Family, Friends and the Fourth of July

I had the best holiday weekend - ever - thanks to my family and friends (and having a couple extra days off didn't hurt either!).

Our daughter Erin and her boyfriend Chris arrived late Friday night. We were ready. Groceries bought. Errands run. Let the festivities begin.

My family wanted to put on a big 'to do' for my 50th birthday. A guest list was created. I changed my mind several times, telling them to wait. FInally we agreed on family and a few friends.

The girls and I made salads, and slow cooked pork roast for pulled pork sandwiches. Erin put together appetizers. The guys filled coolers and prepped the yard.

We shared the evening with dear friends John & Judi, who we met thru our oldest son Matt when he and their son Jeremy were in school. We also shared with good friends Scott & Rhona, who we met thru lacrosse and Krieg's friendship with their son Sam.

And 'might as well be' family one of our oldest & dearest friends Randy and her son Stephen joined in the festivities.

We ate, talked, laughed, played Bocce ball, ate some more, indulged in libations just a wee bit and chatted away the night. How is it weeks and then months pass without seeing one another but when you are together it is as though you've seen each other just the other day.

At the end of the night our little guy Tate wanted to sleep over - in case he might miss out on a moment with his Tio and Ah-Boo (Krieg and Erin).

Sunday morning I woke first. Coffee and a smile as I walked thru the house peeking in on my sleeping family. I started the biscuits and sausage for gravy. Matt & Brit arrived for breakfast while the others rousted themselves from their slumber. Unbeknowest to me my creative daughter-in-law and daughter made FIFTY black flamingos for the front yard. When I caught a glimpse of them from inside much later I was so surprised. Being 'flamingoed' is a family thing. Once when Erin was driving thru town on a school trip she stopped to put a pair of flamingos in our front yard. I returned the favor with a few additional birds in her yard once before leaving Moscow.

Mom's birthday wish was for a family movie. At Thanksgiving we all went to see the Twilight New Moon movie. I told them I wanted to see Eclipse for my birthday. Despite the grumblings from the testosterone section (who by the way DID read all the books), we went early afternoon together!

After the movie we commenced our dinner preps. Chris made his infamous 'voodoo' bbq sauce and cooked the ribs for us. Tate helped me make a yummy red, white & blue trifle for dessert. Our afternoon was relaxing. Another movie at home, a bit of reading - and dinner was delicious. And I was royalty... Krieg's girlfriend Karissa gifted me with a Birthday Princess sash and crown. I learned to do a proper wave, pop my shoulder to hide the arm fat but had to draw the line before we got to the 'duck face'. I was rockin' the crown!

After dinner we went to Ann Morrison Park to watch the fireworks. This is the first time in 9 years we've gone to Boise for the display. We all climbed into the car - we must have looked like a clown car - and took advantage of Mike's temporary handicapped tag to park inside the park and be close to the grounds. The fireworks were wonderful. It was so special to sit on the quilt, surrounded by my family as the day wound down. No doubt about it... I am liking FIFTY!

Family

Centralia Deli, Steak and BBQue...

 A couple weeks ago our daughter-in-law Debbie called.  Progress on her new restaurant was coming along and she had a couple of ideas she wanted to share with me.  We've been so excited to hear of her new plans and following long distance. 

Debbie and her friend Tim purchased an empty restaurant building.  It needed gutting and new everything.  The previous owners went out of their way to destroy whatever they couldn't remove.

 They've spent every spare moment, when not at their jobs, working on wiring, plumbing, drywall, and new outside siding.  Only in the past week or so has Debbie finally left her job at the Deli she owns with her sister in Chehalis. 

This phone call was an invitation.  Debbie shared they were going to have the interior of their restaurant depicting several hobbies and lots of antiques.  Debbie asked if I would come over and help with the interior decorating.  She wanted an eclectic look without too much clutter.  I was flattered.  Debbie purchased a ticket to work with my schedule and the planning went forward. 

Last Friday night I flew to Portland and was met by our oldest granddaughter Andi.  We drove to Centralia and spent the rest of the evening, into the wee morning hours at the restaurant. 

Saturday we spent another long day working.  I refurbished some old light sconces into a new life.  After the employee orientation, I took the paperwork and created spreadsheets and a database of employee information as well as some publications to entertain her younger visitors.

We cleared the dining area of tools and equipment for the carpet and vinyl installation.  We moved boxes out of the kitchen for the installation of the kitchen equipment.   The FRP was installed on the walls of the bathroom after the tiles went down and the windows were trimmed with the rough-finished boards to compliment the rough hewn cedar poles in the dining area. 

