Reading: The One-in-a-Million Boy. This was on Modern Mrs. Darcy's summer reading list, so Amber and I decided to both read it and we will have a 2-person book club discussion about it in August!
Loving: meals from our grill. Now that we have a gas grill, most of the meals we make are made on the grill. This past week I experimented with this kabob recipe (with the modification of eliminating the cheese) as I'm trying out kabob recipes in preparation for the book club I'll be hosting in late August. They were really good and it was a good way to use up some of my fresh Greek oregano from my plant on our deck, but I think I need to try a few more recipes before deciding on one!
Thinking: about what color to paint the doors of our house. I've decided that I need to do something about our egg yolk yellow doors. I'm leaning toward painting our doors a rusty red color, like the color in the photos below, as hopefully that will go well with our two-toned dark brown/cream siding. This house is about a block from us and I keep hoping I will catch the owners while they are outdoors when I'm out for a walk so I can ask them what the brand/name of the color is!
Feeling: frustrated with the pace of my recovery from hip surgery. I hit a bit of a set back earlier this month as my hip flexor started to act up, so I had to stop biking and using the elliptical. I'm trying to add some biking back but I biked for 30 minutes yesterday and I don't think my hip flexor liked that very much. Le sigh. My therapist said this is totally normal and that recovery is different for everyone but I'm starting to feel like I'm never going to be able to run again. I know that's a dramatic thing to say but running is still just so far off and I miss it so much.
Anticipating: combining business with pleasure on my next 2 business trips. Today I fly to DC and will get to see Becky and her husband Ben, and meet Parker! Then next week I fly to Chicago and get to see my friend Nilsa and her family! They recently moved so I am excited to check out their new home.
(Still) Watching: my garden grow each week and loving it! When I got back from my week at the lake, I was able to pick my radishes, which I enjoyed on my salad last week. This past weekend I started to pick some beets, which I roasted and will eat on my salads this week. I can't wait for my beans and cucumbers to start to grow! I've got some peppers that will be ready to eat once they turn red, and there are tons of tomatoes that need to ripen. I'm totally digging this whole gardening thing!
Working: on getting Phil on board with the list of house projects I'd like to do before the end of the year. We have different decision-making styles as I make decisions fast and want to cross things off the to do list quickly whereas he has a 'percolation' decision style as he needs to mull things over. He's on board with me painting the doors, though, and hopefully we can agree on which rooms in the house to paint and what color to paint them. I'm lobbying to paint both bathrooms and our dining rooms.
Grateful: that I was in the financial position to buy a new car last week and that I made a decision that I feel good about. I purchased a new Toyota Camry last weekend. Similar to my purchase of my Accord, I went the practical route and selected a car that will hopefully last me for 10+ years. I wasn't excited about buying a new car as cars and driving just aren't my thing, and it's hard for me to get excited about purchasing a depreciating asset. That said, it is nice to have a new car with new features like blue tooth and a rear camera. I'm most excited about being able to listen to podcasts over the sound system in my car as that wasn't something I could do in my old Accord!
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| Phil took a photo of me with my new car to commemorate the purchase! |
Listening: to Pandora's Hipster Cocktail Station. This station is THE BEST. It's a mix of older, classic songs by artists such as Frank Sinatra and newer songs by artists such as Ray LaMontagne.
Wishing: time would slow down. I know it's cliche to say this, but I can't believe it's mid-July already. I love this time of year so much as I love warm, sunny weather and I just want the days to slow down so I can really focus on enjoying this season. Granted, part of the reason that time is flying is that I am really over-planning my weeks. I am probably due for another 'plan free' week soon.
What are you anticipating, loving, and listening to these days?
19 comments:
Wow, I can't believe you have beets already! Radishes are always fast growers, but beets here don't seem to do as well. Of course I may have been using expired seeds... So far in my garden I have picked a ton of cucumbers and zucchini, and am waiting on green tomatoes and peppers to turn red. The problem is that usually they all get ripe at the same time and then you have so many! I had about 8 large zucchini last week and I have been eating zucchini succotash, stir fry, fried zucchini, etc... the list goes on and on!
Yay for a new car! I love it!! Even though it's such a tough purchase to swallow (I've been putting off trading my car in, even though I know I need to), it's nice to have something newer! I can't listen to podcasts in my car, either, so I just turn up the volume loud and put it in my cup holder, which echos the sound haha. ;)
oh I def need to check out the pandora station. We play a lot of the Frank which Elle loves so I will have to check this station out. Always fun to play music while we are in the kitchen.
You'll love having blue tooth and a camera. Though, i might have still bumped into something. A lot of good that did for me! The kabobs look delicious. Such a yummy summer meal.
Did you use chicken for the kabobs? I should make them, too, as it is a great meal for two people. Did you marinate them before you grilled them?
I bet you are loving your new car with the bluetooth and rearview mirror! I love both items, but especially the mirror! Ours beeps if there is someone in range and even not very close!
Enjoy your two trips and seeing friends!
