Not an exciting day...

We both had a hard time sleeping last night. I did not get up til 9am. It was already 83 degrees then and it had rained last night so no need to water. we had breakfast and then went to the mall. We had return some speaker wire at radio shack, got cards at Hallmark, and then a little shopping at Kohl's. By then my foot was hurting again. We had to go get diesel in the car since we are going to the airport tomorrow. Stopped by Super Wal-mart to pick up a few things and then went home. Finished cleaning the house and really did nothing the rest of the evening. I hate having west coast games. The Phillies did not even start til 10:15pm. Going to pick up Shelly and the kids tomorrow. We are so excited. Today's picture is of the sign in front of chocolate factory in Hershey. We will be going back there for a visit...

Bad foot...

We took our time moving around this morning. It was already hot and humid at 8am. I made breakfast and Beth began cutting the grass in the backyard and I finished cleaning the house. I had a doctor's appointment at 2:20pm to get my foot looked at. It had started bothering me about 3 weeks ago and had steadily gotten worse. I could not get in to see the foot doctor as she was on vacation for 2 weeks. So off we went to the regular doctor. She poked and pushed and asked a lot of questions and determined it was probably arthritis. Oh yea me... She did order some x-rays to be sure. So after leaving there, we headed to AAA to put a deposit down on a cruise with the Eagles players next July. We are going to Bermuda for 7 days. So as of right now we are going to Disney World in Jan and March and then going to Bermuda in July. Guess we need somewhere to go in Oct. and we will be set for a vacation each quarter. Today's picture is of the Eagles players we got to visit with when we were on the cruise in April. What a great time we had and look forward to it next year.

Rainy day..

From the time we got up this morning it looked like it could rain. I went to water the tomato plants and the grass still had a heavy due on it. Beth was hoping to cut the grass but needed to wait a little longer for the sun to dry it out. My foot had been killing me the last couple of days so I finally called the foot doctor only to find out she is on vacation the next 2 weeks. So I had to call the regular doctor. I can get in tomorrow but I know they will send me for x-rays which I hope I can get in by Friday. So it will be Monday before I know anything. Hell by then my foot could fall off. Beth seems to think it is a stress fracture which would really suck with Shelly coming in town next week. So we will have to wait and see. As we were eating lunch the rain finally came and came hard. We got over an inch in about 30 minutes them the sun came out. Talk about being muggy. Beth gave up on cutting the grass and went to the store for me. Gave her a list and she did really good. The rest of the afternoon was a rain, then sun, then rain, then sun kind of day. The Phillies have won both games against the Diamondbacks and are going for the sweep tonight. Sorry mom...

Today's picture is one of Beth's favorite from our trip to Alaska. It was taken in an area called College Fjord.

Hospital Day...

I had to take DJ to the hospital this morning for a scope procedure on her stomach. We had to be at the hospital by 9:30 for check in. The procedure was scheduled for 10:40am, but we all know that was not going to happen. Finally at 11:15am we were called and procedured up to the second floor and found her room. They finally wheeled her down the hall at noon. She asked that after the procedure I be contacted to talk to the doctor since she probable would not remember what he said. They agreed and I headed back downstairs to wait. At 2pm, I was told she was on her way down and I needed to go get the car. Guess they forgot to call me. Go figure. They really could not find anything that she did not already know about. Gave her some different meds and sent her home. Beth had to stay home as we were watching JoJo today. She was already taking a nap by the time I got back. Beth finally called the doctor about her poison ivy and now she was having ear aches. So after Kim picked up JoJo, Beth headed to the doctor. The doctor said the poison ivy was healing and that her ear ache was probably due to the weather, but gave her some meds to help. Dawn and JoJo's court hearing went about the way everyone figured. The birth mother now gets overnight visits and then in 4 weeks will start weekend visit. We will all have to see how that works out. Today's picture is of the thunderstorm clouds that seem to roll in every evening.

Just another day...

Nothing really special about today. Same old morning routine. Beth cleaned out the garage and I began cleaning the kitchen. Shelly will be here in 5 days and we really need to clean and put away stuff from all the parties. We took the 35' out tonight to Rita's for water ice. It was a nice ride. Have to take DJ to the hospital for some test tomorrow. She is have problems with her stomach again. Other than that we really did nothing to report. The Phillies are playing at Arizona the next 3 days, so the game is on late for us. We will not even know who wins until the next morning, but I am sure my mom will be right up on it before me. Bragging rights are at stake here. Today's picture is of the Rhotini clan. They have court again tomorrow and we wish them all the best.

