August's Final Hurrah

After a busy weekend of traveling home from Copper Harbor, getting Mia adopted, and visiting my mom, I was so glad that I had taken an additional vacation day for Monday.  I don't normally take the Monday after I return from vacation off, but I think this is something I might consider doing again in the future because coming back to work on what is normally the busiest day of the week seems counterproductive.  

I did get out by myself for a short adventure on Monday morning to meet up with a group of geocachers for an event at the Bunker Nature Preserve, somewhere I'd never been before because it's not dog-friendly.  It was a beautiful morning for a short walk in this beautiful place.  After returning home to two girls tired from a long week of fun, I was able to relax and enjoy a mostly quiet day at home too.  It was a great start to our week.

Tuesday I was back at work, but I made a point of getting the girls our for a visit to the Farmer's Market at the Capitol over my lunch.  We stopped for Crepes at the Ukrainian Crepe place and of course we had to stop for a cider and doughnuts at Petey's.  We had a nice walk around, the girls got lots of attention from lots of people, and we enjoyed a nice lunch break on a beautiful day. 

The girls spent the rest of the day out in the yard or lounging inside as I worked.  It was a productive day, but the first day back at work is always exhausting! 

At some point in the afternoon, one of my broccoli plants went from the picture above to the picture below thanks to Mina.  She's been so good all summer with no fence around the garden, but apparently this beautiful broccoli was just irresistible.  I thought I had protected the remaining two plants well, but that little stinker found a way to get to a second plant as well.  At least I have one left, and there is still a chance I'll get some broccoli off the other plants if I can keep Mina away from them.

This is the small bounty I picked after work.  My first roma tomatoes of the season.  My little garden just isn't growing as well as it normally does, and everything (other than the cucumbers) has been slow to produce and ripen.

I have one beautiful vine that was supposed to be zucchini, which is producing what looks to be a delicata squash.  That was a bit of a surprise.  Hopefully I'll get a few squash from this plant.  My green beans finally have some beans on them too.  I planted those seeds late, so I'm not surprised that they are late producers this year.  The plants are looking great and I'm looking forward to picking some beans in the next couple of days.

After work on Tuesday, we drove out to Dimondale for a little walk.  It rained on our way there and we saw a beautiful rainbow and the rain had completely stopped by the time we arrived in town.

Wednesday I was happy to have a half day off from work so that I could take Peaches to the final Wednesday Lungut's game of the season.  The weather was perfect and I debated whether I should bring Mina along as well, but decided that Peaches deserved a solo adventure with mom.  So off we went.

With most kids back in school, the game was pretty quiet with a smaller crowd than I'm used to seeing, but that was perfect for us.  We did a couple of laps around the stadium before I made my lunch choice, and then I ordered the Philly Cheesesteak Burrito, got some fries to share with Peaches, and headed over to some seats to enjoy our meal.  Peaches was pretty happy about the fries!

When we were done with lunch, Peaches was ready to resume her laps around the stadium where she would happily sniff at every water bowl we passed (but only found one in the whole stadium worth drinking out of), pick up any pieces of popcorn she could find on the ground, and stop begrudgingly so that people could say hello to her.  I finally convinced her to sit a while out on the lawn and was lucky enough that she cooperated to get a picture together.  It was right here that I realized how glad I was that we had made this day all about Peaches.

She did such a great job all day at the game and I am so proud of her.  I was also pretty excited when we got the chance for a photo op with Big Lug!  We left the game in the 8th inning because I could tell she was ready to go.  By the time we arrived at the car, we had walked 2 1/4 miles.  I'd say it was a good day for Peaches.

When we got home, the girls spent some time outside and I relaxed a bit before I had to head out to the Shelter for our Wednesday night dog walk.  

We had four people joining us to walk, which was perfect because we had four dogs available to walk.  Monroe and Crawford were two of our walking pals.  Both of them are adorable youngsters.  It was a great walk.

Poor Mina had been neglected a lot all day, so when I got home, I knew that I would need to get her out for a walk too.  We did a loop around the neighborhood just before sunset and it was the perfect way to end my busy, but fun, day.  
 

