We started our remodel this week. We currently have walls.. kinda... and that's it. So we've decided to cancel the bbq we were going to have and relocate it to another's house. I still get to cook.. yay.. um.. wait.... I normally work Saturdays so I'll be taking the morning to remove the rest of the baseboards and the final pieces of drywall... then cooking dinner for 10-ish. This is our first fourth with our baby, so it'll be interesting to see how he reacts. Happy Fourth of July everyone.

Despite not being finished (the whole house!) we use our kitchen as-is. All that's lacking is counter tops, flooring, and all of our utensils, which are still in storage.

I cook out nearly every weekend, year-round. I have a home made smoker made from a stainless steel drum, and have become quite competent with it. We also have a gas grill for the quicker meals. Maybe some day, if budget and energy allow, I may build an outdoor kitchen of sorts.

My wife is working this weekend (hospitals never close) so we're keeping it light. One of life's great pleasures is the lowly hamburger, done right, of course. Since the Powers That Be have determined that raw hamburger is slightly more deadly than ebola, we have been reduced to eating dry, overcooked burgers. But- There is hope! We learned that if you start with solid meat and grind it yourself, you can safely cook a nice juicy, RARE hamburger! We season ours with salt, pepper, and fennel seeds, grill to perfection, and melt a LOT of good cheese on top. Serve 'em up on good rolls from a bakery, with all the fixin's on the side. Anyone hungry yet? Dinner's at 6 PM.....

That is such a beautiful dog! ;)

Gunner is adorable!

I was going to say exactly what Ediblekitchen put...but it's worth repeating (LOL) Gunner is adorable! :)

We won't have any fireworks. Too hot and dry, plus the county banned them years ago. We could drive into town to see them, but we'll probably stay here with hoses ready, just in case someone decides to shoot them off anyway.

Hope you all have a lovely 4th of July and enjoy the grilling!

OMG is he adorable.

Personally I'm working (if you call drawing work) today and later I'll write up the electrical additions and changes for the builder. I lost a full day yesterday.

Went to Dr because left ankle is swollen and I don't remember doing anything to it but I'm a klutz. She got worried and wanted me to get a doppler. Except it was a holiday so only place open was hospital. So after 4 1/2 hours in ER, one sono to check for blood clots and an x-ray to see why ankle is swollen, the best they came up with was that I must have sprained it because outer ankle had inflammation. Dang thing is it barely hurts even. Just a very small, and I mean small twinge occasionally. No problems walking on it either.

After I got home, I remembered my foot "catching" on rug in hallway of building as I was taking the dog out for a walk. However I do stuff like that so often, I never even think of it.

My ex said I tripped over air. (Only one of the reasons he's now my ex!)

Happy 4th everyone!

We walked down to the lake and watched the boat parade. There were some very creatively decorated boats this year! Burgers on the grill tonight (still no kitchen sink) with deli salads. We probably won't drive into town for fireworks - our area had them Thursday night and we could walk to those, so no hassle with traffic. They were spectacular!

Sitting in a hotel room in Oregon. Just about ready to head to the ball field for days 3 of the baseball tourney...not sure about dinner or fireworks...hear Ft Vancouver has an awesome display but they charge for parking and entrance!

Kids want to go into Portland tonight to stand in line for a filled Pink Box. I said go ahead, last thing I want to do is stand in line for a minimum of 45 minutes for a donut in 90+ degrees even at 9pm.

I am getting tons of Gramma and Quinncee time. It is so awesome.

We will be starting our kitchen planning for real this month! I am sooo excited.

Oldbat- gunner is so cute. We are thinking of getting a puppy in the fall.

CPartist- ouch- watch out for those air snakes. They come out of air, wrap around your ankle and boom! One tried to attack me yesterday as I got off my bicycle. Fortunately, I managed to stay more or less on 2 feet and one hand- but I saved the bike!

4th of July was special as a kid as we lived right across the street from the festivities. There was a small carnival with rides. At playground we made lanterns from 5 gallon ice cream tubs, cut out the designs and covered with colored cellophane panels. Then, when it was dark, we lit the candles and held the lantern parade. We learned about drop and roll if one caught on fire. Usually at least one lantern would bite the dust but no one was burned. I am sure this would never be allowed today.

And then there was the parade(and yes we were on the parade route) and I was an honorary Cub Scout. I didn't realize girls couldn't be cub scouts. LOL

We also the water show from the fire company and of course the grand finale- the fireworks with our front row seats on our porch!

We moved away when I was 7-8 years old but sure brings back memories!

That 2nd pic of Gunner is great, I am laughing at his huge feet! I know he will grow into them but in the meantime he looks all feet. Cute as a button.