This restaurant will be a little of both of them.  We will use fire equipment for the entry way (both Tim and my stepson Rex were firefighters).  One corner of the restaurant will share Tim's love for skydiving.  There are Harley Davidson prints.  Tim has a collection of farm implements used to decorate around the 'yard'.   The barstools at the counter are made of saddles.  There is memorabilia from the local town and many antiques to finish off the bare spots.  Debbie and Tim have 12 bee hives.  There will be a corner of the waiting area called "The Honey Hut" where Debbie will share beekeeping books, hive supplies, brochures and fun bee decor.

Honestly, when I arrived Friday night I could not imagine the restaurant being ready for the opening on July 10th.  The progress, just during the two days I was visiting, was amazing this weekend.  It's all coming together. The kitchen equipment is being installed this week as well as FRP on the kitchen walls.  The walls in the dining area will be trimmed out with more cedar planks.  Soon the booths and refinished tables will be delivered too. 

I am so confident the opening will be a huge success.  We are looking forward to our first meal when we come to town on our way to the coast the following week.   We are so proud of them all! 

Saturday with Someone Special...

Today I felt productive. However, my 'to do' list was set aside with the visit of my favorite 3 year old and his daddy, who were out for a ride. His momma drove to Utah to pick up her niece. I think our two guys were lonely.

Matthew mowed our yard and then I watched Tate while he drove over to mow his own yard. Matt had to take the seat from the back of the jeep to load the mower. Tate and I took full advantage of the setting to sit in the shade, eat Otter Pops and watch the world go by.

Tate loves to use my iPhone for some of the game apps as well as the camera. Awhile back Papa and Grammy were babysitting one morning. I gave Tate my phone to play a game while we dressed and brushed our teeth.

Trying to maintain some modesty with our grandson in the room I quickly tossed my pj's in the hamper and dashed into the bathroom. As I enter the bathroom door I hear this sweet little voice say "Cheese Grammy". I panic and then think - how bad could it be.

When I finally regained control of my phone I took a moment to check out Tate's work expecting a dozen pictures of the dog and cats. Chalk one up for digital photography and the delete button. Our darling grandson had a great shot of my least favorite feature disappearing into the doorway revealing my efforts at modesty were lacking.

Here is our Saturday together - from Tate's point of view.

Summer - Finally...

We finally were able to enjoy sunshine and summer like temperatures.

Saturday Taten and I were invited to a 4 year old birthday party hosted by a coworker. How special for Gramma Deb to get to show off her young charge and watch him play with other 2-4 year old boys. He only hesitated for a moment when entering the bouncy house - which was actually shaped like a train engine.

I was warned to be watching but Tate only gave the birthday boy a side glance while gifts were opened. He commented about one of the Thomas the Train items received but seemed content with another drink of his punch and some more watermelon. He even remembered his 'please' when asked if he wanted a birthday hat while eating cake.

I just love watching little guys interact. As things were winding down, Tate joined Orion and 4 year old Mason in the bouncy house. They giggled and squealed, all anxious to show their bouncing tricks.

Sunday the weather continued to hold out for us. Mike employed the brawn and brains of our sons to slide our patio cover from the rotting wood siding to the roof above, where it was reattached. We are starting the preparations for the long awaited house painting. Much to our dismay we have several spots of wood rot and water damage - all which seemed to have appeared just this Spring. We've got a contractor scheduled to come make the repairs and new rain gutters ordered to be installed prior to the painting which is on the calendar for mid-July.

I know it's probably something we could manage over time ourselves but with Matt & Krieg's schedules, and Mike's recovery, it's just not something I want to worry about. It wasn't easy but we've been putting money aside for the past year for this project.

We wound down our weekend with tritip dinner, corn on the cob and fresh salads, shared with the kids (less Erin) on the patio outdoors. Matt & Brit brought over their 'corn hole' game (aka bean bag toss) and relaxed away the remaining daylight hours in the back yard.

We'll get to do it again in a couple weeks when Erin comes home! I really cherish moments like this together.

And the Winner is...

Or in this case it might be the loser... Of course I'm talking about the Biggest Loser.

A year ago I had not yet watched an episode of this reality show. With the exception of Survivor and an occasional Amazing Race, I limited the amount of reality I have to deal with - life in general is just too real for me.

Matt & Brit moved in with us the end of last summer and we found ourselves joining them in front of the TV, or often the DVR, watching "regular" people like ourselves struggle weekly with obesity and the issues that brought them to that point in their life.

I was inspired. Yes - inspired. I joined a class at the Y and went regularly twice a week. The present season rolled around and I decided to take it a step further. My own 'real world' has my 50th birthday approaching and I wanted to make some changes. This time actually cutting calories AND working out regularly - an ongoing effort.

