Homecoming

CP went to homecoming last night with a date and two other cute girls. They went to dinner and then to the dance. CP's date is wearing a vintage dress from her great aunt from 1929. She was fired up about it.

Cat trap

Any time we get a new box, it only takes about 20 seconds before we snare a cat in it. They absolutely cannot ignore an empty box. 

Must. Sit. In. Box.

Late Summer Spiders

For whatever reason, we've had spiders everywhere this summer. It must have something to do with all the rain. Towards the end of summer, we get these big perfect-web ones on the deck and in the roses. This one caught a big wasp a few hours after I took this photo. She wrapped it up in silk and then dragged it off to her lair.

Beautiful Night

There's nothing better than a warm moonlit night on the deck.

Dog sitting

We're fortunate to have good neighbors that have fun dogs that need babysitting. They're a pair of King Charles spaniels, and all they want to do is be with people.

It doesn't matter who, they just need to be held.

Husker 2014 Season Opener

The G's hosted a pool party for the opening Husker game. Everyone showed up, including some spectacular weather. I think we went thru 40 hot dogs and brats, plus burgers, BBQ brisket, salad, and nachos. We had so much fun that we just turned on a radio rather than giving up the perfect day and watching the tube inside. 

After the game, we hit the deck at the lodge and continued to enjoy the perfect weather.

JP had a praying mantis that wanted her wine as much as she did. The bug has good taste.

He is Everywhere

I've seen images of Him in tortillas, burned toast, and birthmarks, but never on a pug's butt. 

Fall is around the corner

Our cottonwood is saying that summer is nearly over.

New Margaritas Set

Over the course of the summer, JP has been watching the price drop on a beautiful set of four margaritas glasses and pitcher. At $9.99, she could resist no longer, so we now have some big thick bubbly glass margaritas glasses and a pitcher. She would have bought two sets, but we're out of cabinet space.

Storm Shadow

I had to go up to one of our plants in beautiful Windom, MN, to supervise a new model that's starting production there this year. On the way back, I was treated to some spectacular storm clouds from a storm over Grand Island (150 miles west of where I was on I-29). We raced each other to Lincoln. As the sun set, a rising cloud projected its shadow on the anvil of the big storm. 

Ribfest!

Since we moved to Lincoln nine years ago, we've always wanted to go to Ribfest. This year, the event was moved to the parking lot north of the new arena and the entrance fee was dropped from $15 to $5. We and our friends took all the kids and went to sample some tasty vittles. We went early, hoping to avoid the crowds. There were no crowds, but the sun was out in full force and it was scorching hot.

The vendors all had ginormous setups and the place felt more like a carnival than a food festival. The food was excellent - we tried some ribs, chicken, and pulled pork. The boys love meat of any kind. It was so nice to be able to give them a few bucks and let them wander around on their own; they are getting to be so mature!

We caught the tail end of the first band and stayed until the next one started. The boys were fired up that the bass player had the same instrument as we do, but after a few songs, the boys decided that they had had enough. Live music is fun, but it has to be good music, too.

More Baby Birds

This is the year for baby birds! There's a dove in our pine tree that took over the Robin's nest. Her first batch of eggs were blown out during a storm. The second batch made it and we now have two fuzzy baby doves. It will be fun to watch them grow.

Helper

While I was in MN, the garage door spring broke. JP bought a new one when I was in WI, and we installed it yesterday. CP was a big help for the two-person job. The door company wanted $200 for installation. We got it done in an hour.

Skate Queens

While checking out the garage roof and attic, we discovered a long lost treasure: Nana and her sister's old skates. 

Leather boots and wooden wheels. Classic!

The sizes were right, so S & J put on a show for us. Can't wait to go skating in the basement at B & S's house on Thanksgiving.

Nest Rescue

While we were cutting up Nana's fallen tree, the neighbor called J over to see something. It was a nestfull of baby birds that had fallen out of the tree. It looked like a cat or crow had removed the nest and its occupants from their perch. One of the babies had some big holes in him. The others were OK, so J put them back in, and we put the nest back in the tree with a little duct tape. (Yes, we made sure to double back the tape so that the little feathers wouldn't stick to it.)

