“Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people.”
Proverbs 14:34
Hello lovely friends! It’s a fun Friday here at Everyday Living…it’s Floral Friday! I love joining with my sweet blogging friends the first and third Fridays of the month to bring you all a little floral inspiration. Can you believe that it is only a little over a week until we observe Memorial Day? With summer unofficially starting, we can start planning vacations of course…but I don’t want to pass by this super important holiday. Here at our house, we love to set aside time to remember and honor those who died while serving in the U.S. Military. What a sacrifice, and what a reason to celebrate! Join me in the garden for a Star Spangled Day!
This is a very simple arrangement that I put together with little fuss or expense which is the best kind. A crock holds blue hydrangeas, red mini dianthus, and white blooms cut from my oak leaf hydrangea with a couple of flags added. A pair of blue bud vases hold more dianthus and hydrangea blooms and flags stand proudly in a red bottle!
Be sure to scroll down to see the beautiful red, white, and blue florals that Lidy, Mary, and Shirley have created…you will definitely be inspired!
In 1971, Memorial Day was declared a national holiday by an act of Congress. It was then placed on the last Monday in May. Prior to 1971, the holiday was officially known as Decoration Day for more than a century and was always observed on May 30. It was a time for the nation to decorate the graves of the war dead with flowers.
More than 20 towns claim to be the holiday’s birthplace. But only Waterloo, New York was officially recognized by the U.S. government as the “official” birthplace of Memorial Day.
The checked tablecloth was my Mother’s that she often used for Sunday lunches. I added a stack of vintage Johnson Brothers “Coaching Scenes” dishware to the table.
I grew up in a home where my parents taught me to love God and to honor and respect our country. My 87 year old Dad is a Korean War Veteran who was awarded a Purple Heart.
My gardening hat was embellished with a little red, white, and blue scarf!
We always host Memorial Day at our home…
…I love to hear my sweet Daddy say grace with a tear in his eye as he thanks God for this country and for those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice for freedom!
We love to stay with tradition…Butch grills burgers and hot dogs with all the trimmings!
The meal isn’t complete without a freezer of home-made ice cream. It is an absolute must!
How will you observe the holiday? Do you have any special traditions?
Lidy @ French Garden House
Mary @ Home Is Where The Boat Is
Shirley @ Housepitality Designs 
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Thank you for your visits and taking time to comment. You truly make my day!
Linking with:
Pieced Pastimes, Life on Lakeshore Drive,Coastal Charm, Dwellings-Heart of Your Home, Savvy Southern Style, French Country Cottage, Stone Gable, Confessions of a Plate Addict, Worthing Court, Between Naps on the Porch, Cedar Hill Farmhouse, A Stroll Thru Life, The Charm of Home, Katherines Corner,Petit Haus, Follow The Yellow Brick Home, Vintage Mama’s Cottage, Marilyn’s Treats Eclectic Red Barn, Share Your Cup,21 Rosemary Lane,The Vintage Nest, The Essence Of Home, Feathering My Empty Nest, Kingsbury Brook Farm, The Red Painted Cottage, Love Of Home,My Soulful Home, Celebrating Everyday Life, Little Farmstead, Starfish Cottage, Rustic & Refined,The Freckled Rose, Life and Linda, DIY 180, Celebrate & Decorate, Sweet Sensations, The Dedicated House, Jodie Fitz, The Design Twins, Happy Nester, Modern Glam Home, Shabby Fufu, Designthusiasm, Imparting Grace, Calypso in the Country
Pam, I love your star-spangled crock with blue hydrangeas, dianthus, and oak leaf hydrangeas! Your pretty blue and white Johnson Brothers transferware “Coaching Scenes” is perfect for a red, white and blue celebration on your checked tablecloth and I love your pretty garden hat! I’m thankful for veterans like your father and their families who make and have made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom. A freezer of homemade ice cream sounds wonderful with this warm (HOT!) weather. It’s always a pleasure to join you for Floral Friday. ♥
Thank you Mary! With our hot weather, we may have a freezer of ice cream this weekend! Long may freedom ring!
Oh that crock is amazing and the flowers perfect for the table. I love reading stories of the men and women of the Greatest Generation….I am so honored to be the daughter of one. My dad taught us what it meant to be an American and live proud by our flag/country. I think we kids knew every song of the armed services….as he sang them constantly on our Sunday drives/sing-a-longs. Beautiful setting to honor the ones who served and sacrificed for our country. Have a great day and weekend Pam!!
