The eldest is a high school freshman and her sister is a 6th grader. Their older brother is in his third year of university.
The visit with youngest and daughters was good. Talked and laughed, as always, and the girls told us about their cruise. The youngest’s high point was eating 23 ice creams. 
Three hours well spent. The older of the two girls expressed interest in taking up guitar so I gave her my acoustic Brazilian to take home. It needs to be restrung, but has great sound, and I don’t play anymore. Exhausting but fun. Unfortunately, all those 98 degree bodies really heated up the place.
Has been pouring off and on all day. I decided to not go to my friend’s annual lake house party…didn’t want to be standing around inside for hours. The hippies at the music festival may be getting clean. Or perhaps more muddy. I guess muddy and non-stinky is better?
Must go, Ms Peach is claiming it is dinner hour.
I just came in from wheeling my smoker out onto the driveway and cutting 20 16" splits of hickory in half. My daughter is going on vacation to a regional lake Monday with herSO and his family. I have a ten pound pork roast I will smoke for pulled pork tomorrow.
Breakfast with friends was very nice. Man, it was good to see them! 
We spent an hour and a half visiting.
The six-year-old autistic daughter of a woman who used to work where I now work, wrote and illustrated a book. It was so cute, I had to order a copy. It just arrived. (Took, like, a minute to read.)
Today is our last day of really livable weather for awhile. Started the day at 51Ferrets, currently 79F and a predicted high of 86F. Starting tomorrow, it will be more unpleasant with highs between 90-97F till Thursday. At least the mornings will be ok.
Your place sounds really pretty! I would enjoy your color choices as as well. I, too, am a big fan of wood and love mixing it all up.
Sorry you were made to endure that awful “Mexican” restaurant. Ghastly!
A trick I learned to induce them to ripen was to stop watering them. It worked for mine – maybe worth a try?
I would probably start another with cuttings instead, because I think this tree was a graft. The problem is I’m out of sunny spots for them. This place is almost all in shade. I have another planted at the other end of the house, but it’s a different variety and much more sedate. If I’d realized when I planted them both, I’d have reversed where they are. Japanese Maples were my husband’s favorite trees, so I planted the two in his memory.
Glad Nelson made a new friend! I hope you have fun at the flea market.
Van Gogh, I hope you feel better about going to the convention. Just talk about the things you do that make you excited, and your enthusiasm will be contagious. I’m with JtC – the nose!
cookie, your visit sounds like it went really well. Something to smile about, eh?
Nut, your garden sounds incredible! Mastering the Year-Round Garden is quite an accomplishment. I’ll have to look up violet cress!
Welcome home, Metal Mouse!
taters, the rain didn’t make it this far south and I am jealous. Have a wonderful time with the kids – they’ll be here before you know it!
Mollie, enjoy the MTTA night out. I am sure you’re going to do just fine.
red, I’ll add my best wishes for celebrating your Doperversary! It’s a perfect excuse for an all-day RDOS spell! And… strange… I think I understand. 
Oopsie, I’m so glad you escaped the fire! What an awful ordeal for you and your whole family. Totally understandable why you have a soft spot for fire fighters and victims of fires.
So long as there is an uninterrupted band of bark around the tree above the roots and below the split, it can be done with varying degrees of success. I figured it couldn’t hurt to try. It took a long time to grow back together, but it did. And now it’s coming for the patio furniture!
I love “You Must Believe in Spring,” too. 
I’ll bet you sing it wonderfully.
JtC, poor GG! Welcome to pet skin allergies. 
At least there is something for relief, and maybe he’ll only need it in the summer. I hope he forgives you soon for the vet visit. Please give him a cuddle from me, if he’ll let you.
And we know you’ll write more when you can. Healing well is the most important thing!
52, thanks for your kind words about the paint colors. I knew at least a few would like them, but I do understand they’re not popular choices with most folks. And it was so nice of you to treat your BIL and sis with a fine steak dinner!
cat glove, good onya for being a tree hugger. I’m with you all the way with the RRR mantra. And I’ll add my encouragement to do an Alaskan cruise, even if you never do any other. It’s the only one I ever did, and I had a wonderful time. Sounds like Bella had a pretty fun time at work with you today, too.
doggio, your work days would finish me in minutes. Your stamina to keep going back astonishes me. I know Spot is a stern taskmaster, though. As needs must, eh?
hippie, as always, that will be beautiful work. I love that you share your accomplishments with us. And I do know that’s not your quilt, just representative of the one you’re working on. Did you use the same color scheme?
fly boy, how great you had such a fine time with your friends! The Dolphin book looks fun.
