BenSpark Family Adventures

Photo-A-Day #02735 My dad is the president of the Falmouth Classic Car Club and they do four car shows a year. Today was the second one and we were around for it. Allison and Andy came back from home at eleven and we headed over to the show. We walked around and saw all the cars. Eva brought their new film camera and was taking some great shots of the engines of the cars. The camera has black and white film so Eva was all about different textures. There was one car where a guy had a bucket of hot wheels and one was The Milano spaceship from The Guardians of the Galaxy. I asked Andy to take that one. Andy took it and I suggested that Andy create a Tik Tok about having to take a child's toy for their dad. That cracked me up even though I suggested it. We got our lunch there, too. There was a food truck called Fried Guys that had a couple of Blackstones working and they were making smashburgers and even some fried hash browns and fried oreos. I got a breakfast sandwich and hash browns...

Photo-A-Day #02734 We do a lot of grilling when we are here on The Cape. Tonight we had swordfish and steak tips. I had marinated the steak tips for a day and we did the swordfish with a butter and dill mixture that was brushed on. Then we had many items in foil. We always have many items in foil. The trick is getting the timing down so that those items in foil get cooked well enough as everything on the grill.  I worked in Dad's Office/Andy's room last night because Andy and Allison were home. I have it again tonight but tomorrow I have to move my setup downstairs to the sunporch. I do like working at Dad's roll top desk, though.

Photo-A-Day #02733 To say that we have a lot of milkweed at the Cape house would be an understatement. There is so much that we are an official monarch station. There will be tons of butterflies around the yard as well as many, many bumblebees. And the milkweed continues to spread but it is really helping the pollinators. Allison and Andy headed home today. I am staying here to work from here so that I don't have to go back until next week. When they got home Allison and Andy picked some of the vegetables from our garden including 2 cucumbers and 2 zucchini and 1 bumpy squash.

Photo-A-Day #02732 This morning Allison and I drove up to Mashpee to see if we could find the Cape Cod tumbler at a Dunkin Donuts. We were unsuccessful after visiting 7 of the stores. We did, however, go to Duke's Donut Worx and got some those donuts because Dunkin's donuts just don't cut it. In the afternoon we took Andy to CSS and then went to the farmer's market. There I got a Chicago Dog from Wally's Hot Dog Cart and we also found some fun flannel shirts that had be upcycled with T-shirts sewn onto the backs. I found a Voltron one for me and for Andy we found aU2 one. Andy was not impressed. We also picked up some smoked Salt at the Farmer's Market. This is another thing I want to try on Philly Pretzels.

Photo-A-Day #02731 This is Eva's new camera. Eva is a teaching assistant for the film photography class at CSS. Tara got Eva the new camera and an additional lens. I look forward to seeing the photos that they take this Summer. Today was the art fair on main street in Falmouth. Allison, Eva and I went before Eva's classes. We found some neat things. I got some spicy mustard and a dip that sounded like it would go well on pretzels. Of course I have to wait another week before I have any more. The street fair was nice. We did that, ran the kids back and forth to their classes and had steak tips for dinner. 

Photo-A-Day #02730 I went upstairs to read and promptly fell asleep in the afternoon after brining the kids back and forth to Science School. When I woke up we were having pizza on the sunporch with everyone. After dinner Allison gave Kylie French Braids. She had been wanting them for a while.

Photo-A-Day #02729 Our Lexi is back on the Cape. She had been off Cape for the 4th to avoid all the fireworks. She's back and guarding the sunporch as fiercely as ever. This morning Allison and I took Eva to Woods Hole for classes and then we got Allison's car inspected and had breakfast over at Persey's Place. We had never been before. The food was very good. 

Photo-A-Day #02728 We spent some time at the beach today and this evening we went to main street in Falmouth and had dinner at Anejo. This is an excellent Mexican restaurant and we had a great meal. We watched Norway win their match at The World Cup and the kids are fascinated with Haaland. I think we all are at this point. The guy is a machine and from all signs appears to be a good guy.

Photo-A-Day #02727 My back was okay enough for me to drive to the Cape this morning. It wasn't good enough to really do much of anything other than sit and use the muscle stimulator. We had my cousin Bill and his family over for dinner before the fireworks tonight. I opted to stay on the porch to watch them and did take this one obligatory fireworks photo. Not my best. Allison went to the beach and she was able to get some great shots of Bill's kids by the water as the fireworks went off. I also didn't make it to the parade in Woods Hole to see Eva walk with CSS. Allison did capture a photo of Eva though.

Photo-A-Day #02726 There is a new taco place a few doors down from the Philly Pretzel Factory. I stopped there today before work. I got their birria tacos and they were very good. I also got some chips and queso which was also good. They were also fairly inexpensive. I'll be back. Today at work I was twisting pretzels and going pretty hard at everything. My back has been a mess lately and today it went all the way to being thrown out. It seized up on me to the point where I could not move without intense pain. I finished my shift and then went to my uncle's house and got into his massage chair. It did not work. I went home and was worried that I would not be able to drive to the Cape the next day. It has never been that bad. I think I scared my boss. He gave me a device that gives electrical stimulation to muscles. I used that a bunch and it seemed to help out. 