Thank you Shirley. I am so thankful for people like your Dad and mine and thousands of others who sacrificed for the cause of freedom!
What a beautiful way to honor the brave men and women who have served our country. Red, white and blue always touches my patriotic heart. Most of the men in my family served their country including my husband, father and brother. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you Carolyn and a special thanks to
Sorry, I hit send before I finished. A special thanks to the men in your family who served! I appreciate their sacrifice!
How pretty! I love that crock! What a wonderful way to celebrate the holiday.
Thank you so much Penny!
Pam you have created such a festive feel with your red, white & blue arrangement! The red flowers look like bursting fireworks! Your family BBQ sounds like the perfect all American meal, and such a great way to kick off the summer! Thank you to all who have served…
Jenna
Jenna, thank you so much! Have a wonderful weekend!
Your beautiful arrangement is a perfect salute to those who have given their lives for this country and all of us. Beautiful crock with the blue hydrangeas. Your Johnson Brothers “Coaching Scenes” so beautiful also. My Dad was part of the greatest generation and was a WW II veteran. Praise God for people like your Dad, a war hero. Cherish the red, white and blue!
Thank you Dianne! The greatest generation sacrificed everything for us to enjoy freedom! I am thankful for your Dad’s service! Hugs~
This is so festive! Love the crock!
Thank you Martha!
Pam, I’m loving your patriotic floral arrangement. I’m learning so much from y’all about flowers as I don’t know many flower names. I just buy and put together and don’t study what I’m using. I need to change that.
Thank you Kim! I still have much to learn. Have a wonderful weekend!
Pam, I love your arrangement in its star spangled glory! What I love most, though, is the thought of you gathering people you love at your home for Memorial Day. And your Daddy saying grace. We are blessed to have our freedom thanks to brave men and women who have served and lost their lives for us and our nation. Love you my friend, may your Memorial Day be wonderful!
Thank you so much Lidy! We are so blessed because many have sacrificed! Have a lovely weekend!
Pam, this is absolutely gorgeous. It honestly belongs in a magazine! I was raised to honor and respect our country. Memorial Day is always a special time in our family. We have dinner and then decorate our loved ones graves. I loved reading about your family traditions and your sweet daddy saying grace. We are so blessed to live in this wonderful country and have been allowed to do so because of the sacrifices others have made. I hope you have a wonderful weekend, sweet friend!!!
Well said, Shannon! Thank you sweet friend, enjoy your weekend!
Omg… another breathtaking table and arrangement. I have that RL canister and never thought of using it as a vase. But I will now!! Have a wonderful week, Pam!
Thank you Katie! Have a wonderful weekend!
You’re right! That IS star spangled. Hope it does its thing well until Memorial Day. Simply beautiful (as always) in every way.
Thank you Jeanie, it won’t last that long. But I will have something red, white, and blue to replace it!
Pam, I am glad there is a day to honor those like your Daddy you served our country. Please thank him for his service. It is nice to celebrate with traditions as a family.
Your floral arrangement is creative and attractive. You have the knack for styling for each occasion.
Thank you Bonnie, hope you feel better!
You got me in the mood for a Memorial Day Picnic; thank you so much. How blessed you are to still have your dad with you!
Have a great weekend.
Noreen
Noreen, I am so grateful to still have my Dad and his mind is sharp!
Pam, what a lovely setting. Your Dad is a patriot and hero. God Bless you and yours.
Marion
Thank you Marion! He is my hero for sure!
Pam, thank you for your Dad’s service. God Bless him and all the patriots and heroes. I love the way you have displayed everything. Tomorrow is Armed Forces day,so this setting will fit right in.
Marilyn
Thank you Marilyn! I salute all who have served and are serving!
Pam, such a lovely post. Your arrangement in your beautiful crock is perfect. I can just picture all of you gathered in your magnificent garden, with the smell of the grill and your dear dad giving the blessing. Such a lovely setting, especially for your precious Ella Mae.
We also stay with tradition. Hamburgers, baked beans and potato salad. For some reason, my husband has always liked a cherry pie for dessert. I would prefer your home-made ice cream.
