6/30/08

1. Chiropractic appointment.

2. Picking strawberries (awesome ones) and peas (no sugar snap; only snow) with the younger two

3. WONDERFUL dinner out (Indian food) with a friend I'd lost touch with and not seen for a year and a half. It was fantastic to catch up with her and see pics of her kids, and plan to get together again soon.

6/29/08

1. Lazy Sunday morning reading the Sunday paper, doing coupons and ads, and drinking coffee.

2. Fun Couples' Shower for one of G's coworkers who is having his first baby, due in August. I got to hold a 4 month old baby for a *long* time, too! :)

3. M. learned to ride the "big" bike! (the 16 inch bike)

6/28/08

1. EVERYONE sleeping in late.

2. C. and I took in two Farmer's Markets and the Milwaukee Public Market. And we brought home tamales from El Rey for lunch. YUM!

3. More outdoor work--though it's less weeding every time.

4. The cuteness of C. and friends preparing for (and attending) their first boy-girl party.

5. M. can ride a bike!!! We took her out for the first time since her playground accident, and she just took off. :)

6. Rock Band is awesome...

6/27/08

1. Fun morning running errands with the kids! Yes, I said "fun". :) They were very well-behaved and we found the one thing we were looking for at Costco ON SALE! ($5 instant rebate on each and we needed eight) This is what it is, and Costco had them for $29 when my mom bought one for a friend. the friend liked them so much that she wanted SEVEN and then we got one. After rebate, they were $24 each! :) SCORE!

2. Fun afternoon playing Rock Band with the kids. In some ways, I like it better than Guitar Hero and Karaoke Revolution (more than one can play at a time) but in some ways I like it less (some parts have so much less in any given song). But the song list is the best of all, I think. :)

3. Nice date with G. to see The Love Guru. Can't say I recommend the movie, though. I have never been disappointed in a Mike Myers movie (or anything) before. So lame...

6/26/08

1. Although it will cost over $700 to fix G's car (when the street flooded, the flood water soaked the carpet in his car and the stink won't leave, despite us cleaning it in several different ways), our insurance will cover all but the $250 deductible.

2. G. took the kids to a birthday party, so I had time to cook and clean for book club--and my WHOLE house was clean at the same time!

3. First meeting of our block's book club. I think it went great! There were only four of us, but we had great discussion of the book, fun socializing, and everyone could WALK to it! I'm looking forward to next month.

6/25/08

1. First tutoring session for the summer. I think it went well, and the extra summer money will really help out!

2. Made a baby sling for one of G's co-workers. The shower is on Sunday (couples' shower) and the dad is a big Simpsons fan. It's the first sewing I've done in a LONG time!

3. I think I've got the menu planned for tomorrow's Book Club (here). I still have to do some shopping and (of course) clean the whole house, but G. is taking all three kids to a birthday party tomorrow afternoon, so that will be a nice chunk of time.

6/24/08

1. The obnoxious "there is NO way it could be *our* fault" Village engineer sheepishly gave G. a phone number to call to reimburse us for our expenses related to the fact that the contractors crushed our sewer lateral. And the construction company accepted our estimate of damage.

2. The basement is CLEAN again--bleached floor and carpets shampooed and ruined stuff hauled out and all back to "normal".

3. G. found a spot on the side of the house that we THINK has been letting in water--causing that musty, wet smell on the entire North side of the house. He caulked it, and I think/hope that'll fix it!

4. Mom (finally) heard from the realtor--they got a second basement estimate in the same range, so they'll knock that price off the cost of the house and her closing date is set for July 18!!!

5. Actually registered for the GRE's (and paid the $140) so I can't turn back now...

6. (Finally) turned one heel on Linda's socks!

6/23/08

1. By the end of the day, we had use of our sewer and the construction contractor admitted fault (so we should be reimbursed for Roto Rooter). Prior to that, we woke up to sewage in our basement, had Roto Rooter here (which accomplished nothing, and still cost $255), and spent hours going around and around with the Village and road construction contractors about whose fault it was that we had sewage in our basement. I guess I'm also happy that it didn't happen on a weekend, when we'd be charged emergency rates and that the construction was going on RIGHT IN FRONT of our house, so we could get the construction guys to listen to us.

