Endless Summer

I wish the summer would go on forever. Well, I guess that's not really true, but what I would like to last forever is the Gallivan Twilight Concert Series. This year's line up was amazing and last week I went to see Okkervil River and Iron and Wine with some friends. It was a great concert and I was especially excited because I liked both the opening and the headlining band. All good things must end so I guess I'll have to be patient and wait for another great line up next summer.

Okkervil River

A bad image of Sam Beam, known as Iron and Wine

I'd also like the supply of garden tomatoes and basil to last forever so I can keep making this pizza

Always Read The Fine Print

I will share my fairly expensive lesson with whoever reads this so you can avoid the same mistake. Last week our city came by to tell me that the power would be out the next day since they were replacing a transformer in the back of our lot. The nice man handed me a piece of paper with the date and times of the scheduled outage. I promptly placed the paper on my fridge and never really read it. The next day after the power outage I noticed the ice cream was a little soft. I thought it was because the power had been off and it hadn't had enough time to harden again. The next morning the ice cream was runny and so we knew we had a problem. Turns out that the piece of paper from the city told me to follow instructions for major appliances, which includes unplugging your freezer/refrigerator during a planned outage. The surge of power to the freezer was too much for the relay overload and we needed it replaced. So about $200 later we have a freezer/refrigerator that works again. Next time I am handed a piece of paper I will carefully read the entire thing!

School Days

I can't believe the boys are starting school. Today was the first day of 1st grade and preschool for Boy #1 and Boy #2. They seemed to love it and I hope that love continues for the rest of the school year. In my new found free time I plan to train for a half marathon or at least go running.

Boy #1 got to ride to school on dad's scooter

Boy #2 is happy about preschool

Happy Birthday Grandpa Rich

I am lucky to have great in-laws, so I wanted to wish Grandpa Rich a happy birthday! I hope he has many great birthdays ahead of him.

Wedding and More

We have been in California for my niece's wedding. We extended our stay for a few more days and have been enjoying a little vacation.

The bride and groom
Me and my siblings
Elephant Seals
We saw two dolphins, but could only capture one as it floated on the water
We had a wonderful lunch. My sandwich was a chicken breast, apples, brie, and onion jam. Yummy!
We took a hike after our great lunch

How Many Steve's Does it Take to Remove a Snake?

I have a huge fear of snakes. This fear is hereditary since my father and brother also have it. So tonight as I tried to open the pocket door into the laundry room and couldn't because a snake was caught in the door frame, I screamed and ran back to the nook and stood on a chair. The snake slithered back into the empty space in the wall that the pocket door creates and did not budge. We called animal control but since it was after hours they were unavailable. Another company told us that for about $500 they could come remove the snake. Steve decided to take things into his own hands and he got out the crowbar, coat hanger, and other tools. Then our new neighbor, Steve, came over to help out, and after an hour or so of contemplating cutting into the drywall, a third Steve came by. Once the third Steve was here they were able to get the snake out of the wall. Unfortunately, they did cut into the drywall, but fortunately, there is no longer a snake in my house!

The intruder
The hole in the wall, hey, how many Steve's does it take to fix drywall?
The place where the snake is until animal control identifies it and takes it away

Mother's Little Helper

Boy #2 loves to help in the kitchen. He always wants to bring a chair next to me to help with whatever I am doing. Here he is helping me with strawberry jam.

Licking the bowl of strawberries
He went straight to a bath after this since he was a sticky mess