It is hard to believe we are at Memorial Day, seems like it was just Christmas. But, we are so thankful to live in our land, even with our many difficulties, I believe in and cherish our RED, WHITE and BLUE !
Happy Weekend to you and yours!
Thank you dear Sandra! Home-made ice cream and cherry pie sounds great! I was so thrilled to see your photos of your beautiful gardens. I hope you will be posting a blog soon with all these gorgeous blooms! I would guess that you have been spending a lot of time in the garden this week. We desperately need rain. Happy weekend!
Your post is marvelous,great tribute!I wish I could be proud of my country like you …Blessings,Pam!
Thank you Maristella! Where do you live in South America?
What a beautiful table paying tribute to Memorial Day. The blue hydrangeas mixed with the red dianthus and oak leaf hydrangeas are wonderful! I remember my mother referring to Decoration Day and it was always celebrated on May 30th which was the date my parents were married in 1941. It’s hard to believe we’re already approaching Memorial Day especially since spring was so slow to get going up here!
Bonsoir. ..c est joli !! Les hortensias bleus ainsi que les oeillets rouges sont superbes…magnifiques photos…! Bravo et bonne journée..
Merci Catherine! Have a wonderful week!
Your table and the florals and flags are all so beautiful….such a gracious way of showing respect for our country.
Absolutely Beautiful!
Thank you Debbie, happy Memorial Day Weekend!
To all who served and died for freedom, especially to those who stopped the invasion of Australia, we don’t forget.
Thanks for sharing beautiful sentiments, Cath!
I mean it. Have a happy bbq.
Thank you for a lovely post. My grandfather (WWI vet) died when I was 8, my dad (WWII vet) did not teach me the importance of our vets. The vets at the VA hospital where I worked as a therapist for 25 years did; I’m retired now but still miss “my vets.” From them, I learned courage, honor, perseverance, committment even through fear and pain, and love for our country. What valuable lessons to remember in these days!
Lovely comment!
Yes, it is!
Kathy, thank you for sharing and for serving our vets. My Dad served in the Army during the Korean Conflict and was wounded! He is truly a patriot and taught me to love our country and to honor and respect the flag and all those who have sacrificed for me to live in freedom! Blessings~
This is beautiful Pam. What a lovely way to celebrate and honor our Veterans.
Thank you so much Carol!
Pam, this is just so beautiful! I love the table cloth of your mom’s and feel inspired to bring back Sunday Lunch in my home!! Thanks for the amazing history of the holiday too!
Thank you so much, Kristin!
Happy belated Memorial Day to you, Pam!
Love your tablescape and especially your blue teacup and those flow blue plates. Years ago my sister-in-law gave me a teacup very similar that she had trash picked on trash day while she and my brother were stationed in Germany. She had a small plate, identical to the dessert plates you have with the ruffled edges, and she sent that home with me, too.
Thanks for some happy memories,
Hugs,
Barb
p.s. Happily pinning a few photos. 🙂
Thank you Barbara for sharing your sweet memories! Hugs
Pam, this is absolutely gorgeous! Memorial Day holds a special place in my heart. We had many family members who served. My own sweetheart retired from the National Guard. I have such fond memories of decorating the graves with my mother. We lived just up the road from the cemetery and would stroll down there many times. As a young girl I would clip flowers from my mothers garden and lay them on graves that had no flowers on them. Thanks for sharing with SYC. I will be featuring you tomorrow.
hugs,
Jann
I once lived opposite a cemetery. No complaints against noise from the neighbours!
That is a positive for Living next to a cemetery!
Easy to get everywhere, too, on the tram. It was the dead centre of town!!!!
???
Jann, thank you so much for sharing your personal story with me! You share sweet memories! Hugs
Hi Pam, I just had to feature this beautiful post at TFT today! Thanks for sharing!
https://followtheyellowbrickhome.com/welcoming-summer-at-thursday-favorite-things/
Thank you sweet friend! I am always excited to be featured!
My son and I were at The post office one day at closing and they were taking down the flag and an elderly gentleman, over 70, stopped where he was at on the sidewalk and paid respect to the flag as it came down. My son was so moved by it. I am so glad we live in a town where this sort of behavior still is on display. Hope you had a lovely Memorial Day! Thanks for sharing at Home Sweet Home.
What a lovely story, thank you for sharing it with me!