7ToF: it ain't all good baby but it's all right

1. Hilton Head report: We'd never been there before. It's a nice place, but the week of the fourth of July it is really, really crowded. Maybe it's like that all the time, not sure. We had a great time with Dean's family, though-- we always do. It was hot and humid, but that was no surprise. Here's a beach shot for you, and I will spoil the effect by telling you that in order to get a deserted beach shot, I had to a) aim the camera veeeery carefully and b) wait for a timely wave to come along and cover up the people who were out in the water.

2. Next week I'm flying to Detroit for Cheery-o's son's wedding. Then the week after that, I'm off to Texas to help out with my mom who recently had a knee replacement. I'm just a travelin' fool these days. That means lots of time in airports and on planes, so if you have any good, non-depressing books to suggest, I'm in need. I underestimated on my summer reading list-- I've already read all of them except two, and one of those I decided not to read and the other one (Kavalier and Clay) I'm saving up until after I get back from my trips.

3. Cute things around the internet: Oddly, the first time I saw this commercial, I'm pretty sure different music was playing (Edgar Winter's "Frankenstein"), but it's cute no matter what the music is.

4. Remember I told you that MadMax was in the midst of his summer obsession with golf, and we were totally sucked into watching the U.S.Open? It turned out to be well worth it--the finish on Sunday was a nail-biter that came down to the very last putt.  Even the world's worst golfer (me) was sitting on the edge of her seat.

Now we've moved on to the British Open, which I've learned this week is just called THE OPEN. Apparently no other designation is needed when you are playing in the home of golf. MadMax has had lots of time on his hands this week, which has meant the Golf Channel has been on more than I care to admit, and even just being in the same house without really watching I feel like I know more about THE OPEN than can possibly be good for my brain. Anyway, we're sucked in again. Thank god it finally started today so they could quit talking about it and actually play some golf.

5. We finally made it to see Inside Out last night. It's cute, and it goes off in a more intelligent direction than you expect based on the way it starts. Well worth seeing, even if you don't have kids to see it with. It's pretty funny, but there's a two-hanky moment at the end--you've been warned.

6. Laurel sent me a link to this great 21-day meditation series from Deepak Chopra and Oprah, which started this week. I've only done the first one so far but it was really interesting, and will possibly be the topic of a future blog post. You have to register, but each day's recording is free for five days. Check it out: Manifesting Grace Through Gratitude.

7. Both our kids have had milestone birthdays this summer--PellMel turned a quarter century, and MadMax turned 18. Which has made me horribly nostalgic. They really were adorable. So I'm subjecting you to pictures. I would apologize, but I'm not really sorry. :-)

I need to take more pictures--
this is the most recent one I could find
of the two of them. Summer 2014.

p.s. the lyrics in the post title are from my new favorite C&W song, "Real Life" by Jake Owen, here's the video: Real Life music video. For the record, I used to love to eat at Waffle House (I probably still would but there's not one around here). I wonder how many takes it took to get the shot where the waffle drops on his plate?