Tuesday, April 26, 2016

Week 17

Welcome back and happy Tuesday.  We have a super busy week ahead with something going on every evening.  If it's not tennis, it's swim or a board meeting, or work event, or awards ceremony.  The good news is that swim is almost over, tennis won't be long to follow, and school it close to being out for the summer.  One more month!!  Can't wait!

Take a look at the relatively slow week we had last week:


Day 109- Monday, 4/18/16
What!  Nothing going on this afternoon.  Someone pinch me.  This means more time to pester the cat.  He was sitting with me on my lap until I brought out the camera and then he decided he'd rather be in the background ;0) 





Day 110- Tuesday, 4/19/16
Tyler is grabbing a quick snack before heading to swim practice and also super focused on his phone.  Bella is hoping he drops something or maybe even shares. Goldfish crackers are his go to snack right now and Bella approves.





Day 111- Wednesday, 4/20/16
What's for dinner tonight?  Penne pasta in vodka sauce with chicken and jack cheese.  A slower week with less activities means I actually have time to cook.  What a concept!





Day 112- Thursday, 4/21/16
Here we go--now the afternoon activities pick up.  Today it's tennis for Justin.  I haven't seen him play in a real match for awhile.  He's really improved, is more confident, and is working the strategy with his ball placement.  Go Justin!





Day 113- Friday, 4/22/16
Today Tyler is swimming in the rain.  It came down good and hard for a bit but then the clouds parted and we were treated with a beautiful double rainbow.  One more week of swim and then that's it for Tyler's high school sports career.  Wow!  Swim season flew by!





Day 114- Saturday, 4/23/16
What did I say before--free time means more time to torment the cat.  LOL!  Poor thing gets more attention than he probably wants.  I love how his tail is wrapped around Justin's leg.  Justin just got home from tennis practice and is trying to relax with Rusty but Rusty is not ready to relax.  He darted away right after this picture and found a a nice hiding spot.





Day 115- Sunday, 4/24/16
The Warriors are playing in the NBA Championship series over the next couple months.  Brandon asked for a Warriors hat so he could support them and recently had a great report card so John took him out today to find a hat.  He's thrilled and has been wearing it ever since.




That's it. We'll do it again next week.


Tuesday, April 19, 2016

Week 16

Happy Tuesday!  We have spring weather back and are enjoying it.  I even made it out back this weekend to pull weeds and prune the yard.  It's not a fun job but it is nice to be outside in perfect weather.  It's time to get that yard back in shape so we can enjoy it for the summer. 

Here's a look at other things that happened last week:


Day 102- Monday, 4/11/16
With all the rain we've had so far it's nice to see that the grass most of us lost last summer bounced back and recovered nicely.  We are enjoying the green season while we can and sadly know it may not last.





Day 103- Tuesday, 4/12/16
The pretty plants around the pool are in full bloom and add some nice contrasting color to the blue water in the pool.  I love seeing the yard come alive and it's nice how it does so in stages. On another note poor Brandon is home eating dinner without his brothers most days.  They have sports practice until late and his little tummy just can't wait.  I usually feed him while I'm working in the kitchen to make lunches for the next day so he at least has someone to chat with.  Tonight was taco Tuesday.  He likes the soft ones best and I like our little chats ;0)





Day 104- Wednesday, 4/13/16
Here's my teen all sprawled out on the couch watching the final Warriors game with John and Brandon.  This team made history tonight breaking the record set by the Chicago Bulls for the most wins in one season.  Steph Curry rocks and broke a few records of his own.  On to the playoffs--it never ends people!





Day 105- Thursday, 4/14/16
Time to pick up this nut from tennis practice.  Sometimes he rides home with Tyler but sometimes he gets out early and needs a pick up.  He loves the shorter days because dinner comes sooner and there is more time to get homework done before his favorite TV shows.  He's into comedies these days and is working on becoming a prankster himself.





Day 106- Friday, 4/15/16
After a couple windy and cold days the weather is turning nice again and I've found some new flowers in the side yard.  It's actually a jungle out there and this weekend, since I'll be home, I'm going to tackle all things gone wide.  Wish me luck!





Day 107- Saturday, 4/16/16
These two have been playing basketball a lot on weekends but usually by themselves or with other people.  Today I found them actually playing together which is great to see.  It was pretty warm out so they got hot and tired really quick but still had fun.  Later it was still warm so I opened the screen door to let some fresh air and the evening breeze in.  Rusty who loves sitting by open doors and windows found a new friend.  This blue bird was squawking at him as he watched intently. The poor indoor kitty wants to play with that bird!





Day 108- Sunday, 4/17/16
Garden wars!  I'm not sure who won--me or the plants.  They sure gave me a run for my money but at least the yard is starting to look better. Yep!--not quite done yet.  I got through about 1/2 the back in two days so I'll be back at it next weekend.  Lucky me.  At least after all the hard work there was a great Sunday meal waiting for me.  Love the look on their faces, especially Tyler's--not another picture, mom!  I just want to eat--LOL! 




