{ Quick Fixes and Car Chases }

We had a great--could NOT have been better--Memorial Day weekend....except for one little fluke. We were getting our stuff ready to go spend a day at our favorite beach and I noticed the air conditioner wasn't cooling very well which is cause for alarm b/c HELLO it's Florida and summer. My husband lowers the thermostat, we cross our fingers, hope for the best, and take off to the beach. Eight hours later after a fun filled day of sun, sand, and waves, we get home close to 10 pm at night.  As soon as we opened the door, we knew the air conditioner had gone kaput. The indoor temp was 83 degrees. Ugh! My husband goes outside with flashlight & determines the compressor is not turning on. Declaring there is no way we can sleep without AC, he makes a late night run to buy two totally awesome life savers----2 cooling units which each cool about 400 square feet giving us about 800 square feet of relief. 

We set one in family room and the other in our bedroom, turned on all the fans, closed doors to rooms not needed, and these units did their magic. They brought the most used parts of the house, the back of the house, to a tolerable temp during the heat of the day and actually a little too cold during the night & morning.
Now here is where the story takes a twist with a brief car chase----On his way to buy cooling units, my husband notices a car with no lights pulling away at a high speed from the nearby gas station and a station attendant running after the car. My husband has to swerve his car out of the way to avoid getting hit by what is now known as the "get-away car". Keep in mind that where I live, crime is pretty much at a near zero percent. Here on Fleming Island, the biggest crime is when teenagers steal golf carts in the middle of the night & go on joy rides. Being raised in a high crime large city, it took me a while to get use to this and I think it is totally awesome. Soooo, seeing this get-away car late at night is an odd occurrence here and cause for alarm. My husband, assuming the gas station was robbed & maybe somebody was hurt,  takes off after the car to get it's description/tag numbers. He drives back to the gas station & gives the info to the police. It turns out it was some teenagers stealing beer. The station attendant & police officer were appreciative & thankful to my husband for getting the tag numbers & vehicle description. My husband returns home with the 2 units and quite a story to tell.

Fast forward 2 days later, the air conditioner repair guy arrived this morning, repaired our AC unit, and TADA!!!!, the house is a welcomed 74 degrees! NICE!

Sealed with a Kiss, Kirsten

S.W.A.K.

Remains of Summer

photo found here

I am a summer girl. I love summer far too much for it to end. If I was any of the girls in the above photo, I'd be the one on top with her arms outstretched totally blissed out.

 I love the laziness of summer days with the sound of locusts filling the air as if they are children humming into a fan vibrating their voices. I enjoy endless afternoons with my daughter far too much to have to wait a whole year before summer eases it's way back into our days.

photo from here

The last remains of summer leave me feeling melancholy. I feel like a child who has been told it is time to go home after spending only moments in a candy shop. Or I feel like it is similar to when you know you will soon have to say goodbye to someone who you aren't ready to see leave. If only summer and I could visit a little longer.

photo found here

In 3 short days, it will be back to the routine of packing school lunches and sending my daughter off to school--sticking to a weekly bedtime routine, checking homework, and signing papers. If only I could capture summer in a jar to keep on my nightstand.

Beach and pool days have been the best with my husband and daughter. I like how my husband gently rinses my ankles and feet with a bucket of ocean water before we get seated in the car. I feel like Cleopatra or a Greek Goddess.

photo found here

I love how simplified a day at the beach can be where the sound of my daughter's laughter carries out over the water like a message in a bottle. Can you hear her joy on the coast of Africa sailing over the waves as she dances on the sand here in Florida? Come back to me, Summer. I'll be waiting.

Sealed with a Kiss, Kirsten

S.W.A.K.

Roadside Beauties

My husband, daughter and I have these summertime habits which is part of our summer memories every year---like taking advantage of all the summer fruits. I love to stop off at the roadside fruit stands offering fresh Georgia peaches and Georgia Vidalia Onions(we are only an hour south of Georgia). Being in the citrus state, there are many stands with Florida oranges. I like the oranges still attached to some of their branches. These oranges were the prettiest of the bunch and I just had to take a photo.

Sealed with a Kiss, Kirsten

S.W.A.K.

