"It's PINK!" shouted Benjy, pointing out the window. After the cloudiest of days with a couple of bouts of driving rain showers, this is the picture God handed us tonight. Wow.

I skipped out on the annual beach trip with the Virginia girls. I missed them greatly. Especially the lazy mornings sipping coffee, afternoons eating salsa, and evenings eating hushpuppies. Do you get the picture here? I love to eat. I missed all that eating. And I missed my girlfriends, too. But they thought of me! They really like me! :) They mailed me this terrific goodie box filled with two boxes of fudge from Callahans, a green martini glass, and a card signed by all. Wow.

And this is the result of Friday's creating. My pact with myself was to use only stuff around the house. I used an old birdhouse that had begun to fall apart, scrap papers, leftover spanish moss from a school project, and a few choice rocks from Maine. Oh yeah, and Hodge Podge. I could glue a room together with that stuff. This little birdie house makes me happy, even if I did make it. 

Brothers Day. Brought to you by the friendly folks at McDonald's. 

From now on it's June 24. Happy Meals included.

We went to our favorite creek spot at the local park where the boys ran into our next door neighbors and spent three hours creek stomping on a mad hunt for minnows and water snakes. (No snakes were harmed in the filming of this day. No snakes were even found.) Plenty of minnows, though none would hop into their little bottles. So none of those were harmed either. :)

Lots of running and playing and climbing and jumping and

a bit of sitting, too. 

Brothers Day rocks.

That's me! Could you tell? Only I'm a yellow belt now. I'm so happy that Camden and Eaglescout signed me up for Taekwondo. I love it so much I joined the leadership/instructor training program - hence the fancy uniform with my name on the back so that people know who it is that's totally messing up her form in public. Of course, I don't wear this to the grocery store. That'd just be wrong. The new uniform also boasts a red collar. Before, I threatened to take a Sharpie to my old uniform and scribble my name on the back and then iron on a red ribbon around the collar. Now I don't have to. Along with the uniform comes learning how to instruct the other classes. Assisting the Tiny Tigers class is my favorite. Those little Tigers are so darn cute! And even though most of them out rank me in color belt, I am taller than they are. 

And speaking of Taekwondo, Camden tested for his rank stripe on his brown belt last week. Check him out here.





He totally knew his form, but since he was doing make-up testing at the studio and facing the judges, not the mirrors, he got a bit confused and wound up facing the wrong direction. Still, he passed. :) Next comes his red belt and a host of mid-term testings before the big kahuna - the BLACK belt!


While reading my favorite blogs this morning, I came across this post from Jennifer. She has four boys. That's two more than I have. Can you imagine? Well, her brilliant boys decided to make up a holiday. See, Mr. Hallmark isn't the only one who can do that. They deemed June 19 Brothers Day. So, I'm gonna run this by my own personal wild things and see if they want to celebrate Brothers Day on June 24. That's tomorrow. We can make a cake and play in the pool and maybe go to the park and eat whatever they want for dinner and write in run-on sentences all day long if we want to. And since it's brother's day, I won't have to fuss at them for making messes and being too loud until June 25, when it will not be Brothers Day anymore. 

Growing up, I always hated yard work. It's hard, ya know? 

It makes me sweat. And that's just gross. 

But lookie what I accomplished today, 

sweating, working, bent over, lifting, shoveling, raking...

A bit of mulch around the mailbox to cover the dead spot. Another black-eyed susan would top it off, don't ya think?

You can't see it well, but I covered the other dead spot around the lavender with mulch. Looks so much better.

And I mulched around the plants in this bed. It needs edging, but already it looks better than before. I can't wait for the rose bush, bleeding heart, black-eyed susans, and some other yellow flowering perennial spread out some and fill in this space more.

And this lovely spot is where I planted grass seed and fertilized it before watering the heck out of it. Not that I needed to. It's pouring the rain now. Pleeeeeease don't wash away my seeds!!!

And this is the first daisy of the season growing in the garden in front of the house. 

IDHTBPTBB

The Nester has reminded us that It Doesn't Have To Be Perfect To Be Beautiful and she's challenged us to post our imperfections and share them. Finding imperfections around here is not a problem. I started snapping pictures this morning and had to make myself stop. You don't have all day, after all, to read about the imperfections that surround me. But if I didn't put it here, you might never see it on account of House Beautiful hasn't been able to reach me for a photo shoot yet.

