Concert in the Park

Growing up with 4 older sister I was subjected to many different kinds of music.

The older sisters would lay on the floor in the music room (music room, because that's where the piano and record player were) and listen to their 45's . If Sharen and I were quite we could sneak in and sit on the steps leading to the second floor and listen along - out of the way. Did they know we were there? Probably.

Maybe this has a lot to do with their age but, I remember Vicki was into "malt shop" music. Deanna too, though Dee would put on a crooner or two.
When I think of Linda's music The Beach Boys come to mind. For Mary it was the Rolling Stones.

All music from the 50's and 60's. I am not too sure if that's why I still enjoy the tunes or the fact that it brings back memories of hanging with my sisters. Well kinda, sorta hanging with them.

Anyway a 60's band was playing at Elgin's free concert in the park at the Wing Park band shelter so Sharen and I decided to check it out.
Linda had plans to go too, so we met up with her there.

 It was a perfect night. You can tell by the crowd there. The band even snuck in some 70's music.

All Decked Out

We have had 4 glorious days of summer weather. In a row - Hummmm what to do?
Spent 2 days golfing - Fun! Fun! Fun!

Our deck was feeling neglected. So for the last 2 days Mike and I have been prepping and sealing the poor thing.
We decided to try the new revitalized deck sealer. Reviews were mixed, but lets be serious here - people who spend that kinda money and are not satisfied are going to complain more than people like us who used it, liked it, and have the wait and see attitude.
Besides we both liked the commercial - who doesn't want to dance out on their deck - in their bare feet.

I power washed. Mike sanded. I took a butcher knife and cleaned out between all the cracks. I protected the house with newspaper while Mike shop-vaced the sawdust. It is clearly ALL ABOUT THE PREP!

 I found this cool sponge wheel that filled in the cracks really well. And no bending over.

Mike followed behind me and rolled the flat boards.

And the lower deck gets it's make over.
It says to use 2 coast so Mike added the second coat on Sunday.
We bought the 5 gallon bucket that was supposed to cover 100 sq ft. both coats. Our deck is 18x14 and we had plenty. Maybe enough to get the upper decks railing? Fingers crossed.
We still have the upper deck to do, but are going to wait till we get rid of the hot tub so we can seal the whole thing.
All decked out. A quick trip to Joannes for some outdoor material and we have pillows.

 This time of day I can choose to sit in the shade or in the sun. The sun only lasts for a couple hours every morning so I enjoy it while I can.

The biggest improvement was taking down the deck railing. I felt like I was boxed in. It's just a small step down into the flowers and you would have to walk behind the chairs, so why not? Now I have a clear view to the whole backyard. After 10 years in the house I am lovin' my back deck again.

Hey Steve, have you tried Cake Pops

Our friend, Steve in NY, likes to bake almost as much as I do.
He makes a cake on weekends to take to work on Monday.
He will put pictures of his creations on facebook and I will sometimes get on to see what delicious recipe he has tried.

I am not a fan of cake, but Sharen tells me her mouth waters just looking at his creations.

For Erica's shower I offered to make the cupcakes. I have found my love for cake decorating again.
Footballs, Baseballs, and Golf Balls - (She is having a boy)

Sharen thought it would be fun to try and make "Cake Pops"
I was all for it too.
I baked some extra cake and made my buttercream frosting.
We watched a video on youtube and started. First step was to make the pops and refrigerate them overnight.

Erica and Carrie joined in the cake pops making, but it fast became clear that they did not have the patience for cake pop dipping. Carrie's first attempt fell apart and it took Erica 3 before hers started to break apart. Sharen put them on decorations in the dining room instead. In all fairness to them - It was the last day of work and they had just both come from school stressed out.

Slow and steady - Sharen and I made football, baseball and golf ball cake pops (remember she is having a boy)

The finish product. We tried to get them to stand up in a cup, but we clearly had made them too big and were a bit top heavy. Not bad for a first attempt though.

 

 

So, to my friend Steve - Try this - I promise you will love them.

I know you can get ahead of yourself sometimes, but be patient and you can do this. Your co-workers will love them.

 

 



Water Boy...

Bring me some Water!

The water pressure in our house had been slowly getting worse and worse.
We could be taking a shower and suddenly - No water.

We replaced the pressure tank last summer and it helped for a time.
Saturday morning I decided to power wash the decks. Yeah, the decks got washed but the pumped petered out.

No water - what so ever.

No big deal. We used buckets from the hot tub to flush the toilets. Bottled water to drink. And thanks to all the rain we got Saturday afternoon I collected rain water in pans for washing hands and dishes.
I felt like we were camping again. I even put rain water in my Brita pitcher to make ice tea.

Mike called the guys who put in our tank last summer and they came right out. On a Sunday!
Yup we needed a new pump. Our well is 325 feet deep so we needed a STRONG pump.
Stanley Bros. to the rescue!  These guys were amazing.

By Sunday evening we had water and a lot less money in the bank.

Mystery Quilt Reveal

So my sister was here visiting from her home in SC.
I was looking at pictures of her adorable granddaughter on her phone and came across a picture of the material I used in my latest Mystery Quilt.

We both got it at Hobby Lobby. me for my quilt and she was considering it for a project for the granddaughter.

Then I realized that I hadn't posted a picture of the quilt after I finished it - My Bad, sorry.

So here it is. I haven't quilted it yet. I put it on the stack to be quilted and forgot about it.

Wild Life

I am not about to write about my younger days so relax.

I want to show you our latest addition to our "Wildlife".

Here is a recap from previous posts.
Remember the raccoons who tried to get into our attic through the fan vents.
The skunk who died under our front deck. He has since been replaced by noisy chipmunks.
The snake who kept coming back and Mike finally had to cut the creepy, slimy thing's head off.
The deer who feel that my Hosta is their breakfast. I forgive them though and still love to see them walking through the yard.
There is a fox running through the neighborhood who thinks Sharen's neighbors peacock is his lunch.
The mice who live in our shed. They scatter when I open the doors to get the mower out, so they don't bother me. Mike did have to set some traps this winter in the garage. They just wanted the warmth. R.I.P.
The bats that come out at sundown and eat all the mosquitos. Love that!
The squirrels who eat my tulip bulbs and store their nuts inside Mike's grill.
And the beautiful birds that gather around my feeder and sing me awake each summer morning.

All things we have to deal with living where we do.

Never would I have thought that we would have this...
I caught this guys just wandering down the street. Huge, ugly snapping turtle.

 The next thing I knew he had made a left hand turn and ended up in my flower bed.

Go away - Do not nest in my flowers!
He must of heard me cause this morning he was gone. Whew!

Timber

Sunday was supposed to be my quiet day.
Mike was headed to Logan's double header - I sat through one on Saturday IN THE SUN. Stupid me - and yes I know they do make sunscreen, we buy it by the gallon for Mike.

I just wanted to mow the lawn before the rain.
Got the last minute call from Dup. He was headed to the Sox game - I decided the lawn could wait.

Had a great time on the Fun deck with Matthew.
We brought home a winner.
And I won the "How many strike outs is Sale going to have?" contest with 9.

It still hadn't rained when we got home so I hop on the mower and got the lawn cut.

15 minutes later we hear a loud noise.
It was only 15 minutes or less.

We have so many dead trees in our neighborhood. How can this healthy looking tree lose this huge limb. No rain. No lighting. No wind.

Thank You god that I was done with the mowing.
Now all I see is more firewood. :)