First Outdoor Summer Scape

Some like it hot!  Some do not! Usually, I am among those that like it hot.  But lately, I've been more in the not category.  Today we topped out at 92 degrees, that's a bit of a drop from the last few days that have hit 95 already!  I know..it's too soon already!  Oh well!  I am soooo glad I have my great big umbrella to help.

Since purchasing this beach umbrella last summer to use on my lower deck I have been on a mission to pull together an outdoor tablescape to match.

This means I've looked for lot's of similar colors.

Such as multiple colors in my outdoor seat cushions.

To multiple colors in my dishes...

...and multiple colors in my accessories.

So, I guess you could say I have been planning for one colorful evening outdoors.

I used my red heart placemats today in honor of the upcoming Memorial's day holiday.  We have so much to be thankful for to all those who have sacrificed their lives for us, for there is no greater love then to give ones life for another. 

These melamine plates were purchased from Walmart last year as part of the Better Homes and Garden collection.

I've paired them with my newest dessert plates from TJ Maxx.  I loved how well these plates coordinated with the chair cushions.

 

Just the thought of lemonade cools me down.

I think my gardenias make a beautiful center piece in these glasses.

And they smell just devine, especially in the hot muggy evening of a warm summers day.

I cannot wait for the Mr. to get home this evening so we can enjoy this setting tonight.

Do you think I might need to bring out a fan too?

Maybe?

I am linking this post to Tablescape Thursday at BNOTP.

Be sure and visit the link above for more beautiful table scapes and inspiration.

Thank you for visiting me today!

Mary

Just Breathe !!!

I can feel the magic floating in the air
Being with you gets me that way
I watch the sunlight dance across your face and I've
Never been this swept away....

 I know the lyrics of this song are not about the subject of my post but, I think it certainly applies.  If you have your sound off please by all means, turn it up...and enjoy because I love this song and I am in love with my Gardenia's too!

I am so excited that my Gardenia's are finally blooming this year!  Do you remember when I planted these by the front steps last year?  I wanted our guests to be able smell the beautiful aroma of gardenias when they come to our front door.  Still don't know why I waited so many years to change this, but I am so glad I finally did!

Welcome!  Can you smell them too?

This side may need a little more attention this year.

But Oh, what an aroma this side is producing!

This huge Gardenia has been here in the back ever since we moved in. 

It is so full of blooms it is top heavy.   I will need to prune it carefully very soon after it finishes blooming.  This bush will bloom all summer long.

I literally could smell it last night while sitting on the screened porch which is on the other end of the deck.

It's so aromatic.  I just love it!  Don't you just love the smell of gardenias too?

Near the garage I have a few plants that are not blooming quite so profusely.

For so few blooms though, it is still putting out a beautiful scent.

And they are just so gorgeous!  Yes, ladies I am totally in love!  I have always planted Gardenias around my homes because I have been in love with the beauties for so long. 

They are positively intoxicating!  So come on....

just breathe!!!

Thanks for stopping by today for

Take a Look Tuesday!

Love to hear from you if you!

Have a great day!

Mary

In my Other Life

Hello Friends!  I have such a fun and special treat for you today.  For my Meditating Monday post I am submitting my own version of "My Other Life". 

  I have created this post after seeing my friend Rhonda's post over at Shellbelle's Tiki Hut.  I just loved her other life!  Be sure and visit her post here if you get the chance.  She encouraged us to do the same and I just couldn't pass it up.  Now,  I confess it didn't take much meditating though for me to figure this one out.   I already know exactly how I would love to live in my other life, given the chance. So, without more yakking on and on about it, let's get to it!

Of course in my other life it should go without saying that I would have plenty of this!

This would be my home and lucky for me it is right here on the shores of Lake Murray, SC, not far from where I live now.  Honestly, I would not want to live anywhere else at this time because most all my friends and family are nearby.  This house is actually for sale right now and I have provided a link to the tour at the bottom of this post.  While it is not among the finest or most exclusive homes on our lake, it is still out of our reach of affordability.  However, this home has every single aspect of casual living on our lake that I would love.  It has the million dollar view and..... 

