A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 212

31/July/2015, Day 212.  Friday.

The brutal heat of summer is more than half-way past now.  We are looking forward to the cooler days of autumn, when it will be pleasant to be outside, and when our monthly electric bills will drop back to sane levels, since we won't have to keep all our airconditioners running night and day.

For some unknown reason, neither Sweetie nor Grump slept too well last night.  Despite this, Sweetie dragged Grump off to Bible study tonight, along with Kuya.  Kuya had a great time playing with Char and her little brother Phil, but Grump struggled to remain awake.  Which was a shame, because the message from Bible study tonight was a good one: don't be too overconfident in your plans, or anything about your life, because it could all be taken from you in an instant.

Whenever we say we're going to do something, or go somewhere, we should at a minimum have in our hearts an implied, "God willing".  With all the potential disasters of life that could fall upon us each and every second, it's a miracle that any of us last longer than a day, let alone a long lifetime.

Let's end today with a pic of Grump's brother, (who these days is a high-level bank executive married to a higher level executive, living with their kids in London), doing something or other, someplace or other.  (Don't ask, don't tell?)

The Successful Brother!

Goodnight all!

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 211

30/July/2015, Day 211.  Thursday.

It was one of those days - although up and awake early, Grump still managed to be late for work.  He left his car windows down a bit, and the usual afternoon thunderstorm got the inside of his car wet.

But ..... Dodong has NOT banged his head for at least a week now, so we are all very, very happy about that!  It is important to be thankful for the things in life that are important, and let the day-to-day irritating crap just slide into the dustbin of oblivion where it belongs.

Well, I don't feel like writing anything else, so how about some pics?

From Christmas way back in 2011, (!), that is a young Dodong standing in front of a Christmas tree.  (We were living in an apartment at the time, having just recently moved to Georgia.)

Dodong at Christmas, 2011

From a Christmas party that same year, here is Dodong sitting next to Uncle Mack on the left.  His friend Char in on the right, with her Papa.

Dodong at a Christmas Party, 2011

Proof that Grump has a BIG NOSE:

Grump and his Nose

Goodnight all!

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 210

29/July/2015, Day 210.  Wednesday.

Happy Hump Day!

Grump survived work, but barely.  The current task he has been assigned - debug some old, convoluted computer programs - is kicking his butt big time! But .... we all need his paycheck to survive, so, Dear Grump, you'll just have to, "suck it up, buttercup!"

Sweetie bought banana leaves today, and made some budbud.  Now we don't want to brag, but Sweetie probably makes the best budbud in the universe!  Yummy, yummy, yummy!

Sweetie's Delicious Budbud

Now Grump wants all you folks out there considering marrying a Filipina, (or Filipino), to be aware that while folks from the Philippines have many, many admirable traits, you will have to adjust your diet once you become coupled with one.  Hopefully you like rice, because you'll probably be eating it with every meal!

Rice - so much more than a Breakfast Food!

And you'll just have to get used to the fact that sometimes your dinner will be looking back at you!

Fishheads!  Yum!

Goodnight all!

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 209

28/July/2015, Day 209.  Tuesday.

It was a typical summer day here in middle Georgia, very hot with intense humidity, culminating in a thunderstorm in the late afternoon / early evening.

Kuya had an eye appointment today.  We learned that he is slightly farsighted, which apparently is not uncommon for kids.  Both Grump and Sweetie are nearsighted, so being farsighted at his age is probably a good thing.

Dinner was bitter melon, (some of which we grew in our backyard!), and egg, over rice, (of course - no meal is complete without rice!)  After dinner we all got in the car and went ..... shopping!  Sweetie bought some frames for some pictures at Hobby Lobby, and Kuya got a cup of yogurt at the Riverside Mall.

Now we're back home, winding down and getting ready for bed.  Goodnight all!

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 208

27/July/2015, Day 208.  Monday.

Back in the early 80's, when Old Grump was a Young Grump, he and his buddies at work used to repeat a little saying every now and then:

Life's a bitch, and then you die.

Pleasant, huh?  It's morbid humor appealed to the young men, so much so that they sometimes modified it as follows:

Life's a bitch, and then you marry one.

The point of all this is that these two dismally silly sayings sum up how Grump feels at the moment: work is killing him, (figuratively, we hope!), and Sweetie is displeased with him.