Old Fashion Thunderstorms..

We were both awaken last night by the huge claps of thunder. It had been awhile since I had heard thunderstorms like these. By the time we got up this morning the sky was only a little cloudy. We had breakfast at the diner for the first time in 4 weeks and it was really good. The new Target store had it's grand opening today, so we headed to it to check out coffee pots. Found one, but wanted to check out Bed Bath and Beyond on their prices seeing we had a coupon. We found the prices to be the same so we purchased it using the 20% off coupon. We then went to PetCo as Buster was out of treats. We were home about an hour and Dawn and JoJo called and said they would be over in an hour to go swimming since the weather was nice and sunny. The boys are doing really well swimming with their life jackets on. After about a couple of hours we had to get out of the pool. A rain storm was coming and we could hear the thunder. So everyone changed and we went down stairs to play and watch the Phillie's game. The Phillies won again 9-2. The thunderstorms have rolled in again and the thunder is pounding along with the rain. Today's pictures are of the twins doing laps in the pool. They are so cute and were tired by the end of their swim.

Happy 50th Birthday Julie.

First I want to wish my cousin, Julie, Happy Birthday and many more to you. I was trying to sleep in late today, but Beth I said I had to get up because my computer was lonely. But I really think she had been up for awhile and was lonely. DJ and Maggie finally arrived home about 8am today and said they would be over around 1pm to get Gabby. Beth began cutting the grass and I began cleaning the kitchen. Beth's mom came over about noon to return the pack-n-play and the baby monitor that she had borrowed when Tom was here. Maggie and Payton showed up about 12:30. Payton developed a rash when he was in KC and had to show me. We really missed him. We had to leave a little before 2pm as we had a Phillie's game this afternoon. They won big time, but it was very hot and sunny. They cut the field across the streeet from us and today's picture is of a red tail hawk looking for mice in the field.

Harry Potter..

Beth had to get up early as she had a hair appointment at 9am. I took a little bit longer to mosey out of bed. Had to feed the dogs and water the tomato plants. Then went to check on things at DJ and Maggie's house. The are heading back from KC today and should arrive some time tomorrow morning. Tonight will be Gabby's last night staying with us. Her and Buster have gotten along great this week. We met Dawn around 12:15pm at the movie theater at Oaks. There were not a lot of people in the theater. Beth and Dawn both loved the movie. To me it was just OK. I like my movies to have a start and finish to them. We did not get home until after 4pm. Had an early dinner as Beth was going to try and cut the grass tonight. I went our to water again and it began to rain, so I guess grass cutting is out. I did hear today that the body scan came back normal and no sign of cancer. Yea, I am one year free. These are the lillies of Pooh's Corner in the picture.

Final day...

We had to be at the hospital by 10am. Today was the day of the body scan. You have to balance yourself on this hard metal platform that is only about a foot wide and then they wrap your arm to your side. They take 4 sets of pictures. The first one is a head to toe scan that last about 20 minutes. You have to stay real still while this flat scanning block moves down your body. Of course is is only about 6 inches away from your face. Makes you a little claustrophobic at first. You have to keep your eyes shut until it moves past your face. The other 3 last about 10 minutes each, but are all on the throat area. So again the metal plate is by your face most of the time. By now I have grown accustom to it and not so claustrophobic any more. So after about an hour, I was free to go and boy was I happy. Should get the results tomorrow or Monday. The only good thing I could find about the low iodine diet is I was able to drop a full short size in the week I was on it, but that was the only thing good about it. Beth had a girt certificate to a store in Kimberton and since it was raining we decided to go check it out. It was a cool store and we were able to find things to use up the certificate. Mostly candles, rocks, and other such items. We came home for lunch. Neither one of us had breakfast and both were starving. We had tomato and cheese sandwiches and boy was it good. The tomatoes were from our plants and were very ripe. We went to dinner at outback. I had the slow roasted pork and Beth had prime rib. Today's picture is of our friend Jo modeling her Luau ware for the party.

