These are my people!

Last night my family attended a street festival.  It's a pretty big deal around these parts.  It lasts for a week and there are tons of food booths as well as games and rides for the kids. The first two nights were too cool and rainy for my liking so we didn't go.

But last night was perfect.  The temp was just right.  The sun was setting.  There was a good-size crowd.  And as soon as I hit the main stretch of the festival I was hit with the smell of hot grease and the sounds of a blue grass band performing on the secondary stage.

And I knew I was home.

Yes, there are all kinds of people.  This festival is about the food and much of it is deep fried.  And yes many of the people are larger than they really should be.  And there is a certain stereotype that many of them are rednecks.  But they are my people at "my" festival. People who work hard and spend a week enjoying a festival where all the money raised goes to help churches, schools and other worthwhile organizations.

To that end, we picked up some cash and headed out.  We had  deep fried dill pickle spears, (stromboli), (pronto pup), corn on the cob, giant Texas tenderloin, corn fritters, onion rings, sausage burger, (dippin' dots), a bottle of water and 2 diet cokes. 

Total cost for this dinner for five? Around $45 including parking.  

(Items in parentheses were consumed entirely buy other members of the family)

My parents don't "get it."  They have no desire to go to the festival.  They never were all that interested in it.  But my family and I love it.  Maybe that's just who we are.

 

Once upon a time (and a half)

I found this home plan.  I used to work in a clothing store and some nights were terribly slow.  We catered to older women in my department of the store.  So to help pass time, I always kept something around to read.  Magazines were the best and homeplan books were my favorites.  I remember finding this one and dreaming that one day I would get to live in this house:

Gorgeous isn't it?  It's from one of my favorite home designers. . .Larry Garnett.  You can take a look at the floorplan here

Field trip!

Today I get the honor of going on a special field trip with some really special kids.  It's a feel good day . . . a day when kids who are blessed with healthy bodies and minds spend the day with kids who have special challenges.  For one day they get to see the beautiful minds and spirits of kids who have to work harder at everything.

God bless the children, big and small.

***Updated. . .finally. . .absolute bummer.  The field trip had to be postponed because of rain.  This makes me sad.  It's such a great day for the kids but ruined by rain.  How we manage a drought all summer long and then have rain on so many special days. . . so unfortunate.

Apparently I am on a bit of a house kick

I have been revisiting some of my old "haunts" from back in the days of dreaming about getting to build a house.  This is one that I don't think I saw back in those days.

 I love so many things about this house.  I love the huge living room.  I love the solarium.  I love the sleeping porch.  Yes, a sleeping porch.  For those of you who have had cool lives and never survived a hot summer without air conditioning, sleeping porches were for those brutally hot nights when it just made more sense to sleep outside than inside the stuffy house.

I just go ga-ga over the sleeping porch in this house!

Wolverton Duet?

Who knew this one existed?  Surely not this girl!  I always heard the Claude King version and just recently happened on this duet from Connie Francis and Hank Williams Jr.  It's cute.  I happen to love Connie Francis anyway.  Finding that she recorded a version of one of my favorite songs of all time is a nice little surprise.

Moon River. . . .

So it's vintage week in my head anyway.  Thus it's appropriate that we give a day to remember Andy Williams who died on Tuesday at the age of 84.  One of the great entertainers from days gone by.  His signature song was Moon River.  Listen for yourself. . .one of the best.

Apparently, this is vintage week

I can't seem to break away from my old sites.  With good reason.  I love that step back in time.  And why not?  I can visit from the comfort of my own home.  I wonder if I would love the look of older homes if I had lived through that era. . .without air conditioning.

Anyway, take a look at some cool vintage bathrooms here.  Not just pink tile--just amazingness!