Virtual Coffee Date

Hi, happy almost Friday! It's been awhile since I've done a "Virtual Coffee Date" catch-up session, so here goes!

If we were having coffee today...

- I'd probably start off by apologizing for the hoarse man voice I'm rocking right now thanks to a nasty chest cold I came down with last weekend. This nasty cold forced me to stay home from work yesterday as I just felt so crappy and didn't want to subject my co-workers to the awful sound of me hacking away. Here's hoping the day of rest did it's trick and that I'm back to full health soon - ideally by tomorrow when I leave for my girls' weekend lake cabin getaway!

- I'd tell you how much I am loving gardening. I never expected to like it as much as I do! I also never expected it to be as easy as it's been. Sure, some thing have been a bit disappointing (like my radishes which didn't grow great as I didn't thin them - lesson learned), but all in all it's been so much fun. I got to pick my first batch of tomatoes last weekend. I heart tomatoes so much so am excited to have a steady supply of home grown tomatoes to enjoy over the coming weeks. Phil doesn't eat tomatoes (his loss!) so I think I am going to try canning salsa or tomato sauce as I'll probably have more tomatoes than I can eat on my own. I've never canned anything before but hopefully it's pretty easy to figure out.

I grew an heirloom breed of tomatoes that turns bright pink instead of dark red. They are delicious!

- I'd tell you that I feel blessed to have a full life but also overwhelmed by my busy schedule at times. Free week night evenings are difficult to come by these days and I've been traveling more for work lately so life feels a bit hectic. August is shaping up to be a busy month so I've decided that I can't say yes to anything else this month, outside of work travel.

- I'd tell you that despite the busy schedule, I have some really fun things to look forward to, like my girls weekend getaway this weekend, hosting our friends from New York next weekend, celebrating Phil's birthday later this month, a book club meeting I'm hosting later this month, and a Labor Day Weekend wedding that is at a lake resort in Minnesota.

- I'd also probably tell you that I managed to track down the email addresses of the couple that lives in the house with the door colors I like. I figured it'd be easier to try to ask them what color they used to paint their door versus trying to find a similarly colored paint chip. Plus it just seems like paint chips are never completely accurate and I'd rather not deal with the trial and error process of finding a color we like. They responded back and said they'll send me the paint color when they get back from the vacation they are on. My goal is to get our doors painted in September. I know it won't happen in August given my busy schedule!

- I'd also tell you that I feel kind of 'meh' about the summer Olympics this year. Maybe it's all the drama around the health risks associated with the location that has resulted in some athletes opting not to go or maybe it's knowing that I won't be able to DVR things since we don't have cable or a DVR. Whatever the case, I just don't feel as excited as I was in the past. Hopefully I'll find my Olympic spirit once they start to broadcast events.

- I'd end on a positive note and tell you that Phil and I bought our tickets for our Bend vacation this week! We got really lucky and got a great deal on our tickets! The price randomly went down $150 the day we bought them and we used a free companion fare I get each year through my Delta credit card, so we only had to buy one ticket. We are going in mid-October and will spend 3 nights in Bend and 1 night in Portland. I'm so excited for this getaway! Bend has lots of great hiking in the area and we'll do a day trip to Crater Lake National Park. It should be an awesome trip!

If we were having coffee today, what would you tell me?