Sunday, August 31, 2008

August 31, 2008 Laurie's Labor Day party

We spent this morning just relaxing and hanging out. I was invited to Sleeping Giant state Park in Hamden Connecticut Monday to Cicada hunt with Gerry, Elias and Barbara so I thought a day of rest before the big hike might be a good idea. The puppies are 5 weeks old today, very busy most of the time, eating well and gaining lots of weight.


Danny just barely holding onto Abigail

It used to be we could put the puppies in the kiddy pool on the deck and they'd have a nice change of scenery, and I'd have some place to put them while I was cleaning out the whelping box. But not anymore!


The puppies getting ready to escape their kiddy pool

Mike took Emmy out this afternoon to teach her how to change the oil in the cars. Since mine was due, she had the pleasure of climbing under the van. Mike said she did a good job and is now qualified as the family oil changer! What a girl!
Dad and Kathy made a short visit before heading up to Boston to catch a flight to the Azores where they will spend a couple of weeks....we hope they have a great trip.

At 5pm we were invited down to Mike and Lauries for their annual Labor Day lobster/clam feast. They put on a great show, and in years past have found that Turkey fryers are the perfect pots for steaming both clams and lobsters. We started off with three this year but quickly moved up to 4!


Mike with three of the four turkey fryers and 5 bags of lobsters!




Mikey showing off the great turnout at Mike & Laurie's


The party was well attended, plenty of food for everybody and Papa John surprised Danny with a light up play sword that he just loves! Thanks Papa John!

Saturday, August 30, 2008

August 30, 2008 Happy 50th Kathy

Started this morning off with feeding puppies at 5:45am since they were whining incessantly. They are due to go home a week from today and I imagine that by the time this week has past we will all be ready to send them off. Work last night was busy but I mistakenly had a black ice coffee instead of the decaf I usually have. So once work was through, my usual routine of turning in within minutes of arriving home changed to being awake and chatty until after 1:30am. With a busy morning in store I decided to take a run after feeding the pups and did my usual Cove Rd route in 47 minutes. I was pleased with the increased time, came home and managed to climb into the bath before anyone awoke. The family eventually rose, had breakfast, then Mike and I went over to the grove for the end of year meeting at 9am. We had a good show of people compared to years past and easily made the quorum with 17 members. The meeting was good, and we had some volunteers for next years events so that will make next year very nice indeed. The meeting wrapped up a little before 10am and after chatting for a bit, the kids and got in the van and drove to RI for Kathy's surprise 50th birthday party.

Adam and Kristin


Edward and Alicia

The 12 lobsters were mostly shucked when we arrived and after some minor preparations we all sat down to the usual feast. Ed asked Adam if he had a scale because he wanted to see what the meat of 12 lobsters were and while it was out I climbed on, curious to see how much weight I've lost in the last 8.5 weeks. On July 1st I weighed 212lbs, today I weighed in at 178lbs. I've happily lost 34lbs, amazing and now weigh just over what I did when I got pregnant with Dan. We enjoyed dinner, then had an ice cream cake that Alicia and the kids made along with the coconut custard tarts that weren't a huge crowd pleaser, but that Kathy said were good.


Singing Happy Birthday to Kathy


This is Danny and Megan in the pool on the raft.

At 4:30 or so the kids and I said goodbye and headed home.
I was exhausted by the time we arrived and since Dan had fallen asleep in the van half way home, I scooped him up and he and I both layed down to take a nap.

Friday, August 29, 2008

August 29, 2008 MRI results and Oak Grove Cemetary

My MRI results came back normal, the inside of my head is really amazing to look at! Dr Mann referred me to a vestibular center in Hyannis for followup, since he can't figure out what's wrong. Hearing test came back abnormal with hearing loss in the middle range of sound bilaterally.He had no expanation why.

Oak Grove Cemetary in Falmouth was quiet with no signs of exuvia. 72 degrees and overcast, I wasn't surprised at the lack of calling. Off to make coconut custard tarts for my Kathy's 50th birthday party tomorrow at Adam & Kristins, before nap and work tonight.

Thursday, August 28, 2008

August 28. 2008 Dentists, Dino Days, and my necklace charm


Abigail's first swim in the pond>



Off to work again in a few minutes but thought I'd do a quick update.
Wednesday Em, Dan and I left here at 7:30am for dentist appts. in Middletown. The trip was uneventful and we made it with just minutes to spare. Everybody's teeth look great, Dan had his first set of X-rays taken and did great. Em has one cavity but nothing serious. They were actually surprised at how clean they were considering it's the first time they've had a good cleaning since before her braces went on. We visited with Mom and Mo for a little while then headed home, Em drove and we made it back right around noon. Dan and I took a nice long nap then I went to work. I'm starting to get very frustrated working with a woman who speaks so little english. We had many disagreements due to lack of communication.

Thursday morning we awoke to find Nettie sitting on the deck. We invited her in, made her a cup of coffee and set about getting ready for the day. Em had to be to work for 8am again, and Dan had Dino days at Green Briar again. I ran my route from the visitors center to the boardwalk then back around the loop(about 4 miles)Picked Dan up from his class and came home for lunch and a rest.

