Guinness is good for you....

Last week, Glen and Amy flew out from sunny San Francisco to spend some treasured time with us, friends and family. So, in order to celebrate their visit we all went out for dinner to my new favorite place in Lancaster, Annie Baileys. 5 Reasons why its my favorite new place are as follows:
1: Our other favorite place "Kalhouns" closed down. :(
2: They serve chilled Guinness.
3: The fish and chips is amazing - Marci let me try a bite of her dinner.
4: They serve chilled Guinness.
5: The authentic Irish charm is really cool.

Interestingly, last time we flew back from vacation in Ireland, I sat next an Irishman who is a good friend of the guy who built Annie Baileys!

We had a great time. Here are a few pictures.

Amy and I

Mom and Dad

My hot wife

Inside.

Other events this weekend included us watching the new Harry Potter movie.
3 reasons I really liked it:
1: We sat so close to the screen, I felt I was in the movie.
2: Last night I dreamed that I actually was Harry Potter.
3: Stadium seating at the new movie theater, with seats that actually lean back easily - its about time.

Another observation I had at the cinema - Why don't they just get to it and build a footrest behind every seat? Surely this would solve a lot of the typical movie-going issues we all face. It would spare the seats from greasy, popcorn laden shoes, and solve the problem of the 7 year old kid behind you kicking your seat.

In other interesting news, our house is in the final stages of delivery. My daily inspections are going well. I fear that soon however, we will not be able to break in anymore, as the deadbolt will be installed shortly. It seems that after some lengthy negotiation with Marci, my hope of having a riding mower is slowly slipping through my hands. Oh well. I guess she is right. My other compromise was for us to buy a goat and name him Kubota, or John Deere, that way our lawn would trim itself. That also was shot down during final stages of approval. Who cares what the neighbors think, I say. Think of all the carbon emissions from lawnmowers we would save in America if every household had a "Lawn Goat" Hmmm......

Oh well,
Take care everyone.
Sean.

Breaking and Entering

There they are . . . the little culprits caught in the act! Meet our new cute little neighbors, our "key" to getting into the new house. They have been used by many a desperate soul wanting to see the latest work on their homes. The poor kids have even been used by their parents! Oh well, they love it and even fight over whose turn it is to put a little hand through the deadbolt hole and reach around to turn the lock on the doorknob. I do hope they will not be led into a life of crime because of this!

This picture was taken last night when Sean and I wanted to inspect the house and needed an "in." Note the newly painted charcoal gray door. The garage door is also freshly painted. At this point we have the flooring in the kitchen, dining room, entry hall, and bathrooms. All trim is in place and stark white painting is complete (We'll remedy that when we move. Can't afford to pay the builder to paint). The banister has been stained. Doors are attached. The stove, dishwasher and microwave are sitting in the middle of the kitchen ready for installation. We think the only big things left are installing cabinetry, laying the carpet, paving the driveway, putting in the lighting, installing the plumbing fixtures, and landscaping. Of course, there's a million little finishing touches they must do. But we only have 4 weeks!

Stuff

Well, friends, we haven't posted in a few days. But honestly, there hasn't been much to tell. Sean went back to work after our nice little vacation and I had a few days of inservice at work and caught up on my scrapbooks. My intention to start packing for our big move while Sean was at work fell through. I just couldn't get motivated. So, this weekend I brought him on board with the packing thing and we checked the basement off of our to-do list. It is now cleaned and organized with boxes ready to grab and go on move day. Ahh!

As far as the progress on the house, it's happening. It's just harder to see now that the work is mostly inside. They did pour the concrete for the patio and the sidewalk that runs along the street. It looks like they're starting the walk that leads to front door. We have a garage door too. Because Sean has devised a new way to break into the house without the help of the neighborhood children or climbing ladders to get through windows, we were able to see that they're laying the board down to prep the floors for the vinyl and carpet. We don't quite have the budge for the hardwood or tile floors that we so desire, but in a while we'll become dyi-ers and do it ourselves.

Here is the floor plan for our house. As you can see, it's basically a big box, but we're going to like our big box. Actually, this floor plan is the opposite of ours. Just flip this around and you've got our house. See, we have a guest room, so come visit!

Spruce Lake

Sean and I spent 5 days in the Poconos at Spruce Lake Retreat. My family has been vacationing there since I was three years old, although we did take a summer off here and there for other trips. But Spruce Lake has been a big part of my growing up years. My mom's sisters, their husbands, my cousins and now their children also have been camping there for years. We have so many memories of playing together on the playground, swimming in the pool, paddle boating, hiking back to the Wilderness Camp, watching fireworks, sitting around a campfire, eating ice cream and candy in the snack shop, making mountain pies, and playing games in the sun room. I can think of many more memories of the things we used to do, but that would take too long to list them here.

