Thank You

In Memory

One gift, above all others
God gives to us to treasure
One that knows no time, no place
And one gold cannot measure
The precious, poignant tender gift
Of Memory, that will keep
On dear ones ever in our hearts
Although God gives them sleep it brings back long remembered things.
A song, a word, a smile
And the world's a better place because
We had them for awhile!

“To live in the hearts of those you left behind is never to die”

"The greatest glory of a free-born people is to transmit that freedom to their children."

Taps

Day is done.
Gone the sun
From the lake.
From the hills.
From the sky.
All is well.
Safely rest
God is nigh.
Fading light.
Dims the sight
And a star.
Gems the sky.
Gleaming bright
From afar.
Drawing nigh.
Falls the night.

Quotes and poem are of unknown origin

Failure Is Not An Option…

 

There are many different approaches to blogging. Some blogs tell stories, while others tell stories through pictures. There are journals of day to day life blogs, documentations of life’s hopes and struggles, and blogs of faith.  Sometimes I read a blog with sentiments so raw that I am reduced to tears. Then there are the goofy and funny blogs - the ones laced with humor. There are the times when I learn things I probably never would have known - and enjoy learning it. And sometimes, without even meaning to, a blogger will reveal their inner kindness, and tender heart.

My friend, Intenseguy's blog does all of the above. There are times that he makes me laugh and cry at the same time, and it isn't even until I'm commenting that I realize he also snuck a history lesson in his post somewhere. Earlier this week he featured me on his blog and gave me the "I Love Your Blog" award.

It is a great feeling to know a few simple words made a difference in a person's day - in this case Iggy's day.

Thank you for letting me know in such a meaningful way.
Once again, you have taught me a lesson. You've taught me that words of truth, no matter how simple, do make a difference. And you have taught me that to take a moment to leave a comment on the blogs I read, is worth every minute of my time.

I'd like to share this award with every blogger who takes the time to read my ramblings. Hopefully I occasionally impact you and your day - just as Iggy often does mine.

Oh, and the reason this post is titled Failure Is Not An Option is because while featuring and awarding me, he snuck in a history lesson – and a message to me to take good care of myself.  Thanks Iggy!

Will I Ever Learn Wednesday

How is it that we have rolled around to Wednesday again already?
This is my ditzo day of the week. And this past week, there have been a couple of doozies - with one significant one.

WILL I EVER LEARN...

Thirteen years ago we remodeled our kitchen. The remodel included expanding the size of the room by almost double, adding a luandry room, and a screened in porch for our hot tub. It also included all new appliances.

Let me give you a tiny little tip... don't buy all of your appliances at the same time. They WILL all go out at the same time. It is a fact of life. So far the repairman has been able to fix the washer and dishwasher for a few hundred dollars. It took $65 for the diagnosis that our refrigerator is terminally ill. In the words of our esteemed repairman, "...it could last six hours, it could last six years". Apparently a piece is loose inside a casing that can't be gotten to - that was never meant to be fixed. And when it finally goes, it's gone.

If any of my central Missouri area blog friends want the name of a good appliance repairman, his company is The Appliance Doc. We have used him for years and he has saved us thousands of dollars.

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My camera begged to go on a boat ride with the teenagers Sunday. Even though I knew we needed to leave shortly, I said yes. It seems strange not being able to download the pictures I took. It's going to be interesting to see what additional pictures are on there. If I remember, I'm going to pick it up from Patti's house today. I meant to do it yesterday, but forgot.

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Are you ready for this one? This is a doozy. My heart is still beating out of control. I am still wiping the persperation from my forehead. My knees are still weak.

On the way home from the Lake, we stopped at the Osage Beach Outlet Mall to look at shoes. All I want is a simple pair of white sandals. Every pair that struck my fancy cost $50 or more. Sometimes I'll pay that - and sometimes I won't. I was definitely in a won't frame of mind.

It was time for a potty break, then a stop at one of my favorite places in the whole wide world, Harry & David's, and then home. So off I go to do my thing in the little girl's room (and yes, I did wash my hands), then I headed across the parking lot with Jim.

Halfway across the lot, I asked Jim to give me my billfold back.
He looked at me like I was crazy... "I don't have your billfold"
And I looked at him like he was even crazier... "Of course you do, I handed it to you when I went to the bathroom".
And he got the wild eyed look that would scare the bejezus out of a warrior... "You did NOT hand me your wallet!"
Now we both had the wild look in our eyes and took out running back across the parking lot.