I include this story because I have a little time and I've been asked about it alot recently. When we lived in Saudi back almost 30 years ago, I was given a charm for a necklace. It was a solid heart surrounded but a gold circle. Mom told me that the heart was me, and the cirlce represented her and Dad. I was young and somehow I lost the charm. Fast forward to February 2006. My Grandmother had just passed away, the funeral was over and we were back at her house. Since I'm the only real knitter in the family, I was asked if I'd like her knitting stuff to which I quickly agreed. Later that night going through her knitting bag, in the small pocket tucked deep inside I felt something round. I reached in and found the charm. I know I lost mine in Saudi. This one must have been sent to my Grandmother but I never knew about it. What a strange coincidence that "my charm" landed in her only possession that would be all mine. It's a great story, and I love to tell it.

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

August 26, 2008 8 weeks!


Marley nursing her pups 4.5 weeks

quick update since Dan is up at Tiger's house and I have a little quite time to myself. I'm hoping to finish the book I've been reading before work tonight. I'm working M-F this week 5-12am, a long week to be sure, but the last before school starts and some things change. 1st I've asked for Wednesdays off because of class, 2nd because as of labor day we start closing at 10pm, and 3rd, I've asked to be scheduled no more then 3 days per week. So this is the last week of a really nice pay check. Em's hours got cut as well and she's happily working T, Th, and Friday this week. She and I have some math studying to do, and now we'll have the time to do it!

Monday we spent the morning in Hyannis doing some shopping. Em and Dan have both taken a liking to purler bead crafts, it's probably the first time I've seen Dan sit down and really focus on something for any length of time. So we went to AC Moore, then to Old Navy where I bought a hopeful bathing suit for next year for $4.99. It's a medium which is why I say hopeful. Then we went to the mall. The kids had McD's then we went to KB toys while Em purused Urban Behavior. Lastly I ran into Trader Joes for a few things before heading home.


Danny climbing a little Pine tree on the beach



Tuesday I awoke at 7am and realized Em had to be to work for 8am this morning and I needed to get moving. Today is 8 weeks ago today that I quit drinking, and eating anything other then fruits, vegetables and seafood. I feel great and am guessing I've lost about 25 lbs. We took Em to work, then I dropped Dan off at Dino days at Green Briar. I decided that I'd run an old route from the visitors center parking lot up to the boardwalk, over to the library then back to the canal. It took just over an hour, but was mostly flat and an easy run. Read my book for a half hour before picking up Dan then going to the grocery store to pick up dinner for the week.

Sunday, August 24, 2008

August 24, 2008 Woodturning




Saturday was an uneventful day. Took Em to work, then Dan and I came home and went to the beach. The weather was beautiful and Dan had a great time playing with his friends. Mike spent the day at the Brewster women's library turning tops for kids, and selling some things he's made. He was happy that a platter of his sold for $100. Dan and I picked up Em at work, and after making a quick dinner for Mike and the kids I went to work myself.
Sunday morning I awoke, poured myself some vegetable juice, and dressed for a run. I returned home to find Mike and Dan bleary eyed on the couch. Since the pups are 4 weeks old today I decided it was time for them to have their first meal. I brought up the kiddy pool from the side of the house, and prepared a meal of puppy food and evaporated milk. Dan helped me round up the puppies and they all quickly knew just what to do, although by the end they were all wet and dirty. Since it was a such a nice morning and they are all moving around so well, we decided a quick swim might be in order and I went down to the playground to get the wagon to transport all of them to the beach. They looked very cute in transit, and quickly made their way to the waters edge as soon as we got there. Marley had fun chasing the ball and after only a few minutes. Most of the pups snuggled down for a nap with full bellies.

Emily had her first driving lesson with an instructor and after only a few minutes he apologized to her for having to do 10 more hours. Seems lots of parents don't teach their kids to drive anymore, they wait for the instructors to do it, then complete their driving logs after the instruction. Em traveled to Hyannis then to Woods Hole in Falmouth before heading home. 2 hours down, 10 more to go. Dan and I spent the afternoon at the beach, and didn't come up until almost 4pm when Dan promptly fell asleep on the couch. Suzanne, Janni and I decided on shrimp, edamame, and grilled summer squash for dinner. Mike Leone came over with some pasta, and chicken breasts and we had leftover pepperocini rice, and lamb chops from last night. We all retired to the deck after dinner and one by one the puppies arrived (thanks to Emily) on the deck and eventually proceeded to nurse...probably one of the last times they'll all nurse together now that they've begun to wean. Trying to keep your eyes on 7 roaming puppies is alot of work!

Friday, August 22, 2008

August 22, 2008 1st instar!