Glow in the dark...

We had to get up early this morning as we had to be at the hospital by 8am. We got to the hospital about 7:45 and found I forgot the script for the procedure. We had to come back home and then go back to the hospital. We were only about 20 minutes late, but were able to get right into registration. We were then sent back to nuclear medicine. Only had to wait about 10 minutes and we were called back. I had to take a lower dose of radioactive iodine, but had to take 4 pills instead of one. Not sure how that works, as they seemed to be the same size. After that, we called Kim to let her know we were done and on our way home. We were watching Jojo again today. I fixed them peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and chips for lunch. I was not feeling that well and passed on lunch. After lunch, they went to the pool for about an hour. It was very cloudy, but very humid today. Jojo went down for a nap about 1:15 pm and Beth and I watch the Phillie's game. They final lost breaking a 10 run win streak. Kim came to pick up Jojo about 5pm. Beth went to WAWA for a hoagie and I had salad. Sure am glad this is the last day of this stupid low iodine diet. Tomorrow for lunch I can anything I want and plan to take full advantage of it. Today's picture is of Buster & Gabby playing tug of war. The two knuckleheads have been playing alot and it is fun to watch.

2 shots down..

It looked like rain this morning when we got up. I had to be at the doctor's again at 9:30 for shot number 2. Of course they had to put it in the other side of the butt and again it stung, but glad that part is over. After leaving the doctor's office, we headed to Target. Our chiropractor adopted a platoon troop and was sending a care package to them. They provided a list of stuff needed, so we picked up a few things. I had to give blood at 11am, so the THS levels could be checked before the scan is done. After giving blood we headed home. It had started to rain and the temperature was on 68, so I decided to do laundry. Not much to do since I did it late last week, but took advantage of the cool weather to use the dryer. Made hamburger kind of hash for dinner. Only 4 more meals to get through on the low iodine diet and thank god. Beth said I could have anything I want on Thursday. So nice of her..LOL Today's picture is of Beth's mom and dad.

Ouch...

I had a doctor's appointment at 9:30 this morning. Today was the first day of shots. And as I had read, the shot had to be given in the butt. Can't remember the last time I had a shot in the butt, but let me tell this stung. After the doctor's visit, we went to pick up Jojo at her house. We had chiropractic appointments at 11am and there was no use in going home just to turn around and leave again. After picking up Jojo, we went to the grocery store and to target. I was trying to find a flyswatter as the flys have been really bad in the house and using a towel to kill them was all luck. We finally found one at Ace Hardware. We headed home for some lunch. Jojo had spaghetti Os, Beth had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, and I had a left over hamburger and salad. Do you know how boring and tasteless a burger can be with nothing on it? Five days down and 2 left til real food. After lunch, Beth and Jojo went swimming. I was felling tired, so I tried to take a nap. Beth and Jojo came in from the pool around 2, changed, and took a nap. Kim came to pick up Jojo about 5pm and I fixed dinner. Beth wanted to go see her brother one last time before he headed back to Mexico on Wednesday. We are starting to get tomatoes now, so Beth took a few up to her mom. Watching the Phillies beat up on the Cubs and hoping for another win. Today's picture is of Gabby being a watch dog at the house.

A nothing kind of day...

Beth got up at the normal time for church and of course I slept in. After church, we went to MacDonald's for a McCafe and breakfast. I, of course, could not have anything. Four days down and 3 left. Thursday lunch is going to taste sweet after this week. We had to go over to DJ and Maggie's to change out the VCR tape for their soaps and to check the garden for veggies. We got 2 zucchini, 1 cucumber, and a small gathering of peas. So nice of them to be gone and for us to reap the benefits of their garden. We came home and Beth pulled weeds and I cleaned house. Not much really going on after lunch. We watched the Phillie's win again and take a 7 game lead in the division. As I was going out to water, I hear the birds in the woods behind us making a lot of noise. I looked up and saw a hawk just sitting in the tree. What a site. Today's picture is of that hawk. It stayed there for over an hour just watching the world go by.

Family Visit...

With the rain last night I only had to water the tomato plants this morning. I had to go to the grocery store as we were have Beth's brother, Tom, and is family over for dinner. They arrived a little before 3pm and the boys went swimming before dinner. I cooked lasagna and made garlic toast. I of course could not have any of it, but was able to smell it when I took it out of the oven. Three days down and four to go on this darn low iodine diet. Today's picture is of Payton learning to use his fishy straw.

