Daily Ooos: July 30-31: Weekend Edition

[faerywings]

[jaw drop emoji]
Last weekend in July. For real! Still no rain in sight here. It was supposed to rain on and off all day yesterday. Not a drop. I hope it rains in NJ soon but not in PA where the kids are camping or if it does, let it be overnight when they are in the cabin. They seem to be pretty much on track to get out without too much trouble and arguing.
Cait kept coming over to me all day yesterday to give me hugs and tell me she is going to miss me. Same here *sniffs* She is good about keeping in touch. She will text me on and off the entire time. Scott is a doody head and won't but will pass messages from him to Caitlyn to me. Caitlyn printed out her Rat Care instructions and put them on the fridge. It is scrap-worthy LOL This year is *knocks wood* easier since no one needs meds or is extremely old. Whew.
I tried to do some yard work again yesterday and sheesh, besides dead-heading, there wasn't much to do. Nothing is growing, aside from poison ivy, and there isn't much I can do about that.

Since it is the end of the month I have some Cheery O things to do. Aside from that not much is on my list for the day.
Enjoy the weekend!!!!
<3
#kiss3
him

 

[LSlycord]

Good morning. I don't know how it can be the end of July but it is.

Today we have Decker coming for a visit. For those that might not remember, Decker is a dog that we fostered twice. Now he is finally settled with the people that are going to adopt him. However, they have a three week vacation planned in August and since Decker doesn't do well in kennel settings, they have nowhere for him to go. The lady that we worked with at the rescue was going to watch him herself but she is in Minnesota on vacation. I told them that I can't watch him for the days that Syd is moving into the dorm but I can take him for two weeks after that. But first I need to make sure that the dogs all adjust to each other again. (I'm sure that they will.) So this afternoon, we are dog sitting.

Other than that, like @faerywings, I have scrapping tasks to take care of. It's going to be really hot here...so maybe some swim time tomorrow afternoon.

 

[faerywings]

@Cherylndesigns So sorry that you lost power but thank goodness for the rain! How are your little herb babies today?
That would have given me a heart attack to have it rain so soon after the pool got poured but I guess that is something the pool people are used to.
PS: How is Steph doing? Back to normal? *hugs to her*

@bcgal00 oh how that breaks my heart to think of Bailey not being with you. I can't imagine how exhausted and drained you and Jen feel. It makes me happy that you are together and can understand and support each other. It also has to feel -- good isn't the right word, but maybe satisfying? -- to know that they are making changes at the hospital so this doesn't happen again. One of the hardest things for Sam and her family is that the guy who was driving the car hasn't had any consequences, nothing has been done/said/changed. That is frustrating to them and makes it harder to heal.
Anyway--- you are always in my thoughts xo.
The upcoming trip has to be a godsend, something to look fwd to and be excited about. The gifts are perfect! I love the idea of the mug
have a nice time with the pups by the pool!

@BrightEyes How wonderful to have some cooler temps and rain. Seems like scrapping and working on the computer is coming along well for you. yay!
Wow, that must be awesome to have the gas under $4. You know that NY/NJ is so darn expensive for everything. I saw a report this morning that you have to make $31/hour to afford to rent a 2 Bedroom house in NJ. I didn't read all of the particulars but NJ was #7
Might be smarter to have Tom move in here than for the two of them to move out.

JK!!!!!!!
I swear, I am JK. I know that would be the last thing anyone would want

 

[BrightEyes]

Woke up to 65*F again this morning!!! Yes, we had a rain shower last evening that dropped the temps down into the low 70's so was good sleeping weather. Looks like the regular monsoon rains are back in the state again. We are not getting a large amount at a time but we welcome whatever rain we get. The Rio Grande river flow has dried up ... doesn't look right without water in the river bed. The news is talking about how to conserve water at home... and asking everyone to cut back on outdoor usage.

Talked to DD#3 yesterday evening. She will be coming over today to get some of the plums. She may get one of the sons to come with her to pick more of them for me. Some of the ones I had picked are getting ripe... I had two yesterday... they were so sweet and tasty. The ones from the broken branch should be ripe by this coming week. I will be given her most of the plums as the tree is still loaded.

@LSlycord you are so good to help out Decker's family by keeping him some of the time while they are gone. Hope the dogs get along together as I know that was a challenge before. Wow... hard to believe that Syd will be moving into the dorm soon.

