TGIF, everybody! Linda, ugh...wallpaper stripping. Good luck with that. Big job. Messy also. Keep focused on your vision for the finish & the fun of watching the new paint transform that room. Alexa, I'm so ready to spend time in the garden. Enjoy the hosta meeting. My early birds are just popping the ground. We've had good precipitation so I'm expecting some good growth this year, hoping anyway. Enjoy the confirmation party. We BBQ'd last night & have leftovers for dinner tonight. Housecleaning happening today. The BIG news here is that we got a conference call from our daughters last night. We'd been on pins & needles for a couple days wondering what was happening. I was just assuming it was a joint Happy BD a couple weeks early for DH. Nope, but it was about birthdays. BOTH of our daughters are pregnant!!! :)) DD#1 is due October 24. They've been trying for about 3 years. She's irregular & it just wasn't happening. She was at the doctor a week ago today & it's official. This will be her second child. DD#1 became pregnant when she was 15 & gave birth at 16 (our first grandson). DGS#1 is now 18 & just finished high school hoping to get into the USCG. Our daughter did not marry her son's father (thank goodness!). Anyway, she's married now to a great guy who wants this baby as badly as she does. We're delighted for them. DGS#1 also seem excited. DD#2 has been married about 7 years. She had a miscarriage a couple years ago. Then, about a year ago her husband lost his job. He was manager of several electronic stores. The entire company filed Chapter 11 late '09. He's not been able to find another job yet. :( Nevertheless, babies don't care about such things & we're all delighted. This is DD#2's first child. She's due September 10. So, we've got grandbabies #5 & #6 coming within six weeks of each other & in time for the Holiday season. This weekend, I want to go shopping for baby stuff! We've got a wonderful baby store here in town. I can hardly wait for DH to finish up some stuff he promised the law firm he's working with so we can go look for cuddly baby blankets, etc. This is a happy weekend in our house! TGIF! /tricia

TGIF for sure!! I've been on the road all week and I'm glad to be home FINALLY!! Stacie, hot as heck here too...but I LOVE summer so the heat doesn't bother me at all. I'll take it over winter and cold temps.....yuck. Linda, I know for sure you will have a great time with the girls....I still remember when I finally figured out your forum name. Katie, congrats to beating the big "C" pal! I'm still shocked at how you pulled that off at camp last year. I still love you stemless glass tip! Pat, I missed the culinary school thing. Too cool! I'd love to read your blog or at least follow up here on the forum. What a trooper you are with all you've been through the last couple of years. Lindac, I'm thinking you will be there reguardless....I know you love those Grandkids of yours. Stay cool whatever you decide. Nancy, have a great time with your company....sixties would be okay but I'm loving 87 at ten....perfect for skinny dippin'! Gina, you sure are a busy lady. I wouldn't think you need lessons with all of the ping pong playing you've been doing. I hope the new paddle does ya good! Give Odo a little belly rub for me too....I'm thinking he is there cheering you on. Lars, great temps, but I guess that's the CA coast for ya. Hope you and Larry have a good weekend. Andi, Linda's pickles are WORTH the nine day effort for sure!! I love them...and they are CRUNCHY after all of those boiling soaks. Jo, 58 sounds like it's close to winter to me...LOL! San, glad to hear you had a great time at the cottage. I see you have been up to some other fun too...I'm REALLY jelous over that one. Hot here too, triple digit temps are forcasted through next week here. I've been on the road all week and glad to be home....so is Lucy. I'm headed back to the city tomorrow to take in a little of the PGA...Tiger ended the day very good today. I'll be doing some more canning tomorrow evening...that a general chores sum up my weekend so far.....ya never know who may show up at the lake. Have a GREAT weekend everyone!!! David

