Patio Flowers...Vacations...And A Mantle Revamp

This post is about a little bit of everything! I posted a picture of the fire pit patio on Facebook a few days ago and got lot of likes...thanks everyone! I appreciated the nice comments. So I thought I would show more pics here on my blog. I showed it in April before the flowers really started growing. Now they are really taking off! I water every morning and recently gave them a good dose of Miracle Gro. I can always see a huge difference in a about two weeks. That stuff really works!

 We have really been enjoying alot of evenings out here. The weather has been just right to sit around the fire pit and listen to music.

Kevin cooks on the fire pit all the time. We love roasting hot dogs and grilling hamburgers. They taste just like they do when your out camping!

 I recently painted the bench. You might remember it was faded black. Now the cushion needs a little revamp too. The sun is really bleaching it out.

 The flowers around the bird bath have really come along too! I planted zinnias, begonias, and petunias. I think the zinnias are taking over. As you can see I love me some flowers! I just hope Kevin waters them while we are in... 

Washington D.C.! We will be catching a flight early Sunday morning. You might remember a while back I mentioned that Chase, along with two other classmates, won second place at the State National History Day competition for their group website. That meant that they would move on to Nationals in Washington D.C. His trip is totally paid for so that helped! My mom and I are going along with a few teachers and other moms. This trip is going to be all about the museums. Chase and his friends are looking forward to the Smithsonian. They are also going to get to tour the White House with Arkansas State Senator John Boozman! Unfortunately they would only allow a group of six on the tour so some of us have to wait outside. Oh well, at least the kids will get to see it. I really don't know alot of the plans for this trip and have no idea what to expect. I guess we will figure it out when we get there. If you have been there and know of something we can't miss please let me know.  I will be posting lots of pics on my Facebook page.

Normally we are lucky to take one trip! However, thanks to my parents we are heading to Jamaica a week after we return from Washington D.C.! We were already planning to go to Jamaica when the D.C. trip came along. We are all going along with my mom and dad and we are staying at the Sunset Beach Resort in Montego Bay. I'm sure D.C. will be fun, but I'm really looking forward to this trip! Have any of you been to Jamaica?

And last...as you can see I changed up the mantle. It was boring the other way and I wasn't sure I liked the scrolly piece over the framed metal art. I ended up raising the art and adding books, a box, bookends and lanterns. I think I like this better...for now. =0 It's still symmetrical!

Thanks to those of you who joined my party this week! There are some really great links. I will not be able to post the party next week...so sorry. We are not getting back until 10:00 Thursday night. I will try to post some pics of our trip here on my blog if I can figure out how to do it from my phone...just hoping it's not too difficult. I will definitely be posting pics on Facebook though.

Have a great weekend!!