2. And the kids were good while the house was all turned upside down yet again.

3. We "escaped" things by going to the mall with our wonderful neighbors. The younger kids ran through the fountain; the 13 YOs did shopping, and the adults had coffee and relaxed. Then we had supper together, and ended the evening (after learning the good news about the sewer) with a fire, yummy mojitos, kettle corn and s'mores. I love our neighbors and feel so blessed to have them!

6/22/08

1. Did some errand-running with G. this morning and got a FREE pizza from Costco (referral program).

2. ROCK BAND FOR WII!!!! Awesome (although I think it completely sucks that the Guitar Hero guitars don't work with it!) and we bought it in lieu of a family vacation this summer.

3. Mother-daughter book club. Great book, wonderful discussion, yummy dinner (stuffed baked potatoes) and FABULOUS dessert (raspberry trifle).

6/21/08

1. My plants are starting to look like plants! :) Here's the giant tomato plant (mint behind):

And my backyard garden (clockwise from upper left--tomato, tomatillo, chives, parsley, thyme, hot pepper):
And the flowers and pumpkins I planted are coming up, too.

2. G. and I (mostly G.) did a TON of yardwork today, including:
-moving the rock wall back behind where the birch used to be
-carrying "mulch" (shredded birch stump) to cover all the flower beds
-moving the rock wall back from the swing set now that there's no longer an evergreen IN the swingset
-general weeding, straightening, etc., and soaking the lilac bushes so they can be planted tomorrow. It's hard to believe that this will actually become a lilac bush
2. Greek dinner with two longtime family friends (full families). Yummy food (Greek Chicken, Greek Salad, Spanikopita, pita, hummus, baba ghanooj, dolmas, olives), and fun to catch up!

6/20/08

1. Finished The Book Thief (for Sunday's book club)! It was very good--I just hate being under a time constraint to read.

2. Worked more on organization of the basement; Moved stuff around so that all my disposable serving/storage is in one place, all plastic in another, and all ceramic/glass in a third!

3. Another day of T. and M. amusing themselves (and each other) while G. and I worked around the house.

4. After C's soccer game, G. and I went out for supper and the kids went to bed!

6/19/08

1. T. and M. had Zoo classes--and loved them! T. did Grossology with a friend and M. did Polar Pals.

2. Took C. and a friend to the mall during M's class, and then back for lunch at Panera.

3. After a long stretch of waiting, things seem to be rolling along on Mom's house. My brother's applied for his loan (to buy her current house); she's looking into selling the 40 up North; and some yard work was done next door (mowing, trimming) and the sidewalk and driveway apron were both poured today!

6/18/08

1. I did an excellent job grocery shopping! With double coupons, I actually made money on a few items.

2. Coffee out with two friends--it was so nice! We have to do that more often. :)

3. Making headway on the book for Mother-Daughter Book Club this Sunday. It's a 550 page book and I started it yesterday.

4. Nice trip to the zoo for "Nights in June"; took the kids and one of C's friends. The Sting Ray exhibit is back and the rays were SO friendly! They put horseshoe crabs in, too. Very cool!

6/17/08

1. We re-did the basement storage! We took everything out and G. built shelves all around. I should have taken a "before" picture, but it essentially looked like a long, skinny room overflowing with crap :) Now:

2. The kids did another good job of entertaining themselves--part of it taking apart dead computers that we had saved (for some reason) in the basement storage.

3. First guitar/bass lesson for T. and C. I think they both got great teachers and they seem excited to learn.

4. Knitting club! Oh, how I had missed it! :)

6/16/08

1. I completely gutted the girls' room. Tossed out two big garbage bags of garbage; one bag to go to Good Will, and a bunch of stuff to pack up because it's too young/small for C and too old/big for M.

2. T. and M. did a fantastic job of entertaining themselves while C. and I tackled the bedroom

3. I got the attic finished with organization, and pulled out more stuff to go to Goodwill.

4. Super fun outdoor fire with the neighbors. The weather was PERFECT! It was cool enough that a fire felt great, and totally still, so we didn't get covered with smoke, and still no bugs!

6/15/08

1. Father's Day breakfast that was easy on me and just happened to be things I love (muffins from Pick N Save and mochas from Caribou).

