Tuesday, August 30, 2016

Week 35

Welcome back to Tuesday!  It's actually starting to feel like fall here with crisp mornings, cool evenings, and even some dropped leaves which seems odd in August but is a welcomed change.  I wish we could have the fall weather but with a summer care-free schedule.  Last week's full week of school was a bit rough and a little too much. We're all hoping for an easier week with maybe less homework.

Here are last week's pictures:


Day 235- Monday, 8/22/16
Happy Anniversary to us!  24 years and still going strong.  I brought home Dos Coyotes and John made margaritas to celebrate. We did the fancy dinner and a movie out thing over the weekend so this was perfect especially for a Monday.




Day 236- Tuesday, 8/23/16
Last week was a short week in school with very little homework but this week the kids are getting slammed.  Justin worked into the wee hours of the night and was pretty stressed not just tonight but most of the week.  Goodnight kiddo and good luck.  Turn out the lights when your done.






Day 237- Wednesday, 8/24/16
While the kids are learning new things at school I'm learning new things at work.  I just learned how to do membrane filtration on environmental samples to detect our organisms.  Pretty cool!  I'm always happy to learn new things at the bench because it keeps me away from computer and paper work.  Later that evening was back-to-school night at the high school.  It was nice just having one kid to focus on for a change, and the middle school finally scheduled their night on a different date this year.





Day 238- Thursday, 8/25/16
And more homework!  The kids are hating the homework load this week but at least Brandon has had a pretty good attitude.  He likes it when there are things to draw.  English vocab flashcards--not so much!






Day 239- Friday, 8/26/16
Apparently it's National Dog Day so we all took turns honoring our Bella girl. The boys were super excited for her.





Day 240- Saturday, 8/27/16
Off to work but first he must tank up on milk.  We're going to save so much money on milk when he leaves for school in a few weeks.  Right now we, no joke, go through 6 gallons a week.  I'm thinking we can cut that in 1/2 once he leaves.  We'll see.





Day 241- Sunday, 8/28/16
Time for a cat nap.  This is where you can find Rusty most afternoons.  He used to take his afternoon naps behind the couch but lately has decided his post by the window is a better place--maybe because it's cooler out now and he's seeking the sun and a soft, warm blanket.  Who knows? but he looks so sweet and peaceful.  It must be nice to enjoy an afternoon nap.  Me, I'm finishing up weekly laundry and heading out to a meeting so yeah, I'm a little jealous.




That's pretty much it for now.  Thanks for stopping by and see you next week.


Tuesday, August 23, 2016

Week 34

Welcome to another Tuesday! I'm happy to have that first week back to school out of the way, and feel like the new routine is settling in ok.  Tyler is enjoying not have to be in school just yet while he watches his brothers deal.  Lucky bum--no work during mid-week either for him so at least he got to spend some fun time with his friends especially before one left for school Sunday.  It's been fun this past week seeing those kids on the semester system move into their dorms.  Quarter system kids, you're next!

Here's a look at last week:


Day 228- Monday, 8/15/16
One new Lightsaber wasn't enough. He used some birthday gift cards to buy another of a different color.  This will make his last couple days of summer all the better.






Day 229- Tuesday, 8/16/16
Tyler's summer weekday job at the pool is pretty much over.  For the next few weeks it's only weekends so he naps.  LOL!  I never see him nap.  At least he woke in time to join us for our last day of summer shakes at Whitey's.  They have the best shakes in town with the best flavors.  So long summer break!





Day 230- Wednesday, 8/17/16
It's the first day of the new school year for these two.  Brandon is now in 7th grade and Justin is in 10th.  It feels weird not having Tyler join them.  He still has another month before we ship him off to UCLA.  Good luck boys!






Day 231- Thursday, 8/18/16
This was not the best start to my day--blowing a tire on my way to work--but I survived and now have 4 brand new tires.  Thank goodness for cell phones and AAA!  Speaking of cell phones, later after school, Justin worked on adding his new classes to the remind app.  Technology!  How did we survive back in the day?






Day 232- Friday, 8/19/16
TGIF!  We're still watching the Olympics here which are almost over.  Today the women's water polo team made history bringing home the gold for a second Olympics in a row and dedicated the medals to their coach who suffered a family tragedy just before the games started.  Way to go ladies and cheers to the weekend!  What a super long and overly eventful week. My favorite bartender hooked me up with a yummy lemon drop to kick the weekend off right.






Day 233- Saturday, 8/20/16
It's date night.  We went to Old Sacramento for a nice dinner at Rio City Cafe on the river--just the two us.





Day 234- Sunday, 8/21/16
John spent most the day (actually most the weekend) building a solid fort for the dog's pen in the garage.  The crazy girl has still been getting out with just small fixes here and there so now it's time to get real.  After he finished we went to see a movie.  Jason Bourne was still playing and we had one free movie ticket so score! The best part though was seeing that the dog did not escape while we were gone--she tried but it didn't happen.  Let's hope that holds true for good.




Alright, I'm done for now. Check back next week for more craziness.  Actually, I hope not.  I can use a boring week or two.

Tuesday, August 16, 2016

Week 33

Happy Tuesday!  We had another hot week and it was hard to escape that heat.  It was also our last full week of summer.  School starts for my younger boys tomorrow!  Where did the time go?  It will be weird to send two off to school and still have Tyler home for another month but also good because we get more time with him and can focus on getting him set for departure.  

Here's a look at last week's pictures:


Day 221- Monday, 8/8/16
At summer camp last week Brandon took an advanced robotics class and made this cool dragon that runs across the room, lights up, moves it's head from side to side and so much more.  Pretty cool! and I'm just now getting a look at it since we were in a rush to head out camping Friday when he brought it home.  Super glad he shared it with me today.





