Fashion Friday - My favorite color!

Oops, I broke my streak last week!  It was an outfit repeat so I guess that happens.  This week to put an exclamation point on the end of the week I pulled out a simple dress in my favorite color that I just happen to have earrings from Pretty N Bliss in Florence, SC that coordinate perfectly!  I found this dress early in the summer at the Hair Shack and Clothing Boutique in Dillon, SC.  I love finding out of the way little boutiques with something that not everyone will have.  It was paired with my go-to nude pumps and  I also wore a ring passed down to me from my Mother for a splash of the ocean on my hand.   This is truly my favorite color.  I am drawn to it in my decor and my clothing and pretty much anything else.  I reminds me of the blue that can only be found in warm Caribbean waters...which my soul wouldn't mind seeing again soon.

Things We Surrender: A Lowcountry Novel by Heidi Hostetter - My Thoughts

I just finished up Things We Surrender: A Lowcountry Novel by Heidi Hostetter and I have to admit the cover of the book drew me in.  I was hot off Karen White's Tradd Street series when I saw this and I was still in a Charleston mood.  When am I not in a Charleston mood? 

I have read one prior book of Ms. Hostetter, The Inheritance, so her move to Charleston  interested me.  Honestly, I have a hard time not loving a book set where my heart loves, in the South Carolina Low Country. Things we Surrender follows a family of strong females (family by blood and friendship) as they rediscover their bonds and begin to heal from a lifetime of hurt and misunderstandings. It was a good start but I will be looking for a sequel as the author does leave a wide door at the end for an adventure for some Southern Belle's in Rome!

For a quick fun, read this is definitely worth picking up.

The Guests on South Battery (Book 5 from the Tradd Street Series) by Karen White - My Thoughst

I told you I have been reading again and completely understanding why I used to love it so very much.  It is the BEST escape from the world.  I can't watch a movie or television show and get the same escape.  Give me a good book and some time and I am truly in heaven.

This past week I dove back into the Tradd Street Series with the only book in the series I hadn't read.  Several years ago, when I was part of a book club, we read through this series up to the point there were no more books to read. So, imagine my excitement when I saw there was an addition to the series.

First, I should say I really like Karen White, as a writer, but I have liked some of the Tradd Series books more than others.  I liked ALL of them because they are set in the one city I have never lived in but have a great homesickness for....Charleston, South Carolina.  Normally I also don't read much that involves ghosts and spirits but these books have been an exception because I really like the history that is usually sprinkled in to spice the story lines up.  The Guest on South of Battery did not disappoint and actually finally, after four other books, began to warm my heart to the protagonist, Melanie Trenholm.

Though, Melanie is the main character of the series she was pretty much my least liked character and her peripheral characters, often in the form of ghosts or spirits who had lost their way, endeared the series to me. With this book Melanie was finally developed a with a bit more dimension and I think maybe I misjudged her.  IF you love the Low Country, beautiful, historic homes and, of course, Charleston and a ghost story or two...this just might be the series for you!

Back to the Blog...

It has been a long while since I have blogged. I have been struggling with some changes in my life and just became pretty much overwhelmed with them for several months so I had to pull back on the blog. But I figured I had better jump back in or so much will have passed that I won’t have a clue where to start.

First off, the main struggle I have faced is we are moving…yes, again.  It was only 3 years ago when we made our last move and we truly hoped it would be the last one.  Well, not so.  My DH began working for a company based out of Edenton, NC last August and I stayed here in SC for the school year.  Although logically the move was something I understood, somewhere after Christmas I just locked down and got pretty depressed about it.  My boys aren’t happy about the move either, which has made it even harder. Our oldest son is in high school, and a move during high school is so hard.  He truly loves it here and loves his school and, of course, his friends. We have even discussed trying to continue splitting our time between SC and NC until he graduated but that would mean we would have to do it for 3 years (including this current year) and that is a long time not to be together except on weekends.  It would mean DH would have to miss out on everything (pretty much) that the boys are involved in and I would be single parenting 2 boys.  I will say that this move has been the hardest of all of the moves we have made.  I am totally in love with our home and this town and the idea of leaving it all has really been a challenge.  But, I suppose I have finally come to some level of acceptance and am ready to just get it over with

. 

