Take Me Out to the Ballgame!

What to do on a Friday night in July when the weather is the best weather we've ever had in July? Go to a Louisville Bats baseball game!

Here is UPS delivering the game ball to the plate!

The Bats are a AAA team in the international league (the farm team for the Cincinnati Reds).

What a great night to eat a hotdog (Ted) or chicken quesadillas (Laura) - I know, you're thinking chicken quesadillas at a ballgame?

This is the team mascot - Buddy the Bat! It wasn't a packed house, but they always have fun giveaways, and tonight there were fireworks after the game. The first hit of the game was a line drive into the stands very close to where we were sitting.

I knew that meant I had to pay attention the entire time. The Bats lost 8 - 6, but they had a chance in the 9th inning with bases loaded.

The last couple of innings there was a grandmother and her 8 or 9 year old grandson sitting behind us. The grandson, in his most annoying kazoo voice, was singing, chanting, cheering, and driving us crazy. The grandmother looked at him and said, think what you would be like if I let you have cotton candy!

Dollars and Sense

It's time for another Galapalooza horse! I was at a stop light on Hurstbourne Lane and quickly took this picture of the horse that sits in front of the American Founders Bank.

The horse is named Dollars and Sense, and the artist is Joshua Howard.

I wonder if kids try to get on these horses and pose for a photo?

We are setting a new record for the city of Louisville for the month of July. We have never had a July on record where the temperature didn't reach 90 degrees. It looks like we are going to set that record, and just for the record, I'd like to never have another July where the temperature hits 90!

Speechless Sunday

A Big Boy Now!

Today is Newman's first birthday! He has come a long way from that skinny, flea ridden, scratched up kitty that ran across a busy road right into our hearts!

And yes, he has Paul Newman's beautiful blue eyes! And yes, we find ourselves yelling, Newman, just like Jerry Seinfeld did!

What a precious face - he has turned this house upside down, and we love him to pieces!

Happy 1st Birthday, Newmie!

Tea for Two!

We love McAlister's - more for the tea than the food, but the food isn't bad either! Today is Free Tea Day! You still have time to stop in and get a nice refreshing drink that won't cost you a dime!

Like my Dad always said, There is no such thing as a free lunch! But today, there is such a thing as a free iced tea!

The Never Ending Weekend Project!

We're in a race with the weather, and I think the weather might win! It was too good to be true that we have had several days of unusually cool weather for our neck of the woods!

We finished power washing and staining the flat parts of the decks this past weekend. Then the fun began - doing all the upright pieces of the railings. I finished the lower deck today, but with rain possibly coming in tonight, it will be a few more days before the upper deck can get finished.


I'm sure it will be in the 90's with high humidity by then! I really like the new look!

Today would have been Mom and Dad's 54th wedding anniversary. If you'd like to see what they looked like on their wedding day, you can check out my post from last year!

Speechless Sunday

You Dirty Deck!

What do you do on the only weekend in Louisville's history where it has been 70 degrees in the middle of July? Play golf? Well, yes, if you played golf. But, we don't - so, you powerwash the deck!

First you start with a very dirty deck. The patio and the deck get this dirty from the hickory and elm trees that surround the house.

Then you add a man in a shower cap, acrylic face mask, and rain poncho. When he put on the shower cap, I told him he reminded me of the lunchroom lady. His reply? The lunchroom lady had a better mustache! Bada bing!

Then you spend hours getting the green and black grime off the deck. The uprights take the longest because they have never been done. And the reason they have never been done is because we've never had 70 degree weather in the middle of July!

Here is the semi-finished bottom deck. Tomorrow the semi-transparent gray stain goes on. And what a deal I got! I went to Home Depot with the thought of getting a colored stain. I glanced at the discount table, and there was a gallon of their best semi-transparent stain in gray - usually marked down to $5.00, but it was further discounted to . . . . . . . $1.00!

I needed two gallons, so the paint dude opened the discounted gallon just to make sure it was really the gray color marked on the can. He mixed up another gallon for me - at the regular $32.00 price.

Pictures of the finished deck on Monday!

Go Red!

This Gallapalooza horse, entitled Go Red, is sponsored by Alexander T. Hawkins, MD, of the American Heart Association. It is located on Whittington Parkway.


The artists on this beauty were Devan Gunderson and Richard Stephan.

I'm declaring this the favorite Gallapalooza horse of the Red Hots! We should do a group picture sometime when we can all get together!

Light Up My Life!

Remember this mess of a chandelier I picked up for a mere $20?

Here is what it looks like now - painted and full of crystals! I'm hoping to replace my handmade crystals as I find the real thing at flea markets.

It is now lighting up the sunroom, and I mean lighting it up! I would have liked to let it hang a little lower, but then heads would get bumped! I think it's a nice change from the ceiling fan that was there before.

For those of you who don't visit my Cat in the Clover blog, I posted yesterday about Rocky's journey to the Rainbow Bridge. The house really seems empty without him here today. He will forever live in our hearts.

A Man and a Stick!

Once upon a time there was a man. A former Eagle scout who wanted to live in the country . . . . to become one with nature . . . . . . tend to a garden . . . . . . and build a snake stick!