Thursday we woke up to rain showers, so it was a pretty slow work from home day for the girls.  Luckily the weather cleared up by the end of my work day so we were able to make a short trip to the Lansing Farmer's Market for a few items.  Then, after dinner, I took the girls for a visit to Dewitt for a run in the dog park.  We hadn't been here in nearly two months, so there was lots for Peaches to sniff.  Mina and I played several rounds of fetch with her Chuck-it and I added in some training as well.  The park was pretty quiet, which I like, and after about 40 minutes, Peaches let me know she was ready to go home, so I loaded the girls into the car and headed home for the night.

While I had had a short work week only working 3 1/2 days, it seemed a lot longer and I was so glad when the end of the day Friday arrived and we headed into the Labor Day weekend.  I had been debating on what we'd do for the weekend because I wanted to have some fun, but I also have some work to do around the house.  When the clock hit 5pm, I made the decision to start our weekend with a hike on the North Country Trail, and so we headed off to Albion to see how far we'd feel like going.

In order to reach the 14.5 miles per month that we need to average through the end of the year, I knew I had to get in at least 1.4 miles.  That seemed simple enough, but I wasn't going to push anything if we just weren't feeling like doing much more.  I've been having some knee issues and I'm slow to start, but luckily once we get moving, I seem to do okay.  I decided to start with the trail as it goes through town and heads along the riverwalk west out of town.  I knew just about where I wanted to stop and turn around, but went a bit further so when we got back to the car, I only needed to walk another 7/10 of a mile to get to 3.5 miles for the day.  

So we continued east out of Victory Park thinking the next .35 miles would be easy to get before turning around to head back to the car and finish for the day.  Boy did that first quarter of a mile go slow!  But once we got past that, the next thing I knew, we'd gone far enough that we'd get back to the car with another 1.2 miles for the day-for a total of 4 miles on the trail.  I was very happy with this hike and the progress that we had made as we slowly inch toward our 100 miles this year.  

I grabbed some quick take-out for dinner and then headed for home so we'd get home before dark.  It was the perfect start to our long weekend.

Saturday arrived with some beautiful weather.  I had debated on what we'd do Saturday-stay home or have some fun.  After spending the morning at home, I decided an afternoon adventure was in order.  I made a plan that would allow us to see something new, but also get in at least a couple of miles on the NCT too.  

While doing some searching for things to see, I discovered Whites Bridge and decided that's where we'd start our day.  It is near Fallasburg, which would allow us to get onto the NCT, and it was a place we hadn't visited previously.  While it wasn't a long stop here, the girls were able to get into the river and we sat for a bit to enjoy the day.  

Then it was off to Fallasburg for what I thought would be a short hike on the NCT, but we were having such a nice hike that we just kept going.  

We finished the day with another 4.25 miles on the trail.  While I had originally planned to get out on the Fred Meijer trail for a walk and some geocaching, after our nice NCT hike, I decided to leave the Fred Meijer trail for another day.  

We made a quick stop in Lowell to pick up some stromboli from Three Brothers Pizza and then made the drive home so I could eat stromboli and watch the first Michigan football game of the season.  The girls were happy to eat their dinner and then they crashed for the rest of the evening.  It had been another good day.

We spent our Sunday on adventures with Vanessa.  The first stop was Albion for a couple of miles on the NCT. 

Then we headed to Concord to check out the Falling Waters Trail which is a new trail for us.  It is a really nice rail trail and we enjoyed our walk and a little geocaching along the way.

On the way home, the girls and I stopped in Homer to get another 1.7 miles on the NCT bringing us to 54 miles for the year.  Technically, as we end August, we should be closer to 67 miles, but I'm really pleased with the progress we've made this month.  I'm looking forward to continuing to make good progress in September.  We will get our 100 miles!

We really made the most of the month of August and I'm grateful for all of the fun days I spent with the girls and the memories we made.  Life has changed since losing my dad, and i just feel like I need to experience as much life as I can now.  We still have some Summer fun ahead of us, but with the arrival of September tomorrow, I am reminded that Fall isn't very far off now.  I will never be ready for earlier sunsets, cooler temperatures, and the change from shorts and flip flops to pants and sweatshirts, but it will come whether I want it to or not, and I will embrace it and make the most of every day.  

Now its time for bed!  Have a great Labor Day!

Adventures and Adoption

Happy Monday!  I'm thankful to be enjoying a quiet day off at home after a very full week and busy weekend.  I'm so glad I decided to take this Monday off to recover from a week away.  Boy is it going to be hard to go back to work tomorrow.  So let's catch-up on our week of fun!

