It helps to have been in Boy Scouts

Where else would you learn to take down a tree by yourself with just a chainsaw and a pruning lopper?

Dinner with the Grobles

Wednesday we ate supper on the deck, something we do as often as possible. It’s always fun to see what wildlife will visit the yard while we’re out there. This time it was like Grand Central Station. There were more birds than planes stacked up at O’Hare – starting with the hummingbird feeding at the blue salvia in the flower box on the deck. There were bluejays, a couple dozen finches, and a cardinal that swooped by, barely missing Jim’s head. We spotted at least three chipmunks scurrying around and grabbing birdseed that dropped from the feeders. Do you know that they really do look like Chip ‘n Dale? A trio of ducks also stopped by for a snack. Three rabbits made their way into the yard. One was a very young guy, which Jim has determined to be the culprit behind some recent nibblings on low-lying plants. Let me tell you, cuteness is that little guy’s saving grace! There are days when I start looking for a recipe for rabbit stew.

We Have Produce

And soon we'll have salsa! The cherry tomatoes and the jalapeno peppers are doing well. The two bell pepper plants are still in the flower/bud stage. I have high hopes for my little crops.

That noise you hear in the back ground? That's Jim, humming the theme song for "Green Acres."

Good bye, old friend

This is one of two trees we planted in the first few months after we moved in. About three years ago, a snow storm hit in late April, after the flowers had started blooming, and the tree was never quite the same. This year, it was evident that it was not going to make it.

Even though we'll plant another tree in its place, we'll still miss this one.

Pantry Transformation

For seven years, I dealt with a pantry that had just 4 2-foot deep wire shelves, which bowed under any kind of weight, until Jim installed some wood supports. The depth meant that things got lost (witness the 2-year-old jar of peanut butter I found way in the back -- we go through the stuff so fast, I bet I've bought countless jars since that one). And some items just didn't stack well on those shelves. Something had to be done. So Jim went to work, installing 12-inch deep laminated shelves, supported on all three sides to avoid warping, and spaced so that we could get one more shelf in. Then he painted everything. The result was amazing. I seem to have way more room than you would think, having effectively cut the shelf space in half. Most suprising of all is how much better I can see everything now!

Thanks, honey. Great job!

Saturday my pantry looked like this:

Sunday it looked like this:

"Starving children in China would be happy to eat this . . ."

Tonight it looks like this:

(Yes, all that stuff on the table did fit into this space!)

"Because I'm worth it"

Every couple of months my nail and hair appointments hit the same week. This time, I decided to take the beauty thing up a notch and get my long overdue summer pedicure, too. So I picked out a fourth-of-July festive color and put my feet (literally) in the capable hands of Kelly, my nail stylist.

After all, a girl's gotta have good looking toes for the summer!

You can't even tell . . .

Early last month, we fixed the sun room ceiling, with the help of our friends Bill and Sarah --well, that is, Jim and Bill fixed the ceiling, Sarah and I provided moral support and food (I seem to recall cream-filled things from Presti's . . . but I digress . . . ).

The original plan for the fix didn't quite work out, but after some problem-solving, which I think involved math, and some high-decible cutting of the metal soffit material with some sort of power tool, the hole in the ceiling was a thing of the past. A little white caulk filled in a few remaining gaps and voila! it looks good as new.

The best thing is that now whenever I go into the sunroom I'm not reminded of that scary day last December.