Thursday, May 14, 2009

Mother’s Day Weekend

Thanks, ya'll for coming by to see the kitchen and for all the wonderful comments. I needed a little break to catch up this week and can I just tell you that I'm SO enjoying that new kitchen. It really does feel like a new space. :)IMG_4994

I’ve shared some of my family with you before and thought you’d enjoy seeing some pics of our Mother’s Day weekend. We started off last Saturday at my parents house. My dad is a big gardener (practically a farmer, if you see this post from their 2nd house in NC) and their backyard is already planted for the summer with veggies. This is a fig tree looking out to the garden.

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He cut me one of these HUGE cabbages to bring home with us.

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And he has his own muscadines growing in his backyard. Very Southern thing to grow.

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Then, for Mother’s Day, it was on to my sister’s house. She and my brother-in-law have worked on their backyard for many years and now it’s all grown up and looks so pretty. They have a covered deck and that’s where we ate our Sunday lunch Mother’s Day meal. It was a beautiful day.

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Their backyard, complete with a fish pond.

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Goldfish and koi.

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And the waterfall going down to the pond.

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We’ve started taking Mother’s Day pics every year, so had to get the girls together for this one. L to R: my sister Renee; niece Lauren, mom, and me.

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We moved around the yard for more pics. My sister is 2 years older than me. I’m the baby. :)

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My sister’s in-laws were there too and we younger girls treated the moms to lunch and it was really, really good. My sister made the kabobs, potatoes and asparagus. I made the fancy salad and brought dessert. We love to eat, in case you can’t tell. No celebration is complete without the food. Lots of food.

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Since my kitchen was torn up, I couldn’t bake a pound cake for strawberry shortcake, so I took a short-cut (ha!) and bought pound cake from our local bakery, Edgar’s, who makes fantastic desserts. If you haven’t been there and you live in Birmingham, get on over there and check it out. Renee’s sister-in-law made the chocolate thing. It was ALL yummy!

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And here’s the whole family: BIL Bruce, Sister Renee, Niece Lauren, Mom & Dad, me and Peter. It was a great day of celebrating Mother’s Day. We are so blessed to still have our parents and in such good health too. Mom just turned 81 and Dad will be 82 in July.

I'm joining Jen on Friday for her Frugal Fashionista party. You can join too, so check it out. As much as I love to shop for thrifty bargains, my closet is full thanks to the yardsale finds I have discovered, so I'm showing one of my outfits, from head to toe and I'll let you know how little I spent.

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the pleasures of homemaking said...

Hi Rhoda!

The kitchen looks great! Love the faucet!

What wonderful gardens your family has! The pond spot looks like such a lovely place to sit and relax and I wish I could grow cabbages like your Dad! Mine always get eaten by bugs.

Manuela

dec0r8or said...

What wonderful pics of you and your sisters and mom! You'll treasure those, I'm sure. Your sister's garden is great! The food looks terrific too! Yummy!

I'm just loving your new granite, too--you must be in heaven! It's beautiful! Don't you just love it when a kitchen plan comes together?! :)

Becky K. said...

This is a precious and priceless post. Thanks for sharing the beauty of the weekend.

Still Learning said...

My it looks like you had a special Mother's Day weekend. Your pictures were just beautiful. I can't imagine how relaxing it must have been to sit in such gorgeous surroundings. I think I may have been glued to the koi pond. So glad you all had such a good time. Your family is beautiful.

Jennifer

Magic Brush said...

Those gardens are amazing and now I am hungry!!!!!!!

Anonymous said...

Love your kitchen, Rhoda. I'm glad you got to spend sometime with your family on Mother's Day. Pictures are so important so carry on that tradition and you will always have the memories to go back and look at. :-)

g.suzie said...

Great pictures, I still get really excited to see that somewhere out there, grass is green, flowers are growing, and people are spending quality time in beutiful 'outdoor' spaces. . .Thanks for sharing!

Sandy aka Doris the Great said...

Beautiful pics of the family. And I love your sister's garden. I've copied the pic so I can continue to get inspiration from it ... I like the natural-looking "graduated" levels of the 1st picture.

Twice as Nice said...

You can't help but feel wonderful in such a beautiful setting. To have the family together also must have been so special.
Your kitchen looks awesome too, Rhoda!!

nancy said...

Great pics. But since we live in
the city and can't have a great
garden like that, we go to Pepper
Place on Sat mornings for our
"garden pickings". For those in
the B'ham area, it begins this
Sat 7-12 downtown, come join the
fun.

Jennifer said...

Good Morning Rhoda! Your weekend looks just beautiful. It's so wonderful to treasure such priceless moments with our families. It seems your entire family has talent from cooking to gardening and decorating. How wonderful!
Thank you for sharing you Mother's Day weekend with us. Have a wonderful Thursday.
Jennifer @ Fiddle Dee Dee

Lori E said...

The garden season is so different from the west coast of British Colubia, Canada. Although the perennials are growing and happy the vegetables haven't even been put outside yet. Jealous, you bet.
Your meal looked so delicious. It looks like a wonderful day.

Carmen @ Life with Sprinkles on Top said...

Well aren't you guys a great looking family!!!! :) Those gardens are impressive! I am still having sink envy over here. I was daydreaming about your sink yesterday while I was doing dishes. hehe

Coffee with Cathy said...