Here's my new friend. I call him Darth. Benjy calls him Dark Side. He has been residing in my bedroom where he usually hides from Emma The Dog. I don't mind sharing my room with Darth. And plus, he likes my window mistreatments. He's beautiful because he makes Benjy use this dark side voice when he comes down to play.

This is the boys' bathroom. These are the beach towels that hang in the boys' bathroom. That's a shower curtain mistreatment hanging by the towels in the boys' bathroom. Now that the pool is up in the backyard, Camden the Bath Boy swims and takes a bath about 167 times a day. He's a clean youngin. These towels are summertime beautiful.

This is my barely-sanded-because-I-hate-the-sound-of-sandpaper-and-then-painted table. I took great pride in this when I first finished it. Now, the boys have taken it over. If Eaglescout isn't piling his magazines on it, then the boys are using it for a Star Wars hanger. (How do you spell that...hanger???hangar???) Currently the Star Fighters are off fighting the Dark Side, so the control tower is the only thing happening here now. Beautiful, huh?

Now these window mistreatments are my very favorite. They're cheap cheap cheap, made of burlap and that cute pom pom fringe and about 933 hot glue sticks. And these fans of my favorite window mistreatments are Benjy's Lego guys. They don't live here all the time, but they do like to be lined up and this is as good a place as any, I suppose. Beautiful in the orderly way Benjy lines up things around the house.

My guest room is rarely used. What a waste. So I have adopted it for folding and sorting the boys' laundry. I can watch HGTV or Fox news or Law and Order or the Weather Channel while I work. And if I'm not in here, then the boys are. They pull out the long-forgotten Rescue Heroes and play for about 2 minutes. And then they leave the sad and lonely Rescue Heroes perched and waiting for an emergency. Beautiful simply because the boys and I have repurposed this wasted space. And all of it is quite imperfect. But, hey, how many of us could actually live in a perfect house?

Today was the first day of Bible School for the kids. The theme this year is Power Lab and Camden's all into the science end of it. I love how into God they are! Camden told me all about their Bible story today - about the 10 lepers healed by Jesus and how only one of them bothered to say thanks. Benjy later asked me if I planted the lavender here that the honey bees are buzzing around. I said no and was about to tell him that the lady who lived here before us planted it. But he quickly said, "Oh I know. GOD made them for the BEES!" Well, yeah, that's true, too. :)

Honey, we're home!

Here's a recap of our vacation. 

It seems a bit strange to be smack dab at the start of summer break and already detailing my vacation, but here's a top 10 of our trip.

* A stop in Camden, Me., Camden's namesake. Eaglescout and I used to camp here long before we even wanted offspring. It's a beautiful harbor town, picturesque and as Down East as you can get. (at least from a southerner's perspective) Camden loved seeing his name on storefronts, billboards, and signs. I took as many pictures as I could zoom in on.

*
Route 1. I have always remembered the quaint way that businesses nailed signs pointing the way to their establishments along the roadside. Route 1 is dotted with these, especially around Kennebunkport. Cute, huh? When's the last time you saw a Walmart sign on a signpost like this???

* Pirate swords. Pirate Benjy just had to have this little beauty, a mere $2.50 at the Lobster Pound in Lincolnville. And now that I think on it, the lobster there is incredibly yummy. The yummiest. So is the chocolate pudding, but I digress. The lobster is yummy. But it's served in its BODY. I couldn't even begin to crack open the shell to get to the yummy parts. I had to ask Eaglescout to do it for me. How pathetic is that? I'll never be president. I bet even Obama can do that. But not me. Uh-uh, I can't even step on an ant.

*
Fog. The fog was so thick on Saturday morning at the beach that I couldn't see Camden when he ventured a mere 10 feet from me. Thick, I tell ya. But it seemed somehow native to the place. And so, I liked it.

*
Rocks. Not the sort of rock that Patrick Starfish lives under. But the kind that roll and tumble in the New England waters before the sea spits them on the shore. They're worn smooth from their journey, rounded and aged. We collected rocks on the shore as if they were seashells. I went for the baby rocks while the boys went for the big daddies.

* Wonder. Camden and Benjy were in awe of the beach and everything around them. They marveled at all the right stuff. The sand. The waves. The tidepools. The sunburn in spite of the sunscreen. Thank you Solarcaine. 

* Dead fish

.Benjy caught his second fish. A 2-incher washed ashore that appeared to have lived its life to the end. He was proud of his catch. And so was I.

* Cottage life. Simple. Clean. Roomy enough. This was our cottage for the week. And it was perfect. The boys had their room. Eaglescout and I had ours. And there was even a bonus living area/kitchen that boasted Archie and Edith Bunker chairs for us to rest in after the boys had bedded down. Simple, unairconditioned, safe, and since it was filled with ♥, it was just what we needed. 