Sam's Club Day...

Gabby did good last night. She had her headed on buster's bed sound asleep when I woke up the morning. I had to water, but it looked like it was going to rain all day. Dawn came over about 10am. Gabby was not sure Dawn belonged here and began barking at her, but was backing up and tail waging while she was barking. What a guard dog..LOL We headed to Exton to go to Sam's for a few things and then to the Body Shop for more lotion. Dawn need to go to the Realtor office to get an electronic key for showing houses, so we headed to Malvern. It was only like 20 minutes away, but was on the way home so it was no big deal. Beth saw a McDonalds so we stopped and she got a McCafe and Dawn got a Coke. I could not have anything. What a bummer. I fixed chicken and salad when we got home. The apple and peanut butter I had for breakfast did not hold well and I was starving. It finally began to rain, so no swimming. Dawn headed home about 3pm. It was great spending time with her. Rained most of the evening and at some times was raining down right hard. I will not have to water in the morning. Yeaaaa. Today's picture is of the front flower bed. It is so colorful and my roses are doing great.

Watching Gabby...

Maggie and Payton brought Gabby over about 9:30am this morning. They were all packed and ready to head to KC. I had to water and Beth began cutting the grass. We now have 2 dogs for the next week so poop will be at a high. Gabby was a little nervous at first but settled in fine in the afternoon. At one point Gabby was sleeping in Buster's bed. It was go cute. They both get along really great. Beth and I both got in the pool this afternoon. It was very warm and nice with the sun shinning. We had about 3, 5 minute rain showers with the sun shinning. Could not even tell it had rained afterwards. Today was the first day of the low iodine diet. What a pain in the butt it is. No dairy, no canned vegetables, no commercial bakery products, no chocolate, and several other product. I have a call in to the doctor to make sure no salt peanut butter is alright. But the next 6 days better go by fast. Today's picture is of Gabby, our house guest for the next week.

Kid filled day...

Today was our last day of watching Kyle for the next 3 weeks. He will be in KC for 2 weeks and they my friend Shelly and her daughter will be here the next week. I had to fertilize the plants today, so it took extra long to water. Jojo arrived about 9:45am. So it was another 2 kid day. We will be kid free until Monday. We had lunch then it was off to the pool. The water was great and the sun was shining. We all got out of the pool around 2pm. Jojo and Beth took a nap and Kyle and i watched some TV. I took Kyle home about 3:30pm and then headed back to the dentist again. Had to stop Lowe's after the dentist to get a water filter replacement for the refrigerator. Boy they seem to run out quick, but I guess it had been a year since the last one. After dinner Beth went up to her mom's to visit with her brother Tom and his family. I hope it rains tonight so I don't have to water a lot in the morning. Maggie and Payton are bring Gabby over tomorrow morning. She will be staying with us while they are away on vacation. At least Buster will have someone to play with for a week. Today's picture is of Tom and his family. He has the honor of having the oldest and youngest grandchild.

Pool time...

Slept until 8am this morning. It was kinda nice. Had to water and then Kyle and I began taking down the panels from the fence. Jojo arrived about 9:45am as we were watching her only part of the day today. Beth got the Luau pictures loaded to face book today. Mom I will have Beth send you the link to them. I put a load of laundry in and we headed for the pool. The water felt great and the sun was shinning bright. Called my mom to see how she was doing after her eye surgery and she was doing good. We reheated the last of the hamburgers, hot dogs, and brats for lunch by the pool. Then it was more swimming til 2pm. Kim came by to pickup Jojo and I was ready for a nap. DJ came to pick up Kyle around 4:30 for his dentist appointment. Beth cooked dinner tonight which was a big surprise. She does that about once a month and it is a nice break. We are all watching the all-star game and hope the Nationals win this year. Today's picture is of Buster in his best Hawaiian get up.

Very tired...

