A few weeks ago, I received a box of the most recent collection of Jenni Bowlin Studio goodies. I have always really admired Jenni and the way she designs and at the same time runs a truly great business….not one or the other, but successfully does both, and has remained consistent through the years. Plus, she’s a sincere and lovely person and has surrounded herself with likeminded good people. I made a layout for a challenge on the JBS inspiration blog, which you can see here.

Summertime can be an expensive season with traveling, weddings and social events, so I thought it would be fun to gather budget friendly ideas. I’m always thrilled by a good deal. So here’s my list for today:

*b* list of summer bargains, deals & freebies

• free local concerts and movies. Check out your local newspaper for free entertainment. Every Friday night, here in Fremont, we have a free concert featuring a local band. Our museum also typically hosts a free concert on the lawn, at least once a summer. Both are family friendly and very casual. I know that there are lots of communities with free live music, including the Village Point Summer Concert Series, which Tom and I have enjoyed when we’re been able to catch them. There’s also a free outdoor movie night here in Fremont, which Tom and I haven’t made a point to check out yet, but who knows, maybe we will. I think they are doing a hot rod gathering with the free movies now, so Tom would probably be more inclined to go with that happening. Car shows are another free summer activity that we’ve enjoyed locally.

• homebody ideas. Since Tom and I love to be at home and especially in the summer, we’ve invested in a few things that have enriched our life at home. We consider our swimming pool a good investment in entertainment. It’s definitely not cheap, but it’s been a great investment in my humble opinion. From the moment I first saw our backyard, I knew it was just right for us. We love to spend time outside, so buying a home with a backyard sanctuary was smart for us. We spend hours and hours in our backyard, and I think it’s been a great draw for our kids and grandkids too. We love summertime entertaining. We often say to each other that we don’t need to take a summer vacation…why would we leave a place that we enjoy so much. Now the winter is a different story…we do most of our traveling in the winter and that’s just fine with me. One investment that I’ve been thinking would be fun for the summer is an outdoor projector. I’ve just started researching it, but I found this link to be helpful: outdoor movie theater project. If anyone has one and you would recommend it, please let me know!

• meal and drink deals. Sonic’s Happy Hour from 2-4 pm with 1/2 price drinks (my personal fave: diet cherry limeade), Bonefish Wednesday Bang Bang Shrimp for $5 special, and Gambino’s Monday night Price for the time deal. I need to get  to Bonefish for Bang Bang Shrimp soon! Craving it right now!
•  summer reading. Whether it’s just simple daily reading or getting your kids involved in your library’s summer reading program, I have always really enjoyed summer reading. I love the idea of laying by the pool and reading something light and fluffy, or something intense and life-changing…love it all. I am working on a list to share here of my favorite summer reads. For now I’ll just say that I adored reading Tiger Lillie by Lisa Samson four summers ago. It changed some important paradigms for me, without being too heavy.

This morning, I read this: “Our Lord’s first obedience was to the will of His Father, not to the needs of men; the saving of men was the natural outcome of His obedience to the Father. If I am devoted to the cause of humanity only, I will soon be exhausted and come to the place where my love will falter; but if I love Jesus Christ personally and passionately, I can serve humanity though men treat me as a doormat.The secret of a disciples life is devotion to Jesus Christ and the characteristic of the life is it’s unobtrusiveness. It is like a corn of wheat, which falls into the ground and dies, but presently it will spring up and alter the whole landscape.” This is from today’s reading in “My Utmost for His Highest” by Oswald Chambers. I bought my first copy of this book many years ago at Goodwill for less than a dollar. What a treasure. I wore that copy out and bought another. This past Christmas, a friend gave me a new copy and I treasure it, especially because of her inscription to me. Interesting how this book never loses it’s relevance.

I have so many family photos from the past couple of months that I would love to share here.

First of all, David’s 9 month shots:

Love this sweet baby boy!

Addie brought her camera out and started taking pictures too.

Almost two weeks ago, I went to the girls’ dance recital…it was such an enjoyable night!

Pretty, talented girls.

I ordered this collage as a large canvas and I can not wait to hang it! I have a wall grouping sketched out and can’t wait to see it when it’s all pulled together.

Her shoes prove that she has my blood : )

Grey needs a Heat jersey.

I love my family so much. Thanks for indulging me.

God bless!