On Tuesday night I left here for Falmouth to have an MRI. My ENT thought that it might be time have one just to make sure my dizziness isn't something more serious. I left with time to spare and quickly but thouroughly checked the trees in the Falmouth Hospital parking lot for annual cicada nymphs and found nothing. It was a busy night in the Emergency room and due to an emergency MRI I was pushed back from 8:45 to 9:15. While sitting in the waiting room, Elias called to tell me he'd caught at 1st instar Magicicada nymph. The periodicals lay their eggs in the branches of trees and 6-8 week later the eggs hatch into little white walking specks. This is pretty much the last part of the magicicada cycle to be seen. These 1st instars will drop from the branches to the ground, bury themselves into the soil, attach to a root and lay in wait for 17 years going through 3 more instars before they emerge again in their 4th instar form to turn into Cicada's. The whole process is simply amazing. I was very excited for Elias but only texted him after hearing his voicemail, concerned I'd be called in while talking. The MRI was mostly uneventful. I was injected with contrast dye about halfway through the test, but it was nearly painless with no unpleasant side effects. I left the hospital and checked trees on my way back to the van. I usually make a policy of not talking on my cell while driving, but it was night, and the roads mostly abandoned so I bent my rule and called Elias to congratulate him. We chatted for a bit, then I called Mike to let him know everything went well. I arrived home to find both Em and Dan still awake. I tucked them into bed and retired as well.

Wednesday was uneventful. Em worked, Dan and I spent some time at the beach, went bug and blackberry hunting since they are in season right now. I checked a few trees for instars but didn't find anything. We picked Em up from work, just in time for me to go to work. Em's been great about watching Dan for me, never complains and even volunteers before she's asked. She's a real treasure, and I appreciate what a great kid she is even more now that I'm working with kids her age who are doing things I would disapprove of. I arrived home early Thursday morning to find a message from Nettie saying she'd be down at 7am to take Marley to have hip x-rays in Warren, RI at noon. Dan had story time at the library (which was eventually cancelled) so I told Nettie I couldn't do it. Knowing it was going to be an early morning to bed I went.

Thursday morning I awoke at 6:15 and realized I had very little time to get alot of stuff done. Started laundry, cleaned the puppy pen, vacuumed, and did a quick cleanup. Em's great with Dan but the house is generally trashed when I get home. Nettie and Gram arrived at 7, I made them some tea and we talked until it was time for Em to go to work. Nettie and Gram made their way up the hill a little after 9am. Melissa and Danny were up there as well as Jessie, John and Suzanne. Jessie was upset that Nettie didn't call, and left for most of the day. I invited Nettie and Gram to stay for dinner, and prepared Chicken parmagiana, cesar salad and corn on the cob, which Emily finished off after I left for work. Mike arrived home just before 5pm, ate dinner then with Nettie's help returned the box truck. Em, Dan and Mike visited me at Dunkin before heading home and putting Dan to bed. Work was good, but the power went out just minutes before midnight. With nothing more to do and rescue vehicles on the move, we closed the shop and went off ambulance chasing. A short distance down the road an SUV had missed a corner and landed in someone's front yard. Thankfully, it didn't look like anyone was hurt. I arrived home to find Mike barely awake, he kept me company for a quick cup of tea, we climbed into bed shortly before 1am.

Friday morning and we all got to sleep late. Marley woke me up at 6am because she needed to feed the pups, but I went right back to sleep and Dan woke us up at 8:30am. It was good to catch up. It was our day to feed the animals at Green Briar so we dressed and headed over there. Afterwards we went to The BeeHive Restaurant in West Barnstable. We thought we were going to a breakfast shop but it turned out to be a higher end lunch and dinner place. Mike and Em had burgers, Dan a corn dog and I had terrific cajun scallops with sweet potato fries (which I'm now paying for) We arrived home to a hot sunny summer day and Dan and I changed for the beach. Mike decided he'd nap and was still asleep at 4pm when Dan and I had had enough. We showered, changed and headed out for some true 1st instar hunting of our own, armed with a burgandy fleece blanket and a small pill bottle for any specimens. We found nothing in the neighborhood and made our way across Pimlico Pond Rd to the old road and walked up a bit. I broke a few branches across the way but found nothing. I also tried Elias' technique of laying something dark under the branches and shaking them hoping any loose ones might fall onto the blanket. Neither approached worked until I snapped a branch and saw something move. Amazingly enough I'd found a nymph, quickly put it in my bottle, and texted Elias...the only person in the world that I know that would be as excited as I was. True to form he texted back how thrilled he was for me. Here's a video I made of my nymph. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p0Gq5vW8Hv8. Dan and I walked home and prepared Chicken Caccitore for men's night with italian antipasto vegetables and rice. We had a good showing and after winning two games of cribbage it was time to update my blog then head to bed.

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

August 19, 2008 No more babysitting....



Monday started off pretty much as usual. Em drove us to work. Now that she's completed her 40 hours supervised driving with me we no longer need to keep a log, which is really nice. Her driving has come along nicely and I'm confident that when she does get her license in November she'll be more then ready. Dan and I went grocery shopping afterwards, then went home to unpack groceries and spend some time on the beach before lunch and nap.