Day 222- Tuesday, 8/9/16
It's time for an eye exam just before school starts.  Justin has the same prescription so no new glasses needed.  Good to know nothing's changed since we missed his visit last year.  We were actually hoping he'd grow out of his slight farsightedness but looks like it's here to stay.  He also asked about contacts but decided they sounded like too much work and since he cant even keep his glasses clean I'd say that's a good decision for now.





Day 223- Wednesday, 8/10/16
We've been enjoying watching the Olympics games on our new TV.  The swimming and gymnastics have been fantastic.  The women's water polo is killing it but the men are having a rough go.  We can't wait to follow even more events coming up.





Day 224- Thursday, 8/11/16
I banged out the back-to-school shopping today after work and Justin picked up his high school schedule and got his new ID card for the year.  Brandon gets his schedule for middle school on Monday.  It's hard to believe we are already less than a week away from another school year.





Day 225- Friday, 8/12/16
Our Fridays lately have been jam packed full.  This afternoon Justin had the last of his summer league tennis matches and did great ending with a bang.  I'm not sure how he can play in this heat .  I was literally dripping sweat just watching in the shade.  Later we all headed out to a River Cats game.  John got free tickets from work and was a lot of fun.  It was still super hot out, but we had good seats in the shade and there was a slight breeze so that helped a lot.





Day 226- Saturday, 8/13/16
Tyler and I ran some errands together today.  He really needed a new pair of shoes and flipflops so we found a couple Nike sales.  Those shoes he bought in Nicaragua turned out to be a bust--lesson learned!  We also got a few things for his dorm room and picked out a gift for a friend having a going away party.  He still has a good month before he leaves so we have time to slowly gather more stuff which is nice.





Day 227- Sunday, 8/14/16
It's time for an end of summer movie.  The boys have been waiting for this one to come out.  It's my squad hanging with the Suicide Squad.  Plus they all just got fresh new haircuts. I'm checking things off that back-to-school to-do list as quickly as I can.



Ok that's it!  I'll see you next week as we adjust to a new normal.


Tuesday, August 9, 2016

Week 32

Welcome back and happy Tuesday!  Last week was quite a week.  We were super busy with dr and dentist appointments, getting an estimate on a roof repair, a booster meeting, a work event that kept John at work later than normal, and a dog that decided she was determined to escape her dog run pretty much everyday of the week even if it meant hurting herself.  Plus we still hadn't replaced our TV so there was no end-of-day unwinding mindlessly in front of the tube.  At least it all ended on a good note with a peaceful camping trip to a foothill lake.

Take a look at how it all went down:


Day 214- Monday, 8/1/16
Happy August!  I'm so not ready for August. Here is the monthly marker next to these pretty flowers that match my top.  I'm so glad I have some nice colorful plants that can still take the hot, hot heat and continue to thrive.  Trust me, they are not all that way.  We have lost another tree and at least a few plants out back because of the extreme heat.  Once it's cooler we'll replant with more resilient options.





Day 215- Tuesday, 8/2/16
This is how Justin relaxes after tennis.  I'm not sure how that's comfortable but he's usually always playing in this position.  Later I took him and Tyler to the dr for sport physicals and that ended up lasting way longer than any of us expected, but it's done and that's all that matters.






Day 216- Wednesday, 8/3/16
Our TV will be too costly to repair and we haven't had time to get another one yet so at least I have the new Harry Potter book to keep me entertained.  It's a pretty short read though so I'm almost done.   Meanwhile, Brandon built one of his birthday Lego sets.  He's my architectural guy and loves these sets.  It also came with all kinds of cool facts related to the Eiffel Tower and how it was built which Brandon kindly shared with me ;0)  It's fun to watch him when he's really interesting in something.





Day 217- Thursday, 8/4/16
I'm working hard in the lab running horse samples and samples from Hawaiian monk seals for different projects, and while I was at work our lovely dog who has been breaking free of her dog run all week decided to take it up a notch and really destroy her pen.  Ugh!  We just can't keep her in and we have a camping trip coming up so we're a little stressed about how to figure this out.  Plus she keeps hurting herself trying to escape and is quite tender on the underside.  You can see her red flank there as she rests in pain.  Crazy dog!  This system has worked for 7 years with no problems and now all of a sudden she's over it.  I'm pretty sure it has a lot to do with us leaving her for so long during our recent LA trip, and I get that, but she's got to settle down.





Day 218- Friday, 8/5/16
So we managed to find a quick fix for the dog and were able to escape to the foothills for a camping trip with friends at Rollins Lake.  Both John and I worked in the morning, Justin went to tennis, Brandon went to day camp and then a dentist appointment before we could finally leave.  We got there just in time to set up camp and grill some dinner.  The boys were a great help pitching tents and were eager to settle into their new home for the next 2 nights.





Day 219- Saturday, 8/6/16
Today we spent the day around the lake with our friends. Tyler and I also took a canoe out to explore a bit.  It's a little hot during the day and pretty darn cold at night but still a lot of fun creating new memories and enjoying each others company.  No news from the pet sitter either so the dog must be ok.





Day 220- Sunday, 8/7/16
We're packing up and heading home.  It's always a puzzle getting the car repacked but we did it in record time and were home before lunch.  Bella was of course happy to see us and full of energy.  She's had time to heal and you can tell is not in as much pain with no new injuries. Now we need to work on a permanent fix for her run. Before that though it's time to pick up a new TV.  John pretty much took off right after we returned to find one and got it all set up just in time for us to watch prime time Olympics. Go USA!




Wait!  One more:

August's Family Photo



This is taken a little earlier on in the month than normal but in a great location so we had to seize the opportunity especially since school is starting soon so family time will become a lot less interesting and fun.  Thanks Loren for taking our picture ;0)




Now we're done.  See you all next week.