My Simple Life - Friday Fragments

I worked in the yard for hours yesterday.
It has rained so much lately that we couldn't mow or anything else, it was way too wet.  But finally it's dried up enough for us to get some work done.  And we did.  And now I am sore!  I moved rocks like a weightlifter, push-mowed, and weeded, and I am old.  And tired.  But - the lawn looks great!

This dragonfly flitted around us all day as we worked.
Finally I held my hand out, and he let me hold him for a while.

Things grow so nicely here.  My gardenia plant is already blooming, and gardenias can be difficult to grow.  I got some Mexican petunia from a friend a few weeks ago, but I didn't plant it right away and it was looking kind of sad by the time I planted it (she just pulled some of hers up for me).  But I planted it anyway and now it looks fantastic!  My jasmine is climbing up the tree it's planted by and is literally as tall as me.
I am also starting a rock garden.  I dug up rocks and found pieces of flint and shells.  I think it's a good start.

Once it got dark, I made a fire in my fire pit, turned on my fairy lights, and kicked back with a cold beverage or three.  I love my simple life.

I was talking to a friend of mine yesterday while driving down our dirt road.  Her husband is in the ICU, very ill.  While talking to her, I looked over my shoulder and saw this double rainbow.
It didn't rain here yesterday - at all.
I truly believe it was a sign and told my friend about it!  I had chills.  We decided it was a double rainbow so that there was one for each of us.  Good things are coming!

I took this on our dirt road the other day for an Instagram photo prompt.
It was so pretty I wanted to share it here.

At the hospital where I work, there is a large duckpond.
So it's not unusual to encounter ducks while walking in or out.
It is unusual, however, to encounter ducks trying to walk INTO the hospital!
What a couple of quacks!

Visit Friday Fragments at it's Summer Home!

And have a wonderful weekend.

Frag Slacker

I have been a Fragment Slacker!  But it's a good thing; we've been busy doing fun things on the past few Fridays.  Today we are leaving in about an hour to go to the Springs, so I am sitting down for a few minutes to Frag!

My youngest daughter and my Mother-in-Law are peas in a pod.  Mary Ellen is a teacher, Elayna wants to be a teacher when she grows up.  They love learning and they're both smart.  They're also both musical; Elayna plays the flute in her middle school band.  Mary Ellen has played piano for many years.  She plays for her church.  She also sings.  She is now giving Elayna piano lessons.

So this week, from Monday evening till Thursday morning, while I worked, Elayna hung out with her "Nana".  They shopped, swam, ate, went to the movies, and went to Wild Waters with friends on Wednesday.  Nana's dog ate Elayna's flip flop; Nana took her shopping and bought her two pair of flip flops and a dress.  (I threatened to start feeding my shoes to the dog!)  Mary Ellen has never had granddaughters, and she absolutely loves my girls!

We all went to Chili's for lunch yesterday and
shared a brownie sundae.
YUM!

Shelbie has been on a Church mission trip in Savannah, Georgia this week.  I've been getting email and text updates.  She will be back this evening, and I can't wait to hear all about it.


Tomorrow we'll be going to my niece's "Baby Sprinkle", a small shower since it's her second girl.  Heather has boatloads of girl stuff but the two girls are 'seasonal opposites'; Hayleigh was born in February and this little girl is due in August.  So we're just having a small sprinkle.  It will be FUN!

Hope y'all had a great weekend and have a wonderful weekend! 

Visit Friday Fragments over at Unknown Mami's place this summer.  

Summer is Here ~~ Friday Fragments

Happy First Day of SUMMER!!!

~ It's been raining a LOT here.  But in the beginning of this week, it was sunny.  WHILE I WAS WORKING.  Now I'm off. And it's freaking raining.

All I want to do is soak up the sun during the day, and have a fire at night.  Is that really too much to ask??
Apparently, yes it is.

~ When things in my life are rough, I dream of snakes and bodies of water teeming with alligators.
I am no dream interpretor, but I have no doubt why I dream of snakes, and it has nothing to do with the slithery bastards in my yard.
Anyway, lately, I have been dreaming of turtles.  Which makes me happy.

Also, baby pigs.  That's a new and delightful one.  How cute is THIS?

~ Speaking of cute....remember our little bulldog puppy, Bo?

Bo now weighs SEVENTY pounds.  He is solid muscle and has no idea he is large.  

He still truly believes he is a puppy and/or lap dog.

