Ladybugs 🐞🐞🐞, it’s time for Currently 08.2021. As always, on the first Wednesday of the month, I am joining my friend Anne at In Residence for this link-up. In this edition we are sharing what we are currently: admiring, anticipating, enjoying, saving and spending. If you missed last month’s Currently post, you can read it, here.
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CURRENTLY 08.2021
As I began this post I was just counting the hours, minutes and seconds (10 hours, 39 minutes, 14 seconds) til we got on the plane the next morning heading for South Padre Island. Had planned to finish it up the post while on vacation. But the Internet at our condo was rather hit or miss. When my computer froze one night, I gave up trying to blog.
Home Again, Home Again, Jiggity Jig
We are home now. Got home last night and fell into bed. While I missed the sound of the surf, I didn’t miss the sand in our sheets!! We had a few hiccups on our trip but there was lots of sun, sea and sand. Got the laundry all washed up today. Even trying as hard as we did to shake and wash out the beach of everything before packing it back up for home, we still managed to bring home enough of the stuff to fill a child’s sandbox.
Yet, here I am currently…
Admiring…
the beach. The photos we took at South Padre Island. Powdery off-white sand, warm, clear Gulf waters. The shells I found. My tan lines!! Spectacular sunrises and sunsets.
Anticipating…
the beach. Our next trip to the playa, that is. We had a wonderful time at South Padre but PC and I both prefer all-inclusive resorts to having a condo with a kitchenette and having to cook. One morning I made this breakfast casserole for everyone. It is quick and easy. My mother-in-law May shared the recipe with me. But I found it on Pinterest, too. Would probably be really good with some crumbled sausage or bacon mixed in.
Enjoying…
the beach. Its sights and sounds. Water lapping at the shoreline. Thunder when a summer storm threatened one afternoon. Seagulls. Children laughing. Old rock and classic country songs competing with each other for air time up and down the beach. Beach snacks and a cold beer.
Saving…
memories from…the beach. In the form of photos, a few sea shells, and a lot of love tucked away in my heart.
Spending…
too much money at the beach. But I will get back to saving. Our Seabreeze Condo was a 2 bedroom so my sister Valerie came down to vacation with us for a few days. It had all the comforts of home.
Oh, I do love the beach. Currently and forever.
Hodgepodge
Because I don’t do a hodgepodge post with Joyce every week, I didn’t realize there wouldn’t be questions to answer this week. Joyce is entertaining company and wanted to enjoy every precious moment with them. I applaud, you, friend!! The hodgepodge questions I am answering today were shared on Joyce’s blog, From This Side of the Pond, last week.
1. Four words that tell us something about your July? Baseball, beach, birthdays, babies.
2. Four of your favorite summer foods? Fancy you should ask. I shared them in a recent post, here. Recipes and all. But one thing I failed to mention there was ice cream.
3. What were you doing at a quarter past four yesterday? Sitting on board a Southwest Airlines plane waiting to depart Harlingen, Texas for Dallas. Then Dallas to home.
4. fore!, four letter word, four sheets to the wind, ten-four, 24/7, four eyes, these four walls….pick a ‘four’ phrase and tell us how you relate currently. Tough one. I guess these four walls…as in, I am glad to be back home, within these four walls of our house. While I love love love the beach, it wouldn’t be as special if I could go all the time. Glad to be home so I can anticipate my next beach vacay. Whenever that might be.
5. Something you own that is four years old? Our pool. With all of its many issues, it’s still a great place to relax…if I can ignore the cracked concrete and rusting rebar poking through the plaster.
Then…
Now…
6. Insert your own random thought here. I just received an invitation to sub in a library where I did a long-term sub job once before several years ago. Trying to decide if I want to accept it or not. Looking at my bank account after our vacation and then thinking about Christmas right around the corner, I think I need to. But only if it is for a short time. And for long-term sub pay, which is twice the rate of short-term pay. Here is a photo from the Whitaker library taken one of the first days I worked there in 2017.
Summer Goals Update
Have made a little forward progress on my summer goals.
Finish the spring cleaning –
downstairs, garage, freezer in the garage, and the storage shed. Had started on the downstairs guest room before we left for the beach. And have begun weeding through my many seasonal decorations. As much as I have loved decorating for holidays and different seasons, my numerous storage bins in the garage have been a bone of contention with PC. Gave away a lot of my summer decorations a few weeks ago. But my fall things will be the hardest to part with. Will get back at it. Tomorrow.
Write at least 2 blog posts on my original life after retirement theme –
have moved away from my original direction and intent for blogging, time to get back on track. Thankful to Leanne for extending an invitation to me to guest post on her blog. I shared my struggle to recover my sense of belonging since retiring. You can read it, here. Will be writing another post to my original theme in the next few days.
Run the equivalent of a marathon –
keeping track of how much I run these days, want to run 26.2 miles by summer’s end. I am trying to keep track of what I run on my Sentence a Day entries. According to what I ran in July, I am up to 8.6 miles. Plus 10.1 miles in June. Going to soon have this goal in the bag.
YOUR TURN
What’s going on in your life currently? What would your responses be to this month’s prompts? If you have a currently post, be sure to link it up with everyone else’s over at Anne’s. Click here to be whisked away to her blog and link up party.
