July 2026
July 31, 2026 Friday - Today the pups talked me into going out for lunch. We decided to run through the car wash and then head over to Braums. I think I’ve only been here once, but we found out that Braums here has a “bag of burgers” deal. I got my own burger and this for the pups. This is way more than they usually get, but they had no problem putting these away.
July 30, 2026 Thursday - Today after work, I did something I’ve been wanting to do for a long time. I cleaned my desk. I removed everything off my desk except my monitor and cleaned and dusted everything. I also did a bit of rearranging. This little guy has been my photo of the day before back in 2010 and 2019. A good friend brought this from China for me.
July 29, 2026 Wednesday - I’ve not had avocado toast in a very long time. It kind of fell out of the rotation. I got a couple of avocados in my last grocery order and made this for breakfast today. I shared this with the pups. Butter hadn’t had this before and I think she’s a fan. I think I’m going to have to start having this more often again.
July 28, 2026 Tuesday - Today I met a friend and her family for dinner at our favorite Italian place. I almost always get one of their specials; tonight was no different. The tortellini I had tonight was really good. It was so good to get to see my friend and her family and hear about her trip to see France and England in the World Cup. I got this photo on the way home.
July 27, 2026 Monday - I did a grocery order the other day and got stuff to make a big pot of red sauce. I wish I had started this earlier in the day, but it was still pretty good. I left the rest of the pot of sauce simmering on the stove while I finished up working this evening. I’m not sure what I’ll make with the rest, but it will be even better than this spaghetti.
July 26, 2026 Sunday - I saw my brother outside spreading stuff in the yard. He’s been trying to help my St. Augustine grass spread across the front. I went out to hang out, and we decided we should all go out to dinner. We went to one of the Mexican places here where we used to go with Dad a lot. We saw this on the way out after dinner.
July 25, 2026 Saturday - I needed to head into town to pick up some prescriptions. I decided to take the pups with me and wander down south to find some lunch. My nephew’s wife made a recommendation, but it was crazy busy and there was no parking. I saw this place on the way, so we went back for tacos. Their carne guisada was good but a bit salty. The bacon and egg tacos were really good.
July 24, 2026 Friday - I think I only have one more of these left. One of these S’mores cookies was my photo of the day a couple of weeks ago. I’m doing so good making them last. It’s amazing how just a few seconds in the microwave and it’s like it just came out of the oven. I know I still have a cookie left, but I’m wondering what my friend will be baking next!
July 23, 2026 Thursday - I started the day working from the couch this morning. Butter has this habit of coming to lay next to me to start. She eventually wiggles around, puts her head across my arm. It makes using all my shortcut keys a bit of a challenge, and she gets a bit annoyed that I keep moving for “no” reason.
July 22, 2026 Wednesday - My knee has been bothering me a bit lately, so I’ve been taking the pups for shorter walks around the house. Whatever these are on the side of the house are blooming a bit. I got this photo this morning after our walk. Photos says it’s some sort of hibiscus.
July 21, 2026 Tuesday - Butter chews on stuff all the time. I’m actually pleasantly surprised she doesn’t normally chew on anything other than her toys. The one exception are these bits of plastic that cover the wheels on my office chair. There are five of these, but this one popped off today. Thankfully, it popped back on just as easily.
July 20, 2026 Monday - Look at this! Not only is Zak back to spending as much time with all of us as he used to in the Pre-Butter era, but he’s also started laying in his old favorite spot on my left side. He gets a little squirmy when Butter comes up in Biscuit’s old spot, but he stays for a while to get some quality time with me.
July 19, 2026 Sunday - Today, my friend’s wife threw him a birthday party. Yogi was very intrigued with the charcuterie and definitely could use slightly longer legs. Poor guy, he can’t have too many treats; otherwise, he gets sick. It’s a good thing he’s not my pup. Earlier today, my pups had bits of ham, egg, and cheese on sourdough, appropriate for their size.
July 18, 2026 Saturday - I usually make this with bowtie (farfalle) pasta, but I didn’t have any, so I went with this Cellentani pasta. After having this, I don’t think I’ll ever go back to bowtie pasta again. I love the texture of this thicker pasta. Also, I was going through a box and found my old tablecloth that we got at that restaurant in Rome. It makes everything taste better.
July 17, 2026 Friday - I went out to dinner with my brother the other day. I have no idea why, but he picked me up a couple of these. I think he thinks I’ll eat anything sweet. Hahahaha. I guess I can’t blame him too much for thinking that. He’s not far off. I can’t remember the last time I had one of these. I gotta say this was pretty good!
July 16, 2026 Thursday - The other day, my brother was out back taking care of his goats and chickens. He noticed, in spite of the rain, that I had a significant water leak. Because of all the heavy rain we’ve had, the plumber couldn’t get out here until today. It took a bit of digging, but he finally found the leak. I’m so glad I’m not a plumber!
