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We've already hit the proverbial dog days of summer with temperatures soaring above 110°F (43°C). 
Even though it is a dry heat, it's hot. You really cannot be in the direct sunlight unless you are in water. Even the shade in the afternoon is hot and running errands is an exhausting venture. Luckily for me, I can just take a siesta (afternoon nap) when the energy runs out!
Early mornings are awesome. The air is cooler and the birds are out. We have a seed bird feeder and a hummingbird feeder in our backyard so it's pretty fun to watch the birds skittering about. The view of Jacinto in the morning is something special as well.
The desert heat in the summer is definitely something you need to be prepared for. We carry water with us in the car, golf cart, walking, the pool. Wherever we go, we make sure to have water because dehydration can happen very quickly. I'm faithfully using 40 sunscreen with zinc oxide on my face, for my friends who are concerned about my "tanorexic" tendencies. And, if you leave candles outside, this is what happens to them!
We have these gorgeous lanterns that look great at night with a lit candle inside of them, but I learned that I have to bring the candles in and then take them out when I want to burn them. Who knew?!
We bought a little kiddie pool for Tanner.
He's unsure of it. Had to coax him with treats to even step into it yesterday! Perhaps over time he'll adjust and step into it to cool off. For now, it's his giant drinking bowl out back.
It's funny...I thought I would miss the long daylight of the summer days in Sweden and while there are parts of that very special light that are irreplaceable, I do find that now that we have sunshine and heat day after day, I don't miss it as much. There really is something to mentally needing that much daylight after suffering through a dark winter. Since we arrived at the end of January, I can count on one hand the days that have not been sunny! And because the heat is so intense, the cool of nightfall is welcome. That, plus the added feature of the star-lit sky of the desert lessens my longing for the all night light of the Swedish summer. We miss our boat but again, not in the same way we thought we would. Since we don't live somewhere where we could use it regularly, the specialness of the Finnmaster remains in the Swedish archipelago. Oh, for sure, on these hot, hot days, the chill of the Baltic sounds pretty good to us and Tanner! But we've kind of traded our boat for a golf cart and that helps to lessen the longing for the fantastic times we shared on the boat. Of course, what we really miss are times shared with friends on the boat and in the archipelago. That longing does not go away.
We have two beautiful palm trees in our front yard and this is the time of year when they need to be trimmed. How do you trim a palm tree you ask? We saw the neighbor's gardener yesterday and asked him if he did it. He said he did and gave us a very good price.
So yesterday afternoon, in the scorching heat, we looked out our window and saw him climbing our palms! 
This is dangerous and hot work! But he did it with ease. Can you imagine hanging on a palm tree by chain links, and then wielding a machete to chop the palm fronds all the while sweating like crazy because it's 110° outside? We tipped him well. The trees look great with their haircuts!
Doug has kept himself busy with an epic do-it-yourself project. He saw this unit online and decided to tackle it himself. I'm really proud of him as it turned out great!
He purchased all of the pipes, had to have them cut to specific measures, painted them, had the wood cut, bore the holes himself, and painted them! 
So it will be great for us to fill in the shelves. This will definitely help us in our quest to get unpacked.
So, life moves along. In addition to continuing to get the house settled, we're trying to figure out how to get Tanner moved to the UK. It's complicated flying a pet into Heathrow from Los Angeles. Who knew? One way or another, we'll get there.
In the meantime, we're all just trying to beat the heat!
Even though it is a dry heat, it's hot. You really cannot be in the direct sunlight unless you are in water. Even the shade in the afternoon is hot and running errands is an exhausting venture. Luckily for me, I can just take a siesta (afternoon nap) when the energy runs out!Early mornings are awesome. The air is cooler and the birds are out. We have a seed bird feeder and a hummingbird feeder in our backyard so it's pretty fun to watch the birds skittering about. The view of Jacinto in the morning is something special as well.
The desert heat in the summer is definitely something you need to be prepared for. We carry water with us in the car, golf cart, walking, the pool. Wherever we go, we make sure to have water because dehydration can happen very quickly. I'm faithfully using 40 sunscreen with zinc oxide on my face, for my friends who are concerned about my "tanorexic" tendencies. And, if you leave candles outside, this is what happens to them!
We have these gorgeous lanterns that look great at night with a lit candle inside of them, but I learned that I have to bring the candles in and then take them out when I want to burn them. Who knew?!We bought a little kiddie pool for Tanner.
He's unsure of it. Had to coax him with treats to even step into it yesterday! Perhaps over time he'll adjust and step into it to cool off. For now, it's his giant drinking bowl out back.It's funny...I thought I would miss the long daylight of the summer days in Sweden and while there are parts of that very special light that are irreplaceable, I do find that now that we have sunshine and heat day after day, I don't miss it as much. There really is something to mentally needing that much daylight after suffering through a dark winter. Since we arrived at the end of January, I can count on one hand the days that have not been sunny! And because the heat is so intense, the cool of nightfall is welcome. That, plus the added feature of the star-lit sky of the desert lessens my longing for the all night light of the Swedish summer. We miss our boat but again, not in the same way we thought we would. Since we don't live somewhere where we could use it regularly, the specialness of the Finnmaster remains in the Swedish archipelago. Oh, for sure, on these hot, hot days, the chill of the Baltic sounds pretty good to us and Tanner! But we've kind of traded our boat for a golf cart and that helps to lessen the longing for the fantastic times we shared on the boat. Of course, what we really miss are times shared with friends on the boat and in the archipelago. That longing does not go away.
We have two beautiful palm trees in our front yard and this is the time of year when they need to be trimmed. How do you trim a palm tree you ask? We saw the neighbor's gardener yesterday and asked him if he did it. He said he did and gave us a very good price.
So yesterday afternoon, in the scorching heat, we looked out our window and saw him climbing our palms! 
This is dangerous and hot work! But he did it with ease. Can you imagine hanging on a palm tree by chain links, and then wielding a machete to chop the palm fronds all the while sweating like crazy because it's 110° outside? We tipped him well. The trees look great with their haircuts!
Doug has kept himself busy with an epic do-it-yourself project. He saw this unit online and decided to tackle it himself. I'm really proud of him as it turned out great!
He purchased all of the pipes, had to have them cut to specific measures, painted them, had the wood cut, bore the holes himself, and painted them! 
So it will be great for us to fill in the shelves. This will definitely help us in our quest to get unpacked.So, life moves along. In addition to continuing to get the house settled, we're trying to figure out how to get Tanner moved to the UK. It's complicated flying a pet into Heathrow from Los Angeles. Who knew? One way or another, we'll get there.
In the meantime, we're all just trying to beat the heat!
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