So today I finally got around to finishing up cleaning and accomplishing the water change in the spa. I drained it awhile ago, maybe a week…? But then discovered the old hose at the bib was shot. So I moved hoses around from the hen house and the barn to find one that was long enough to reach. I also had to move a little utility cart from the wood shed down to the barn, and I can see I’ve got some brutal work ahead of me to beat the blackberries back from the horse ring. Things grow around here so fast…
I scared the hell out of the bun this morning when I threw open the slider from my bedroom for the cool air. I didn’t realize she was breakfasting behind the spa, but when she heard the noise, she flew into her warren at top speed. I felt bad about it, but I doubt she’ll starve.
Our fire season here in Oregon has begun in earnest with 3,000 lightning strikes recorded yesterday across the state. They started more than a dozen fires. The fires are all south and east of me, but we’re not immune. Thus begins the most stressful part of living in the forest, probably till October. 
We have a scheduled power outage for system upgrades starting tonight at 10:00 p.m. and continuing until (hopefully only) around 1:00 a.m. I’ve got the Kindle charged up, extra water put by for the random flush, coffee is ground and water for the coffee is in the kettle on the stove. Some other water is at the ready for heating to wash dishes in case the outage lasts longer that expected. We’ll be fine.
The rest of the day is for bludging.
Take care, all!
What’s black and white and red all over and can’t get through a revolving door?
A nun with a spear through her chest.
TONTO: I don’t like your horse, Kimosabe.
LONE RANGER: Shut up and eat.
The thunderbolts and lightning – not so very frightening me – finally started at around 3:40pm, and lasted all of 10 minutes. The rain hasn’t stopped yet, though. There’s a low chance of more storms in about an hour (it’s a little after 6pm), and a higher chance of storms overnight. Whatever it takes to break this heat!
I spent all afternoon building Lego; until about an hour ago. The tip of my index finger is actually a little sore right now (from pushing tiny pieces together for so long). I’m a bit less than halfway through the set. I’ll probably do another bag or two in a few hours/before I go to bed, but right now I’m in the TV room on a comfy couch with a belly full of popcorn and an old episode of Elementary playing. Oh, and the washer is running; it and the dryer are in a closet right next to the couch. The washing machine here is an HE model, and it’s relatively quiet, but I’m still getting used to how it sounds. I am so very grateful that neither it nor the dryer play any music or “sing” to me!
(OK, I just laughed out loud: the Elementary episode ended and I decided to watch The Sheep Detectives on Amazon, and the MGM lion at the very beginning just let out a “baaa” instead of a roar. 
)
Welcome home! I think you have earned your “nothing.”
Interesting question, but no; not at all. I am slightly more aware of fire hazards than the average bear (N.O.S.), though.
My college roommate was a big fan of candles, and the only real arguments we ever had were when I’d refuse to let one stay lit overnight. I love candles, too, but I absolutely can’t fall asleep if one is burning.
Sounds like me and Lego sets. Heh.
Wow!
That will be one pretty and interesting quilt!
Most places, I take canvas bags with me. However, there are a couple of places I intentionally get plastic bags to line the bathroom waste basket and the dookie can outside (covered small trash can for Nelson nuggets).
I finished up some cards today and even managed to steam mop the apartment, so not 100% RDOS.
Howdy Y’all! I did the things early this mornin’ and even went to Jack’s and brought home bacon, aig and cheese bizkits as a surprise cause I’m all nice like that. We had some quality cee-mint pond time, but by around one p.m. we had had enough so we came inside, showered and achieved nappage. We day drank and a little bit ago had sammiches. It’s thunderin’ all around, so maybe we’ll get us a tstorm in a bit. Next week is VBS, so other Verger and I have menus planned to feed the little ankle biters and volunteers all week. They’ll get burgers, dawgs, pizza, tacos, and dino nuggets and mac & cheese. There will also be sallit (we are doin’ the lettuce and veggies ourselves cause we don’t want to use any packaged stuff right now), fruit and some kind of cookies or brownies each night. One night (probably the last one) will have an ice cream sundae bar. Plus some kind of snack each night, of which I am not in charge. OYKW is on his own to feed himself which he declares is not a problem. It will wear me slap out, but I always like to make sure they get well-fed and sugared up. What? I ain’t the one that’s gotta get 'em to bed.