*

*Freedom. From schedules. From work. From thinking in the work way of thinking. Freedom from the stuff of everyday. Freedom translates into hours of reading books, sleeping in, napping, listening to the crash of waves on the sands. Freedom. 

* The Shack by Paul Young

This book made me cry, laugh, feel, and long to be in a closer relationship with God. One of the reasons I love summer break is that I get the chance to dive into book after book after book. This was one beautiful way to start the summer. Alive. At peace. And in the knowledge that My Father loves me and wants to know me better. Thanks be to God!

Finally we are

almost home, but I'm so tired

I write in haiku.

Until I can write

something of literary

worth, I leave you these.

OK, I'll leave you

with nothing. Blogger, why won't

you let me upload???

Finally, nearly a month after Benjy turned 5, we had his party. A house party, it was. Here at Casa de Elephant. That giant pachyderm you see, by the way, isn't real. It's part of a giant house of bounce we rented for the big day. And the best part of all........we got to keep it from Saturday all the way till Tuesday at no extra charge! How's that for customer service?!

Only 3 more mornings before school is out. Not that I'm counting. Camden can't wait to sleep in. Me, too. Benjy already is. His last day of preschool was last Friday. He's been hanging out with Curtis Carl this week, playing outside, watching Star Wars movies, and even napping every now and then. I'm jealous.

So for those of you tired and weary, ready for summer, I leave you with this: 

Matthew 11:28-30 

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."

That seems just right for the end of the school year.

Prayers needed...

for Chief. He's the dad of our youth minister. He went into respiratory arrest last night, but is doing better now. Still. He's 80. And he wants to fight this. Pray for him. Pray for his health and that God will guide his doctors' hands. Pray for his family that they will find peace. And praise God that he worked this whole entire dinner thing out that I'd bring Jodie's Chicken on the very night when they truly needed a break. With God, there are no coincidences.

I've been shopping today. And I really, seriously, in a huge ginormous way HATE to shop. I was searching for the perfect wedding gift for the 3rd grade teacher at my school. I don't know her super well, so this was no easy task. I thought a quick trip to Hallmark would suffice. Well, I wandered and wandered around that place for about 60,000 minutes. That equals 1000 hours, for those of you not as quick with your desktop calculators as I am. Nothing seemed just right. Know what I mean? I then walked out empty-handed and headed down the strip to Linens and Things. 

Well, things definitely weren't just right here. I mean, they have cool things if I'm looking for some new concrete frogs for my back porch or a colander or a soap dish or a picture of The Beach. But for a wedding present when I'm going for special and heirloom and not destined for a yard sale if she already has one? I walked two laps around that place and exited. Right back to JoAnn's Hallmark. That's where my feet took me. And then right to the cute little deviled egg plate in the middle of the store. I wish I could remember who told me this when I got married: Every bride needs a deviled egg plate. I swannie, I think that's the truth! I have one. Somewhere. Though, um, I never in my life made deviled eggs till last December for the neighborhood Christmas party. I guess they were good. I liked them. I didn't take any home with me either. 

So, deviled egg plate in hand and a cute set of fancy pewter-lookin' measuring spoons and a card and a doo-dad for the top of the gift and, oh yeah, a make-your-car-smell-like-lavender thing, I checked out with my Hallmark Gold Crown Card for the bonus points. And I left. To go to the grocery store. 

Which brings me to part two of my shopping trip. 

I went to Giant Eagle. We shop here for almost all our groceries now. We also buy gift cards here. Even if they're for ourselves. For example, if we need to go to Lowe's, we'll buy the gift card at the Big Bird, use it at Lowe's and recoup the Fuel Perks when we fill up at the Get Go in front of Giant Eagle. I saved 50 cents a gallon when I filled up last week. It's a deal, I think.

So, anyhow, I had to hit the grocery because of Michelle. See, she had the biggest heart ♥ of anyone. And she could cook. She actually cooked a lot and LIKED it. Can you just imagine that? Well, I've made it sort of a personal crusade of mine to sort of try to be like her. To take the best of Michelle and try to emulate that. So after a friend from church brought dinner over to us a bit back, I felt this urging in my heart to pay it forward. And, as it happened, the youth minister's family has been on my heart since the dad's father has been very ill. So I told Amy I wanted to bring dinner over this week. We picked a date and I asked if anybody had allergies and how many and all that stuff and so Thursday is the big day. Keep in mind, I don't cook. Much. I mean, I make chicken nuggets, but they come frozen, so Emma-dog could do it if I thought she wouldn't eat them first. 

