1st Day of Pre-School

First Day of my baby's school!

Here is Asher running to get to the school doors where the teacher comes out to collect the kids.

Mixed feelings!

Well I made it through... the first day of Pre-School that is. Asher was so excited about going and I was excited to have a little time to myself. I wasn't sure how I'd do dropping him off but thought it would be fine, but low and behold here come the waterworks as my baby hugs me and yells "bye Mommy" and trots off with the other kids! All the way home, too. But once home and the hubs went to work, silence truly is golden. I had forgotten what it was like! Oh my I am going to adapt very quickly! haha  As a matter of fact this is the 2nd day of school (he only goes 3 days a week) and I am grinning ear to ear as I have the place to myself... granted only for 2 and a half hours but hey! Well, actually only about a hour and a half if you count driving time, but I am enjoying the silence. Next year for all day Kindergarten may be a different story!

Have you heard?

Do you know Anne over at Fiona & Twig? She has a terrific blog, great personality and gorgeous goodies to sell and just a whole bunch of inspiration on all things beautiful. She is having her one year anniversary on blogging and bless her heart she is having a HUGE giveaway to a lucky winner... a $125 shopping spree from CNS Stores. They seem to have lots and lots of pretty and needful things. So get on over there and check her out, somebody has gotta win!

Check out my newest purchase!

I have been so busy lately, but I wanted to share with everyone the beautiful jewelry from Mana Moon Studios that I just got. I received in the unassuming package on this past Saturday. I was so excited that it arrived that I ripped open the box and discovered beautiful packaging inside and the jewelry was even more beautiful in person than by the pictures, which were pretty awesome.

It was so fun opening all the packages and the packing was so pretty.  I have learned a thing or two from Sharon that's for sure on packing. You all know I don't sell jewelry, but I can still use the ideas to make my packaging more appealing. 

I not only got this gorgeous jewelry, but she sent me an extra special piece as a surprise! I was just floored, and so appreciative! Thanks you Sharon!!!! *kiss kiss* Not only did I get extra goodies I also received a discount certificate for her other shop called Plumrose Lane!

If you've not heard of Plumrose Lane, and who hasn't?, you need to check it out. Sharon is an excellent designer (and I fancy myself a very good judge of design since my last paying gig was Art Director for an ad agency) of blog backgrounds and also twitter and self promotion and she's got tutorials and all kinds of great stuff... just like her card says... she is a curator of whimsical treasures and purveyor of phantasmagorical designs!  Check out her blog for freebies, too.

If she has anything left, there is 75% off her Mana Moon Studios jewelry! It all it just beautiful. Well, don't take my word for it, looky here!

On another note my baby starts Pre-School on Wednesday!!!!!! Mixed emotions going on here...

Also, has anyone seen the movie Zombieland? I laughed myself silly, a laugh out loud super cute movie, but watch out if you're squeemish!

Watermelon Wednesday

Fresh from the garden watermelon here! Get yer watermelon here!

Yummmmmm...

Doesn't this look refreshing and yummy?! That's because it is! Ha ha... sorry to rub it in. I just cut up this watermelon today for dinner. (dinner is lunch for those who aren't country, and supper is what you eat at night) It is soooo tasty and refreshing on this hot, hot day. It is only 97 degrees out there but the heat index is 108 and there is an excessive heat warning for our area. So today we are inside til this evening at least and I don't think it'll cool off much then either. 

Everything is wilted out there... poor flowers. Here's a tip, if your flowers are wilted and you know that you just watered them DON'T water them again. It's the plant's vascular system's fault. Basically the plant cannot get water circulating up to the leaves fast enough from the moisture evaporating from it's leaves. Hopefully it will bounce back in the cooler hours but if you keep watering chances are you'll drown the plant and make the roots rot. Not good, root rot = dead plant.

I think watermelon is one of those elusive flavors that the food people/scientists cannot recreate correctly. Oh, they've got sweet watermelonly smells but it really doesn't even come close to the real thing. Don't get me wrong I love watermelon gum and enjoy looking silly sucking on a watermelon ring pop, a real blast from my past memory for me that I'll share another time.

Next year's bounty :)

Stay cool and try a watermelon to stay hydrated and refreshed. Go ahead and spit those seeds... how far can you get?

Say hello to my little friend

Here he is... an upside down praying mantis!

I woke up this morning and took Zoey out like normal but besides the breath taking humidity so early, I noticed lots of black and blue butterflies! So beautiful and magical in the morning light as the locusts sang their persistent calls. They must've had a hatching all at once or whatever it's called... but they were everywhere and a wonderful site to see. Those locusts are out with bells on and that always reminds me of Florida. Ahhh the sounds of summer.

So even though it was like 600 degrees outside and now the hottest part of the day I took my camera and waited for the foggy lens to clear up to take some mid summer pictures and try to get some pics of those beautiful winged creatures. To my surprise I finally got one and then another and I think I took about 200 pictures trying to get them with those gorgeous wings open and then oooo! across the porch I noticed one landing on my tiger lilies. I had to get the contrast of that orange flower and black with blue butterfly. As I got closer, surprise!! A little praying mantis shot out of nowhere and ran up the flower to see who this winged invader was. I'm not sure if I scared the butterfly off or the praying mantis did but as I tried to snap as many close up pictures that I could my battery went kaput. Wouldn't you know it. I think that praying mantis's are the neatest little creatures and can watch them for hours. Sometimes they hitch a ride in with my plants and end up in the greenhouse in the fall but I don't know where they end up cause I usually never see them again. I just read recently that praying mantis's are one of the top predators of hummingbirds. Who knew! But that is nature. But aren't the butterflies and all the little creatures just so magical? 

Here I'm chasing a butterfly, see it on the far left hand side about mid way down?

Ok, these petunia's don't have a butterfly on them right now, but they are my favorite color of petunias.

Here is the butterfly tantalizing me...

Success! It finally lets me touch it and hold it! It must like the way I taste because it lingered for many pictures.

Here is the praying mantis running up the flower to chase away the butterfly.

I want to thank my friend Sharon over at Plumrose Lane for an excellent tutorial of adding a signature to your posts on Blogger. Thanks, Sharon!! She is a wealth of info and has spectacular FREE designs for your blog. Sharon also has an Etsy shop, Mana Moon Studio's, that she is closing down and everything is 75% off! Go now! I just swooped up 3 beautiful pieces that I can't wait to get and show you all. 

So, how does my signature look? See ya soon!