 

a fantastic outdoor backyard!

It is also on deep water so we can park our boat, or anything bigger we might decide to get.

I would be able to do all of this because I would own my own little gift shop that would look much like this one.  It would be an old house that was renovated by me and stocked to the rafters with all sorts of goodies.  It would also have a small cafe run by one of my closest friends, or hey, maybe my son, if I could ever get him to return home from Charleston.  Mostly importantly, it would be hugely successful with oodles and oodles of customers daily!

I would want to own one of these on a beach nearby somewhere. 

So, I could spend lot's of time doing this with a few of my besties, on girls only weekends.

I would have quite a struggle deciding exactly where to put down roots for a vacation home.

But would look for a spot that would easily accommodate this must have pleasure!

I would have a close circle of friends who enjoyed going on chartered sailboat tours regularly to exotic places around the world.

 

We would always have plenty of these on hand.

And we would all share a similar mindset. 

 LOL!

Of course, there would be no real life worries among all my family and friends, and they would always feel like this!

My bags would look much like these.

From traveling to places like Greece....

Venice, Italy...

...Ireland

and Mexico.

I would eat foods like this...

tons of this.....

...and this...

and plenty of this....always! 

  And miracously, never ever gain a pound!

 I would still dress like this...in my jeans.

...And would always enjoy shopping for clothes that fit, because I'd look like this.

Forever!

Yes sirree, friends, that would be my other life. 

 Now how do I get it back from Cindy Crawford?

LoL!

I may not enjoy the life above but I do love the life I have and cannot complain.

Would you?

That was fun!   All of the photos shown above are not mine, with the exception of my sailboat pics, and were borrowed from the internet.  Be sure and click the link below entitled Island Treasure, for a complete tour of the home that is for sale on Lake Murray that I love, if you are interested in more beautiful eye candy. 

Thanks so much for joining me today on my daydream adventure!

Have a great day!

Mary

ISLAND TREASURE

No one knows about the day or the hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. – Matthew 24:36

Are you still here?  So am I! Have we all been left behind?

  Now, before you think I've gotten off track and have lost my focus in showing you Jesus's love for you, please just hear me out.  I most definitely have not!  If you read and retain anything from any of my Sunday posts,  I want you to remember this, he LOVED you so much that he left "His Word" for you..The Bible. 

I am always amazed at how many overlook the single most valuable tool that God has left for us.  Many even discount the words of The Bible as irrelevant altogether.  It is also sad, that so many close off their ears the minute you quote scripture because they do not like feeling preached to, yet will submit blindly to their preachers words.

  It is heartbreaking to think that there are fellow believers out there who expected the world to end yesterday because that is what they had been taught in their religious circle.  Heartbreaking because had they read the Bible for themselves, I am sure red flags would have been going off in their heads immediately.   Heartbreaking because there may be many whose faith is now shattered. 

Last night, I was talking with my husband after he returned home from work on Saturday, about how the world had not ended.  I was telling him how the thing that has struck me the most about all of this is that there are Christians who are obviously not reading the Bible at all.  He then told me he heard on the radio at work, of a man who has made quite a bit of money selling pet care and lodging for those pets who would be left behind. That man has also been in business for several years now.  Again, I was totally dumbfounded! 

As a fellow believer who has tried and failed to "grow" in faith without committing to reading The Bible, I can speak from experience.  If you truly want to know God, if you want to retain the Love that Jesus has for you, if you simply want to grow in your faith....then read your Bible.  God has not left us empty handed to figure it all out alone or to rely only on the words and stories from others.   You can rely on HIS Word!

Please join me in prayer today for those whose faith may be at a crossroad.  Pray that they will not turn away but instead will grow and deepen their faith.    I also pray that many, myself included will also have a renewed commitment to reading and relying on The Bible. 

Thank you for Sharing Jesus Sunday with me!

Have a blessed afternoon!

Mary