2. G. loved his Father's Day gift (Super Mario Kart for the wii and three extra steering wheels) and played it most of the day with the kids.

3. I went through all of my clothes and the kids' clothes to pick out summer stuff to wear; and to put away winter stuff that should still fit, come fall; and to clear out outgrown clothes that I'm not saving. WOW! Trip to Goodwill in my near future.

4. As I was going through the clothing stuff in the attic, I found some other things to donate AND I finally decided to shred all my former home business papers and former LLL paperwork. Holy shreddedness--four big garbage bags full when I was done.

6/14/08

1. Beautiful day weather-wise! Clear skies, dry (not terribly humid, either), and no bugs yet.

2. We got lots of yard work done; the people came and ground the stump of the birch, and G. hauled that new mulch to all the flower beds; G. took out another evergreen shrub that was at the base of the birch, but looked foolish once the birch was gone; I weeded all my flower beds (except for some of the pesky snow-on-the-mountain that grows within the pachysandra--only got about half of that); I pulled out a ton of garlic mustard at the house next door; I mowed the lawn of the house next door; G. straightened the gutters and attached the rain barrel;

3. Got the kids signed up for library summer programs, and C. and T. for guitar lessons. I think our summer schedule is set now!

4. Had a quick night "out" with G. We had mojitos and lettuce wraps at CPK. Yum!

6/13/08

1. Last day of school!!! Easing up of schedules, packing lunches, etc.

2. Afternoon spent with the 13 year olds; amusing observing them on the cell phones, text-messaging, giggling about boys and clothes and all the "OMG"s...

3. Fun dinner out to celebrate the end of the school year. We met at Qdoba, and the big kids left early, then the middle kids headed out, and we all ended up by the fountain where the littlest kids and middle kids played and then the 13 year olds JOINED THEM in the fountain!

6/12/08

1. Last fourth grade coffee! (next one will be fifth grade coffee..wow!) Such a great group of women--it's really nice to have a group of friends from each kid's grade.

2. I had bought a bra at Victoria's Secret awhile ago, after searching (literally) months to find a comfortable one. I got an email that that style was on sale (reg. $40, on sale for $30) but they didn't have the color I wanted online, so I went to the store to see if they did. Not only did they have the color I wanted, in the size I wear, but it was also marked down even more--to $23.99!!!

3. There were tons of severe weather warnings and watches again (and the kids did the tornado thing at school again--in the basement, hands over head), but the worst of it missed us--again.

6/11/08

It was a crazy, busy day, but....

1. I realized that I'm actually happier when I'm busy. This bodes well for my returning to school and/or work in the fall

2. I was able to squeeze grocery shopping in before everything else started today.

3. Both kid parties went mostly well. T's was a bit more chaotic than I'd hoped, as there were many misunderstandings on the parts of the parents AND the teachers as to exactly who was supplying materials and what was going on, but I think it all came together.

4. Tutoring is DONE for the school year! In six days, I tutored 16.5 hours (a usual week of tutoring would be five hours!) and my brain is FRIED!

6/10/08

1. G. got up with the kids, letting me sleep in a bit (which was nice because I was up in the middle of the night when it started thundering again!).

2. Had a full day of just G. and me--M. was on a fullday field trip and the other two were in school all day. G. was off, and I didn't tutor until 4:00! We took a long walk, had lunch out, did some shopping...

3. BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL day weather-wise. You would not believe that, two days ago, it was so horrible. Temps hit 80, but blue skies with white, puffy clouds, not bad humidity, no bugs yet...

4. Almost done with final's week tutoring and both clients tonight asked me to tutor again next year! I'm not sure if I'll take them on or not (not sure what I'm doing work/school-wise yet), but it's flattering to know that they like me enough to ask to use me again next year!

6/9/08

1. Only had to work an hour at the school library today, shelving books.

2. A dear friend "took on" the 7th graders-who didn't have school today due to the weather-so I didn't have to! ;)

3. It didn't rain all day long! I mean, it rained/drizzled some, but not all day long!

4. Halfway through finals' week tutoring, and I found out that one client, who was really struggling, pulled a "C" for the semester. She was thrilled (as was I)!