@faerywings LOL over your being a go-between with the kids text messages while they are camping! Yes, I do get that your were JK about Tom moving in. I do understand as DD#3's sons are still living at home due to the high rental costs right now... along with the other expenses being high.

@Cherylndesigns hope the pool guys were able to pump the rain water out of the pool and continue the work on it.

Well, coffee cup is empty and I need to get dressed. Will stop back by later on to see what is happening.

 

[LSlycord]

@faerywings I smiled at the way that Cait kept coming over to you yesterday to give you hugs and tell you that she'd miss you. For the past 3-4 weeks, Syd has been attached to me. If she's at home, she is with me. When I work, she comes and sits in my office. After work, we lie on the sofa together...not all that comfortable because both dogs join us and we are all smashed together...but I wouldn't change even a moment.

@Cherylndesigns the pool is getting closer. I can't wait to see it. It looks like it will be magnificent. We are talking about taking a vacation your way next summer. A bunch of my cousins and their families will be at Table Rock next year and so we might go at that time of year.

@BrightEyes I am so jealous of the good sleeping weather. We are still a few months off I think...

@bcgal00 I can't imagine how hard it was to not have Bailey with you yesterday. And that is such very, very good news that, as part of the lawsuit, they are making changes to the safety protocols. ((hugs))

 

[tanteva]

I hope everyone's sitting down for the shock coming: I've been PAPER crafting today! I know ...

Trying to make a loaded envelope for a dear friend who sent me some amazing ephemera. I'm not good at it, but at least it will be unique LOL I'm not making anything fancy, just a folded paper with a couple of pockets where I will add some tags and some ephemera.

Talking about ephemera. We have been selling old books at the library, and someone had left some magazines at the desk/shelf were the old books are. The magazines are Dutch. Urban thought I was crazy when I took them home, since I cannot read Dutch. I just looked at him and said: "Ephemera" ... He just shook his head. LOL

Mårten is back to his old self. 3 more days of meds though, but he's such a good boy. Sooooooooooo nice to have a healthy cat again! The stress ... I cannot handle it.

Today, I'm improvising salads for dinner. John will get his favorite: macaroni + meat balls + corn & cucumber. I'm planning to add some bell pepper to that. Good for Vitamin C. Me and Urban will have whole grain pasta + soy beans + read onion in a vinegraitte (sp?) with balsamico vinegar with mango flavour. Then we will have feta cheese and whatever veggies I can find.

No plans for the weekend. I have a meeting with the boss on Monday. There are going to be some changes for me at work. Until now I've been working payed per hour, but there are some changes with the rules and it will be changed to some kind of long term arrangement. Not sure yet what it will be, but I'm not worried. We really don't need me to work, we can manage on Urban's income, even though it's nice to have the extra cash. Especially when the prices are CRAAAAAZY these days.

Was trying to figure out about gas prices ... but the math skillz needed! LOL Gas is sold by litre in Sweden, hence I would have to convert both litre to gallons and krona to dollar. My brain exploded. LOL If anyone's game the price for gas here in Sweden is 20.93 Swedish Krona for 1 liter.

 

[LSlycord]

Was trying to figure out about gas prices ... but the math skillz needed! LOL Gas is sold by litre in Sweden, hence I would have to convert both litre to gallons and krona to dollar. My brain exploded. LOL If anyone's game the price for gas here in Sweden is 20.93 Swedish Krona for 1 liter.

Definitely NOT up for that conversion---even if I am pretty good at math. Sometimes it is enough to just say, "That's too darned high!"

Glad that Marten is really back to his old self! And your supper plans sound delicious!

 

[tanteva]

 

[bcgal00]

Just a quick in and out today. It is D's birthday and we are heading out in a few minutes to a surplus store that we haven't been to. He is looking for a waterproof hat for the trip. We'll do gifts around lunchtime with him. Dinner today will be a BBQ and I'll find a dessert for him. We need to head out soon b/c the temps are over 100 today so hot, hot, hot.

I took the dogs up into the grasslands last night just before sunset. I took a few landscape shots along the way and the dogs ran thru the grasslands. I am going to start looking for a wide angle lens for landscape shots. I've got a 24 mm and I want a 10 or 12 mm. Luckily they are not too pricey. It'll be something to look into when we are back from our trip.

