Playing Catch-Up

END-OF-SCHOOL:
* So, we heard back from the teacher in charge of LINK CREW; seems that position is only available to upperclassmen. Um, so why did you give Princess an application?!?! Argh. Oh, well; she said she'd just apply again when she can actually do it.
* Their last day was supposed to be a half day (out at 1130a, I thought), so I scheduled her summer hair appt for 1215p... Turns out, they didn't get out 'til 1230p, so I just picked her up at 1130a. I really like their system of pick-up; I never have to get out of the car.
* Her grades came back almost perfect -- 6 As and 2 Bs (and those two Bs were in pre-IB classes). I had promised her her choice of a massage, a mommy/daughter pedicure, or a facial if she got straight As, but since she didn't, but made Honor Roll again, I treated her to her choice of four candies from Moonstruck and lunch at our favorite sushi place.

PRINCESS' SUMMER SO FAR:
* She & KP had a great time in Utah with Mimi. There were two other kids around their age, plus the Youth Group instructor (Megan) and some of the other adult members from Mimi's church (Princess knew most of them). The volunteer work consisted of sewing & boxing up Birthing Kits, but they also got to play. There was a trip to the water park, a visit to the local library, they hit up a museum, and they got to watch how screen-printing is done.
* BF has enlisted Princess to babysit her youngest for a chunk of time all summer. KP sometimes accompanies her & they split the cash, but mostly it's just Princess. Minus the money she spends on coffee, Takis, and sunflower seeds (hahaha), she's going to have quite the savings by the time summer's over!
* The girls and a few other friends went to an overnighter at KP's family Fourth of July tent last weekend. They got junk food at the grocery store where the stand is, hung out in another friend's pool just before and again after the overnighter, and played a ton of games.
* She & KP are headed to KP's grandparents' house this weekend with KP's mom. They may stay just for the day, they may spend the night... Either is fine with me. All the babysitting, the trip, and the hanging with friends is keeping her just busy enough, without stressing her out.
* When she's not otherwise busy, she's been helping me put my new space together at work.

OUR SUMMER SO FAR:
* While the girls were in Utah, Ace & I hit up Home Depot, Lowe's, the beauty supply stores, and Ikea; getting everything I needed for my studio move. I couldn't actually start, though, because Princess wanted to help paint (which was the first thing I needed to do). So, everything we bought got stuck in my new room, and waited. Once she got back, though, we cranked out the painting. She also helped me put a lot of the furniture together, and Ace helped me install/anchor the bigger pieces. I've still got a little more work to do, but I can do all that myself. If you're interested, there's an album on my FaceBook page with progress pics.
* After Ace scheduled his vacation (two weeks around his birthday) and sabbatical, we started planning another (long overdue) family vacation. I had five plus days in a row this month with nothing scheduled so we thought, "ROAD TRIP!" I haven't been along the Oregon coast much further south than Newport, so that's where we started. After getting most of it planned out, though, we hit a financial snag... my car needed work.
* My car is now over 12 years old. A month or so ago, my a/c went out. By "out", I don't mean I'm not getting anything... I mean it was now blowing HOT air, even when the system was off. I was due for a service and oil change, anyway, so we scheduled it all at the same time. They had to order a part, which meant keeping it overnight, which meant I took our other rig, which meant Ace couldn't go anywhere or get any errands run until I got home.
* We went to Gustav's for lunch on my birthday (free dessert, no singing!), but didn't get a whole lot else done...
* So, southern Oregon beaches road trip is out, but I had another (not quite as good) plan. My salon's owner has a beach house that we can borrow for a few days. We can also maybe do some fun stuff around Portland (neither of us adults have been on the jet boats...). Looks like this is our new vaca plan.
* Speaking of cars, I decided to hold off buying myself a newer one. I'm not so sure Princess will be ready so soon after her birthday to take on some of the responsibility of "owning" (with limits) a car, so I took some of my money from the motorcycle accident to pay for my new salon space, and rolled the rest back into a CD. There it will sit until it matures; at that point, I will decide if she's ready (and, I suppose, if we're ready). We are still trying to figure out what to get, anyway: I love Jeep Wrangler-style rigs and have since I was a kid, I also really like the Toyota FJ Cruiser. I could go with a newer/fancier version of what I already own (so a Toyota Camry or a Honda Accord), too. Orrrrrr... we've been talking about maybe getting a truck. I love the idea of a Tacoma; the four-door version. Plenty of room for the three of us plus dogs inside, and all our camping gear in the bed. Also, no more borrowing the older children's trucks (they each drive a small pickup) to make runs to the dump or haul stuff somewhere.
* Our annual Birthday BBQ was a success. Smaller crowd this time than in past years, but mostly due to the heat. One of Princess' friends & her family were in a car wreck the morning of my party (against my protests, they still showed up to drop off food they'd made, but went home right after), another friend was sick, etc. No big deal; I just let everyone know which day it'll be next year so they can start planning now. New guests this year included Ace's cousin, LK, and her fiance. We'd been FB friends for years, and had met a couple times, but it was nice to have her here (and her fiance is nice; seems to be a great fit for her). I never expect gifts from anyone except my daughter & my husband, but my friends gave me some thoughtful ones this year, and my son gave me one of the books on my wishlist, as well. My best friend brought my dog-niece, Daisy, and she was super well-behaved.
* Speaking of gifts, my mother was on top of her game this year. Ok, let me backtrack... A couple months ago, my aunt was here visiting and the two of them went to the coast. My favorite chocolate shop has a storefront there, so I asked her to pick me up some stuff. She didn't get my message until they had already returned, so I was bummed. Two or three weeks ago, I got a message from her, telling me she was in Ashland and asked if I wanted anything from that store. I "placed my order" and told her I'd pay her back for whatever she got me. Fast forward to the Tuesday before my birthday. I come in to work and there's a cute coffee mug (says "I love my dogs") and a small bag of chocolates along with a card on my desk. My mother was downstairs getting her hair cut, so I went down to thank her. She asked if she could also take me to lunch or dinner or get coffee (whatever worked for my schedule) when she got back from Utah. The Friday after they all returned, Princess & I spent the morning working on stuff in my new room, and met up with my mother for lunch. They too gave me free dessert! It was not stressful at all.

So, only two weeks in... but WOW! More to come!