Hello Monday ~ October 9, 2023

 Oh, welcome October's weather forecast!  I am linkinng up with Holly & Sarah for a Monday recap.

My weekend began with my drive home Friday after spending a few days in Western Arkansas.  I stopped at a state park on my way home and took a mile and a half walk on a trail.   It was good to break up my drive with a little hike!  I will say, I was thankful not to have twisted my ankle because I didn't have on the best trail shoes and the trail was very rocky.  Also, I was thankful to have found my way out of the trail.  At one point, I looked around and this was the view.  Trees everywhere, but not really a clear path of which the way trail was going. I feel like this is life sometimes.  I look around, not knowing which way to go.  Other times, there are markings that are more visible to show me which way to go.  That sounds like probaly a little too deep for a Monday morning, but I can't help but think about the signs in the wilderness when on a trail walk.

This is a bald cypress tree I saw on another trail.

Saturday was super relaxing.  The weather was in the low 40's.  I cooked breakfast and later went outside to mow the grass.  It was so nice to spend the day at home and not go anywhere.  My husband had been out of town all last week too, so we had not seen each other in a while with my 2 back-to-back trips.  I got a few things done around the house, but mostly, we watched baseball with a little bit of SEC football.  

One of my projects was cleaning my dishwasher.  

I put 2 cups of baking soda in the bottom and lit it sit for 2 hours.  Meanwhile, I hand washed the parts on the bottom, like the filter and arm. After 2 hours, I put 1 cup of vinegar in a container on the top rack and washed a light cycle.  I got this idea and lots of other crafty ideas and recipes from this instagram account: Simply Painted White

I cooked these arepas for lunch Sunday.  I like to make areaps from scratch, but these were quick, easy and delcious.

Sunday afternoon, we went to see a production by a local Shakespeare Theater program.  There was this cool pumpkin display.

It was such a glorious weekend to wake up with cooler temperatures and drink hot chocolate on the back porch!

Now to face a new week.  Hope it is a good Monday for you!

Friday Favorites ~ Chattanooga/Arkansas October 6, 2023

Well, October is here and the first week went by fast! I am joining up today for Friday Favorites.

I am beginning my favorites by going back to last Saturday.  I spent Saturday night with my oldest daughter & we ate dinner at her house.  She was a good hostess!

We then cleaned up and went to a hotel rooftop for sunset views.

I complimented the hydrangeas in her room and she told me she bought them because she knows I like them.  It was so thoughtful of her.

I took a little road trip by myself this week to western Arkansas. It started with dinner at Chick-fil-A and yogurt for dessert.

I found a cool grilled cheese restaurant the next day for lunch and since it was just me, they sat me at the bar.  I saw the Elvis photo and knew the Lord had led me there, ha!

They had so many varieties of sandwiches, or you could create your own.

My sandwich was grilled chicken, tomato bruschetta, pesto, their cheese blend plus mozzeralla cheese on sourdough bread.  It was delicious!

I rode around Fayetteville a little bit and this is where the University of Arkansas is located, so I drove by their football stadium.  

I stayed in a hotel with a one room suite, so I had a little table and a full kitchen.  I ate breakfast in the room and lunch out the days I was there.  I typically eat a Quest bar for breakfast each day and bought the crackers and cookie to have for snacks, and they are both good too.

The next day, I explored Bentonville.  I saw this car in front of a museum and it is covered in coins!

The town had murals everywhere, even on the side alley streets.

This was such a cute town, with a cute square and the people were very friendly.

I ate at a Mexican restaurant for lunch.

The star of the show was this fajita taco salad.  It was perfect....grilled chicken, with grilled onions & peppers, cheese dip, tomatoes, cheese, and guacamole.

I visited the Crystal Bridges Art Museum and saw some cool art.

I also visited the Frank Lloyd Wright Museum on the premises.

Bentonville is famous for Sam Walton, who founded Wal-Mart.  They are renovating the Wal-Mart museum, but this is me in front of the Wal-Mart on Walton Blvd, across from headquarters. I did learn the first Wal-Mart was actually in Rogers, which is only about 10 minutes away. There was a 5 & 10 store that Sam Walton had in Bentonville before building the first Wal-Mart store.

The houses in the town were so cute, the people were nice, the weather was perfect and it is also known for it's bicycle enthusiasts.  

