No more pool!

So...our pool had a leak :(

There were a few patches in the pool from the previous owners so we never knew why they were there or from what they came from. At some point they ripped off and our pool began to slowly leak for about a week. Bryan and Marshall patched it and the very next day we had a huge leak...the water was only 3/4 full!!!

At this point we decided we need, if not a new pool, a new liner at the very least so we let it go. And go it went!!! The water was puddling under our deck where 4 or 5 baby racoons were playing one night. It was very cute, they were rolling around in the water and playing with each other like kittens as Kristen and I watched.

The next day Kara spotted another hole in the pool, so she got in to make sure it was a 'hole'. Now, mind you this picture of Kara below is only after two days of leaking:

Dandy! If you can see, the water comes just below her knees! So, now that its the hottest time of the year and we are pool-less Ava and I have been spending our days at the beach collecting rocks (Ava has a thing for rocks) and putting our feet in the water.

On another note, Bryan is very happy to be back in Branford!! Its nice to have him home in time for a night walk and dinner! Other than rocks, Ava also loves walks in her stroller and Art:


I've been working on family trees so if anyone can contribute information I'd appreciate it! It seems Bryan has no idea from whom he descended...well, other than the obvious! Well, time to put Ava to sleep...its been a long day!

My First Post

So I decided that this will be a great way for us to keep everyone updated on what's going on. Things change so much and so fast and sometimes you just need pictures to make you feel as if your really there.

I'm going to start by posting my gardening pictures. Why? Because its what's been keeping us busy on a daily basis. Plus Kim & Bernie planted the veggies, Bryan jazzed it up with the ground cover and fence...which by the way is made of recycled tires!...and I am slowly learning the ways of a green thumb. So now, K&B, look at how much its grown!


We have mostly tomato plants, grapes in the back on the trellis along with peppers & eggplant in front. In addition we have a zucchini in another location, which has produced one lil guy so far! We also have blueberries, which were a nice suprise! For a while there I questioned the destiny of these twiggy looking bushes! We've only gotten to eat a few, our birds get to them before we do!
As for the pretty stuff....well, there is a lovely butterfly bush that desperately needs to be hacked so it fills in, some pretty little flowers between rose bushes that Bry planted and my begonia that I planted in front. I'm not doing anything else to the front until we put up the siding, which will most likely be next years project. I'm afraid anything I do will get destroyed in the process. Here are our current pretty things:




And there's Ava...she's part of our garden that's growing as well. This picture was from this morning. I heard her yelling "shoes shoes shoes" in a very annoyed tone, which I followed only to find her trying to walk in daddys boots!

And I'll end with a congratulations to Bryan for getting the Branford store!!! Yay for shorter drives, more time home and being awarded the top third (soon to be #1) store in CT!!!!