Weekend Review

This past weekend at the lake, I was one miserable woman. I caught the CREEPY CRUD! I'm not sure if I caught it from Lidia, but she did have bronchitis last week. I got lots of hugs and forehead kisses, so I guess it's possible I picked up whatever bug she had. Anyway, my intention for the weekend was to continue painting. But it just wasn't happening. I was pretty much confined to the recliner with a cup of hot tea and honey in one hand and tissues in the other.....doing crazy sneezes I've never done before. Ha! I did drag myself down to the dock for a little bit Saturday and took a few pictures while L&S played and Cliff kayaked. As this is our first spring at the lake house, I'm discovering all kinds of new plants. Here's one, below. Found out from friends on Facebook that it's a Hobblebush from the Viburnum family. Never heard of it before, but it sure is pretty. Sunday, I felt even worse and pretty much slept most of the afternoon. Yesterday, there were tornado warnings not far from us at the lake, which made for some interesting lighting in the distant skies. I watched the clouds in amazement, while praying no tornadoes formed. How can something be so beautiful, yet frightening all at the same time? I was a little worried because one of the areas that was under a tornado warning was where Emily and the children live. As a matter of fact, as Cliff was headed over to Lidia's school for her awards program, he said he drove through some of the rain that was coming from that system. Thank goodness, all was well there. And in case you were wondering, Lidia got the Stellar Writing Award for 5th grade. We are so proud of her. And finally, I snapped a few photos from inside the house. Just didn't feel like going outside. From here, I will let the pictures do the talking.

Viburnum lantanoides...

....otherwise known as Hobblebush.

 

 

Lidia with one of her teachers, after receiving the Stellar Writing Award for 5th grade.

 

A few views of the patio and flower beds from the den....

The flower beds are a work in progress.

I have new hydrangeas planted down the long side of the porch. This light thingy was left by the previous owner. It just needs a couple of bolts to make it stand straight again. It's on the list.

I love the porch, but again everything here was left by the previous owner. I have plans to paint the rockers and add the new blue and white cushions I just bought for them. The fans and blinds will be replaced and I'm bringing in a cabinet to use for storage for the gobs of shoes that seem to accumulate here.

Another view from the porch....the patio is to the right.

 

And, I'll end it here with a floating lesson in progress. LOL!!

 

 

I'll be back soon. Hopefully, I feel more like myself in another day or two.

 

Talk soon,

Laurie

 

The Lake House

The Lake House. Lidia and Sawyer on the front porch looking towards the lake.

Cliff and I met this last decade with some life changes. Our girls are grown and out on their own now and we've found ourselves at the proverbial crossroads, where decisions are made to take you into the next decade and beyond. With the girls gone, our home seems so empty these days. Whitney and Jason are still in Colorado. And since Emily, Lidia and Sawyer moved to the upstate last year, it really seems empty. We don't get to see them on a regular basis, like before. Our home used to be filled with energy and chatter.

So, in our search for something, I came across a house on Lake Greenwood. It was only 40 something miles from Emily, Lidia and Sawyer and it was on the water. Sweet! That was on a Friday night. By Sunday afternoon, I was on the phone with the realtor and had an appointment to see the house on the following Friday. Friday came, we saw the house and that was it. We made an offer and the owners accepted it that same day. Talk about something falling into your lap....well, it did. It was meant to be.

We still have our primary home, we still have our little place at the beach and now we have a place at the lake. We feel so fortunate. I am happy that we have a place closer to the grandkids. It cuts out a lot of driving time.....just to be able to see them and be ever present in their lives. We've already been spending time there learning the area, getting to know the neighbors, visiting the local farmers market, checking out local restaurants, exploring places to run and for Cliff to bike. Lidia and Sawyer have been swimming, knee-boarding, kayaking and fishing. Cliff just bought them wetsuits and you would have thought it was Christmas. They were so excited and couldn't get them on quick enough. The idea is that the swimming season may be extended a little and the wetsuits do offer a little in the way of floatation. When Lidia and Sawyer come, they literally spend all day outdoors, at the dock, doing something. We have chosen not to have television service for now and there's no internet service, either. So we spend our time outside, mostly. It's wonderful. By the end of the day, we are so tired that bedtime can't come soon enough.

I'm excited about doing a little remodeling here and there...making it our own. I'm sure I'll share some of those projects as time goes by. And there's tons of yard work to do.  But for now, I'll leave you with a couple of pictures.




View from the screened porch;
my favorite place to have my morning cup of coffee.




The screened porch.




The view from the lake.

 

There's great potential and we love it!

 

Be back soon,

Laurie