Week 29

Happy Tuesday and welcome back!  I've been working like crazy trying to plan for our upcoming vacation.  Only 2 more weeks but it will be here before I know it because there is a lot going on in those 2 weeks.  My boys are active and actually 2 are out camping with friends this week on separate trips which is super fun for them.  I 'll have to bug them to send pictures.  I also have a bunch of stuff for work I need to tie up before I can start really thinking about vacation.  I want peace and relaxation which means work things must not be on my mind while I'm there.  Hopefully I can make that happen.

Here's a recap of how last week went down.  It was a week that screamed summer:

Day 197- Monday, 7/16.18

One of our past graduate students is visiting from Chile to do a bit of work here and brought me a nice bottle of Chilean wine which was very refreshing on this hot evening.

Day 198- Tuesday, 7/17/18

Brandon alternates between tennis and basketball practice to fill his summer days but also has time to relax and bit here and there.  He's been happy with this nice balance of active and down time.

Day 199- Wednesday, 7/18/18

This afternoon I spent some time in the backyard picking more tomatoes and checking on the sprinklers.  Funny thing is I thought I bought 2 larger variety tomato plants and turns out on of them is a cherry tomato type and boy can that plant crank out the fruit.

Day 200- Thursday, 7/19/18

We're making homemade ice-cream mixes that need to chill overnight and I let the boys drink the extra chocolate milk.  Justin quickly indulged and ended up sporting a nice milk mustache.

Day 201- Friday, 7/20/18

Those mixes are ready to be made into ice-cream.  Brandon is adding in some mini Reese's Peanut Butter Cups to our chocolate batch.

Day 202- Saturday, 7/21/18

It's a pleasant summer evening which is perfect for grilling burgers and eating that homemade ice cream. Yum!

Day 203- Sunday, 7/22/18

Tyler is headed out on his second day at a new job.  It's another life guarding job but this time at a lake.  He'll be working weekends at Rancho Seco Recreational Park while still guarding at the local rec center mid week.  And yes, that's an old non-active nuclear plant in the background which kind of creeps me out but the water is tested on a regular basis so it's safe and it actually sounds like it's a popular summer hot spot.   Me, I'll stick to my backyard pool which I did enjoy this afternoon.

That's all folks.  Catch you on the flip side.

Week 28

Hi there and welcome back!  It's been HOT and busy lately and there's no end in sight for either.  We have a lot going on with many moving parts and it feels like school is looming just around the corner.  Only 1 month left so we better make the most out of these last few weeks.  Thank goodness we have one more family trip planned to escape for a bit and just enjoy ourselves.  I wish it were happening tomorrow.

Until then here are last week's pictures:

Day 190- Monday, 7/9/18

I spend a lot of time in the sports pick-up lines.  This evening its for Brandon at basketball.  They are doing hard core conditioning so as soon as we got home he pretty much just crashed. 

 Day 191- Tuesday, 7/10/18

The best way to deal with the insane heat is to cool down with an ice-cold treat.  We're having It's It ice-cream sandwiches tonight in 3 different flavors.  I chose mint and the other two chose the new chocolate flavor--yum!  The original vanilla lost out but I'm sure Tyler will grub on that when he gets home from work.

Day 192- Wednesday, 7/11/18

What it is about these stairs?  This is where Justin chose to park it and watch videos on his phone. He was there for a good hour. So random and doesn't even look comfortable but also so him!   Rusty was on the stairs too rolling around and trying to express how much he's over this heat.

Day 193- Thursday, 7/12/18

Heat wave or not we have to walk.  Bella and I went to stroll around the park where we found some pretty, lollipop, pinkish flowers in the lawn that matched my shirt.  We sought out as much shade as possible but it didn't really matter.  Once it's over 100 it's hot everywhere even in the shade! Look--her panting tongue matches my shirt too.

Day 194- Friday, 7/13/18

Time for another college tour.  Justin and I went to a "Summer Roar" event at the University of Pacific for prospective students.  It's a really nice, small, private school but that also means big dollars.  At least they give decent financial aid packages and have a lot of good perks.  That building there was in the first Indian Jones film where you see Indy near the beginning as a college professor.  It's just one of many movies filmed here which was neat to learn about.

Day 195- Saturday, 7/14/18

John has been traveling all week so we've missed him, but he's home now and today helped Justin make 3 kinds of salsa with all the tomatoes that ripened during his absence.  Later we had a big Mexican feast so everyone could try them out and they were a big hit.

Day 196- Sunday, 7/15/18

John worked on his bike today and also went for a short ride since it was a slow Sunday.  For dinner we headed to Davis to meet up with some college friends at the Graduate.  We all got our animal science degrees together just over 25 years ago.  Boy how time flies and it was great fun to reminisce with them about the good old days.

That's it!  Stay cool and I hope to see you next week.

Week 27

Hi there!  It's Tuesday again and the weeks just keep flying by.  It's been super smokey and hot lately.  We had a big wildfire dumping smoke into the valley so it was not easy to be outside because it hurt our eyes and throat.  You could smell it in the air too even though the fire wasn't really close to us.  It made for pretty skies at dawn and dusk but otherwise not healthy to breathe at all--good reason to stay inside with the ac on!

