Life Last Week 2018-25

Life Last Week was on hiatus during Christmas in July but I'm back and here's what's been happening Chez Nous.

The weather:::

 More of the ghastly weather we've been having while I've been dreaming of snow at Christmas - it's been in the high 80s and even 90s every day with bursts of torrential rain in the afternoons and evenings that do nothing but make it more humid and leave pools of water that quickly become mosquito breeding grounds.  Have I told you lately how much I loathe the weather here?  What do they say in Game of Thrones, Winter is Coming?  It can't come soon enough for me!

On my reading pile:::
Working my way through this stack minus the Debbie Macomber book which I found out as I started reading it that it is number twelve in the Cedar Cove series.  Need to read 1-11 first.  I'm enjoying Death of an English Muffin.

On my TV:::

Worked my way through Madam Secretary and I'm watching Escape to the Continent on Netflix.  I think I'm going to start When Calls the Heart from the beginning.  Coming out of Christmas in July, I've been watching December Daily You Tube videos to get some inspiration as the products will be available soon.

Checked off the list:::

• Christmas in July was a lot of fun - the Magical Holiday Home Forums members are awesome and we shared some great ideas during the month.
• Vic's been super busy with work and it's not going to slow down anytime soon.  He's been to Florida and New Hampshire since my last update as well as a local inspection and now he's off again.
• I finally turned over the Charities Chair and in keeping with the "I Can't Say No" problem I've had for many years, I agreed to take over as Parliamentarian for my remaining time here to help with the Bylaws Revision process.
• The septic system proposal came in (ka-ching, ka-ching), the house needed to be pressure washed, and the lead inspection was completed with two minor things that need to be corrected.  Spending money on rental house 3, Pamela and Vic 0.
• England made it to the semi-finals of the World Cup and then lost to Croatia.  #itsnotcominghomethistime.
• Managed to get out of Hallmark on Keepsake Ornament Premiere Day without having to take out a second mortgage - 😜
• Vic had a bed bug encounter at the hotel in Florida on the last day he was there (thankfully on the second bed in the room and not the one he was sleeping in) - he reported it to the front desk as he was checking out and the clerk said they would notify the manager (it was too early for him/her to be on site yet).  When the management followed up on the complaint, they said they didn't find anything even though we had photographs.  Since a member of staff was not there to witness the photographs being taken, they declined our complaint.  I wasn't taking any chances.  Everything that couldn't be washed in the hottest water possible was bagged and tossed in the freezer for several days.  Vic needed a new backpack anyway so we tossed that and his suitcase stayed in the garage for a week to be subjected to the heat of a Virginia summer to kill anything that might have made its way in there.  I made several recommendations for future hotel stays - leave your luggage at the door while you strip the bed when you get there, and if you find anything, call the manager and insist that they come up immediately to inspect the findings.  I hope it's not ever an issue again but you have to be prepared.
• This little cutie joined the Washington branch of our family - her name is Spectra and she's so lovable.  Just what Sophia needed to help heal her heart after the loss of MudLynn.  She's two years old, a rescue, and a lab-chihuahua mix although I'm sure she's got some Australian cattle dog in her (those ears!).

Crafts roundup:::

Vic's projects have come to a standstill during his busy travel period.  I haven't done anything to Project Life either.  We are doing a lot of packing, though, does that qualify as a craft?

And in other news:::

We have less than 100 days to go before we are in Washington.  In that time, we have to make a house-hunting trip to Washington, pack out of this house, and start the trek across the country.  A busy couple of months are ahead of us.