Happy Halloween

We have a full day here today.  We got the boys up, dressed, fed and off to school.  they wore their "Spooky" shirts and looked so cute.  See you after school, little guys...oh , and I did fix Colvin's bed head hair before we went.  I am saving these pics for his first girlfriend! lol

 Landon was in one of his, "no, photos, please" moods except for the ones here with his brother.

 Leighton, on the other hand, posed prettily for Nana in her chair.

After we dropped the boys at school, Papa and I decided that it was high time Leighton be introduced to a family tradition, breakfast at Toula's Trailside Cafe in downtown Tarpon Springs, Fl.  We love this place for the food, the friendly service and the fact we can ride our bikes to the cafe.  And Toula and her staff are wonderful...they make you feel right at home.  Leighton got to meet Toula and had a few bites of Papa's pancakes.

Leighton is resting up for her big night Trick or Treating and Nana should do the same.  More pics tomorrow from the rest of our Halloween fun.  Hope your Halloween is a safe and has more treats than tricks.

Now that it looks like I am going to live...

The last few days have been tough ones.  Once again, I 've managed to catch something from the Grands.  This is my 3rd. bout with sinus infection and my second with bronchitis since they went back to school in mid Aug.  You can bet I will be getting a flu shot for sure! 

Busy few weeks ahead so I don't have time to dilly dally with not feeling good yet I know I need to rest so I can enjoy the days to come.  Choices, choices, right?

Monday and Tues of this week are wide open.  We were suppose to have a Women Who Do Lunch Bunch outing but Cynthia has a follow up dr. appointment and Jacque is supervising her hubby's recovery so we've put that and the Mousse Party off til another time.  Wed. is Trick or Treat day with the Grands, their mama and their "aunty" NeeNee coming over for dinner and a round the neighborhood walk here.

Thursday is Crop with Jules at Posh Scraps which will have just reopened in its brand new location just down the way from the old shop.  I can't wait to see what they have done with the new location...so excited.  Thurs is also the Grape Escape!  We've got VIP tickets this year so will go earlier than last year.  So thankful to Susie for introducing us to this amazing fund raiser for the North Pinellas YMCA. 

On Sat. I am teaching my Christmas Joy album at Posh Scraps in Palm Harbor Florida.  As of Sat. there was only one more opening left.  If interested, please call the store at 727-784-2928.  Here is a preview of the class and hope to see you there.

 

Each page has tons of room from pictures as well as lots of fun embellishments.  All supplies are furnished...bring a tube of white Stickles if you don't want to share.

And Nov 4th is our darling Leighton's First Birthday party...she turns one on November 2.  We're having a luau .  More pics to follow on that one.

So, you can see why I have to get into recovery mode ASAP.  I am taking my meds like the dr. said to and actually think I slept more last night than I didn't sleep because of the coughing.  Wish me luck and thanks to all who have sent wishes for better health.

Tarpon Springs Sunday Market

Before we went to the Architectural Salvage store yesterday, we hit the Sunday Market.  We've always enjoyed this adventure and yesterday was not exception.  The Market has grown bigger and better and focuses more on local vendors.  There are three veggie booths now and all have lovely produce.  The live music is always lively and fun too.   We bought zucchini, cucumbers, and a few other items as well as the best Italian Olive Salad I've had outside of E's and Central Grocery in New Orleans.  It comes from Jay's Market Place in St. Pete and I highly recommend it.

New store in town...a must see!

About a month ago, I noticed a new store had replaced one of our sponge shops on Alt. 19 and, of course, the sign caught my attention.  Now what altered gal (or guy) could not be drawn to a shop that offered goodies and this shop sure did.

Architectural Salvage is one amazing place and they get in "new" old things weekly.  You can bet I'll be there often.  The shop is clean and items are lovingly displayed.  The owner is knowledgeable about the pieces and, to my eye, a bit of an altered artist herself.

 I fell in love with these tiles and bought one to play with...had to take a break from playing to blog about this place so my friends can get some of these too.

 The piece above is from a confessional and we are looking to get it (if the measurements work) for the ugly window over our garden tub in our bathroom.
And, omg...look at all these distressed frames....

 My friend, Pam Bennett, does amazing things with old windows and, inspired by her, have been itching to try one.  The owner has the size I want and is bringing it in next week.  Can't wait to see if it will work for what I have in mind.

 This little piggy is just too cute!

 So, showing great restraint and, despite wanting to take home half the store...ok, three fourths, I settled on a tile and a door lock and am gathering things to make this mine, all mine.

If you are in the area, plan to stop by the store and tell them Jules sent you.  I think I may need to find a full time job because this store is going to be addictive, I can tell and you all who read me know I do not lightly recommend a place if I don't think it is absolutely wonderous.

Oh and check out my altered blog to see what I have done with the tile and the door lock so far.

The weekend is steam rolling ahead.

We had Landon on Friday while Colvin and Daddy recoup'ed from a long night with both boys under the weather.  Landon was the most well and after the group doctor appointment, he came home with Nana.  We put the top down and you would have thought the little guy was prom king in a homecoming parade.  He sat in the back in his baby (excuse me...almost big boy ) car seat and waved to everyone as we cruised through town. 