I think the weekend caught up with both us. We both had a hard time getting out of bed this morning. I got up, showered, and went to pick up Kyle. Stopped by McDonald's to get a McCafe for Beth in hopes it would wake her up. I had a dentist appointment at 11am, did not really do anything til then. I was back home by noon and heated up hamburgers for lunch. After lunch I took a nap and Beth went to clean the pool filters. After my nap, I hit the pool for a little swim and some sun. The water felt nice and the sun was shinning bright. Let the air out of the blow ups we had but that was about it for picking up decoration. I figure it can wait til tomorrow. We had left over kabobs for dinner and boy were they tasty. Beth and Kyle are watching the Home Run Derby and I am going through the pictures from the weekend. Today's picture is of our friend Jeff who was not afraid to wear the coconut bra. How funny...

Round 2...

Guess we were both tired last night. I slept til 8:15am and I finally woke Beth up at 9:30am. We had a lot to do today as Beth's family was coming over for a cookout. Since it rained last night I was unable to reuse the table cloths. We ran to Wal-mart to get a couple more, then off to Giant for a few food items and ice, and finally to the beer store. We managed to get all the prep work work done by 1pm and had a few bites of lunch. Tom and his family were the first to arrive followed by everyone else about an hour later. We started the grill for hamburgers and Brats about 5pm. We had enough macaroni salad and Mandarin orange salad leftover from the Luau. Beth made cucumber salad to go along with the rest of the meal. The kids found the water guns and waged war on each other. Poor CJ could not run fast enough to get away and did not have a gun so he was soaking wet by the end. We all had a good time and will look forward to it again next year when Tom comes back from Mexico. The recycle man is going to hate us tomorrow and we for, the first time ever, filled the recycle container. We will be eating left overs all this week which is not good as I have to start a low iodine program to prepare for my scan next week. Today's picture is of Joshua, the newest additional to the Bevington household. He is 4 months old. What a cutie.

Luau Party...

When we woke up this morning it looked like it could rain anytime. We began last minute prep work for the food and Beth ran to get ice. It was a very humid day and the wind was blowing. I kept praying the rain would hold off until later in the evening. At about 1:30pm, Beth went down to put the speakers out and found all the wire had melted together. So off to Radio Shack I went to get new wire. Got back in time to set up the speakers before people started arriving at 2pm. Still no rain. We fired up the grill about 5pm had everything ready to eat by 5:45pm. Everything was great. Still no rain. We had about 26 people here and had a great time visiting with all. Finally about 9pm the rain started to roll in. We knew it was coming and were just glad it held out until then. I will spend the next couple of day going through the pictures and posting them, but today's picture is of the finished Tiki Bar. I think it turned out great.

Set up day...

We finally got to bed about 12:30 last night. I was up at 7:30 to do watering, shower, and shop for pork roast. The pork roast had to cook in the crock pot for 10 hours, so I had to get it on before going to Sam's. I headed to Exton about 10am. First had to go to the party store for another grass skirt for the front of the bar and get 2 palm tree coolers. The ones DJ gave us last year would not hold air. It was then off to Sam's for major shopping. I got most of the groceries there and drinks. DJ and Maggie had a list of snack stuff they needed for their trip. Took me about an 1 1/2 hrs to get through Sam's and head home. I had to stop at the grocery store to get the little things I could not get at Sam's. Finally got home about 1:30. Beth helped me unload the car as the trunk was full. She had finished cutting the grass while I was gone. I skipped lunch and started cooking. Made the Hawaiian macaroni salad, ham roll ups, pineapple upside down cake, and magic cookie bars. We then began working on setting up the outside decorations. Finally finished about 8:30pm. We then cut up all the meat for tomorrow's kabobs. Everything that I can do today is done. Will start again in the morning and hopefully be finished by party time. Today's picture is of the sand castle city we built on the beach in North Caroline last September. We will be heading back in about 4 weeks.

A Phillie's Win

We had a very busy day today. After I picked up Kyle and stopped at McDonalds for the morning McCafe, it was off to Lowe's for a few items. Beth began cutting the grass, Kyle was working on vacuuming the floors, and I was outside doing cleaning. We finished almost everything on the list by 2pm. Still a few things to do tomorrow, but the major of stuff is done. Kyle went swimming for a while and Beth worked on the Tiki Bar. I took Kyle home about 4pm as we had a Phillie's game tonight. It was a great game and a come from behind win. We also hear Shane Victorino made the All-star team. Sorry mom your guy did not make it. They had fireworks after the game which were really cool. Tomorrow will be the start of what will be a very busy day. Sorry no picture tonight as it is late and we have to get up early tomorrow.

