Tuesday catch-up

I hate when I don't have enough time to do the things I want. I thought I'd have more time this morning but it just slipped away. Life has a way of doing that.

I sat outside Starbucks on Saturday night. It was perfect! I went to the nearby Walmart afterward, where they were in the midst of a major remodel. The electronics department looked just like Best Buy! Classy. A zillion hi-def TV's, cameras, laptops, mp3 players, etc. The isles in the store were wide. In short, it was impressive. I stayed till about 11 PM. My big Saturday night out.

I went to Panera's with my friend Sarah on Sunday morning. Usually I'm with Kit. Emily used to be Sarah's mother's helper and we've always really enjoyed each other but never take the time to socialize. We brought our laptops, had breakfast, and it was fun. She was really curious to check out the duck nest, even though I told her the eggs were buried and you couldn't see them. She wanted to poke around, and I said OK. Well, much to our surprise, there were no eggs there. Not a trace. Not a speck of a broken shell. Nothing. A real mystery. Any guesses? I know there were at least 5 eggs if not more, and there were no signs of any disturbances to the nest. The eggs weren't there long enough to hatch. I'm baffled.

I went to my brother and SIL's for a party on Sunday afternoon. My niece Heather turned 20. It was mostly family with some friends. The weather was great, the get-together was casual, and I stayed late. A good time was had by all. Happy Birthday Heather!


Emily and I went to my parent's neighborhood pool yesterday. It's the same one I spent every summer at, and still go to as often as I can over the summer. It really was a great day. Big clouds, some sun, not too hot. I swam 4 laps, which really is a big deal since I stopped swimming because of my shoulder. My shoulder feels fine today. Yes! I'm going to take it really slow and hope I can get back into it. We left just as the storm clouds were gathering. The rain started just as we pulled into our street. We had one of the most violent thunderstorms I can remember. Then it rained all night. My new rain gauge showed 4 3/4" of rain. It's finally stopped.

My new washing machine was delivered at 8:45 last night. Finally. It will take some getting used to using a front loader, but I did my first wash this morning. It took 55 minutes; a long time. I didn't realize the timing for a front loader was so much longer till after I started talking to people about it. I'll get used to it, and maybe learn how to shorten the loads. It also seems there's more maintenance, like wiping the door seal, the door glass and the inner drum/door seal after each use. Then you have to clean the pump filter twice a month. I think I'll put up a little white board in the room to keep up with it.

The biggest news is that my nephew Aaron and his wife Rachel had their first baby, Liam Andrew, on Saturday. My sister Ilene is a grandmother for the first time, my parents are now great-grandparents, and I'm a great aunt. My sister was able to fly to WI the day after and she'll be there for 10 days. The kids are moving to GA in June and we'll get to see them on our way back from vacation. This picture was taken when Liam was about 3 hours old.



Just about time for work. Wish I had another hour. Oh well, that's OK. Have a great Tuesday.