After a few minutes, the mom returned to her flock and got on with feeding them. She looked like a female cardinal, but we weren't sure. One of the babies had a yellow stripe across his tail. Anyone know what sort of birds these are?

Honeydo List

While at Nana's, we were able to get thru her Honeydo list:

Speed up the kitchen faucet, replace a shutter on the garage, install two new windows in the garage, shore up a sagging beam in the garage, tighten the furnace fan belt, and remove the remnants of the big tree that fell down. It's nice having things to do while there.

The tree was blown over in a big storm. It landed on the garage and poked a hole in the roof. The roofer noted that the roof needed some support, so we put in a couple basement floor jacks to beef up the structure.

B came over with his pickup and a saw and we took care of all the big pieces of wood.

Lake Geneva and Woodstock

Saturday, we left Nana's in time to be the first to arrive at the beach in Fontana on Lake Geneva, WI. The freshly raked sand was a ginormous zen garden.

The boys and M's kids played in the water ALL day. They were able to dive off the swimming dock into clear deep water. I got reprimanded by the lifeguard for attempting a back flip. "Sir, No flips off the dock sir."

After the lake, we hit M's house in Woodstock for dinner. J the dog was excited to see J's face.

Galena

No trip to Nana's would be complete without the requisite day in Galena. We hit General Grant's home on the way into town.

We had a delicious lunch at the DeSoto House, Illinois' oldest operating hotel.

Nana's House

W the cat was happy to see us. He LOVES attention.

When we arrived, Nana had breadsticks and pizza waiting for us. The boys love breadsticks.

Summer Travels

Over the last two weeks, I went on two business trips and we made the annual summer trek to Nana's house. 

Day 1 - Mon - Drive Lincoln to Minneapolis (Toro Mothership)

Day 2 - Tues - Work @ Toro

Day 3 - Wed - Drive back to Lincoln

Day 4 - Thurs - Drive to Nana's house in IL

Day 5 - Fri - Galena!

Day 6 - Sat - Lake Geneva and Woodstock

Day 7 - Sun - Cookout @ Nana's

Day 8 - Mon - Drive home to Lincoln

Day 9 - Tues - Fly to Milwaukee via Chicago. Drive to Kohler, WI.

Day 10 - Wed - Drive all over Milwaukee, fly home via Minneapolis.

Flipping out in the Pool

Before we went to Beerfest, the neighborhood hit the G's pool for some fun and food. 

The boys practiced doing flips into the deep end. They both can get most of the way around going forward, but neither would attempt going over backwards. They had a blast.

Beerfest!

JP bought me a VIP ticket to the Lincoln Beerfest at Haymarket Park (home of the Saltdogs). C & B and I went and tasted from a selection of 100 beers from 25 brewers. On paper, it sounded like the perfect afternoon. However, there is only so much craft-brewed beer one can take in a jungle climate. All of the brews were heavy, hoppy, and perfect for a cool fall afternoon in, say, October. None were appropriate for staying cool on a steamy July afternoon. 

This gives us one of the most important axioms of engineering:

In theory, theory and practice are the same. In practice, they aren't.

After Beerfest, JP and the boys showed up and we watched the Saltdogs baseball game.

Newlywed Neighbors

Last night, our new neighbors, M+K, tied the knot. They had their reception at the Firefighter's Hall for about 200 people. The boys didn't go, but should have; there were a ton of cute girls looking for dance partners.

Summer of Sun

Every weekend, we've been able to hit the G's pool and relax in the sun.

Had we known how nice the weather is here in Nebraska when we arrived nine years ago, we would have installed a pool when we bought the house. 

Rocketboy

The girls next door babysat their niece's son for a month this summer. He really enjoyed hanging out with the boys. We took him out to shoot rockets one breezy morning. All we had were C engines, which lofted his rocket up 1,000 feet. Despite a large hole in the parachute, the rocket drifted half a mile on its way down. Luckily we were able to recover it from a bean field.

Wheels

CP finally passed the written learner's permit test and is now on the road. He hasn't been that excited to drive until he actually got behind the wheel. Now he's a little more engaged. We stopped by some of the local car lots and that added to his excitement. Now he just needs to cut the grass a few more times to raise some money. 

Let's see... If the car costs $6,000, and you make $10 each time you cut the grass, how many times will you have to cut the grass?