The trouble started, (as it often does), when Grump came home from work discouraged and in a foul state of mind.  His grumpiness soured the mood, so by the time he and Sweetie went to the gym to work out, she wasn't speaking to him anymore.  He then refused to cut short his workout, so that when he was finally done and they drove to Hobby Lobby to get some pictures framed, (as Grump had promised they would do), Hobby Lobby was already closed.

The silver lining to all this is that Kuya and Dodong are oblivious to Grump's misery and misbehavior.

Blah ...... let's get this day over with, and go to bed!  Goodnight all.

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 207

26/July/2015, Day 207.  Sunday.

We're all tired!! We got up early to go to church, but then today, (unlike yesterday), we did NOT get a long nap.

We got lunch on the way home from church, Sweetie and Grump eating Chipolte burritos, while Kuya and Lola ate food from McDonald's.  Then it was off to the mall to buy shoes for Kuya.  He got two pairs: a nice pair for school and church, and some sneakers for gym class and playing after school.

Despite his tiredness Grump did manage to walk three miles at the gym.

Since I'm too tired to string more than one or two coherent sentences together, (if that!), how about another old pic to enjoy?

This is the "quiet lady", a little wooden statue Sweetie gave to Grump.  It's from Vietnam, where Sweetie used to work as a nanny.

The "Quiet Lady" watching over us at our condo in Columbia, SC

Of course, as any of you married guys know, the only "quiet ladies" are those made of wood!

Goodnight all.

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 206

25/July/2015, Day 206.  Saturday.

The started early.  Dodong woke Sweetie up at 5:00 am, which was bad, and Kuya woke Old Sweaty Grump up at 6:30 am, which was awful!

Sweetie, Lola, and Dodong walked to neighborhood garage sale while Kuya stayed home and watched "Frozen" on a DVD we had rented.  Grump slowly, grudgingly, got his act together, then after breakfast mowed the entire yard, front and back, before the nasty heat of midday arrived.

After a quick trip to get air the tires of Sweetie's car, we had a quick lunch, then we all took a nap.  (Grump considered this the best part of the day!)

We all woke up again around 4:00 pm or so, then packed into Sweetie's car to go to the wonderful French Market for an early dinner.

Sweetie before getting in her car to go to the French Market

Kuya attempting to wake up once we arrived in Locust Grove

A rare pic of the elusive Lola, no doubt ecstatic over the cake she will soon be eating

 Of course we had a delicious dinner!  Grump especially loves their gumbo and red beans and rice; Sweetie, Lola, and Kuya think their cakes are to die for!

After dinner we did some shopping, (this is the weekend, after all!), at Babys-R-Us and Marshalls, then drove back home.

Kuya, Sweetie, Grump, and Dodong all safely back home

Now it is late, and with full bellies we will be climbing in bed.  Goodnight all!

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 205

24/July/2015, Day 205.  Friday.

Oh boy ..... Grump had another busy day at work.  He sure is glad this week is over, and hopes that next week the workload isn't quite as onerous.

Sweetie was still sick today.  Phooey!!  We all hope Sweetie is feeling better really, really soon, because our little family doesn't function well without her being 100%.

After dinner today we went to Walmart to buy Kuya's school supplies.  He'll be going back to school soon, and this year he will be a first grader!  Woo hoo!

It looks like Clickworker, (UHRS, actually), has already burned through all its tasks for a few more days.  It's too bad that it doesn't consistently have workable tasks available, but I guess you can't gripe about a website that pays you.  If we're lucky we might reach $50.00 this week, but that would mean that Clickworker would have to have a good day tomorrow, which is unlikely.

Do any of y'all shop at The Fresh Market?  It's an upscale grocery store that has some neat stuff, (and some very over-priced stuff too!), and seems to market more affluent types than us.  (Sorry, but our credit card bills are bad enough without shopping at The Fresh Market!)  Well, just today they sent out coupons in the mail, but with an expiration date of December, 2014!  What are we supposed to do, go back in time to use them?

Speaking of time, it's now time for your humble correspondent to go to bed.  Goodnight all!

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 204

23/July/2015, Day 204.  Thursday.