A lady was coming out of the bathroom. I looked at her suspiciously, thinking "did she take my wallet... would she get upset if I stopped her and searched her... yea, I guess she would..."

I got to the stall I had done my thing in and there was a lady in there. And she was apparently having some difficulty. She was in there forever and I couldn't figure out what the strange noises were. And the aroma was definitely different from the ones I smelled earlier in the perfume shop. Finally, I timidly asked if there was a wallet laying on the toilet roll dispenser. She grunted out a NO!. Oh crap. I looked in the other stalls for good measure, even though I knew for certain where I had left it. Nothing.

Back outside, I am panicking! We start retracinig our steps to shops, thinking maybe I had laid the wallet down while looking at things. Store after store we searched, leaving my business card - just in case...

We start looking in trash cans, hoping maybe they took the cash and threw the rest away. Cash - what's that? I never carry cash but today I did. Actually, I never carry a wallet when I go shopping. I always pocket a credit card and my license and that's it. But today I grabbed my big fat, I don't need most of the crap in it, wallet. What was I thinking!!!

We are now resigned to the ugly task of returning to the truck, taking out our cell phones, and begin cancelling our debit and credit cards. One nice sales lady had suggested we check with the visitor center. She was even nice enough to point the way. Knowing defeat was inevitable, we dejectedly headed down a flight of stairs to the last possible place we might find my mistake.

The lady looked up at me with a knowing look in her eye. I'm pretty sure she was able to smell the persperation of fear on me before I even opened the door. Looking back, I wish I had been nicer. But no, I barged in and didn't even say, "hello, nice day isn't it" (or something totally inane like that) - but rather said "has anybody turned in a wallet????!!!!!!". And she calmly asked, "what is your name". "DEANNA!" Against all odds, she reached behind a folder and pulled out my naughty wallet. She did! It was there! It had every card in it - SS, license, credit, debit - and the cash was even there.

She told me I was a very lucky lady. I agreed with her - wholeheartedly, with a stupid grin on my face, that I couldn't have hidden if I tried. She said a maintenance worker had found it in the bathroom. His supervisor was standing there and I asked him to thank him. He pointed to a wonderful man who was taking a break outside the door and said, "that's him". I walked out and thanked him over and over.

Now I'm once again kicking myself and am back into "what was I thinking mode". It wasn't until we were well on our way home that Jim turned to me and said, "You know, you really should have given him a reward". Yes, I really should have. I so wish I had thought of it at the time. I am going to send a card into corporate telling them what a wonderful staff they have going on there.

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So there you have it. Will I ever learn...
They predicted rain today. The sun is shining. I'm not complaining.
Thanks for the sweet comments on my melancholy me post. The scanner still isn't working. The sanitary waste technicians might soon get an opportunity to try their hand at it.

Have a wonderful rest of the week everyone!

Melancholy Mood

I’m in “one of my moods”.  Melancholy is the word that comes to mind.  Going to have to snap out of it.  It isn’t healthy.  Right?

This is where I spend much of my time these days.  I’m in the middle of a massive project of scanning centuries of photo albums – my family’s, his family’s, and ours.  Yesterday was spent trying to figure out why the scanner is no longer working correctly.  It scans but the file is never there after the scan.  I’ve downloaded driver patches and new drivers.  I’ve plugged and unplugged everything – over and over.  The laptop is worn out from rebooting.  This morning I un-installed the drivers and am installing them again.  Desperation I tell you!

See that music stand against the window?  Yea, I’m still trying to teach myself how to play the mandolin.  Hopeless I tell you!

The only sane thing on that table is the snowman coffee cup.  It knows no season.  As the days grow hotter, the cup reminds me that “this too shall change.”  It sure keeps my honey-sweetened tea hot.

Mom and dad gave me this clematis for my birthday eight years ago. 

Isn’t it beautiful?

The only thing is – it’s trying to die on me.  I can’t let that happen.  Once it quits blooming, can I safely prune the dead away?  Do I wait until fall?  Google time.  Tips anyone?

My sunflowers, onions, and weeds are co-existing nicely.  Sure wish humans were as tolerant of each other’s differences as these plants are.  Am going to leave them just as they are.

Where did 58 years go?

She was a beautiful baby. There was already an older brother and sister in her family, but she had an edge on the two of them. You see, she was born on her grandma's birthday. And let me tell you - those two knew how to celebrate.

