grilling – Mom on the go in Holy Toledo

5 Signs that Spring has Officially Arrived:

1. The ladies are exposing more skin. Time to ditch the scarves gals!! Let your necks feel the fresh air. And grab those open toed shoes! Get a pretty pedicure and rock those strappy sandals! Eeee!!! Thank goodness, I was getting close to burning my boots…I mean I adore them, but after 5 months of boots a gal longs for some toe exposure, am I right ladies!?

2. Baseball, baby!! Sons playing catch with dads in the front yard, baseball practice at school, and best of all, OPENING DAY for the TOLEDO MUD HENS!!!

Even Will Ferrell’s Excited for the Toledo Mud Hens Season to start!

3. Everyone be all up in their grills!! The neighborhood smells amazing! The grilling starts around 2pm and goes all night….the amazing aroma of steaks, burgers, hotdogs, veggies, fish, etc. grilling is euphoric! Man how I missed that smell! YES!! It is back!

4. Color the town green!! The salty dust of winter, the dull boring hues of leafless trees, and the gray cloudy skies are being replaced with color! The various shades of green are magnificent!

5. The neighborhood is alive! Dogs barking, kids running around, moms pushing strollers, runners running, families walking down to the park, neighbors stopping by to chat…sometimes through the window…corner lot, I tell ya! Haha! But I must admit, I LOVE IT! It is like being on a movie set and someone just yelled ACTION, the neighborhood booming.

I just love Spring! Next on my list, flowers…I am literally counting down the days till Flower Weekend at the Farmers Market. Lookout marigolds here I come!

So what are some of your favorite signs of Spring? Are you wearing your sandals? Feels amazing, right!?!

Summertime means long days at the pool, going barefoot, and grilling with friends!

Now I would love to say we have family, friends, and neighbors over practically every weekend to gather around the grill. But the truth is we haven’t had a sole over yet! Now I could run off a list of excuses. We had a t-ball game, birthday party, etc. and we are just too tired. Or I could blame it on the empty propane tank. But come on, those are quick fixes. Want to know the honest to goodness truth? This is really difficult for me to admit but, I am a recovering perfectionist and since being introduced to Pinterest I have relapsed. See, in my mind in order to have a gathering in our backyard now it needs to look like this….

Source: http://www.thesweetestoccasion.com/2010/10/a-pretty-backyard-bridal-shower/

Ridiculous right!? Basically I need to try really hard to make it look like I didn’t try at all. Wait. Did that make sense!? I do believe my ‘crazy’ is officially showing, lol! See it is taking me some time to find the perfect chairs to sand, paint, and distress…or, basically make them look old again. And for some strange reason my husband is not onboard with us searching antique stores for the perfect sofa to sit in the backyard. Apparently you can have a cookout without a couch!?

ff2f1245c34b7927c2da162eaf2b80e5 — Source…http://pinterest.com/pin/100134791686707059/

Thankfully with the help of my hubby and Heinz I have come to the realization that waiting for perfection is a waste of time and I have taken the pledge! What pledge you ask?

Heinz Ketchup, encourages families to gather around the grill to celebrate good food, good company and good weather this summer. And get this, it doesn’t matter what your backyard, table, or chairs look like…just have fun! And the best part…by pledging before July 15^th, you’ll also be entered into a sweepstake to win a new grill!! Click here to pledge and be entered into the sweepstakes.

Will you stop the pinning insanity and take the pledge today? It is okay if you aren’t ready to stop pinning (just admitting you have a problem is the first step) I understand, but you can still pledge! How many gatherings will you pledge?