A KID-FRIENDLY FOURTH

This year's July 4th hoop-de-doo was probably one of our calmest ever. We actually celebrated with our kids the day before, and we didn't dare go into town the day of, since they close the roads off at 9:00 AM for the big parade, which doesn't start until 10, and the crowds don't dissipate until after lunch. We didn't think our little Calvin was old enough, or had patience enough, to stand around in the blazing heat for the mandatory hour, waiting for the parade to begin, let alone last through the parade and the log jam afterwards, when everyone wants to leave at once. So, I admit, it made me a wee bit jealous when my BFF Paula posted pictures of their annual celebration with their grandson.

Little Wyatt, Back in the Day

They've lived in the same subdivision in College Station, with quarter acre lots and no curbs, since their own son Chase was a toddler. When they moved there it was on the edge of town and felt like being out in the country, but now they've been absorbed and surrounded by the ever-growing city. Paula doesn't remember exactly when it happened, but some years back a few grandmas got together and decided to organize a more kid-friendly way to celebrate the Fourth with their little ones. They organized an annual parade for their subdivision, which all the kids and grandkids could actually participate in, instead of watching from afar.

Pawpaw Tim and dad Chase, who is the baseball coach at Rudder, hence the shirts.

They raise the flag and say the pledge, then ride around the big triangle at the entrance to the neighborhood in/on their home-decorated conveyance of choice. Then everyone has cookies and the kids get to explore actual fire trucks and police cars, which is a pretty big deal!

Not-So-Little Wyatt This Year, His 5th

They're all hoping he has another year or two to go, before he decides he's too big for all this fun!

Too bad our tiny neighborhood sits on a steep hill with only one main road. The ride down would be great... 'til you hit that curve and land in the creek.

MORE FUN EVERY DAY

Got an unexpected call from my daughter yesterday. We already had plans for a meet-up at their house to celebrate The Fourth, but they had a nice long 4-day weekend to fill, and were thinkin' about coming down to hang in Wimberley for a bit. Did we mind? What a silly question!

We ended up meeting them at Hays City Store for brunch, and just had the best time.  We normally don't sit outside this time of year, what with all the mosquitoes and temps hovering just below 100. However, with their huge oak trees for shade, and fans all around us, it was actually quite pleasant -- and much less crowded and noisy than the inside!

We're at the lemon-loving stage.

The boys like sitting in front of that big fan and letting their hairs blow back.

Two packages arrived at our house earlier this week -- things I couldn't resist ordering for our little Goobs, even though he won't be old enough to play with them for another year or two. One package held a little tool box made by Green Toys, along with a couple of tool-themed books to go with it.

The next day his "explorer" outfit came, complete with pith helmet, binoculars, bug net, magnifying glass, and a vest with lots of pockets and clasps -- much like the one Papa John used to wear to carry all his camera lenses in, and still has. They can be twins!

Both orders were meant to tie in with with the "Builder" and "Explorer" outfits that I got for his Wonder Crew Doll a while back, and I was probably more excited about their arrival than if I had ordered a magnificent piece of jewelry or a boxful of art supplies for myself. No, not probably. Definitely!

I have to remind myself constantly not to rush through any part of this experience, but it's so hard not to, when he just gets to be more and more fun every single day!

Alas, he still has a ways to go before he's ready for this level of imaginative play. He is, however, entering the mimicking stage, and has started picking up a variety of items, holding them to his ear, and babbling away as if he were talking on the phone. It came as quite a shock to my daughter, when she realized what he was doing, since she takes great pride in not being a phone addict, like most of her generation.

What can I say? Monkey see, monkey do.

THE ROOMS-TO-GO FIASCO

Way, way back in February, the hubster and I stopped into Rooms To Go on a whim. We were looking for some kind of grandchild-friendly ottoman-like thingy to replace our not-so-friendly glass-topped coffee table. Instead we spotted those awesome red leather chairs, and both fell madly in love with them -- something which has rarely ever happened in our forty two years of marriage! So, of course, we had to take action.

Unfortunately, the name "Rooms To Go" is a bit of a misnomer, as they don't actually allow you to take anything "to go"! That huge building at the Austin location is simply a showroom, with no warehouse space at all. Everything must be ordered, then shipped from Florida, which can take several weeks. As you can imagine, we were jumping for joy when we finally saw that truck turning into our neighborhood, and ran down the hill to meet them (and warn them that they probably didn't want to drive their big ol' truck up our crazy driveway). Before we could open our mouths, the driver started apologizing. He said our chairs were loaded first, since we were at the end of the line, with lots of big heavy stuff shoved in after them. Whoever loaded it all must not have done a very good job because something fell against one of the chairs and scratched it all up. However, he assured us, he had already taken pictures and submitted a report, and they would be sending us a replacement right away. Meanwhile, he would leave both chairs with us, so we'd both have somewhere to sit until the new one arrived.

