It’s time for Wednesday Hodgepodge and it’s the first Summer edition of 2017!

1. The first day of summer rolls in later this week. What are ten things you’d put on your list of  quintessential summer activities?  The collage above has some of my ten.

1. Decorating and having folks over for fourth of July is one of my favorites.
2. Eating summertime fruit and baking with it.
3. Entertaining out of town guests with all our area has to offer like canoeing on Lake Washington.
4. Casual barbecues with family or friends.
5. Day trips to see a new town or area.
6. Completing projects outside.
7. Going to Canada for a summer get-together with the MGCC and their husbands.
8. Taking some walks.
9. Enjoying summertime flowers and decorating tablescapes with them.
10. Going to the Lavender Festival in Sequim.
11. Attending soccer games in warmer weather, oops that’s 11.

Will you try to manage all ten this summer?  No. Our fourth of July party probably won’t be on the 4th this year and with summer company coming I’ll probably miss the lavender festival since it’s not something little ones would enjoy.

2. Do you collect seashells when you’re at the beach? 

If we can find them we do like to collect them.

What do you do with them once you get them home?

The Abalone shell is from Dear’s early years in Southern California.

The Ginger Jar is full of shells Dear and I gathered our 4 years while we lived in Camarillo from 2006-2010. Most Saturdays while we were living there we’d drive to Emma Wood Beach in Ventura and walk along the seashore just as the sun came up. The little glass bowl has shells and little pine cones from somewhere before we got married. The spiny shell is one we keep out of reach.

These larger more dramatic shells are from Dear’s parents who got them from his Uncle and Aunt who were stationed in Hawaii for a few years with the Air Force. Right now they are living on the bottom shelf of the tea cart in a metal tray, the shells, not Dear’s folks or aunt and uncle.

What’s your favorite place to comb for seashells?

Emma Wood Beach is the most recent and favorite. And for the record winter beach combing is my favorite. I like to avoid southern beaches in the summer.

How many of these ‘best beaches for hunting seashells’ have you visited?

None.

Which one would you most like to visit?

Calvert Cliffs State Park (Maryland), Jeffrey’s Bay (South Africa), Sanibel Island (Florida), Shipwreck Beach (Lanai Hawaii), Ocracoke Island (North Carolina), Galveston Island (Texas) and The Bahamas

I think I’d pick Shipwreck Beach. I like the name.

3. At a snail’s pace, shell out money, come out of your shell, go back into your shell, drop a bombshell, happy as a clam, clam up...which ‘shell’ phrase could most recently be applied to some event or circumstance in your life? Explain.

At a snail’s pace is the one I’m going to pick because we seem to be waiting on things that might develop to make plans that might come to be if nothing else changes and in the meantime nothing has changed.  So we are waiting…

4. What summer activity do you dislike? Why?

Pool parties that involve little ones who might or might not be watched properly by their parents.

5. What’s something you see as quickly becoming obsolete? Does that bother you?

Actual reporting of the news. Too many opinions, not enough facts. Yes it bothers me.

6. Insert your own random thought here.

We got these photos by text on Tuesday the 20th. I love all of her expressions. We get to see Addy May on Friday! Woohoo. She’s changing so much every week. It’s been a month since we have seen her in person.

It’s the first day of summer and we had…wait for it…rain! I added that for Vee’s sake. It’s not just in your corner of the world!

Thank you Joyce for asking the questions. Click over to From This Side of the Pond to see more Hodgepodge.