Each week I watch the progress the contestants have made. I see the trainers push them farther then they've ever been pushed. I am usually an emotional mess when Jillian digs into the deep down burdens or self imposed guilt carried around.

I'm not sure how much emotional baggage I carry with me - I'm human. I'm sure there is some. Maybe carry-on would be more appropriate...

The current contestants were not cut throat. Their "house" policy seemed to be one more of support for one another. Tonight the other 'losers' will return and we'll get a glimpse of how hard they've worked since being voted off. The final 3 contestants will each take their turn on the scale for the win. The public will vote between Koli and Daris to see who is the 3rd contestant. I suspect Daris will not get the public vote to be one of those three. Mike has lost an impressive amount of weight but he came to the Biggest Loser Ranch in need of losing the weight of TWO people. He's matured and grown personally and I no longer cringe when the camera is focused on him. Ashley has grown up and learned to take care of herself first and deal with the emotional loss with her father's death. I would like to Ashley win the money - but in my heart they are all victorious!

Full house...

The end of last weekend Krieg finished up his last exam and came home for the summer - on his 22nd birthday. Erin followed Friday when she finished her last final for the year. Momma had a full house!

Our weather this weekend was wonderful - finally. We were in the low 80's. Saturday Matt, Brit and Erin went Bird Banding. As Erin is majoring in Wildlife Research Management these trips count toward internships for her school. Mike hooked her up several years ago thru Birds of Prey when he volunteered there regularly. They had great weather. Sunny, not too hot. It was a different group organizing it thru BLM this time but they ended up with John, a retired BLM wildlife biologist who we have gone with for years.

Mike, Krieg, Tate and myself stayed home and held down the fort. Tate and I went to Lowe's to buy some birdseed and a couple of new feeders. Hopefully these are more squirrel proof - if there IS such a thing... Tate filled the feeders - I'm always surprised at his dexterity. We bought tomato and pepper plants. He helped me plant those along the fence. I turned the hose on low and he wandered around being a very important waterer. He also helped me move rocks from the pond spillway and redirect water so it didn't run off the sides as it was doing. Mike sat and cut boxes for recycling and then cut some of the branches from last week's trimming session. Tate tossed them into the rolling bins. They both kept busy. Krieg got the yard mowed and replaced two sprinklers and then got the sprinklers set up on the timer and adjusted. We felt very productive.

Sunday the kids wanted to take Tate to the zoo. Boise's zoo isn't very big so it only takes an hour or so. We got down there about 11am as Tate was being difficult and we weren't sure we'd actually go.

Matt kept thinking he should be working on the house. We promised to all go help at the house when we were done. I think we actually started at Matt & Brit's about 3:30. Krieg mowed their lawn and taped off windows and trim in the bedrooms. Erin, Brit and I painted bedrooms. They rolled the walls and I did the corners, ceilings and edging. After we got Tate's room painted, I ran to get cleaning supplies and a couple more rollers. The girls painted the front bedroom and then the "office" bedroom as well as the master closet.

I picked up Papa Murphy pizza, cooked it at home and brought it over. Thought maybe Mike would come but he wasn't feeling very well so stayed home. We stayed at the house until about 9:30, came home showered and watched the DVR Survivor finale. It was a very LATE night.

Chaos is the only word to describe the way things are in our house right now between Mike's extra sleeping areas and paraphernalia, Krieg moving home, Erin visiting and Matt & Brit focusing on getting their house done. I'm just trying to maintain until they are ready to move out and we get bedrooms cleaned and shift Krieg. One day at a time.

I love having everyone around. Erin is heading back to Moscow today. She has a new job as a bartender at a place called Mix. She's very happy with the atmosphere and her new employers. She also has a set work schedule - Thursday-Saturday. We may get to see her a few extra times this summer. Krieg has his interview with Costco, though he was already told he had his old job back. The meat department manager actually asked him last Friday if he wanted to work the afternoon - before his interview.

Mike hasn't felt well the past two days. I don't think he's eating well enough when I'm working. Mentioned it to Krieg. He'll keep Mike on the straight and narrow. Yesterday it was so warm in the house. We tried turning on the A/C and it failed. Freon leak again but this time it froze up and won't work at all. We nursed it along last summer. We are digging into our pockets this year for a new A/C - like it or not it's a necessity. Of course we didn't learn of the non-working status until it was too late. House too warm. We came home from Matt & Brit's - no A/C and the ice maker wasn't working but at least we took most of the large screens off the windows to be replaced Friday too! :-) When we fall apart we have epic failures!

Not to worry - there is a weather front already threatening to take away our beautiful warm, sunny days!