He is a sweet, lovable goofball.  I heart him.

~ I will be co-hosting the July edition of Medical Mondays Blog Hop!  I'm so excited!

I have some CRAZY stories to share with y'all.  Never a dull moment in my world!

Have a wonderful weekend, 

and don't forget to visit Friday Fragments at its Summer Home, 

Unknown Mami's place!

Get Your Frag On

Once again, I am EXTREMELY glad that it is Friday.  Like, so glad I could kiss the calendar.

School's out for Summer.  Happy about that as well!

We had a really good time on Thursday evening.  Byron and I and all of my kids went to my parents' house for dinner.  My son's friend Nic also came along.  AND...my Mother-in-Law came!  This was her first time visiting my parents' house.  We had BBQ ribs and baked potatoes (cooked by me), yellow and zucchini squash (cooked by Shelbie), and a delicious strawberry dessert (made by my Mama).
I love how my mom and MIL hit it off so well.  They are peas in a pod.  They even like the same BIZARRE snack - a banana sandwich.  WITH MAYONNAISE.  *GAG*

Tim's friend Nic and my parents' dog, Ace

I haven't been thrifting in FOREVER and we're planning on going tomorrow.  YAY!
Then I get to see my Hayleigh-girl, and Byron and my Dad are planning on going fishing.
That should be....interesting.

OK, sorry for the short frags but I'm dozing off and having dreams of monkeys in hospital beds.  I'm not even kidding.

Have a great weekend!

Summer's Coming: Fragments de Friday Free for All

~ Whew, am I glad it's FRIDAY!  This week at work kicked my behind.

~ A friend posted this on his Facebook wall last week, and I found it SO inspiring:

"They can't kill your dreams, so they assassinate your character. Remember, those you don't love you can't hurt you. It feels good to be surrounded by loving friends and family. Everyone isn't so fortunate. #Grateful" 

My dreams will NOT be killed!

~ My girls only have three more days of school left.  I am very much looking forward to summer!  Although, I am slightly in denial that Shelbie will be a SENIOR next year.

~ Is it any wonder that I think my son, Tim,  is the coolest kid guy ever?  How many 20 year old guys do you know who have tea parties with one-year-olds?

I love their expressions.  =)

~ From the "Ya can't make this crap up" files:
I got this email the other day that I just had to share with you all.  I didn't respond at first, so she even re-sent it to follow up.  Can they possibly be serious?

"Cyndy,
We write articles for KennyMyers.com. I came across your site, and thought your readers might be interested in a new article that we wrote. It's called “10 FAMOUS LAWYERS NAMED KEN YOU MAY DEBATE”, and you can find it here:http://www.kennymyers.com/blah/10-famous-lawyers-named-ken-you-may-debate/. If it is something you find interesting and think your readers would as well, you can possibly consider mentioning it on your site. Please let me know if you have any questions. Thank you for your time and I hope you enjoy the article." 


 ....They didn't even offer compensation for this weirdness.
After the follow up email, I replied very simply.

~ The other day my Mom posted a couple of pictures on Facebook from our wedding "reception" party and I wanted to share them with y'all.

Sigh....I adore him.

Such good memories.

Cake Smash!
I love him like a Fat Mama loves wedding cake.
I still love him just as much as I did on our wedding day!
Which was 2.5 months ago.
Hee hee!

~ Check these out ....

On Sunday I am making my first blackberry cobbler of the season.
We are LOADED with blackberries 'round here!  YUM!

Alrighty, my friends!   

Keep calm and Frag On, 
and have a fantastic weekend!

P.S. Those of you who have had some problems with seeing my photos,
could you please let me know if you can see these?
There are 5 photos total, not including the Frag & Free for All Buttons.
Thanks!

Family, Friends and Frags

~ I worked a weird schedule this week.  A co-worker asked me to switch a day with her.  She is the same one who switched with me in March, enabling me and Byron to run off and get married last-minute, so I was happy to help her out.  I worked Monday and Tuesday, was off Wednesday and Thursday, and I work Friday night, then I'm off Saturday and Sunday.  It's like having two weekends in one week.  Kinda cool!

~ Dusty is Shelbie's boyfriend.  He has cancer.  His mom is Heather, my friend from high school.  I LOVE her.  She also drives me crazy.  BUT...when she calls and asks me if I can do her a favor and take Dusty to his chemo appointment?  I can't say no to that.
It is so surreal to hear her explaining that the length of the appointment depends on his blood counts and whether or not he needs a transfusion....sigh.
He's strong. He can fight this.  That's what I keep telling myself.