"We have different decision-making styles as I make decisions fast and want to cross things off the to do list quickly whereas he has a 'percolation' decision style as he needs to mull things over." Oh my gosh this describes me (fast decision maker) and Sergio (very deliberate) to a T! It does make for frustrating conversations but usually it's a good thing that we haven't rushed into something as quickly as I'd like to :)
Your garden really is doing amazing! I would love to figure out a way to have a garden next year depending on where we are living. There is a plot set up for one at our rental but we moved in so late in the season I didn't feel like trying to plant one.
Love your new car! I think it was a great choice for you!
Have so much fun in DC!!
I love my rear camera! It's a silly thing to get excited about but after driving my car still from high school for 10+ years it's easy to get excited about the little things.
I love the red color door idea, that color would look really good! LOL, I think a lot of guys need percolation time! Congratulations on the new car! You can't go wrong with a camry, I loved mine so much! I also really loved the Rav 4!!! Now I love my Accord. I know it feels like it's been forever since you've run and I know how hard that is!!! I'm so sorry :(
YAY for meeting Parks!!! That's exciting! You will have so much fun seeing Becky and Ben!!! You have fun stuff coming up, but I know when you're as booked as this it makes our favorite time of year go by even faster!!!
July is flying by, but I', ok with that. it's hotter than blue blazes down here, and it won't get un-miserable until September.
I'm so glad you're digging the garden (pun intended) and house life! "Nesting" down by painting doors and rooms really makes it feel like it's your house too. Go for those red doors but give Phil his time to accept the other projects. Agreeing to change his house just because it's something you want can seem intrusive to some men. But in the long run, tell him I said it's better to just go along with everything you want. That's what 20 years of marriage has taught me.
Have so much fun with Becky & her family this evening. And give extra hugs to both Becky's family + Nilsa's family next week. Always a little better when you can mix business with pleasure!
I love doing house projects and am itching to do another one. Right now we are doing boring things like replacing our gutters with new ones and a few new windows. Nothing fun :)
The rusty red colour would look great! Also, Toyotas are great! They have such a good reputation for lasting a looooong time.
I am totally with you on the car buying thing; I wanted to hold out as long as I could. I actually bought a new (to me) car a couple weeks ago.
I had been driving my Mitsubishi Lancer since I was 21! I bought it a year old for about $13,000, and drove it for 12 years without a single problem. It didn't have to go into the shop at all. It didn't owe me anything, and I knew since it was inching up on 200,000 KM, it was going to start needing work.
When a local car dealership was offering a minimum of $2000 for ANY trade-in, I knew I couldn't pass that up. I traded it in and got a 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage for only $9000. Not bad! I can't spend a lot on a car ... just can't do it ... the whole depreciation thing as you mentioned ...
Now Christopher and I are in in pay-off-car mode! I hate debt.
Practical cars are just the way to go. As much as I'd like to drive an S-series, I also don't going to the mechanic all the time! My 12 year old Scion Xa and its zero visits to the shop (ever, except body work when I was hit) makes so much more practical sense.
Try not to get too impatient with the hip...it will heal. And you don't want to let the tendonitis get chronic or become tendonosis, so now is the time for even more patience. But you're getting closer to being able to run, day by day.
Your kebobs look delicious! I'll come over and be your recipe taste taster :) I think the red colour would look great! I feel like the summer months always go so quickly and then winter just takes forever to get through. It's not fair!
Love your new vehicle! Brian wanted to get a new car for a long time, but I kept saying no as we had both vehicles paid off and I didn't want another car payment. But since we bought the Ford Fusion, it's been awesome and glad we did
Those kebobs look so delicious! I hope you'll let us know which recipe(s) you end up selecting to serve at your book club. I feel the same way about summer passing by too quickly. I especially feel that way right now - as my research trips always seem to fly by (the one good thing about that it feels like I'm not away from my spouse for ages) and before I know it summer is gone and the academic year is upon me.
I'm sorry to hear about your hip flexor and having to cut back on the biking. I hope you can find some ways to burn off your energy that don't set your recovery back so that you can be running again soon. (I know it won't feel soon enough no matter what.)
Your new car is great!
I feel the same way about cars! May you keep your new one for at least another ten years!
Your garden continues to do amazingly---so impressed! And the new car is beautiful---that was a great picture that Phil took. Sorry to hear of the set back with the hip however---I've been needing to get back to routine praying so I'll add it on the list :)
We listen to Hipster Cocktail all the time! Love it.
Love the new car!! And really like the color! Yay! Congrats. I know this wasn't in your plans.....but hey - it's a good looking and reliable vehicle and I think you can say you got the FULL life out of your Accord!!
Your garden good are incredible! So cool!
I know what you mean about wishing time could slow down. I sure do wish it would too -- this has been a glorious summer.
I'm sorry your hip has been taking its own sweet time. Hang in there -- it will improve.
Would love that car! I think I'll probably wait till mine dies but oh, that one is terrific. And aren't radishes fun? They grow so fast and I love 'em!
That deep red is a great color for a door. I think it would be wonderful on your house!
I am going to have to look into that Pandora station! I hate spending money on new cars but I love the new technology that accompanies each purchase!! If you need extra rooms to paint I have an entire upstairs that needs done. We are hiring someone, we agree on that but we can't decide on colors!
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