Tuesday, May 30, 2017

Week 21

Welcome back and Happy Tuesday!  What a treat to have a 3-day weekend especially blessed with such nice weather and the opportunities to spend time with good friends and family.  I hope everyone else enjoyed their weekend as well.  It's the last week of school for my 2 younger kids and only a 3-day week so they are super excited just to get it done. Bring on summer break!  We are ready.

Until then here are last week's pictures:


Day 141- Sunday, 5/21/17
This is how Rusty copes with near 100 degree temps.  I'd say he's over it.  Poor kitty boy needs to head downstairs where it's cooler.





Day 142- Monday, 5/22/17
John has a week long work event that will keep him after hours so Justin is helping me walk the dog this week.





Day 143- Tuesday, 5/23/17
This kid--he's a handful but also a treat.  Today we headed to San Francisco with his class for a field trip which was great fun. It may be one on my last which is hard to think about.





Day 144- Wednesday, 5/24/17
Fidget spinners--I don't get the fascination but Brandon just had to have one and spent his own money to make it happen.  Plus he bought one for a friend.  How long will this fad last?





Day 145- Thursday, 5/25/17
It's time for end of year projects.  Brandon had this booklet to finish for History and Justin had a couple history projects too for World History and AP European History.  A lot of work for them but fun for me to see their creative side kick in.





Day 146- Friday, 5/26/17
TGIF!  Justin had a minimum day and then a doctor's appointment so afterward we hit up Starbucks for a cool summer treat before picking up Brandon from school.  Just him and I ;0)





Day 147- Saturday, 5/27/17
This Saturday I finally finished yard work.  It's been 4 straight weekends and I'm done just in time to enjoy the yard for a BBQ with friends and the long holiday weekend.  I love our big yard, but I do not love keeping it it in check. So much work!  So happy to be done!!




Wait!  One more--

May's Family Photo








This was taken just as our pool opened for the summer season and as you can see we are still missing Tyler, but he will be home for the June picture!  Can't wait!!  3 more weeks-- WooHoo!




Ok that's it.  See you all next week.


Tuesday, May 23, 2017

Week 20

Welcome back and happy Tuesday!  I'm excited to say it's HOT here like triple digit hot. We've been missing that but now is the time. Plus we are down to the last 6 days of school which is exciting. Today I'm going on a field trip with Brandon's class to San Francisco at the Academy of Sciences so I need to make this quick because we are headed out soon.

Here are last week's pictures:


Day 134- Sunday, 5/14/17
Happy Mother's Day!  Hope all my mother friends had a good day.  It was a nice one here. John and the boys spoiled me with good food, good gifts, and a super clean car.  The only downer was not having all 3 of my kids here but Tyler did call from school and I'm sure was here in spirit.





Day 135- Monday, 5/15/17
Bella is happy her boy is home from school and he's happy to relax but she's trying to get him to play at least a little before he retreats to do homework.





Day 136- Tuesday, 5/16/17
Working, working, working and trying to wrap up projects and get other things in order before our vacation in June.  It will be here before we know and I can't wait.





Day 137- Wednesday, 5/17/17
Justin is all about peanut butter these days and can't get enough.  He's really the only one that still eats it and he'll go through 2 of these large Costco jars each month.  He claims his tennis coach told him it's the perfect snack for the sport.  If I'd let him he would take the whole jar to school and practice each day. Crazy kid!





Day 138- Thursday, 5/18/17
The Shasta daisies I planted last year are back in bloom.  This was the first one to open and it's enjoying the sunshine just as much as we are.






Day 139- Friday, 5/19/17
Our typical Friday night all settled in and ready for a movie.  We watched Hidden Figures this time.  It's an incredibly amazing true story that should have been told years ago.





Day 140- Saturday, 5/20/17
What a beautiful day in Napa and a perfect day for a party.  We are at Artesa winery to celebrate Gene's 50th birthday.  What a fun day with a great group of ladies.



That's it!  See you next week--the last week of school and it's only 3 days long.  WooHoo!