My cousin Patti and I then

My cousin Patti and I now

I knew Sean would enjoy the restful, relaxing atmosphere, so after my 12 year hiatus from the campground I took him back last year. We had so much fun, that we made the trip again this year and mooched sleeping quarters in the camper off of my parents. Roughin' it in my parents' air conditioned, TV ready, surround sound equipped camper is my kind of camping. Click here for some family snapshots and beautiful scenery. Spruce Lake Pics

Lots of MOOlah

So last week we had dinner with our very good friends, Eric and Heidi. They live on and operate what has grown into a huge dairy farm, in pristine Lancaster County. They now herd a total of almost 750 cows. Not surprisingly, we had large steaks for dinner. When I asked Heidi if we were eating one of their former "employees" she simply smiled and nodded.
After dinner, Eric took us on a tour of the new facility.
I took some pictures....
Cows live here:
The amazing thing about the barn, is that it features what could be called "the worlds largest toilet." At the push of a button, thousands of gallons of water flushes through the center of the barn, washing away all manner of poo and dirt. This keeps the barn spotlessly clean, and all the ladies fresh and happy. The cool part is that all the water is recycled, and the whole process is very eco-friendly.

Next: Cows get milked here..

This is the milking parlor, each cow has a special tag that is read by a scanner. The amount of milk produced is logged, and tracked by a computer. If it detects any problems, on their way out it singles out the cow into a special gated area. Very cool.

Next:
Milk goes here...


Thats a whole lotta milk..

And finally off to be processed.

So now you know where milk comes from.

At the end of the day, each cow gets a nice warm hug and a kiss from Heidi.

Just like this.

Needless to say that the farm is lovely. We had a great time.
Thanks to Eric and Heidi for a great evening!

Our House

We got back from the Poconos last evening (more on that to come), and on the way home we made a pit stop at the new house to see the latest progress. Lo and behold, the front of the house was finished. Well, almost. But they did finish the siding and put up the shutters. The porch has pillars, which will eventually be painted white.

We were so excited about the outside that I insisted that we see inside. Unfortunately, the doors were locked. That left only one option. Sean would have to use the ladder that happened to be lying in the drive and climb in through the kitchen window. He must love me so much, because he did just that. The camera was in his pocket; and since he was head first through the window and above me on the ladder, I couldn't get any good shots of him or of his legs sticking up and out of the window. But I did get a good "after" shot, slightly dirty and not smiling so much.

It was worth it though. We got to see that all of the taping, mudding and spackling is finished. Looks like they'll start sanding soon. A little over 6 weeks and we'll be in our new place!

If These Walls Could Talk

We have walls! Sean and I stopped by the "construction site" on Saturday to find a crew of 6 Mexican men working on our house. When we stopped by again Sunday to see what they had accomplished, we realized they had drywalled the entire place and had done a great job! They're amazing! On Monday evening, we noticed that the seams were taped and someone had started mudding (I sound like I know what I'm talking about, don't I?). Now all they have to do is finish mudding and spackling, finish putting siding and shutters on the house, install cabinetry and appliances, finish the trim and fireplace mantle, install lighting, lay the flooring, install plumbing fixtures, attach doors, put up railings and banisters, paint, blacktop the driveway, pour concrete for the patio and sidewalk, install a garage door, grade and seed the lawn, and landscape the yard. That won't take very long, right?

Foyer and Kitchen

They added the little circle window and put the curved molding under the porch roof.

Good Food, Good Friends, Good Times

On Sunday evening Sean and I enjoyed dinner out with great friends. It was partially an anniversary celebration and partially a chance to spend time with our friends. We had dinner at Lily’s on Main, a lovely establishment in Ephrata, PA. Who knew that the little town of Ephrata held such a gem! I would describe Lily’s as casual fine dining. The atmosphere was retro, yet classy. The service was exceptional, and the food was delicious and beautifully presented.

John and Jenny

We went there on the recommendation of John and Jenny, who had their first date at Lily’s; and later John proposed to Jenny in “the romantic corner,” a little table for two where it all began for them. If you’re ever in the Lancaster area, I highly recommend my favorite new restaurant. And thanks, Daryl and Erin, for the generous and kind treat. We love you!

Daryl and Erin