Did you choose the weekend before or after the 4th for your celebration?
Whether you picked a weekend, had just the 4th itself, or were able to use the entire week to be on vaca/celebration mode, I hope your holiday is the
BEST!
While I have been celebrating my 60th from early April to mid June, my poor husband only got one day of partying for his.
He made up for it by mentioning his age (57) from the time I turned 60, until he turned 58 a month later. Hmm, yes, I heard that, Rich!!
I wanted to do something special for him, since he put up with all of my celebrating of my own holiday.
We spend a lot of time out on Lake Clinton, near our home. And we have a favorite area, a quiet cove that is ideal for swimming and picnicking. So, I took dozens of photos the last time we were there, and did this painting from them.
At first, I framed it. Then, took a look at it on the wall and thought it looked like a little old lady painted it. (which I realized that I am)
Once I popped it out of the frame, I liked it better.
Here is our cove from another angle. We are often the only people there when we go. Lake Clinton is a beautiful spot and I am always surprised at how quiet it is.
Although, we do our best to liven up that cove!
We have even convinced our son, Ryan to come out on the lake with us this season. He hasn't been as fond of the place as the rest of us, over the years.
For Rich's birthday, we packed a picnic and headed out to our cove to have dinner. It was only one party for him, as opposed to the 7 or so I had…. But I think he liked it. And I hope that he will enjoy the painting.
Around here, there are a lot of paintings, but I tried to make this one special for him.
At the end of May, two grands graduated. Avahni from high school, Sugarwings from 5th grade on the same day.
Seriously? How can this little sprite be headed for Jr High next August????!!!!!
Avahni is training to be an EMT before going on to be a paramedic.
We're very proud of her hard work.
We had a day of being spectators, first at the grade school gym, then at the high school athletic field, where we found a seat with a backrest on the shady side of the stadium.
Yep, a lot of happiness was in the air that day!
This bread sums up what I loved about the Disney cruise we went on to mark my 60th birthday and Avahni's high school graduation. The loaf shows the imagination and attention to detail that we saw everywhere we looked.
Our dinner that night was in Cinderella's ballroom, and the bread is shaped like a pumpkin, in a bowl encircled with a dancing royal couple, and was served by a waiter all decked out in a fancy costume.
Every night, we changed to a different dining room, but had the same waiters each time. Those guys were the best, full of magic tricks, puns, puzzles and jokes. We were always the last to leave the room, our waiters were just too entertaining til the very end.
There was so much to do for the grandfairies, from flying the Millennium Falcon, to swimming, dance parties, movies, and plays.
While we stayed busy, nonstop, I still feel like we didn't take advantage of half the activities offered.
We sure didn't miss Pirate Night!
By the way, Dewdrop wasn't sad, she was just being a model. Most photos I got of her were super serious, pouty poses, instead of her normal, goofy smile.
She was about as happy as a kid could be, but when I asked to take her picture, she often turned Super Model on me.
We were all as happy as could be, Sugarwings' joy was about to explode during most of the trip. She was thrilled to be up on stage at the dance party. That is her on the big screen to the right.
The ship was beautiful, and the shows were the best. I thought I loved the Beauty and the Beast movie, til I saw the play on the ship- it was even better! We saw two plays and a magic show, the teens saw first run movies too.
The only thing that maybe wasn't the best, were the kids' pools, both were quite small. But our girls didn't mind a bit, I doubt if they even noticed. There was free ice cream by the pool and never ending Disney movies playing on a giant screen above them.
While the adult pools looked more tempting to me, I didn't have time to check them out. And we never got to ride the waterslide/roller coaster, because we were simply too busy having way too much fun elsewhere.
I guess that means, we need to go back someday to fit more adventures in?
We were extremely lucky with the weather that weekend, it was perfect every where we went. Warm with a slight breeze, so we didn't get hot.
The seas were calm, which was lucky too. I might not have enjoyed it all as much if it had been rough.
I took non-drowsy ginger tablets and wore my motion sickness wrist bands just in case. And the first night I took one Dramamine so I'd sleep better, not realizing that they last 24 hours, and I was still loopy when I woke up.
Oops.
Should've trusted my ginger pills! The Dramamine put a damper on my birthday, I napped by the pool at the Atlantis resort instead of paddling in the water.
Mickey was very kind to me on my birthday, and left a birthday card on the cabin door in the morning, then a gift certificate to the spa in the afternoon. At dinner that night, I was brought a special cake, and was serenaded.
The spa was really something. My pal, Mickey had gifted me $50 to use there, and I thought I'd apply it toward a facial (since I just turned 60 and could use all the help I could get), but instead, I bought a $27 day pass to the Rainforest that included heated lounge chairs, Jacuzzis, multiple steam rooms, and specially showers along with my choice of scented scrubs.