Another busy day..

Picked up kyle a little after 9am and then went to Wal-mart for some Pine Sol. After Wal-mart, it was off to McDonald's for a McCafe. I had Kyle clean out the little fountain in the front and put clean water in it. Next we put cedar mulch around all the bushes. Beth did the weed whacking. Then we all finished power washing the fence. I am so glad that is done for now. I made lunch and just as we were finishing, Dawn came over. She had been to court for her unemployment hearing. We visited with her for a couple of hours and a great time with her. We took Kyle home about 5pm and then headed north to get gas AGAIN. We have a Phillie's game tomorrow night and were sitting on empty. We went to Super Wal-mart and picked up the individual things we needed for the Luau Party. I will get the rest at Sam's and Giant on Friday. I did my weed whacking on the inside of the fence tonight in the cooler weather. Today's picture is of Zach in his little life jacket all ready to swim.

A day of Chores...

Beth went to pick up kyle his morning as I had to put Miracle Grow on all the plants and it takes a lot longer to water. Good thing I only have to do it once a month. I had just finished up as she returned with Kyle and would you know it she had a McCafe in her hand. I was not surprised at that at all. We had breakfast and I started the laundry and then off to Lowe's and Bed Bath and Beyond. Kyle and Beth went out to start on the power washing. When I returned Kyle was in the garage looking for a sponge. He said Beth was in a really bad mood and did a power slam of the power washer since it would not start for her. I went down to see if the power washer was in one piece and see if I could do anything. She told me what had happened and was pissed that it would not start. So I walked over to see if I could start it. Like that was really going to happened, but I had to try. Well I reached down and gave a pull and it started. First I got a dirty look and then it turned to a smile. So off to the house I went to finish the laundry and they began power washing. They stopped around 1pm for some lunch and then back to outside they headed. About 5 minutes later, kyle came back in and said the power washer would not start again and I was told to come out and start it again. Like I really had anything to do with starting it the first time. So off I went. This time I could not even pull the rope to try and start. Beth asked me to look on the Internet to see if I could find anything on why. So off to the Internet I went. I found a site with the owner's manual and knew that they sometimes post trouble shooting tips. And low and below there was a item listed of our exact problem. So I told Beth what the manual said to do to fix it and boom it started. Boy did I look good for finding that. They finished power washing the inside of the fence about 4pm. DJ came over and brought Gabby over for Buster to play with for awhile. We will be watching her when they go on vacation in a couple of weeks. Today's picture is a great exmple of the magic a cupcake can bring. What a great expression and a great kid.

A Busy Monday...

Got up at our regular time, 7:30am. We had appointment with Dr. Bill for adjustments, then it was off to pick up Kyle. We made a stop at the new Bed Bath and Beyond. Found a napkin holder and cutting board for the tiki bar. Then it was home to begin working on the list. Kyle began cleaning out the trash cans and Beth began working on power washing the fence. I finalized the menu for the Luau and began working on the grocery list. I had a hair appointment at 1pm. After a much needed cut and color, it was off to Lowe's to check on some prices for a rolling self for the bar. They were cheaper at Bed Bath and Beyond and I have a coupon, so it looks like another trip back there tomorrow. Beth and Kyle were still working on the fence, so I headed to the nursery. I wanted to get some annuals that would give the flower bed some color. Most of the color is in the spring and just a bunch of green flowerless stalks right now. So I purchase some colorful plants and headed home. I laid out the plants and must say it looks a lot better. We took Kyle home and had to run a bunch of errands. We grabbed dinner at Boston market and headed home to watch the Phillie's game. Who would have guessed the Phillies would have scored 22 runs. What a blow out. I did finish planting the flowers and now have a blister on my hand. Just what I need with so much to do this week. Today's picture is of Jo helping the boys into the pool. What a great mom.

A day of doing nothing...