It rained really, really, REALY hard this afternoon.  Grump got stuck in it driving home from work.  It rained so darn hard there were huge puddles, (tiny ponds, actually), on I-75, making driving on that highway interesting, to say the least.

Clickworker has picked up a bit the last few days.  Hooray!  Clickworker is an odd website.  Sometimes there's tons of easy stuff to do for quick money, other times there's nothing but malfunctioning tasks, or near-impossible tasks that only pay one or two cents.  As always, should you decide to join Clickworker too, (I believe it is available to any location, but you'll need a PayPal account), please consider using my referral link: http://www.clickworker.com/en/clickworker/?customer=false&utm_source=765696&utm_campaign=CW4CW&utm_medium=email . Gracias!

I suppose the most exciting news of the day was that Lola made dinner, and not only did she use all vegetables that we grew in our garden plots out back, (with the idiotic deer kept away thanks to the wonderful Liquid Fence product), but even more impressively the food itself was delicious!  This was probably because Sweetie convinced her NOT to add vinegar to it  -  YUK! As a true Kano, Grump doesn't like the sour/rotten tastes preferred by many Filipinos for some unfathomable reason.

Then, because Sweetie wasn't feeling well, we went to bed early.  Why don't you go to bed early too, and we'll all be well rested tomorrow!

Goodnight all.

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 203

22/July/2015, Day 203.  Wednesday.

Yep, it was another workday/weekday.  Dodong's "head wound" is almost completely gone now.  I'll have to ask Angel to help watch over him, to keep him from banging his head further.

Sweetie was tired, and Old Grump was tired, (he had to stay over an hour at work - yuk!), so we had pizza for dinner.  (Except Lola, who doesn't like pizza.  She ate a hamburger with "ketchup only"!).   Grump ate way too much pizza; now his tummy aches, and he fears he won't sleep well tonight.

The big news is from back home in Mindanao.  It appears that Mr. J, (who is watching over J.C. while Sweetie's sister works in Manila to pay off some debts), got his girlfriend pregnant.  Uh oh!!  Not sure how all this is gonna work out, but we're hoping for the short term that the happy couple move into Lola's house while she's here with us in the American Empire.  Once Lola goes back home in a few years they'll have to sort things out themselves.  In the meantime, we'd like them to concentrate on keeping that baby healthy!

And another day rolls off into history ......

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 202

21/July/2015, Day 202.  Tuesday.

Sweetie got her car back!  Old Grump even drove home for lunch so they could pick it up.  Sweetie is happy now that her door and door handle are fixed.

The bad news of the day is that Dodong fell, hard, on the tiles in the hallway.  He got a nasty bruise on his forehead:

Dodong with a bruise on his head, above his right eye

Grump feels guilty about this latest "head-banging" experience, because he knew yesterday that Dodong was walking too erratically on the tiles, but he did nothing about it.  NOW we have the hallway fenced off from the living room and kitchen.  It's awkward to get around, but better to be inconvenienced than have Dodong bang his head yet again.

Here are some pics of the rest of us:

Lola feeding Dodong

This is actually a good picture, as it's hard to get Lola focused in the camera lens.  She's very shy, and hides her face when she sees a camera.
  

Sweetie picking her teeth

Kuya

Kuya is the opposite of Lola; he LOVES to have his picture taken, and more often than not will act goofy and silly when you are about to take the shot.


Finally, to give you something to think about, here is a pic of Old Grump's fat stomach, (expanded to X-Large size, to better approximate the real thing!):

Was this really necessary?

Pleasant dreams!

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 201

20/July/2015, Day 201.  Monday.

Monday, Monday .... back to work for Old Grump.  He discussed his workload with his boss and team lead, and then just before leaving discovered that something he had been working on for several weeks was done wrong, so he has to redo it.  Drats!!

Kuya had a piano lesson this afternoon, and since Sweetie's car wasn't ready for pickup from the dealership, (SLOW workers in the bodyshop, I guess), Grump had to come home early and take Sweetie and Kuya to the lesson.

Later both Grump and Sweetie were TOO DARNED TIRED to go exercise.  (Although, to be fair, Sweetie did go for a walk in the morning.)

Clickworker was a wee bit better today, but still not great like it was before last week.

And now, since we're all tired, (okay, since Sweetie and Grump are tired; Kuya and Dodong are bouncing off the walls - drats again!), we're going to bed.  Goodnight!