I picked lavender, my fave.
Oh my goodness, those showers! All were lit up, and had different settings. I went for more of the tropical ones than the Siberian ones. Actually, I very much avoided the cold ones. But I tried all of the others, over and over.
I went straight to the spa from my shore trip, still in my swimsuit. After a day at the beach, this treat of an hour at the spa was perfectly delightful. The cabins were comfy and more spacious than I expected, the bathrooms in them were nice.
But getting cleaned up and pampered in the spa was still a thousand times nicer than the small shower/tub in the cabin.
Thanks, Mickey!
If you love to be surrounded by tiny princesses and pirates, I couldn't recommend a Disney cruise highly enough. It was kid heaven.
As an adult, I was completely entertained and happy the whole time, but I do have to admit that it was oriented toward the itsy bitsy types.
Then again, I didn't go to the bars, adult restaurants, or shops, so maybe there is plenty of completely grown up stuff there too.
There are clubs and organized activities just for the little ones if you want some time to yourself for a movie or a drink in one of the bars.
Having two teens and two adults, we were able to take little breaks from kid-dom. My husband saw a movie with the big girls, I had time in the spa.
But honestly, I didn't need breaks from any of them, they were the best. I was so lucky to have this trip with them all!
Thank you to my Handsome Husband for taking me on a special trip.
Avahni is graduating soon, and her Senior Prom was the week before our cruise. I was lucky enough to get to help her choose her prom dress!
And she let me do a photo shoot with her as we waited for her date.
When he arrived, he was a good sport and posed for me too.
Aren't they cute together?
I thought this gown suited her dramatic coloring.
And he chose the ideal corsage for her to wear.
It was an honor to be a part of her big night.
Dewdrop enjoyed the prep too, and had a bit of a make over herself.
We are proud of our girl, not only because of how gorgeous she looks, how kind hearted she is, and how talented she is when she flies through the air on the silks. She has made plans to be a paramedic and has been taking college classes toward her goal while still in high school. She has even gotten some scholarships lined up for future classes! Congrats, Avahni, we love you!!
Previously, I showed you the old, family photo my sister had, and how I edited it. I was so in love with the picture, I wanted to do a very special frame for it, hopefully, a shadowbox.
But I couldn't find a shadow box as ornate as I'd like. Instead, I bought a black, oval frame ($7, Hobby Lobby), painted and distressed it. Then, filled it as I liked and added the glass to the top rim of the frame instead of flat against the insides as it was meant to be.
I glued it down (Crafter's Pick, the Ultimate Glue), but the glass was made slightly larger than the place I wanted it to be, so I had to do some camouflage.
I goobered it up, with ruffled ribbon, and lots of foof. That took care of the problem.
The sisters were cut out of the picture, and edged in brown marker, with a little brown water color on the vintage, ledger paper behind them, to make them stand out. Their dresses were sparkled with a Gelly Roll stardust pen in clear, and I gave them millinery flowers to hold.
There was also a slight, gappy looking area around the inside of the frame, where the glass should have been before I decided it needed to be on top instead.
I ruffled some crepe paper and trimmed it to about a 1" long and then pressed it into a bead of glue all the way around the inside edge of the frame before permanently gluing the glass down to the top and foofing it up.
After seeing my life long, best buds to celebrate the three of us turning 60, the party went on! Sister Terry drove from Orlando to St. Augustine to fetch me, and headed back again to Orlando, so we could go straight to the Flower and Garden event at Epcot.
Afterwards, we checked into a luxurious suite at the Animal Kingdom Lodge where we were greeted by some of the creatures that roam the grounds.
The next day, Terry had quite an adventure planned. I started off lazying about on the balcony, sipping my coffee and watching for zebras to visit, then we headed to Animal KIngdom park. She had set up fast passes for the afternoon, then an evening filled with the best Disney magic you could ever hope for…
WE WENT ON THE VIP TOUR!
And yes, it was amazing. And even better than you'd think it would be.
I was blown away.
We were taken on a tour of the top 5 rides and then front row and center at the Rivers of Light, by two guides, one who looked like he stepped right out of a Disney movie.
He kept us entertained with puns and trivia. I told him that my grand fairies would have been very impressed with him. (because that is what grammies do, they blather on with cute, young guys about how darling they are, without shame or embarrassment)
We were told there would be a snack, and were to pick a dessert and drink. I chose wine, because I was feeling very pampered, not thinking about my problems with motion sickness…
But you know what? I pounded non-drowsy, organic ginger tablets for nausea, and wore motion sickness bands. Along with the power of my will, and making myself find a focal point to not think about getting dizzy-
I RODE A ROLLER COASTER!!!!!
