A Perfect Summer Day

It's no secret that I absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE Summertime.  I'm outside at every opportunity, and for as long as I can possibly stay... whether it is to sit and read, walk,  golf, swim, putz in my herb garden, or just sitting on the front stoop watching nature.  I just want to be outside from the moment I get up out of bed, til the moment I head back to bed at the end of the day.

Every Summer I have several of those days I like to call "A PERFECT Summer Day".  You might wonder what I would consider a PERFECT Summer Day to be... and the answer is... it's just one of those AWESOME hot sunny days... not too hot, but hot enough to be outside in shorts, tank top, and flip flops from sun up til sun down.... when you are with family, or friends enjoying the day together, talking, giggling, cooking out, and soaking up every moment possible.

June 14, 2013 was my first PERFECT Summer Day of this year.  I was visiting my family in Kentucky, and it all started when I woke up to both my 2 year old Grand boys - Henry and Liam -  (two of my daughters Lauren - (Henry) and Jessica - (Liam) gave birth to these boys just 3 weeks apart... and since birth these boys have truly been BESTEST BUDDIES!)  who came running into my bedroom to wake up Gigi (me)... and instantly I saw out the window what a BEAUTIFUL day it already was, with the bright sunshine and clear blue sky in view.  After eating breakfast, the boys just wanted to go 'outside'... so clad in just their diapers, shoes, and Superman shirts with capes... we took them out front so they could watch the 'tractors', which were really Bobcats work on the construction of the new home/yard across the street.  Both boys just love tractors and school buses.

They played outside in the mulch with their own tractors, just having a ball.  Then... they discovered a mud pool left over from the rain the evening before.  All covered in mud... our only recourse was to strip them down to their diapers and spray them off with the garden hose.  This led to them just wanting to run through the water spray... which they continued to do for another 1/2 hour.  We finally wrap them in towels and carry them inside for a little quiet time and a snack.

I did a quick run to the Kroger store while they were having some quiet time, to gather dinner fixing ingredients.  While at Kroger's I just happened to find a $10 blowup baby pool... which of course I HAD to get for the boys.  When I returned home with the groceries and pool, my son-in-law Kevin was home for lunch and blew the pool up with a compressor.... WAYYY better than me turning blue trying to blow it up by mouth!  We could barely get the pool in it's place in the backyard before both boys climbed in and sat while we filled it with some water.  We sat outside and laughed til we cried watching them enjoy this pool together.

After they played in the pool for an hour or so, we fixed them a sandwich and decided to have a mini picnic outside.  But... the boys both grabbed their sandwiches (grilled cheese) and climbed back in the pool, sat down and enjoyed eating them there while they giggled and giggled at each other eating their sandwiches.

It is now nap time and these boys are exhausted.  It was 8:00 am when they first ran outside to play, it is now 1:00 pm.  While the boys were taking their 3 hour naps, Lauren and I enjoyed some quiet time sitting on the back porch just chatting.  I live 14 hours away from my family, and these rare moments of just visiting with each other face to face, uninterrupted are truly precious!

When the boys woke from their naps and had another snack... again... they just wanted to go back outside to play.  So while Lauren had the boys back outside in the pool, I began prepping for dinner.  My other daughter and husband (Jessica and Winston parents of Liam) were coming over after work to have a cook out with us.  When I am in town, Jessica and Winston let me have as much time with Liam as possible, which means he sleeps over the night before so I can have the entire day with both boys the next day.  Soon the others begin to arrive... first Kevin, then Jessica, and finallly Winston.  We all sat on the back porch enjoying a DELISH dinner while we talked, laughed, and enjoyed watching the boys play together.

All too soon it is time to clean up after dinner, Jessica and Winston have to head home with their very worn out, and exhausted little tyke Liam to put him to bed.  But before they go, the boys enjoy one last spurt of being together by taking their night time bath together.  I can't believe these two aren't complete prunes, and all wrinkled up from all the water play they have enjoyed today!

This particular day started early and went til after nightfall, with each moment of the entire day being just one huge smile and giggle for me!  THAT is why I called this my 1st PERFECT Summer Day!

I have had several more PERFECT Summer Days since this day... but... this particular day is STILL the front runner for the BEST OF THE BEST of PERFECT Summer Days for Summer of 2014.  However... I think the week of Aug 8-15 might bump June 14th, from it's spot when our entire family gather in FL for a week vacation poolside and beachside.  I'm sure after that week, I will have plenty of blog material for an update!

