Memories Light the Corners of Our Minds

 

This little guy was barking at us as Mallory and I pulled in to make a delivery. Caught in mid-bark, I thought he was cute. 

Uh-oh. The loaner picked up a screw in the passenger side front tire. Off to Les Schwab we go. They pulled the screw out, fixed the tire, and had us back on the road in about an hour. The business was very busy today!

Made a delivery at a local car wash. Since we delivered, they offered us a free drive through car wash as a way of saying, "Thank you." I accepted the wash and off we went. The car needed it, desperately!

The rear cameras were getting cleaned too. 

A few brush strokes and several moments later and my car emerged cleaner than before. Thank YOU, Thoroughbred Car Wash in Roseburg, Oregon!

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Maple trees are developing their "helicopters" to be released in the summer. 

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Terry and I had talked about getting ourselves something for our upcoming wedding anniversary of two years. But what do you get a couple who is already blessed? Why, a barbecue, of course!

Price was reduced too. Perfect time to pick one up! They finally delivered it and I rushed out to get it unwrapped and ready to cook!

While it's nothing new or out of the ordinary, I'm loving the side burner. Mm, baked beans here we come!

Manuals written in French too. Awesome. Now I just need to learn how to read the French language. 

With the propane tank hooked up, grill put together, and all manuals removed before they were cooked, we are ready to get this party started. Our first goal, invite Mallory and Hayden over for a barbecuing of hamburgers, steak, baked potatoes, and corn on the cob. Oh, yum. Picked up some baked beans and we ate. Mallory brought cheesecake for dessert and all was right with the world. 

Now that it is Memorial Day weekend, we have invited Mallory and her son, Hayden over again. We will have burgers and chicken with all the side dishes. Yeah, this barbecue will have plenty of use, that's for sure. Happy second anniversary to us!

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And, speaking of cats, our beautiful little Esme has decided the best way to sleep is to wrap herself around her humans to keep warm and secure. She loves to cling to Terry as he watches TV. Hard to believe just a couple of months ago she was a feral. 

She has to wrap herself around Terry so he won't leave her. 

And then there are nights that she wants to lay up against Terry. 

Such a beautiful face this sweet kitty has. Now if we can get her to feel secure that food will always be there for her, we'll be good. 

When we aren't in the room or we have to leave, we put the food dishes up on this little table top to keep Togo from eating cat food. Every time we walk into the kitchen, Esme begs for food, even though she may have just eaten. She has some food insecurities still, but we are working on it. 

And she may have just eaten, but how do you say no to that beautiful face?

A full belly one more time and she is out. How can nature produce such an angel in a cat costume? She has her forever home in us. That we can promise her. 

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What? Our animals don't run our household!

He could close his mouth and stop snoring though. Must be nice to be unemployed and be able to nap all day. 

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Well, the 17th anniversary date rolled around again. My husband walked in with another bunch of flowers to celebrate one more month of being married. I love him so much. He loves to rejoice at our being married. June 17th it will be two years now. Wow, time has flown by. 

He is always so worried that it's not going to be the right bouquet. How can it not be? Being thought of and given flowers each month? Always perfect. 

I love this bouquet and each arrangement I have been given. I also love the man who gives them to me. 

I know the 17th was a while ago, but I had to put this into one blog post to hold onto that memory. After all, that's what this blog is all about. 

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Today is Memorial Day, a day reserved for memories. To all of the men and women who have served and given their lives, we honor you. 

Memorial Day used to be called Decoration Day, beginning after the Civil War as a way to honor those lost in the war. 

The day was officially first dedicated to memorializing those who had lost their lives in war on May 30, 1868, when General John A. Logan called for a day to honor those who died in the Civil War. Eventually, the day became a way to honor all service men and women who lost their lives while in service, regardless of war. 

For those who served in the armed forces, welcome home. 

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Being Memorial Day, we not only honor those who lost their lives but also feel blessed to have loved ones who could return from serving our country. I love the day to spend time with family and give thanks for all we have while keeping in mind all of the service men and women who have paid the ultimate price for service or those who have made it home. Even giving thanks for the food we are about to skewer, barbecue, and mack down on. We are all blessed in so many ways. 

Firing up the grill, the lovely BBQ smoke scent floated through the air. Hamburgers were browning. It was good. Life is good. 

I wrapped corn on the cob in aluminum foil with butter and pepper. The top rack is perfect for cooking the ears, leaving the corn snuggled in a bed of butter. Yum. 

Baked beans were heating inside the house. Steak fries in the oven. I mixed up some coleslaw. My mouth was watering. 

Mallory, Terry, and me sat outside, inhaling the beautiful scent of barbecued foods. Our dinner was ready quickly. I added cheese to a couple of burgers and voila! Dinner is complete. 

Sitting on the swing, I was able to chat with Terry and Mallory for a while before the food was done. Yes, I know. I need to find time to clean off the patio. It is a hot mess.

We ate. Mallory and Hayden left to ensure an early bedtime for him to wake for school Tuesday morning. It was a good evening. We were able to enjoy some food, have a few laughs, love on a few fur babies, and share more good memories together. This is what life is all about. 

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I cleaned up the remnants of the meal. Terry and I settled in to watch a couple of episodes of our show. The pets all cuddled up with us, reminding us how blessed we are. 

Tomorrow is another day of work for both of us, but today was spent the way it should have been, with family. I wish more of our family could have made it but everyone is so busy this time of year with travel plans and work. 

Even while I missed the rest of the family, we had a good day. Now it was time to get back to our routine of loving animals and watching our show. 

Esme takes her spot by Terry and wraps her arms around him. 

Togo takes up his spot on the couch and begins his night. It's tough having a hard day of napping. Now it's time for his nap to recuperate from his napping. 

Jasper the chihuahua and Kit the cat take their places. All is good. We say goodbye to yet another day but we take with us the memories of family, fun, and our precious fur babies. Of course, the time shared together, as man and wife is front and center in our memory banks as well. Life is truly a beautiful thing. 

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Another weekend has ended. We hope you enjoyed your weekend and that it was filled with family, fun, and good times. Thank you all for reading the blog. We appreciate all of you. From all of us to all of you, have an amazing week! Until our next post ...