At least for one of us. Beth was up early and went to church. I slept a little longer and then got up and watered. The diner is still closed, so I did not have to worry about getting ready to be picked up for breakfast. After breakfast, I put a few things away in the kitchen and Beth began cutting the grass. Beth's mom came by around lunch time to get the baby monitor and few other things. Beth's brother Tom and his family will arrive from Mexico on Tuesday and will be staying with her parents. As for the rest of the day, I did nothing. It felt like a good day to regroup and do nothing. Beth on the other hand cut all the grass and worked outside. We have a very long list of stuff to do this week and will need the whole week to get ready for the Luau. Today's picture is of Beth's playing sheriff at the party yesterday.

Happy 4th of July...

Slept in til 8:30am this morning. We had breakfast and got right to work on getting things ready for the gathering. We had to wipe down all the tables and chairs, set up the bar, stock the cooler, and a few hundred other little tasks. We told everyone they could arrive any time after 2pm. Most of our friends have kids, so a lot of when they arrived depended on nap time. Most people were here by 4pm. It was a great day for swimming and the pool was the warmest it had been in a while. We fired up the grill for burgers and dogs about 5pm. It was a great meal and Beth loved being the bartender behind her new bar. The kids had a great time and loved eating cupcakes for dessert. Everyone left by 9am and Beth and I shot off the fireworks we had left over from last year. What a great time spending the day with friends.

Cookie baking...

Payton arrived about 7:20 this morning. We had breakfast and Beth thought it was time to introduce Payton to Lucky Charms cereal. He loved it and had 3 bowls with milk. He ate more than his brother. It looked like it was going to rain, so we decided to make cookies for the party tomorrow. Payton and I went to the store for brown sugar and butter and Beth and Kyle worked in the yard. It started to sprinkle as we were coming back from the store and looked like we might get a good soaking, but not. Only a few rain drops and nothing more. So off to making cookies we went. We made chocolate chip and white chocolate chip. I think Payton had a good time making them and loved the taste of cookie dough. But I think he had a better time eating the cookies after they were baked. We had lunch and Payton went down for a nap. Beth cleaned up the kitchen from the cookie mess and had Kyle start on painting the umbrella holders. We could only paint one of them as the cement was still wet and needed to dry first. His first attempt was a little out there as he painted it 3 different colors, so I had him try again and only use one color. Payton got up from his nap and wanted to go to the pool. So off he and Beth went for about an hour. I was dealing with issues with Kyle that caused him to be grounded for 2 weeks. Why 12 year old boys do what they do, I will never understand. Maggie came to pick up the boys around 5pm. We have a busy day getting ready for the gathering tomorrow. Today's pictures are of our cookie making process.

tiki top shopping..

After breakfast, we headed to Exton to the party store to check out what they had for the tiki bar hut. The web site had several ideas, but of course you could not order them you had to go to the store. We ended up getting 2 fake tiki umbrellas. They look really cool and match the bar and easy to attach. Since it was close to lunch and Cheeseburger Paradise was right across the street, we said what the heck. After lunch it was off to the book store and Sam's Club for items for the July 4th party and shopping for others. By then it was 2:30pm and we were all tired. After unloading the car, Beth went ahead and went to her Mom's and Dawn and Jo's house to deliver their stuff. We had Fajitas for dinner tonight. They were really good. Going to bed early tonight as Payton will be here at 7am to play with all day tomorrow. Today's picture is of Beth and Jojo trying to be all scary with their wax lips.

Powerwashing...

For once I was the last one up this morning. Had to water only the pots and the tomato plants due to the rain we got yesterday afternoon. Beth had to sand and then put a second coat of sealer on the bar. I had Kyle start raking the dead leaves from under the rhododendron bush, so he could power wash the back deck. I had to go to the grocery store as we were out of everything. It sure is different to have to fix meals for 3 instead of 2. Most of the time we can get away with what ever we want for dinner, but I need to make sure Kyle eats rights. So I have to put a little more thought into planing each meal. After the store, I fixed lunch and we all took a little break. It was warm outside and humid again. Kyle started power washing the back deck and Beth and I watch him to make sure he was doing it right. Took about an hour to finish it and it was time for dinner. We had pork chops and stuffing for dinner. After dinner, Kyle played on the computer and Beth and I went through all the stuff for the Luau party. We are going to Exton tomorrow and wanted to make sure we had everything.

Today's picture is of Jeanette sitting in front of a real ginger bread house in the Grand Floridian Lobby from our December trip to Disney World. From the inside of the house on the other side Caste Members sell Christmas Candy.