Knocked it out of the park

Apparently, the perfect gift for Jeanne was, in fact, a professional photo of her boys, their ladies and her granddaughter professionally matted in a very pretty frame.  We went to Ice at the Gaylord Texan, and a concierge desk on the way in was good enough to let us check in our gift.  We walked through the exhibit and took a few runs down the snow-tubing slide before heading out for dinner in one of the restaurants under that same roof.

It was a Mexican restaurant with a buffet.  We put the wrapped gift at one end of the table and Jeanne at the other.  By the time Cas and I returned with our second plate, she was staring down the package.  I noticed her checking it out and suggested that she open it.  I guess we didn't have to tell her twice..  She LOVED it.  I mean, I have never seen her that happy.  I realized before the evening was over that the practical result of this gift to Dave was that he likely had to spend the rest of his evening holding a framed picture up to different places on the wall until the perfect spot could be located.  I told him I was sorry I hadn't thought of that side effect, and he said, "You did good, kid."  Aw, shucks.  I think we did good.  Thanks, Dave.  In fact, I think we knocked it out of the park.

Here's the picture we went with:

It was pretty cute.

Yesterday, the afternoon was pretty consumed for me.  We had a problem with the vent tube coming out of the dryer, and we had to fix it.  Since I installed the thing in the first place, I imagined that any repair I may employ would only compound the problem.  It turns out Dad is off work this week, and he was happy to help.  He grabbed a few tools and came over to repair my dryer.  He also left those tools over here, so I am headed back to their house today so I can return them.  No biggie.  

Last night, Cas and I went to Bed Bath & Beyond and purchased our new plates.  The light blue ones I had were great in my old house before I painted the kitchen... seven years ago.  They haven't matched my decor for over seven years.  No matter, though, they did their job, and now, they will become part of a charitable donation.  

The new ones look great in the dining room and the breakfast nook.  Behold, the new plates:

And they work great.  We just ate eggs and ham right off of them.  Way to go, new plates.  You knocked it out of the park.