they're back

The Californians are back.  For good.  Yay!

not everybody gets to do this

Some people are extraordinarily good at parenting.  In fact, they are so good at it that they make arrangements for their young daughters to get to ride the zamboni (an ice resurfacer that lays down a layer of clean water, which will freeze to form a smooth ice surface) during periods of the local ice hockey team's games on a recent Saturday night.

Audrey almost waved her arm clean off--

 Ellie was delighted and could not stop smiling and waving and blowing kisses--

 Grampa and baby Calvin hung out together--

And here's that pretty great dad.

 

And the local hockey team pulled out an exciting win in the final period.  

Everybody won.  Well, except for the visiting Canadian team...

beauty

Maybe everyone doesn't see beauty in the same things, but when I looked out the window this morning, the view took my breath away.

Driving to the gym was equally stunning.

Then there was seeing my front yard gardens freshly dusted.

Jack and I went to the ballet last night to see Giselle.  Obviously I couldn't take any pictures during the performance, but trust me, the music was deeply moving and the dancers were so amazingly strong and graceful at presenting this tragic story.

And finally there is the beauty of our new floors.  Some people might see the work still to be done (painting of the fireplace mantle, baseboards, heaters, electrical covers, and on and on), but what I see is the incredible range of color and grain and natural beauty.

optimist that i am

Yes this project has gone on for a while, and yes it's been somewhat major.  I don't remember another project when we couldn't sleep in the house for two nights.  I don't remember a project that required us to keep the pets in the basement, which means we have to go out the basement outside door, walk up the outside steps and onto the deck in order to get into the kitchen because the stairs inside are blocked. 

I don't remember ever, in all of the years of our marriage, Jack and I sleeping in such a small room.  It's a basement room, so the ceiling is a little low. 

But let me just switch this post from a somewhat whiny complaining rant to a far more upbeat post.  Let me just tell you that the tiny room we're sleeping in is in the basement, but at the back of the house, so it is quiet.  And cozy.  And warm. 

And when we're all in bed (Jack, me, and the dogs) I can reach the light switch on the wall by the door without hardly stretching to turn off the lights. 

And lest I forget, when I take the clean clothes out of the dryer (and carry them out back, down the stairs, and into the basement), I can dump the clothes basket onto the bed and fold the laundry directly into our dresser drawers without having to take more than one step to the dresser and two steps to the closet to hang up the clothes that need to be hung up. 

It's really a pretty sweet set up for putting away laundry.  And for sleeping.

And there was the first night when we slept in there that the dogs ran in and hopped up on the bed, facing the way they always did up in our bedroom upstairs.  They like to face the door that is located on the east side of the room as opposed to the door in the basement bedroom that is on the west side of the room.  It took them a few minutes to re-orient so they were facing west.  They were just a little bit sheepish for only a while. 

See, you just have to look for the good things, the tiny bit funny stuff.  And appreciate the cozy warm quiet things.  And look forward to getting everything back in its place.  Soon.

look at that

Another week has passed.  I only realized that when I started looking at photos on my phone.

It was Halloween so there was much decorating by Jr and some pretty hilarious frightening of the trick or treaters.  Yes, there were a few moments when I thought Jack and I should have been hanging our heads in shame for laughing out loud while watching through the front windows as Jr and Joe made teenage boys squeal like girls.  But it was.so.funny.

Stu and Shi and their bunch stopped by for a stroll through the scary bits on their way to a hockey game.

The weary knight--

The wild dragons--

  And the parents/hockey fans--

Then on Saturday we went to a hockey game with Stu and the kids.



 And the girls hung around after the game to get their t-shirts autographed.



Saturday was the drummer's birthday and he and Whitney invited us over for dinner on Sunday.  And because it was his birthday, we had to have pie so I made some.  It is, after all, autumn, which is definitely the season for pie.  And once again, I pronounced it my best pie ever.

It's been a bit chaotic around here.  We usually work on a project for three weeks and then take a three-week break, but there has been no time to stop for a break this time.  We have moved to the basement but yesterday we stayed at the new hotel a few miles away because the floor installers were here to apply the first coat of sealer on the new hardwood and nothing living could be in the house for a day.  The pets all headed to Stu's house, along with Jr who graciously agreed to babysit them.  Tonight we are all back home, albeit having to go out back to get to the kitchen since the stairs are still blocked for a while to keep the pets and their sharp little claws off of the floor for a few weeks. 

Jack assures me that in a few more days the floors will be done and by Thanksgiving we'll have everything put back together.  Man I hope he's right.