For this could be the biggest sky

I should probably be quick with this entry, as the weather is growing positively dire out there. So here goes, we'll see how fast I can type.

FIRST. Patio is DONE and furniture is HERE.
And I am PROUD OF IT.



Got the biggest damn umbrella they had because there's no shelter whatsoever in that yard, and I wanted some proper shade. The table seats six - which might give you some frame of reference for the sheer scope of that thing. I'm a little in love with it, which is perfectly ridiculous, I know.

(It tilts automatically, and everything. <3 )

Of course, right now I've got the umbrella closed up and secured against the coming storms - and the furniture itself is all heavy cast aluminum, so it probably won't be going anywhere. Knock on wood.

We've seeded grass around the patio, and I'm sure it'll all come back one of these days. (Never mind the ridiculous little stepping stones - I added them as an afterthought.) We kept the foundation shrubbery and natural stone wall installed last year as a drainage/erosion stopgap measure (off to the left - you can barely see that part), and I planted some charming spillover plants that will eventually green-up the whole area. Assuming they survive.

I was right, and the furniture makes for a somewhat tight fit - but it's not half so tight as I feared, and we planned ahead by choosing swivel chairs that don't require much scooting around to access. The chairs bounce, too.

I am also in love with the chairs.

* * *

Tomorrow (not today, as reported yesterday - my mistake) we have our first round of guests arriving, so tonight I'll do some laundry and start the general housework stuff.

Today I ran the trimmer around the lawn and the husband mowed it; I did a little weeding; and I gave up on removing the pea gravel from the former herb garden because Jesus, there are only so many hours in the day - and lately, those hours have been punctuated by storms and they've been really, really hot.

Oh well. I'll get to it later.

* * *

The ARCs of Maplecroft have started making the rounds, and that's always a stressful sort of thing to know about. The very first readers (apart from editors/etc.) are getting their very first look ... and I'm not saying that those early responses set the tone for everything to come, because that's not necessarily the case. But when this is the first nugget of reader response you see - it feels pretty good, that's all I'm saying.

* * *

Hey! My superstitious plea paid off! The Goodreads ARC giveaway for Maplecroft officially has 1000 interested parties! I'll throw it into the "good signs" column, and hope that more of you will consider throwing your names into the ring.

I love this book, you guys. I am stupidly happy with how it turned out, and I really want to share it with the world. SEPTEMBER CANNOT COME SOON ENOUGH, I swear.