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 200

19/July/2015, Day 200.  Sunday.

For some bizarre reason Kuya was up early this morning.  Of course he woke all the rest of us up, so rather than sleeping in we all rolled out of bed before 8:00 am.

After a leisurely breakfast we got dressed up and headed off to church.  On the way home from worshipping we grabbed a bite to eat, then after resting up a bit Grump went to the health club, where he walked on a treadmill for three miles.

In the late afternoon Grump and Sweetie did a little shopping, and that was about it for our excursions for the day.

I do want to add that Lola cooked up a filipino dish with bony, stinky fish, (Indian mackeral, I believe), taro, green beans, and some weird leafy vegetable that grows from a tree an looks to me like miniature black locust leaves.  Sounds challenging, but you know what?  It was absolutely delicious!  Even Grump ate it, and he is the first to spit out anything that tastes "too weird" to him.

Grump wants me to add that Clickworker has been cruddy for more than a week now, and that he'll be lucky to earn even $20.00 this week.  He did squeak by with a bit more than $20,00 in earnings last week, but it was a far cry from the $40.00 - $60.00 a week he had been earning for several weeks previously.  Oh well .....

Goodnight all.  Sweet dreams!

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 199

18/July/2015, Day 199.  Saturday.

Saturday, Saturday, Saturday!  Hooray!  The weekend is FINALLY here!

And since it was the first day of the weekend, we did what we usually do, namely, go shopping.

First Grump and Sweetie drove to Warner Robins.  Since Sweetie was hungry they stopped for an early lunch at the superb Monsoon restaurant, then went to the Filipino store on Carl Vinson Pkwy.  After that they drove back towards Macon, stopping first at the Sam's Club to buy some rice, ("so much more than a breakfast food," as Grump likes to teasingly say), and fruits, then coming home.

Next Lola, Dodong, and Sweetie were dropped off at Riverside Mall, while Kuya and Grump went to see the new Minions movie.  Grump was kinda bored, but Kuya enjoyed it.  Meanwhile, back at the mall Dodong had managed to pour water all over himself, so Sweetie bought him a new shirt at Gap.

After all this excitement Grump wasn't feeling too well, (I think he got over-heated), so he lay down for a few hours.  In the late evening he and Sweetie went out once again, this time browsing the sofas and couches at Ashley's, (we have to replace ours, as the fake leather has started to crack and peel), then puttering around at a few other stores.

Now it is late, and time for ........ an old pic!  Here's a very old pic from the first time Grump ever visited Lolo and Lola's house in Mindanao.

Sweetie being bear-hugged by Grump

Goodnight all!

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 198

17/July/2015, Day 198.  Friday.

The big news of the day was that the door on Sweetie's car broke.  She was able to get it shut, but at Grump's insistence she took it in to the dealership, where it just so happened that the parts to fix it, (which we had ordered earlier in the week), had arrived.  The car had to be left there over the weekend to paint an exterior part, so Grump had to leave work early to take Sweetie home, (and then work late to make up the missed time).

So .... since we will be without Sweetie's car for the weekend, we're cancelling our plans to go to the Atlanta Botanical Garden on Saturday.  Phooey!

After getting home from work, (late!), Grump did get in a quick workout at Planet Fitness, then he, Sweetie, and Kuya went to Bible study next door.  Lola stayed home with Dodong.

Back from Bible study, Sweetie and Grump stayed up late chatting while everyone else slept.  It's good to have a long talk every now and then, and Sweetie and Grump were way overdue.

Goodnigh all! 

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 197

16/July/2015, Day 197.  Thursday.

Yes, it was just another workday/weekday, and, yes, Grump is tired of his job.  ("Burnt out" would be the proper term, I suppose.)  And yes it was HOT here today, but what do you expect of central Georgia in July?

Sweetie and Grump did make it to the gym tonight, which is a small victory, I suppose.

Since I don't really feel like writing tonight, how about some more old pics?

Sweetie at the Atlanta Airport

This is the first picture of Sweetie in the United States.  She had just arrived, and she and Grump were standing in the airport parking lot early on a November morning.  And she was freezing!!

Grump being weird

 A picture from about the same time of Grump doing whatever it is that Grump does.

