Seahawk-Ground Floor

This place is just amazing!

First - (dishwasher) no cactus; a very good start. Then - no desert; no matter where you stay, you're never far from water. And, for pity sakes! just look at this gorgeous house!

I'll admit that I fell for the (dishwasher) appearance - who could resist all that wood and space? Then, I started to do a head-count. There's Mark and me, my 2 kids and their spouses, Mark's 2 sons and SOs - 10 of us total. Hmmm?

A couple of people spending a couple of days away from home is easy to coordinate. But when you're dealing with 10 people, from 3 states, in 1 house, for 7 days -- there are options and then - (dishwasher) there are gotta-haves.

Sleeping arrangements can kill the whole thing before anyone even packs a shoe.

Seahawk-1st Floor

With five bedrooms, between the ground and first floors, Seahawk has it covered. No fold-out, fold-up sleeping issues. Privacy - and (dishwasher) a bed - for all! Even the best of families need their space and blended families need a lot of space.

Oh, just so everyone is perfectly clear:   Mark and I get the first floor King! Everyone else? Deal! {wink}

Four full and one half means no bathroom lines. Again - 10 people, 1 house, 7 days - the ability to shower (and pee) on demand is one of those gotta-haves. According to the floor-plans, the Kings are suites and the (dishwasher) other bathrooms are strategically located.

Lest we forget, children: Mark and me ... first floor King ... everyone else ... dealing! Ah, it's good to be da parents !

Seahawk-2nd Floor

Then, we have the kitchen (second floor) and laundry room (ground floor). Frankly, I cannot imagine spending 7 days with 9 other people without a (dishwasher) way to cook meals and wash clothes. Sure, eating out is fun; but not every day and definitely not every meal.

I need to be able to get up, make coffee, and ease slowly into the day. Happily, Seahawk has a coffeemaker and a dishwasher (Ahhhh, yes!) that isn't moi - so I'm good! I'm really, Really good!

Much as I love my guys, there also must be (dishwasher) multiple options for clean clothes! Directly related to the, above-mentioned, showering-on-demand.

With this electronically-connected crew, 10 (yup - 10) TVs, multiple VCRs and DVD players, a video library, and high-speed Internet access are life-savers. No battles over viewing options and checking email - ahhhh, (dishwasher) peace! Of course, having a pool and grill right outside might just entice the gamers into the real world.

Being a mere 635 yards from the beach is, for me, just icing on the (dishwasher) cake. By my calculations, with 8 blocks = 1 mile in my neighborhood, that's about 3 blocks away. Even Mark could manage that walk!

All that space. Near the water. Mornings on the second floor deck with (dishwasher) coffee and a view that isn't the next apartment building. {sigh}

There is, sadly, one really big problem with this lovely house. (Oh, not for me -- for the owners.) It will certainly take dynamite - or an act of Congress - to ever get me out!

Seriously! (dishwasher) I'm not leaving!

I learned - very quickly - that there are a lot of options when it comes to binoculars. A whole big bunch of options! Depending on what you want to pay, what you want to use them for, and whether you need a camera, wide-angle viewing, or are visiting the opera.

Since what we have has a camera and my mind was spinning with available choices, I decided to start there. And was lucky enough to find something well within my price range. Unfortunately, I started thinking about all those other options and that, although Mark had picked the camera binoculars then, he might prefer something else now.

It just never pays to think and shop. Now, I'm back to square one and have absolutely no idea what to get. {sigh}

The summer time may be the only time that you and your husband can enjoy a weekend getaway. If you have children who are old enough and responsible enough to stay alone you should take advantage of the summer time. However, you need to make sure that you ensure your child's safety before you leave the home. The best thing to do is make a check list to cover everything that your child may encounter.

A few things that should be on the list are setting up and teaching the child how to use the home security alarm. We didn't have one until last year, when I set out to find Phoenix alarm devices that would work for us. You should also make sure that your smoke alarms have batteries and are set to go off in case of an emergency. Make sure you leave a list of all emergency contacts including the police department, fire department, and so forth. You may also want to contact a trusted responsible adult and let them know that you're leaving the children for the weekend, just in case there is an emergency.

You should also leave the children with a set of rules that they should obey during the time you are gone. Another great tip is to stay in touch with the children by calling them on a daily basis, just to make sure everything is okay. If you follow these tips you should be able to relax a weekend with no children, while knowing they are home in a safe environment.

For starters, this month looks to be a food fest, which is just fine with me. I love the seasonal goodies flooding the stores right now. Fresh fruits and veggies are always the top of my grocery list.

But July brings even more to enjoy. Firing up the grill and dusting off those summer recipes is what it's all about. This is a month for celebrating ~ Baked Beans, Culinary Arts, Ice Cream, Hot Dogs, and Blueberries.

If those aren't enough, take a look at the first seven days of July:

1. National Gingersnap Day
2. National Anisette Day
3. National Chocolate Wafer Day
4. National Barbecued Spareribs Day
5. National Apple Turnover Day
6. National Fried Chicken Day
7. National Strawberry Sundae Day, and Chocolate Day

Okay - that did it! I'm off to the store for turnovers, baked beans, and fried chicken! Oh, and a pint of ice cream and blueberries. And some gingersnaps and ribs. And, in anticipation of the end of the month - lollipops, milk chocolate, and cheesecake!

And some stretchy sweatpants. And an exercise machine. This could get veddy, veddy bad.

• Alcohol Awareness Month
• Autism Awareness Month
• IBS Awareness Month
• National Child Abuse Prevention Month
• National Crime Victims Awareness Week ~ April 18-24, 2010
• National Donate Life Month ~ DonateLife.net
• National Parkinson's Awareness Month ~ Resolution Passed on March 26, 2010
• Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Month
• Stress Awareness Month
• Sexual Assault Awareness Month
• World Habitat Awareness Month [Can't find a dedicated link. :( ]

Go Orange for Animals

DonateLife.net

Puzzle Ribbon

And some of the (perhaps) more frivolous, but (nonetheless) not-to-be-missed days, as well:

• International Pooper Scooper Week ~ April 1-7, 2010
• International Twit Award Month
• Jazz Appreciation Month
• National Decorating Month
• National Humor Month
• National Scoop-the-Poop Week ~ April 25-May 1, 2010
• Straw Hat Month

So, I guess my month is pretty darn full: Throw on my Straw Hat, turn on some great Jazz, Decorate a Humorous Award for my favorite International Twit(s), and avoid the poop that hasn't been scooped. Gonna be a great time!

Hope your month is equally spectacular!

With many thanks to Brownielocks.com who offers amazing, validated holiday and observance information.

It is believed that the February celebration of love and romance began as an homage to his works on the anniversary (or thereabouts) of his death or burial.

Another legend has Valentine helping prisoners, who were frequently beaten and tortured, escape from Roman prisons. In love with a young girl, possibly his jailer's daughter, he is often credited with sending the first message signed 'From Your Valentine.' Whether this is the same Valentine who performed marriages against the orders of Claudius II, isn't clear.

Some put forth the theory that the church decided to celebrate St. Valentine's feast day in mid-February to counteract the influence of Lupercalia, a pagan fertility ritual celebrated on the ides of February. Pope Gelasius officially made February 14th St. Valentine's Day somewhere around 498 A.D.

There is even a story from the Middle Ages, that February 14th was believed to be the start of birds' mating season which indicated to the British and French that the middle of February was a time for romance.

Whatever the truth, and I suspect that all of the pieces fit together somehow, have a Happy Valentine's Day!