A Hydrangea question...

This beautiful hydrangea is just starting to bloom in my yard and I was wondering if any of my blog friends might know the variety or even have a good guess??? 

Memorial Day 2012, Never Forget....

For love of country they accepted death...

-James A. Garfield

Summertime!!!

Summer is here!  School is out, baseball is almost finished, friends have graduated and we are ready!  I am so looking forward to this summer.

This year I want to make sure we experience a true summer, one filled with fun, hot, lazy days and friends.  We haven’t made any plans to go on a trip this summer but that doesn’t mean I don’t want to see new things, meet new people and experience different and exciting things!  I also don’t want to see my boys waste their summer in front of a TV or video games.  I am determined to make this a summer of fun.  Of course, I have to say Pinterest (yep, that again) has given me some major motivation and inspiration for fun things to do and create this summer.  I am going to cook new things, do some crafting and some DIY home projects and play!!  We are kicking it all of tomorrow with a big pool party and I can’t wait. 

What are you planning for this summer? 

Better catch it while you can…it won’t be here forever!

DIY Car Care Tip: Headlight Clearing!

I know you have all seen those headlight clearing kits or even seen advertisements to have it done at local auto shops but I decided to try out a DIY trick I had seen on Pinterest (of course!)  My headlights were pretty fogged over and I thought I was stuck with it or would have to shell out some major bucks to get them shiny and clear again but with NO bucks (my favorite!) and a few minutes I was pleasantly surprised at how well this technique worked. 

Here is a before shot:

Here is what I used, I just brushed my lights

with the toothpaste and rinsed off:

TaaDAAAA...here are the after shots:

Pretty cool, huh? 

Taste of the Symphony 2012, recap!

I am a few weeks late (ok, a month) in posting about theFlorence Symphony Guild's  Taste of the Symphony 2012...I guess you can dock my pay.  This year's event was themed "A Simply Southern Evening" and was thoroughly fantastic.  We had somewhere between 500 and 600 hundred people turn out to enjoy the festivities.  The decorations were lovely and the food was Divine!  It was a wonderful night and has me excited for next years event already. 

Even from the front gate, you knew you were in for an amazing evening!

I love the way the committee dressed up this gate!

The below photos courtesy of Photographs by Andrea

 

The night was filled with friends, lots of laughter, wonderful drinks and probably the best food in the Pee Dee!  The chefs out did themselves this year providing such goodies as Low Country Shrimp & Grits, Quail & Grits, Mixed Seafood Crepes, Lamp Chops, Catfish Stew, Deep Fried Oysters, Blue Cheese Scones with Beef & Horseradish Chive-Cream.  There were also offerings of Sushi, Pork Tenderloin, Clam Chowder, Crab Cakes, Stuffed Mushrooms, Seared Breast of Duck with an amazing Roasted Beet Vinaigrette complemented with Fennel & Sun Dried Tomato Carolina Gold Risotto...not to mention more sweets than you can name.  I just can't say enough about how much the Chefs do to make this event special and to support the Florence Symphony Orchestra.  The Taste of the Symphony is a showcase of how much talent we have in our area and what a wonderful community we live in!

 

 

So, y'all mark your calendars for April 18, 2013 for the next Taste of the Symphony and join us for a fantastic night.  For more information on upcoming Florence Symphony Guild events please feel free to email: FlorenceSymphonyGuild@gmail.com

Thank you to Photographs by Andrea for your support!

Summer in My South...

Source: southernnest.com via Allie on Pinterest

17 Weeks Seizure Free and a Ketogenic Diet!

Last week we had a check up with DS2's neurologist at MUSC.  It has been 17 weeks since he has had a seizure and he is doing great.  We have been treating his seizure disorder with the Modified Atkins version of the Ketogenic Diet.  Yes, there is a diet that has worked wonders for many children with Epilepsy! 

With the guidance of his Neurologist, we chose not to medicate but to try the Ketogenic Diet and so far we are seeing wonderful results.  I haven't mentioned our treatment plan in detail before as I wanted us to have a few months to get into the groove with it and see what the results were.   He has been seizure free for 17 weeks and his headaches have practically gone away (he does occasionally headaches still but they have been treatable with over the counter Ibuprofen and he hasn't had to leave school because of them.)

The Atkins version of the Ketogenic Diet isn't as rigorous or as difficult to manage as the pure Keto. Diet but it is still a challenge as we have him at around 15 carbs per day (YES...per day.)  The biggest changes for us are that we no longer eat fast food out for the most part and have to plan for all his meals and snacks ahead of time.  I sometimes feel like my entire day is spent planning what/when he will eat.  He is tolerating the diet well (with only a few complaints of "I just want a piece of bread!") and we haven't had any negative side effects thus far.  I realize if his seizure control changes we will have to revisit the treatment plan but for now I am so happy that it seems to be working.  His Neurologist was practically giddy at the appointment and how well DS2 is doing.  All blood work looks good and things are progressing better than I could have imagined. 

I know things can change unexpectedly and we will deal with them if they do.  I am so thankful for this treatment plan and how it has helped my little guy.

DS2 is doing great in school, playing baseball and life is as it should be for a 10 year old boy!

Hydrangeas and Where Have I Been?

I can't believe it has been over 2 weeks since I last updated!  Where is the time going???  As is our norm, when May arrives it seems my family kicks into over drive in the busyness department.  Between baseball, Spring football practices, end of the year school programs, The Taste of the Symphony (which I will share more about in another post!) and all the yard work that we find ourselves doing it seems to be our busiest time of the year...yes, even busier than November & December! 

So, for a quick post I wanted to show you my hydrangeas! 

They are putting on quite a show this year.

I am enjoying them in the yard and filling vases inside as well. 

Last week my Garden Club celebrated the end of our year with our Annual Garden Hat Luncheon.  As is tradition, we all create a hat or corsage using fresh flowers to wear.  This is a peek at mine (yes, it was quite difficult to take a photo of my hat, while wearing it by myself!!!)

I used peonies (my favorite!)