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 196

15/July/2015, Day 196.  Wednesday.

It was just another weekday/workday.  Kuya enjoyed his third day of "phonics camp", and had a piano lesson in the afternoon, where he did very well.  Grump and Sweetie exercised a bit after dinner at the Planet Fitness health club, during which Sweetie had to listen to Grump complain, like a broken record, about his job and the sorry state of our finances.  Lola spent most of the day watching Dodong, and Dodong spent most of the day looking for things to get into.

We haven't had a photo posted in a long time, so how about an old photo from 2006?  This is a younger Grump in his cube at AgFirst in Columbia, SC.  He worked at AgFirst from January, 2005 until November, 2007, (oops - 2006; Grump is getting forgetful!), when he went to work at Blue Cross of South Carolina.

Grump relaxing in his cube at AgFirst, Columbia, SC

Goodnight all!

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 195

14/July/2015, Day 195.  Tuesday.

Given the fact that, due to excitement at work, neither Grump nor Sweetie have slept much at all the past two nights, the day started out poorly.  Grump didn't roll out of bed until 10:30 am, (cut him a break! - he wasn't in bed until 4:00 am or later!), and when he did both he and Sweetie were in BAD moods.  Lack of sleep will do that to ya.

Things slowly started improving from there.  First, (miracle of miracles!), Grump was able to login to work from his home PC for the first time in over six months.  I have no idea if he'll ever be able to do it again, but for at least this once it worked, and because of that he was able to work from home, rather than take a sick day.

Next he went to his doctor's appointment, to get his high blood pressure treated.  At this point Grump just has the onset of hypertension; hopefully with proper treatment it will be controlled, or even reversed.  He was given Lisinopril, 5 mg, which his doc claims is a "good" high blood pressure medicine, and even does good things to your kidneys.  (And, most importantly, it won't interfere with "Grump Jr." getting aroused, if you know what I mean!)

Finally, to shake all the funk of the last two nights out of our system, we went to the superb FoJ for dinner.  No, we can't really afford to eat out like that, but sometimes exceptions have to be made.  Dinner was absolutely delicious, and we left the restaurant in a much better mood.

Now Sweetie and Lola are getting the kids ready for bed, while Grump fidgets with his new medicine.  If they feel up to it, Sweetie and Grump will go to Planet Fitness for a quick workout.  If not, they'll go straight to bed.  Care to wager which option they'll choose?

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 194

13/July/2015, Day 194.  Monday.

Tiredness, tiredness, and more tiredness!!

Lack of sleep is definitely affecting Grump and Sweetie.  Thank God for Lola, else we're not sure how we'd take care of the kids.

Grump dragged his tired butt into work, but other than being there physically he didn't really get much done.

We all went to bed early, and once the kids were settled down Grump and Sweetie were soon snoring peacefully.


Update: Our repose was disturbed by a phone call at 12:30 am.  Yet another computer problem at work!  GRR!!!  So Grump had to get dressed and drive in to work again.  This is ridiculous!  He plans on taking a sick day tomorrow, (actually today), so he can get some sleep!

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 193

12/July/2015, Day 193.  Sunday.


What can you say about a day that starts at 3:00 am, with Grump waking up to drive in to work?  The company he works for has the sloppiest and laziest network engineers he's seen anywhere, (more about this later), so it was no surprise that the company PC he was given to remote connect in to work did not connect properly.

Sweetie got dressed and came with him.  She had never seen his new workspace before, and was shocked at how tiny his cubicle is.  (And how FILTHY the cafeteria downstairs is!)  As is prudent, we walked up the stairs rather than using the elevators, and they are prone to breaking down.  After all, what could be worse than to be trapped in an office building elevator at 3:30 am Sunday morning?

Anyway, what should have been a 10 - 15 minute task turned into a three hour one, due to some botched network authorizations, and the network engineers being impossible to get in touch with.  Grr!!  So we didn't get out of there until 6:30 am.  But we did verify that the silly company PC, (which we had brought with us), did in fact work once connected directly into the company LAN.  We left it logged in while we were there, hoping that it would download whatever updates it need to allow remote connections.

Once the morning work was done, Sweetie and Grump got a quick breakfast at Panera, then came home.  Grump was extremely tired and went to bed, while Sweetie and Lola stayed up and watched the kids.

