Celebrate!

Wow...what a HOT weekend this has been. Literally...like over 100 degrees hot. And it's only June. Yikes!

We celebrated my mother's 80th birthday yesterday with a fun party at her home. It was her first time home in weeks and she was absolutely thrilled to be home, and to have her friends/neighbors come by to wish her well. Sarah, Jacqui and I laid out a feast (thanks to Newk's Cafe and Kroger, we really didn't have to cook at all!). Ice cold lemonade and chilled pino grigio, as well as an ice cream birthday cake from Bruster's helped everyone forget that it was 79 degrees in the house. We couldn't get it to cool off in there for anything! Thanks to all who came and helped make her day a special one!

Today I laid low...too hot to move. I think it hit 102 here today. We got a little sprinkle of rain for about 30 seconds...the wind blew, thunder rolled, and then--spit!--we got a few drops of rain for just a few seconds.

Sarah came over tonight to try the watermelon margaritas we made last week for Father's Day. They really are good. This time, I used a Smith County watermelon. They say the watermelons from Smith County, Mississippi are the best in the world. All I know is that they make a great margarita.

To make the margaritas, cube and seed a watermelon and freeze. Put five cups of frozen watermelon in a blender, and add 1 cup white tequila, 1/2 cup triple sec, 1/2 cup of freeze-squeezed lime juice, 1/4 cup sugar and blend. Serve in a glass rimmed in sugar and salt. Tastes like summer in a glass!

Larry was off work today, and he and Nicole went to see Star Trek. I enjoyed the time home alone for awhile. Nicole is just a joy to have around. Larry loves to go to the movies with her--but really, I think he'd do anything just to spend time with her. He and I talked this morning about the day Nicole came home from the hospital in New York. It was the hardest day for me throughout this entire journey. I knew she was anxious about flying, and I wanted to take all her fears from her...so I took them on instead. By the time we landed, I was emotionally exhausted. We looked back on that time and realize how far she's come and what a wonderful journey we've been on. We watched the video Jef made yesterday at my parents' home with Sandy and Alicia Franklin. Both are nurses, and both have known Nicole since birth. Seeing Alicia's reaction really helped it hit home for me--once again--what a miracle Nicole's life is. Alicia said she knew about the accident, and she's seen Nicole, but seeing the video of where she fell, and how she looked in the hospital in New York really made her realize that Nicole has made amazing progress in an incredibly short amount of time.

Tuesday will mark ten months since Nicole's accident.

We celebrate my mother's recovery and birthday! We celebrate Nicole's recovery! We celebrate Lester and Ellen's new marriage! We celebrate Nicole and Josh's safe return from their trip! We celebrate Joe's newfound determination to excell in school! We celebrate life!

Blessings to all who read this!
Susan