Hallie, on tipetoes, looking at the plate of sliced tomatoes with balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper, and basil sitting on the counter:
“Eww! Eww! Ewwie! Yuck, get me away from that stuff!!”
Me: “Hallie, what’s wrong? You like tomatoes!”
“Yeah, but I don’t like that… (hands wrenching and fluttering)… sparkly stuff!”
It’s 10:15 and the house is quiet. The kids (and Dan) are all asleep,
and for some reason, I’m not tired, so I’m down here poking around
online.
I like evenings like this when it’s so peaceful and still. And cool– I
am still adjusting to living in the mountains. Here it is mid-July, and
we’ve had the AC on twice. In
STL we would be into our second month of 24/7 AC usage, and nary an
open window to be found. Here we have the windows and sliding doors
open all the time. It’s so nice, but it’s strange, too. I’m just not used to it. The other weird thing is that the nights are cold. Like, goosebumps and cold feet kind of cold. I almost miss the still Missouri nights, where you could walk outside out of the coldish AC into the warm, muggy night and hear the crickets chirping and the street lights buzzing in the dark. Here the days are hot , but once the sun goes down…. it’s a different story. I hear it’s mountain weather, though, so… You’d think I’d be used to it, having grown up here, but… I guess having spent all my adult years in St. Louis, that’s become my reference point.
Anyway, I really should get to bed. Morning comes early, unfortunately. 
“God didn’t obey the Jesus, so Jesus went to heaven and then he died. And then he saw a white moon and a white star.”
~Hallie reading her Bible aloud to herself
:: All last week Dan’s parents, his two sisters, two brothers, their three spouses and their 7 kids were here in Bear Creek with us. It was SUCH A BLAST! I love seeing all 10 grandkids together– they are all so cute and have such distinct personalities! I also loved being with the entire extended family. We went quading, swimming (almost every day!) played games, went for multiple walks, chatted, cooked meals, went out to eat… it was really all-in-all a terrific week. I also really enjoyed being with my three sisters in law. We four so rarely all have the chance to hang out together. Just being with them was so much fun!
:: This morning Dan had minor surgery to remove a foreign object from his shin area. The doc thought that it might have been a piece of safety glass from a car accident Dan was in when he was 18. He’s recovering well, but is still groggy and tired from the anesthesia. He and I were going to watch a movie tonight, but we’ll see how that goes. 
:: My sisters in law and I started a blog. We all enjoy cooking, reading, baking, good movies, etc., so we started a blog to share these things we recommend. You can see it here.
:: The end of an era has commenced. It makes us– the extended Haas family– a little sad, because we know that it will never be the same family company again. But hey, such is life, right?
:: Next weekend is my dad’s side of the family reunion. It will another crazy, hectic, FUN time!
:: Last night my dad, Dan & I, and three sibs drove to Philly to see my dad’s cousin in a Sherlock Homes play. It was hilarious!! If you are in the Philly area, I highly recommend you see it.
:: Summer here is just SO great. We are at the lake almost every day, and I end up doing dinner there as well. Dan is terrific on the grill, and sides are easy enough to throw together. I love the laid-back easyness of summer cooking.
:: And that’s it. I know I have been terrible at keeping up with this blog; likely this fall when the chilly air hits, I’ll be here updating daily. But I am just so busy these days… getting on the computer to blog seems almost… wrong. I know it’s not, but somehow I just don’t end up getting on here, for whatever reason. I guess it means I’m busy doing other things, and (in this season, at least) I’m ok with that.
