a fun week

Friends, I'm finally getting back into a good groove.

After being closed for six agonizing months, the pool at my gym is finally back open, so I've been going most mornings and catching up with my dear friend Connie while we walk and exercise in the water. I've been riding my gorgeous bike, and that makes me really happy, even though there are only like three roads I can ride on because all of the paved roads around here have been replaced with gravel, and I'm not risking my neck on that. The boys are happy(ish) with their jobs and summer routines, and Mike is in his element getting the garden in and filling in the remaining spots in our never-ending front garden project.

In short, life's been pretty good.

On Tuesday, my sister Bethany, our mom, and I got to meet Great-Aunt Rita for dinner in Valparaiso, which was so nice. Aunt Rita is one of my favorite people in the world, and I love it when I have the chance to hang out with her. (I also am QUITE fond of Marlene and Bethany, for the record.) Plus, the food was amazing. I ordered the special fajitas, and it took me the entire rest of the week to finish them! The fajitas are beef, lobster tail, and bacon-wrapped shrimp. Seriously decadent.

And this weekend, for Father's Day, we had a cookout at Bethany's house, and the kids (minus Max, who got called into work ... again) got to splash around in the pool and be idolized by their younger cousins Jack, Elsie, John, and Bevie. They can claim irritation at spending time with littles all they want, but I know the truth, and that truth is that they love the littles as much as I do. (Have I mentioned that Henry is spending every Thursday this summer at my mom's house to help her watch Jack and Elsie? Come on.)

Today is actual Father's Day, and we've just been hanging out at home. Mike bought a massive beef brisket at the grocery store yesterday, and now he's experimenting with the wonders of smoking meat on the grill using wood chips. I could have worked today (I have plenty to do!), but instead I took today to organize my office, finalize vacation plans for the next few months, and just generally catch up on things I let slide when I'm deep into work mode. It has felt really good to get some of these things crossed off my list!

Update: Mike just brought the brisket in because it reached the right temperature, even though he thought it would take another hour or two before it would be done. It still has to rest for like an hour, but as he brought it in, he yelled across the house, "Oh my god, Holli, it smells so fucking good. I don't care if it's cooked or not!" I can smell it all the way in my office, and I can verify that it smells AMAZING. I can't wait to try it!