And that brings me to the Giant Eagle. I decided to make Jodie's Chicken. This is the same delicious and super easy casserole my BFF Jodie brought me when Camden was born and again with Benjy was born. I just LOVE this stuff! The main ingredient is fried chicken. Do you know how perfect this is? The youth minister himself is from South Carolina, so they're gonna love this Southern Dish! I did my shopping in relative peace and quiet. And it was much easer than shopping for the wedding gift. I mean, how many different kinds of fried chicken can you shop for?

Finally, I got home at nearly 8 p.m. Thank goodness for my 4 o'clock nap. 'Cause I don't think I would have remembered the chicken if not for that rest time. And then, it wasn't over. I put the groceries away, baked brownies, prepped the casserole, cleaned the kitchen, gave brownie mix to the boys for "dessert", wrapped the wedding gift (and darnit, it's so pretty. I mean, that gig as a gift wrapper at Cohen's in the 80s has come in handy more than once) and even found Camden's overdue library book and taped four dimes for the fee to the book so he can turn in to the teacher tomorrow. It's my fault it's overdue on account of I put this book on the shelf in the playroom last week and didn't even notice it was from school. Do you think I sound a bit like Junie B. Jones? If so, it's because we just finished reading a Junie B. book at school today. She's a favorite in my classroom. And I confess a love for this little stinker, too. So, anyway, I digress. It's been a busy day. Thank goodness it's time for bed. It's actually past time for bed, but for Michelle, it was worth it.

I loves me some burlap.

Way back before I was the happening chick I am today, my typical Friday night was spent with Donny and Marie, Gopher and Capt. Stubing, and Mr. Rourke and Tatoo. One episode of Fantasy Island stands out still today. The one where a designer had to make a winning outfit using both silk and burlap. At the time, of course, I didn't know what burlap even was. But I did know enough to realize that it was supposed to be hard for her to win with these textiles. (Truthfully, I didn't use the word textiles then. I just think it makes me sound intelligent, so I throw it around when I can.) And now that I'm a trifle smarter than a 5th grader, I recognize fully how tricky burlap can be. 

So, when I was blog surfing this morning and I came across a post about handmade curtains made of burlap and ball fringe - with a picture, I told myself that I could so do that. The final push over the edge into doing it: burlap is a whopping $2.99 a yard at JoAnn's! That's so darn cheap I could make curtains for my whole neighborhood. But I probably won't. 

So, after an incredible workout at karate, the Benj and I picked up a happy meal and ate in the parking lot at JoAnn's. I couldn't wait for him to down that last nugget so we could go inside and I could feel up the burlap. 10 yards of the stuff and 18 yards of black ball fringe later, + 100 mini glue sticks and the latest issue of Family Fun magazine, we came home and I set to work. 

It took me a little over an hour to cut and hot glue my 4 sets of window mistreatments and hang them up. (Those sweet ladies at JoAnn's asked me what I was gonna do with all this fabric. I told them. And I blurted out the part about the hot glue gun, too. I just couldn't quit talking about these darn curtains! I don't think they thought this was gonna work, judging by the reactions. But I swore that it would because the Nester did it, and she swears by her hot glue gun. Now, I couldn't be more proud. It's as if I birthed these babies myself. The two back windows have pairs of tiebacks on them while the two narrower side windows have just one panel each. Actually, they're not tied back, but held back by those metal thingies you can buy and screw into your walls. The best part of this whole shebang is the black ball fringe. It's become my new very favorite thing. I'm so glad I have leftovers so I can use it in a future project!

While I'm on a roll with the camera, I took some shots of my Nester-inspired ripped fabric boa thing. I forgot the name of it, but I hung mine over the tiny square window in our bathroom. It's a bit strange, I grant you that. But I like it OK. I hung some vintage paper-covered chipboard butterflies and flowers from it because, well, I made them and had to do something with them. This may or may not live here forever. I'm not wild about the colors against the sage walls, and think I should use more variety in the fabrics. But for now, at least it's done. 

The other is a 20x16 collage of vintage text book papers, paint, scrapbook papers, buttons, and fabric. This was totally inspired by Alexa Lett's blog. Her collage art is amazing and I come away inspired to create something every time I go there. I had so much fun making this. Ripping old pages out of a book and gluing them down. Slapping paint and paper together. I think I'm feeling an artsy summer coming on.

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