In the early afternoon, once we were able to awaken Grump, we went to the Riverside Mall, where we all had an ice-cream treat, and Sweetie bought a "beach bag" to carry all the various kiddie accessories around.

Back home we were about to settle down to a dinner of chicken wings and rice noodles when Grump realized that the stuborn company PC STILL wouldn't allow remote connections to the company computer network.  Phooey!!  The silly network engineers have made remote access so ridiculously cumbersome that it takes an act of God to login from home.  So once again Grump had to drive in to work.

It should come as no surprise that there were issues once again, causing another 10 - 15 minute task to drag on for hours.  The only shock here was that the foul-ups had nothing to do with the network folks!  After a couple hours everything was worked out, and Grump was able to come home.

So now it is the end of a somewhat frustrating day.  However, not all was bad: although HOT, it was sunny and clear and basically a beautiful day, and Kuya and Dodong got to splash around in the kiddie pool while Grump was at work the second time, and the ice-cream treat we bought at the mall was yummy.

Goodnight all!
 

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 192

11/July/2015, Day 192.  Saturday.

Ugh!  Today sure started out as a mess!

First of all Grump has been upset because Clickworker, (UHRS actually), has been cruddy for two days now.  I think he has earned a grand total of 15¢ since Thursday night.  Hopefully the issues with UHRS will resolve soon.

Next, your humble correspondent got in trouble for things I wrote on this blog, if you can imagine that.  I thought what was written here was fairly innocuous, but I guess not everyone agress with me.

The next brouhaha arose over ...... well, I better not say much about this, since it's a family issue, and I don't want to get hammered for what I write again.   

Then Kuya went and busted up his lower lip while playing.  It appears he somehow bit down on it really hard; the wound is inside his mouth, and looks very painful and irritating.

Finally, the order from Land's End for Kuya's school shirts arrived this morning, and it turns out that of the five shirts he ordered, Old Grump specified the wrong size on four of them.  Grrr!!!  So now we have to attempt to return four expensive shirts that have a specific school logo on them.  Wish us luck!

The day improved in the afternoon when we went to Mackenzie's birthday party.  It was a pool party, and Kuya spent most of the party in the pool.

After the party we were able to make it to Sears in Warner Robins to return the Land's End shirts that were too big.

Then all went well, until time for bed, when Sweetie discovered that somehow we had just received a charged on our VISA card for an Apple App neither she nor Grump downloaded.  How in the world the Apple store got our credit card number we don't know, because we did not load it into the iPad, at least not knowingly.  Grump called the VISA card company, and they told him that to contest the charge they would have to send him a new card.  
    
So now we don't have a VISA card for several days, until the new ones arrive. 

The final insult of the day was delivered when Grump attempted to login to work using a company PC.  It turns out that this particular PC requires Window 7 patches to be accepted by the company's ridiculously fussy and cryptic remote connection protocols.  So now Grump will have to wake up in the middle of the night and drive in to work at 3:30 am tomorrow morning.  Grrr!!!

Time for bed!

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 191

10/July/2015, Day 191.  Friday.

The weekend is FINALLY here!  Hooray!

Sweetie made some ensalada caprese, (caprese salad), for dinner, minus the basil leaves.  Yummy, yummy, yummy!  After that we went shopping, (Gap at Riverside Mall), but came home early because it was intermittently raining.

Not much else is new here.  We'll have to take Sweetie's car to the dealership tomorrow, because one of the door handles is falling off!  Yeah, more expenses  -  yuck!

Three more months to go, and Grump will have four years vested at his job.  Yipee!  It's been a rough slog at times, but it appears he may actually survive there for six years, (at least we hope so!), and become fully vested.

Goodnight all!

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 190

09/July/2015, Day 190.  Thursday.

Like yesterday, today another weekday/workday for us, and another hot but beautiful day.  I don't really mind the heat as much as I mind cold, as long as we have air-conditioning.  But I guess I have to admit that without the blessed a/c, life would be better in a colder climate.

Kuya went to his last Mathnasium class of the summer today.  The instructor said he did very well, which is nice.  (I wonder if she says that to ALL the parents?) 

