Throwback Thursday - June 21st

Welcome back to another weekly edition of Throwback Thursday where I look back at this day in my blog's history! You can click on the links to be transported back in time to read the different blog posts.

On this day in 2016 work had just begun on our new covered deck. We have loved that new deck so much and it has been a place of some of the best memories... I just wish my mom had been able to enjoy it longer. I feel her presence more on that deck than anywhere else in the house. She loved it so much. Since it's covered it's comfortable in all but the hottest days of the year. We had Cosette's 2nd birthday party out there... so this blog post makes me a little weepy, realizing that it's only been two years since they started rebuilding the porch... but happy that mom did get to enjoy it for awhile.

In 2015 it was a special "Reasons to Love" post but this time it was Reasons to Love Helen - my sister-in-law! It's been three years since that post and I could probably do a hundred reasons to love her now. We have the BEST text message chats! She posts the sweetest pictures of my nephew Finn! She is always concerned about how I'm doing and always asks about my kids and... we could not have chosen a better wife for Bryan. And now she's incubating another niece for me... quite possibly another red-headed niece... and I'm planning a visit to New York later this year to welcome the new Gant Princess!

I was really thinking deeply about our food choices in 2013 and what might be out there that really isn't good for us. I was also having a little trouble with the youngest kid and wondering when he'd step up to the plate (he has, trust me!) I was deep in the swamp with disability and all that fun stuff. Not my best post ever but it's good to see where I was on this day five years ago.

Oh goodness... what a mess was this time six years ago! Moving back down south... trying to sort Austin's situation out... not knowing if I was going to go back to work or end up filing for disability. It was just so much chaos. The important thing is that I survived it all! Moving in with my parents felt like the lowest of the lows at the time but of course, I didn't know then how little time my mom had left and how important it would be for me to be with her. I read this post now and think... Poor Heather just didn't have a clue. How different would we live our lives if we knew what lurked ahead? Lots. I'm telling you, we would live LOTS differently.

In 2011, I was blogging about Vacation Bible School and the pledges we used to make in the assembly every year. They don't do that any more... at least not around here... and I think it's important to learn those things. But it's more important to know why you believe what you believe. I'm still sorting that part out. When you pledge allegiance, what are you really saying?

I was back on the Weight Watchers bandwagon on this day in 2010 and was really encouraged about my food choices. We had also just recently been to the Fox to see the Little House on the Prairie musical, which was great fun! Somehow that particular day ended up being a double post day and I wrote about a customer who hit a bear with his car. You just never know what might happen here!

AND finally... in 2009 I was having a fabulous weekend watching old movies and staying indoors to beat the heat. I have a long history of hating Summer!

Hope you enjoyed this trip back in time on my blog! Happy Thursday!

Reasons To Love Monday - Lowering My Blood Pressure Edition

Skylight allowing sunlight in... 

It's nearly 3pm on Monday as I begin writing this blog and I have LITERALLY done nothing beyond exist so far today. I would feel guilty but y'all... I'm just trying to get this blood pressure down and chilling like it's my job seems like the best way to do it. I've got a pillow stuffed into the skylight so I am mushrooming hardcore. I feel bad that I haven't blogged yet today to give you inspiration for the week (joke... are these posts EVER inspirational? Really?) and I didn't blog yesterday either so I feel compelled to share some of my well rested wisdom with you. And since it's Monday... I'll share some of the things that are keeping my heart beating faster this week... while still keeping my bp down.

Pillow in skylight

1. Pillow stuffed into the skylight? Genius. It's sad that it took me four months up here to figure that one out. Granted... I love the light for things like selfies and insta-stories but when I'm laying here trying to rest... hate it.

2. I slept until 8am this morning. That never happens unless I'm at Marvin's in his very dark, very quiet, very cool room. When I opened my eyes and saw that it was 8, I stretched like a cat waking from an afternoon nap. I think Marvin was actually awake before me this morning and wondering why he hadn't had a response from me yet on the text he sent me late last night. I think in another hour he was going to be ready for a welfare check on me.

