FINE TUNING THE GOLF MUSCLES

Man oh man I can barely remember the days when golf was the

number 1 event of each and every day

Abundant sunshine, icy cold beer for some, and some major

relaxing fun for all

It's been months and months since we've been to our little prairie course

but couples that we scramble with...do NOT get comfortable that we are losing our touch

oh no...

because in our little project that has made us absent from just about everything these days

we have been 

oh so finely

working on precision

focus

being the ball brush

fearlessly exercising the chipping shoulder

no chili dipping allowed

 comfort with distance is the key for the long drives

swing through

and spilling things not blood just as if they were in a bouncy golf cart 

oopsie

We will be back...

PUMPKIN BEER

Or What we call at 822

Punkin Beer

You know it's autumn when this festive specialty beer is placed on the shelves

I've tried them all and this is my favorite

I even have glasses to match my beer

 always freezing in the freezer...because they are 

CUTE!

&

YUM!

The best kind of TGIF includes

a fire in the firepit, football, snackipoos and an ice cold

pumpkin beer!

via google

The History Via Google

Pumpkin beer first became popular as a major component in colonial cups of "flip"—

a standard drink throughout the colonies that mixed rum, beer, and sugar. The 

reason for the mix was simple - those items were much more easily found in early 

America than things needed to produce a more sophisticated brew.

But why use pumpkins instead of malt to make beer? Again the answer was one of 

practicality. Pumpkin was adopted simply because of availability. It is a native 

American plant. In fact it was completely unknown to most Europeans before the 

16th century. On the other hand, good malt was not so readily accessible—

fermentable sugars had to be found where they could, and in the first pumpkin beers, 

the meat of the pumpkin took the place of malt entirely.

Pumpkin's great asset in early America was its versatility. It could be used to make 

good tasting beer, bread, custards, sauce, molasses, vinegar, and, on thanksgiving 

day, pies, as a substitute for what the Puritans said was the "unholy" minced pie.

Here is a method of making pumpkin beer dated to 1771, from the American 

Philosophical Society, Philadelphia::

Receipt for Pompion (Pumpkin) Ale: Let the Pompion be beaten in a Trough and 

pressed as Apples. The expressed Juice is to be boiled in a Copper a considerable Time 

and carefully skimmed that there may be no Remains of the fibrous Part of the Pulp. After 

that Intention is answered let the Liquor be hopped cooled fermented as Malt Beer. 

NOTE-There is no cinnamon, no nutmeg, no malt; it's getting sugars for yeast to 

metabolize from the flesh of the fruit. Hard-up colonists used all sorts of ingreients for 

these sugars, including pumpkin, parsnips, molasses, cornstalks, and more.

Pumpkin beer continued to be a staple throughout the 18th century but its popularity 

began to wane by the early 19th century as the pumpkin itself began to be viewed as 

something quaint and rustic. Further pushing the pumpkin to the brewer's outhouse 

was the new easy access to quality malts thanks to more and more local farmers 

growing it as a cash crop. Pumpkin beer made an aborted entry to brewing as a 

flavoring agent by the mid 1800s but it failed to catch on with the beer drinking 

masses.

Today's pumpkin beers have little in common with their colonial ancestors. Instead of 

tasting pumpkins, modern versions give you 'pumpkin pie in a glass. Many seem to 

use an overbundance of spices such as nutmeg and cloves to cover up the fact that 

they've brewed a very mediocre beer without any real pumpkin as a main ingredents.

Generally speaking, pumpkin ale can be found on store shelves from September 

through November and the more popular bottles tend to sell out quickly as it does on 

draft at bars and restaurants throughout the fall. But where did the notion of reviving 

pumpkin beer originate?

The honor is claimed by Buffalo Bill's Brewery, which has been making their 

America's Original Pumpkin Beer since the late 1980s, using one of George 

Washington's recipes as an inspiration. Although the experimental batches used 

pumpkin as an ingredient, the commercial version stuck with pumpkin pie spices 

instead though they now make an Imperial Pumpkin Ale with some actual pumpkin.

IT'S ALL IN THE LENSE

Yes you guessed it

Bethany!

a pergola at the pool house

because pool equipment needs to be housed and it's not that pretty

and speaking of not pretty

no matter how hard I try...

(hmmm...maybe THAT'S the problem...I don't really try hard enough)

 no matter how hard I might wish I try

I can never really capture the essence of what I see with my camera 

or maybe that IS the problem...

I don't really see...but rather 

FEEL 

and how can a camera be expected to capture a feeling???

(ok...well some can!)

you simply cannot imagine how incredibly lucky I feel to have come so far

 and sadly, just as the summer winds to its end

Most hot dry windy Texas summers leave me lovin' me some Fall 

But this year, I am hanging on the the still hot days because

1. I vividly remember painting these old auction pots Santorini Blue

just wishing for the day they would be by the pool

( Loi?  you can barely catch a glimpse of next year's blue garden among the armillary)

2.  I vividly remember buying these lanterns on sale at Hobby Lobby while I was supposed to be shopping for a mother of the bride dress...wow!  THAT was a long time ago!