When the woman heard about the idea, she laughed because she had never heard of a snake stick before. She humored the man because that is what women do sometimes. The snake stick was built.

It was a fine snake stick . . . . . waiting to catch a snake. And it has caught many a snake. Of course, the woman had to eat crow the first time the snake stick did its thing. Neighbors from far and wide knock on the door of the man with the snake stick.

Can you get the snake out of my strawberry pot?, one neighbor asked. Seeing a man doing battle with a snake to protect his neighborhood is a thing of beauty!


So, you can imagine how excited the man was when about ten minutes ago he looked into the backyard and declared, Oh my gosh, look at that snake!

The woman ran to get her camera. He told her to keep an eye on the snake - he was off to get the snake stick!

This four foot gigantic monster had no chance against the man and his snake stick! Just like the man, the snake stick is gentle and kind. It only holds the snake in a loop until the snake gets relocated and released into the wild again!

And the woman breathed a sigh of relief that she was safe once again to go into her backyard! Thank you, Mr. Snake Stick Man!

Speechless Sunday

Blectola!

It seems like the perfect word I typed a few minutes ago as a word verification on someone's blog. If I had to put a definition to blectola it would be this:

It sucks to find out your dog has lung cancer!

Rocky went to the vet this morning after two days of feeling yucky, not eating, and noisy breathing. X-rays indicated what appears to be spots on his lungs and some fluid in the chest.

Yes, he is 14, and dogs that age have problems. But after making the transition almost two years ago from living with my parents, he has become our beloved family member. He has calmed down. He has become more trusting. He loves Ted, his backyard, being brushed (after a loooooong initiation process!), and his sister kitty Sugar.

So, he is home - with antibiotics and nausea medicine. And we will wait . . . . . making him comfortable until it is his time to journey to the bridge.

BLECTOLA!

Take a Seat!

The dining room re-do is done! The last project was to replace the fabric on the chair cushions. I found this fabric at Hancock's on sale, and I love it!

You can refer back to this post that shows you how the fabric goes great with the window treatments.

One of my favorite things in the dining room is this trio of framed family memorabilia. The one on the right is from a collection of love letters my Dad's father wrote to his soon-to-be wife. He was one romantic guy! The items in the white framed shadow boxes include goodies from grandparents, aunts, and uncles on both sides of our families.

I've almost got the chandelier finished - waiting for Ted to help me hang it. I'll be sharing it soon!

View from the Window

It's always fun to casually glance out the window and see visitors in the backyard! Of course, if I were to try taking pictures from the deck, they would run, so shooting through the window has to do.

Ted had told me he saw Mama and two babies - probably twins, and I was so excited to see the little ones - they are so cute!

Baby #1 saw his sibling heading towards the woods, and he took off running to be with him! Mama always keeps a close eye on them when they are wandering around.

They have disappeared for a few days due to the neighbors and their noisy fireworks over the weekend. I hope they show up again soon.

Speechless Sunday

Happy 4th of July!

I hope this 4th of July finds you chillaxin like Violet who is celebrating his 10th birthday today!

Calvin wants to know if there are any holidays where you don't have to wear a silly hat! Have a safe, fun weekend!

When I Grow Up . . . . .

When I grow up I want to be like Helen from Wisconsin. She was the lady that sat next to me on the plane on our trip back home.

Helen is 87 - she looks 70 - she acts 60! She has had some tragedy in her life - losing her husband in an automobile accident when they were in their 50's. And she doesn't drive - never has and never will! You could imagine that a woman her age would be ready to sit in a rocking chair and talk to old people. This is what keeps Helen young at heart:

1. She was coming home from a week's visit with her daughter in Utah because she has a foreign exchange student coming to live with her. She has participated in this program for many years. The students come to learn English at a school in her town. She lives on the bus line, so she goes with them the first day and shows them the ropes. She loves to fix their meals and finds ways to communicate with them until their English improves.

2. She can't wait until August because she is going on a cruise with her sister and nieces. She was disappointed they had to wait until August because August is so far away!

3. She goes to the Moose Lodge to play euchre. She is lucky at euchre and enjoys playing with her friends.

4. She volunteers at her church.

This sweet lady was so full of life, and listening to her made me wish that Ted's Mom was more active. Do you know any older people like Helen?

Ain't No Mountain High Enough!

Who knew there was so much to do at a ski resort in the summer? Our home base while in Utah was at the beautiful Cliff Club resort in Snowbird. It was easy to imagine how busy the place would be in the winter with all the skiiers. There are several buildings at the resort and nestled in between two of them is a mini-park of fun things to do.

Here I am climbing the largest mountain in Utah . . . . . well, it felt like the largest mountain in Utah! I've always wanted to climb a rock wall, and it was much harder than I thought it would be! My upper body strength ain't what it used to be!

There was also a Zip Line. It went super fast, and it was hard to take pictures, so we rode it several times!

They had an Alpine Slide which reminded me of the luge in the Olympics. In the second picture below, you'll see a blue sled-like thingy. That is what we sat in to ride down the slide. That sled FLEW like the wind, and I was screaming the entire time - it was fun!

Here we are on the ski lift. You rode the lift to get to the Zip Line and the Alpine Slide.

It was fun to bring out our inner child for a day!