Sneaking in late.good job Nancy starting this thread! Alexa, please post a picture of you all done up to the nines. Stacy have fun with your pork haul, been following the conversation on your thread. Good luck with car shopping toomy 10 yr old, 150K van is still going strong but starting to creak.maybe Ill let DS #2 have it. Yikes! AM these years will fly. Sharon the weather is finally turning cool here too and I may try canning again, good luck with yours. Hang in there Goldgirl, one day you will have a life again. LindaC (still want to go to LindaWhatever) let us know what you do with those apples. Pat T: One more semester! One more semester! One more semester!!!....... One more semester! One more semester! One more semester!!!.......that enough? Maggie I have no concept of close up the house, but good luck. Annie, DS #2s English teacher has a photo of a giant fork stuck in a road on her website. I chuckle every time I get there. I hope that chef puts out food worthy of your standards, I know youll be analyzing every dish to see if you can do better. Bring us some good recipes, and pix of salmon hauls. Mimsic feel better. Wednesday night approacheth. Duane, 11 dogs.wow. Glad you have the work but oh boy thats a lot of poop to pick up. Stacie, glad your gallbladder is cooperating until you can deal with it! Doug, my in-laws are dealing with a bunch of elderly cats. You guys are all saints. Hey if the pizza turns out, I have some caputo flour I can send ya. I picked up some at a local Italian store (same one I get my 6-in-1 tomato sauce, also beloved by pizza heads). My DH is the pizza guy here so I may get him to make something tonight. Hmmmm..cool weathermaybe pizza. Sherrmann we are busy w/bdays in October too. I notice lots of bdays this time of year.means people are busy in February when its cold, and nice and warm inside? Darfc. Shaun watch out I might just crank call ya while you are working the phonesFeel better! Rhome410, nice haul, welcome again to the forum. Dedtired I feel your pain. DH has more time off work so he has decided to go on a closet clean out rampage. My closets too. Grrrr. Sometimes being single looks good. Hey Ellen think reciprocation.vacation in New Zealand? Photo ops! Lyra, mixed blessings, eh? Stick to your guns, sweetie. Tobyt, by now you should know is OK for non-liner postings, LOL. Youre an old timer and have earned it! SharonCB, welcome home! Susie hang in there, I think the market will turn around, but not for a while. I have friends in similar boats. Terri, keep your finger on that farm job. Somehow I bet that teen wont last long and theyll be calling you again. Bri29 enjoy the projects, gotta love em. Me? I surf WAY too much. Awwww David. You need a HUG. Sending you a big one. Looking forward to the real thing in November. Peppi, glad to hear the house survived that rain you showed us. And a Foodsaver set up looks PERFECT for that new couple, good thinking! Katiec, my favorite librarian, keep on trucking. Jojoco were couch potatoes. Im jealous! Happygram youre not as much of a lurker as you think you are bwahahaa. Hey we have our own quilter on the forum, Teresa NC7. Go check out her excuse me thread on conversations, if you havent already (too lazy to check). Sprout26, Im craving Utah againtime to think of skiing. Happy Anniversary! cotehele, I have a funny Il Trovatore story (were BIG operaholics). When the kiddies were young, we took them to a student preview. We had prepared them by showing them the movie, telling them the character/story, playing the music (especially the Anvil Chorus) and of course showing them the Marx Brothers A Night at the Opera. DS #2 fell asleep in the car on the way there. He woke up crying I dont want to sit through a three hour opera!. The minute the house lights went down, and the curtain up on the castle scene, his eyes got big and he was enthralled through intermission. We sneaked down from nosebleed to third row center after intermission. After the show he proclaimed mom, if I can sit here, I want to go to operas! Ka-ching, ka-ching.um grow up a bit, kid when you can sit through the Ring cycle, well add you to our subscription. LindaC, every time there is an empty seat by us, I put you there in spirit. Kathleen.enjoy a quiet weekend. I like alternative busy ones with quiet times. [hint: I open a Word document, make it a smaller window, and catch up from there.] Chancesmom, give that girl a hammer and nails and put her to work on that demo. We put ziplocks of time capsule stuff in our bathroom walls when we were remodeling a newspaper, a letter, etc. I asked the future owners why they dont like my gaudy Italian powder room, LOL. Rachel, good luck moving. No info on the new kitchen? My turn? Yikes! Friday we had my inlaws over for dinner, DH put a chicken on his beloved Big Green Egg. Im the only one in the family that doesnt like chicken/beef on that thing. It was a late dinner because he had spent the afternoon in downtown LA talking with a Bee Keeping company. Because of our garden, we now have a hive on our side yard (pretty sure its Euro not African beasties) and DH wants to keep it but move it down to the bottom of the garden. May not be doable, but hell try. Its next to a row of oleanders and he says honey from those blossoms are toxic, so we wont be harvesting any. Saturday we started setting up our sukkah or booth for the Biblical Festival of the Tabernacles which starts Oct 13th. We come up with humorous decorative themes remodeling (hanging power tools from the roof), disco, my favorite a few years ago was mentally ill bible heroes. Lots of those! This year Im thinking it would be topical to choose either Jewish bankers (good AND bad) or Jewish political candidates. LOL. Last night we took the kids, as part of DS #1s bday present, to see The Capitol Steps; he is into politics. We went out to a good Japanese restaurant, his favorite, before hand. Good laughs. Poor kids bday falls on Yom Kippur eve this year. Bound to happen as he was born the day after YK. Today DH and I are going to a swap meet to pick up more parts for the sukkah. I think Ill put up a pizza (Dougs fault) for tonight. I have to start planning Yom Kippurs dinner meal on Wednesday nightDS #1 has asked for salmon in puff pastry, and I suggested it would be good with an avgolemono sauce, with orzo pilaf on the side he is delighted. Whew, it was easy doing this on Word, with the TGIF thread open in another window, then cutting and pasting! Clinking with water to everyone (big water drinker)!

duane--i think everyone on the northeast coast was hunkered down after our fun drive home last night! i expected the roads to be slick but that "ooblick" falling from the sky just kept glomming on to the windshield and wipers. my trip is only about 22 miles or so and i had to stop twice on the way home to clean the wiper blades so i could see! enjoy the wegman's trip stacy--i'd love to go along with you as that is such a neat store. not much you can't find in there, is there? sorry to hear you aren't feeling well, maggie. and i certainly hope your new footwear cleans up to your satisfaction. maybe grace didn't understand that "uggs" was a brand name and not a statement :) congrats, gina! i knew you had been working hard on your game but your teacher said your stroke was perfect? it just doesn't get any better than that--congrats to you! glad to hear that meredith continues to challenge you, chase. you wouldn't have it any other way, would you? we bought our tree last weekend and it's still sitting in a snow bank... happy birthday to wolf, sharon! sounds like you have everything all mapped out to make things special! michelle--i sure hope you add snow chains and kitty litter to your list, should you decide to continue on your jaunt this weekend. the weather reports look absolutely horrid right now! good luck with your decision! rearranging and cleaning up are what's on my weekend list. gotta make room for the tree and get the christmas cards ready for monday's mail. those 2 little tasks will really take way longer than they should but i sort of look forward to it. hope everyone in our part of the world stays off the road if you don't absolutely have to be out and about--enjoy!