Summer Update I and 4th of July in Photos

One of our many summer delights this year was going to see the Mariners up close and personal thanks to Meg and Chris and their sweet tickets they kindly shared with us. Baby Dillon came along and entertained us greatly, dozed, and thoroughly enjoyed his first baseball game!

I finally got to visit Laura's parents' beautiful new 'estate' near Mt. Hood. They hosted Laura's wedding shower in their beautiful self-designed new house.

Ryan was a real sweet pea and made me a cherry pie from scratch (even though he prefers apple)

My new 'chicks and hens'...

Speaking of chicks...these ducklings were a part of our 4th of July walk. We had a fun filled day of long walks, gardening, a bike ride to the lake for a swim and then an EXTRA long night of bike rides as we celebrated the 4th by riding to a bbq place near Gas Works, then rode to Alan's rooftop for the fire works where Ry and his bros and I enjoyed Ry and Jake's homemade apple pie.

The yard and garden are in full bloom and I got to bring some of the beauty indoors for a week or so...

Ry found this giant in the basement when he was doing laundry! Our research indicates he is a Hobo spider, not too dangerous...but HUGE and nightmarish.

Ry's photo of the Smith Tower on a warm summer night downtown.

I bought these sweet little dishes that were made in France. Perfect for his and her banana splits. These got a little melty by the time I found the camera. Jason (Ry's little brother) suggested that we install a camera in the kitchen with a foot trigger for all the food photos I take!

Chillin' on the front porch...

The accomplishment of the year: an entirely clean and organized office. After years of being our secret stash place for a quick housecleaning fix, we finally made the office a happy place.

While I was at it, I decided to organize my bookshelf in a style first inspired by a little cafe in Copenhagen Denmark. The original photo was stolen with our computer, but these give you the idea. I never organize my books alphabetically anyway (much to the dismay of some friends). It is interesting to see what books end up together when organized by COLOR! Harry Potter next to the History of Vietnam for example...