We left home last Sunday heading north for a week in the UP.  Our first destination was Manistique for the night to break up the drive to our ultimate destination of Copper Harbor.  The girls all settled in for the drive and did great. I made a quick first stop in Mackinaw City to grab a pastie from the Mackinaw Pastie and Cookie Company for my lunch and then got in the car to head over the bridge, planning to eat when we got to St. Ignace.  With some traffic heading north over the bridge that slowed us down, I decided to just eat my pasty as we sat in the car waiting at the bridge, and that worked out perfectly.

Once we got into St. Ignace, I headed east into town to get the girls out for a walk.  We like to park along Lake Huron near the American Legion Park and then walk the North Country Trail through the park and over toward the boardwalk in town, and I wanted to get in some miles toward our 100 on the NCT for this year.  

It was a beautiful day along the lakeshore and the girls were happy to get a big drink out of the lake and then sniff all of the smells.  I was happy to learn that Mia really liked the lake.  

We had a nice walk along the boardwalk and then turned to head back to the car.  We ended our walk with 1.8 miles on the trail, which was the perfect walk to break up our trip.  Then we loaded up the car to continue the drive to Manistique.

We got to our motel, got checked in, and unloaded the car, and then I ate a quick snack with an audience.  After a short break, we were back in the car for a little fun.

Normally on our August trip over the past few years, we've been stopping at Hall Farms to enjoy their sunflower fields.  I had hoped that we'd get to visit them again this year, but a storm that moved through the area on Saturday night caused damage to some of their tents, displays, and sunflowers, so they made the decision to close for the season a day earlier than originally planned.  I was disappointed, but understood.  

I had done a little research to see if there might be any other sunflower fields nearby, but Hall Farms is the only sunflower farm that is advertised in the UP.  So imagine my surprise when I saw a big flag along US2 advertising a nearby field to visit just a few miles from our motel.

As we drove along the highway, you could actually see the sunflowers about a half mile away, and I was so happy we were going to get to see some of this late summer beauty.  Sylvi's Sunflowers is a new sunflower field in the area and free to visit.  While there aren't a lot of trails through the flowers like Hall Farms have, I was so appreciative that we were able to enjoy the flowers here.  The girls enjoyed our visit too, and of course I had to force Mina to post on the tractor for me.  She's such a good girl!

We had a lovely visit to see the sunflowers, and then we headed to the Manistique boardwalk for a quiet walk along the Lake Michigan shoreline.  While we were there, we saw several Monarch Butterflies as they were migrating south toward the Stonington Peninsula.  I loved seeing them. 

Of course, we had to walk down to the Lake so that the girls could get a drink too.  

Then it was off to Clyde's so I could get dinner.  I decided to stay and eat outside at the restaurant since it was a beautiful evening.  

I had an audience while I ate, and the patience of the girls was rewarded with a small piece of my burger.  I can never deny this adorable face when we're at Clyde's and she knows it!  All of the girls enjoyed their little bite of burger.  Then it was back to the motel to relax for the night.

We did our post dinner, pre-sunset walk around the motel property, and then settled in for the night.  Unfortunately, later that night, poor Mia had a round of stomach issues which led to me making several trips out with her to potty, but I was thankful when she finally fell asleep for the night around 11:30pm.

Unfortunately, Mia's stomach issues continued in the morning, and she woke me up before sunrise for an urgent trip outside to potty.  I decided she'd skip her breakfast and hopefully her stomach would settle for our drive to Copper Harbor.  I packed the car and got everyone settled in for the ride north, hoping that Mia would just sleep for the trip, but that wasn't my luck.  Luckily I have the back of the car covered in blankets, sheets, and dog beds, so when Mia stood up suddenly to have an emergency diarrhea episode as I drove down US2, the mess only impacted the cover of one dog bed.  I quickly pulled over on the side of the highway and got her out of the car when I saw what was happening, and I was able to take the cover of the bed and put it in a bag until I could make it to a laundromat.  

This unfortunate incident led me to make a trip into Marquette to wash the cover which was an unplanned stop, but it also allowed me to make a stop at Bromley Bookstore which was just down the street from the laundromat.  I bought a book for Fiona while I was there.  