I spent about half my time working and was thankful to be able to do that remotely and then enjoyed visiting this area.  I also spent some time reading, listening to podcasts and a book, watching some shows I had recorded and catching up in the blog world!  

I am not sure what my weekend will hold, but thankful to have had a little get-a-way during the week and hope you have a great weekend!

 

Currently ~ October 2023

 I am joining in with Jennifer today for Currently!

I am loving.....

Cooler weather.  It has taken a while, but the first weekend of October is usually when the weather turns the corner here.  

I am excited about....

I am away for a few days in a new place and am excited to have some down time, hopefully catch up on reading blogs (I have fallen so behind on this), reading, praying and exploring a new place.

I am watching...

Back at home, I am watching Murders in the Building.  I also hope to start watching the new season of The Voice and the Golden Bachelor.  I am so intrigued with this!

I am seeing....

I am seeing hopefully some beauty of God's creation the next few days and every day!  

I am observing....

I am observing such sweet people who love and care about me during a difficult time.  I am so thankful for prayers and encouragment.

I am hoping you are enjoying some fall temperatures and beauty in the world this Wednesday!

Oh Savannah

 A few weeks ago, we traveled to Savannah to drop off our daughter for college.  Her school is on the quarter system, so she starts school in September and ends in June.  It is a long drive to Savannah, but a stop at Buc-ees helps!  

Savannah is such a beautiful town.  I love riding down the streets seeing all the trees with moss hanging over, creating such a pretty view.

We were thankful to be there to help get her all settled in her new place.  I mentioned a few weeks ago that the new dorm building she was assinged to was not going to be ready in time for the opening of school.  The school decided to lease a new apartment buidling for the students who were assinged to the dorm building that wasn't ready.  So it was fun to move my daughter into a new apartment building and now she has her own room, bathroom, full kitchen and a washer/dryer in the unit.  

Here I am with my daughter, her roommate, who is from New Jersey, and her mom.  We are so thankful she has such a sweet roommate and love her family too!

No trip to Savannah would be complete without a trp to Blick, the local art store.

Or a trip to Walmart for necessities, including groceries.

In one of the student buildings on campus, we found these Skeeball machines, which were free.  I could have stayed here a little longer and played some more!

We also took an afternoon to go to the beach.  It was so relaxing.

It was a good, but short trip.  There were 2 days of driving and 2 days there.  

It won't be long and she will be home for Thanksgiving with as fast as time is going!

Prime Purchases ~ September 2023

 Happy Monday and more importantly, Happy October!  Today is the monthly episode of Prime Purchases linking up with Tanya.

Earrings

I found these on Amazon and I have enjoyed wearing these the past week or two.  I have a few gold pair of earrings I rotate between and one of them broke a few weeks ago, so I got these and have been pleased.

Dog toy

We have an 8 month old puppy and he has chewed up almost every toy he has been given.  This toy said it was essentially, "undestructible", so I got it for him.  So far, it has been very good and while it has lots of chew marks, it has not been destroyed!

Toilet brush

Well, this is exciting.  This is adulting when you are intrigued by a new toilet brush.  Needless to say, it is a necessary thing and I needed a new one, so here we are.

Belt Bag

Okay, funny story about this bag.  I wanted a little bag to carry since my purse I have been carrying for about 2 years is finally showing its age.  I thought the color and size was cute on this one.  Once I received it, I put my things inside and went to the store for a trial run.  I quickly realized I didn't like that the strap didn't adjust as long as I wanted and it didn't hit me right when worn across the front.  While out running errands, I was close to t the UPS store, so I decided to go ahead and return it.  I literally took the items out of the bag, put them in my pocket and proceeded to return the bag.  I then went to the grocery store with my drivers license and card in my back pocket, along with my keys and phone in my pockets.  It was such a strange feeling going into the grocery store with no bag at all!  

Sling Bag

After the story of the bag, I came home and ordered this sling.  It is a little bigger and I really like it so far. 

George Bush book

I bought this book for my husband for his birthday.  He likes to read and is a fan of George W. Bush.

Men's Reading Glasses

Along with the book, I gave him this set of readers to have.

My girls also bought a few things and I got a few things for them, but that is the highlight of Amazon last month for me.

Have a great Monday!