Honestly, does it get any better than this?

More vacation photos.

At the lake

This is vacation at Lake Martin. Life is good.

Dining room, almost complete

Short of some touch-up paint and some work on that horrible wall o' knotty pine by the fireplace, the dining room is finally completed. I like the color, and I really like some of the photos that I printed to hang on the wall.

See you in less than 24 hours, Mom and Dad! We are excited!

One more dog...

On August 7, we will be adding yet one more mouth to feed to our family. Military working dog Randy A143 will be making a 14-hour flight from Incheon, S. Korea to Dulles Airport in Washington DC, as she retires from nearly 12 years of military service for the US Army. Her future plans? Snoozing by the fireplace, wrestling with the small dogs, chasing her beloved Kong in the backyard, getting lots of love and ear scratches from a 4 year-old little girl, and generally kicking back and relaxing.

The kennelmaster promised better photos, but for now I just have one. Here's ex-MWD Randy, posing as a frog. Isn't she cute?

Ciao!

Robin.

In the sprinkler

Bryan worked today, so Katy and I had a "girls day out." We had lunch out, then stopped and picked up a few groceries, a sprinkler, and a magazine for me. The lawn was looking a tad parched, so I figured that I'd sit outside with a magazine and a nice cool drink while Katy both helped the grass get watered and ran off some energy by playing in the sprinkler. Of course, she was too cute, so I had to go grab my camera. I still have that magazine--maybe I'll get a chance to read it tomorrow!

First kayak trip

Finally took out the kayaks. Went out on the Potomac for a little "test run" on Saturday. It was great fun, and Katy absolutely loved the trip--until, that is, she lost her Barbie fishing pole in the river (and of course we couldn't find it). That was pretty devastating. Poor thing!

I'm proud of Bryan--our boats look great, and they handled beautifully. I do have to say that I'm glad I have the big, slow double...His tippy little single was a bit much. Perhaps I'll work my way into figuring it out, but I made quick work of tipping it over within 30 seconds of getting into it. Ouch--that was embarrassing!

Until next time,

Robin.

Walk-in closet, half done

So, we finished the right side of the walk-in closet in our bedroom. It's bigger and brighter and much nicer than I expected it to turn out. I think it will be a great space once we get the other side done.

XOXO

I am feeling particularly grateful for Bryan tonight. I don't think he truly "gets" how incredible I think he is. So...I will just say that I love you very much, Bryan. THANK YOU for going on this chaotic, kooky ride with me.

Visit from Nana and Papa

Nana and Papa are heading back to Alabama tomorrow, and we are all a little sad (especially Katy!) She had SUCH a fun time having her every whim catered to, and she quickly learned to avoid eye contact with me when she was pushing those boundaries (as did Papa!)

Thanks for the fun, Mom and Dad...We are all looking forward to visiting YOU next time!

Riding her bike to the park

Katy has just figured out that the "big girl bike" is a pretty cool thing. I hadn't been able to get her past her frustration to figure out the joys of riding a bike, but she's finally broken the code. Today was the second time that she was able to pedal the 3 blocks to the local kids' park. She was very serious initially, but finally loosened up enough for some good photos.

THIS was a fun Mother's Day....

Photo of the dogs

Just a cute photo of the dogs, hanging out in the backyard. Love these two critters!!

Photos for Tracy, including Train ride

Today was fun--we went on a little train ride, on the Walkersville Southern Railroad (all 6.2 miles of it). The ride takes about 1 hr 15 minutes, and the train never goes faster than 10 miles an hour, but it is through some pretty Maryland countryside. Katy thought it was big fun. I also promised Aunt Tracy a few photos, so I also got her out in the yard for some snapshots in front of the yellow flowered bush in the side yard.

Photos of new basement closet