They'd share in family celebrations and then they'd head off on their own - just the two of them. They'd take the bus uptown and head to Woolworth's Dime Store. Her grandma didn't have much money to spare. She suspected the banana split and the bus trip they shared was her grandma's one big splurge of the year. And she treasured every second of the time they spent together. You see, she was her grandma's brown eyed darling.

When she was 24 her grandma died. The banana split trips had long before been abandoned, but the shared birthday is forever.

At that point in her life, she really didn't want to celebrate birthdays any longer. The fun had gone plumb out of it. But for years she went through the motion for the benefit of her own family and friends.

She really doesn't know when this turned around and she actually started celebrating again - I mean really celebrating and meaning it. There is not a birthday that goes by that she doesn't go down memory lane and smile at the lucky sign of Taurus the Bull and Grandma "Maggie" that she had been born under.

This year, it seems I returned to the week long birthday celebrations of my childhood. Two of the granddaughters spent a couple of days with us. My friend, Rita, invited me to a wonderful lunch at her house. We sat and visited, as only two old friends can, for quite a long time. The two younger grandson's spent the night with us on my birthday. Jim took us out for Pizza that night. I was showered with presents and cards. The kids called. The grandkids called. And then we topped it all off with a trip to our friends', Patti and Gerard's, cabin at the lake for an evening of catching up, boating, eating, drinking, and fun. Heading back home yesterday, we stopped at the outlet malls where I didn't buy a single thing! You heard me right - I didn't buy anything! More on that story Wednesday.

I was supposed to go to a jewelry party last night, but stomach problems made the decision for me that I was to stay home, curled up in my recliner, with a good book.

Thanks for the birthday wishes. So far, 58 is all good!

There was supposed to be current pictures in this post, but the camera stayed behind at the lake, out boating with the younger set when we headed home yesterday.

Will I Ever Learn Wednesday 5-19-10

This is the day of the week that I get to think of ditzy me and the ditzy world I live in.

Sitting in my car at a stop light, listening to my tunes, I noticed a very young teen preparing to cross the street in front of me.  Sagging pants, large untied tennies, ball hat turned sideways, lighting a oh so cool cigarette, he was taking his good ol’ time.  Holding the cigarette just so, he began the swagger…  But he had waited a bit too long.  The light was turning green and he was barely in the cross walk.  So he began to walk faster.  And that's when it happened.  His britches fell to his knees, almost tripping him.  He quickly stuck the cancer stick in his mouth in a not so cool way, and ran for it.  I laughed so hard, I was crying.

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I’ve been looking forward to fresh cherries from my cherry tree.  We did pick enough for one pie (almost) and then left the rest to ripen for the next day.  Here is what greeted me.

The ladders are still there.  So is my picking bucket.  But where oh where did my cherries go?

That’ll teach me to wait a day!

Have a great rest of the week.

Awards Night

We went to an awards ceremony last night.  It was much better than the CMA awards.  The Grammy’s had nothing on this award ceremony.  Not even close.

This awards ceremony highlighted the accomplishments of our future.  We had front row seats.  We weren’t in the chairs on the floor, they were reserved for the honorees, but we were front row bleacher seaters (I know, it isn’t a word, but I’m going to use it anyway).

The excitement was rippling through the gymnasium.  Little Reagan could hardly contain herself. 

Awards were given out to all.  But not everyone got the same award.  This is important, because each child is individual and needs to be recognized for their individuality.  A pet peeve of mine is the mindset that seems to be permeating throughout our society that no matter the effort, everyone gets recognized the same.  Every child deserves to be recognized, but each for their individuality – not as a lump of one in a bag. 

Allen tends to day dream.  As he admired the awards already given out, his teacher called his name.  Then she called it again.  A L L E N.  He looked up at her and grinned, “Oh, me?”  Yea you.  He’s adorable.  Proud Grandma adorable. 

The gymnasium lights were bright.  I was a ways from the stage.  My flash was flashing, but the distance was too great.

PERPETUAL MOTION

I tried a different tactic with the camera and turned the flash off, slowing the shutter speed.  Usually I would say this was a poor picture, but not this time.  To me, this blurry pictures shows the individuality of these kids the best.  Some moving faster than others.  Some sharing.  Others admiring their award on their own.  But every one of them in motion at their own speed.

Congratulations Allen on your awards, especially for your Awesome Reading Award.  Grandpa and I are very proud of you.  Keep on reading!  Books open a world to you that you could never travel to in your lifetime without them.

Monday. Just Monday.