Photo-A-Day #02725 To celebrate the 3rd anniversary of Skybound's Energon Universe a series of interconnecting covers were commissioned to be done by the artist Tom Reilly. I couldn't get them at my store so I turned to eBay and got them for a great deal. The whole set was $14 plus shipping. Each book is between $5 & $6 so that worked out well in my favor. There is also a black and white variant of these books but I stuck with the color one. The art is really well done.

Photo-A-Day #02724 Our garden is now producing some cucumbers. I've found at least two of them so far mixed in with the squash and zucchini. Not much else going on aroun dhre. Been working 5 hours each day at the Pretzel place. Will have put in 21 hours by the end of the week. That is helpful to earn a bit extra through the Summer.

Photo-A-Day #02723 At The Pretzel Factory we have 4 different slushie flavors. Lemonade, Cheery Lemonade, Raspberry Lemonade and Mango Lemonade. We also have an ice cream machine. I figured I'd make a fun little slush in honor of the 4th of July. Maybe I'll make another tomorrow and we can do a special photo shoot. for Social Media. 

Photo-A-Day #02722 Tonight I went to Sura with my friend Aaron. Allison and the kids are on the Cape and I'm finding things to do while they are away. So, I contacted my friend, Aaron about going to an adventurous meal night. He knows the best places to try new things. We had Bibimbap in stone bowls. It was a beautiful meal filled with colorful vegetables and a fried egg. I got the short rib version. The food was excellent and very flavorful. We started with a kimchi scallion pancake. It was an interesting take on the scallion pancake. On the way to the car I noticed this street art and it made me think of K-Pop Demon Hunters. 

Photo-A-Day #02721 I picked up some Shameless Snacks. These are low sugar, high fiber snacks. They are pretty tasty. They sent this little container so that I can put a bunch in there and have one or two at a time instead of opening and eating a whole bag. 

Photo-A-Day #02720 Today I went to the North Attleboro Pride Festival at the common in front of town hall. I was there for The Attleboro community Theatre. We had a table there and were passing out wristbands, stickers and candy. We were also a sponsor so we were on part of the scavenger hunt route. That way many people came to the table. I got a lot of compliments on the shirt, too. I got there early because Doug, the ACT vice president needed help setting up the tent and the table. I got off work and set my alarm for 11:30 and got to sleep. I was awoken by Andy looming over me, maybe they were not looming but Andy's gotten taller. Allison had asked them to wake me at 11:30 but I guess Andy was trying to get it checked off their list so woke me at 11. I was out. I stayed until 3:00 just after my friend Ruthie, spoke. She is the president of ACT.  While I was off doing that Allison and her friend Jen went to the Farmers Market in Attleboro and then off to the Grist Mill for the ind...

Photo-A-Day #02719 After a week of last things for Andy today was their very last thing at Brennan Middle School. today was the 8th grade breakfast. Andy was able to enjoy a meal with their friends one last time at the school. Later Andy and friends went to Kimochi and got boba.  I worked at the Philly Pretzel Factory. I was scheduled from 2-4 but got a text that asked if I could come in earlier so instead I worked from 12-4. But, before that Allison and I got breakfast at The Rehoboth Baking Company. I also started a better way of converting the old VHS tapes. I'm currently converting a tape of a trip that my grandparents took me on when I was 10 years old. It was to Disney. It is wild what the place was like back then. My grandfather taped everything, whole rides and representations. To record the VHS to digital I got a simple converter cable and run it through OBS. It works great. I should be able to do a ton of them over the weekends while I'm working Tonight Allison and I ...

Photo-A-Day #02718 Andy is moving up to the High School next year (pictured in the background) and today was a ceremony at middle school to mark that. Eva is on the Cape so it was Allison and I attending along with Mem. Mem came down from the Cape last night to stay over so that she could come with us this morning to the ceremony. It was a good ceremony. the school has done an excellent job with their students and Brennan was great for Andy. Andy received some special recognition for Social Studies and is also in the National Junior Honor Society. That was nice to see in the program. Andy also received some certificates. Andy with Mem Andy with Allison and Drew After the ceremony Mem went to visit with my cousin and we took Andy out for lunch at K. C.'s Burger Bar before I had to go to work. Andy also had a special dance to attend tonight. I ha to work so I did not see Andy all dressed up prior to the event but I was there to pick them up at the end.

Photo-A-Day #02717 Last week when we went to IKEA we got Andy a desktop that they could use to make a desk area in their closet. We'll have to find a spot for their hanging clothes but since Andy wears mainly sleep pants there aren't many of those we need to situate. Allison took Eva down tot he Cape yesterday and whole they were there my Dad was able to cut an inch along the back length of the desk so that it could fit in the space. Today while Andy was at school I assembled the desk and put it together so that Andy could use it. When I came home from work Andy was using their painting book to paint a bird. Andy decided to limit the painting to one bird a day.

Photo-A-Day #02716 Today at The Pretzel Factory my boos made these twice dipped cinnamon pretzels. He takes the pretzel and coats it in the butter and cinnamon like we normally do then he bakes it again and then dips it in the butter one more time and also in the cinnamon a second time. It gets an almost creme Brule type of crunch to it.