That's it for now.  I hope to see you all back next week.


Tuesday, April 12, 2016

Week 15

Hello and welcome back.  Here we are well into April.  What a week last week was!  More birthdays, more travel, and more rain. I've got to make this quick--meetings, meetings, and more meetings all stacked up for today.

Here's a look at how last week went down:


Day 95- Monday, 4/4/16
It's been warm and sunny and nice enough to open some windows which Rusty appreciates.  He loves taking in the fresh air, listening to the birds, and watching the bugs. Later John and Tyler watched  the college basketball championship game together. It was a nail biter and sadly John's Carolina team lost in the end.





Day 96- Tuesday, 4/5/16
I'm loving all the new spring flowers.  These were shining in the morning sun as I went to coffee at work. After work Brandon and I hit up Petco to get some birthday presents for Bella.  This is his happy place.  Seriously!  I should shop here for HIS birthday ;0)





Day 97- Wednesday, 4/6/16
Driving into work I noticed my odometer hit 111,111 so I had to pull over and take a picture.  After work there was a swim meet for the Raiders that I timed at.  Tyler is on the opposite side of the pool under a towel protecting himself from the blaring sun as he counts laps for a teammate.   It was a warm one today!





Day 98- Thursday, 4/7/16
Happy Birthday to John and Bella!  Interestingly enough they both turn 49 today--him in people years and her in dog years.  How cool is that?!





Day 99- Friday, 4/8/16
Here we go on another college tour trip.  We flew out early this morning and spent most the day at UC Irive, home of the Anteaters, and then made our way to UCLA, home of the Bruins.  As you can see it's rained on and off which is not what you expect visiting LA but we were prepared so it was all good.




Day 100- Saturday, 4/9/16
Today was all about UCLA.  The general tours were booked through April so we thought we'd have to self tour, but at the last minute we found an admitted student's tour which was perfect.  The campus is amazing and the school spirit is infectious.  I fell in love with the buildings and Tyler fell in love with Pauley Pavilion ;0)  They have so many great programs too like "Puppies on the Hill".  What?! Yep!  They bring puppies up to the residence hall hill during finals to help the students destress.  Where was that when I was in college?  I could go on and on.  This place is a top contender for sure.  Time to head home.





Day 101- Sunday, 4/10/16
Back at home it's back to regular Sunday happenings- grocery shopping, laundry, car maintenance, and playing outside.  We're all so happy the rain is taking a break now. A couple soggy days is enough in the spring.




That's it!  Thanks for stopping by and see you next week.


Tuesday, April 5, 2016

Week 14

Hi there and happy Tuesday!  It feels like spring here and is very buggy.  What a bad year for mosquitoes!  Swarms and swarms of them just hatched out there and it's disgusting.  I'm hoping the numbers die off soon and we can get back to enjoying the great outdoors.  As usual things are busy especially since we are now in the last 2 months of school.  May is going to be super crazy so I'm trying to just enjoy a somewhat slower April.  No swim team for the younger boys this year and no karate in April so that will help!

Here's a look at last week:


Day 88- Monday, 3/28/16
Spring break is over so it's time to take back to the books.  Brandon is doing some math homework and is happy that is all he has for today.





Day 89- Tuesday, 3/29/16
My roses out back are starting to bloom bringing in some nice color to the yard, and Justin brought home some carrots grown in the garden at school by his farm to fork class.  He's loving all the little surprises that garden brings them.





Day 90- Wednesday, 3/30/16
Today was a happy mail day.  Tyler received his Red Cross cords for completing the high school leadership program and welcome packets came from Cal and UCLA.  We're headed to LA to visit a couple more schools soon and then it's decision time.





Day 91- Thursday, 3/31/16
Happy 15th birthday Justin!  How can he be 15?  That seems so much older than 14 but he's still not too old to give his mom a little sugar.  We had a quick celebration tonight with cake and will go out to dinner Saturday when we have more time to honor him.





Day 92- Friday, 4/1/16
Welcome to April!  These are my April fools right here helping me with the monthly marker.   Bella's birthday is in April so we had to get her in the shot with her biggest fan ;0)





Day 93- Saturday, 4/2/16
We went out to dinner at Chicago Fire as per Justin's request, and these two were keen to keep an eye on the final four basketball game.  Tyler's number one pick, Syracuse, is playing John's number one pick, North Carolina, right now!  Soon after we got home John's team won to move on to the championship game and Tyler's team is now done. He was bummed but they had a good run and he enjoyed every bit of it.





Day 94- Sunday, 4/3/16
Justin is happy to be sporting one of his new hats today.  John took him out to pick up a couple hats for a birthday present.  Now we can toss the ratty old one he's been living in that I hate. It's too small for him anyway so yep, it's gotta go!




That's it for now.  See you next week.