A few days later we got a call from their headquarters, asking us lots of questions about the incident. One question was "Are any of the scratches deep enough to show the bare wood underneath?" "Oh yeah!"

A few weeks later we got another call, informing us that they were sending someone out to "repair" the chair. "What? I was told you would replace it!" "Oh no. We have experts who can make it look good as new again, right there on the premises." Harrumph.

Several more weeks go by, then we finally get a call from the repairman saying he's on his way. He takes one look at the chair, then says "I can't fix that! They'll have to send you a new chair." Some time later we get a call from headquarters saying "OK, we are going to send you a new chair. Unfortunately, that model is on back-order right now, and won't be available until June."

So we wait. And we wait. And we wait some more. At last we got word that the chair was to arrive this past Friday. We waited around the house all afternoon. No truck. Sometime after dinner we got a call from the driver. "Hey man, I hate to tell you this, but your chair was back behind everything else in the truck, and somebody must've done a lousy job loading it all, 'cause now your chair has a big ol' dent in the side of it. You still want me to deliver it?" "NO! Don't even bother. We've already got one like that, thank you very much!"

NEW KIDS IN TOWN

We've got a couple of new-ish eating establishments here in our little town. I say "-ish" because they've actually been here several months, but we just now got around to trying them. They are something you hear about more and more in larger cities, but still a bit of an oddity in a town this size -- Food Trucks!

One is called Phò-Lisha's, and their specialty is the Phorritto -- a concoction owner Alisha dreamed up, where she takes the solid ingredients you would find in a bowl of the Vietnamese soup Phò, wraps them in a flour tortilla, and then gives you a little cup of the soup broth to dip them in.

Those are always on the menu, but then she usually has a curry dish as well, plus a rotating lineup of Cajun dishes.

Her next-door neighbor is the Creekside Cookers BBQ truck.
 

Hubby and I decided the best plan of attack was to divide and conquer, so I ordered a phorritto...

while he stood in line for some BBQ...

then we swapped bites.

I have to say, it was all pret-ty darn yummy!

BOOKS, BOOKS, BOOKS!

I've just got waaaay too much to read right now, which means there's not much else getting done around here!

I just finished reading Rich People Problems by Kevin Kwan -- the third book in his Crazy Rich Asians series -- which I just loved since it takes place in all the wonderful places we used to visit when we live in Indonesia. On the other hand, it made me kind of sad too, as it talks a lot about Singapore and how all the wonderful old shops and neighborhoods that I loved most have been torn down and replaced by skyscrapers. Just like they've been doing here in Austin, come to think of it. It's probably just as well that we never made it back to Singapore in recent years, as I would've just ended up in a major funk if everything I adored about it had disappeared. Still, the books are great.

I'm also reading The Year of Living Danishly, by Helen Russell, which I knew I had to read as soon as I saw a blurb about it in the new e-magazine Simplify. I made sure I bought my own copy, instead of getting it from the library, since I had a feeling I'd be going to town with my hi-liter on this one -- and I was right! If you've ever wondered why Denmark keeps getting voted "The Happiest Nation In The World", this is the book for you!

Then there is the audio book I'm listening to in the car -- an intriguing mystery called Celine, by Peter Heller.

On top of all that, I believe I mentioned that I had pulled out my trusty old copy of The Artist's Way, wanting to give my creative drive a kick in the arse. Unfortunately, that sort of fell by the wayside when a bozo friend (Susan Foster Khoury, I blame you!) saw my post about about all those old journals and agendas -- starting in 1970 when I was just 16 -- that I'd finally made up my mind to get rid of. She insisted that I just had to read my way through them one more time before tossing them out. Talk about falling through a wormhole!

Three have made it to the recycle bin...

only forty-odd more to go!

Obviously, there simply aren't enough hours in the day to support my reading habits, yet alone my art, food, friends and family habits! Good thing I've never required much sleep.

So tell me, what delicious books should I add to my never-ending TBR list?

THE FINAL TOUCH

At last, the ottomans we needed to complete our living area re-do are back in stock! Luckily I had signed up to be alerted the minute they were available, and they were on my porch within a week.

Think I'm gonna love having the storage space inside them for toys and lap throws and such.

Well, there may be one more little area that needs some TLC.  I think we are about to rework that entire wall with the big mirror and all the pictures on it. Saw something when sis and I were touring those model homes last week, and it got me to thinkin'. I'll be sure and share the results, if we ever get around to implementing it!

'TIS THE SEASON

Finally managed to harvest a handful of good tomatoes from the two plants we have growing in a single container on our balcony. The question is, since there aren't likely to be many more, how best to use them? Caprese salad? Greek salad? Old fashioned tomato sandwiches? Or, what about that luscious tomato pesto tart?

As if that wasn't enough to mull over, we went and stopped at one of those stands selling Fredericksburg peaches that pop up everywhere this time of year. A few had to be eaten straight out of hand, leaning over the porch rail.

If you could smell my house right now, you'd be drooling too!