Thank you for stopping by. Hope all is well in your world.
Hugs and kisses,
Baseball, beach, birthdays and babies What could be better? Beautiful photos!
Thank you, Donna. It was a pretty good month. And a great vacation. Nothing like the beach.
Glad you had such a great vacation time with your family!
Thank you. We sure did enjoy our time together.
Looks like great fun. I have friends who spend their winters at South Padre Island and they love it there. My hubby wasn’t crazy about the beach, because of…. sand! Sure can be a relaxing trip though. Glad you had fun.
Iris
Wow…what a coincidence that you have 2 friends who love South Padre!! I would gladly go back. We have vacationed a number of times at Galveston and once at Corpus Christi. South Padre was the prettiest. But the most expensive, too!!
Home again, home again, jiggety jig! Love it! Just said that to myself yesterday when getting home from a short outing. My mom used to say that when we would get home from places. Glad you had a great getaway! I, too, always find it quite nice to get back home again. Somehow you just can’t beat the comforts of home! Enjoyed your post. Interested to see if you take that job. Once I retired, I was D-O-N-E. I would volunteer if asked, but not go as a paid sub. Good luck with your decision!
Thank you so much for coming by. I am always excited to hear from you. I did accept the job when they told me it would only be a month. I can do anything for a month…surely!! And they are paying $164 a day. Hurray! Will help me rebuild my Christmas Club account that I borrowed from for our beach trip. Merry Christmas to me.
Oh, wow! That job is exciting news! Can’t wait to hear how it all goes! And you’re right…the month will fly by! Congratulations!
Thank you, Gale. I am a little nervous…the libraries are using a new circulation system so will have to learn how to use it but have been playing around with it here at home. Thank you for the encouragement.
What a wonderful time on South Padre. The money is well spent for the experience. But we are with you…I’d rather not cook on vacation!!
OXOX
Jodie
http://www.jtouchofstyle.com
All inclusive next time. Cooking wasn’t much but on vacation who wants to even boil water??
Hi Leslie – so glad you enjoyed your time away. Thanks again for being my guest on the blog – and I’m looking forward to returning the favour in a few weeks. Loved your thoughts on ‘belonging’ – so many of can relate to the struggle. Good luck with deciding what to do about the subbing job – hope it works out well for you x
Hi there, thank you for the sweet message. We had a great beach stay but it was nice to crawl into bed at home without sand on the sheets and our feet!! I am waiting to hear if the school district approves a substitute at the school that has contacted me to work. I don’t want to work long but would like to replenish my Christmas Club account that I borrowed from for the beach!!
There is something about being on a beach that really refreshes your soul isn’t there? It’s amazing where you find the sand though even when you are home! It sounds like you have banked a lot of happy family memories so even if you have spent a little more than expected, it was money well spent 🙂
Good luck on your unexpected job offer, you will love being back there!
I’m with you about the beach vacay – it’s nice to have a kitchen and save some money BUT when you are cooking and cleaning it doesn’t feel like vacation! Glad you had fun!
xo,
Kellyann
Thank you!! We did have fun. And I managed to talk PC into 2 dinners out. And pizza in so there wasn’t a horrible amount of cooking going on.
Happy to hear you had a good trip. I like the run a marathon equivalent idea – I can definitely do one within a month!
I’m so glad you had a wonderful getaway! The photos you shared are beautiful!
Thank you. Have you guys ever been to South Padre? It is lovely!!
Your beach trip looks/sounds so great! Jealous of the cold beer there 😉 And I’m with you – we really love all-inclusive trips too.
Currently….the beach edition!! Sounds – and looks – wonderful! Such great photos! I’m sure the memories will last a lifetime!! And already planning the next trip! You go, girl! I think a short-term job sounds wonderful….I know I would certainly jump at it! Praying it all works out!! Hope your weekend is going great!!
Thank you, Jennifer. Waiting to hear if the school is approved to hire a sub librarian. Had already begun spending the money I was hoping to make. Might have put the cart before the horse.
I hope next beach vacation we can do an all inclusive. Would uncomplicate meals. And give us more time to just be together. Sure enjoyed our time last week.
What a fabulous vacation you had. I’m super envious. I live only twenty minutes from the beach but I haven’t even been this year! Tomorrow though, I’m going with some friends which will be fun. I’m really looking forward to it! I’d love to actually go away for a couple of weeks though. Damn this Covid!!
Hugs
Suzy xx
Damn this Covid is right!! And here we go again, it seems. We would like a few days away, just Paul and I, but thinking that won’t happen until fall. Hope you enjoy your time with friends and get a proper holiday in the near future.
It sounds like you had really wonderful beach weather! That condo looks amazing.
It was a very nice place to stay. And the host/owner of the condo had everything we needed!!
Subbing might be kind of fun for a bit! And getting some extra money around this time of year is always nice.
Sounds like you had a great beach vacation. Yay! I have never been to an all-inclusive resort, but I can see why’d you prefer that. I’d love to go to one someday and not have to cook or worry about food. haha
-Lauren
http://www.shootingstarsmag.net