Remi is whining to go out and I need to get ready. Back later.

 

[Cherylndesigns]

Good morning lovelies.

Chris @faerywings Cait sounds so sweet and I know you'll miss her. I hope the camping trip doesn't get rained out. It's raining here again today but we really needed it so I'm happy. All of the plants look like they've perked up - I hope to get out - if it stops raining - and pull weeds.

I guess the rain didn't hurt the pool progress but there is water in it from the rain. I got a good picture of it night before last - the first layer of the concrete (gunnite) is poured - it looks a little rough but it's a process. They have another coat to pour, then they'll tile it. Here's a picture of the pool before the torrential downpours.




I have wonderful news - Steph got her new car yesterday!! It's a 2022 Chevy Equinox - the one that got hit was also an Equinox. All they had was white, but I told her she'll love a white car - that's all we've had for several years and they have to get filthy before they look dirty. White is also cooler in Florida. She's SO thrilled to get it!!



I got them reversed - the one on the right is just rolling out of the dealership and the one on the left is after she got home. I asked her if she slept in it all night. LOL

Thank you ALL for your concern and love and hugs!!

 

[LSlycord]

@Cherylndesigns glad to see that Steph has the car situation figured out.

@bcgal00 love the fact that you are getting a new wide angle lens. Your photography is so stunning. That is one of the things that I am really looking forward to with your trip---anxious to see your whale and glacier photos---and all of the wildlife!

 

[faerywings]

hey there, my dear Ooos! Hope you are waking up to a beautiful morning like I am. I am actually a little cold, I had to put capris on when I rolled out of bed.
The kids all got up and out right in time with minimal stress. I texted Caitlyn a rat update around 3.30 and was surprised when she said they were still about 5 minutes away. They hit a lot of traffic and missed a turn. They usually don't go on weekends so I bet that contributed to the traffic problems. I am really happy for them. I bet it would have been easy for Scott and Sam to not want to go but they agreed that they were claiming Knoebels as their thing. They are also aware that memories might come up out of nowhere so I am relieved that they will be mindful of that.

It is quiet here but the dogs and rats and DH will keep me busy. I am still hoping for rain in NJ...
I was able to get some of my end-of-the-month stuff done but I have a couple of additional things to work on.

HAGD!

 

[LSlycord]

Had a good afternoon with Decker yesterday. When Lisa dropped him off, he was happy to see me but Decker likes people so that was no surprise. I was holding his leash and talking to Lisa and all of a sudden, it was like it "clicked" and he knew where he was and he wanted to get in the house immediately! Brian had both of our dogs upstairs so that it wouldn't be quite so chaotic. Decker stopped at the office, looking to see if the dogs were there. Then he ran through the kitchen back to the place outside the pantry to where we keep the toys. He grabbed two in his mouth and started playing. It was so cute. Everyone got a chance to greet him individually then the dogs came down. We kept everyone on leash for about 15 minutes and by then they were all calm and they were off leash and just interacting normally the rest of the afternoon.

I'm so happy for Decker to have found a family that loves him. And it will be good to have him here for awhile.

 

[LSlycord]

@faerywings hope that the kids have a good time. Probably will bring back some memories...but hopefully, they have more perspective to deal with it...and they can enjoy their time.

 

[faerywings]

@LSlycord How did it go with Decker?? He is such a good boy considering everything he had been through. I hope that everything went well with your dogs so you can watch him later. I hope that having him stay for a bit will cheer Shaun up. Hope he is also coming out of his funk or talking to you about it at least.

@BrightEyes We had ya beat this morning, it was only 60* and I had to drag the blanket from under Whisky so I didn't freeze
How scary to see the Rio Grande so low, it's awful I hope that you get some decent rain soon
have a fun visit with DD#3 and hopefully, the sons will come with her and have a good visit too. I totally understand that her sons are still at home too. I was trying to explain to my mom the difference in expenses/salaries compared to when I moved out. She was dumbfounded.

Linda- I also love to hear how close you and Syd are with each other. And yes, let her stay attached to you every darn minute you can. Even if you are being smothered by the dogs LOL!

