A weekly list of things accomplished, enjoyed, learned, tried and remembered.
1. A real live gig–FINALLY! It’s been 111 days since SofaKillers played a live gig and it just so happened that they got to have their first gig back at the last place they played–Boot Barn Hall. What a fun time! With many restrictions still in place on how many folks can be allowed in–they did 4 shorter shows. All of them sold out and they put on a amazing performance! It felt good to get out, listen to my man sing, see some familiar faces I’ve missed, and feel normal–even just for a few moments.
2. The Shed. Super Rockstar has been wanting a shed in our backyard for years–so it was the first thing I penciled into the re-design of our backyard we are doing (more about that soon). We originally were going to buy a kit and build it ourselves, but became a bit nervous about it after telling a few folks of our plan. All of them. All. of. them. gave us the raised brow and asked questions like “have you done this before?” and “are you sure you want to take that on?” Thankfully, God must have been raising his brow too–because we found out the kit we ordered was going to be delayed an extra month. I decided to call Home Depot just to see what they had available. I talked to a wonderful sales guy who clued me in to Tuff Sheds. They are the exclusive dealer and he told me all about their warranties, superior construction, blah, blah, blah. I have to admit I glazed over at his overzealous sales pitch–until… he told me that the price tag I was seeing online INCLUDED them building and installing it. This was a no brainer. If we could pay the exact same price AND get a trusted name brand, AND they build and install it–sheesh–just take my wallet. I can’t speak highly enough about our experience–they do a great job of keeping in touch throughout the order, in production, and installation process. From the day we ordered to the date of our installation was less than two weeks and then it only took them 2 hours to put it together. Super Rockstar is thrilled and has already organized all our stuff in it. The only part I have to do is paint it–but that’s only because our picky pants neighborhood is strict on these things (Tuff Shed includes painting it in their price). I’m ok with that. I can sling a paint brush when I have to- I’m just SO very thankful that I didn’t have to wield a hammer.
3. Learning time. I’ve always had some sort of daily learning time to keep my boys on track during their summer breaks. In the past, I always purchased age appropriate workbooks (which they have hated), but this year I found something different. It’s called Adventure Academy. It’s from the same folks that created ABC Mouse that’s geared for younger kids. Adventure Academy is for middle school aged. They are loving it–it has math, science, history, and reading and it’s like a game with levels and all sorts of learning activities. They are offering the first month free and then it’s only $12/month for up to 3 kids after that.
4. What we watched. We enjoyed a new to us movie called Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters–it’s the second one in a series (based on a book series). It’s great for kids–PG, no inappropriate language, and our boys really liked it. It’s a modern day teenage spin on the Greek gods story–centering on Perseus (think Clash of the Titans). There are some intense scenes and some creatures that might seem scary to younger kids, but your older kids will love it.
5. Books I’m reading. I admit, I don’t get to read nearly as much as I want, but I still like to plug away at several at a time. For my inspiration/self help I’m reading Beth Moore’s To Live is Christ (it’s about the apostle Paul), for my learning–I’m really enjoying a compilation book from the Washington Post published several years ago called The Writing Life. It features brief biographies and writing experiences of dozens of famous authors. So far the only author I recognize is James Michener. Apparently I have A LOT more reading to do. And for fiction I am in the middle of the final book in the Eragon Series called Inheritance.
6. My favorite Memes of the week.
As always, I would love to hear from you. I hope you have a great week!
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