April 30, 2006
Weekend Wrapup
Photos - I worked on this small photo album tonight after the twins went down to bed. It's mostly pictures from Abby's 8th birthday party. It seems like just yesterday that she was our little Chernobyl baby with her fiber optic bilirubin blanket. She looked like she was a newborn from Smallville with a green glow coming from behind her.
Saturday - We took the five kids and a friend of Claire to Max's Country Golf yesterday afternoon. It's a bit funny to call it "country golf" considering it's just south of the Pheasant Lane Mall, one of the most developed (perhaps even overdeveloped) areas in the state. It was a bit crowded so there was often a wait after each hole. You can imagine how good the three boys were at waiting before starting the next hole. Occasionally our girls would get frustrated at how the boys would get in the way of their shots. Once we reminded them that it's just for fun, they'd relax. After the 18th hole we bought them each a scoop of soft serve ice cream for the drive home.
Sunday - Today was a gorgeous day — at least for New Hampshire. Maybe if you live in San Diego, it was just a typical day. Sunny, light breeze, mild temps. We went to our usual early morning Mass and I had to pull Timothy out for a while. He was trying to sit next to Michael but Michelle and I always try to stay between the boys to prevent their brotherly affections (ahem) from causing a small riot during Mass. As we tried to keep them apart he started to get rather stubborn about it and well… you can use your imagination. After Mass we went out for donuts and let Timothy partake since he didn't let his tantrum last too long. Once we got home the girls were eager to watch Valiant on DVD. I opened up the sprinkler lines and tested all the zones and programmed them for a spring watering schedule. Late in the morning I bought some corn gluten meal and Dutch white clover seed for the lawn from the local Blue Seal dealer. After Timothy's nap we did a little shopping and Abby spent some of her birthday money.
Mower - Speaking of lawn work, late last week I ordered a reel mower for Michelle. Since moving to Milford, I mow 90% of the lawn with a tractor and she always did the parts I couldn't reach with a small 3 1/2 hp walk behind mower that we bought ~16-17 years ago when we first married. Even though we've taken it regularly for maintenance, it's getting weaker every year. Since all she worries about is a little peripheral trim work, she asked that I just get her a "people powered" mower so that she didn't have to worry about gas, oil, the engine, the noise, etc. I had done some research and found some vendors with precise design that keeps the blades sharp for several years. We'll keep the old mower around for a while just in case she changes her mind, but I think she'll like it. I also picked up some equipment for doing a bit of composting of the clippings.
Jetta - I did my second fillup this afternoon in preparation for another week of work commuting. I was happy to see that last week's fillup was not a fluke. This week's fillup yielded ~49mpg. Who-hoo! And once again, the station charged the same price for diesel as regular grade gasoline. The fuel savings certainly don't pay for the car, but they certainly help make a good dent in the monthly loan payment, especially at today's prices. It's starting to make Michelle a bit jealous. Just to really get her intrigued, I told her about the brave souls who do a straight vegetable oil conversion. I'm not that brave … at least, not yet! It does appeal to the enginerd in me… Perhaps in several years when the car goes out of warrantee (and is paid for).