Papa brought both the boys home Halloween stickers from the grocery store and, after Landon's nap, he took to arranging like a veteran pro

We had a pre party at our house when Darryl and Katherine came over (D is our pool guy) and Chris came to pick up Landon.  Landon promised to show Colvin how to arrange his stickers...lol

Our next stop last night (Friday) was the One Year Birthday party at Loggerheadz.   From there, E and I roamed down to Orange St. where the Greek wine and food festival was just getting started.  After at gyro and some wine, we headed home.

This morning we cleaned house and I looked longingly at the new Architectural Salvage shop in town.  E promises tomorrow, after the Farmer's Market in town, we can stop and I can shop of wonders to alter and specifically an old window.

We headed out to Susie and Justin's fish fry held at Anderson Park here in Tarpon...hung out with some really fun people and ate and ate and ate...kudos to Justin and Denny for an amazing batter for the fish.   (had pics, can't find them)

And our next adventure for the weekend is a visit to the Haunted Forrest...be scared, be very scared. 

Our busy week keeps getting busier

We pulled money out of savings and bought our tickets to Sidney and reverse trip home from Aukland.  Now I can finish our cruise registration and we can relax a bit on that front. 

Tues was group therapy at Posh with the Women Who Do Lunch Bunch and we had such a lovely time.  We ended up dining al fresco at Jack Willies on the water for lunch.  It is now under new ownership or managership or something because the service was outstanding and the food back to wonderful.  We can safely resume our visits here.  To Jacque's dismay the large bird that has a crush on her, is still in residence.  Oh, and the beer battered fries are back...we quit going for a while when they discontinued those and the service started going down hill last year.  See how happy we are

Poor Landon had a temp yesterday (Wed.) so we kept him home from school and took him to our house with our little girly girl, Leighton Kaye.  Colvin was not real wild about being the only one going to school and kept saying, "Me go to Papa's house." over and over.  Landon, Leighton and I took a nice long walk and I knew Landon was not feeling good when he didn't want to play on the play ground at the park.

 This morning when we were at the Grands' house, Kristen had Leighton all dressed up in spangly tutu skirt, black tights and a H'ween Hello Kitty shirt...what a doll.  Hoping to get a better picture this afternoon.

Hope your week is going well. 

First Annual Conchfest at Davidson's Dockside

E and I are big fans of local events so , after our garage sale yesterday, we headed to Davidson's Dockside restaurant on Anclote Rd. here in Tarpon Springs for what was advertised as their first Conchfest which sounded like a lot of fun. 

The view was lovely with all the boats on the river and we got a kick out of the plastic pelican atop the flag pole.  It did have us fooled for a bit.

The restaurant is newly reopened and, like any new adventure , still has some kinks to work out.  If a place is having a Conchfest wouldn't you think the specials would be conch?  When we asked, we were told the seafood boil was the specialty and not one word about conch.  While the music was good and the singer talented, 80s music was just not getting the job done and actually took away from the festivities IMHO.  Only as we were ready to leave, did we ask about the conch and were told there were tons of conch specials but not one of the 3 wait staff had said a word to us til we asked what appeared to be a manager. 

The seafood boil was good and E and I split an order.

Susie, Justin and Buddy joined us for a round or two and then we headed home.  It was relaxing on the restaurant deck and we will give this place a second try as we always do.  It is a great location and the food was good.

Busy week ahead so am not sure when I'll get a chance to blog but will certainly try.  Taking the weekend off from everything and just doing what we want to do has been a delight. 

Monday looks pretty clear.  Tues I have Weight Watchers and cropping at Posh Scraps in Palm Harbor Florida with the Ladies Who Do Lunch Bunch (LWDLB).  Wed. is Nana/Papa limo service and our day with Leighton.  Thurs, in addition to limo service, I have a library board meeting.  And our weekend is already pretty booked with a fish fry at friends and a walk through the Haunted Forest up the street. Hope your week is a lovely one!

Dinner at Currents

Thanks to our dear friend, Mitch and Kim Day, who gifted us with a dinner out, we had date night at Currents Restaurant in Tarpon Springs, across from the old train station (in background) and right down from our favorite breakfast place, Toula's Trailside Cafe. And what a meal we had.

We started with the appetizers:  E had the Brie with raspberry and almonds

and I had the Fire roasted tomato concasse

We share and still had half of each left for snacking on later tonight.

E got a cup of the lobster bisque (no photo) and I got the organic house salad which was so fresh...

For the main course (and again we shared but only half of mine is in the fridge...just sayin')

E got the Seared Salmon

and pronounced it wonderful.  And I ordered the Jumbo Shrimp and Colossal Crab Conceicao.  We split a bottle of  Pinot Grigio  then called it a night.

We don't eat out a lot and, when we do, it is usually lunch but we have decided to do a nice special night out at least once a month from now on.  That is if we can fit one in ...so much happening from now through March but we're going to make this a priority.

As always, thanks for reading and joining us in our journey