05/31/12

Here’s the latest addition to Fischer Rentals, our one-step-above-slumlord empire.  We had the inspection this morning and only minor things turned up (like the crawlspace under the house being full of garbage!), so we are full speed ahead…

Time to start thinking about marketing:

LONGVIEW – 3 bed, 1 bath, washer/dryer hook-ups, new carpet, paint, blinds & vinyl flooring. Dead-end quiet street. 

05-30-12

Today was kind of a purple day, so I thought it would be fun to photograph my big purple Allium.  A bee kept flitting in and out of the scene.

It’s really muggy this evening.  Wish I had more time to be out in it.  Not so fun waiting in the car for kids, great for true outdoor activities.

05-29-12

Tonight both Anastasia and I went paddle boarding.  I was concerned it would be too windy and cold, but it was perfect out on the water.  We both got to see baby ducks.

Enjoying these last few days of May…

05-28-12

It’s hard to be flexible, but that was the theme for today.

Woke up to rain, not conducive to morning jog or Mt Rainier hikes.  Not willing to give up on covering some miles of nature, we decided to do walks near I-5 instead, exploring Priest Point Park and Yauger Park in Olympia.

The kids enjoyed climbing in the Madronas.

05-27-12

We spent Sunday exploring Seattle – finding a restaurant that opens before noon (Kidd Valley, yum!), Woodland Park Zoo with family, great views of downtown Seattle from Kerry Park, and wandering through Uwujamiaya in search of interesting snacks.

Highlights of the day included Anastasia’s passion for penguins, making paper out of elephant poo, the raptor show, the girls taking artistic photos, and this peacock monopolizing the goat area.  Note Eva, Shanna and Jaimie in the background.

05-26-12

Weather today was too variable for paddle boarding, but was perfect for house hunting, yard work, and a trip to play with dogs.

Xander and I went to the Humane Society while Anastasia and Bruce went to mow rental lawns.  As usual, we picked a really wacko dog.  I think she only has one foot on the ground in this picture, which was pretty typical.  Xander’s on pooper scooper duty.

We made an offer on another rental property this morning, so now we wait…

05-25-12

Too windy for a nice paddle on the lake.  Too windy to water the garden without getting sprayed.  But thankful the sun is shining!

The straw bales are growing.  All of them!  Beans, pea pods, spinach, lettuce, and broccoli.  Had to put Sluggo down and keep pulling out tons of mushrooms, but so far it’s going well.  Excited for the little starts to get a bit sturdier!

Let the long weekend begin, and let there be time to work in the yard…

05-24-12

Wow, my third evening in a row in the RA Long auditorium!  Must be end of the school year or something!  Tonight Anastasia got inducted into the National Honor Society.  Go Stasia!

Started the day with goal weight on the scale (finally!) and ended the day looking at rental properties with my honey.  In the middle we had some issues with teenager lack of planning & appreciating.  Life is an adventure.

05-23-12

The second night in a row I’ve spent in the RA Long Auditorium.  Tonight I bowed out of Bible study to watch two drama class plays.  Both were parodies and pretty witty.  Troy (Anastasia’s boyfriend) played Hamlet; she brought him flowers.

05-22-12

Anastasia had a band concert and awards assembly tonight.  She didn’t put it on the calendar, so I was double booked, but I arrived just before she started playing.  Fun songs, and Anastasia earned a letter for Pep Band.

14 days left of school, the kids and teachers are counting down.

05-21-12

Lights off but not asleep.

Little braids for poofy hair tomorrow.

Medical questionnaire to sign up for fall swimming.

Reengineering a hot dog dinner into quesadillas.

Phone constantly attached to her ear.

Anastasia’s evening.

05-20-12

Sunday night, dessert night.  We have plenty of sweets at home, but we’ve been waiting for our local Subzero ice cream shop to open.  I didn’t realize that they start with liquid and use liquid nitrogen to get to thick & creamy. Fun.

The weather changed a day earlier than forecasted!  Our Long Beach hike got postponed for a quiet day indoors instead.  Scrapbooked a bit!

05-19-12

I’m always in search of photos that I can use for our MMEW (Move More Eat Well) scrapbook class, especially photos of us together, and this weekend I might just get two!

We always get heads turning when we take the board to the lake, but especially with the paparazzi along.  Anastasia got some great shots, it was hard to pick.

It is so much easier to get on and off the board when Bruce goes with me.  I appreciate him lugging the board, but I appreciate that extended hand even more!

05-18-12

Learning how to use my new Fitbit.  Check.

Back to tracking calories.  Check.

10,000 steps on the pedometer.  Check.

Avoid sweets all day. Check.

Catch up on sleep.  Fail.

Ironically, this evening I’ve been sitting at the computer working on a healthy eating presentation, so I haven’t been moving enough.  So here I am past bedtime trying to earn my stair climbing badge!  I also blame the muffins.  I had to try the whole wheat veggie muffins I baked for the women’s breakfast tomorrow, taking my food calorie count into the “oops” level until I climbed more stairs...  Also ironically, the first bite of the muffin is underwhelming, then I can't stop eating them.

05-17-12

Ironically, my Tacoma ladies book club was meeting tonight (without me) in a coffee house to discuss Crooked Letter Crooked Letter at about the same time that my Country Club couples book club was meeting (without Bruce) to discuss the Art of Fielding.

And afterward I started Ten Thousand Saints so that I’ll have enough time to finish both book club picks by this time next month…

"Reading...it's the best journey you can take without having to go anywhere." - Rumaas

05-16-12

“I’ll send cupcakes home with you, because Xander appreciates my cooking.” – Vicki, in my Bible study

Ha, the cupcake never made it home!  The boy loves to eat… healthy, unhealthy, he doesn’t discriminate…

05-15-12

Tonight was our last of a three part cooking demo, featuring dinner items.

