Sunday Night Chit Chat: The Return Of Summer

Hey Humble Readers...

I think I am finally starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel that is this wretched cold.  I'm not going to count my chickens before they're hatched, though, because this cold has faked me out already.  I was sure I was over it last weekend, only for it to come back and pummel me again.  Still have a cough and some sinus congestion, but my ears have finally popped, for which I am incredibly thankful. 

We again spent most of the weekend with my Beloved's family in a small town to the south of us.  Happily, the rain that has been plaguing us for the majority of this summer took a break, and we actually had some great weather for the last couple of days.  It means that the wee-lings spent a good amount of time in the wading pool, beating the heat.  I got a couple of funny sunburn spots on the backs of my shoulders, where I couldn't reach with the sunscreen.  You can actually see my finger marks on one side.  :/

Hmmmm... wonder how this tastes?

Ginny & Thor

Pippin & Pepper

Today, after the wee-lings were done in the pool (read: their lips were blue), they started having fun with sidewalk chalk (a first for Ginny and Pip).  My BIL & SIL have a long driveway and the wee-lings and their cousin, Thor, had fun getting covered in chalk dust, and scribbling all over the place and needing to be reminded not to eat the chalk.  Pippin also had a lot of fun with Pepper, the black dog in the picture above.  He hasn't had a lot of interaction with dogs, and Pepper is VERY playful. 

Loki, chillin' in the shade

Thor's little brother (let's call him Loki :) ) is a happy little man.  He's seven months old now, and I confess that I did feel a little tug of baby lust.  It kind of caught me off guard as I haven't felt that in a while, and I am 100% happy with our family as it is, and with our decision to end the building phase of our family.  I held him for only a minute, but it was enough for those feelings of baby-longing to rear their head again.  Wasn't expecting that, as I honestly thought I was past it.

Anyway, on to tonight's chit-chat.  Here's what I'm ...

Reading...  Finally finished my re-read of The Help.  I just love that book.  What astounds me is that Stockett had to slog her manuscript to more than 50 publishers before it got picked up, but Stephanie Meyer got a contract right away based on the Twilight manuscript.  **sigh**  Now I'm reading Fried Green Tomatoes At The Whistle Stop Café by Fannie Flagg.  I've read it before, more than ten years ago, and I do adore the movie.  I just love Flagg's storytelling.  If you haven't read anything of hers, I highly recommend you check her out. 

Watching...  Nothing in particular at the moment.  I've gotten addicted to a BBC crime drama called Broadchurch.  I recorded tonight's episode and will watch it later in the week.

Listening to...  The whir of the fans in our living and dining rooms.  Traffic going by on the street outside. 

Cooking/Baking... Because we've been with family all weekend, I actually haven't had to do any cooking (I did pulled pork for a meal for all of us last weekend).  Tomorrow night I'm trying a new recipe for an Italian inspired skillet chicken.  I'm going to serve it with risotto and a garden salad.  I'm also going to bake some lemon bars in the morning. 

Happy I accomplished this week...  Went through the wee-lings' bookshelves and purged any books that were too trashed for continued use, went to church today (something that I haven't managed in the last few weeks), and got back to using my daily to-do lists.  Oh, and I FINALLY surpassed my third weight-loss goal, and now weigh less than my Beloved.  Next goal is to be 75lb down by my birthday in the middle of next month. 

Looking forward to for next week... The reason I'm cooking fancy stuff tomorrow, and baking in the middle of a mini heat wave, is that my mom is coming!  Because we don't have a guest room or a pull out couch, my mom never stays (except for when the wee-lings were born) with us.  She is coming in the afternoon tomorrow and after dinner, she will drive back up to my sister's place just outside Big City To The North.  The big deal about this visit is that she's bringing her new beau.  I haven't met him yet, and I confess I'm a bit anxious about this. 

Thankful for... Family.  My Beloved so rarely gets to see his big sister, and I'm glad that we got to spend so much time with all of them over the past couple of weekends. 

****Bonus Question**** Can you walk in high heels?  Do you wear them often?  Heck no!  Can you imagine a hobbit in heels???  The last time I wore heels was on our wedding day, and I got rid of them after the first ten minutes of our pictures (after the ceremony).  Switched to some platform flip flops that were the same height as my heels.  Sooo much more comfortable.  I am a sandals and flats kind of hobbit. 

*****
This is posted as a part of Carla's Sunday Night Chit Chat.  Click over and check out what the others are chatting about tonight!