Dishing It Party..Summer Rewind.

YEA!  It's time for Amanda's Dishing It Party!  WOO HOO!  Come party with us!!



The topic for the month of August is about Summer favorites. 


~Did your family go on any trips this summer? Which was your favorite? 
We didn't go on a big vacation this year, or any recent year actually.  We did spend several weekends at Mom and Dad's house at the lake, which is always wonderful.  We had many, many good times. 

Tubing is so much fun!

Napping on the boat.

Good food at the lake!  YUM!

We had a wonderful 4th of July at Mom and Dad's with our "favorite cousins" (Hey Jamie!!) and my sister's family and my brother and the best SIL and BIL evah! 

Then we spent some time in Texas at my in-laws and again with my SIL/BIL. 

This is us at Hubby's cousin's lakehouse (more on that later).

We didn't take a big trip, but we had a lot of fun just visiting with family.

~Best new recipe you tried.

You can read about my new favorite recipe here.  It's for Chicken Tostadas and it is fabulous!  Had them last night as a matter of fact.  They ROCK! 

~Most exciting thing you've done this summer.

Well, other than starring in a movie, okay, it was my son's movie, with his movie camera, but I was the star!  Other than that...let's see... Okay, the dictionary defines excite as "something to stir action".  Well, if we use that definition, it would have to be my little one falling off the bunk bed and breaking her arm.  You can read about that here.  That definitely stirred up some action in our house.  And, if I do say so myself, I am good in a crisis.

  Sweet little E with her big pink cast.

~Coolest crafty thing you made or home decor thing you tried.

Okay, to most this will not sound very cool, but it was new to me.  I finally refinished my lovely orangey TV cabinet.  It went from this

to this:

Ahhh.  Much better. 

But, I also very much love this easy little craft.

You can find that post here.

~Best book or magazine issue you read.

I don't have a lot of time to read in the summer.  BUT, after Amanda's July Dishing It Party, I decided I needed a book, if only for a little escapism.  So, by several of y'all's suggestion, I went to the library to get Mary Kay Andrews' Hissy Fit.  I got it three weeks ago and I'm almost done.  I know, it's taking FOREVER for me to finish, but it takes longer to read with a bunch of kids interrupting me.  Anway, it's a great book and I'm very excited to pick up another of her books later this week at the library!  WOO HOO!  I'm looking so forward to reading in the school pick-up line. 

~Coolest new (to you) blog you've found.

Are you kidding?  There are sooo many!  I ADORE Debbie at Words on Wheels, Carrie at Messie Confessions and one of my newest bloggy friends Staci at Lizard 'N Ladybug.  Sweet, precious blogs.

~Favorite bargain or shopping find of the summer.

Okay, it's hot down here in Arkansas and I don't do the garage sale thing with all my kids because I would have to take them out of the car with me and worry about them running out in the streets or breaking the breakables that I would then have to buy, etc.  It's just not gonna happen with four kids.  BUT, the couple across the street had a garage sale and I did find the perfect little table while driving by.

Isn't she cute?

~Your best post of the summer was...?

I love Getting To Know You Thursday, such as this on on romance, this one on career dreams you had when you were little and this post which posed the question, To Which Decade Would You Travel, If You Could, for just a few days.  I like these posts because they spur conversations and through comments, I feel like I'm actually getting to know my fellow bloggy friends.  Love that. 

~What's left on your summer to-do list?

There are eight days left until school starts.  All I am concentrating on is spending the last little bit with the kids and getting them ready for school.  My sweet L, who is autistic, is starting Kindergarten in nine days.  I'm trying not to freak out and cry. 

Wow, it's been a busier summer than I thought.  Hmmm.  It sure flew by fast.  The older I get, the faster it goes.  My Daddy was right about that.

Dishing It @ Amanda's Blog....Summer Reading List

So, my friend Amanda is having another Dishing It Party.  This months topic is about your Summer Reading List.  Hmmmm.  I love to read.  I constantly snuggle up in the window seat with lots of pillows and a good book.  I always have a Raspberry Mocha and plate of cookies on hand too.  Yeah, right!!!!  I'm also a size 2 and a part time swimsuit model. 

Actually, I do love to read, I just don't have a lot of time.  If I sit down to read a book, I end up reading the same page over and over because I'm so distracted from all the "Mommy, I need" and "Mommy, I want" or "Mommy, she/he...blah, blah, blah".  It's so hard to read with lots of distractions!  That's why I only ready five or six books a year, if that.

The books that I enjoy reading are chick books, with the occasional book on autism.  I love Nicholas Sparks books, especially The Notebook, which is also one of my favorite movies. 

I do enjoy Danielle Steele even though they're usually a little predictible.  I love suspense movies, but I don't read murder mystery type books because I need to know the end of the story before I go to bed, or else I won't sleep or I'll have nightmares if I do sleep.  I do enjoy books with a happy ending.  I think there is enough bad stuff going on in the world today, that I don't want to fill my spare time (what little I have), with sadness, fear and other bad things.  I also do enjoy Carly Phillips if I want a "beach read", ya know something quick and entertaining.  Also, as much as I hate sci-fi, I did enjoy the Twilight series very much!

One of the questions was "where is your favorite place to read?"  I usually read in the school pick up line because I am in the car a little over an hour in the afternoon.  That's usually when I read.  I also like to read in the bathtub, but only if I don't have little ones interrupting me constantly.  That's a nice visual, huh?  So sorry about that.

I get most of my books from either my mom or the library.  My mom ready constantly so she usually has several I haven't read. If not from my mom, then from the library.  I rarely go buy books, except for sometimes from the Used section. 

What's next on my reading list?  There is one Nicholas Sparks book I haven't read and the new Safe Haven, due on soon.  I need to get my hands on that when school starts. 

As far as magazines I read, I read Glamour from cover to cover every month.  When I can get my hands on People (too expensive to have a subscription), I read it from cover to cover too.  I also really love my Southern Living, Better Homes & Gardens and House Beautiful. 

Just FYI, if anybody has a child recently diagnosed with autism, I strongly recommend the book Ten Things Every Autistic Child Wishes You Knew.  It's excellent and an easy read.  It helps you understand the way autistic kids sensory issues work.  Awesome book and fairly cheap too.  We bought enough to send to all our relatives to read to help them understand L's issues. 

So, what's your story (HA!  Get it?  I know, I'm a dork!)  Anyway, run over to Amanda's and party with us. 
.