@tanteva oooh, did you glue your fingers together by accident yet? Get any papercuts?? JK! The loaded envelope sounds awesome, did you take any pictures of what you have done yet? I admire your patience in making that.
hee hee-- love that you had to explain to Urban why you needed the Dutch magazines
Yay for Marten! what a relief, I was worried about the little bugger. Good luck with the meeting at work, maybe it will mean a raise?? *fingers crossed*

@bcgal00 Happy birthday to D!!!! Sounds like you had an amazing day planned for him. I didn't see any pics on FB of the dogs, I will have to go back and see if you posted any. I know that you are going to find the perfect lens and that you will take incredible photos with it. It is what you do. <3

@Cherylndesigns the pool is gonna be amazing!!!!!
woo hoo for Steph! The new car is gorgeous, *throws coins in it for good luck*
Cait has an Equinox- it was gifted to her when Gary's uncle passed away- and that thing is a boat esp compared to my little CRV. I bet it is a big reason why she didn't get too badly hurt in the other one.
I am glad that everything worked out for Steph!

#kiss

 

[faerywings]

OMG, I LOVE the Decker recognized where he was and obviously has happy connections to you all.
yay!!!

 

[BrightEyes]

Morning, all. Another cool morning so enjoying having the house opened again. Yesterday's plans got changed. DD#3 didn't make it down as there was a huge rain storm in her area (20 miles north of me). Thunder and lightening and rain blowing sideways. They got about 2" of rain in less than 30 minutes. I only had a gentle rain with thunder in the distance and maybe 1/4" of rain. Some of the roads between her place and mine were flooded with run-off so no point in them trying to come down. The plans are for grandson who works nearby to stop off after work today and pick up the plums for their family. I checked the plum tree and there doesn't seem to be any ripe plums ready to be picked. 2 more of the branches seem to have broken even more so may have to cut them down this week. The plum maybe small but are so sweet and delicious.

DD#1 called yesterday and we had a nice long visit. We talked about the rapid rise in Covid cases both here and in AZ where she is. After her talk, I decided to use a Home Covid test to make sure that what I had was not Covid as I have the Red Hat gals coming over for a potluck lunch next week. The test was negative so all is okay to have them over.

@Cherylndesigns So glad that Steph got a replacement car... looks wonderful. The pool is coming right along. Can't wait to see it when it is finished and ready for use.

@LSlycord Had to LOL about Decker recognizing where he was and who he was with. Glad the dogs got along okay.

@faerywings It is good for Scott and Sam to reclaim the camping area for themselves... yes, memories can still be hard at times but it is good that they are making positive steps to put the past behind them. LOL over the 'rat update' for Cait. Sorry that traffic was so bad on the trip to the camping area. So happy that you were able to get a reservation for you and your mom at the beach in Sept.

@tanteva No way my brain would do all that math. Glad you were busy making the paper envelope/ephemera. for your friend. Had to LOL over you grabbing the Danish magazines to use for ephemera... scrappers understand why.

@taxed4ever Hope your trip went well with no hitches, delays or lost luggage. So glad you are getting to spend time with family.

I am busy doing laundry early this AM. The power co has asked that we do power using stuff in off-hours to help conserve energy during peak hours.

 

[bcgal00]

Good morning ladies. I'll be back later. It's the last 100+ day. Tomorrow cools off to 93 and then into the 80's for the rest of the week. So today and tomorrow we'll be in the pool a lot. I'll pop back in later this afternoon when I come indoors for a bit.

 

[Cherylndesigns]

Good afternoon lovelies.

Finally getting on here - yes, I KNOW I've been logged in all day - AGAIN. UGH. I jumped on here to check the Pre-release thread and forgot to log off. Adrienne and I just got back from shopping and going to one of the coffee shops. I realized, while we were out, that I was still logged in. Oh, the way my mind works. #crazy

Chris @faerywings we're used to big cars around here - almost everybody drives trucks - big, tall ones. We have a medium sized SUV, but I'm glad to hear that Cait likes her Equinox. Yes, we definitely think that car (her other one was an Equinox) saved her in that accident. She's SO proud of that car - it's a 2022. Our 3-year lease is up in Feb and we're thinking about getting one - we've narrowed it down to 4 that we're considering. We have a GMC Terraine now. It's the second one we've had. We got a call from the dealership in FL where we got it - they wanted to buy it back now and give is a REALLY good price - they're desperate for cars. So, Chuck called some dealerships out here and we think we might be getting a new car before Feb. Obviously, we can't turn it in back where we got it. We also only have a little over 10,000 miles on it which is low, low, low.