And the Banshee 3D virtual reality thing at Pandora!
Right afterwards, it was time for the "snack" they'd promised.
Which was a feast, much more than expected.
My stomach was ready to argue with me, but I would NOT let it.
Dang it, this was my special treat, and that wine was not going to drink itself.
I powered thru by sheer determination.
Having a ton of fun sure helped me prevent a lifetime of motion sickness from letting me from back out on some of the more twisty rides.
Am I going to be a regular on the merry go round with the kiddos?
Or hop on more roller coasters?
I seriously doubt that.
But I have decided that age 60, is a good time to not let myself be ruled by what might happen. If I'm offered a special treat, like a night of adventure at Disney, I am not going to turn it down because I'm afraid of a little motion sickness. (well, typically a lot, but it can be overcome if you try hard enough).
At 60, I know life ahead of me is shorter than what is behind me. I'm going to make the most of the rest of it.
I'm going to grab onto the fun I find out there and hang on tightly!
And look for hidden magic, or unexpected joy in every corner. (I'm always excited to find "Hidden Mickeys" at the parks)
I might be a Grammy, all cozy in her cottage, but I'm not ready to be old.
Thank you, Terry, for not only, a magnificent, and generous trip, but a chance to get out of my comfort zone, and fly through Pandora on a winged beast!!
While in Florida to celebrate our 60th birthdays with my life long buddies, I thought I should take advantage of my plane tickets and extend my trip to visit family.
First, I spent some time with Terry at Disney, then the two of us headed up to Jax to revel in the hospitality of the Guncles.
As always, the table was set with style and flair. This time, nodding to our sister trip to Animal Kingdom with a jungle setting. I should have gotten a photo of the food, but I was way, way too busy shoving it into my face as fast as I could.
Oh my goodness!
Lobster tails, BBQ Shrimp, Fish Tacos!!!
Oh my!
After my couple of days there, I felt like I waddled out, stuffed to the brim with some of the best meals I'd ever had the pleasure of being served.
All deliciousness was devoured with joy, and with the best views and company possible.
Every corner of the Guncles' home is filled with eye candy.
Whimsy abounds.
Color astounds.
Vintage goodies surround.
There is never a shortage of pretty displays to get lost in.
Thank you, Randy and Kevin, for the wonderful, welcoming time. Lots of love, lots of laughs, your home is the best!
Before I went on vacation for the 60th Trio of Birthdays Bash, we had a little dinner party.
Everytime I host a dinner, I tell myself that I need to buy some matching silverware. And wine glasses. Then, I never get around to doing it.
Someday.
Sugarwings was away for Easter and it sounds like she had a good trip to the west coast.
The grand fairies and Katie Tree are teaching me some circus moves! I want to master at least a couple before I turn 60 in May. Trouble is, I have a ridiculous fear of heights, and I am clumsy. They have lowered the apparatus for me, and that helps. Not with the clumsiness, though.
My son has a new farm, which will be used also as a retreat and business. He found this bubbly spring on the property, and there is a mossy heart rock by it!!
After rebuilding this section of the fence a higher so the Amazing Jumping Circus Poodle (Sugar) would stay in it, we discovered that it didn't work. She flies over any and all fences. All of our fences are being recreated as privacy fence height now. Too bad, I loved being able to look over the fence from the windows and enjoy my yard. Now, they will be too tall.
But at least I'll still have a dog. An expensive dog, we have a ton of fence to redo!!
My sister, Bobbie, is hugely into genealogy and has a wonderful collection of old photos. Recently, she posted this delightful one of our great grandmother and her sister. (I edited it to clean up some of the age spots)
(Here is the original scan)
This is one of those pictures that I would have squealed loudly about if I'd found it in an antique shop, it will be beautiful to work with. But to know that these girls are actually relatives??
Wow.
I am thrilled to have it.
I saved it in a tinted version too.
Funny, when it was posted, facial recognition asked if we wanted to tag either me, Sissy, or her daughter, Shelli. Apparently there is a family resemblance?
Possibly in the shape of the faces. I find facial recognition fascinating. It seems to measure bone structure, distance between eyes, etc, not sticking to a passing similarity from hair color or style.
Bobbie also had this photo of our great grandmother (center) with our grandma (left) and her sister (right).
I brightened it up a bit too. I hope to do something with this one for our annual sister trip to the beach in October. I just wish I had that beach bag to take with me.
Thanks, Bobbie! I love the photos.