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

Day 183- Monday, 7/2/18

We're prepping for the 4th.  John and the kids picked out some fireworks yesterday and Justin showed them to me today.  He's super excited.  I also pulled out our handheld flag we use each year.  It will be a fun holiday.

Day 184- Tuesday, 7/3/18

It's not time to celebrate just yet--work as usual at least for one more day.  The first part of each month I have to fill these tanks so I'm getting that done today.  We have three of them so it take awhile and a lot of LN2.

Day 185- Wednesday, 7/4/18

Happy 4th of July! We had a nice quiet day relaxing and eating BBQ and then enjoyed the fireworks on our street after dark.  Sadly it was windy and colder than usual so no pool time this year.

Day 186- Thursday, 7/5/18

Today it was back to the DMV and thankfully I had a pleasant walk by a community garden to get there because parking was so bad.  It was a blessing in disguise because it allowed me to stop and enjoy the sunflowers before entering the insanity.  Yet another 3+ hour ordeal at the DMV even with an appointment.  I just don't get it and hope I don't have to go back anytime soon.  Ack!

Day 187- Friday, 7/6/18

It's Friday and miraculously enough all 3 boys are home for dinner at the same time.  They all look so big eating there at the island now--my mostly grown boys.  Where did the time go?  I remember like yesterday when they were so little and barely able get up on those stools.  The years really do go by fast and here sets another day.  The sky is lit up pink from the fires and from the smoke coming into the valley but at least it looks pretty.

Day 188- Saturday, 7/7/18

Justin is working on a birthday gift for a friend so he printed up a bunch of pictures off his phone and is planning to make a big poster card.  I love it when the kids ask to use my creative tools.  Later we went together for an appointment to have his senior pictures taken--wow!  How can that be?!  I'll have a second one leaving the nest soon so we'll have to enjoy as many treats together as we can this next year starting now ;0)

Day 189- Sunday, 7/8/18

Our tomatoes are finally beginning to ripen.  I picked the first one this morning and there will be more to pick next week which is perfect for that homemade salsa they boys are waiting on.  Then, just after lunch, we all went to the movies and watched the dinosaurs wreak havoc on the world.  Good times!

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

Week 26

Welcome back, happy Tuesday, and happy July! I feel like summer is slipping away already.  July will be a month where we get things done and then in August we'll be rewarded with a get away vacation just before school starts again.  It's been super hot here too so we're making good use of the pool and looking forward to celebrating the 4th tomorrow.

Here are last week's pictures:

 

Day 176- Monday, 6/25/18

 We managed to squeeze in a short camping trip this week.  Midweek is best to avoid crowds especially in the Tahoe area where we were.  Today we traveled up there, set up camp and then enjoyed each other's company while roasting s'mores around the campfire.  Just after 3 of us went to bed a bear joined John and Justin by the fire but was quickly scared away.  Apparently they are not aggressive but very active and roaming about a lot lately.

Day 177- Tuesday, 6/26/18

We had a full day hiking and chasing waterfalls near Emerald Bay shown in the first picture behind Brandon.  Right across the street from this vista is Upper Eagle Falls and then down below near lake level is Lower Eagle Falls that empties into the bay.  It's the one pictured above and was refreshing and impressive to stand by.  After lunch we made our way to the beach at Meek's Bay to enjoy playing in and around the lake.  Later at our nightly campfire we were all still up when another bear came right into our campsite so everyone got to see a bear up close and personal today.  It was pretty cool, very fluffy, and seemed sad as it slowly meandered off after we made noise to shew it away.  

Day 178- Wednesday, 6/27/18

Sadly it's time to head home.  We enjoyed the morning sunrise, packed the car and made the journey back down to the valley.  I think we wore Brandon out ;0)  That was a fun trip but camping sure is a lot of work and we barely had enough room in the car for all our stuff and the kids.

Day 179- Thursday, 6/28/18

Back to reality and back to basketball.  It was another late game in Elk Grove but this is the last one for this summer league.  Now they just continue practice and maybe play in a couple tournaments which is fine because they are close to home and much earlier in the day which keeps Brandon busy while we work.

Day 180- Friday, 6/29/18

I'm waiting on boys getting sports physicals for the new school year.  At least I can check that off my list.  Afterward it's time to start the weekend with a cool refreshing drink.  John has these neat ice-cube trays that make perfectly round ice-cubes which add even more fun to the drinks.

Day 181- Saturday, 6/30/18

Time to continue working on that to-do list.  Tyler needs yet another live-scan finger printing.  This will be his 7th one over the past 5 yrs.  I thought we were done prepping for an EMT job but turns out he needs to get an ambulance driving certificate first from the DMV who requires a separate live-scan from one he just had over spring break to get his EMT card. Hopefully after he takes the written DMV test next week he can finally apply for jobs. What a process!

Day 182- Sunday, 7/1/18

Enough with the errands, it's Sunday and the 1st of July so my July baby is posing with the monthly marker while enjoying the cool pool in the summer heat.  This is what weekends are really for.

Wait!  One more:

June's Family Photo

I'm so happy to be able to get this photo while out camping with the whole family and have Tyler back in the mix.  Too bad one of the bears didn't photo bomb ;0)

OK!  Now that is it.  I hope everyone has a happy and safe 4th.  See you next week.