I haven't posted in awhile because things have been sooo busy as we prepare to sell the house! We have also wanted to spend a lot of time with friends we soon may not get to see very often. So here's what we've been up to lately...
- Attending the wedding reception of friends Annie and Kevin -- very cool, casual reception at Baker Near-Wilderness Settlement including a pig roast and contra dancing!
- Matt invited several friends over for a Friday evening spent playing "Descent."
- Erika spent her Friday evening helping me pack and organize. All I needed to provide was the martini.
- The 4th of July weekend was spent here in Victoria; the Reeds joined us, and we toured Wabasha Caves and ate at Brit's Pub (ironic for a holiday celebrating our independence) ... unfortunately the lawn bowling was closed for maintenance.
- The Reed family spent a four-day weekend at Jessie Lake. Cool weather, but relaxing nonetheless. We already booked our time slot for next year! Plus, Jenn got to see 3/4 of the Bartholomew clan.
- We have stained our deck, painted the porch pillars, weeded gardens, pruned bushes and trees, and finished landscaping projects.
- We have painted our kitchen/dining area and Matt's "studio," replaced blinds on windows, and hauled out many boxes of recycling and trash.
- We have found vendors and scheduled appointments for replacing carpeting in two bedrooms, painting our stairway, and cleaning all our windows.
- Still on the list: confirming that we can find a match for the hardwood flooring in our kitchen (so we can have some new flooring installed) and replacing our patio door.
- Piles of boxes are jammed in our upstairs hallway - we've been busy packers!
- Jenn photographed a wedding in Duluth.
- Staff from the SRF Environmental Group went to a Twins game (one item on Jenn's 101 list is to attend one last game in the Metrodome).
- We attended the annual picnic for the Arboretum Photographers Society.
- Friends Kelcie and Sam had Jenn over for dinner on their patio -- I got to see their gardens and meet Tripod and Cleo.
- We had family pictures taken (Jenn, Matt, and Hannah) by our friend Kerri.
What's probably just as telling are the things we HAVEN'T been doing:
- Cooking (nutrition? vegetables? what are those?)
- Exercising (unless yard work and hauling boxes counts)
- Relaxing in the hammock (it looks so abandoned in the back yard)
- Seeing the new Harry Potter movie (very depressing)
- Sleeping through the night (that's just true for Jenn, who internalizes stress way too much)
No matter how busy we are, I find time just about every night to sit with Hannah on my lap and enjoy the summer breeze. Those moments are priceless!