5. The realtor stopped over to say that the house next door got ZERO water in the basement, despite all the rain and flooding and sewage backups all around. YAY!

6/8/08

1. Woke up to a break in the rain and no more water in the basement.

2. Muffins and coffee for breakfast--yum!

3. Both T's and C's soccer games canceled--making my tutoring schedule a little less stressed around the edges.

4. Though the waters rose insanely high in front of our house:
they receded before ending up in our basement (so far, at least)

5. My tutoring client came to me tonight instead of me going to her.

6/7/08

1. G. took T. to his soccer game, giving me some extra time to sleep in

2. Dinner at the house of one of G's coworkers. Her boys are about T and M's ages, and they played so well together!

3. Despite flooded roads near where we had dinner, we made it home safely.

4. Despite neighbors with water (and sewage) in their basement, we made it with only trickles (so far...)

6/6/08

1. M's all-day field trip to the farm was postponed--with severe thunderstorms predicted, I was really worried about her being away from me all day.

2. C., getting ready for her all-day field trip to the water park and worrying about how her tankini looks and whether to wear contacts or glasses and if she'll get to sit next to her crush and... (all the cute 13 YO stuff)

3. Lunch at the mall; though splashing in the fountain was cut short by thunder

4. Though there were tons of severe weather warnings (and a tornado warning--the sirens went off!), it all went South of us.

5. Fire in the firepit and mojitos with the neighbors. THIS is what summer's all about!

6/5/08

1. It's the 4th anniversary of two sets of my dearest couple friends!

2. Spring Sing at the elementary school--rescheduled from yesterday (when it was rained out); the kids are SO cute!

3. When we showed up for the Spring Sing, a friend had saved us FRONT ROW SEATS!

4. Finally got a rain barrel from the MMSD--save money on lawn water, less going in the sewer system (hopefully decreasing need for raw sewage dumping), happy plants!

5. Super yummy new meal: Caprese spaghetti, which will hopefully break my boredom with cooking.

6/4/08

1. Cleaned out my email inbox and went from 276 down to only 70 emails!

2. Coffee, shopping and chatting out with a dear friend--despite having way too many things to do; good for both of us, I think ;)

3. FINALLY found a cute short-sleeved top (and I bought two in two different colors, in celebration--and because Kohls had "buy one, get one free")

4. Last-minute cancellations of both tutorings tonight--leaving me time for laundry and GRE prep

6/3/08

1. Errand-running trip where I (eventually) found all the things I was looking for--and a few things I was not! (one of them being lilac bushes on clearance at Costco! One will hopefully go where the birch was, but we have to wait till the stump is ground out)

2. (Almost) all of the wood from the tree is cut, split, and stacked! (note: some guy came and took two TRUCKLOADS of the biggest stuff, so the picture only shows what we kept!)
(oh, and that's the back of our house and the back of the house we hope my mom gets; you can see how close she'd be!)

3. I kinda like the way the house looks without the birch blocking it. And when that lilac bush is in....
4. Really interesting PTC meeting tonight, which actually got me excited about teaching and the idea of returning to teaching fulltime.

5. Obama! Obama! Obama! :)

6/2/08

1. Snuck over to the house next door and weeded and checked on the zucchini we snuck in. It's up!

2. Chiropractic appointment; I only have one left! My hip's doing SO much better and my shoulder was a bit sore from gardening, but she fixed it right up! :)

3. The huge, carpenter-ant infested, dying birch tree in front of the house is no more... (which strangely enough made me kinda sad....)

4. Impromptu pizza party with the neighbors because they helped us dismantle the huge birch tree.

6/1/08

1. Grocery shopping; strange as it sounds, I actually enjoy grocery shopping (although less so now that prices have skyrocketed)

2. C's soccer game--THEY WON! (what a fantastic soccer weekend) Better yet, they beat the 8th grade team from their middle school (C's team is made up of 6th and 7th graders). The weather was beautiful and the game was fun to watch. This will most likely be the last soccer game of Cara's I'll ever watch, as I can't be there for next weekend's game, and she's not playing next year.

3. General happiness about this time of year. As I said at supper, "the weather's great and it's close enough to winter that we appreciate the good weather; G's done with school; the kids are still *in* school..."