Tuesday, May 16, 2017

Week 19

Welcome back and happy Tuesday!  We just keep plugging along here trying to get through a crazy May so we can relax and have fun in June.  Yep--counting the days still.  The weekdays are slow and boring but our weekends a full and fun so at least there's that.  It was also super windy and mostly cold last week which is no fun.  We're hoping to see a nice change for the better this week into next after possibly more rain today.  I'm so ready for hot weather and would love to pack my winter clothes away at least for a few months without needing to drag them back out again.

Here are last week's pictures:


Day 127- Sunday, 5/7/17
Sundays are laundry days and the pets love it when I sort laundry.  The cat hides behind the pile and pounces while the dog just prefers to lay as close to it as she can get.  It smells like her peeps and she loves that.  Meanwhile outside the old wine barrels are being torn down and the new wine barrels are being filled and planted with goodness--so much better.






Day 128- Monday, 5/8/17
Walking the dog today we find some sad scars the drought has left behind.  We lost a lot of city trees in the park and along our streets.  The city is working to replace them though so hopefully this next batch will survive longer to live full lives to maturity.  One tree that is thriving is the neighbors cherry tree.  I wouldn't mind so much if it wasn't hanging over our pool deck.  The birds with the cherries make quite a mess.  They are beautiful looking cherries though.





Day 129- Tuesday, 5/9/17
I just got home from work and apparently I'm not giving her enough attention.  She'll take a walk or an early dinner or a bone or a game of fetch or even some simple ear rubs--total attention hog and how can you say no to that face?





Day 130- Wednesday, 5/10/17
It's only the middle of the week and I've already got two boys that are ready to have it end.  Justin has been fighting a virus and had a fever yesterday that's wiped him out while Brandon has been dealing with a migraine and experienced his first aura before an episode, at school no less, that really freaked him out.  The poor thing thought he was going blind :0( We're all hoping the rest of their week goes much better.





Day 131- Thursday, 5/11/17
Rusty and these chairs.  He loves to look through them and also use them as a tunnel of protection from the dog.  At school Justin is feeling much better but is sad his AP European History class is almost over.  He really enjoys the teacher and his fellow students so he had one of the kids take a picture of them.  He cracks me up with how he's posing, arm propped on Mr Fogle.  Good luck to this group who will be taking their very first AP test tomorrow.





Day 132- Friday, 5/12/17
I love it when I hear from Tyler and even get a picture or two.  He finally had his orientation today and got his official badge to start volunteering at the UCLA med center.  Next week he'll have a training shift and then he'll be on his own.  At home we celebrated the end of this long and stressful week by taking in a fun movie.  It ended a little late and this picture was taken after the show so Brandon is a bit tired.  LOL--he's so not a night owl just like me ;0)





Day 133- Saturday, 5/13/17
Now time for some adult fun.  John and I had dinner and drinks with Richie and Sharon tonight.  I'm having my first Moscow Mule.  It was good with a twist of blood orange.  Cheers!




That's it for now.  See you next week and I hope everyone had a nice Mother's Day!


Tuesday, May 9, 2017

Week 18

Happy Tuesday and welcome back.  We're finally enjoying some warm, no--hot!, weather here.  Now it feels like a California spring and it's been great for allowing us to continue the work in our yard. We're still not done but getting closer to taming the jungle.  May is shaping up to be a busy month. We have plans for the next 3 weekends with different things happening on all the different days.  My head is spinning just thinking about it, but it's all good stuff so it will be fun.

Here are last week's pictures:


Day 120- Sunday, 4/30/17
Time for some Sunday riding.  John loaded up his bike and headed to the track for a wheelie course--something on his bucket list that he can now check off.  The boys and I did some more yard work and then settled in to watch Moana together.  It was a nice quiet day.





Day 121- Monday, 5/1/17
April showers bring May flowers and that's exactly what we have out in out backyard.  It's time for my monthly marker so I posed with some of my newly bloomed roses.






Day 122- Tuesday, 5/2/17
I love the heart shaped, extra large leaves on this tree and had to snap a picture before the cutter wasps beat them up.  It's such a shame when that happens.  I'm also starting a travel vaccine in pill form today and will be slowly taking these all week.  It's better to be safe than sorry for when we head to the French Polynesian islands next month.