Brownie Oink Moo

Wanna have some fun in the kitchen and cool down on a hot summer day? Brownie Ice Cream Sandwiches to the rescue!!!!  I love these brownie cutters because they are perfect for making ice cream sandwiches with an imprinted image such as the cow and pig faces. Just use any brownie mix and bake according to directions. When brownies are done, let them cool slightly before using brownie cutters. Set the cut brownie shapes out to cool completely before adding ice cream. I like to wrap them with freezer paper and place them in the freezer so that they can firm up a bit. These little brownie ice cream sandwiches are a fantabulous treat for any summer day.

---Sealed with a Kiss, Kirsten

S.W.A.K

Creative Flow

Creative Flow, as most artists know, can either pour forth or slow to a trickle. I find that I am most artistic when my creative flow runs at a steady stream. Staying tapped into that flow is the obstacle. Getting older has taught me to be more sensitive to what inspires my creative whimsy and equally what drains it. I grew up with a very creative mother. I danced my entire life which was one source of creative energy. Before moving to Florida, I owned a dance school in which I taught others how to express themselves creatively through movement. I have been guilty of letting everyday life get the best of me and robbing me of my creative energy. Reflections of childhood always get the creativity flowing. I grew up with the sound of my mom's sewing machine humming at the table, a steady supply of hot glue sticks, and many weekends alongside my mom at the fabric store. If my mom wanted something and couldn't find it, she'd simply make it. I grew up with creative sources through the women who influenced me and the diversity of a big city exploding with museums, art festivals, quilt shops, and bakeries galore. But now, I am almost fine tuned into what specifically gets my creativity flowing; first and mostly, the BEACH. The beach is a sure fire way to get me going----Maybe it is the mental escape, the rush to the senses that leaves me feeling refreshed and focused. Secondly, childhood memories, a charming boutique, vintage craft books, and my daughter....always my daughter. She is my sweet curly-headed muse. This summer, I plan to let the creativity flow even if it means letting the laundry pile up or the shelves grow a bit dusty. I am putting the artist and the writer within me first!

----Sealed with a Kiss, Kirsten

S.W.A.K.

Growing Up Coastal Style

Where is the best place to spend the 1st weekend of Summer Vacation and Memorial Day, as well? The beach of course! My modern day Gidget wasted zero time getting on her bikini and grabbing her boogie board while my husband and I grabbed the picnic basket and beach blanket. Her shrills of laughter as she splashed in the waves matched the endless shrills of the sea gulls. With each wave, she joyfully hollered, "Wow, what a wave!" or if a wave carried her boogie board just right, she would exclaim, "What a ride!" She certainly has the surfer lingo down. Today the Boogie Board--Tomorrow, the Surf Board. 

---Sealed with a kiss, Kirsten

S.W.A.K. 

Summer, at last!

Summer, at last! Today was the last day of school for my little 2nd grader...who is now officially a 3rd grader, I suppose. To make this day extra special for her, I painted her nails like a watermelon. Nothing says summer has begun like watermelon! After school, we celebrated with a delicious lunch. She wanted Chinese food! Afterwards, we went to the book store to get some summer reading material and she also spent her allowance on a Nancy Drew Keepsake book. Once again, a reminder that Little Golden Books are a thing of the past for my girl who grows more and more everyday. This summer, I plan to slow down time by spending lots of afternoons eating watermelon with my daughter, painting her nails, and reading books.

------ Sealed with a Kiss, Kirsten

S.W.A.K

Count Down til Summer

We are counting down the days until Summer Vacation. It is officially the last week of school for my daughter. I am looking forward to lazier days and not having to keep such a tight schedule or bedtime routine. I am ready to be done packing the lunches, ironing the uniforms, and checking the homework. Nevertheless, as things like this sometime go, it is also bittersweet that this is the last week in which

 I will be the mother of a

2nd grader.

In the blink of an eye, it will be time to shop for school supplies for

 my 3rd grader.

With that in mind, I hope the days move slowly this Summer.

I know my daughter will have a wonderful time enjoying her last week of school with anticipation for Summer to begin!

photos are from here.