Whew, what a week!  I decided to try fitting in a bunch of projects to “beat the heat,” and I ended up working quite a bit in the heat, red-faced and sweat dripping off my brow.  It was only in the mid-to-high 80s, but I’m just not built for heat and humidity.  I got a lot accomplished, but it threw off my blog posting schedule, and my e-mail was woefully neglected.  I spent some time today getting caught up, so I won’t go into the weekend feeling behind.

Despite my full week, I picked out four things…

what I’m reading

I had a few appointments on top of my projects, so I revisited a favorite gardening book from last year to read while I waited.  I try to always bring a book with me if I know I’ll be sitting around, so I can spend the time better than just looking at my phone.  The book I brought along was The Elegant & Edible Garden by Linda Vater.  It is an approachable and encouraging gardening book that shows gardens of beautiful, but accessible homes.  I love the gardening books of Bunny Mellon and Bunny Williams, which are two of my favorites, but they have extensive grounds and a gardening staff. This is a garden on an average-sized lot maintained by one person, so the advice is grounded, and her ideas are easier to reproduce.

You can find more of my favorite gardening books HERE.

what I’m watching

I tripped across Castle Impossible on MAX and decided to check it out.  I don’t watch a ton of home shows these days, but I love watching old homes brought back to life, so this seemed right up my alley.  And it is.  I’ve only watched the first episode so far, but I love it.  This isn’t a show about independently wealthy people splashing money on an old house they won’t live in.  This is a young couple who inherited a chateau, outbuildings, and 100+ acre property in France, and they owed $1,000,000 to the French government in inheritance tax just to keep it.  Fortunately, her grandfather had a successful wedding business already running out of the grounds and restored rooms of the chateau, so that helped pay for the expenses.

Daphne and Ian have to work on this enormous project one step at a time, as they can afford it.  To keep it as budget-friendly as possible, they do as much work as possible.  It’s overwhelming, it’s a labor of love, and it’s carrying on Daphne’s grandfather’s 40-year dream of restoring the chateau.

While the show follows room makeovers, I’m much more interested in the story of a younger generation inheriting and restoring these old homes.  I’ve read books about some of these homes in Europe that are falling into disrepair because family members who inherited them cannot afford to pay inheritance and/or property taxes and don’t have the money or time to restore and maintain them.  These homes are worth saving, though, and I love following stories of buildings that are beating the odds.

what I’m loving

It’s cherry season, and I am loving that!  I eagerly stalk the produce aisle each May until the cherries start showing up.  The first bag can sometimes be a disappointment, but the first bag I bought was perfect.

what I’m working on

As I’ve been sharing in posts, I’ve been working on the exterior of our house – gardening, painting trim, and building an A/C surround.  I’ll be sharing more details in individual blog posts.  In addition to home projects, I finished the manuscript of my new book, and we’re starting to work on the cover.  I have to say, I am so in love with this book, and I can’t wait until it’s ready to share with you.  The next thing I’ll be working on for the book is the photography.

I also took a big step this week and purchased the tickets for my trip to the UK and Italy!  Mom and I will be visiting Julia of Ponder & Purchase in England for four days before heading to a creative retreat in Tuscany.  I haven’t traveled internationally (or on a plane for that matter) since 2019, so I have a lot of pent-up enthusiasm about seeing new places!

I must say, though, air travel has changed!  Now, you have to pay to select your seat, pay for checked bags on International flights, and it is outrageous to upgrade even just to Economy Plus!  All of these things used to be included and/or relatively reasonable.  It was sticker shock, which is why it took me so long to buy the tickets.  But it’s like putting gas in your car.  It just costs what it costs, and you try to be as efficient with it as possible.  Now that the initial shock of international travel in 2025 is over, I’m so excited about the adventure to come…

What are you reading, watching, loving, and working on this week?