It is still cold and rainy. 

Usually the State Capitol Building stands out vividly against the skyline.  Not today.  (picture taken unsafely from my car as I was driving down Highway 94).  

The plumber was supposed to come Friday.  He didn’t show, nor did he call.  When we got a hold of him finally, he said his mom had taken ill and apologized.  Said he would be here Saturday.  Saturday comes – he’s a no show, no call.  Didn’t return our calls either.  He called this morning.  Said his mom had been operated on, apologized, and said he will be here tomorrow morning, 8:00 am.  I understand an illness in the family, but I don’t understand neglecting to give us the courtesy of a call.  Tomorrow is his last chance.

In the meantime, the bathroom looks like this.  Just use your imagination, ok?

We are fighting the rain and the birds for our cherries this year.

Normally we don’t pick them up off the ground, but the rain knocked them down and darn it, they are still good!

The tart cherries make the best cherry pie in the whole wide world.  I know.. the butcher block needs to be oiled.  Rolling out pie dough always leaves it dry and dull looking.

THEY are calling for sunshine tomorrow.  Please, God, help THEM be right for a change.

Friday Stuff

Another week.  Gone!  Time is flying by me.  The on and off rain has really been cramping my style – and wrecking havoc with my flowers.
    
Many years ago (29 to be exact) we lived in town in a house that was 60 or so years old.  We loved that old house, but the country was calling.  The previous owners had lined the property line with peony bushes.  Deep blood red and glorious pink peony bushes.  We dug about every other bush up and transplanted them to my parent’s yard when we sold the house.  It took years for us to finally transplant some of them to our own place.  But they haven’t grown well here.  And have never bloomed.  Until this year.

My peonies!  I am thrilled.  I was hoping the bush I ended up with would be the deep red one, but now I don’t care at all.  Peonies invoke memories of home, grandmas, and fun. 
 

I snuck outside in between rain showers to get a picture.
As a child, I’d always run out to cut a bouquet of flowers, only to be told they had to stay on the porch because of the ants and bugs.

So, today, the peonies still stay on the porch.  They need ants to reveal their many colors.  A few days on the porch and the ants are all gone.  But unfortunately, so are the petals.  Anyway, I love peonies.

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Grandson Austin had a toothache, and I had the privilege of taking him to the dentist.  What a kid!  What a dentist!   
This almost 5 year old (Sunday is the day) walked right in, climbed up into the chair, and opened wide.

It turned out he had several cavities – one too deep to fix, with the six year molar pushing its way through.  That one needed to come out.  The dentist wanted to also fill one, and put a spacer in.  Wow, that is a lot of work for a little guy like him to manage. 
We had to decide whether to go for it, with the help of laughing gas, or schedule a trip to out patient surgery.  I took one look at how relaxed Austin still was after already having many x-rays taken and said, “let’s do it”. 

Let’s do it was definitely the right decision.  He laid back, started breathing in the laughing gas and relaxed even more.  At one point he said, “I feel like I’m inside a toothbrush”.  Ok, Austin.  Whatever. 
After he was given the shot to numb the world of his mouth, we waited… And waited… And waited…  Every so often I would watch the dentist prick Austin’s gum and say “do you feel this”.  Austin would always say, “yes”.  Another prick, another yes.  Only, the dentist hadn’t touched his gum.  We looked at each other and I nodded, the nurse nodded, the dentist nodded.  The real work began!  That little mouth was open for an eternity. 
The laughing gas was supposed to be out of his system by the time we left the office, but I’m not buying that.  His treat for being so good was a shopping trip for a toy.  I parked my car at Wal-Mart and Austin said, “I think I’ll just wait in the car”.  I don’t think so!  We both went in and bought a toy and soft goodies.

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THEY promised sunshine today.  THEY had better be right, because I already have 4 loads of laundry on the clothes line.  Heading in to work for a few hours, a workout and then hopefully a quiet weekend.
  
Oh, and the bathroom is coming along great!  All of the fixtures are here except the mirror.  The floor is done.  The bead board is up and ready for painting.  The plumber is supposed to come today.  I’m not sure where we are going to find four strong men to help get cast iron tub from the garage into the bathroom.  I do believe we are going to have a pizza party.  (hint, hint, kids)  And how are they going to bend that cast iron tub around a doorway off a hallway?  Stay tuned.

