Memorial Day Weekend 2009

Last weekend, we were out running errands, as we typically do on the weekends. We were starving with the kind of hunger only large amounts of fat and cholesterol can sate. So, we decided to head to Mighty Fine Hamburgers. I went into the bathroom to wash three baby spoons for the little man. An older lady saw me and asked, "Are you feeding three kids?"
"No, this is in case he drops one," I replied.
"Oh, you are so prepared!".
"Well, not actually, I just bought these spoons at Target, because I did not plan ahead."

But that was last weekend. This weekend was Memorial Day Weekend. We didn't go out of town, but stayed home. A staycation, I've heard it called. We didn't go to any parades, but silently thought about family members who have served.

A new thing for us as a family, though, was taking the little man along the Lady Bird Lake trail (formerly known as Town Lake trail). The weather was beautiful yesterday and it was an all around perfect morning for a stroll. Those not from Austin may not know that the underside of the Congress Avenue bridge is home to the largest population of Mexican Free-tailed bats. Even though I've lived here for many years, I just learned that the bridge was renovated with special channels specifically for the bats to nest. As we passed under the bridge, it almost seemed like the wheels of the jogging stroller were suddenly squeaky, but it was just the colony saying hello to joggers, bicyclists, and strollers below. Here is a little slideshow of our little nature walk.



Since it was a hot weekend with highs in the 90s, we had hoped to go to the nearby public pool. But alas, the little man is down with a little cold. He just has not been himself, quite cranky and fussy. I think we have really started the long hot summer months here, so, I'm sure we will have many more opportunities this summer to hit the pool.

On the home front, we finally got the flooring installed for the new part of our living room. Here La Princesa is modeling the new floor.


My favorite tweet of the week is actually related to Memorial Day:


Random thought of the week: Due to the marvelousness of iTunes random play, I just noticed that both Marco Antonio Solís and Maná sing "Si No Te Hubieras Ido". I can't decide which I like better. They are both pretty good. Marco Antonio has a superb voice, and the Maná version has a bit more of a rock edge.

Hope you had a swell weekend and hope you are all doing well.

Home Improvement Update

This installment features new exterior paint, exterior and interior light fixtures, Mr. Slim HVAC unit, and glass blocks.

Music: "That Was Then" by Stretford

Home improvement update: drywall, paint

Drywall installation, texture, and paint! And Bernie the Electrician's cute little happy dance!

Sorry this is about a week old. I had the video ready, but we finally did the voiceover for it tonight.

Music: "Last Time Around" by Stretford. (Yes, that is me playing saxophone.)

And I'm not sure why iMovie does that little "tink" in the beginning. I think it's a bug from the voiceover countdown cue (3-2-1-go).

Installing the I-beam, part 2

A few people have asked me after seeing the I-Beam movie, what happened next? So, here is what happened over the few days it took to get it up and welded in place. We actually have drywall installed now, with the first pass at taping and floating finished. So, the videos are a little out of order chronologically speaking.

Plastic Wonderland

Installing the I-beam

Home improvement update: fascia and soffit

We have had a few delays due to weather. And despite Austin Energy cutting the power for several hours to trim trees next door, Neil's crew was able to finish replacing the fascia and soffit that had rotted behind the old aluminum siding. It looks spiffy now. Next week the entire house will be reroofed.

Direct link to YouTube video.

Home improvement update: framing

We have been having many delays on our project. The foundation took much longer than we expected. Last week, after much anticipation, the lumber was finally delivered to our house.



And then on Friday, the framing began.

The slabs are done!

While we were out of town for the holidays, the concrete was poured for our new addition and our new storage building.

Here is the slab for the addition on the back of the house:



And here you can see the slab for the storage building in the back.

Home improvement project under way

This is from a few days ago. This is the preparation to pour concrete for a new addition on the back of our house. They actually finished the rebar yesterday, so it is more complete than this picture shows. We should be getting the concrete poured tomorrow.