Not sure how you and yours are getting through these days at home, but we are living the magical life. Our love for everything Potter has kept us entertained and grown over the past months. Harry Potter marathons have kept us grounded, connected to eachother.
“Words are, in my not-so-humble opinion, our most inexhaustible source of magic. Capable of both inflicting injury, and remedying it.” ― Albus Dumbledore
We can start at the beginning or turn one on midway through and just settle in for mischief and magic. I love that these films are something we all enjoy. Finding family fun can be a challenge at times. We started out positive and were great at keeping busy, but as time has gone on, we have settled into a new normal and thankfully that includes Harry and friends.
“But you know, happiness can be found even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light.” ― Albus Dumbledore
Seems only right to post and share how much these stories are getting us through, on Harry Potter’s birthday.
Friday night family fun…boarding the Hogwarts Express! Not sure which film we will choose, but the popcorn with be popped and house colors will be on. If you are a Potter fan, I hope you take a few minutes today and spend some time with the Gryffindor trio.
“And now, Harry, let us step out into the night and pursue that flighty temptress, adventure.” — Albus Dumbledore
This has been a busy week prepping for a party. It was a very socially distant and sort of differently planned party, which required alot of thought and physical labor. Thankfully I have a fabulous hubs who made our yard look fresh and pretty. I am also an excellent online shopper, so party planning was just a few clicks. Thankfully our guests seem to have had a good time and respected the new dynamic of getting together, so I am calling that a win for this emotionally drained teacher/mom.
I am still waiting to see what is going to happen with school, so I feel like I can only focus on what is in front of me. Which happens to be my family and house! Taking this summer day by day.
I know I am not alone with feeling anxious and conflicted about the upcoming, new school year. I have had ideas of what I want to write about and tips to share, but without knowing what I will be doing come September, I can’t write about something that isn’t authentic, so I hope you can just scroll and enjoy some pictures from a great week, where the focus was on things one can control and make nice.
Breathe in. Breathe out. This is heavenly in a field of lavender with the sun setting and the good vibes flowing.
Being outside, doing yoga, was something I have always been shy about. I hate being hot and do not love bugs, but this summer I am embracing it. Inside yoga is not an option, so I stepped out of my comfort zone and I am so happy I did.
We were given instructions on the cutting and varieties of lavender to cut.
My beautiful yoga teacher held a class outside in a lavender field. This was a ticketed event. Worth every penny! So many wanted to attend, she opened a second session. She is a lovely human and the farm we were at was equally as giving.
I placed my clippings on my dashboard for the drive home…heavenly.
We picked before we flowed. This was lovely and relaxing. Everyone seemed at peace. Conversations were quiet and appeared to be happy. I think many were happy to be in a tranquil location and able to socialize.
People really respected the space and eachother.
Masks were required for check in and close group socialization, but when it was time to flow mats were 6 feet or more apart. The field offered natural barriers. This made it easy to find a spot to practice.
I learned there is white lavender.
I left feeling and smelling fabulous. I hope she makes this and annual event. With the sun setting and the lavender breeze filling my lungs, it is yoga like no other.
Bees were everywhere but they wanted nothing to do with us. Maybe it was all the positive vibes!?
Just another way I am trying to enjoy summer and practice some selfcare.
I hope you liked this post…kind of a mini post. You can always follow me to see what I am up to or drop me a line!
Summer is here and enjoying the season is a priority. Winter seems incredibly long-with spring feeling like a blip on the calendar, so getting out into sunshine that does not have an icy glare is at the top of my summer to do list. Making the most of summers off is always important to me. Finding ways to recharge before September is vital for me and my students.
Being outside in the heat and humidity can be overwhelming, but being cooped up for months during a pandemic has proved to be more overwhelming and I am trying to embrace all summer has to offer. One way I like to chill out is basic gardening. I plant flowers and veggies every summer, this summer is no different. That actually feels good to write-up considering nothing about the last quarter of school felt normal! My semi green thumb is exactly like it was last summer and all the summers before.
