Happy 4th of July!

Hope everyone is enjoying this Independence Day! I love having the day off!

I've about decided that I have been suffering from Patio Furniture Envy. Now, for the first time in all these years, I'm the owner of real patio furniture. I'm a regular person now!

I guess over the years, my outdoor furniture matched the potential of the outdoor space.

First, I think in my single years I owned a matching set of aluminum and woven web lawn furniture--a chair and a chaise lounge. My space back then was a wooden balcony in my apartment complex. The set just hung out out there until I'd decide to chill on the balcony sometime.


I brought this set into marriage, and when it fell apart (the set, not the marriage!), I bought a plastic-ribbed chaise lounge--one that could be flattened for those periods of sun worshiping that was so "in" back then. It didn't last long either, but not necessarily from use. During this time, we had another small wooden balcony at our Erlanger apartment, then had the backyard with garden at the farmhouse-in-the-suburbs in Florence. Though the backyard wasn't conducive to entertaining and sitting, we did spend a fair amount of time on the front porch, where there was an old-fashioned porch swing! Most excellent! Even though that house had limitations in space and age (a 1920s Sears kit house), I think I enjoyed that place the most. Maybe it was because it was our first real house (not apartment).

The next furniture we owned were two white plastic-coated wire mesh stacking chairs--popular back then. At that point in the mid-80s, we were in our newly built brick ranch in Burlington. There we had this most excellent brick patio that David made with his own hands. He'd be out there digging in the sand and placing those bricks, while 2-year-old Zach poked around the yard, playing. Those chairs fit the bill for a time, then rusted and fell apart. Also during this time, David's siblings and families gave us a stationary bench swing. We enjoyed that on the front porch!

I think the next time we bought patio furniture was maybe to have a couple of the above-mentioned aluminum folding lawn chairs. One had to have something to take to a church picnic!

Our move to Lawrenceburg brought us to the 1920s bungalow house that was never finished, complete with no back door, but a side door. The floor plan just didn't work for having much going on in the back, except for the swing set. Life was hectic at that house, but the neighborhood was great for front-porch sitting. We had a nice large, covered front porch, and had the swing there for a time. I can still see Natalie riding her pink and white Big Wheels up and down the sidewalks.

Our Gallatin house in Tennessee had our first deck, with potential for outdoor activity. But the back of the house faced west and there weren't mature trees to block the setting sun. It was so hot in the summer. The swing was in storage, plus the corner lot exposed the yard to major neighborhood traffic, so we never pursued outdoor life there.

Now in Hendersonville, we have a patio surrounded by tall trees. The old patio is quite sad in appearance, with a few cracks in the concrete. Personally, I'd rather have a deck with a screened area. But until that happens, we're going to make an outdoor space with what we've got! At our nearby big-box store we found a nice wicker-type love seat and chairs with cushions, plus a glass-topped coffee table. Plus, it was name brand and half off! I know we'll be spastic about keeping it protected from weather and bringing it inside occasionally, but it is definitely time for this purchase.


Last night David constructed the two chairs and we sat on the patio watching our town's fireworks display tonight from somewhere in the backyard! Just one mosquito bite, that I know of! I'll have to get some citronella candles for this outdoor living!

So, on my long list of outdoor furniture, that's one marked off. Next will be the screened porch with outdoor dining furniture, then maybe someday some Adirondack chairs under the trees!

Till next time!

I'm thankful for our country's freedom! And praying for Kennedy, who's recovering from spine surgery!

R