Best Date Ever!

Hey Guys! What's been up? I know I've been MIA for a minute (haven't posted since May 11th), but I promise, it was for a good cause. How good? Well, I got my romance novel published! Yay! I'd say accomplishing a lifelong dream is a pretty good excuse to miss a few posts :-) The last month or so has been hectic! I finally had to break down and get some other forms of social media (Instagram and Twitter...whomp!) and I revamped my website and purchased my domain. You can find everything you need to know about my book, here: www.sunnynet.net.

So to celebrate this totally awesome moment in my life, my husband decided to plan a full day of fun-- without my knowledge. Now, what makes this really special is that he NEVER plans anything without running it by me. We've been a few places and done a lot of cool things, but I'm always part of the planning process. Even when he calls himself surprising me, he ends up telling me all the details before it can happen because who else is he going to tell? I'm his bestfriend right? LOL! So the fact that he planned, kept quiet, and arranged for my mom to keep my son all without me knowing anything was impressive within itself. When he finally let me in on his little secret he told me that the theme was romance, and he didn't disappoint!

Our day was absolutely perfect, and it all started here:

The vineyard? You know it!

 

Now, if you know anything about me then you know that I love me some wine. Our first stop was to the Canadian Wine Country for a vineyard bike riding tour. Worrddd? I didn't even know that was a thing!

Of course I had to get my pose on in front of the vines ;-)

And then it was off to taste some wine! The tour consisted of traveling to 3 different wineries, where we would have a tour and tasting at all 3. Awesome right? Well, we weren't just on regular bikes. Nope! The hubby thought it would be nice to rent a tandem. Let me tell you, it's not as easy as it looks. It felt like learning to ride a bike all over again for the very first time. Pedaling and not steering is the weirdest thing in the world...add to that a bunch of drinks, and oh boy!

 

Holding Steady :) Yea, they made us wear those dumb helmets...

 

The bike ride was definitely an exercise in trust. At one point, as we turned onto the freeway, I thought, "If he does one wrong thing, we're both going down". I literally had to depend on him, but God had us covered ;-) A little while in and we had the hang of it. We even developed our own little system for mishaps. It basically just consisted of me just yelling "coast" whenever I lost my footing, lol. But whatever works right?

 

The thing I loved most about the tour is it combined some of my favorite things. There's no way you can go wrong with wine, the country (beautiful scenery), and historic homes. It was amazing! We were able to take in our surroundings in a way that we never would have been able to, even by car. I mean, how often are you this close to the side of a country road?

 

It was a wonderful day for a ride

Beautiful homes with nothing but land!

 

 Working Hard on a Saturday Morning

Lavender Fields? Come on!

 

I was absolutely in seventh heaven! And as if that wasn't enough, there was wine! DUH! Each winery had a different flair and a different story. From the small family-ran winery on the farm, to the sleek and modern hot spot, I loved them all!!!

 

 

Me probably still wishing I worked there. Did you know there's an actual job to test the wine batches every hour? Where in the world do I sign up!!

That middle spot, I hit that up!! Girls Night Out special.

This Winery was gorgeous, so modern and elegant. 

 

Loved the scene.

 







Nice Tasting Setup, felt like I should have had on my Sunday best ;-) 

Eatery

 

We even happened upon this scene. It was about a 40 foot drop down to Lake Eerie. The view was Gorg! Even caught a glimpse of a few islands.

 

After thoroughly enjoying ourselves we headed back to the first winery to have lunch. When I say that lunch was amazing, trust me, it was AMAZING. First off, the scene was awesome! It had all types of farm charm going on :-)

 

Swoon right? I wish I could eat all my meals here.

 

This wasn't just any type of lunch though, nope. It was on some real fancy, Top Chef type of stuff. The award-winning chef came out before each dish and thoroughly explained the process/ingredients/ favors to us. It was as educational as it was good. It was a total experience, not just a meal. 



This salad was perfect. I don't even eat beets and I ate the darn beets!

Lord, take me back!!! Traditional Argentinean Meal.

And what a yummy way to end it!!