3. Marvin got an amazing message last night from Butch Walker - a musician that we both really adore. I worried that Father's Day would be hard for Marvin since it's the first since his son passed away. Then he got this lovely message from this amazing artist and it really boosted his spirits. If you don't know who Butch is, you really should check him out. He is my current jam while I'm in the car... and has been for a few months now. He writes really lovely songs with brilliant lyrics that hit me right in the feels. He had posted on Instagram about Father's Day and Marvin commented about it being his first without his son. Butch sent him a really kind message in response and... you know, there aren't a lot of public figures who really take that kind of time to be genuine to their fans. He earned mucho respect from me for that... and of course, made Marvin's day! So yay!

4. It looks like we're going to have terribly hot weather this week. I hate hot weather so much. I just literally melt... I get the nasty heat migraines... I sweat like a prostitute in church... my hair gets frizzy from the humidity. Summer is not my favorite. We've talked about this. But fortunately... I have very few outdoor obligations this week. I'll be up here in my nest with the a/c on except when I'm at Marvin's nest with the a/c on... avoiding the sunlight like a vampire. And I am literally counting the days until October... when our temperatures finally start consistently getting out of the eighties. There are 104 days until October, if you were wondering.

5. Since I'm nesting hard... I'm (of course) binge-watching tv... and right now I'm watching the series "Madame Secretary" which is a great show! More about it in my next couch potato post but definitely worth a watch.

6. I did climb out of the nest long enough to actually cook food for myself today... I made kraft macaroni and cheese and added a can of tuna. I wanted to toss in some english peas but I was raiding Pop's pantry and he hates peas. I need to do more salads/fresh fruit and veggies but I just haven't felt well enough for a shopping trip. Pop picks things up for me and Austin picks things up for me but I'm due a proper food shop for myself. Maybe tomorrow.

7. I've been working on my ancestry.com stuff... my tree and Marvin's... and I found out that Abraham Lincoln is my fifth cousin, four times removed on my dad's side... at least I think that's how it works out. At any rate, we do have a common ancestor and that totally thrilled me. Genealogy is so much fun for me! Ancestry.com is stupid expensive and I always find myself focusing more on it when the renewal is coming up. Little finds like this are great motivation to keep digging. Posting about my ancestors on my blog is also keeping me motivated. My next post will be about this common ancestor that Cousin Abe and I share so... stay tuned!

8. Tomorrow is Cosy day... and date night... hopefully I won't be so worn out from the first bit to not enjoy the second bit. I try to pace myself. I haven'ta  s much time with her lately because of my headaches/blood pressure/back issues and ... not having a car most of the time. I had her for a little while on Saturday but I didn't feel well and she was missing her kitten so she went home early. I'll have to make sure to get the kitten tomorrow. I think. Marvin is not playing softball this Summer so date night is slower paced (and cooler) and we're home earlier than when he's playing.

Sunday

Today

 9. My blood pressure HAS gone down a little since last week. I was up to 164/120 on Friday (I think it was Friday... maybe Saturday) and then it got a bit better and today was a little better still. I'm not normal yet and that's frustrating since I'm taking four different pills that lower your blood pressure but... at least I don't feel like a time bomb ready to stroke out at any second like I did the other day. I'm keeping a close watch on it, trying to eat healthy(er) and so forth. My next scheduled dr visit is in August and I don't want to have to go in the meantime but if I have another series of high readings, I'm going to have to.

And... I guess that will do it for this week's Reasons To Love Monday! What is your motivation this week? What helps drag you out of your nest to face the hot temperatures? What keeps your blood pressure in a nice, healthy range? I'd love to hear from you!

Reasons To Love Summer

It's the Sunday of a three day holiday weekend which... doesn't mean as much to me as it used to but I do appreciate that for many of you the three day weekend is still important. I love holidays, don't get me wrong, but I cringe at the thought of Memorial Day because it means we have the long, hot Summer stretching before us. I know that technically, Summer doesn't start until later in June but in my mind... and temperature wise where I live... Summer is from Memorial Day until Labor Day.

Summer means sweaty thighs and heat migraines and feeling miserable every time I step outdoors. It means having to remember sunscreen when I go outside. It means bugs. It means frizzy hair. It means kids out of school, roaming the streets and making things more crowded. Because I live in a tourist destination it means traffic and longer lines and not being able to go anywhere near Helen. Out of all the seasons, I like Summer the least.