~ Tonight (Thursday night) we went to my parents' house for dinner.  Hayleigh was there and OMG.  She is at my FAVORITE AGE (between one and two).  She is SO funny, cute, adorable, etc......I just wanna freeze her!  She sings, dances, talks, plays,  And my kids adore her.

~ This weekend we're going to the Springs to celebrate a friend's birthday and Memorial Day.
I can't wait!  I love this time of year.


~ More and more every day, I realize that my husband is the perfect man FOR ME.

Hope y'all have a great weekend!! 

Super Silly Sleepy Fragments

~~ I had a really great week at work.  The icing on the cake was, I got my first official written positive feedback from a patient.  She is a former ICU nurse from another local hospital.  I also happened to walk in and overhear her on the phone telling her husband how awesome I was (in fact, she threatened to fire him as her caretaker and replace him with ME).  Sometimes, I love my job!

~~ I worked Wednesday night and stayed up all day today (Thursday).  We had errands to run, then I just hung out with the hubby, MIL and the girls.  I got silly-tired in the evening.  We were all cracking up.  I even had my totally NON-giggly husband giggling.
{In fact, I have laughed a LOT this week.  I guess I'm just easily amused......}
On the way home, I was just bleary-eyed exhausted.
However, I am currently at the point of Past Tired.  I've been up for 31 hours now, and am sitting in my bed on the computer.  Please send Mr. Sandman my way.

~~ I am incredibly blessed, and was reminded of that today.  I had two people I love dearly, do something for me that showed me how very much they love ME.  It was overwhelming.  And wonderful.

~~ Y'all, this is dead-on accurate.

~~ And I just plain LOVE this.

~~ My Mama posted this on my Facebook.  It reminds me so much of our home.  I love it.

~~ My friend is pregnant with her first baby and this is how they announced it to her Mother-in-Law.  I LOVE it!!!

Wishing y'all a wonderful weekend!  

Pretty Much

** Thank you all for your comments on Shelbie's artwork!  I showed them to her and she loved it.  =)


** My sweet hubby is taking me away to the beach for my birthday!  Y'all - I turn 40 on Saturday!  WOOT WOOT It honestly doesn't bother me AT ALL.  We have a lot of fun plans and I'm excited!  St Augustine - my favorite place on the planet - I can't wait!

** I am so blessed with an AWESOME Mother-in-Law this time around.  Not only that, but my parents actually have a relationship with her- so much so, that we are all celebrating Mothers' Day at  MIL's house.  I'm cooking! This is so much nicer than dividing time or alternating years.  It's all one big, happy family!

** Also, I pretty much have the best son on the planet.  He is 20 years old but he still tells me he loves me every time we talk on the phone - even when he's at work, surrounded by guys.  And he says it FIRST.  He is also taking care of our pets while we're away this weekend.  He pretty much is awesome.  Proud Mama right here!

** So, that's pretty much all I've got.  I'm out for the weekend.  Wishing you all the best, and a wonderful Mother's Day!

Happy Frag-Day

I am so happy that Mrs 4444 is using my button idea!  It came to me last Friday as I was composing my fragments and I just thought it was TOO cute.

Remember I told you that I stopped drinking soda?  I haven't fallen off the wagon yet - AND I have lost 3 lbs since quitting DIET soda.  Go me!

Last night there was a curriculum fair at Elayna's school and an art show at Shelbie's school.
The main draw of the curriculum fair (for the kids, at least) was a teacher/administrator dunking booth.  It was rainy and cool and I felt bad for the teachers!  But they were good sports.

Both Shelbie and my stepson, Tyler, had art in the show.  I am going to do a whole post featuring Shelbie's artwork (she had quite a few pieces, plus I have a framed piece of hers from last year that she gave me) because I am just SO proud of it!  But I will share Tyler's two pieces here:

The boy likes fish.

This is my yard right now.

It has rained, and rained, and rained, and RAINED.  I am OVER it.  Our road is darned near impassible; if we didn't have a four wheel drive, I really don't think we'd make it.  Enough already!  Mama needs SUNSHINE!

Had we not eloped, we'd have been getting married tomorrow.  Here on our property, the aforementioned wetlands.  I can't imagine how stressed I would be right now! I'm more happy than ever that we eloped.

