Hump Day

It's the hottest day we've had so far this summer. 92 degrees and very humid! But the sun is shining brilliantly and there's no snow on the ground! Works for me!!

Here's my clematis:



This is all of the flowers on the one remaining stem. They sure look pretty and the whole plant would have been awesome if the other three stems would have survived. When they died they all had buds on them. I think this is the last of the flowers for this year. Hopefully, next year we won't have the same problem.

Here's our house from across the street.



I probably should have planted more flowers this year but I like the clean, simple look. We ripped out 5 bushes that were in front of the window. It looks much neater and the kitties can see the birds better!

That's the real reason we did it ;)

Finally



Max says the best way to stay cool is to stretch out on the cool slate of the fireplace hearth!

Flashing the Neighbors

Had a nice weekend. The temperature was in the mid 80's which is nice except for the humidity was very high so it made it uncomfortable and we had to turn the air conditioner on. Too bad, because I really would rather have the windows open. It's supposed to be warm all week too. That's OK , I'm not complaining..it sure beats winter any day!

Friday night we had dinner at California Pizza Kitchen with the usual gang. I had spaghetti with asparagus and spinach and parmesean cheese dish that was really good. We bought dinner for my dad for Father's day because I knew I wouldn't be seeing him on Sunday.

Saturday morning Marie and I went to breakfast and when we were leaving I backed my car right into a truck! I was so mad at myself. Luckily, we could not find where on the truck I hit it and my bumper is plastic so Rich just pushed the dent and it popped back out! I still can't believe I did that!!

Chris and Marissa came over on Saturday to see Rich for Fathers Day. He bought us dinner and visited for a while. It was very nice. He also brought us some more Family Guy DVDs. I know that show can be somewhat nasty, and I wonder how they get away with the things that they do, especially during prime time. But there is always at least one or two times that we laugh out loud during each episode! It's just so funny!!

Sunday morning I took Rich to breakfast at Wolfgang Puck in the MGM Grand casino. They have hands down the best apple pancakes I have ever tasted! Plus I only ate half of them so I was able to eat the other half for lunch today. Yummy!!

Shauna came over later in the day. She brought Rich a picture of him and her that she had framed and put all sorts of little scrapbook sayings on. It's really cute and definitely something to cherish. We made coney dogs on the grill. After she left we took a walk around the subdivision. It was warm but very nice out.

My clematis hasn't been doing really well. There used to be four stems but they have been dying off one by one. There is only one left but it's got 5 flowers on it and seems to be healthy. Hopefully it will stay that way!

I was awake at 5:00 this morning. I was sitting in the family room enjoying my coffee and Tori was crying at the door to go out. We usually let her go out on the patio and just keep a close eye on her. After about a minute she started crying outside, pretty loudly so I had to go outside in my t-shirt that I sleep in and slippers and bring her back in so she wouldn't wake the neighbors! At least I hope they were sleeping and didn't see me!

In re-reading this post I noticed I talked alot about food!!

Anyway, Monday once again. We had one person call in sick and another one had to leave early because she wasn't feeling good.

The fun never stops!!

The Brenda Photo Challenge-Get Up Close Using Macro

This challenge is hosted by Janice of Butterfly Gardens Thanks Janice for hosting this challenge!

Plate.


Cat.


Knob.


Basket

Weekend Over

Well, it's Sunday once again! How come Fridays don't get here as fast as Sunday's do??



Today we went to the Toledo Zoo. Last time we went there the kids were quite young and they had a panda bear exhibit. It was crowded, people were coming from all over to see the panda bears. All I really remember is we stood in line for hours to see two blobs of black and white fur because they were both sleeping!

Oh yeah, THAT was a worthwhile trip!!

Anyway, the weather was beautiful today so we decided to make the hour drive.

So, it's a typical zoo...they have a couple of elephants



The usual tigers and bears and apes and a cute little meerkat standing sentry:



This arrogant-looking bird:



A sleeping wolf:



Various amphibians including this adorable alligator:



These cool looking stingrays:



Then there was this thing!



Gah!! I may have nightmares tonight!

Hello world!

I took last Friday off work because I needed a little break from the everyday stress of that place! They managed to survive without me so that's a good thing!

Anyway, in the morning I had a appointment for a DXA scan to test for bone density. The girl who did the scan used to work with my daughter. I was surpised to learn she knew her and she was suprised that I was her mother! Must be cuz I'm so young looking!

Then I went to a few garage sales. At one I found this cute little table-top fountain



It was marked $3 and I asked the guy if it worked. He didn't know and sold it to me for $1 just in case. When I got home and put batteries in it, indeed it did not work. I cleaned it up and figured for a dollar it would look cute sitting on my table anyway. However, my husband couldn't resist tinkering with it and got it working. So not only does the water flow, but it plays music too!

I was kind of looking for one of those outdoor fire pits. I saw one last year at a garage sale and passed it up, now I'm kicking myself! Of course, I could just go buy a new one but I'd rather search for a bargain!

The rest of the weekend went by pretty uneventful.

I am trying to get my work schedule changed to 4 days. One of the other girls wants to pick up more hours in the fall and I can afford to let her have one of my days. It would be so awesome to have a three-day weekend EVERY weekend!

Now if we can just get the powers-that-be to agree!

The Brenda Photo Challenge: Beauty Is In The Eye Of The Beholder

This challenge is hosted by Karen of Loved and Engraved Thanks Karen for hosting this challenge!

These are just a couple of the things that are beautiful to me!

Sunrise on Lake Huron

A baby robin.

A scene in Jamaica.

Art Appreciation

In a effort to inject some culture in my township a few years ago, the planning committee decided to let some local or not local artists display some art pieces around town.

Now, I like a pretty picture or sculpture as much as the next person, but I will be the first to admit that I really have no real appreciation for art.

Take this giant sculpture for example.



It sits on the corner of a very busy intersection. It used to be all silver metal but according to the local paper it has "..aged to a rich patina". Ok, I guess so, but it looks like rust to me.

This sculpture is in a strip mall.



I guess it's cheery enough but look at the price tag!



Seriously? $7,500? And this one too.



Price tag.



Whatever!

This one is the most expensive, but it's my favorite by far.



Not because it's all that stunning but because of the awesome title!



Finally someone gets it!