Jubilee

So many reasons to love summer:

1. The Girl and her Trampoline.

This summer Isabella and I jumped on the trampoline after dinner. It was our thing. One hot night we brought some blankets and a pillow out and read books by lantern light until the cool breezes kicked in. We were more fascinated, though, by the zillions of bugs attracted to the light. 

2. Our First Harvest

We are terrible gardeners. But we grew enough tomatoes to make this:

 

and it was delicious!

3. Fish fry

Mark even had a t-shirt to go with the theme. Now that's dedication.

4. Baby M. 

"In Love" pretty much sums it up.

This summer Matthew figured out how to turn from his tummy to his back-big milestone!

5. And then there's his big sister, who stole my heart a few years back...

Here's just one reason why:

A summer headline you probably missed: Isabella Moves Into Box...

After (Doll)House is Hit by Tornado.

Thank goodness her fire truck was close by to assist in the rescue.

6. The Freemont Diner.  

We made an impromptu stop at the highly hyped roadside farm stand 

with its dirt driveway and chicken farm. 

Our family reviews: 

Katie liked the layout and font style of the menu.
Mark liked his coca cola.
Isabella thought their mac n' cheese was too pretentious.
Matthew liked everything--except the food, which he didn't eat, because he knows nothing compares to his mama's roasted bananas and blueberries, pureed to perfection.

The dinosaurs thought is was all very prehistoric, but the turquoise tables were a nice touch.


7. Family Reunion.
Surrounded by family is the best way to end a summer! My Dad's family gathered at their house for a lovely dinner and visit. Elinor and Bob came from Southern California, while Tom and Margo were visiting from Pennsylvania.  We love and miss all of you already!

 When we look back and say, those were halcyon days, we're talking 'bout jubilee.

Dueling Pianos

Around the same time last year, our family was approached by two different parties looking to unload their lonely, un-played pianos. What were the odds--especially since Piano (singular) topped my It's-Too-Expensive-but-I'd-Really-Love-One Wish List. PianoA belonged to our landlords, purchased at an auction in the hopes that one of their grandchildren would take up lessons. Never happened. They weren't technically giving their piano away, they just wanted it in a home where it would be played. PianoB belonged to the Delurys, good friends of my parents. They were planning a living room renovation and were deciding whether or not to depart with their beloved piano--for good.  Theirs, however, was located in their home in Roseville, 80 miles away. We decided, in the end, to become the temporary custodians of PianoA, since we only had to roll it down the driveway to get it to our house--and since the Delurys weren't quite ready to give up their piano...

...until this summer. They asked us again if we were interested and, well, it was too hard to pass up an opportunity to have a piano of our own. We rented a truck, drove up to hot Roseville, and had a lovely visit with Jane and John. A neighbor graciously helped Mark load the piano in the truck.

This little spinet is a beauty. It plays beautifully and looks wonderful in our living room. Thank you Delurys for such a generous gift! (Isabella was fascinated by the hammers hitting the strings to make sound.)

When I told our landlords that we were ready to give back their piano for a chance to have one of our own, they told me that they really didn't want theirs back. Hmmm. Quite the conundrum.

What to do with two pianos? In a strange, twisty kind of  pay-it-forward act of kindness, and upon our landlords' request, we were able to find someone and give them...a free piano. Now the two lonely, un-played pianos are lonely and un-played no more!

On the way back from picking up the Delury's piano, we stopped at the Stephens for a pool party play date. Matthew and Leo were a little unsure of each other in the beginning, until they realized how much they had in common: hair, soft skin, drool, fun toys, etc, etc.

Santa Cruzin' On a Friday Afternoon...

Oh, when the sun beats down and burns the tar up on the roof

And your shoes get so hot you wish your tired feet were fire-proof

Under the boardwalk, down by the sea

On a blanket with my baby, is where I'll be.

The Date

Teddy, age  5, (neighbor and grandson of our landlords) shows up at our door on his John Deere 12V Gator. “Can I take Isabella for a drive?” he asks. Now normally we don’t let Isabella go out on a weekday night, but then again, it was 7 pm, the witching hour, and frankly, we needed someone to take her off our hands. Happily, we gave our consent. Upon request, Mark helped load two shovels in the battery operated tractor. We then watched out the window as Teddy drove Isabella across the driveway to the freshly dug up dirt patch--where they commenced to dig for treasure. This wasn’t just any ol’ outing, this was Isabella’s dream date. Chaperone Mark was called out once to help back the tractor out of some deep dirt, but soon the two happy clams were back shoveling and digging and burying to their hearts’ content--until Teddy was called home for supper. 

He’s been back pretty much every night, since. I guess he's met his match.

A Grand Reception

A few weekends ago, we attended the wedding reception of Katie and Nic Hoggan. And let me tell you, they've set the bar pretty high. Here's my new list of criteria for what makes a reception great:
1. An adorable bride and groom
2. Being surrounded by people you love--and have missed seeing!
3. A beautiful and simple location
4. A photo booth with a professional photographer and props.

First up, the adorable couple -having their cake, and eating it too. They met in Hawaii. They have a wonderful love story, and they are the nicest people you will ever meet.

Katie the Bride

 2. Old friend, Laurie Telles. Husband Matt Telles, wasn't able to be there, but she flew in from the East Coast and we got to catch up a bit, which was such a treat.

 3. Cute husband, sitting on couch with cute baby in the home where the reception was held. So, I didn't get too many location pictures, but we were at Katie's aunt and uncle's house in Walnut Creek. Beautiful home, beautiful backyard with a pool. Perfect place for a wedding reception.

Isabella got her boogie on while eating one of the many confections of the party.  Although I didn't ask her, I'm pretty sure her criteria for a great wedding reception would look something like this:
1. Cake pops
2. Spencer (the recent high school graduate, and cousin of the bride, who so graciously played games with the little kids in the front yard.)
3. A dance floor
4. A photo booth, where you can dress in costumes and have your picture taken.

4. We wanted to get our family picture taken, but while Mark and I were busy picking out our props, Isabella, unbeknownst to us, slipped passed us to take a few solo shots:

We finally caught up with her.

I'm pretty sure this year's Christmas card is in here somewhere.

At some point during the evening, we lost track of Isabella--until evidence of her whereabouts surfaced...

First stop was the photo booth. We eventually found her out in the front yard playing tag with Spencer and the other kids. She seriously thought it was the funnest party ever.

The trip home wasn't so bad either. Since Isabella already had nothing but sugar coursing through her veins, we decided to pile on a little more. A Krispy Kreme doughnut shop was just off the highway. I knew she'd love it and since we hadn't been to one since living back East, we decided to stop --at 9:30 at night. Oh the pure joy. She loved watching the doughnuts being made. She made friends. She wore the hat. She ate her doughnut. Shockingly, she fell asleep before we got home.