Xander started with the apple cake!  Also note the differences in what the two of us put on our plates!

There was a lot to taste tonight:

Lasagna

Sweet & Sour and BBQ “meatballs”

Oatmeal patties with gravy

Potato enchiladas

Quinoa salad

Marinated carrots salad

Edamame Salad

Healthier alfredo sauce, Catalina dressing, and ranch dressing

Apple caramel cake

Strawberry “cheesecake”

Stuffed and better equipped to spot unhealthy ingredients.  All of this is vegan and oil free, for a healthy heart.

05-14-12

Monday.

Re-entry into work after 3 days out of the office.

The only night this week with no plans, except to go the dollar store.  Get some stuff done, get to bed early.  Oh, wait, there’s an event at the Electric Bean!  Family coffee date!  A packed crowd.

Happy Monday.

05-13-12

Happy mothers day!

I woke up way too early and got a jog, a paddle board ride, and Sunday chores done before it was time to head up north.  We rented peddle boards and had a great picnic lunch with the Fischer gang at Millersylvania State Park, then explored the Monarch Statue Garden (something I’ve been wanting to do for years).

Perfect weather, sufficiently spoiled, great day.

05-12-12

People either love or hate Bortsch.

It is a Polish dish, a soup with ham, beets, dill, and buttermilk, served over potatoes.

I’m in the "love it" camp.  What a great treat for lunch with G&G.

05-11-12

Uh-oh, guess who went to a University of Washington conference wearing Cougar colors?!?  REALLY impressed with the food choices through the day.  If only I had the willpower to skip the giant malt balls and eat the hummus instead!

Headed north from Seattle to spend some time with G&G.  When did I get so much taller than Grama?  :)

05-10-12

Our downtown Longview merchants are hosting a “Fashion Week” event, where you go around to participating businesses and get a passport stamped.  The idea is to check out what the local businesses have to offer.  It reminded me of a day in Aberdeen when I decided to pop inside all the downtown retailers to see what they had.

Bruce and I probably got inside about seven stores that were new to us today, and I spent a few dollars.  The fun thing was looking for the weddings gown in the windows (as a sign that they are participating), and seeing the stores that customize the bridal look to their store.  This was the bike shop.

05-09-12

Anyone want to support a great cause and get a great bag?

I saw an article in a magazine about converting old T-shirts into reusable tote bags, and it grew into a fund-raising project.  My small finance team gathered, cut, and sewed (well, just Debbie sewed!) the shirts. 

We’re selling them for $10 for American Cancer Society.

05-08-12

Tonight was the second installment of the Dr. McDougall based vegan cooking demo.  There were 60 people there, but Xander has a knack for being at the very front of the food line.

So here’s what’s on his plate:

Potato salad with no eggs or oil

Two kinds of tortilla chips, to go with the Cheez Dip.  No cheese, color comes from pimentos pimentos.

Mini veggie burger.  The patty threw him and others for a loop because it looks like an oatmeal cookie.

Taco soup.

At the desert table I couldn’t get him to try the zucchini bread (with applesauce & pineapple to make it super moist), but he loved the maple chocolate chip cookies.

05-07-12

What another wonderful weather day!

Chilled to the bone all day at work, but spent the evening paddle boarding, planting, and prepping for Bible Study on the porch.  Soaking up the sun.

The straw bales are finally planted.  The bales are conditioned, the planting media is added to the top, seeds planted, and tray covers nailed on to keep the heat in.  Planted lettuce, spinach, broccoli, beans, and snap peas in our nine bales.

05-06-12

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More fun in the sun. 

We had a picnic dinner at the lake and us girls went paddle boarding.

Xander has discovered that my camera has fun settings, so he has become the primary photographer this weekend.  Here’s a fun one he captured in some weird mode.

05-04-12

Busy day.  So far so good on not getting sick.  I even bought some nasty vitamin C drink at the health food store to ward off the feeling that it’s on its way…

Morning lake jog.

Worked on getting the straw bales ready for seeds.

Admired the new lawn mower, but then fled from the fresh cut grass.

Afternoon paddleboard trip.

Skipped church to see Anastasia’s last water polo games of the season.

Happy weekend!

05-04-12

Follow a theme of super close ups, look at who has gotten a bit scruffy.

Bruce is feeling better, Anastasia came home early sick today, and I feel a little off.  My first clue is that I don't care so much about my waiting to do list...

A weekend of unplanned rest or outdoor activity awaits, time will tell which…

05-03-12

Guess who’s wrapping up water polo?  Final match this Saturday.  Team photos.  Bikini practice tomorrow.  Another car wash fundraiser for Great Wolf Lodge.  Farewell party for coach heading into the military.

She’ll be getting lots of hours of practice and matches back, but will still have time in the pool with second period lifeguarding class.

05-02-12

“Can I get you anything?” – Me

“Do you have a strawberry milkshake?” – Bruce

Bruce is sick.  Which mean he falls asleep instead of waking up the kids, can’t pick up Xander from morning allergy shots, can’t cook dinner, isn’t the taxi to youth group, and… wants strawberry milkshakes.

I just really really really hope I don’t catch it!

05-01-12

“May flowers always line your path and sunshine light your day.” – Irish blessing

Debbie and I got to tour the sawmill today.  Research for a big project we’re working on. 

This is called a centering infeed conveyor, it lines the log up before it feeds into the debarker.

Happy May day!