Our town has lost two young men to the war in the last week. A 21 year old named Paul Conlon died in Afghanstan, and 19 year old, who's family we know, Daniel Maguire died in Fallujah on Thursday 8/14. I had to work last night but the community was holding a candlelight vigil in the veterans park across the street from D & D and since Laurie was planning on attending, I asked her to take Em, Sarah and Dan. The service started at 8:30, I was happy to be able to attend during my break. Here is a news broadcast of the event. http://www.thebostonchannel.com/video/17229345/index.html

Tuesday started off quietly. I e-mailed Jen and Buzz to let them know I'll no longer be able to watch the girls every 3rd Friday from 2pm- 7:30. Between my men's night, and working, and especially this week Mike being away it'll just be too much. I'm sad to not have that connection to them anymore, but I'm sure the relationship will grow and change in the coming months. Dan and I came home and went to the beach. The day is terrific, south wind and just perfect. A little after noon I heard a rumble and looked back to see a huge bank of black clouds. A quick check of the radar which told me we were going to get a good storm. Dan and I got the puppies in off the deck, and grabbed the clothes off the line just before the rain began. Dan and I had lunch and since the day had gone from beautifully sunny to perfectly rainy we decided a nap was in order. Dan and I climbed into bed, snuggled together and fell asleep. We woke 2 hours later to find another storm rolling through.

Mike called a little after 4pm to check in since we never heard from him yesterday. Seems Doug and Ron corrupted him last night and he didn't get in till after 1am. He was surprised to find while checking in at the hotel some of the cast of extreme home makeover standing next to him. Edward on one side, and Michael on the other. They surprised a family in Geneva Monday morning. http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2008/08/we_find_out_today_wholl_get_an.html
Very cool!

Monday, August 18, 2008

August 18, 2008 Wellfleet's Cicada Killers






I'm sitting here at the computer, it's 2:08pm on a Monday. The weather today is typical August in heat, but not in humidity and we're enjoying a nice south wind. Mike is away in Geneva NY for the week. He left early Sunday morning and we're expecting him to return either Friday or Saturday this week. The puppies are barking like crazy right now, Marley just fed them, so they're awake and practicing their barks before tiring out and taking a nap. Things here have been crazy busy, but I'll take it over being bored.
Friday I woke up at 6am, after working 5pm to midnight the night before, to go for a 3.5 miles run, then showered and quietly left my sleeping family to take my college placement exam at 8:30am. The drive to 4C's took 18 minutes. Directions were flawless and I soon found myself seated at a computer terminal. I took the test in 1 hour and 9 minutes. I aced the English comp, grammar and arithmetic portions of the test. Algebra was a little lower. I was then ushered to an advisor who helped me decide which course to start with, we chose sociology and she encouraged me to study up on my algebra a little bit and retake that portion on the test in hopes of pulling my score up 12 or so points so I wouldn't have to take a remedial algebra. If passed I can then move directly into Chemistry in the spring. I was sent next to the registration office and finally to the business office. It was 11am before I arrived home a happy new college student. We spent the rest of the afternoon hanging out on the beach, before another eventful evening at D & D.

Saturday morning promised to be very busy. Em had to be to work at 9am. The Goulds and Pam and London had beach cleanup at 9am as well. An early morning e-mail from Gerry said he wanted to go out to Wellfleet to check out a cicada killer Lek and asked if I'd join him. Mike had to pick up a box truck for his trip at 3pm, Em needed to be picked up from work at 4pm and I had to be to be to work for 5pm. And if that wasn't enough, our annual PPA adult social was Saturday night as well, and I was on the committee. Thankfully, after a call to Gerry telling him how bad the traffic was he decided he'd save his Wellfleet trip for Sunday. Mike, Dan and I arrived at the beach with Pam, London and Justin to find it already done. We have a mystery beach clearnerupper. Em finished work early and was home by 3pm with plenty of time to rest before she needed to set up for the party. And Mike's box truck was ready and waiting when we pulled up at 3. Our hectic day wasn't so hectic after all.I went to work, but heard that the party went great. Black and white was a hit, and there was plenty of good food to go around.

I woke at 7:15 Sunday morning in a panic because as of midnight Saturday, I still didn't know what our Wellfleet plans were. I ran to the computer to find a note from Gerry saying he was running late...awesome I thought, I'll have more time....until I read further and realized that running late to Gerry meant he was going to be here at 8am! I kissed Mike good bye and wished him a safe trip, ran down to start some laundry, made the bed, woke Dan up, and packed up a few things within minutes of Gerry pulling up. It was a bright beautiful morning and with nothing to do for the entire day I was thrilled to be making this trip. The only pitfall was that Dan would have to come with us. Even so, we were checking out a cicada killer Lek in a parking lot. Dan would be fine. And he was mostly. We arrived there a little after 10am. We got out of the Hummer, and started walking around. Gerry quickly found a pile of sand with a finger sized hole and stated this was exactly what we were looking for, but this one seemed old with no new sand. So we looked around some more and nearly tripped over a whole grouping of them right in parking lot itself. Seems they had made use of the cracks in the pavement. Gerry wes pleased to see newly excavated sand, so we hung around and waited. Sure enough with in a few minutes a female cicada killer arrived and flew into a hole. Gerry suggested that we plug the holes with sticks so that if a female arrived with a cicada she would drop it because she couldn't get into her hole. We filled all the visible holes and waited again. A few minutes later, a female arrived carrying a cicada. She dropped it just as Gerry said she would and Gerry picked it up and laid the Canicularis in his hand, hoping that the female Cicada Killer would take it from him. She never did, but I got some great video of her buzzing around and even eventually she did take it down her burrow. Gerry had asked if I'd like to keep the Canicularis and I said no, thinking if we got one, we'll get more. Gerry has a way of making things look easy. We hung around for another half hour waiting for the Cicada killers to bring in more Cicada's and nothing. Wished I'd kept that canicularis! Dan was getting restless and Gerry suggested a hike. http://www.nps.gov/caco/planyourvisit/upload/GreatIIslandseparationsfinal.pdf
Here are a couple of youtube videos of the Cicada/Cicada killer we saw.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5D58MST_nE8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v6CWMcy5G7Y

