Thursday, August 23, 2012

Summer of 2012...... So BUSY!!

I haven't written in months..we have been busy since we arrived back home. First of all as we were within 90 miles of home, John decided to have our driveway pad widened. That meant we had to park somewhere else until our friend Darren Smith brought his equipment and some fill in for us. We stayed at a campground 7 miles away for about 5 days before arriving at the house. From there it was go, go, go.
I am going to list some of our activities with a few photos. If I narrated, as I usually do, this blog entry would be several pages long. This list is in no particular order and not everything is included...
1. Babysitting Lukas.... what a joy he is. Just started walking.
2. Dinners out with Chris, Jeremy & Chelsea & Lukas, John and Wendy.
3. New glasses for both John and myself.
4. July 4th picnic with John & Wendy, Paul Hardy and Wendy's parents
5. High school graduation party for my nephew Alex Sullivan. He's off to Penn State in the fall.
6. John & I power washed, scrapped and repainted the front porch and window moldings. 
7. Partied Hardy at Paul Hardy's western party. I made pulled pork.
8. Had both the Jeep and Yaris in to the mechanic for their yearly inspections.
9. Attended a Jeep Rally and ride in Williamsport to benefit the Wounded Warrior Program.
10. Went to the farmer's market in the near-by town of Lewisburg several times.
11. Had another yard sale weekend with John & Wendy Dreese. John was surprised at how much "stuff" we still had after last year's sale. (Actually it was mostly his things that he couldn't seem to part with last year)
12. We spent several weeks cleaning up last fall's leaves and this springs weeds from areas around the house. We were hoping we wouldn't have to do any of that with tenants in the house, but.... it seems everyone has their own definition of "upkeep".
13. My son Jeremy and his family (Chelsea & Lukas) have purchased a fixer-upper mobile home, so John and I have been spending long days rebuilding walls, kitchen cabinets and painting all six rooms. I was inside painting away... took a break and looked out the window to find the guys lounging instead of working. Isn't it just like a man !!
 
14. John worked with the "3 Old Men Construction Co" to replace the deck and front porch on John & Wendy's rental property. For those new to the blog the 3 old men are John, Paul and John. One can't see well, one can't hear well and one has a bum knee. So they figure the 3 together make one really good worker.
15. Went to the shooting range with John and Wendy to learn how to shoot the pistol we carry. Also got to shoot the AK 47......  fun!!!! Here's pistol packin Wendy...


16. I have convinced John to sell the Yaris. I can't see paying a monthly payment and insurance on a car that sits in the garage for 9 months out of the year when we travel. We have a buyer and will be completing that transaction next week. Meanwhile, John has put a down payment on a motorcycle...... remember that carrier we bought in Florida last fall..... ?
Well it seems that the cycle is a bit heavy for the Jeep so tomorrow it goes to the mechanic to have some sort of lifting mechanism applied. It never ends.
17. Replaced the floor of the coal shed. A small hole appeared during the winter and the tennants covered it with a sheet of tin.....  so we repaired it properly by placing a new floor on top of the old for extra added strength.
18. John made my bucket light and it is now hanging on the patio. In this picture you can also see our new gas grill we purchased from the proceeds of our yard sale.


Things yet to do this summer.....
1. Pick up the cycle.....  oh yeah
2. Replace the roof on the house. Before picture
 

3. Go to Bar Harbor Maine after Labor Day to visit with Millie and Ray and eat Lobster!!
4. Visit New York State wine country on a day trip with friends.
5. Attend John's niece Gina's wedding in Williamsport the middle of October
6. Have the "Rose" inspected and tuned up for our travels.
7. Have more fun !!!