wrapping up summer

which for the Checota’s means a good ol’ dog grooming. in a truck. in their driveway. my kids couldn’t handle all the fun.

in sync

sadly it isn’t often we are in sync these days – god help me when she is a teenager!  But this morning was magic.

the beauty is in the details…

looking up

I finally unpacked today – the montana blues seem to be wearing off a bit…

what keeps me up at night..

old as old can be

the inside of an old fishing boat docked at the north east end of Washington Island (which is an island off the northern tip of Door County, which is at the northeastern most tip of Wisconsin). it’s seen much weather, i reckoned. i had this insane desire to take that steering wheel off and carry it back home with me to Milwaukee. it was so cool.

zone envy

I am not sure I really want to live on the west coast (but I might), I just want to plant the things they do. So for 6 months a year, the succulents are my agaves.

best seat in the house

yesterday was our annual “mom’s only at the beach” day.  It is a treat every year.  Late afternoon and evening, dinner and drinks, feet in the sand, sun setting and no kids to watch, feed, etc…  Hurricane Bill passed us by yesterday so the surf was the biggest I have ever seen – it was amazing to watch.

big sink

obviously I will miss the lake and dock, the skiing, the smell of the mountain air, the hikes right from our door, being checked out from it all, etc…  but, I will also miss this big sink.  next year she will probably be too big…

morning mountains

for you jo… early morning ride to the boat ramp to take it out for the season

for this, i welcomed the rain

you could tell from the changing sky it was going to do something, and then it started raining hard, but there was still sun. i was outside hanging a sign on the playground when i looked up. i had to let everyone know. so they all ran out into the parking lot to see it: what an amazing double rainbow. it will be a good school year.

a sort of first

i suddenly realized they didn’t know how to ride an escalator properly, hardly ever having had the chance. so we parked the stroller and went up, down, up, down, up and down once more until they got it.

My mood

This was our first day of vacation on Cape Cod last week.  The day was overcast and humid.  I was feeling gray and kind of stormy that our vacation wasn’t blessed with sunshine and blue skies.  I walked to the beach and the ocean matched my mood perfectly.

i could have used st. francis today..

long day of wounded squirrel drama…really not so fun.

left home

after a long and unpredictable day, the beasts and i took a walk in the rain at the park. not surprisingly we had the whole place to ourselves and it was perfect. also, not surprisingly, the camera was at home. again. so i have nothing but words and a memory for time well spent….

first sting this summer

he got a little too close to an undetected bees nest on our deck this morning. they get him every summer, as edible as he is. there were 12 bees just sitting on this hive. it’s a wonder we hadn’t noticed it yet.

gopher satisfaction..

sorry people…..i don’t have children so more dog it is. it’s a sickness, i know.

Doubles

 

an old passion revived and another thing the four of us can do together

cold day

only three more boat days – where is the sun?

bagpipes

are one of my favorite things ever. even the kids stopped and watched in silence. they feel like soldiers to me, brave and strong. it’s like history walking out of textbook pages right in front of you. Irish Fest rocks. i haven’t missed a year since we moved here 10 years ago.

why

must i get up so early to see a sunrise?

domesticated park gopher takes on dog pack….

while owner dies laughing.

alone

but not really

in love

if adopt-a-goat were possible, i’m pretty sure he’d be ours. what’s more fun than anything else is watching the kids grow into themselves. this one loves goats; the other one, hammers. and the girl: her bathing suit. that makes one farmer, one construction dude, and an Olympic swimmer in my future. right on.

spring chores…

please…..don’t remind me that it’s august already.

berry bowl hole drilling…

soothed the reunion night hangover.

This week in Boston….

I have a goal this summer to take the girls into Boston one day a week.  Guess what we did this week?

shades of gray

our first rainy Saturday morning all summer. funny, though, when you look for it, color pops amidst the gray. yesterday was a big day. no big deal in the end, really, but i did have to let go – finally. and all is well.

tail wagging happy

this morning was cool and overcast but pleasant.  as I was drinking tea and watching the girls play on the beach in their pjs, I noticed that Lambeau continuously wags his tail the entire time we are down at the dock.  it got me to thinking, how can I instill that genuine appreciation & happiness in my children…

an afternoon with a Newfie

we had a lovely walk with a new friend. here’s Frankie. had it not been for all the excitement of the creek, we would have had a cry-free dog-park adventure. fortunately, she recovers quickly.

the one and only

 

 

Six hydrangea bushes.  Anxiously awaited their blues and purples.  One bloom only.  Could it be the gardener?

good day

13 years of a good marriage AND my oldest friend visiting…

break

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

8pm: a break in the sky, and a break in the chaos of this day.

ski

makes me feel both young and old…

garden finale

there was rice everywhere. but it was one of those days where when the kids asked, i allowed. we worked outside in our PJ’s until lunch. the best part of the day was the toad, but the peas were a close second.

time-out, summer

 checked off three more from our List-of-Things-to-do-This-Summer: farmers market, kite-flying at the lake, and backyard campfire. sometimes i wonder why it takes so long to do the ‘to do’s,’ but summers do fly. hello, August 1st. tomorrow we cut back the garden to plant for fall.