Day 123- Wednesday, 5/3/17
We hit the 90's today! It's about time and what a perfect day for an ice-cream treat right after dinner.  This is a new Ben and Jerry's chocolate dipped pint slice.  Yum!





Day 124- Thursday, 5/4/17
Brandon's class is reading this classic, And Then There Were None, together and they are all into guessing who did it but this kid just couldn't wait and had to look it up on-line.  That's fine to ruin the end for himself but then he told a bunch of kids at school and ruined the end for some of them too.  Ack!  The teacher said there is one kid every year and this year it just had to be him.  *sigh*  We had a good talk about it and I'm pretty sure a lesson was learned.  This one, he's a wild card for sure and keeps us on our toes.





Day 125- Friday, 5/5/17
Happy Cinco de Mayo!  Tyler sent us a picture of him enjoying a burrito today on campus, but said he'd rather have some of our crunchy tacos for dinner at home.  Sweet of him to be thinking of us or at least our food ;0)  We did enjoy those fresh made tacos with fresh made guacamole and also missed Tyler enjoying them with us.  Thanks for the picture though--that was a treat and I didn't even have to ask!





Day 126- Saturday, 5/6/17
We all worked hard today mostly in the yard again but were able to reward ourselves later.  The boys had 1/2 price frappuccinos at Startbucks' happy hour after Justin's shelter shift.  Brandon had Starwberries and Creme and Justin tried the new Midnight Mint Maddness one.  Then John and I escaped on a date night for dinner and a movie.  We saw The Circle which was good but also a scary sign of the times.




That's it!  Check back next week for more craziness.


Tuesday, May 2, 2017

Week 17

Welcome back to Tuesday and welcome to May.  I'm so happy it's May and I'm super excited school will be over at the end of the month.  We're all looking forward to the slower pace of summer with less stress, less work, and no real schedules.  Everyone is much happier when school is out and we can just be free but still be active to do more of what we want.  Plus we'll have Tyler back home and a full house is a happy house, right?

Until then, and you can bet we're counting the days, here are last week's pictures:


Day 113- Sunday, 4/23/17
It's time to replace the old wine barrel planters we have had for over 20 years.  The wood is disintegrating and we've been talking about it for a couple years now so it's past due.  Today we scored a deal on these beauties at Raley's of all places.  Go figure!





Day 114- Monday, 4/24/17
Justin has been doing great with his driving.  He's super serious and a bit tense but also very careful which is not a bad thing.  He's a lot more comfortable with it too so it's been great to see his confidence grow.  He drives us home most days from tennis practice and also on the weekends out to the gas station to help me fill up.





Day 115- Tuesday, 4/25/17
Look--I'm still wearing a sweater and winterish clothes at the end of April--blah! So not ty[ical for a California spring.  This is how Rusty greets me when I get home from work.  He's super affectionate in the afternoons when I've been gone most the day and on these cooler days he's hoping I'll sit soon so he can warm up in my lap with a balnket.  Thankfully this coming weekend the weather is supposed to change for the better and be much warmer.  Finally!





Day 116- Wednesday, 4/26/17
It's a Booster's fundraiser night at Chipotle so Brandon helped me picked up dinner for the family. Half the money from our bill goes to the high school athletics teams.  My kind of fundraiser.





Day 117- Thursday, 4/27/17
The tennis team was recognized at city hall tonight.  Sadly Justin couldn't go because he was out of school at a tournament all day and is stressing about getting his makeup work done, tackling other homework, and preparing for a couple tests he needs to take tomorrow, but he still got his certificate.





Day 118- Friday, 4/28/17
Today was super windy but with a lot of sunshine and my roses are doing amazing this year after a pretty bad year last season. Since we weeded over the weekend you can actually see them now too.  This is my favorite color rose, and I love how it's highlighted in the sun.





Day 119- Saturday, 4/29/17
The garden wars continue and I'd like to think we're winning, but the weeds and plants are fighting back hard.  I have battle wounds to prove it!  Thank goodness it's a gorgeous day out so I don't mind being outside.  We are making good progress but probably have a few more weekends left in this battle before the war is over and the yard is ready for summer.




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