We all like to Do Fun Stuff!

I've been reading Ryan over at Pacing the Panic Room for close to two years now.  I love the way he writes, and his photography is amazing.  I got hooked when he did a maternity series with his wife, Cole.  It's amazing to see how much he wants to change the world, and how motivated he is.

His step-son, LB, has SMS.  This is a disease that won't go away, and that will cause him issues through out the rest of his life.  Unfortunately, it's a very rare disease, and therefore there isn't a lot of information out there. This past week was his 6th birthday, and in honor of that occasion, Ryan worked over the last year to put together an Album to raise funds for SMS research.  The proceeds from Do Fun Stuff go into a fund which will provide grants to grad students who choose to make this disease their area of study.  And the music is great for Kids and Adults, so we can enjoy it with our children!

Today, this album launches on Itunes.  And all over the blogosphere, people are writing about it.  But the best write up at all can be found at PTPR, written by Ryan himself.  You can also click the really cut widget below to go to the Do Fun Stuff website.

Please, if you have kids, or just love pop music, here's a way to help and have some enjoyment at the same time.  And you never know, you might find a new favorite band!

The end of the freedom days.

I can't believe August is over half over...summer is coming to an end.  The kids start school later this week.  I wonder where the summer went?  Didn't it just start last week? 

I try to remind myself that going back to school doesn't signal the real end of summer...the weather will stay hot, and then warm, through all of September, and even into October.  We'll have days in November that you can be outside in a long sleeve shirt and still be comfortable.  But for some reason, summer signifies freedom.  And with school starting back, that freedom is limited to the weekend.  I'm just not ready for that.  Neither is my boy...he's wishing for more swimming, more sand castle building and wave riding, more sleeping late and watching tv and hanging out in pj's a bunch.  This week will be bittersweet for sure.

I've not written much the last few weeks, heck the last few months.  I've been going through one of those seasons of life...the ones that feel a bit melancholy, and that sap your will to do much.  I'm feeling like I'm starting to wake up from it, but I also feel like I missed summer...a month or two gone to this melancholy.

Perhaps I can cram a few more summer experiences in before the weather reminds me that fall is here.

completed

So the trailer is gone, the yard is mowed and trimmed, I actually planted a few (clearance) bedding plants, the back deck is usable.  Yay for us!  It looks like we actually care about the house we own again!

Good thing I'm not inviting you inside.  Goodness, I need some motivation and time off at the same time. Problem is that doesn't seem to be happening much lately.

Now, we're off to get Bug from the airport, with a stop at Ikea.  Whoo hoo, I love going to Ikea.

Cleaning it up

Hubby and I have several big-ish projects we've been working on around the house this summer. Unfortunately, with all the extra things and beach time, these projects haven't made it to the finished stage just yet. We've been remodeling our back deck, and cleaning out the garage and sprucing it up with paint and epoxy.

So, for the last couple of months, we've had an awning in our back yard housing the saw (see here) and a large trailer in our front yard.

We went through a period with high heat and no rain, so we weren't mowing. Then it rained, and we couldn't mow. As we're finishing up moving everything out of the garage into the trailer so we can expoxy the floor, I realize that the yard is out of control. And suddenly, I start laughing.

It looked like we were going into foreclosure.

I'm not going to lie, times are tight in our household. But the mortgage is the one thing that always gets paid and paid on time...we have it come right out of my hubby's paycheck. We aren't going anywhere anytime soon.

So last week I mowed. But the weedeater was in the storage trailer...way at the front. So it still looked scraggly.

This weekend I mowed and began pulling weeds. Last night, hubby trimmed with the weedeater and I finished pulling weeds.

By the end of this week, the trailer will be gone. And hopefully in the next few weeks, the back porch will be done. Just in time to enjoy the cooler weather that will be coming with back to school.

And I still want to put a sign in the yard...no, we aren't leaving!

Updates?

Oh my, it's been a busy month! We've gone on vacation, the kids have had camp and camping, we celebrated National Ice Cream Day, met the internet again, and have just been busy. I have a ton of posts to sit down and type, but no stinking time right now. So this is my post. Later tonight, I hope to get moving with all the updates!