MetalMouse you got to pet a kangaroo! How cool! I am so extremely jealous of you! I see that you are home safe and sound. Welcome back!
Taters that is a lot of work! However, I am sure the carpets look F-aaaaaa-bu-ous!
JtC glad GG survived his trip to the pet, poor baby. Hope the pills help. :: skritches to GG and Jolene :: from Unca swampy.
52 what a nice thing to do for sis and BIL! Sometimes a good treat like that is just the thing. Glad they and you enjoyed it.
Cat_Glove sounds like Bella had a great day at irk!
doggio well, after all, Spot needs his gin!
Hippie that quilt is purty! Hope you have fun with it.
Cookie glad you had a good visit with your daughter and granddaughters. Eatin’ 23 ice cream cones would be a highlight for me as well.
FlyBoy glad you had a good visit with your friends. The book looks like it would be adorable!
red Happy Doperversary!
Mollie BLT’s, new threads, and the MTTA night out. Sounds like quite the day for you! Nummy, gorgeous, and fun!
Oopsie huzzah for the approved extra pay! You earned it. Hope the weather is not too bad. I do love a good storm as long as it does not get too nasty. That is a bittersweet memory. So, that’s you on the left in the pic? AWWWWWW!!!
That is a gorgeous quilt Hippie. I love the pattern; I love the colors. Looking forward to see yours when it’s finished.
I can identify with this! Especially if she sampled all the different flavors they had. I had moose tracks yesterday and my friend had butter pecan. Yum to both. Jamocha almond fudge and mint chocolate chip are also favorites.
I’m very glad that your visit with your youngest and granddaughters went well. I’m sure the girls really enjoyed telling Grandpa about their cruise. And wow, acoustic Brazilian! That was a great score for the older granddaughter.
Oopsie very glad that your family was able to get out safely and to let others in the building know of the fire and also that you didn’t suffer any lasting ill-effects.
red Happy Doperversary!! 
Good on ya for intentionally getting and reusing the plastic bags. I reuse the plastic bags that the newspapers come in to make waste bags for Bella’s constitutionals.
Last night Hubs made turkey burgers for dinner; 2 largeish ones and one smaller one. I took a pic of them in the cast iron pan and sent it to daughter. She said “that’s one spoiled pup”. Tonight I took the rest of the ground turkey and made sort of a turkey hash with green onions and minced the scallion bulb from the garden, minced 2 garlic cloves, chopped some red and orange bell peppers, added some white and yellow gold corn, seasoned with Mrs. Dash and some ground pepper and added some chicken broth for steaming. Also baked a sweet tater. After we ate, I took the ground turkey that I took out of the pan before adding anything else, and hand fed it alternating with bites of sweet potato to Bella. She’d already had her dry flavorless bits and I think she needs something more. Contemplating if I should make a pupcup for her. Well, maybe tomorrow.
I bought it as a kit with the same fabric. It is all a luscious batik.
Thank you all for the kind words
Home to peace and quiet. The weather mostly held off so the kids had a great time swimming. Two of my older cousins didn’t recognize me - I had to tell one twice who I am. These cousins are in their 80s, so I guess it comes with the territory. Much food and much conversation - overall a nice afternoon.
Some side drama, too - apparently youngest sister is not speaking to brother. She seems to think that because she’s helping our mom that she’s entitled to inherit the house. Entitlement aside, there’s no way on earth she can afford the taxes, insurance, and upkeep on the house and property on her SS disability. There’s a lot more to the story that I’m not going to bore you with, but apparently no one else in the world has had to care for an elderly parent to the extent she does - oh, yeah, Mom can still drive and she doesn’t have dementia - she just can’t get around as fast as she used to, and she occasionally needs a cane. Sis really got her knickers in a knot when I mentioned what FCD and I dealt with as we cared for both of his parents, because, well, it wasn’t the same, right?? Anyway, I forsee ugliness ahead when Mom dies.
Sorry for dumping this here, but, well, I know this is a safe place to unload. I also know a couple of you are FB friends with her and you might want to take some of her posts with a grain or two of salt.
Otis had a great day with Dolly and he should sleep like a zombie tonight. Our drive home included a couple of downpours and a rainbow sighting, but it doesn’t look like our neighborhood got any rain.
So, time to wind down…
I finished up some Christmas and Valentine’s cards this evening. I’ve been going through a bunch of my tools and seeing if I really want to keep them by making a few cards with them.
