What I have been up to - Week 23

Funny how 4-day weeks at work end up being as much work as a regular week but crammed into less time! You end up feeling as burned as a regular week if not worse. Thankfully we had planned for a slow paced weekend. All the housekeeping was done during the week, including the climbing of Mount Laundry.

Yesterday, after a morning spend gardening and setting up a new raised flowerbed with the hubby (and a refreshing shower), I sent Bug and her dad grocery shopping while I prepared a few summer treats for a dinner with some friends.  We grilled on the back patio, ate and chatted until late, the kids ran around and played until they dropped - a very enjoyable evening.

Today, we took a trip to Ikea to acquire some reclining chairs so we could finally enjoy fully our newly renovated deck.  Here are a few pictures of the reconstruction process. We kept the structure but replace the handrail and all the top decking with treated wood that I stained to be in compliance with the village's and HOA's covenants (Meaning it HAD to be brown)

That's before

The back patio during the construction - What a mess!

My hubby setting up the railing posts

My hubby and his uncle John 

Bug the day of the completion 3 weeks ago

What a great timing! After a very rainy month of May, this turned out to be a fantastic day to just relax outside  - 85F ( 26C) with a very light breeze and normal humidity levels. Summers tend to be pretty hot and humid in MD. So as soon as our new  chairs were setup (there is always a bit of work when buying Ikea furniture), I grabbed my laptop, the hubs grabbed a book and we lounged of a bit in the perfect weather.

All caught up with emails, all caught up with my reading list. And of course some plain ol' doing NOTHING. That is actually rare enough to be noted.

Bug also enjoyed a book, in her own special way. 

More bubble soap was used and abused

Looks like we are having dinner outside tonight too.

The other news of the week are not so great. My new doctor confirmed I will need another surgery which has been scheduled for mid-July. I'm a bit angry and depressed to have to go through all this again. How do I communicate my concerns with my previous doctor about the March surgery? I'm also worried about the possible implications with my health insurance.

The worry made for another slow week in the crafting department. It feels I am in a never ending slump. A couple of smaller projects got finished though: my new seriously long necklace, another jeans upcycling project and  a new dress for Princess Fiona. I will share those this week. I still have some photo to take :).

What have you been up to?