy with the results so I thought I would share with you.... 

I've started using this hydrating face serum from Skin Science at night.  First, I remove all my makeup and cleanse my face.  Before applying my moisturizer I take a few drops of this serum and rub it gently into my face and neck.  (I let it all soak in before putting on my moisturizer.)

  It's very hydrating and when I wake up in the morning my skin is so smooooth.  This is my first experience with a serum and I really, really like it.  With all the heat this summer I felt my skin needed this extra boost of hydration : ) 

For a foundation I have been using this BB Pure Beauty Balm from Maybelline.  I was experiencing some break outs at the beginning of summer, something that happens to me a lot in the hot weather. This beauty balm is "skin clearing" and contains salicylic acid, which aids in cleaning up blemishes.  It goes on light and I'm happy to say I'm very pleased with the results. I set the foundation with  CC Perfecting Powder from IT Cosmetics (not pictured, but trust me...it's the best!).  

I treated myself to a new kabuki brush!  I was way overdue! This one from ELF is wonderful! 

(and only $4!!)

 

For a finishing touch I've been using the Bare Minerals tinted mineral veil.  I love it!!!  

It's sheer and gives me just a hint of color.  

* *by the way, my Olay moisturizer, CC powder from IT, and the Bare Minerals mineral veil all have SPF in them!!!**

I've been using powder blushes since the beginning of time.  I've just recently made the switch to cream.  I really like this one from ELF.  It's long lasting gives a nice "dewy" shine to my cheeks.

The color is more rosy that it appears in this picture. 

The actual name of this one is "soft rose" ♥

This is the one I'm most excited about!  Nude Glow eye shadow by Maybelline.  It's a shimmery gold color that I love, love, love!

 

I also add a little swipe across my bottom lash line.  Its quite lovely in my opinion. 

(then again, I love a bit of sparkle : )

And lastly, this new lip color from Bite that I got as a free gift at Sephora a few weeks back.  It's a very pretty dusty rose color called Glace.  I top it with a clear gloss and it looks very natural.

Oh, I have one more! How could I forget....I'm obsessed with this lotion from Bath & Body!!!

Hello Beautiful! It's perfect for summer!!  

And there you are! A few new additions to my beauty routine this summer. 

 

Have you tried anything new recently that you are loving?  I would love to hear about it!

 

Thanks for joining me for a little make up talk today. 

 

Have a beautiful day, Friends! ♥

 

 

 

Won't You Be My Neighbor? ♥

I'm just back from seeing this movie tonight.  Have you seen it?  If you have, you will understand why I couldn't wait to tell you about it. 

 

If you haven't seen it, please do so if you can.  This movie will make you believe in kindness again.  It will make you believe in the goodness in people.  And just in case there was ever any doubt in your mind, it will make you believe in LOVE.  Which, as Mr. Rogers explains, is the root of everything.

 

Personally, Mr. Rogers was a big part of my childhood.  I vividly remember loving him instantly and watching him every day after school.  There was something so calming and warm about him that I recognized at a very early age. ( I certainly was not alone there : )  As an adult I followed his career and happily watched him receive countless awards, so happy to see him again. He never changed. I looked to him in times of tragedy, as did many others, to seek comfort.  After 9/11 Mr. Rogers was the one that told us to "look for the helpers" and we did.

 

Mr. Rogers passed away in 2003 and I cried when I heard the news.  Heaven gained an angel that day, and we lost one. Thankfully his legacy lives on.  When John was very little I bought him a set of Mr. Rogers DVD's.  He watched them over and over (and over...) again.  I'm extremely happy and proud that Mr. Rogers has been a part of John's life too. To this day, John has a Mr. Rogers t-shirt that he wears quite often and I'm always surprised when I hear a classmate or friend say to him "who's that?".  What?  Are you kidding me? 

 

Won't You Be My Neighbor tells the story of Fred Rogers and his journey from ministry to television and his life long mission to be an advocate for children. To recognize that all children are special.  That their feelings matter and that every child should feel safe and loved.  He truly was an amazing man. 

 

Please go see this movie.  As my sister in law so perfectly put it, on our way home from the theater, "he makes me want to be a better person".  I couldn't agree more. 

 

Thank you Mr. Rogers.  I love you....just the way you are ♥

 

 

Day trip to Mystic ♥

Hello Everyone!

 

Today I wanted to share with you a few pictures from the day trip John and I took today to Mystic Aquarium.  Located in Mystic, Connecticut it took us about 2 hours from door to door. We went with my friend Julie and her two boys Sean & Michael. I drove and Julie provided snacks for the car.  I think that's a fair deal : )

 

 Luckily, it was beautiful day and traffic was light.  We were all excited!

 

 

This was my first time at the aquarium.  I'm happy to say it was absolutely wonderful and John loved it too! We learned so much today about ocean life and all the wondrous creatures that live in our seas.  Here are just a few things we saw today... ♥

 

Penguins!

 

We have penguins at our aquarium in Boston but I've never been this close to them before.  They were having a ball jumping in the water and swimming around.  

 

So cute!  (see my instastories for videos! : )

Mystic Aquarium has two HUGE beluga whales!

 

They are incredible to watch!

 

 

 

We also saw seals and sea lions!

 

 

 

 

John fed birds in the bird sanctuary ♥

 

He touched baby sharks as they floated by.

 

He got up close and personal with frogs : )

 

 

He made some new friends....eeek!

 

 

 

 

Saw jelly fish!

 

 

 

 

And fed a sting ray his lunch!

 

(I'm all set with this, btw...)

 

 

 

But the best part of all.....

 

 

 

 

 ...he found Nemo ♥

 

 

We came home tonight with lots of information and stories for Rob, who would have loved this place.  Especially the 4D shark movie we saw (which sprayed water on us and literally scared the life out of me! : ). 

 

 

We had a lot of fun today exploring! It was a perfect outing for a summer day ♥