We followed a path that emptied into a marsh, and this little bay created by Great Island. We took a right and followed the water around. Great Island is a peninsula with a small sliver of land connecting it to the mainland. It's mostly just a glorified sand bar at high tide probably no more then a couple thousand feet wide. We followed the path but it was slow going, the air warm and I could tell Dan was quickly tiring after about 1/2 mile of high speed walking. We decided to pass Gerry's net off to him when we realized we'd never keep up, and go exlore the ocean on the other side of the dunes. Gerry left us the Hummer keys and quickly disappeared onto Great Island. Dan and I had a great time exploring this little traveled beach and found a couple of bouys to start our collection. One was fully intact blue and yellow, the other small green and white. We made our way back down the beach parralle to the way we'd come and eventually made our way back to the Hummer. I had the presence of mind when packing to include Dan's bathing suit, and I wore mine, so we changed then headed back down to the marsh. Dan and I played in the water a while and observed the fiddler crabs, and small fish swimming around. Elias called and we chatted for a bit. Unfortunately I didn't charge my phone before heading to Wellfleet and mid converstation my phone died. It'd probably been over 2 hours since we'd last seen Gerry, and with no phone I was mildly concerned. I had the Hummer keys however and knew that my fears were unfounded. It's amazing how much carrying a live cell phone adds to your sense of security. Amazingly enough, Gerry appeared only minutes later, and we started our trip home. Elias had armed with enough ammunition to keep our ride home intereting. Gerry and Elias go to great lengths to annoy one another, and Elias thinks it's hysterical when he gets someone else to do his dirty work. Gerry never falls for it, and Elias and I are always disappointed not to get more of a reaction out of him.

Dan and I arrived home a little after 4pm. The Leone's were in the grove so I went and sat. Dan immediately ran off to play with his friends. We said goodbye to Gerry, and then hung out chatting in the grove for a while. As 6pm approached, Mike Leone went home. Laurie and I decided that since low tide was at 6:30 that we'd take the kids down to the tide pool to poke around for a while then get dinner at Seafood Sams. We hadn't really dressed for the tide pools, but it was nice to be by the ocean anyway. Em and Dan did a little exploring before we all got hungry and decided it was time for dinner. Seafood Sams was packed. So we decided we'd call in our order for takeout. One problem, my phone was dead, Emily's went dead just as we were dialing, and Laurie didn't bring hers. So we started looking for pay phones, giggling at how stupid this was all getting. After trying 2 broken pay phones we decided to give up and just stand in line. It moved quickly, and by 8pm we were sitting at the canal enjoying our meals. It was a great day on Cape Cod, nearly perfect in fact.

Thursday, August 14, 2008

August 14, 2008 Happy Birthday Mom!!!

Things here continue to be busy so this blog entry is going to be quick. Em's working her normal schedule this week M-Th & Saturday (7 hour days) . I'm working T,Th,Fri, & S(7 hour shifts). Mike's working M-Th (10 hour days)and leaves on Sunday for Seneca Lake, NY for the week. Mike and the kids did really well with me working on Tuesday night. I made dinner, American chop suey before I left so all they had to do was warm it up. Work was good. I worked with another girl and it was fairly quiet but I prefer to stay busy, she on the other hand is newly pregnant and decided she's rather stand around. At 11:30 we prepared to close the shop and since she doesn't usually work nights I was in charge....after only 3 days. Just like Dunkin. Thankfully, closing was all relatively easy, so after shutting down the lights and locking the door, I set the alarm and we commited to leaving. It was 12:02am. Got home to find Mike awake, but just barely. Told him he should have gone to bed, and went there myself hoping he would too, which he did.

Wednesday was more of the same, the sun was out so Dan and I set about getting all our stuff done early so we could enjoy the beach for the afternoon, becauase at 7pm Mike and Laurie were picking Mike and I up to see Jeff Durham and the melody tent. He was a great comedian and we all had a great time. In bed after midnight again tonight, and suspect it will probably be the earliest for the next few days. I found an online study guide for the assessment test I'll be taking on Friday morning and quickly realized how little math I remembered. Thursday's project is a quick math refresher, hopefully the weather will be nice so I can study on the beach while Dan plays!

