I've Been in a Vacation State of Mind

You know how it is.
You go on vacation & get so good & relaxed that you just can't seem to shake it off
once you get back home.
That's exactly where I've been.

I've had no desire to blog whatsoever!
I haven't even been reading other blogs  -- pretty much cold turkey since vacation.
I've been hit & miss with other social media too.
Just haven't wanted to keep up with any of it.

Now, granted, there's been a-plenty of activities that could not be avoided.
Ya know, the little thing called laundry, cleaning, grocery shopping, cooking ...  you know how it is.

And, the biggie, as soon as we got home from vaca, we started back to school {Riley & I}.
He said he was actually ready to get back onto the school schedule & I feel the same way.
It just takes a couple weeks to get the rhythm going & everything to balance out.

And church -- there's always work & activities there that must be attended to.

BUT BEYOND ALL THAT ... 
I've tried to stay in the vacation state of mind in every other conceivable way!
Not just me, but James too.

Everyday when he's gotten home from work, he's donned his shorts, tank, & flip flops ...
and as he came down the stairs he'd announce, "I'm back on island time!" ...
& off to the patio he'd go.
Course, I'm never too far behind.
We've been spending almost every evening out enjoying the evening sun,
daydreaming that we were still sitting on the beach.

That brings me to the other activity that's been taking lots of my free time ... reading!
I took a book to the beach every day while on vaca & got back into the groove.
James even took me to the bookstore while we were there to buy a new book that he'd heard me mention.
I read about half of it before we left SC.

boomama.net

This book is sooo good.
You know the "it'll have you laughing one minute & crying the next" saying?
Well, it'll have you laughing til tears pour down your cheeks & sobbing like a baby the next.
That would be more accurate.
In any event, go buy this book.
It's excellent!
And, follow her blog -- she's an absolute hoot!

Now that the weather is changing a bit, and the leaves are too,
we are still chilling outside as much as possible.
James has traded in his tanks for long sleeves.
The fire pit keeps us nice & toasty ... & we are determined to spend as much time outside as we can
before the snow starts falling to the ground.
{And last year, Indiana's first snow was in October!  I certainly hope we do not get a repeat of that!}

We've been to the apple orchard & to the park several times.
James even surprised me by taking a day off work & we went to the Covered Bridge Festival.
It's an annual tradition that we look forward to each fall.
This is my favorite time of year & I just can't get enough of being outside in this autumn weather!

Here's my honey & me at our favorite park near our home.
I love standing on this bridge & watching the water.
It reminds me so much of all the hours I spent playing in the creek at my grandma Ely's house
in Pennington Gap, VA.
Precious memories.

These two pics are a little fuzzy, but for some reason, I just love 'em.

 Here we are at the Covered Bridge Fest ... I have more pics & info all about this trip coming soon.

And here's us at the apple orchard -- we take a pic in front of this wagon each time we visit =)

Notice a pattern?
Our boys aren't always with us like they used to be ... kinda makes me sad.
They have jobs & commitments cause they aren't little kiddos anymore.
We still have fun family time though, but we just can't wait for everyone to be available all at the same
time or we'd never go anywhere or do anything.
Sigh ...


So, there's a bit of catching up on where I've been & that's what I've been doing!
I've been hard at work editing & organizing our vacation pics too & can't wait to show you all of those.
Well, some of those ... you do know how beautiful Charleston & IOP is, right?!
You know that warrants taking a hundred & fifty billion pics ;)

Here's a couple gorgeous shots:

Gahhhhhh....I love Charleston & IOP!!

Nonetheless, I'm back in the blogging saddle.
I've got several new recipes to share & some new completed projects
around the house that I want you to see.
{I decorated the house for fall just a few days after we got home.
I almost talked myself out of it, but I'm sooo glad I did it.
Fall decor just goes really well in our house & kinda makes me feel like a big warm hug.}


Here is one of the recipes I'm sharing soon.
It's my amped up version of Ree's Drip Beef Sandwich ... & it was lip-smackin' good!!

Hope you are enjoying fall & aren't working too hard.

In the current book I'm reading, she says that being a tourist is just a state of mind.
I smiled really big when I read that ...
and I full well agree.

As much as I love traveling, especially to South Carolina, I can keep that same 'vacation' feel --
that same 'tourist' state of mind right here in my own home, my own backyard, my own hometown.
Maybe it's just to relax a little more than usual.
Or it could be visiting a park, taking a walk in a different part of town, trying a new restaurant,
or exploring the city by going to a place you've never been.
It doesn't even have to cost a lot.

I know it's good for me & my state of mind ... my vacation state of mind.

Talk to you again soon, sweet bloggy friends.