3.  I vividly remember my sister giving me this cool candelabra for my summer birthday and buying that gothic arch planter and sneaking in that "it'll do" bistro set among 48 gallons of paint from ACE

4.  I also vividly remember picking up these sea shells in Port Aransas and Punta Cana

and even though my photography leaves much to be desired

I most certainly VIVIDLY remember this

so while my camera seems to do just fine at capturing the ugly stuff

you'll just have to come sit with me by the clean blue water near the cedar pergola,

where we'll drink ourselves some pumpkin beer 

and discuss exactly why it is that umbrellas will not stand up straight!

and FEEL how pretty it really looks!

SEPTEMBER 26, 1980

was a very good year

On the day of my children's birth a tradition has become

that I tell them in full detail about the day they were born

As they have grown older, I still ask

"Want me to tell you about the day you were born?"

Usually, they just give me a chuckle and we move on.  But, if I have them captured in the car or something, I tell them anyway.  They act like they don't like it, but I can tell deep down they really do.

I do it for two reasons

1.  I don't want to ever forget, ever, how good it felt to do one of the best things I've ever done in my life

Me and God...bringing a soul, a light, and child into this world

2.  I don't want THEM to ever forget how grateful I am that God let me and Him

bring a soul, a light and my child into this world

So...it all started out on one rainy fall day...September 26, 1980.  I remember thunder and lightening and a few pains.  I had a meeting that day but thought I'd drop by the doctor's office just to check.  The baby wasn't due until October 14.  

When I went in...I didn't go home...I walked myself across the street to the hospital....

well...it's kind of boring if you're you...

but the story has a very happy middle

that brings us to this day

or this day

and this one

and this one

peace sister

Happy Birthday to the most precious

daughter, sister, mother and friend

a simple girl like me could ever want to have the luck to know

WHAT DO YOU GET

 when you take some

wood

a cute guy with a tool belt

a fast movin' cute guy with a green

?...hmmm...not sure what that is

you put 'em together

on a couple of ladders

and give 'em some space to think

outside the box

what do you get?

I'll show you in a day or two

DIG IT!

This has JUST got to start your week off good!

And if that doesn't this will...see the two doing the pencil jump?

Back left?

yep...that's my kids...look how high they are

almost as high as that bride a groom!

I think they could handle the soul train gig!

RED BUD HALL

I guess I just can't help it

I'm a theme decorator

are you?

I have one word

L.A.Z.Y.

yes...when I was painting this little hallway I did not paint the wood

I just wasn't sure I wanted to and besides sooner or later these doorways will be open arches 

so it was kind of pointless to go to all the trouble

it's like wood trim is unending when you're painting it

but I came across this 

and got inspired

and I was tired of looking out my window to see 

this

so I got inspired more

 to create something pretty and take my mind off that ugly view

 my favorite tree

(this is a pastel from Amy Winton P.S.A.)

my favorite tree is the Red Bud Tree

I love the heart shaped leaves and red flowers

Thank you for a great sale 

Cross Bottle Guy

Thank you friend Linda for this beautiful atomizer

other red bud trees

I painted this when I was in the 2nd grade

love the colors of this cross I bought in Taos

and if my house has one cross it has 400

I google translated words like "linens" to French

French words are so pretty

just hand painted in my own writing in gold paint

This says:

of all the jewels in my possession by far my favorite are

my family

the back of the door lists all the gems I could think of like

diamond, ruby, pearl 

my great grandmother's and my grandmother's vases

don't forget the ceiling is 1/5 of the room

this little niche looks kind of plain, but not too plain with all the added color in the art work

The Red Bud Hall leads into two guest bedrooms and 2 guest baths

I thought it was ok to make it sort of a feminine entry

Kind of sweet don't you think?

OWL GIFT--LAURIE IS THE BEST!

Thank you Laurie

I am so amazed by your

talent
generosity
attitude
way with words

thank you thank you thank you 

for this most precious gift
I treasure it so much
I heart blog friends!

In My Dreams I See

PUNTA CANA

8 Days

Such pretty blue water and the sand was like white baby powder

most of the days were spent here 

we were just steps from the beach

or here..poolside

we did take one excursion from 7-7

legs, golf cart, car, bus, catamaran, speed boat, bus, legs

whew!

Yep..that's me

yep...that's B...and ??  Lots of that!

a bounty of shells...I could not believe

for my jars of shells collection

I should have worn my pirate hat to Saona Island

because I forgot my comb and kind of went Rastafarian

This is about the time I finally gave up on internet and just let it go

THIS is where I was meant to be!

B let it go way before me

uh...I'll have another Coco Loco please...while you're there!

A true Texan getting ready to smuggle contraband

where is that pirate hat?

outside our lobby

good gosh!

don't fall down!

So long lovely place

I will not forget you