Dinner was baby food for Dodong, "cheese pizza", (PapaJohn's cheese sticks), for Kuya, Chipolte burritos for Sweetie and Grump, and a McDonald's hamburger with ONLY ketchup for Lola.  After dinner Sweetie and Grump went to Planet Fitness, where they each walked two miles.

Another day winds to a close ......

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 189

08/July/2015, Day 189.  Wednesday.

Happy Hump Day!

It was just another weekday/workday for us, although I have to admit the weather was gorgeous!  Hot perhaps by midday, but in the morning and evening it was as pleasant as you could hope for.

Dinner was, ..... well, dinner was bits and pieces of what Grump calls "stinky fish".  Lola, Sweetie, and even Dodong loved it; Grump and Kuya survived it.

After dinner Kuya and Dodong splashed around in the kiddie pool for a bit, while Grump went to the gym.  He was only on the treadmill for two miles again tonight, but I suppose a little bit of exercise is bettter than none at all.

The most exciting news was that the pics of Dodong's dedication have been posted on the Midtown SDA Church's website, and can be found here:  http://midtownchurch.net/pix/150627.shtml .

Goodnight all!

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 188

07/July/2015, Day 188.  Tuesday.

The work week continues to grind on for us.  Even though only Grump actually "works", (just don't tell that to Sweetie and Lola, who are stuck watching two young kids all day, and cooking, cleaning, running errands, and doing anything-and-everything around the house that needs done!), we all look forward to the weekend.  Three more days to go!

After dinner Lola filled up the kiddie pool, and Kuya and Dodong spashed around in it a bit, while Sweetie and Grump went to Planet Fitness to exercise.  They say that it sure feels good to more their fat old bodies around a bit, even if they aren't getting the world's most strenuous exercise.

Grump's blood pressure was still bad today.  Phooey!  A few more weeks of this, and he'll have no choice but to seek medical advice.

How was your Tuesday?  Was it a hot but clear day like here in central Georgia?  Like us, do you too live for the weekends?

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 187

06/July/2015, Day 187.  Monday.

Grump was really, really tired today.  I guess working four hours in the yard was too much for the old guy.  He didn't even go to the gym, even though it was PIZZA NIGHT.  (What a great gym to have a Pizza Night, huh?)

We did make a quick run down to Sam's Club once Grump got home from work, to purchase some bottled water and fruits.  Other than that .... Sweetie and Grump mostly just lay around all evening, whining about how tired they are, while Lola watched the kids.

Oh ..... Kuya did have his weekly piano lesson, and he did very, very well.  The piano teacher is very happy with Kuya's progress so far.  If he keeps this up, he'll be an accomplished piano player just like his cousin Uncle John.

Goodnight all.

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 186

05/July/2015, Day 186.  Sunday.

For most of his adult life, Grump did not go to church.  He doesn't really like to go to church, as he believes his time could be better spent doing other things.  The only church service he ever went to voluntarily was Evensong at an Anglican church in Columbia, SC.  This service occured on Wednesday, and lasted all of thirty minutes.

However, Sweetie believes that church attendence is an important part of life, so once again we were up early this morning, getting ready for church.  

Home again after church services, Kuya, Lola, and Grump ate Wendy's hamburgers for lunch, (Dodong ate a little bit too!), while Sweetie went out to a luncheon with some other Filipino ladies.  Grump felt sleepy after lunch, so he left the kids with Lola and went upstairs to take a nap.

A couple hours later he was awkened by Kuya and his friend BB knocking on the bedroom door.  Grump groggily made his way downstairs, and discovered that the Filipino ladies had all come to our house, and were munching on a cheesecake! 

The rest of the day passed quickly.  Sweetie, (with help from Lola, of course!), was a busy hostess, Kuya played with his friend BB, Dodong played as well as a 15 month old can with BB's little sister, and Grump worked in the yard for four hours until it got dark, not getting to eat his supper until everyone else was done.

So the day and the weekend are over now, and Dodong and Kuya are already sleeping.  Time for the rest of us to go to bed too.  Pleasant dreams!

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 185

04/July/2015, Day 185.  Saturday.

The day started slowly, with Grump staying in bed until almost 9:30 am, but once he was up and ate breakfast we headed over to Planet Fitness, where Grump survived walking three miles on a treadmill.  Hooray for Grump!  (He only stumbled once!)  After that, we did what we usually do on a weekend day, namely, go shopping!  Grump and Sweetie went to Walmart this time, and bought some groceries and big pots to put some plants in.