 

Of course, we had more wine, and the old school jams playing softly in the background really set the mood.  It was amazing...have I said that enough? There's something about sitting in the great outdoors with horses in the background, eating an amazing meal that just kinda makes your day. #perfect

 

As soon as we were done eating my husband whisked me away because we had another activity to head to, this time closer to home. Now this is where things get a little dicey. He planned things right down to the minute, but unfortunately, he overshot it a bit. Because he did everything without my input I couldn't assist with the timeline so we cut it close...real close. We were actually twenty minutes late for our next activity :-( The hubby hates being late, so it was kinda stressful for a second. He was not trying to miss our activity. Even though we were still late I have to give him a "A" for effort. I would have never thought that you could make it from the border to Oxford in just 30 minutes. SMH.

 

Thankfully, God was with us and we made it safely--and I'm so glad we did because he'd set us up to go for a hot air balloon ride. *SUPER SWOON* I've always wanted to go hot air ballooning so it was awesome to knock two things off of my bucket list in the same week :) I felt like a kid at Christmas. The day absolutely could not get any better. I was more than ready to get in the air.

 

Super excited as we waited for the crew to blow up the balloons

The balloons were huge!!! 7 Stories!

Fire it up!!!

 

Now, I was all for going on the balloon ride, but I have to admit, it is a bit weird at first. It's a surprisingly smooth ride, but once you realize that you're soaring over the treetops in essentially an oversized picnic basket, it can be a reality check. And then you go up even further! After a few minutes, the jitters wore off (at least for me) and I was able to let go and capture some pretty good shots. For a minute, I almost forgot where I was. I was too busy enjoying God's beauty :-)

 

Perfect photo opp!!!

"And I'll take to the sky on a natural high, loving you more till the day I die!"

 I mean really, we could see all the way to Detroit while up in the air.

 The other pilot was fooling by the water :)

This is the life...

Sunset shot



 



Honestly, it was an amazing experience!!! The hubby wasn't really feeling it, but he did it for me and that made it all the more special ;-)

A few points to note:

• They are not playing when they say that you might want to wear a hat. It felt like a fire breathing dragon was breathing down my back the entire time...it was hot yo!
• There is no set landing space, you go wherever the wind carries you until you can find a clear spot. We actually landed in someone's backyard :-)
• It was an extremely smooth ride, but a little bit of a crazy landing. It goes without saying that if you're afraid of heights this isn't the thing for you.

 

Afterwards, we had champagne with the pilot and were given some of the nicest keepsakes to remember our special day :-) Then, it was time for dinner. All in all, the day was AMAZING! The hubby truly pulled out all the stops and I was more than grateful. To have someone so supportive and proud of my accomplishments is truly a blessing, and now I feel like I can't complain about anything for at least another month, lol!

 

After the long nights of edits and not coming to bed until six in the morning, the long drawn out conversations about my perceived inadequacies, the uncertainty and anxiousness..it felt good just to be done. The process was behind me, and we were actually celebrating a goal crossed off of the list. It felt good, I mean, real good.

 

I'm hoping that this will be the first of many more celebrations in the future, but for right now, I have some beautiful memories to carry me over. Thank you Darius for making my day!

 

If you visit my website, you'll see this quote in my gallery. After this weekend, this statement couldn't be more true.



 

I was very impressed. And that is why I've been MIA. We're doing a few things around the house, so hopefully I'll have updates on that soon, but for today I just wanted to swoon. What's one of the best dates you've ever been on?

 

Until the next time guys, XO!

 

Wine Anyone?

Hey Guys! I hope all is well. This is gonna be a super quick post this week--and I do mean super quick. Unfortunately, I've had absolutely no luck styling the table that I upcycled awhile back. Remember this? For awhile I did the whole decorative limb thing see here, but that got old real quick since it kept nipping at my clothes anytime I walked over to my lamp. Booooo! Then I thought about doing a whole gold decorative item spread, but I haven't found anything in my price range that I like, so I've decided to stage the table until I can do better.

And what better way to lighten the mood than with...dun, dun, dun...wine ;-) *claps hands excessively*

I didn't want to remove my photos from the table so I pushed them to the back, grabbed a few of my Wine Spectator magazines and laid them out, stuck a small wine rack in the middle and stocked it with Michigan wine :) and I'm done!