Wishing you a wonderful weekend!
Also linking up with Stacy's Friday Free for All!

Keep Calm and Frag On!

~I am seriously hurting over the passing of country music legend George Jones.  There has never been, nor will there ever be, anyone like the Possum.  May he RIP.  I wish I'd seen him live just one time.
One of the things I love about him, besides his amazing voice and talents, is that he totally owned the negative things he did in his past, and could laugh at himself about them.  When he was badly addicted to alcohol and drugs he got the nickname "No-Show Jones" after missing many performances.  Instead of giving up or crying about it, he wrote a a song called "No-Show Jones" and opened most of his concerts with it!
He also was notorious for jumping on his lawn mower to get where he needed to go after one of his four wives would hide his car keys.  He appears in a few different videos riding around on a mower!  I love that attitude.  It's like, Eff y'all, this is me whether you like it or not!

~ We had a good Friday.  Slept WAY in as usual, then we ran a few errands including taming my unruly eyebrows!  YIKES!
Then we ate at Red Robin.  We just got a Red Robin in our town a month ago and it was our first time going.  The food AND drinks were amazing!  YUM!
We both got the Bacon Cheeseburger. I got Pepper Jack Cheese on mine.  It was seriously one of the best burgers I've ever had.  And my drink I think was called Freckled Strawberry Lemonade.  It had fresh strawberries, vodka and lemonade.  Again- YUM!
P.S. I am not being paid for this at all.  
I just love food and want everyone to know how good it was!

~ This week was one of the best I've had at my job.  Part of it was, I had several patients who really touched my heart and I truly enjoyed taking care of them.  But I think another part of it is that I'm really getting into the groove of the job.  I know what I'm doing and what's expected of me and I can do it all with  relative ease now.

~ Oh, I almost forgot!  I am kicking the diet soda habit.  For real.  I did it once before for my gastric bypass surgery, and was supposed to never start again post-op....ooops!  I lasted for quite a while without it...at least a year, I think.  But then I started back.  I've read for years about how horrible aspartame is for your body, but I ignored it.  I buried my head in the sand.  But no more.  I am done poisoning myself.



PS - I HAVE Fibromyalgia, as well as several of the other things on this list.  Scary stuff.  And of course you can find denials about all of this on Aspartame's website as well as the FDA's site, but I'm not buying it.

~ Hope y'all have a good weekend!  I'm off to do a quick clean up of the house so I can relax all weekend.  =)

 

  ~ This song will always & forever give me chills.

Just a Little Random Fraggin'

~~Well hellooo my friends!
I had a very good Friday.
My mother-in-law and I went to lunch together, just the two of us.  I just love her, such a sweetie.  We had a great time.  Then we picked Elayna up from school.

~~Then we all (hubby, MIL, me, Tim, Elayna, and Shelbie) went to Tyler's baseball game.

Then MIL, hubby and I and the girls went to a pizza place for dinner.

YUM!!!

I am so glad the weekend is here.  My girls are here, my son will probably be with us tomorrow - we are going to my parents' house to help with yard work, since my dad is not well right now.

~~~~To DD- Drink on, my friend.  Cheers.  Keep digging.  MUAH. (PS - really? up at 3:20 a.m. commenting on my blog?  CRAY CRAY!!!!)

Have a fantastic weekend!!!!!

A Day Late and a Dollar Short

....as usual!
I have an excuse.
I've been busy.  I'll share all of the pictures on Sunday, but here's a sneak peek.....

Tonight (Friday night) was Shelbie's Junior Prom.
I know I am biased, because she is MINE, but....O.M.G.  She looked SO, SO beautiful.  I couldn't stop the tears, looking at her and her beautiful friends whom I've watched grow up since middle school.  They are so confident, poised, and lovely.

After pictures they headed off to dinner.  Shelbie and my new stepson, Tyler, ate dinner at the same restaurant and one of Shelbie's friends took a pic of the two of them together.

Byron, my mother-in-law, and I went out to dinner together.  We had a great time.  I really lucked out in the MIL department this time around.  She loves me and my children.  She's sweet and SMART and a wonderful person.  She, of course, adores her son and so do I.

OK one more.  Then I'm outta here.

Me & My Girl

It's bedtime for this girl.  We're going to hang out with the MIL tomorrow.  I plan on tanning by her pool!
Hope y'all have a wonderful weekend!!