We then just rested until early evening, when all five of us went over to Mama Sue's house for a Fourth of July party.  Besides all the Tagalog speaking folks there, (a treat if you speak Tagalog), there was lots of yummy food, and we all over ate. 

Now it is late evening, and despite the **BOOM** of the neighborhood fireworks we are all going to bed.  Goodnight all.

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 184

03/July/2015, Day 184.  Friday.

Shopping, shopping, and more shopping

Today was a day off for Grump, so we did what we usually do on day's off, namely, went shopping.

We started out early to Sam's Club, where we bought diapers, wipes, and lots of fruits, then headed down to Warner Robins to go to the Filipino grocery stores there.  But first we had lunch at the superb Monsoon restaurant, where Lola, Sweetie, and Grump each had a delicious meal.  (Kuya had earlier eaten a hotdog at Sam's.)

Warner Robins has two great Filipino grocery stores.  The first one is on Carl Vinson Pkwy, just a bit south of Watson Blvd.  It is on your left as you are heading south on Carl Vinson; I believe the address is 590 Carl Vinson Pkwy #1100.  (These folks currently have some balut in stock.  If you don't know what balut is, beware!)  The second right around the corner on Watson, heading towards the base if you're coming from Carl Vinson.  It's located right next to the wonderful Let It Snow ice cream parlor.

We went to both Filipino grocery stores, buying all sorts of yummy stuff, (but no balut!!), and then OF COURSE each of us got an ice cream at Let It Snow.  

Back home, Grump was tired out, so he took a short nap.  Once Sweetie was able to wake him back up, she and Grump went to the gym, where they both walked for two miles on a treadmill, then did a little quick shopping at the Publix next door.

We had a quick dinner of embutido and rice, then headed over to the Riverside mall to do some more shopping.  Kuya bought a "Splat the Cat" book at Barnes & Noble, while Lola (shoes) and Sweetie (leather wallet) got treasures at Dillard's,

As most of these purchases did not involve cash, our credit cards took a pounding again today.  Oh well.  Living is expensive, I suppose. 

Goodnight all.

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 183

02/July/2015, Day 183.  Thursday.

Grump only worked half a day today, because in the early afternoon he had a dental appointment.  So he came home early, and then he, Sweetie, and Kuya went to the superb FOJ for lunch.  Their "new" location, (I guess they've been there about a year now), is really pleasant because you don't have to worry about getting a place to sit anymore. 

After lunch Grump headed off to the dentist to get the permanent crown put on his cracked tooth.  Kuya came along too, and entertained us all by asking questions about Spiderman and Hulk, and pondering where Shredder or Dr. Doom go to the dentist.  (We all agreed that they do NOT, which is why they are so bad: their teeth hurt, causing them pain and misery.)   The crown was successfully applied, and it only hurt a little bit. 

After that fun Grump and Sweetie went for their first workout at Planet Fitness.  They each walked two miles on a treadmill.  Sweetie did fine, but Grump was absolutely exhausted, which just goes to show out of shape he is.

Evening was spent browsing the shops at the Riverside Mall, then back home we all went to bed early, except Grump, who stayed up too late attempting to make an extra penny or two on Clickworker.

Goodnight all!

A Day in a Year in a Life / Day 182

01/July/2015, Day 182.  Wednesday.

I guess the big news of today is that, after the high blood pressure scare of yesterday, Grump got off his large posterior and joined a gym, specifically Planet Fitness here in Macon.  He likes Planet Fitness because it is a laid back place with a great attitude, (a "Judgement Free Zone"!), full of fat people like himself, and plenty of treadmills, so he should never have to wait to get on a machine.  His initial goal is 20 miles a week.  Wish him luck!

Sweetie and Grump are both still suffering from exhaustion due to taking the two kids out of town two weekends in a row.  Tonight Sweetie took a night off from cooking: Sweetie and Grump had burritos from Chipolte Grill again, while Lola and Kuya had hamburgers from McDonald's.  Dodong had baby food, and a sizable chunk of Kuya's hamburger.  (Trivia tip: outside of North America, sizable is spelled "sizeable".)

That's about it for today.  Goodnight all!