June 2017

I missed my Mother’s Day celebration this year and was feeling sorry for myself. I spent Mother’s Day in the heat of Moab, waiting for mobile auto services to show up and charge our van battery so that we could limp into Moab, buy a new battery, and install it. Then Rog tried to salvage the day with a ride through the Canyonlands but the van would not get out of limp mode so we scrapped that idea. When we got back to Rocklin, I asked the kids if we could get together for a BBQ-belated mother’s day. Ryan had us all over for a swim and BBQ at his place and we had a “Gam’s Day”. I’m all better now.

The same evening, we headed to Karissa’s dance recital. She was in 3 different dance routines complete with costumes. Job well done. Off to Coldstone for a treat afterwords.

We joined the Blooms for the Cadillacs' concert at Rock Hill Winery. I think it was the last cool evening we would have for a few months. We enjoyed good wine, delicious treats, and great music. Even saw a few neighbors.

It was back to Ryan’s for Father’s Day and another BBQ. This time the weather was much warmer and most of us ended up in the pool. Blooms showed up with special egg carton goggles that Karissa had made for each of them.

The beginning of the month was spent tackling that van problem as well as air conditioning in the car. Our local mechanic worked on the van for a week and finally threw in the towel. He had fixed a split in one of the air hoses, then replaced both sensors and then re-replaced the first one. Engine light still came on. Off to the Mercedes Benz dealership for repair. What an experience! Top class and expensive. But impressive in their cleanliness and efficiency. Better yet, they figured out the problem and fixed it. They also washed the car and cleaned the interior...and it really needed it after the road trip. With Tess running well, it was time to tackle the car. It needed the air conditioning system flushed out, new parts and a hefty bill. But we got it back just in time for an 8 day heat wave that would have been unbearable without working A/C.

Rog headed down to LA with a karate comrade for a workout at the Maryknoll dojo. He came back full of ideas and lots of sore muscles. Then we had the Sipes over for a Japanese meal. I made okonomiyaki, Japanese pancakes. I came pretty close to the ones we ate when we were in Japan. We also headed to Plumas Lake to have dinner with our friend, Danny. While there, we enjoyed a summer thunderstorm. He got quite a bit of rain. When we got back home, 30 min east, we had not received one drop.

Our long term tenants at the Fortune Ct building finally got everything out of the building by June 11. We spent 2 full days cleaning and doing a little repair work. We don’t plan to do much more unless it gets rented. If someone buys it, they will probably remodel so it doesn’t make any sense to do a lot of painting or carpeting. There are 2 interested buyers so we will see.

This was Karissa’s month for a date. We had planned on a bike ride but it was 80 degrees by 7am and 110+ in the afternoon. So we made a quick replan and went to the ice skating rink instead. Perfect day for it and she had a lot of fun. Then it was off to her only restaurant; Black Bear Diner.

Towards the peak of the heat wave, we headed up to Truckee for 2 nights on the Truckee River with Nordstrums and Lyons. It was cold enough to put the heater on in the morning when we got up. PERFECT!!

On the way home, we stopped in Colfax for lunch with Jerry Duda. Haven’t seen this guy in years so there was a lot of catching up to do.
Back in March, before we left for Japan, we had taken Rog’s recliner to be reupholstered. Our niece’s new husband, Ed, used to do a lot of upholstering earlier in his life and offered to recover it. It is a super sized recliner that Rog has had for probably 25 years. He really missed it while it was “in the shop” since he really doesn’t fit in any other chair around here. Ed got a new job just after we dropped it off and his time was limited but he finally called that it was ready to pick up. Rog and Ryan headed down to Elk Grove and picked it up. Ed did a fabulous job and Rog is once again a happy camper.

Karissa asked if she could spend an overnight so we had her come on a Friday afternoon. We took her to the mall arcade where she was able to play for free with a perfect report card. Then we hit the ice cream stand. The next morning, after chocolate chip pancakes, we walked home in time for her Sat morning dance lessons.

Meanwhile, now that school is out for summer vacation, we have crafts with the grandkids every Monday morning. We have been working on fairy houses. This month, we have been gluing rocks for siding and laying wood tiles on the roofs. This project will take a couple of months of Monday mornings but they are hanging in there and seem to enjoy it.