Will I Ever Learn Wednesday

We got Whiskey 6 years ago this month.  I was recovering from surgeries, cancer, and chemo and wanted a little dog to spend time cuddling with me.  The owner told us he was a “tea cup” Chihuahua.  At six weeks he had already almost maxed out the size of a teacup, but we fell for her claim hook line and sinker. 
I’ve since discovered several things:  1) little dog doesn’t necessarily mean cuddly dog; 2) there is no such thing as a “tea cup” Chihuahua; 3) Chihuahua’s are high strung and mostly a one person dog (although Whiskey does share his affections between the two of us).  But I love our little Whiskey.  We call him Junkyard Dog.

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We had two of our favorite shows, Glee and Idol, scheduled to record last night.  While they were recording we watched other shows that we didn’t really even care about.  Now for Glee and Idol.  Yea!  Only thing is, we had somehow cancelled the recording.  Bummer.

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And here is one from the not too distant past.  It is on my friend, Rita.
When we worked together we used to go to lunch together on a regular basis.  We often combined errands with lunch and ran short on time.  So through the drive through we would go. 
This particular lunch hour we were once again late.  Rita was driving.  We placed our order and paid.  Then Rita took off.  She didn’t stop.  She didn’t pick up our lunch.  She. Took. Off!  As she pulled out onto the Boulevard, I looked at her and said, “but I wanted that sandwich!”  I cannot for the life of me remember whether we went back to get our lunch or not.  I kinda think we didn’t.
Have a great rest of the week everyone!  The sun is peeking through the wet leaves of the trees here.  I’m pretty sure it is just teasing me.  But I’m going to take the bait and head out without an umbrella. 

Goodness and Seriously?

Yesterday was one of those mother’s days where I can look back and say, “yes, life is good”.
After church we visited Jim’s mom in the nursing home. Her short term memory is shot. Her long term memory is whatever she wants it to be. She tells the wildest stories, but tells them with such conviction that if you didn’t know better, you’d swear it was the truth.

The one thing she hasn’t forgotten is how to play the piano. Her large family were mostly all musically inclined. She learned to play the piano early in life, just by playing what she heard. She couldn’t read a note if her life depended on it.

Here is a little clip I videotaped of her playing for us yesterday.   (the video doesn't show for some reason - just click on the little white box)

Tessa and Bill hosted a mother’s day celebration at their place. It was nice and relaxing, with wonderful pork steaks, ribs, and all the fixings. The sun played peek-a-boo with us all day, leaving us shivering one moment and warm the next. At the end of the day, I greedily grabbed my new rose bush and ceramic citronella (or whatever scented oil you want) burner, and headed home. What a wonderful day!

Today is rainy and bone chilling cold. This is where the seriously comes into play. For the first time ever, we have a fire in the wood stove in May. Seriously? MAY! It is crazy.


The minute Jim sat down to build the fire, Whiskey moved over next to him. When he has his camo outfit on, he thinks we can’t see him.

I might want to mention here that Jim agreed to build the fire if I agreed to blog about it. Have I mentioned that he is hooked on my blog and many of the blogs I follow? He’ll never admit it, but it’s true.


Soaking up the heat rays.

We took my little bug into the shop this morning for some look/see. The transmission has been shifting a little lot rough lately. The mechanic thinks the fluids just need to be replenished. I sure hope that is all it is. But for right now, I’m enjoying thunderstorms, wood stove heating the kitchen, and hot tea.

I’ll worry about other stuff later.
Peace and have a good rest of the week!

Thank you for choosing life

Thank you for choosing life.  Without the choice of life, there would be no mothers.
I struggled about a Mother’s Day post.  How to express what a mother is.  I found this anonymous poem and wanted to share it:

What is a Mother

Someone who cares when others care less

Someone who encourages when others ridicule.

Someone who defends when others condemn.

Someone with patience when others are impatient.

Someone who appreciates when others fail to notice.

Someone who gives security in a world of insecurity.
Someone who is accepting when others reject.

A Mother is a friend for all time, to cherish and protect, as her achievements will linger for generations.

Our daughter, Julie, became pregnant at age 15.  She made it very clear that adoption was not an option.  Nor was abortion (thank God).  It is not important to go into detail.  Bottom line is that we surrounded her with love.

Our parish priest was not an understanding man.  That happens.  Quite frankly, he tried our faith.  Apparently he wasn’t very observant because he didn’t notice Julie (love you dear) was pregnant, but did notice when she walked into church with her new baby.

