It's All About the Flamingo

Yes, I'm participating in Susan's Tablescape Thursday. But the post today is not so much about the table, but a flamingo. You see, he has quite a story, he's a survivor.

If you want to see "real" tablescapes, head on over to Between Naps on the Porch for creative and beautiful settings ~ all carefully constructed.

Here's his story. Last summer we had a beach house on a small sleepy peninsula near Galveston, Texas. It was the perfect retreat ~ a weekend getaway ~ and filled with seashell crafts made with little, loving hands, and gloppy glue. It also housed sea glass, well loved books, and of course a flamingo.

One stormy summer evening, IKE hit with a mighty blow. He struck with such force that homes were destroyed like matchsticks. One knew that building on coastal land was always a gamble, but a gamble that many took.

Here are before and after shots:

These pictures were actually taken by the United States Geological Survey. They were the first pictures we saw of the area. It was devastated. For comparison, USGS used yellow arrows. Our house is in the first picture, in the middle, and it's yellow. In the after picture, you can tell it's completely gone.

After it was safe to approach the island, we trekked our way through miles and miles of debris to try and recover any of our belongings. Guess who we found?

So this post is for my flamingo who survived IKE. He's a little battered, but still makes a memorable table.


He's a little rusty and his tail feathers are a bit crumbled...


...and he's missing a wing......but his feet are in good shape.




I think he's happy that he was found and brought home...

...to be the centerpiece of this summer table.

Mmmm....watermelon...a summer favorite. No longer eaten at the beach house, but enjoyed just the same.