Marley's puppies youtube video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YaZ1tSxHBbw

Monday, August 11, 2008

August 11, 2008 Mom's 60th Birthday party





Saturday was fairly uneventful. I woke up a little after 7am, quickly drank my garden patch and took my vitamins then hustled Marley out the door for a run. While I was out I noticed a peculiar rattling sound while passing in front of the field next to Cape Cod Pediatrics on Rt 130 and wondered if it was a lyricen chorus. Gerry says we have them in Falmouth so it wouldn't be very surprising to find them in Forestdale. I made a note to check my sound files later and decided it was indeed lyricen that I was hearing. Made our way home in time to drive Emily to work. Mike, Dan and I then set out to turn in cans and bottles down at the local package store and then headed home for lunch and a nap. I had about an hour at the beach before it was time to take a shower and dress before picking up Em at work at 4pm and then heading to work myself at 5pm. I walked into a different store on Saturday night and was thrilled that what I found on Friday wasn't the norm. JJ was there along with the Asst. Manager who was on till 8pm and did all the sweeping and mopping, and another girl who was on till 6pm. Much, much better. The night went along pretty uneventfully, and in slow motion compared to the night before. JJ and I left at 12:20 or so, and I arrived home to find Mike still awake and ready to hear about might.

Sunday morning we all slept in since nobody had to be up this morning! I was the first up however and decided I'd go for a walk. My walk turned into a run at the normal running spot and I was thrilled that even with work I managed to squeeze in three days running again this week. Came home to clean out the puppy cage and Dan noticed that Abigail's eyes were open! The pups are two weeks today and are really starting to move around, even walking at times. Let the games begin! Tank is still the largest by far, and even though Abigail was the last one born and slow to start she's ahead of the others developmentally.

Mike, Em, Dan and I piled in the car at 1pm and headed for Adam and Kristin's house for Mom's 60th Birthday party. Em drove the entire way, including over the Bourne Bridge. She was very nervous but quickly got the hang of highway driving and on several occasions had to be reminded that the speed limit was only 65. Dan quickly joined Alyssa, Megan, Taylor and Julia in the pool as soon as we arrived. Em went town to check out the chickens, who are really pretty neat! Mom arrived and the party started. Lots of food, veggie platter and casserole, chips, hot dogs and hamburgers, nacho dip, and king crab legs (thanks Ed) At one point Adam brought out a bottle of tequila and some Dixie cups and asked who wanted to do shots. The picture above shows the participants including the birthday girl. The party ended with Zachary taking an impromptu dip in the pool after picking on his old aunt all day. Em drove us home, and we arrived just after 7pm to a house full of miniature barking. The puppies learn so quickly! Here is a youtube video of the pups!http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6nq0IlAwB0

Saturday, August 9, 2008

August 9, 2008 1st day of Dunkin



So, my first night at Dunkin was everything, if not more that I remember Dunkin to be. I walked in at 4:50, asked for the lovely D & D attire I was promised would be there, promptly dressed and looked just like a Casaba melon...who picks these colors anyway?!?! Khaki pants, and a yellow and orange shirt. The "kids" behind the counter probably didn't add up to my age combined and I was suddenly worried. Even more so when the boy I'd been talking to, said "Ok, good luck, I'm closing with you tomorrow." there were a 4 people in line at the counter and 3 cars at the drive thru....I said "Excuse me? Who's training me?" He said "she is" pointing to the girl with the headset waiting on drive through. I said "Who's going to wait on counter?" He said "you are." It was at that moment that I knew things were going to get ugly. I looked at him quite seriously and said, if you walk out that door, I'm going with you. Not to be mean, but this is no way to treat a new hire on their first night, 3rd night maybe, but not first. JJ is a sweet kid, but a horrible trainer. He takes for granted all that he knows and kind of whips it at you willy nilly. Just then enters Sean. Sean has many piercings, and a beautiful new blue mohawk. He was there to pick up JJ, and caught the tail end of our, if you leave so do I conversation. Sean agrees with me that this is wrong, and calls somebody higher up who doesn't answer. Sean decides that it's time to lock the front doors, I'm ok with that, just drive thru....that's a little better anyway. The back room is strewn with today's delivery, bagels have been out thawing for too long already, it's only 6pm, they won't be cooked until tomorrow. The place is trashed, garbage everywhere...it's going to be a long night. JJ and Sean stayed and helped for a bit. Uniqua waited on drive thru. The guys do a basic rundown on what needs to be done, and start training me on how to make Lattes, cappachinos, turbos, mochas, smoothies,coolatas etc. They show me how the sugar, cream/milk/skim milk machines work....yes...all machines. It's bizarre and I wonder if all this technology is really necessary. After all we managed to pull off quite a booming business with a spoon and a pump.

The guys leave, Uniqua works drive thru and announces we're closing at 10pm. Hmmm...how's it this 17 year old gets to make this decision. I'm thinking now that I really need to have some phone numbers for the higher ups. Closing at 10 means lots of cleaning very quickly and since she's busy with customers, yours truly got a quick lesson is closing the shop....alone. I washed, dried, disassembled, and assembled and filled about 40 machines. Stocking was a breeze, because really, it's just about looking in cabinets. This store is fairly small and it's easy to find what you need. I then set about to putting the delivery away. Having been a manager came in quite nicely here, and the kitchen was quickly emptied. I took out all the trash, and swept and mopped the entire store. At 10pm Uniqua turned off her headset, and said we're closed. The customers didn't know it, but she adamantly refused to even go to the window to tell them. Kids. At 10:37 I punched out, or rather wrote out, since their time clock doesn't work. I left sore, wet and frazzled, but happy that at least I was tired for a reason. I'm sort of looking forward to going back tonight. JJ is quite amusing and really I think I learned alot last night. We'll see!