This trip into Marquette also allowed us to make a stop for a little walk on the NCT along the lakeshore there.  We walked along a section of the trail that I hadn't hiked before and the girls were all very happy to be out for a walk.  We ended our hike with another 3 miles on the trail.  

With a clean dog bed, a nice walk under our belts, and a quick lunch for Mina and Peaches, we were off again to continue our drive to Copper Harbor.  It was a stressful drive with several stops any time I thought Mia looked like she might need a potty break, but thankfully, after her morning episode in the car, she didn't have any more diarrhea, and while it took us much longer than normal to make the drive, we finally arrived safely in Copper Harbor.   

I was exhausted when we arrive, but once I was checked into our room for the week and had unpacked the car, Mina insisted that we head out for a walk.  I let her lead the way, and we ended up at the horse pasture for Benjamin and Chance, her favorite horse friends.  

We also ran into our friend Tom while we were there and had a nice visit before we continued our walk and then headed back to our room for dinner and some rest.   We took our standard potty walk around town before we all went to bed early.  It had been a long, exhausting day, but we were all happy to be in the Harbor.

I was so happy that Mia slept until 7am on Tuesday morning and I woke up feeling refreshed.  Our morning potty walk took us to Jamsen's for a Thimbleberry turnover to start our morning.  

We had no plans for the day Tuesday, so we hung out in town for the morning and then headed out for a few stops along M-26.  

It was a beautiful day with a misty fog over the lake which made everything look moody and beautiful.  

I was excited to stop at Esrey Park and enjoy some time walking around and letting the girls explore. This is one of my favorite parks in the area, and we all really enjoyed this stop.  

We drove into Calumet and did a little more exploring along the way, and I made a stop to buy a couple of things to ease Mia back into eating with something that would be easier on her stomach.  She was definitely ready to eat again, and I was happy that she enjoyed her small lunch without having any more tummy troubles.  

We spent the afternoon staying close and just walking around town.  I was excited to see the Isle Royale Queen IV returning from her trip from Isle Royale.  

I found a few thimbleberries to enjoy along our walk, and, of course, we made another trip out to visit the horses and walk around this lovely area. 

We enjoyed a pre-dinner walk around the Harbor and then enjoyed some quiet time in our room for the evening, until we made our evening potty walk to the 6th Street dock.  While we had walked a lot, it had been a nice, relaxing day close to "home."

The next morning, Mia had us up before 7am so we headed out for a potty walk around town, and then we stopped at the Morning Sunshine food truck so I could pick up my breakfast before heading back to our room.  I fed the girls their breakfast and then sat down to eat mine.  

After breakfast, Mia happily put herself back to bed for a morning nap.  Mina and Peaches were happy to get back into bed too.

We had a couple of quiet hours in our room, and then we headed out for some fun.  This morning, I decided we'd head down to the Fort Wilkins State Park to walk the trails there.  I love these trails because they are well maintained and we rarely see another person.  We had a great 3 mile hike, enjoying the lovely woods and views of Lake Fanny Hooe.  Then we headed back to our room for lunch.

After lunch, we headed out of town for some more fun.  Our first stop was the Brockway Mountain overlook.  Mina found a beetle that was very fascinating to her.  She was a little obsessed.

I was glad that we got lucky and we were able to spend a few quiet minutes here without anyone else.  So I had to get a picture of the girls and Mina was happy to pose for me.  I tried to get Mia to stand still for this picture, but she just wouldn't.  

We then drove down to Eagle River for a stop at the Eagle River Falls and the nearby park which has a dog run, so I could let the girls run a bit off leash.  We met a nice lady there who had recently lost her 14 year old GSP, so the girls gave her some extra love and made her day a little brighter.  

Then we were off for a quick visit to Great Sand Bay.  It was so interesting watching the fog move in over the lake while we were there.  Mina got the chance to play a few round of fetch with her Chuck-it, and we took a short walk.  Then we headed back to Copper Harbor for dinner.

It had been a busy day and the girls were happy to take a little after-dinner nap.  We all enjoyed the quiet time.  

Before I knew it, it was time to head out for our evening sunset walk, and boy was it a beautiful one!  I couldn't stop taking pictures of the amazing beauty.

After our walk, I got the girls settled into our room, and then I took a walk across the street to the 3rd Street dock to see the final afterglow from the sunset with a few quiet moments to myself.  It was a beautiful end to a wonderful day.