July 15, 2026 Wednesday - I still have quite a few cookies from the last box of cookies I got from my friend. This is one of her Ultimate Chocolate Chip cookies. Well, actually, this is half of one of them. It’s obvious where the name comes from. What you can’t see is how good this cookie tastes.
July 14, 2026 Tuesday - I bought blackout curtains for my room because the sun comes up on this side of the house. Unfortunately, Butter gets up when the sun does and has developed the habit of looking out the window every morning to see what’s going on. She is really defeating the purpose of these curtains, and it’s worse when she sees something.
July 13, 2026 Monday - The other day I posted a photo of the wrapper of this. It was in my Father’s Day goodie bag from Riley. These are so good and taste so much like Lava Cake. I try not to think of what’s in this to make it taste like that and just enjoy the end result. I’ve done a good job of not eating them all.
July 12, 2026 Sunday - I met Riley and Rane and their significant others for a birthday dinner at a ramen place up in Addison. It was quite good. After our meal, the two girls were fixing their lips. Rane pointed out how different they are based on their makeup choices. It’s true. They are so different, but that’s what makes them so fun together.
July 11, 2026 Saturday - I had Cool-Whip and pudding left over from our Father’s Day get-together, so I made myself a bit of dessert. In my goodie bag, Riley got me for Father’s Day; there was a package of Oreos. My niece left me a gallon of raw milk. It tastes so much better than regular milk and makes pudding even better.
July 10, 2026 Friday - My cookie-making friend has been working her magic again! This is her new S’mores cookie. I love the graham cracker base and the full-size marshmallow inside. I put this in the microwave for a bit to warm it up, and it was everything in me not to eat it before I got a few good photos of it. Delicious. Sticky. Chocolate-y. S’more, please.
July 9, 2026 Thursday - This is Dutton, my niece’s puppy. She’s been here before and has been staying with us this past week. She and Butter have been playing and wrestling so much. I’ve not seen Butter get the zooming so often before, and I’ve been accidentally calling them Button all week. This is her last night with us, so she’s getting some extra snuggles.
July 8, 2026 Wednesday - The view from my nephew’s back porch is very peaceful. It might be a bit warm in the summer, but it’s really nice. My brother’s cows are making their way to the pond. I got this photo while I was out with Hank and Herbie this morning. I wish I could bring them back to my house so they wouldn’t be alone all day, but I’m not sure how they would get along with Zak.
July 7, 2026 Tuesday - Today is Riley’s 30th birthday. I finished up a birthday video for her and then decided to make this simple lemon pasta for dinner. It doesn’t call for tomatoes, but I have so many that need to be eaten. I was a little worried tomatoes and lemon wouldn’t go well together, but I will be making this again with or without tomatoes.
July 6, 2026 Monday - I started taking care of my nephew’s pups today in addition to my niece’s Corgi at home. This is my buddy, Herbie. He gets so excited when I come over, and he always wants to show me his toys. His brother Hank, behind him, is finally warming up to me too. He mostly just rubs up next to me to get his butt scratched.
July 5, 2026 Sunday - I was scrolling online this morning and came across a Mexican woman’s cooking channel. I’ve seen her lots of times before, but this morning she was making menudo. So it’s all her fault, I had to load up the pups and head into town for breakfast. There’s a place here where their menudo isn’t great but will do in a pinch. I met Riley and Ari for an early birthday lunch later.
July 4, 2026 Saturday - Happy 4th of July. I went up to spend the day with my friend and his family in Plano. One of the other guests mentioned that there would be a F-35 flyover. We got outside just in time, and thankfully, they came by in sets of two, and I was able to get a photo of the second set. Today was a good day with friends.
July 3, 2026 Friday - This is what I went to Elgin for last weekend. I brought home a bunch of uncooked sausage in my camping fridge. My brother worked his magic on some of it yesterday and gave me a bunch. I made myself some lunch and shared a bit with all the pups. I’m dog-sitting my niece’s Corgi, Dutton. I think she likes being here.
July 2, 2026 Thursday - My boss and I have been trying to get together for a birthday dinner since my birthday. She’s always so busy and has so much going on in her life. We finally were able to work it out tonight. We met in Grapevine at Uncle Julio. I ordered a Pacifico while I waited. It’s always good getting to spend time with her.
July 1, 2026 Wednesday - I was walking back from my brother’s house the other day and saw this in the middle of my front yard. There’s a bit of a bald spot where a tree used to be, and I got this photo this morning. You can kinda see the St. Augustine grass creeping this way. My brother tried something new last fall, and the St. Augustine has really spread quite a bit across the yard.