End of Summer

I am exhausted. The past few weeks have been insane, with John and his family moving out, dealing with the physical and emotional aftermath of that, and jumping through all the hoops required by the Gwinnett County, Georgia public school system and the Georgia State college system to get my boys enrolled in their respective academic programs. Finally, I see the light at the end of the tunnel. But I will return to full-time piano teaching on Monday, and I really didn't get much of a break. Still, I am optimistic about the future. The next couple of weeks are going to be challenging; Casey and I will be sharing one car until Labor Day week-end, and in the meantime we have to figure out how to get my little red Honda two places at once. But figure it out we will, and, once the dust settles, I am going to have a whole new life.

The summer wasn't all work and no play, though. There were those lazy afternoons at the Dockside Grill. There were also a couple of lovely lunches with Casey and Nathan and my one and only sister-in-law, Donna, at our favorite Mexican restaurant, Del Rio, in Dacula, GA.

I spent a couple of afternoons working on jewelry. I made an angel bracelet for my mom, using clear crystals from a necklace that once belonged to my grandmother, along with new sapphire crystals (my mother's birthstone) and a pewter angel clasp.

I made a handful of seed beed bracelets, similar to this one, that I am hoping to sell at a craft show in September.

I honed my chain maille skills, and made a pair of chain maille earrings for my friend Cindy for her birthday.

And I made a few new friends--like this fellow at Steverino's in Duluth, GA. We had to take Nathan's violin to Huthmaker in Duluth, GA for some new strings; afterwards, we made the executive decision to patronize the interesting-looking restaurant across the street. I had a grilled veggie sub. Highly recommended.

Tomorrow is my birthday. New adventures await!