Found this interesting bug flying around my butterfly bush. At first thought it was a bee of some sort, but Gerry identified it as a clear wing moth. He's really very beautiful.

Friday, August 8, 2008

August 8, 2008 I'm hired...and enrolled!


Wednesday was wet and quiet. We took Em to work then went to D & D to apply for a job. I was told to return on Thursday to talk to the manager. Will do. Dan and I came home and declared it movie day. We ate lunch then went up to the loft, popped in Jumanji. Dan thought it was great, action packed, and a little scary. Right up his alley, since he's a big boy now. Then we came down, made some popcorn and watched Flipper. Dan loves the ocean, and the animals in it, but he wasn't all that interested in watching Flipper, I don't know if he was all movied out, or if he just didn't like it.

Thursday started off the same way, Em to work, Dan and I to Dunkin to talk to the manager. I was hired in 2 minutes and asked to return for my first 5-midnight shift on Friday. Very excitig!

Today started off with a 3.5 mile run with Marley, I'm thrilled to have my running partner back! Did my ab workout when I got home, hung two loads of laundry on the line, showered and then took Dan, Em and Sarah to Hyannis. I dropped Em, Sarah and Dan off at TJ Maxx and went to Trader Joe's to do some shopping. On my way back, my cell rang. It was 4C's saying that I was accepted as a student, and that I should make an appointment for my assessment testing, which I then scheduled for next Friday August 15th at 8:30am. I'm very excited and Mike seems pleased as well, he's calling me his "coed". So tonight's my first night of work, looking forward to it,I hope it's going to be easy since I have so much experience and I also hope I can keep my eyes open until Midnight. With any luck, I'll come home happy but tired, fall into bed for 6 hours or so, then awaken refreshed and ready for a run.

I also talked to Gerry today. He asked if I would be interested in joining him in a cicada killer expedition in Wellfleet that I promptly accepted. Wellfleet in the summer on a weekend can be pretty frustrating, maybe I can talk him into a weekday!

Tuesday, August 5, 2008

August 5, 2008 Gould Family Dinner



Pretty quiet day today. Took Em to work this morning, came home because we were expecting Em's third grade teacher over to visit us today at the pond with her 3 little girls. Karen is 4.5, Katrina is 3, and Eve is 15 months. We don't get together very often but always have a great time when we do. We all played at the pond for a while, then made our way up to the playground before lunch. The girls were having peanut butter and jelly, so Dan decided he'd have that too. I can't remember the last time he ate that. Peer pressure is sometimes a great thing at this age, not so much at 15!
Nettie and Gram came down so we're doing a seafood fest on the hill tonight. Two nights of great food. Gotta love it!

Monday, August 4, 2008

August 4, 2008 Our 7th year Anniversary


A dozen long stemmed red roses were just delivered, so it must be our anniversary. They're beautiful and smell great. Mike and I used to like giving one another massages but ran out of oil a couple of years ago, so I bought him some....maybe we'll remember how to use it!

Our day started off good, took Em to work, then Dan and I went grocery shopping, came home and unpacked, then went with Jessie to Margo's house to get our hair cut. Dan hung out with Amanda during our appointments. Next we went down to the outlet mall to look around and possibly find something new to wear out to dinner tonight, with no luck. We returned home at 1:30, ate lunch then put Dan down for a half hour rest. Within 10 minutes he was fast asleep. I spoke to admissions at 4C's who said they would be enrolling me in their health science program and I should be getting something in the mail soon about orientation. Very exciting. Dan woke up to the ice cream man's bell...his favorite way to wake up I think. Jessie, John, Mike and I are going to Wimpy's tonight for dinner.
http://wimpysseafoodcafe.com/
We always have a good meal there...I'm looking forward to it!

Dinner was amazing. We started with a bowl full of Portuguese mussels, which meant they were cooked with chourico. I avoided the meat, but enjoyed the mussels, and Jess and John ordered scallops wrapped in bacon. I ordered Sesame seared yellow fin tuna cooked medium rare, with peanut sauce served with ginger and wasabi, a mixed vegetable medley and beets. It was excellent. Mike had tournedos of beef, he said were terrific as well. Jess and John enjoyed Strawberry shortcake for dessert. Our reservations were at 8pm and we were promptly seated, we didn't leave until well after 10pm, it was a long slow meal, but worth every bite. We arrived home to find both Dan and Em still awake. Mike and I laid on the bed and quickly fell asleep. Dan woke us shortly after yelling from upstairs that he was ready for another movie...I don't think so kid! Come down and get PJ's on and into bed you go! Tucked him in, said good night to Em, who was watching who knows what on TV, and both went to bed and fell immediately to sleep.

Sunday, August 3, 2008

August 3, 2008 Dan can swim !!