Thay Kong will last for a long time. We've had one for 3 years. We've cycled through many others. .. lol

Gunner is adorable! We had a cook in today, too hot to cook out and my porch is a wreck. Repair work is scheduled to begin in about two weeks. I'm trying to get some energy back after an insane three weeks at work. I took a few days off next week but there's no guarantee. If all hell breaks loose I'll still need to work. I'm trying not to plan new projects but I may do some painting. I painted my bedroom two years ago but I'm not super thrilled with the color. It's BM Shaker Beige and it's pretty but it doesn't really go with the rest of the house. I think I'm going to repaint it with the Gray Owl that I used in the bathroom.

Sounds like a war zone here. I love fireworks but I'll probably stay indoors and keep Dandy company. The noise makes him nervous.

Oh and of course, my own personal tradition, watch:

christina, is that your cat? He's beautiful! Wow.

Dandy is certainly handsome!

Here's my girl...it has been amazing spending 3 days with her. One more left...

Quinncee Rose 10 days shy of 5 months.

Yes Beth, that's my Dandy. I'm pretty sure he thinks his name is "He's so cute!"

oh my goodness Terri, she is beautiful!

I am LOVING the pics of Gunner (Look at those ears!), Dandy and Quinncee! SO cute! A man was importing a Weimaraner puppy the other day and we made him bring her in the office. What a doll!

I did BBQ, as I was off, but I had to work Canada Day. I missed all the fireworks. I'm super excited because my contractors are coming tomorrow to start on my bathroom! I stopped by the tile store and picked up two extra sheets of mosaic because I figured out what to do behind the sink and the many people I've described my idea to seem to think it will work and look pretty good. I sure hope so. It's the tiniest bathroom ever and so I have the 16" square Lillangen sink from Ikea and the 24" Hemnes mirror cabinet. I figured I would have the shower surround tile stacked vertically behind the sink cabinet and then behind the sink part which I guess is considered a vessel sink as it sits on top of the cabinet, up to the bottom of the mirror, I'll put the mosaic tile, so it will mimic the shower surround behind and then the splashes won't go on the bare wall. Does that make sense?

Thank you all for the kind words! Love all these pictures. Quinncee is getting so big!!! What a happy, gorgeous grand child you have Terri! Dandy looks like he's straight out of feline Hollywood, so beautiful:)

Terri- she is growing so fast and is just beautiful!!

Well I don't have a cute pet photo to share because the little stinker won't hold still and let me get a shot but I did find a baby toad in my garage tonight and I thought he was so cute I had to take pics!!

Rivet! That is one green frog! We have toads around our place and I always jump when one pops up.

If all goes well, we will soon have our own puppy to post (in the fall or spring)

What kind did you decide to get A2?

Texas, are you left handed? My toads are all big and brown. I let them run around in the garden and make sure I'm not running them over with the lawn mower.

My bathroom was mostly demolished yesterday! Everything but the floor tile and the bathtub. On a positive note, I think I might have enough space for my bathtub after all! It was going to be touch and go about moving the wall with the plumbing an inch or two, but I think the tile substrate (?) that was there, which was an inch thick on each side, so I think I gained enough space. I hope so!

Cute little frog, lovely colors. DH rescued a baby woodpecker (he grew up with birds) who was 'trapped' in a corner of the garden last weekend. I thought he'd go in with a shovel or something but he came out with the bird held gently in his hand and took it to an open area in the garden where it was able to fly off.

Yes, I am a southpaw! How did you guess? ;)

So its nothing really big but I had to share with my GW friends (this is, or was GARDENweb right?!?)

I finally have the start of a garden again after almost 5 years without one!!

Today I planted several vinca, some blue plumbago, a few dragons blood sedum, a lantana, a queen Victoria lobelia and a Texas mountain Laurel!!

I had forgotten how satisfying it is to have a pretty plot to tend to and look at.

They are all deer resistant so hopefully they will survive!!

Off topic but has anyone seen Christine (CEFreeman)? I haven't seen her post since last week and I wonder if she is OK.

Ok if we're posting pics of our pets, here's my baby who's 5th birthday is this month. Cocoa is an american hairless terrier, or should I say terror? All 10 lbs of her.

We are thinking of a Berger Picard.

If you saw the Jeff Daniels movie -Because of Winn-Dixie, it is the breed used in the movie.

We watched the movie after falling in love with the breed.

We are on the list for a fall puppy - so keep your fingers crossed.

Here's Daisy, a 100% random genetic sampling. She is allegedly part Carolina Dog, although it's a stretch.

A2, I googled them and found a website from Ottawa ON (not OH!) and they really seem to have fun playing in the water! They are cute! Will they be good for running while you're biking?