A Productive Trip to the Cape + a Really Cool Bird

 David and I went to the Cape house for a couple of days in May to summer-ize it and get it ready for the Memorial Day weekend renters.

One of the things we did was to switch out the mattress on the downstairs queen bed with a better one that I'd had in storage since last December. Here's the mattress getting ready for its big trip to its new home on the Cape!

There's the old mattress. It's a nice addition to the backyard, right? 😄

David thought so...

We put out the patio table chairs and umbrella.

David fixed the lacing on the zero-gravity chairs.

I finally bought a new hammock (it was overdue), we strung it up, and it looked great!

I then tried out the hammock, and it was perfect!

Hammock view, looking up into the trees

Reading on a hammock on a lovely spring day is one of life's great pleasures. 😊

We used the grill to make sure it was working properly. David grilled us up some delicious pork chops for dinner. 

We went for a walk to the beach and encountered this messy madness at the end of our street. It had been like this since winter and still hadn't been fixed! I took pictures to send to the police department because it was a hazard, but it was fixed by the next time we were at the Cape.

So ghetto!

David examining the temporary fix someone had done with one of the wires.

The beach at low tide was a much better sight! 

Lovey-dovey selfies 😍

We got the fire pit working.

New hammock, repaired chairs, and parched grass—but at least it was clear of sticks, branches, and pine needles due to our big spring clean-up in the yard when we were there in April!

We saw a very unique bird in the backyard through the kitchen window. It had a hot pink stripe on its head and a multi-colored body (including polka dots!). It was really cool! 

Check out its long beak. It was a type of woodpecker. We had never seen one of these before.

This was a rustic mailbox holder that I saw on a walk through the neighborhood, complete with tree trunk and spiraling branch. Now that's using nature productively!

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: I'm so thankful for the Cape house! Even though it takes work, time, and money to maintain it, it's totally worth it for the joy it brings to our lives.

John's Mission Pics, May/Spring 2026

 A moose! This was in mountain country (obviously).

Denver at night

With one of his former companions.

He got to know many good families in the various wards he served in.

This woman was a good friend to the missionaries. They'd visit with her often, and they would sometimes do their laundry at her house. She was a Church member who was a little alternative and different, and John liked her a lot.

Beekeeping Adventures with David, May 2026

 Now that it's mid-August, I'll blog about May! 😄

I'm learning more about beekeeping because it's one of David's hobbies, and he's been doing it this summer. I still have a lot to learn, but I'm enjoying learning by watching him work with the hives. I haven't done too much myself yet, but I have used the smoker a couple of times. I'm happy to mostly be the smokin', photo-taking sidekick for now. 😉

Feeding time

We visited the bees after church on Mother's Day to check on the hives' progress in their new spot.

Another visit, this one a little more invasive, with prying into the hives to see how they were doing on the inside.

They were doing great! Check out all those content worker bees! 

This one hung out on David's shirt sleeve for a while.

I went over and visited the nearby chickens for a few minutes. I like chickens, especially bantam chickens, and I like how they're descendants of dinosaurs. You can see it in their little faces!

It's the birds and the bees; what more can I say! 😆

April 2026 Randoms: Books, Bees, Spring, and Other Things

 Here are the book covers I did for the library doors. There are more on the other side.
I enjoy doing this because it's fun to see which new books are coming out and what their covers look like, and then I get to choose which ones we display on the doors.

We saw Project Hail Mary in IMAX at the end of March. I loved it! It's an awesome movie with an interesting and truly heartfelt and touching storyline. I'm glad I read the book the week before seeing it (but you certainly don't have to to understand and enjoy it).

Book of Mormon and Old Testament scripture reading schedule for April

The Correspondent was a very popular book this spring. I liked it, but I didn't love it. 

I saw this book at the library too. I want to own this one.

I guess I liked the way I looked that day. 😄

I ended up getting one of these bee houses on Amazon this summer (but not this exact one) and put it out on our balcony. So far, I've only seen one bee visit it.

David's father passed away in March, and his funeral was during my Scotland trip, unfortunately. I felt bad about missing it and not being there with David, but he was fine with me going on the trip. He sent me these pictures while he was in Montana.

Check out their classic 80's Olan Mills family picture!

David is the cute guy in the back, second from the left. Do you see the baby boy in the front? I was about that age at the time. David was in high school while I was in diapers. 😆
On a more serious note, I'm so thankful I was able to meet David's dad, my then-soon-to-be father-in-law, last summer. He was a really nice man, a renowned scientist, and a former stake president and mission president. And the father of my handsome soon-to-be fiancé and hubby.

I got a beekeeping suit so I could help David with the hives. This was the first and so far only time I've worn it. It looks more like a fat suit, but it kept me safe from stings!

These dreamy owl socks that I got in Scotland are so soft and cozy, and I love the colors.

Spring was arriving; check out the beautiful blazing forsythia that I saw on my walk.

I also saw this lone turkey running at full speed through the woods. 😆

Happiness becomes me 😃

I liked this owl mirror that I saw in a shop. I didn't get it (though I did consider it) and satisfied myself by taking a picture of it instead.

Find me! It's not hard, LOL.

I took more selfies than usual in April. I think I was glowing with happiness from my trip to Scotland and from married life with David.

More spring!

How pretty is this!? (I took a screenshot of this picture, not the picture itself—unfortunately!) 😍

Springtime tulips at the temple

I checked this book out for David and me.

More forsythia and springtime blooms, this time at the church.

I follow Jeanette Rubio, Marco Rubio's wife, on Instagram. She posts interesting pictures from her life as the wife of the Secretary of State (who I hope will run for president in two years because he's pretty awesome!). Check out this beautiful beehive-themed dessert at a White House dinner she attended.😋