Love these pics -- truly inspiring gardens! And thanks so much for your help in finding sources to furnish my daughter's new apartment there in Birmingham. It is so cute! I'll send pics when it gets camera-ready.

Deb said...

Rhoda,

you have a beautiful family...you get your good looks from your Mom...thank you for sharing your family with us...love the pond...I would love to have one...but my bird dog would be swimming in it and eating the fish...LOL

Susan @ The Good Life! said...

Love the garden and it looks like everyone had a wonderful time!

Joanna said...

What beautiful gardens!! What a huge cabbage!

midnight macaroons said...

What a beautiful group of Southern Belles! It looks like y'all had a fantastic time. The food looks amazing...I can tell by the way y'all eat we'd be good friends, LOL! We take food a little TOO serious around our house.

Wow, the garden looks fabulous. I love the Coy pond. I could sit out there for hours. You got yourself a good looking family.

Glenda/MidSouth said...

Great pictures - Thanks for sharing.
Glenda

Bonita said...

It's very apparent that your skills are genetic. Such beautiful gardens and yards and food and people! Thanks for sharing a peek of your family time with us.

Anonymous said...

Looks like you had a fun time and some great food! I am sure your Mom enjoyed the day.

BTW -I love new granite. I bet you are cooking up a storm now =)
I think the critiquing at the end was a bit harsh. But I guess every-one is entitled to their opinion.

Stacy Lynn

Amanda @ Serenity Now said...

Beautiful gardens, beautiful food, and beautiful ladies! Looks like you had a fabulous day. :)

Pat@Back Porch Musings said...

I loved seeing the family photos and your dad's amazing garden!

I tried to come by a couple times this morning. Had a problem accessing blogs; mine included!

Darlene - Our Creative Life said...

Looks like a very nice day! You are all skinny...must run in the family! Oh and your dad is sooo tall...that must be where you get your heighth!

Rhondi said...

Hi Rhoda
Those are great photos of your family. What a blessing to have both your parents and to be able to spend the day together.
Hugs, Rhondi

Brandi said...

Oh my goodness, I have garden envy! What a beautiful setting for a family celebration.

Sandi @the WhistleStop Cafe said...

Now we know where you get your good genes... I think you picked your parents well.

I saw Dave Ramsey doing a whole show on garage sale shopping. You need to hook up!

Laura @ the shorehouse. said...

That's Lauren who gets all the cool "L" stuff you find. :-)

Looks like you had a lovely day...and by the way your counters look FAB.

June is lovely in NYC. I'll see you when you're here...I'm not going anywhere, so I'll be ready. :-)

Mrs. Jones said...

Rhoda, the food on your blog always looks so good! Happy Mother's Day!

~Heather

Maureen said...

The garden pictures are beautiful. I am inspired - they look like they were cut out of a magazine. What a lovely way to celebrate your mom.

Emily@remodelingthislife said...

Great family pics - looks like a wonderful Mother's Day!

Linda in AZ * said...

* Hard to tell "WHO" is more BEAUTIFUL~~~~ the FOOD or Y'ALL!!!!!!! WOW, "you ARE the MARY"!!!!

Hugs, Linda *

We've Got Scents said...

Beautiful family and gardens and delicious looking food. I'm so thankful you had this time together with your loved ones.
Blessings always,
Kaye
Matthew 21:22

Shannon said...

Everything looks great: the garden, the food, and your family!

Becky said...

That cabbage is amazing. I wish I could grow produce like that!

Unknown said...

There appears to be a lot of talent in your lovely family. Those photos are ones to treasure. You could eat for a week on the beautiful cabbage. I am so glad you had a delightful day. As always, thank you for sharing with all of us.

Charla

Essential Oil Premier University said...

Well Rhoda, you say your family eats a lot. . . but one would never be able to tell. . . because there is not once ounce of fat on any of the ladies. . . that's for sure!!!!

Lovely family!

And I love your new granite too. Just perfect!!

Blessings,

Sher

Kelee Katillac said...

Charming day! lovely family.....and the foooooddd!!!!

joyh82 said...

You have a beautiful family. Love their pond and looks like a wonderful time was had by all.

Peggy said...

Your kitchen did turn out beautiful...love that countertop!
Your dads garden is impressive! I'll bet he's proud of it.
Love your sisters garden...my brother is a landscaper and one of his specialties is the waterfalls. I would love to have one but it would take up my entire tiny yard!

Kim @ Everything Etsy said...

It's so nice to meet your beautiful family! I love the backyard photos. I grew up going to garden club meeting with my mom. It takes years to make a garden look amazing, doesn't it?
Waaaay longer than you think when you start!

~Kim

Anonymous said...

That is a beauitful garden, love the pond. All the food pictures you posted are making me hungry!

Julie @ Sweet Chaos said...

My great grandma had a muscadine vine. If I'd have only known at that young age to pay closer attention maybe I could have a better garden now! My grandma said she remembered my great uncle having a suscadine or something also.

Faye said...

Just love your Dad's garden and Sister's back yard....you can just see all the love they've put into it.
What a great looking family. I must say, your Dad is really tall! Sounds like your time together was great....never mind the awesome looking food :)

Marfa (formula for a life) said...

Rhoda, please tell your sister that I will be temporarily moving to her backyard until the end of the summer. If she sees a strange woman laying by the pond holding a Margarita in one hand and a piece of chocolate on the other tell her not to worry, I'm harmless...lol Seriously though, what a lovely garden! She and her hubby have done a great job!