The next day she got a call from him.  He told her that if every girl did what she did, the world would be a terrible place.  He then told her he hadn’t decided whether he would baptize her baby or not.  She told him we didn’t need him and hung up on him.  It was a very dark day for us.  Thank God for Tessa being with Julie that afternoon.   When Jim and I found out what happened, we were furious and our faith was tested – it is hard to explain how tested.  Then the unimaginable happened.
There was a knock at the door.  It was a member of our church’s Knights of Columbus organization.  He had a rose in his hand.  He handed it to Julie and said,

“We want to thank you for choosing life”

A beating heart deserves a chance to grow and be loved.  Many beating hearts are killed before they have that chance.

So to every woman who has chosen life, no matter how hard the decision, THANK YOU AND GOD BLESS YOU!

And to every person who has chosen to take that life and nurture it and mold it and treasure it – HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY!

All my love to all mothers.

And yes, I miss mine.

Will I Ever Learn Wednesday

This is going to be a short and sweet post. I didn't want anyone to think I was ditzy enough to forget it is Wednesday. So here goes...

WILL I EVER LEARN...

We, Jim and I, were shopping online. When we are on the internet together, it is kind of like going for a ride to an unknown destination. One of us drives, the other gives directions.

So, Jim was driving. I was giving directions. The desination was bathroom fixtures for our soon-to-be vintage bathroom.

We found some cool stuff - things that we were unable to find in any local stores. At one point we were looking at faucets. We found the perfect tub faucet and put it in the basket. Then we found a sink faucet we liked - but wanted to make sure it matched the tub faucet.

Remember, I'm giving directions and Jim is driving. We found a sink faucet we both liked, and then I directed him to the tub faucet link and had him click on it. The picture popped up and I was thrilled and told him "see, it's identical!". And Jim, the driver, said, "It should be, you had me open the sink faucet again". I had to giggle a bit.

Anyway, we ordered faucets, drains, fittings, towel bars, toilet paper holder, and what I am hoping is the perfect mirror. The cost was a gulp factor, but less for everything than a plumber quoted us for just the faucets and connecting stuff. He is a friend and was selling it to us at his cost. I think he (the plumber) ought to look into browsing the internet. But he needs to find his own navigator - I'm sure Jim wouldn't be willing to share such a talent as me!

Hope everyone is having a wonderful week. This has been a very busy one for us so far.

Simple pleasures

Hanging laundry on an outside clothesline.  That was one of my favorite things to do when my children were little.  It is something I haven’t done for many years.

The fact that my clothes lines are nestled in the shade of our tall oak trees is partly to blame.  The clothes take a long time to dry.   The lack of time because I was working full time is partly to blame.  Then of course I was working full time, going to college and raising three kids.   That is definitely partly to blame.  Let’s see.  Laziness is partly to blame.  It is much quicker to pop that clothing into the electric dryer sitting next to the washing machine.  For whatever reason, for many years I got away from hanging my laundry on my outside clothesline.  But lately I’ve been making the treck outside every time the weather cooperates.  It has become one of my favorite simple pleasures.

I love the fresh outdoor scent!  I know, that sounds like a commercial, but it is true.  And I love feeling that maybe I am actually doing something good for our environment for a change. 

Another of my simple pleasure is working outside. 

I especially like working outside when we work together. 

In December, 2007, we had a deadly ice storm in Missouri.  Trees were downed in just about any direction you could look.  Our place looked like a war zone.  And two years later we are still cleaning up the fallen and dead trees. 

Yesterday was a perfect day for tackling the job.  We’ve had a lot of rain these past few weeks and the wind wasn’t blowing, so we could safely build a fire.  And we had help!  Travis and Dakota were spending a few days with us.  Of course we put them to work.  We’re no dummies!

Even with a broken hand, Travis hauled a lot of wood to the pile.  We managed the larger logs by him taking one end and me the other.  It is amazing what can be accomplished when there are two working as one.   We had to burn many logs because they had lain in the field so long, they were full gummy and full of bugs.  So sad.

      Dakota was a big help.  It was amazing how much better he worked once we got the fire going.  Somehow it is just a lot more fun to throw a branch on a burning fire, rather than on just a wood pile.  I haven’t figured that out yet, but I know it is true!

Back and forth and back and forth…  I was worn out watching them from my out of the way perch on a big rock.

    

Never fear.  There was some good wood left to saw up for next winter’s fires in the wood stove.  And this is the tip of the iceberg.  We have tons of wood left to deal with.

Life is good!  What is one of your simple pleasures?