Summer recap and something I never thought I would do (30 blogs in 30 ish days: #1)

Ok - clearly I do not have the time to recap our entire summer to you and you do not want to be put through the torture of having to slog through all of that stuff......  so, in the interest of catching up, I have decided to summarize it in "two word" descriptions.... with no explanation (if you desire more detail you will have to write and ask).  Are you ready?  Here is our summer.......

Big flood.... Paul's basement..... Sandbagging Adam's.... sewer backup.... Insurance claim.... Fair rides..... Grandma's memorial...... in-laws home.... motorcycle Dauphin.... Camp's 50th.... Newport, Oregon.... Live music..... State parks.... Ocean girls.... big aquarium.... Sea lions..... beach walks.... Sponge Bob.... Air Museum.... lighthouse tours..... beautiful pictures.... collecting seashells..... long hikes.... nice restaurants.... great vacation..... seventeen days.... fun kids.... Sweet wife..... In Regina..... Debbie/Dorian..... Minot shopping....Parents here.... Motorcycle Bismarck..... Friends BBQ..... TSN here.... Bike rides.... dog walks..... Stock cars..... Iced drinks..... Walked Wascana..... Jen/Justin.... Lenny's cabin..... Buffalo Pound.... boat rides..... School starts..... New job...... Grade eight..... Grade ten..... Shingled house..... Musical practice..... Good friends..... Tooooo fast.... Good summer..... Happy family..... Great life!

I am sure I missed a bunch of really good, cool stuff in there, but that is a good summary anyway.  We had a nice summer - we spent a lot of time together and (surprise) we still like each other!!!

Although, several times on the trip I got the feeling that the "girls" (Sari included) were trying to get rid of me.... they constantly made me feel like I was unwanted in their "little club" and kept telling me that I could not go with them..... "Ladies change room" - as if that is a real thing!  Well, we will see what happens next time they try to pull that one on me!  I'll show them...... YOU CAN'T LEAVE ME OUT!!!!!!!!

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From the "I did not think I would be doing this today" file..... I hammered a nail INTO my motorcycle tire yesterday.   Seriously... I was going to go for a ride when I noticed something shiny on the tire.  "That can't be a nail can it?" I thought.  Yep!   So I began to pry it out thinking that maybe I was lucky and it went in sideways or that maybe it was not that long.  Nope!  It just kept coming out and out and then.... Psssssssss........ so I quickly grabbed a hammer and nailed back into the tire!   It has held air for two days now, so I think I am going to leave it like that.

Actually, I just did not want to have to push a bike with a flat, so this way I can probably ride it over to the shop.  Generally, they do not recommend patching motorcycle tires, so I am looking at a couple of hundred bucks to replace it.   The big problem:  It was a roofing nail!   Stupid jerks who shingle their houses and then leave nails all over the place...... (You may have noticed the inclusion of the two words "Shingled house" in the description above).

Oh well - I saved like $1600 by doing the roof myself, so I can buy eight + tires and still be ahead..... right?

Ok - that is all for tonight.  It has been a long day, but we are caught up and back on the "blogging track" - so there will be more to come. 
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One last thing:  Next time you see Katelyn, ask her to sing, "Sherpa of the Universe" for you.  It is a song that she made up while carrying a bunch of our stuff across the tidal pools in Oregon (hence the "Sherpa" reference).  It is a glorious song about the hard working children in our family.

Writing songs about oneself and the hardships that they face (so that others can bask in the glow of how great we are) is a grand family tradition at our house...... well, not so much a "family tradition" as "something that Tim does"..... but I figure that if I sing enough songs about how great I am, then the others will catch on and then they will sings songs about how great I am and then I will not have to do it any more (Oddly enough, this plan does not seem to be working.... maybe they are slow learners).

Anyway, it was a proud moment for me to hear Katie singing her own song about herself.... good self-esteem is important, you know!  The song itself was pretty good too... up-beat, catchy..... the only thing that would have made it better is if it had been about me!   :)