I napped. Spot trampled me awake because he wanted snuggles. I’m having a Sazarac and Asian BBQ stirfry for dinner.
Nice!
That’s why I have a sign:
Early but nifty, as always.
I’ve been reading about the Mumpdawg skin allergies and have felt sympathy for everyone, it just sounds like such a PITA for everyone involved.
It is really hard to give the Gromless one a bath. I really hope it doesn’t come down to that. He wants to drink the water. And lick the soap off himself. And jump out of the bathtub to stand in the middle of the floor and shake slimy cat fur all over then jump back in.
I’m so happy that he likes the pill, Hubs doesn’t know how to pill cats, he’s too gentle and worried about hurting them. I’ve always been the pill giver, so George knows that if I want to put ick stuff in his mouth, it will happen and he doesn’t fuss. He will fuss if Hubs tries and he is strong and squirmy and very willful.
Goals were reached and fun was had
And if you say something, they take everything out of the plastic bags and throw the bags in the garbage. UGH!
That’s going to be amazing when you are finished.
It would also be a lovely bit of needlepoint!
Awwww! I’ll bet she gets thrilled every time she gets a sale.
About 50 years ago, Hub’s dad saved a big tree that had been split by lightning. He used a come-along (hand cranked winch) to pull the trunk back together and then put a BIG bolt through it. Dad’s been gone for almost ten years but the tree still stands.
Late night final time here. Screwed up watching the World Cup, thought it started at 5pm and instead it began at 4 so I missed the 1st half, then as the game got exciting with about 10 minutes to go a storm popped up and messed with my Direct TV, so missed the beginning and the end (did watch the highlight reel on You Tube about 30 minutes ago). Hopefully I will be better prepared for tomorrow. Outside of that and consuming food, have done nothing of interest all day since arriving home.
JtC, just glad you can respond and let us know how you (and the rest) are doing. Hope the pain keeps going down.
52, Haven’t been to a ‘nice’ steakhouse (we have a Ruth’s Chris about 7 miles from me), but plan to go to a ‘kinda nice’ one (Longhorn) tomorrow.
Cat Glove, I’m not quite as green as you, but at least I recycle all my plastic shopping bags at Wal-Mart or Publix, so I do try some. And I knew when I reread my post someone was going to notice that…
doggio, crazy place to work, but I guess the checks arrive on time at least…
Hippie, nice work, looking forward to seeing the finished product.
Cookie, nice of you to donate to help spark granddaughter’s musical ambitions.
Flyboy, I’m impressed in a 6-year old writing and illustrating a book of her own. My congratulations to her.
Bright Tree, stay cool; we’re due for a stretch of 90F highs down here. And hope the fires can be contained without too much damage.
Swampy, sounds like to VBS kids are going to be spoiled rotten by all that good food you’ll be feeding them. As for the kangaroos, they are in a pen and so accustomed to humans they don’t even twitch when you touch them (of course, since they lie on the ground a lot, their fur is very dusty and dirty).
FCM, glad the family get-together went…mostly…OK. And yeah, elders passing can bring out the worse in families; we’ve had a couple examples here in the MMP. And we’ll always be a safe place for you.
And that’s all I have tonight. Might not have done much but catch up on my computer stuff, but 210 miles of driving 70+ MPH does wear on one, so off to bed I’ll head. Catch y’all tomorrow.
I just got back from dinner. I had a lot of fun. I think some folks stared at me as a I walked from the parking deck to the restaurant, but I decided to not let that bother me. I had a lovely conversation with several people, and no shows were put on as I got into and out of my car. Let me tell you, I rocked it. No pics from the event to preserve others’ privacy, but here is one I’d just taken before getting changed.
I’ll catch up in the AM.
And with your hubs’ thin skin and bleeding issues, it would closely resemble a massacre.
I went to a church get-together last Saturday. Since they asked for people to bring outdoor games, I brought a never-used Frisbee. Didn’t get it back. So I found a 100 g (original-style) one on Amazon, and I have it now. Today I ordered a black, '70s-vintage 150 g Master Frisbee, and a '70s-vintage, 110 g Moonlighter Frisbee from Amazon. (The latter no longer glows.) I would so like to play. Frisbee, Wham-O boomerang (which I’ve also ordered), cribbage, dominos, chess, Go (I need to learn), backgammon… but the Spousal Unit has no interest. There’s no one to play with.