And let's be real, the past few Summers have majorly sucked for me. I had a hysterectomy. We had to fight for visitation with Cosy. My mom got sick around this time last Summer and never got well. I haven't mentioned this publicly but Austin got in some legal trouble last Summer that caused us all a lot of frustration. Summer has not been good to me but Summer is here, just like a Monday and must be lived through, no matter how I feel about it. So just like Monday... I'm going to dig deep and find a few Reasons To Love Summer! Here goes:

1. Fresh produce. I love a good farmstand with freshly picked, local produce. Our produce around here in the off season travels further since we are further from Atlanta, the nearest transportation hub and therefore isn't as fresh as I would like. But our local, homegrown stuff can't be beat! There are a few farmstands around and a farmer's market on the town square every weekend and even the bakery sells fresh produce! Corn and watermelon and peaches and tomato sandwiches... yum! A sub-category to that would be boiled peanuts but you can really get boiled peanuts year round... and I learned how to make them in the crockpot so I have them whenever I want.

2. I know I mentioned my frustration with tourist traffic but honestly, tourism is our bread and butter up here. Austin works for the Old Sautee Store and Market which probably has a lot more tourist customers than locals. He's getting longer hours and more workdays while business is good so... tourists = money. I'll eat at my favorite local places during the Winter.... and they'll still be in business during the Winter because of the tourist dollars that keep them running year round.

3. Tourists come here because this is a lovely place to visit... and you WOULD want to live here. Even just a little grocery run reminds me how much I love this little corner of the world. It's small and quaint and charming. People are friendly. The pace is slow. Even though we have traffic - especially during the weekend - I've learned the times that I can go and not have to deal with crowds. And our traffic doesn't even begin to compare with Atlanta traffic so... I really can't complain.

4. Now that Austin is driving I rarely have to leave the house. I literally have not stepped foot outside since Friday morning. I won't hibernate ALL Summer but I can try to avoid the hottest days, at least the hottest part of the day since I don't have to take Austin and pick him  up. This weekend my blood pressure has been up so I'm trying to rest as much as I can and I'll have to check with the doctor on Tuesday.

5. Lord willing and the creek don't rise... this will be an easier Summer than the last two. In 2016 we went two months without seeing Cosette and it shattered my heart in pieces. Last Summer my mom was sick and passed away in August. We worked so hard to take care of her. I can't even fathom a Summer that could possibly be as hard as the past two. I don't feel like I'm tempting fate by saying, it can't possibly be worse.

6. I'm looking forward to good times with Cosy and Oliver this Summer. She FINALLY is no longer afraid to get in the water. Now that Austin can drive, I can be away from home more so I can spend more time with Oliver. I can do things that I haven't really been able to do the past few Summers because I had to be around to keep the household running.

7. At the end of the Summer I'm getting  a brand new niece and I have plans to travel to New York City to spend some time with her family when she gets here! Nobody loves Gant babies more than I do! My sister-in-law is really good about posting photos and videos of my nephew, Finn and I'm telling you, that guy has the BEST LIFE! He's a real New Yorker and I just love seeing him out and about in the city. Being able to see another little one just like him - hopefully with the same curly red hair- is going to make it double the fun for me!

8. My Winter uniform is basically hoodies and leggings. My Summer uniform this year is this dress from Walmart. I have four of them: black and white striped, grey and white striped, pink and orange striped and olive green and white striped. They are only $9.96 and I love the fit on me. It's the softest material you can imagine. Packing for my time with Marvin is easier because I just throw a few dresses in my weekend bag. (Although, to be accurate, since I've started blogging I also take my laptop to his house and that sucker is heavy so... weight wise, my bag is about the same.) I usually wear this dress with keds... which are also part of my Summer uniform. I have them in white, grey and red for this year. I also have a couple of maxi skirts and a few other dresses... but definitely my Summer uniform means wearing pants as rarely as possible.

9. My final (and maybe biggest) Reason to Love Summer this year is my sweetheart. We didn't really start seeing each other until mid-September last year so this is our first Summer together. He hates Summer almost as much as me, as far as the heat and humidity are concerned. This is a man who sleeps with a fan on himself year round so I know that as much as he can help it, we won't be hot when we're together. I'm looking forward to our adventures together this Summer. When you're with the right person, even the bad times aren't so bad.

So what about you? Do you love or hate Summer? What are you looking forward to this Summer? Let me know in the comments below or on my link on my facebook page. Love and hugs and Happy Memorial Day, y'all!