The Summer of Orange and Turquoise

I seem to be in love with this color combination, so I've re-done our terraces in these cheerful cushions and pillows.  Even the pots have been planted in a much more vibrant, coral and white palate. 

(Disclaimer: I've been waiting weeks to have our stonework pressure washed.  I finally decided to photograph for this post with grimy stones, because, well, summer is almost HALF OVER!!!!)

This makes me smile every time I look at it.

Doesn't this make you want to grab a good book and chill out?

This has so much more pizzazz than our former color selection for the cushions.

 

This was last year on the terrace.  I was all about a woodsy color combination, and it worked really well........

until I spied this fabric!  Then some sort of hunger for color kicked in and I was all about turquoise and coral.  

I'm so glad for the change.

I even changed all of our swim towels to turquoise and coral.  Monogrammed, of course!

This large pot at the corner of the wall is loving the summer rain.  Can you see those tiny coral petunias?  They are so cute.

This pot has just a touch of coral begonias in with the hardy grass.

This one is full of begonias with a couple of white impatients.  

 

The hummingbirds just love this hibiscus.  And I love it, too, as it is just outside my kitchen window and I can admire it AND the hummingbirds!

And this $15 palm from Lowe's makes us all feel like we are in the tropics.

Let's go up the stairs to the white deck.

With the left over material, I made a runner for this table, and turquoise stripped cushions for these side chairs.  Things are looking so good.  Usually, we are beginning to feel the effects of the 90 degree weather by now, but we've had lots of rain to help things stay green.

Even the fern pots are filling in nicely.  Thank goodness that one of the improvements we made when we first moved in was to add drip lines to all of the pots.  I could never keep them watered by hand.  We also just had the deck re-stained and it's beautiful.

That's the view from the upper terrace to the lake.  Maybe I'll soon find time to take those kayaks out, but for now, I'm anxious to set this table for our neighbors tonight.  Wait till you see what I have planned!

The Boys of Summer

What a great day!!!  We have our two youngest grandsons here from Ohio while Mom and Dad celebrate their tenth anniversary on a well-deserved trip.  This house and the land is made for little boys!  Tonight was a momentous event.  Our seven year old, Teddy, took his first solo kayak ride.  

With Boppa and little brother as the "pilot boat", I loaded Teddy into a kayak and gave him a push off of the dock.

It took a bit of trial and error.....

but in a suprisingly short time, he was circling the lake like a pro.

Teddy is an excellent swimmer and takes direction well.  He's used to boats and has water sports in his DNA.  He was a total natural.

Here's the flotilla!

Owen is just the right size to stick in the cargo space and he thinks he's the captain of the regatta!

How does a kid feel when he masters a new endeavor?

VICTORIOUS!!!!!!!