However... there is one PERFECT Summer Day that will never be topped... and that is June 22, 1972... when according to my childhood diary I recently found... June 22, 1972 was not only a PERFECT Summer day... but turns out... it is, and will always be, my ULTIMATE PERFECT Summer day.  That was the day I met my husband Joe at my cousin's house.  I was 13, he was 14.... we have been together ever since, and here we are 41 years later... still best friends, still deeply in love, and both our friendship, and our love grow leaps and bounds every single day... STILL!!!  Isn't that crazy!!!!  Every night when I lay my head down on my pillow I think, how is it possible that I love this man more today than I did yesterday, because I thought yesterday my love cup was full... but no.... blessedly it continues to grow even still.   July 29th 1978 is also an ULTIMATE SUMMER DAY because that is the day I Joe and I married!

Here's to many more PERFECT SUMMER DAYS for all of us!

Bucket List = Life List

At some point in our lives, we all take time to reflect on our past accomplishments, and then set goals for the next thing to be accomplished.  Some call it their Bucket Lists, some call it their Life Lists... they are actually both the same no matter what you call it.  Some lists are just that... lists of things we would like to do, but really know are impossible to fulfill, other lists are things we actually plan on fulfilling.  Either way... we all have lists of what to do next.

Now that I am in my Feisty Fifties, my Bucket List/Life List seems to be growing by the day.  It's a shame that when we are young and full of zest, we can't afford most of the things we want to do, or we don't have enough life experience to know what we want, or know what we can possibly achieve... mostly when we are young... we are just too busy living life to think about the BIG future and really growing old.

I've decided to share my lists on this blog... this is where you can gracefully bail out of reading the rest of this post and not feel you have wasted any time... or... you can keep reading and get a peek inside of a feisty fifty plus year old woman's head.

Things I really want to accomplish in my life time...

1.   Celebrate our 75th Wedding Anniversary... (we married young... as of this posting... we are close to 1/2 there... 35 years!)

2.    Learn multiple languages... including sign language

3.    Earn a pilot's license

4.    Visit all 50 States

5.    Visit to Disney World... No... Joe nor I have ever been!

6.    Travel to Australia

7.    Continue college education

8.    Travel by train across the US

9.    Attend the Olympics

10.  Visit Asia

11.  Learn to sail

12.  Have a Starbucks drink named after me.... actually.... this one is in the process of being checked off... Here in teeny tiny Hutch, such things are possible... I'm actually campaigning for it, and have just begun to see results!  If you are ever in Hutch just order a "Vickie" and you will get a "venti green tea/lemonade, 1/2 sweet, extra ice in a trenti cup.  It's DELISH!!!

I have more on my bucket list.... and as I stated earlier... the list continues to grow.  It's like the more life experiences I have, the more things I get interested in and want to pursue.


Things I've done that I never dreamed of doing...

1.   Hosted a Late Night TV show live on air

2.   Have lived in 7 states... granted a drivers license in 6 of these states... which means I had to pass that darn written test 8 times.... we lived in 2 states twice

3.   Own and drive a convertible car... not being a car person, I could never care less... in fact I never liked convertibles... until I received my 50th B-day present from my husband... now I drive every single day possible with the top down... my hinnie heaters and heaters may be on, the windows rolled up... but the top is down!

4.   Went to college and graduated with a 4.0 GPA... earning my Culinary Arts Chef Certificate... at age 50!!

5.   Sat next to Tiger Woods at a Charity Dinner on my 27th Wedding Anniversary

6.   Met, and was kissed by Jimmy Dean several times... sorry Jimmy Dean fans... but this experience was a bit gross!

7.   Learned to play golf and I actually enjoy it

8.   Learned to drive my husband's Porsche Carrera 911 on a real race track... I LOVE doing this!!

9.   Have traveled around Europe the last 10 years of my life

10.  Own two homes... one with palm trees... never thought I'd actually own a palm tree!

11.  Have an autographed photo of my husband and myself with Muhammad Ali and wife Lonnie hanging in my current home

12.  Sat next to, and have a personalized autographed name place card from Astronaut/Senator John Glenn... this experience is among my very favorites... I heard from his wife's (Annie) mouth their Love story... and I LOVE Love stories!  At the time of our meeting, they had been married for 67 years, met each other at the age of 4, were next door neighbors and in love their entire lives!

I think boring you with 12 things is enough... this list too is growing by the day... and I have been blessed with many more pretty unique experiences... all thanks to my wonderful husband Joe!

But at the end of the day.... I just want to have done my best for that day and hope to be able to do my best for the upcoming day.  The more I do, the more I'm inspired to do, and the more I realize just how quickly time is flying past, and how little time there is to accomplish my entire Bucket/Life List... but I"m sure gonna have fun trying to check off each and every box on my list!