Running Out of August

So many things I could have posted about this month, but I've really lacked ambition. So let's recap. Since I last posted:

• Kitchen remodeling continued with a vengeance. My parents ended up spending one more night after I last wrote because I got an outrageous quote ($479) on tearing out my kitchen floor. They decided they would just stay one more day and we would do it ourselves. Does that mean I owe my parents that money? At any rate, this left me with only one day to paint (and it needed three coats to cover... I always thought of my kitchen as light blue... until I wanted to cover it) before the cabinets went in. Then I had a couple more days to get the laundry room painted before the flooring went in. The new appliances arrived a couple days later. Now there's been a bit of a lull for the past couple of weeks while I wait for the counter top and sink to arrive. That is scheduled for the day after tomorrow, when Mom and Dad will also return to install the dishwasher, hook up the sink, garbage disposal, and water line to the refrigerator.
• I attended my very first major league baseball game, but I can't say that I watched very much of it!
• Eddie, while still a very sweet little boy, has revealed his very deep naughty streak. If I leave him uncrated when I'm not home, I typically come home to trash strewn throughout the house, and my shoes tend to go for walks on their own (he doesn't seem to chew them, though, thank goodness). The baby gates that easily keep Copper contained mean nothing to Eddie and he happily travels from room to room hopping over them. I also have yet to find a place to put Coal's food dish where Eddie cannot reach it. Perhaps once the counter top is in... So now Eddie is crated whenever I leave the house. He didn't mind going in the first few times, but once I started being gone for more than a couple of hours, he stopped going in willingly. I try to praise him as I put him in, but it is still a somewhat forceful situation.
• The Def Leppard/REO Speedwagon/Styx concert we were supposed to attend in April was finally held on Saturday... a great time was had by all. But I couldn't help thinking about how sad it was that groups with as big of names as REO and Styx have been relegated to being "just" an opening act. I was actually more excited about seeing those two groups than the main event.
• Today was the big day... our first day back to school. Well, kind of. The kids don't come until a week from today, but it's still hard to face the fact that my summer vacation is over and it will be nine and a half months before it comes again. So what was the final theme? Well, I think it remains to be seen what will be the dominant memory for me, but I know of two contenders for the title. It might be all about the kitchen, but it might also be simply the summer of fun. I attended three concerts (and have one more next month) and a Tiger game, read book after book just for fun, watched lots of movies, and just generally enjoyed myself. It was great!

So there it is in a nutshell. Off for another fun-filled school year.