Recently we went to our last Phi Mu Parents weekend at Georgia Southern University!  It was really bitter sweet because our daughter is graduating this week!  I have enjoyed so much sharing her sorority time and seeing her enjoy so many of the same things I enjoyed during my college sorority time.  I am so proud of her.  She has already accepted a job in the Atlanta area which is perfect for her and she is ready to move into a cute little apartment at the end of the month.

Me and my sweet girl

 Also, in other big news... DD got engaged on April 28^th to her boyfriend of a year and a half!  They haven’t set a date yet as he is going to be starting Pharmacy School this summer and then they will figure out the timing of the wedding.  I am so happy and will blog about their engagement soon!

DD & DS2

Phi Mu at GSU

          

So, this mouth is full of bitter sweet things as we have graduations, new jobs, end of school activities and lots of good byes that are going to be so hard to do...not to mention a house on the market (another post as well!) I hope to be blogging semi-regularly in the coming weeks as I have so much to catch up on and lots to share from our little corner of the world.

Weekend Road Trip: St. Helena Island, SC

This past Sunday we decided we had gotten a full 3 weeks into 2012 so a ROAD TRIP was in order.  I do believe we have a bit of gypsy in our bones and we catch wander lust from time to time.  This trip was inspired by a show we saw (about 3 weeks ago...hmmm?) about St. Helena Island, South Carolina and the wonderful Gullah Culture that is rooted there along with a unique style of art and food.

I did mention food, right????

 Our first stop was for sustenance

because you can't explore on an empty stomach. 

We found our way to Gullah Grub.

 It was a  real treat! Chef/Owner Chef Bill Green
has been cooking for nearly a half century
and has been featured on Martha Stewart Living and
Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations.

 Inside the restaurant is filled with great Gullah art and artifacts...

including the snarling gentleman in the corner.

 We all came away full after stuffing ourselves with sampling yummies like Shrimp & Grits, Shrimp Gumbo, BBQ, red rice, lima beans, cornbread and the best collard greens I think I have ever tasted.

After getting nourishment for our journey we headed over to Hunting Island State Park to visit the lighthouse.  The Hunting Island historic lighthouse is the only lighthouse open to the public to climb in the state.  It was tall.....

 Did I mention the plan was to climb to the top?

 up....up....10 stories, as the stairs got narrower

 and narrower with each story

 The view from the top.

See that dot on the ground?  That would be me...yep, I chickened out about 3 stories up.  I had to go back down.  I didn't realized that I apparently have a thing about heights, or maybe small steps???  But don't I look just tiny in this photo?

Check back for my next post continuing all the fun things we saw while visiting Gullah Gullah Island (do any of you remember that show?)

In High Cotton...

My little man (DS2) and I visited a cotton field last week and had some cotton pickin' fun!

I grew up in the South, but not any where cotton was grown. Actually, the South I grew up in wasn't terribley agricultural at all, other than individual gardens. My grandparents always had big gardens but it was in no way farming so living in a part of the South where people still make their livings by farming is quite interesting for us. I am pretty fascinated by the crops and the big, monster machinery used for harvests, and so is my little man.  DS2 picking a huge bag of cotton and I practically had to drag him away.

Moving....

When you hear that word...moving...what does it make you think of? For me it means boxes and big trucks and for sale signs. Yes, the Southern Somedays family is going to be moving. Now, you know why I have been a little lax in my blog posting ~ it has been a bit up in the air around here!

My DH has taken a new job and we will be relocating over the summer, after the children finish up their activities and such. So, to add to all the excitement of DD finishing up her senior year of high school and getting ready to head off to college we are getting ready to head off to a new state!

I say "new" state, but actually it isn't new to us. We will moving back to South Carolina! We lived there for many years in several different towns as DH's job transferred us. We are actually moving back to the town where DD was born (how funny is that?). My oldest DS was also born in SC, and I have family in the Upstate of SC, so this feels like home to us! We loved SC and have often wished we could end up back there. Now we are!!! There are some really big pluses about our new location, one being only an hour from the Beach!!! WhoooHOOOOOO!!!! THAT makes it a winner in our book.

So, I am giving you a heads up...Southern Somedays will probably have a decidedly transitional feel for a while...now where are those boxes?

P.S. I don't know why the spacing on this post looks all wonky....Blogger isn't liking me much today!