How to Display Fresh Cut Flowers on Your Patio

One of my favorite sites for clever and inspiring home decorating ideas is All Things Heart and Home. In this post, she was challenged by Kroger to design patio decoration using only items found in Kroger stores. This is such a great use of your empty jars to display your home grown or store bought fresh cut flowers this spring and summer on your patio.  

Happy Spring🌼🌼

Photo courtesy of and on All Things Heart and Home

Move Your Indoors Outdoors

We have turned our deck into an outdoor theater by streaming our favorite shows and movies from our IPAD or Smart Phone to our Smart TV. It's very simple to do and adds a whole other dimension to summer fun.  

Early this summer we purchased a Solo Stove for our deck. Its efficient design and airflow allows you to enjoy a fire pit on a wooden deck.  We do use a fireproof pad under ours and we enjoy using it every chance we get. The stove is perfect for roasting marshmallows for s'mores.  When was the last time you roasted hot dogs over the open fire? 

Adding a string of outdoor lights will bring illumination creating a cozy effect.

Place your deck chairs and loungers around the tv, gather your favorite snacks of popcorn, pretzels, dips, chocolates and favorite drinks, blankets if the night air is chilly and enjoy.  We are planning to use our deck until the snow falls.  

It is officially summer until September 21 so do what you can to be outdoors as much as possible. Most of us in the Midwest have warm temperatures well into October so we take advantage of being outside as much as possible.  

Have you done anything this summer to improve your outdoor life?

Savor the Moments

Everyone who knows me appreciates I am a planner. I keep my to do lists on pads and notebooks in my office, kitchen, dining room, my purse, my car...well you get the picture. But sometimes the most memorable moments in your life are the ones you didn't plan. Recently our family was enjoying the park together when our son and daughter- in -law suggested ordering pizza for lunch from our local Kringle Company store . We turned our park outing into a fun and relaxed pizza picnic. Our son-in-law ran to our house to pick up drinks, plates, bubbles for the children and bocce ball for the rest of us. And an extra bonus was having the park to ourselves. It's the kind of a day we will smile about for a long time. 

Isn't it nice to be enjoying family, friends and the outdoors again? Enjoy your weekend and do something fun and spontaneous. 

It's the Simple Things

Sometimes all it takes is a simple change to make an everyday area special.  My husband recently bought these strings of lights from Brightech he found on Amazon.  They are currently on sale selling for $29.99 for a 24 foot strand and $54.99 for a 48 foot strand.  They literally turn your patio, backyard or deck into a wonderland and changes the entire landscape.  There isn't glare and they provide enough light to entertain. 

What have you done to make your outdoor living space enjoyable this summer?