Summer wraps up

The last month of summer is nearly at its end, and the weather here has turned cool. Today is a long-sleeve shirt day. There is a bit of autumn in the air. We certainly will have more summer before the season actually changes, but it is clear that fall is catching up fast and will soon take over.

It’s been a very hot, wet summer for the most part. Our daughter-in-law is expecting their first baby within the next few days. I have felt so bad for her over the past several weeks. She is getting quite uncomfortable in the heat and humidity. Their home was built at the turn of the twentieth century, and does not have central air. They have a small window unit for their bedroom, but otherwise, the place is very warm. It has been a difficult year to be expecting a baby at the end of August.

We are excitedly awaiting the arrival of this newest granddaughter. They have not shared the “short list” of names that they are considering. The rest of the family has agreed that their choice of name will likely be a very traditional one. Our older granddaughters have pretty unique first names. Their parents’ goal was to avoid names which would result in several kids with the same name in their class. They did a great job. But the son  who is soon to be a parent will keep the name relatively plain and simple, I think. We are looking forward to finding out their choice. I’m betting on something like Abby. We’ll see.

It is the end of August and we are still in the midst of a renovation. Our contractor is “fitting us in” as he can between jobs. It is getting old. We have had a plastic (like the one-sided sticky Saran wrap) over our upstairs carpet for nearly 3 months now. We took it off once, but it is back (to protect the carpet, I’ve been told). Our bathroom is still in process, so we are using the guest bath down the hall. We have no closet, so our clothing is distributed between the laundry room, office, and grandkids’ bedroom. The porch/deck is almost completed, but not screened yet.  We have had a dumpster parked alongside the driveway for nearly 3 months now. Part of it has to do with orders that haven’t arrived (somehow I didn’t realize that bathroom tile was so challenging to pick/order correctly) or that we had not realized we were responsible to order (a shower door) and bad choices that had to be modified (I was way off on the paint color).

I still do not understand how the bottom right circled color here….

 

…ended up looking like this on the wall. I’ve decided I am color handicapped.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

From Demo just after Memorial Day weekend-

to in process in early July-

to not-quite finished at end of August.

 

The bottom line is that our summer seems to have been spent in a disaster zone.

 

 

I have almost gotten used to the crackling sound of the dog’s feet on the plastic carpeted floor. The dog, however, has still not gotten used to using the front door to go outside rather than the back. Three months, and he still waits at the back door to be let out.

I feel for him.

 

Lesson: Choose the “start later but have it all done in one shot”option over the”start soon and fit the job in around other jobs” option when it comes to home renovation.

Last weekend the three granddaughters were here, so I took all of them shopping for school clothes. What an adventure! I picked one store. Sears, of all places, because they had seen a Lands End catalog with clothes that they liked. We made a sweep and took about 20 items into a dressing room. I had all three in the same room, peeling clothing off and on, asking for different sizes, going in and out of the room to choose more options, and sharing opinions with each other as to the items they tried on. It was so much fun! The look on their faces as they tried on something they loved was wonderful to see. They had a very good sense of what was appropriate for their age and their personal style. I was scooping things up to put back on hangers, scoping out additional sizes and items, and giving my opinions when requested.

I had given them a dollar amount that I would spend, equally divided between them. When they had made their choices, we took the items to the cashier and I explained what we were doing. She was amazingly helpful, as she scanned each girl’s items and we got totals. They then had to choose which of the items they would give up to stay within their budgeted amount. It was hardest for the youngest one, as she LOVED everything she had chosen, and didn’t want to give up anything. But we did it together, with help from the cashier, and everyone went home happy. They learned a bit about budgeting, fashion, sizing, and sister support that day. I think it will be an annual outing. We stopped for a treat on our way home, as I was worn out!

In the midst of everything else, we had our trip to Portland, a quick day trip to our North Shore of Lake Superior, two calves were born, a few flowers survived the neglect imposed upon them, and we had several dinners out with friends, family gatherings, and even a couple of quiet do-nothing days like today.

Summer. Disaster zone, baby watch, kid shopping spree.

 

It’s been pretty good, over all. Just messy.

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