Kay @BrightEyes sounds like you have a busy week coming up. We're finally getting rain here too. It rained SO hard the other night and it's been raining off and, on all day, today. Wish I could get some of those plums!

Yes, the pool is going to be SO nice! It's so near completion - they'll be back working on it again this week.

The kids all get home this evening - they're flying into AK at 5:30 - so things will get lively again.

Ava's dogs ran off yesterday for the first time! We were all out driving around looking for the stinkers. 75 acres is a lot of ground to cover and I'm sure they were having a ball. We always worry that our dogs will get up on the busy road, though. I finally went out and stood in the field in front and called and clapped - I could hear them barking in the woods. Chuck finally found them - they were running back in the woods behind our house - they were just coming out. He got out of the car and told them to sit and stay and he always has dog treats in his pocket. Then, he got them in the car and took them home. It was pretty crazy for about an hour, though. Our first thought was that they had run into the pool and were hurt. There's a little water in it from the rain, but they could have broken their legs. As we always say "there's never a dull moment at the compound".

XOXO

 

[Amandajk]

This forum/thread is SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO fun!! I love reading about each of you and seeing what we have in common and what we don't. I was part of a forum like this a few years back when I was designing. It was a highlight of the day to check in.
Now, a few of you I "know" from another site, and a few I have had convos with.
@Cherylndesigns Cheryl , a new pool??? #clap WOWWW!!!! Did everything turn out ok? Glad the dogs are fine. We really miss our pup. He is happy where he is- lots of space to run and furry friends. He was 40lbs 3 weeks ago. Can't imagine how big he is now. When we got him we were told he was Beagle with a bit of Boxer. NOT! He is Pyrenees/Shepherd!!! Maybe we will get a small dog in the next few months. First we are going to get our full time RV!
@BrightEyes Kay, do you live in TX? We lived there- Dallas, Hereford (west Tx) and McAllen on the border. Hated Hereford, lol toooo many cattle and dust was ridiculous! Our DD lives in Dallas now, working with refugees. We are praying for rain for Texas!!
Here in SC it has been what we call "Hell week"- 7 straight days of Heat Advisories!! 107 index yesterday. Really makes one tired even if staying inside!
Looking forward to getting to know you all!

 

[Cherylndesigns]

This forum/thread is SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO fun!! I love reading about each of you and seeing what we have in common and what we don't. I was part of a forum like this a few years back when I was designing. It was a highlight of the day to check in.
Now, a few of you I "know" from another site, and a few I have had convos with.
@Cherylndesigns Cheryl , a new pool??? #clap WOWWW!!!! Did everything turn out ok? Glad the dogs are fine. We really miss our pup. He is happy where he is- lots of space to run and furry friends. He was 40lbs 3 weeks ago. Can't imagine how big he is now. When we got him we were told he was Beagle with a bit of Boxer. NOT! He is Pyrenees/Shepherd!!! Maybe we will get a small dog in the next few months. First we are going to get our full time RV!
@BrightEyes Kay, do you live in TX? We lived there- Dallas, Hereford (west Tx) and McAllen on the border. Hated Hereford, lol toooo many cattle and dust was ridiculous! Our DD lives in Dallas now, working with refugees. We are praying for rain for Texas!!
Here in SC it has been what we call "Hell week"- 7 straight days of Heat Advisories!! 107 index yesterday. Really makes one tired even if staying inside!
Looking forward to getting to know you all!

Amanda!!! I'm SO glad you decided to join us here - we get pretty crazy so just go with it. We talk about all kinds of funny things, including rats (Chris @faerywings ) Chris's dd has pet rats. They're SO cute!

Yes, we're getting a pool -well, it's actually our dd's but it's almost in our yard - we live next door to them - we all live on a 75 acre "compound" as we all refer to it here.

Our gd, Ava, has the dogs - 2 Labs - they're not a year old yet and they're crazy! They got a chance to go exploring and away they went! She has a chocolate and a black - the chocolate is the instigator - the black one is a sweetie pie, but is easily led astray by her sister. They're litter mates and Ava couldn't resist getting both of the girls.

I'm SO thrilled to see you here and don't be a stranger! I love starting my day in this forum with these Lovelies!