I started this morning with another run. 3.5 miles in 50 minutes...I thought more running for more days would make my time faster, seems just the opposite...might need a day or two to let the muscles heal. Came home and did my ab workout, then loaded the truck with 5 weeks worth of trash and recyclables. We think we're beating the system buying 10 dump passes at $5 each over buying a dump sticker for $75 for the year. If we can go 5 weeks between dump runs it'll work! So far so good!
Mike and I dropped Em and Dan off at Percy's to wait in line for a seat for breakfast while Mike and I got rid of trash, and picked up a lawnmower (which Mike had running within 5 minutes of being home) and a bird cage that I think I can convert into a toad terrarium. Love shopping at the dump!

The kids were already seated when we arrived. Dan had Belgium waffles, Em scrambled eggs, a bagel and hash browns, and Mike Eggs Benedict with mushrooms. Percy's has a pretty amazing menu. I had an order of pan fried catfish and a small bowl of fresh fruit. Em asked if we could make a stop at Mashpee Commons for a new book that was just released named Breaking Dawn, and to see if she could find a bathing suit at Suit's you. Dan and Mike went in search of the book, while I helped Em with a bathing suit. She found a suit she liked and we headed home. Dan and I changed into our bathing suits and Em settled in to read.

It was a beautiful hot day and Dan and I went right into the water. Dan started swimming, and I wondered if he could make it to the raft, and asked him if he wanted to try. He swam the entire way, mostly underwater. He jumped off the raft and diving board and swam back to the beach, with minimal help from me. It was a big day for him and we celebrated with a big dipper when the ice cream man came.

The night ended quietly after having dinner with the Leone's. The puppies are a week old tonight and doing very well. We just determined that we have 5 girls and 2 boys. I don't know where we went askew but clearly somewhere. They are very cute and wag their tails now when they're getting ready to nurse.

August 2, 2008 Blueberry Festival Green Briar


So much for 45 minute run, today it was 3.5 miles in 49 minutes. I decided I'd try my new sneakers out but something wasn't right and I had a pull in my back about half way through. I don't know if I was overcompensating for something or if they just need to be broken in more. I think I'll wear them on short trips for a while before wearing them for that length of time any time soon.
I got back from my run, did an ab workout, then took Em to work for 9am. Dan and I went to visit Dad at Green Briar where he and a few other wood turners were doing a demonstration at the Blueberry festival. The guys were in good spirits, and everybody seemed happy to be spending their day there. Next stop for us was home to change into suits and head down to the beach. It's was hot and humid, just the way I like August to be. Dan swam out to the raft with his life jacket on to jump off with the big kids. I enjoyed laying in the sun in my new suit, which got lots of comments. After an hour or so a couple who we rarely see at the beach made their way down with a small boy in tow. They've had fertility problems for years and last I heard were looking to adopt. Turns out the little boy is 5, his name is Justin and he'll be coming to live with them at the end of the month, after 6 months they will adopt him. He was sweet as could be, smart and precocious and fit in with Tiger, Dan and Bradley like he'd always been there. It'll be nice to have another boy in the neighborhood! At 4:15 Dan and I packed up and went to pick up Em at work. Dan fell asleep in the van on the way there, slept through dinner and finally woke at 7:30pm. Time enough to watch some TV and have something to eat before Mom and Dad changed him up and sent him to bed. Sorry kid but we're pooped!

Saturday, August 2, 2008

August 1, 2008 Running, Kaaa, and shopping

I had spoken to Suzanne across the street about my route for running, and invited her to join me this morning since Mike was home. We met at 7am, walked up to Cove Rd. Started our run there and did the loop home. Suzanne didn't think she'd be able to run much of it, I was sure she would do all of it and she did. Not only that but she waited for me on several occasions. I'm carrying much more weight then she is. We parted ways once back in the neighborhood, and I went to do an ab workout, take a quick shower and take Em to work. I arrived home in time to go to Critter capers with Mike and Dan. Ms. Mary had Kaaa (the corn snake) and Darter (the albino garter snake) out and I volunteered to return them both to their cages when she was done. I love holding Kaaa, he's about 4 feet long and incredibly strong.

We left there and came home for lunch and a nap for Dan. I cooked for men's night so all Mike would have to do was warm it up when the time came. I made a stuffed pork loin with sausage and apple stuffing, pepperoncini jasmine rice, with parmesan cheese, black olives, and garlic, applesauce, and a cheese and veggie platter.
I then treated myself to a quiet hour on the beach. At 3pm I made my way up to the house, changed and headed out to get Em at work. Em wanted to shop for bathing suits after work, and I told her that was fine, so we went further East from Mahoney's to TJ Maxx, then to Walmart. Emily got a beach cover up, a black plaid with hot pink lined coat, and a pair of manly man waterproof workboots. I bought a new bathing suit, a white tankini size 12, a few sports bras, a new pair of sneakers and garbage bags....the only thing I really needed! We stopped at the new fish market at the Mashpee common rotary and picked up some salmon and mussels. We got home at about 7pm, and men's night was in full swing. I was told the food was good, I enjoyed the salmon and mussels, raw carrots, and some olives and pepperoncinis. Suzanne came over and joined us for a post meal cocktail. I really enjoy having her around. She mentioned running again this morning,and doing it in 45 minutes tomorrow instead of todays 47 minutes. It's nice having another vegetarian around, especially one who'll push me! I hope two days in a row doesn't kill me!