the week of site maintainence ended with a truly epic mowing of the lower field that left me sore and sunburned. Over the weekend we went and visited friends up the peninsula. We hung out and hiked, which is a very agreeable way to spend a Saturday, or any day for that matter. Sunday found us in the driveway with a bunch of old bags filled with a mixture of dirt, dead weeds, and lava rocks. The task at hand was to extricate the rocks from the dirt and weeds, and then place them on top of the freshly laid weed-buffer plastic laid along the parking strip. These bags and their contents have been squatting in the garage for about three years, like a suspicious lump under a carpet that people pretend not to notice. We meant well when we dug it all up from the parking strip. We meant to plant Rosemary plants and have the bags hauled away on a free trash pick-up day. The Rosemary plants didn't make it. The city refused to haul away the bags. The garage is a good place to shove things. Now we're admitting defeat and putting the rocks back. Maybe we'll complete the task next weekend.

Last night, we met Jen's aunt and uncle at Aqui, a nice Mexican restaurant in Willow Glen. Jen already blogged about this. I'll only add that Willow brought her pet rocks in a little cage meant for bugs, and Sophie decided to wear a bridal veil for the occasion. The boys sulked and picked at their food, only brightening up later when we passed a costume shop with some really expensive lightsaber replicas in the window. They instantly became the most recent in a long list of must-have items.

At camp this week the weather is warm and the animals are everywhere. Snakes and scorpions are out, with the amphibians keeping a lower profile. Purplish swathes of Forget-Me-Nots cover the hillsides. Tender Spring leaves cover branches. The pond is full of wriggling and swimming things. The kids are well-behaved and knowledgable. As much as I like the rain, I'm glad that it has gone elsewhere for the immediate future.