Simple aye?I must have swiped a bottle before this pic ;-)

 

By the way, I adore local wines. Besides historical house tours, visiting Michigan Wineries might be one of my favorite pastimes. Check out this old post that combines two of my favorite things :) If you're ever in the Romeo area stop in and visit my friend Tony at the Village Winery, he's an absolute sweetheart and his wine is sooooo delicious! I want to go there just thinking about it.



This might seem pointless, but I like the dark cover mags better. I am going to grab a few more from my stash and swap the lighter colors out.

 

It's nothing fancy, but it works for now. I think I will play up the whole wine theme a bit more by adding a space for glasses and maybe even some yummy chocolates. Now all I need is to dim the lights and turn on the dinner jazz, and I'll be all set. Until the next time guys. XO!

What's Your Address: DIY Post

It's been a rainy few days in  the mitten state, so I still haven't completed my flower bed/Sedum garden. Nevertheless, once the sun actually showed its face I decided that it was fine time for a little DIY. This project began like so many others do--in the aisles of the Dollar Tree :) I'd purchased a flag post and a garden flag, but once I got it home I discovered that the flag fit terribly...no biggie. My mind simply began going down the line of what I could do with my now useless post. Then it dawned on me, an address sign! I've been wanting an address sign for quite sometime now. Although our address is clearly posted on our home, I find the little posts to be endearing.

However, what I don't find to be endearing is the price...

You want how much for what????

 

I just can't see spending that type of money for something to literally stick in the ground. Of course there were some signs that were a bit less and some that were a bit more. But the point here is that I thought it was grossly overpriced...so I decided to make one of my own :) I always say there's nothing like DIY. It gives you something to do, and you can save money while doing it, yuppers!

 

To complete this project you'll need:

• 1 metal serving plate from the Dollar Tree
• 1 garden flag post from the Dollar Tree
• Spray paint the color of your choice (I used Rust-Oleum High Heat with a tough protective enamel since it will be outside)
• Numbers of your address that fit into your plate (I went with 4" reflective numbers)
• 2 hooks (comes in a pack for $.59 at Lowes)
• Drill
• Hammer and nails (included with numbers) or glue

 

Here's what I started with. I really liked the floral embellishments around the plate, I knew it would give my sign a little extra oomph! Never mind those eye hooks--didn't need them.

 

I started by spray painting my plate. It was a lovely day so the sun sped up the dry time :-) Be sure to paint both front and back. I painted each side twice.

 

 I kept it real simple with just a plain flat black, but remember you can get as creative as your imagination and pocketbook will allow ;-) Don't look at my horrible (backyard) grass--that's a work in progress!

 

Once my plate was dry I enlisted the help of my hubby to drill the holes at the top. If you have a high power drill you should be fine, but if you have a basic drill it might take a little muscle. Although I did not drill my holes first, I think it would be best to do it that way. After the holes were in place, I had to touch up my paint job :(

 My Hubby is so helpful...sometimes!

 

Next came attaching the numbers to the plate. Be sure to position the numbers where you would like them to go to make certain it looks the way you desire. I used my handy dandy hot glue gun--and honestly I advise against this. The glue was a bit messy and left me having to retouch the sign...again. *Sigh* After all of that, I ended up having to re-spray my plate and then I used super glue to secure the numbers...whomp!

 

Once your numbers are attached simply put the hooks through the holes and slip it onto the post. Next, be sure to stick it in the ground and admire your handy work. That's that!

 

 

Here's a close up :) It was still a little wet, but who cares--I was ready to put it out.

 

And here's the big picture. Hubby wants to get a stronger post and says that we should put flowers around it. Me? I'm just pleased! :)

 

My sign may not be as fancy as the ones you purchase in stores, but I got what I wanted for a fraction of the cost. All together I paid about $7, I think that's a darn good deal. Keep in mind, your project may cost a little more depending on how many numbers you have in your address and the style of number that you want. 

 

So now that my first outdoor DIY project is completed for the year, maybe I can find the strength to tackle that sedum garden, at least that's what I hope. Until the next time guys, XO!

 

 

 





Timber!