Mia was up by 6am the next morning for her potty walk, so while Mina and Peaches continued to snore away, I got Mia out for a pre-sunrise walk.  It was a beautiful morning, and while I'm not a morning person, I definitely enjoyed the beauty we saw on our walk.  I also enjoyed that we were the only ones out at that time of day.  It was very peaceful.

When I got back to the room, Mia put herself back to bed, and Mina and Peaches were still sleeping, so I climbed back into bed to snuggle with Mina for a little while.  Eventually they were all up for a short potty break and breakfast as we prepared for another day of fun.

This was the day that I decided we would head to the south side of the Keweenaw Peninsula.  We made the drive to the town of Gay and then headed out on the Gay-Lac Labelle Rd to explore.  We had a nice stop at the Tobacco River park and had the park to ourselves.  It was beautiful and quiet.  Just the way I like it.

We continued on but decided not to stop at a few of my other normal stops along this route due to the number of other people, but finally we got the the Bete Gris Preserve and there was only one other car there, so we headed out for a walk along the beach. 

We had the nicest time walking along the beach.  The girls all made trips into the lake for a drink and enjoyed all of the new smells along the way.  When we finished, I attempted to get a picture of us all.  I was pretty happy with this one.

We finally got back to our room for a late lunch and a little break.  Everyone was ready for a rest after our busy day.  It was nice to sit in the room and relax for a bit before we had to head out for our evening plans.

Around 6pm we all loaded up into the car for the drive to Eagle Harbor.  I had plans to meet friends for dinner at 7pm, and I wanted to get the girls out for a little walk before they would need to relax in the car while I had dinner. 

We stopped at the Eagle Harbor Marina, then we parked in town and walked to the Eagle Harbor Lighthouse and around town.  It is always so peaceful in Eagle Harbor and we all enjoyed our walk. The girls then settled into the car for a nap while I had dinner at the Eagle Harbor Inn with our friend Scott.  It was so nice to visit with him!  

Friday morning, I took the girls for their morning walk to grab breakfast at Morning Sunshine again.  I love their breakfast burritos!  I decided to stay and eat at one of the picnic tables.  A nice gentleman there let the girls lick his breakfast bowl clean after he had finished and they were happy to get a special treat.  Of course that didn't stop them for begging for a bite of my breakfast too.

The weather was nice in the morning, but storms were in the forecast for the evening, so we headed out early for some fun.  

We enjoyed a really lovely stop at the Lizzadro Preserve.  I don't know how I had never stopped here before, but this will now become part of our regular stops in the area.  

The lake was beautiful and I loved the rocky shoreline, but the best part is that we had the whole place to ourselves for our entire visit.   I couldn't stop taking pictures here.  It was just so pretty.

Of course, we had to make a stop at Esrey Park as we drove by too.  It's always a favorite and it was fairly quiet while we were there. 

Then we headed to Great Sand Bay to visit Bryce and Hope.  If felt like forever since we had last seen them, but Mina and Hope were immediately happy to see each other and had a wonderful time playing on the beach.  

Mia wandered around a bit, checked out the lake, and then found a comfy spot in the sand for a nap.  She was pooped from all of the fun we'd had all week and was happy for some quiet time on the beach. 

We spent a couple of hours on the beach with the girls playing and exploring while I visited with Bryce, then we took a short walk down the beach past owl creek until we hit the rocky part of the beach.  Then we turned around to head up for a walk along the trails behind Bryce's house. 

We kept an eye on the radar to make sure we'd get back before the thunderstorms moved into the area, and we were able to get in a really nice walk in the woods. 

This is such a lovely area for a walk, and we always enjoy these trails.  We turned around as it started to sprinkle a bit and made it back to the car before the thunderstorms arrived.  We stayed a bit longer visiting with Bryce, and as the lightning started, we headed out for our drive back to Copper Harbor.

I fed the girls dinner and then they insisted on a potty walk in the rain.  I was covered in sand from our trip to the beach so I cleaned up when we got back to the room, got into my pjs, and made myself dinner from some leftovers I had, and then we all settled in for a quiet rainy evening in our room.  It was our last night in the Harbor, and I was happy to spend a quiet evening in listening to the rain fall.  