I say semi green because I love the look and feel a garden brings, but I am not willing to weed and roast for it. We keep a garden that is easy and comes back every year. I like low maintenance plants the older and busier I get. Before our daughter I had more time to putter and fuss, but in the last few years her summer schedule has kept me busy, so easy peasy plants are right up my alley. I am not running around for camps and playdates, but that seemed to be validate my rational even more for a peaceful, zen like summer.
Pop of color on a patio table is very manageable.
I look forward to my perennials. They are consistent and I love those first signs of spring/summer when they start to pop out of the soil. This year many of my hostas have been night time snacks for the deer….possibly other critters as well. I think we need to invest in some sort of repellent next summer and take pics before there is nothing but stems!
I see baby leaves trying to make a comeback.
We planted a few new things in late May. We are hoping all of the new plant babies will flourish and provide a colorful border between us and our neighbors.
Our hope is these are even bigger and better in the years to come.
I always get potted flowers for pops of color. I know many people plant annuals, but I stopped doing that a handful of years ago. It looks pretty, but with a busy schedule and summer trips it is difficult to maintain….especially water, so I just do pots and hope for the best.
Super easy splash of color on the front porch.
This summer we decided to keep veggies to a minimum. We are only growing tomatoes. I can always snag some herbs if I want, but as for other veggies we decided to just not. We have grown beans, peas, onions and peppers in the past. It is fun to watch everything progress, but we are keeping it super simple this summer.
No idea what variety of tomato this is….we will see in the weeks ahead!
Tomato plants are very low maintenance and we plant ours in containers, so there is zero weeding. I can’t wait until these little babies are full grown and ready to be picked. We sort of went a little tomato plant crazy, so I think our neighbors will be getting a homegrown taste of summer.
My summer garden is a wonderful, visual way to decompress through the summer months. Taking the time to plant, weed (a little) and water gives me a clam purpose before I start running and following the school schedules in September. Also having a low maintenance garden gives me time to do other things that I consider summer fun.
Sparklers, fireworks and bbq. The 4th of July is one of our favorite holidays to celebrate with friends and family. 2020 has proved to me a most interesting year and because of social distancing this holiday is not our typical event, but we are embracing the new normal with all the red, white & blue we can muster.
Patriotic Prep
This snack mix has been on my summer to do list. I needed a sweet treat with a splash of red, white & blue. I looked to Pinterest for some ideas and I found a few different versions of this mix. My version is gluten free, of course!
Rice Chex
Corn Chex
Mini marshmallows
M&M’s
Gluten free pretzels
Frosted Cheerios
White chocolate wafers
Sprinkles
This snack was a hit. Crunchy and just sweet enough!
Super simple to toss together. I didn’t measure. I just poured what I wanted in a large bowl, added melted wafers, tossed and spread out on wax paper lined pans. I left it to firm up for about an hour. I first put it into a container, but then I remembered we are living in covid times, so I decided to bag it into individual portions. The bags I used are super easy to use and affordable on Amazon. They self seal and are food safe, bakery bags. Here’s to patriotic calories!
Prepped the piggies for America’s birthday.
Thankfully we could go out and get our annual schools out/holiday pedicure. Typically we select a more Americana look, but we were feeling the bright colors and a bit of nail art. It was super nice to get out and have some self care, even if we were wearing masks. Anything a little normal is a mood lifter these days.
Lakeside
A day at the lake is always a nice invite. We had a great time taking in the sunshine and lake breeze. A day of taking it easy and enjoying the company of family and friends can almost make a person forget how stressful things have been.
We decided to take an afternoon walk…to enjoy our surroundings and tire our four legged princess out a bit. While we walked I spotted this adorable gnome situation. We have a little gnome garden, but this was so cute and a great way to embellish a tree stump. Our gnomes need an upgraded location! This little scene made my day.
There Will Be Fireworks
The typical fireworks displays that we normally attend were not happening this year, so we luckily saw many home displays on our drive back from the lake. People really put on good shows. All of the home shows inspired us to dig out some fireworks we had…that were sort of old, but they did not disappoint.
Morning Glory
Even though we had a modified, socially distant celebration it was surprisingly festive. This was our first big holiday embracing the new normal with modifications and positive attitude. Star spangled fun was had by all….looking forward to what the rest of summer will bring.
The Listening Ladybug 