Well, well, well...I guess I spoke too soon. In last week's post I mentioned how there were no big jobs currently going on at the house, and how I was content with the little things (I really was)...and then what do you know, we had a big job. *Rolls eyes*

So last week a neighbor of ours was having some trees professionally trimmed. Of course, my hubby took it upon himself to get an estimate for our tree. Cool, no problem right? We'd talked to our older, more experienced neighbor and he told us that the best solution was to have our tree cut down little by little. He had cut an entire tree down that way. And while, we would still probably be out of the same amount of money, at least it wouldn't be all at once (and our home would be safe in the meantime). That made sense. I mean, as much as I want that tree down, I really couldn't see myself parting with $5,000 all at once for a tree.



*LOL at my friend, when I told her how much it would cost she exclaimed, "To kill a tree? I can put a hit out on a person for less than that." Ain't that the truth...


Long story short, the professionals quoted us $2,500--just for a trim! Naturally, hubby sent them away, but not before they revealed that once the leaves began to grow the price would go up significantly. We truly didn't want to go through another storm season with that literally hanging over our heads. But whatever, kick rocks, respectfully.

Well, at the time, my husband was out in the yard chopping down smaller trees when one of the workers returned to tell him an easier way to do it. They began talking, and the man asked him how serious he was about getting our tree trimmed. And that is when my day was semi shot to hell.*Groans*

Don't get me wrong, getting those limbs trimmed were a real necessity. I got tired of pulling my son into bed with us every time the wind blew, just in case. I hated the possibility of  one of those super thick limbs falling on our roof and possibly causing significant damage. I didn't want to see that tree at all when we created our patio area later this year. So it was definitely a NEED. But if there is one thing I hate, it's coming out of money that I wasn't prepared to spend. Even if I could have mentally planned for it the day before, it would have been better than just being told on the spot. In the end, my husband bullied me into saying yes.

Basically, because they were already in the area, they would do the trim right then and there for $1,000. That was a lot less than the $2,500 they quoted us earlier, and it would get our home out of danger's way. Besides that, the tree has been one of the biggest items on our 'to do' list. And even if we couldn't make it disappear totally, we wanted to take the first step in the right direction. Considering everything, going ahead with the trim was the only logical thing to do. The problem? $1,000 is a lot of cash! I mean, were there benefits involved? Absolutely. But for $1,000 I could have redone my bedroom décor, got me a new rug, went on a shopping spree, purchased a new couch, paid off some bills,  hell, even went on a trip. I felt pretty crappy about it. Nonetheless, I could rest a bit easier knowing that there would be no more limbs potentially compromising the safety of our home, and that's something that you just can't put a price tag on. And so it began:

Getting ready...

It's going down

 

It really amazed me that the process was all done by hand. I always thought that you needed a crane or some type of heavy machinery, but nope! There was one man in the tree with the chainsaw, and several men on the ground lowering the limbs to the bottom with ropes. There were also several other men carrying the limbs to the wood chipper. They had it down to a science.

 

 

The whole thing probably took just under an hour (a quick way to spend a G right?), and when it was all said and done I was beyond disappointed because I really couldn't see much of a change. The men explained that if they took too much off, they'd run the risk of killing the tree and then we would really be in bad shape with a huge tree needing to come down ASAP. Luckily, I took pictures of the before's and after's, and once I did a side by side comparison I could actually tell the difference. Can you?

 

Much better aye?

No more limbs covering our home!!! There was a thunder storm last night and I was able to relax knowing that even if a limb fell, it wouldn't hit our house :) But like my husband said, it's God who protects us anyways ;-)
 

So in the end, I guess I am satisfied. Although that thousand dollars would have been really nice if it was used on a Savannah historical tour, this, I guess, is better. Unfortunately,  I still haven't gotten around to completing my sedum garden, but one project at a time right?

 

Until the next time guys, XO!

 



The Little Things!

Yay! We're finally experiencing warmer weather in Michigan and I am just about as happy as happy can be. Yesterday I even made it out into the yard to get started on another flower bed. Hopefully, I'll be finished with that by next week, but that's another post for another day. Today I want to talk about the little things because...little things make me happy. I've started adding more pictures/wall décor in some of the bare areas of my home,, and when I tell you that I'm excited, that is really an understatement.