I looked outside just before sunset and noticed that the rain had stopped and the sky was a beautiful shade of pink, so I decided to get the girls out for one final walk around town for the night and enjoy the beautiful sky.  I didn't capture any pictures of the pretty colors because all of the girls stopped to potty along the way, but I enjoyed the peaceful beauty.  We had a really nice walk and everyone was ready to head back to bed when we got back to our room.  It was a lovely final night of our vacation.

We were up just before sunrise on Saturday morning, so I got the girls out for a walk down to Jamsen's to get a turnover and enjoy the sunrise. 

Peaches and Mia were really interested in the ducks in the parking lot, while Mina just waited patiently.

Then we sat down to enjoy our turnover and the sunrise.  Of course I shared my turnover with the girls.  It's tradition, after all.  

It was such beautiful way to start our day.  I was sad to be leaving, but I was so happy for the experiences we had over the course of the week.  

When we got back to our room, I fed the girls breakfast, packed the car, and got ready to leave.  We made one last stop at the Genny to say goodbye to Stacy and pick up a couple of things for the drive, and then we were off to start the journey home. 

I made a quick stop for gas in Baraga and then we made a stop in Marquette to get in some more miles on the NCT.  It was a great chance for us to stretch our legs and for the girls to potty.  

This is such a beautiful section of the trail along Lake Superior and the Chocolay River.  We added another 2.8 miles toward our 100 mile challenge on this stop.  I was pretty happy with that.  When we got back to the car, the girls had lunch before getting back into the car to continue our travels.

We drove through Rapid River on our drive home where I topped off the gas tank and then stopped for Mia's ice cream party at the Rapid River Dairy Flo.  The girls all loved their ice cream!

As we continued our drive, I called in an order to Clyde's so my lunch would be ready when we arrived.  I got the girls out for another quick potty break and grabbed my lunch, which I ate while I continued the drive toward home. 

When we arrived in St. Ignace, I stopped one final time in the UP to get everyone out for a drink and potty break.  We added another mile on the NCT during this short potty walk and then we got into the car to head south across the bridge.  

With a full tank of gas and the potty break we had, I had hoped to make it all the way home without another stop, but I did have to make one quick stop at a rest area to let Mia potty one more time. 

The rest of the drive was quiet while all of the girls slept soundly until we were almost home.  After a long day of driving, we arrived home, the girls had dinner, I unpacked, and then we headed off to bed early.  

We were up early Sunday morning because we had an exciting day ahead.  The first business of the day was to get everyone in the car to make the drive about 45 minutes north where we would be meeting Mia's new family.  This spot was the perfect meeting spot about half way between Lansing and Midland, because Mia was going to be reunited with her sister, Scout, who was being fostered in Midland.  We both arrived at about the same time and I was so excited to see how happy the girls were to be reunited.  The tails were wagging and Mia was barking her happy little excited bark.  I know she was so happy to see Scout again.

We completed all of the adoption paperwork with the new family, and I was so happy to get a picture of the girls together again with their new family. 

Then they got all loaded into the car for their long drive to Illinois where the girls will live out their lives in their new home.  We received a few updates along the way and the girls traveled well and are settling into their new home.  I couldn't be happier for Mia because this is the best thing that could have happened for her.  I know she's going to have a good life with her new family.

After the adoption was complete and everyone headed out toward home, I headed to Middleton for the lunch buffet at the Middleton diner.  They have delicious fried chicken, stuffing, and mashed potatoes on Sunday, and I was so close that I couldn't resist stopping.  

After my lunch, the girls and I headed out to visit my mom for the afternoon.  The girls got to explore and sniff, and they had a great time.  I had a nice visit with my mom too.  It was a nice day to just spend some time outside catching up and letting the girls enjoy the day too.

Then mom and I spent some time picking apples from the Macintosh apple tree in her yard.  I came home with A LOT of apples which will mostly become delicious applesauce and maybe a little apple butter.  So now I have some work to do later this week!  

After we finished picking the apples, it was time for the girls and I to head home after a full day.  When I got home, I was so thankful that I had the day off Monday to recover!  The girls and I ate dinner and then we all enjoyed a nice quiet night at home.  

We had an amazing week and I'm so happy that we got to spend a wonderful week in Copper Harbor and that Mia was able to join us there.  Now we're going to get back into our normal routine of life again.  We have exactly 4 weeks of summer left.  You know that we're going to make the most of it and we're going to hold on as long as we can!