Sunday, June 26, 2016

Pomp And A Lot Of Circumstances!

Today we celebrated our dear Summer's high school graduation with a party.  I need to mention that it was held at our house.  That being said, all the pomp in getting a house and yard ready was lots of work. So many projects got done and in the end...all good! If you've followed this blog for a bit you know I don't have a good relationship with the weather Gods.  It usually rains unless it's Winter, then it's a blizzard.  Well, no rain today! Yeah!  But...and there's always a But...it was in the 90's with high humidity.  Oh boy was it hot.  We put all the food inside and even made sure our finished basement was  in good order so folks could eat down there if they wanted.
Lots of good food!
In this corner we have pulled pork and shredded chicken for sandwiches.  (I made that and it was good!) Notice the mannequin?  Summer's majoring in fashion merchandising. I've featured her art on my blog and she's using her artistic talent in the fashion world.
Summer's other Grandmother brought these very, very yummy cupcakes instead of a cake.  They were a big hit and so darn good with filling in them! Thanks Kaye!
I put together this basket of cookies...a mix of homemade and store made.  Summer is one smart cookie for sure!
Now for some of the "circumstances".  Because it was going to be hot and partly cloudy we need some more shade than my yard offers.  I had many offers for these types of shelters. However,  all the offers fell through.  I must add, for my poor hubby, that I nixed an opportunity to buy one huge tent for a decent sum.  "We don't need no stinkin' tent" I said.   "We have 3 or 4 coming."  Flash forward to this weekend.  We ended up with only 2 tents only because Summer's Mom went and bought one and the Grandparents brought the other one.  Jack just shook his head.  Oops, sorry Babe! 
The gazebo on the deck served as a nice place to eat and chat.  And when things got too hot to handle,  folks meandered inside.  The most unfun part of this day was waking up to a power outage  that shut down our power as well as Wal-Mart and many other businesses.  Without electric we can't do anything...nada...nothing.  We can't even flush toilets! I had visions of folks walking cross legged to the nearest gas station for a bathroom!  I also had visions of no pulled pork or shredded chicken!  Thankfully the power came back on around 8:30.  However, it was on a low power.  My freezer didn't work and all the lights were dim and even the crock pots weren't  heating up.  But eventually even that was fixed in time.  The AC was just fine thank goodness! 
The kids didn't care how hot it was.  They played outside and had these water pump thingies that everyone loved.  A good way to stay cool!
So the pictures were taken...Jack, Evelyn and our Summer.
Summer and Cameron.
Summer with her dog Happy and her other "happy" Grandparents, Kaye and Jerry!
Jack found a comfy, cool spot on the couch.
Anthony is growing tall very quickly! Add to that, his voice changed too!
We put up a table outside with pictures and awards.  She finished her freshman year of college as well as her senior year of high school at the same time and has enough scholarships to finish her 4 year degree at Ashland University with minimal debt. Way to go Summer!  The party was a success, even with the few bumps in the road.  All is cleaned up and YaYa and PawPaw are plenty tired.  At least the yard is ready for the rest of the Summer season!  I know our Summer (Summie Days as I call her) is ready for her next season of life.
This is very good advice.  Good luck Summer!  We love you!

7 comments:

betty said...

Congrats to Summer! What an achievement to graduate and complete her 1st year of college! I think she'll do just great in her life! Looked like so much fun; loved the mannequin and the career path Summer has chosen. It is a lot of work what you did, but so worth it. We sent son and DIL and the wee one off a few minutes ago, I looked at hubby and said "its exhausting, but I love every minute of it." I'm sure you and Jack feel the same :)

betty

Shady Del Knight said...

Hi, YaYa!

I am thrilled to see the highlights of the special party you threw for Summer. Over the weekend it was hotter in Ohio than it was down here on the coast of Florida. I'm sorry you and your guests endured sweltering heat and didn't have enough outdoor shade. (I wish you and your guests could have spent some time in the Shady where it's always cool :) Right on schedule, when you had loads of party preparations head of you, the power went out. No wonder you had visions of all possible ramifications. My mother always used that expression "I had visions of." Thank you for letting us know we were looking at a mannequin in that second picture. I thought it was YOU! :) I hope Chubbsie and Eddy are both well. Anthony certainly is getting big. You have a wonderful family. You are blessed.

Summer looks radiant. "Summer's just getting started" and I have a feeling she will be unstoppable. Congratulations to Summer and best wishes for a happy and successful career in her chosen field!

Rick Watson said...

You guys know how to throw down, as we say here. I figure you all get the same kind of heat/humidity combo as we get here in summer which can be brutal for outdoor activities. But it looks like everyone had a great time.
R

Laurie said...

Congratulations to Summer! What a great accomplishment to graduate with such accolades and college paid for, to boot. The graduation party look like fun. I'm sure Summer will carry the memory with her forever. You're a good YaYa!

B. WHITTINGTON said...

What a lovely post in honor of Summer's big day. wow. Love the post and photos. The food sounds delicious. I love the idea of cupcakes and cookies instead of that big cake we always seem to think we need. Filled frosted cupcakes are even better. So happy for you that the day was a big success. Our weather here near Columbus mimics yours. We always seem to have extremes and not many days that are humdrum. When we get heat we get hot heat and humidity. My air cond. is trying to quit and I'm talking to the unit. Actually I have a call in to a company to have them check it out. Don't mind the days but hate hot nights.
Take care of you yaya. Hugs, Barb

Susan Anderson said...

You give a great party, but yes, you do seem to have your share of adverse events (weather or otherwise) every time you plan one! What impresses me is the way you always manage to come through with flying colors. This looks like such fun!

=)

MunirGhiasuddin said...

Congratulations to Summer. May God Bless her with a long happy and healthy life and may all her dreams come true. Fashion industry is great work in.

Sounds like a great fun party. Those cup cakes do look yummy.

Have a great summer and save your energy for the next gala you will plan. You are truly good with parties.