Our day so far...the good & the bad

So our Memorial day started with us running numerous errands. We had to drop my car off at the dealership for a free oil change & to get the emissions & inspections done. David & I both drive nearly identical '97 Honda Accords. His car is in much better shape than mine.

We also wanted to check the sales and pick up a grill for our deck. We thought it would be fun to have one with all the family coming to visit this Summer.

Leah had a blast playing with the buckles in the shopping carts & spotting all the ceramic dogs & kitties in the lawn & garden centers.

We also went to Bob Evans for lunch where Leah got to sit in a booster seat on the bench. She LOVED that, and she talked the entire time while she colored. I'll post pictures later.

Now the bad news good news part of my post.

Bad news my car failed emissions & needs about $1,000 worth of work for it pass and about $2,500 to fix all of the problems. We really don't need two cars so we are going to look into donating it. At this point, we are just cutting our loses. David rides the train to work and honestly this year we've only needed two cars so we have one to drive when the other is at the mechanic's shop. Not a very convincing argument to keep paying insurance and repair costs for both.

I also realized when we got home that I couldn't find the I-phone David gave me for Christmas. It made me sick. I tore apart the diaper bag and checked everywhere in the car...under the seats, in the glove compartment, behind Leah's car seat. It was nowhere to be found. Numerous hours had past since I last remembered seeing it. We were almost certain it was gone. Either it got ran over in the Kmart parking lot or someone took it.

I changed the passwords on my e-mail accounts. We called & left a vm on my phone hoping that it would be returned. We skeptically called Kmart to see if by chance someone turned it in. I was so surprised to hear David say, "Oh, really?? That's great. I'll be right there." They had it! We couldn't believe it. I'm so grateful for honest people...and that it didn't get smashed to pieces in the parking lot, because of my negligence.

Now, David is going back to Kmart to pick it up for me, and I am going to take extra good care of it from now on!

Bike

We picked up one of these for Leah last weekend. Today we rode around in the kitchen where its much more comfortable for me to pull her around (it was 90 degrees and humid outside). I'm hoping she learns to scoot on her own soon.

She's also figured out how to catch a ride with her friend. Doesn't this picture just remind you of summer?

Failed Attempt

It's been nearly a month since I felt extremely motivated to garden. My first task was to move a plant we've had for almost three years to a bigger pot.

Somehow during the transplant I managed to snap the crooked stem in half...Oops...and I had to pull it out.

Over the next few weeks, I watch the plant slowly die. This is what it looked like a week ago before I finally put it out of its misery.


The good news is that the azalea bushes we planted in front of our house are still alive.

The true test will be if they are still alive in January. We were told at the garden center that if we didn't plant them correctly they would die in exactly 9 months.

As a result of the demise of a very good and decent plant, I'm modifying my original gardening plans. Instead of planting lots of vegetables, I'm going to have a few pots of flowers and then give it a shot again next year.

Exploring

Leah has been taking on hour nap once a day for about six weeks. It gives us lots of time to spend out and about in the morning.

Here are a few recent pictures of her on the move.

Bull Run National Park: She liked the ramp to the restrooms much more than the cannons.

Picking dandelions.

Running around a courtyard in Manassas.

With my "KEEys" of course

I love to watch her walk around on such official business. There are just so many things to see and touch there isn't any time to waste.