If you follow my blog, I'm sure you remember these wall sconces from a thrifting trip a while back. If my memory serves me correctly, I got the set for under five bucks. I fell in love with the old timey feel and couldn't wait to get them up. I first put them on the sides of my dresser, but decided to move them into the hallway for more lighting. This little guy is right outside my bedroom door.

This is the 1st picture of what I hope to be a gallery wall in my bathroom. I mainly opt to hang pictures of  family or photos of places that I love( like these shot by me at the Belle Isle Conservatory). Because art is so expansive and I loves o many different kinds, it can be somewhat hard for me to settle on a piece. Add in the fact that I would like for it to match my décor, and it could take years before I find some artwork to settle on. Pictures of loved ones and beloved places never go out of style. I also like to wow myself with my handy work #vain ;-)

Dug these three out of hiding. These wooden pieces blend so well with my bedroom set, it's almost as if they're a part of it.

Unfortunately, I couldn't get a good pic, but this mirror is 1 of a 4 piece set hanging above my dresser. Shout out to the hubby for so graciously hanging them up for me before church Sunday. Mauh!

This just came in yesterday. It's a FREE wall art piece (collage) from Shutterfly. The wall art is usually $24.99 so free is more than a steal. I'll be getting a frame and setting this out real soon :)

 

And last but not least, I also bought myself some flowers to put a little smile on my face. My husband usually buys me flowers, but, can't spend all day waiting on a man ladies :-P I wanted some flowers NOW.

These guys were only $4.88 at Wal-mart. There's nothing like fresh flowers to give a space a little pick me up, and it doesn't have to be extravagant either.

2nd day Tulips...whomp!

 

And before I go, here's a picture to prove that I've been working HARD in the yard:

I don't even want to think about how difficult it was to make this bed...certainly isn't as easy as it looks.

 

Well, that's that--the little things that made me smile this week. 1. Hanging up décor 2. A free collage 3. My droopy Tulips and 4. Proudly digging my own flower bed.

 

What kinds of things made you smile this week? Until the next time guys, XO!







Nothing New!

It's been another crazy, yet uneventful week. Not much to speak about as far as the home front goes. However, I got the opportunity to meet Sistah Soljah! What an experience that was :-) You may know her as a best selling author, or a 'sometimesy' member of Public Enemy, or you may even know her as an activist--the woman wears a lot of hats. I knew her best as the author of 'The Coldest Winter Ever'--a book I had no business reading, even in High School. Although I've largely forgotten the tale, the book was hot freshman year, so when my friend invited me to go see her I thought 'why not'. Although I'm truly not a fan of Urban Lit, I assumed I had nothing to lose--she's black, a woman, and an author--I figured I would learn something of value. I can't tell you how happy I am to have been present in that auditorium (or how embarrassed I am not to have been in  love with her before). Her speech was nothing short of magic. There were honestly times that I felt like I was at the poetry spot, a Panther rally, and church--all within the span of one hour. I could honestly go on and on, but I'll leave you with some of my favorite quotes from the evening:

• Dr. King organized families—husbands and wives, fathers and mothers, sisters and brothers. In 2016, a good-hearted activist has to figure out how they gonna organize these bitches, those bastards, and them mutherfuckers. We’ve lost our sense of family.
• Learn how to disagree without being disagreeable.
• Without self-reflection there can be no self-correction.
• No matter what you do make sure that a part of the light from your soul is in it.
• Even if you have a black face in a high place, they will still come gunning for your sons.
•  (And her advice to writer's) Don't be greedy, don't rush, and read every word of your contract!

Gems I tell you! In the end, I purchased the book Midnight upon her suggestion. She said that it was a good book for boys/men to read who father's wasn't in their lives. My friend and I plan on reading it book-club style and I'm very much looking forward to that.

Authors! Yup, I called myself an author too :-P

In the end, it was a very good experience. I wished that I could buy copies of her speech and play it on a loud speaker. The things she said were things that I feel every man, woman, and child of color should hear. When I write to her I will certainly ask if buying a CD is an option. But that's all I got. What a wonderful thing to have though, aye?
Until the next time guys, be blessed!