Same Size Cabin in the Woods...with Walls and a Chimney

Just a quick picture post to update you on the house work.
We have drywall!!!!

We have a chimney!!!

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Weekend Recap

The weather was beautiful. We got enough rain to water that garden but not too much to spoil our plans.

Here's the slide show recap...
Friday


For Father's Day we gave my dad a "family night at the T-Bones".

It was "St. Patrick's night" so we got half-price tickets for wearing green. It was a celebration like none other...St. Patrick's Day, Father's Day, AND it was Heather's Birthday! It's like watching a comet that won't be seen for another four hundred years. When will those holidays ever align again!

Saturday

We headed out to Hillsdale Lake for some wave runner fun. Here's my man with a farmer's tan (it's actually a "roofing tan"). The weather was unbelievable for the end of July. Low 80's, no humidity, and a cool breeze.

With all the fun...there's still house work to do. Our drywall work begins this week so we have to clear the front field so the delivery trucks could get through. While John fiddled with the tractor...I took pictures of our foliage. We've had so much rain so everything is big, beautiful, and green.





I went searching in the barn for something to put our garden spoils in and look what I found! I gave it a good scrub and now it's perfect! It would be even more perfect heaping with vegetables but so far one tomato, a few cherry tomatoes, and a pepper have rolled around on the bottom. Here's hoping.

And now for the big news! I checked off another "first" this weekend. My friends will never believe it and to be honest...I can't either. This is so far from how I envisioned my life to be.









I drove the tractor!

It should also be noted that this is the first picture of me doing anything at this house. This is when my husband finally decided to pick up a camera and capture my hard work! He is strangely proud of this moment.

And look what I had to mow down...that's my little head poking out through the weeds.
So there you have it. Another weekend in the books.

Wednesday Work Day...Whatever!

It's Wednesday and I'm not at work. It's my day off. Usually what that means is that we'd be working on the house. BUT NOT TODAY!!!

I'm currently sitting on the patio of a local coffeeshop having finished a non-fat caramel latte and a strawberry cheese danish. I'm wearing denim capris and open-toes shoes.

In 30 minutes I'll go visit my doctor (there's nothing wrong mom, just a check-up). An hour after that Sheena will meet her new vet (there's nothing wrong with her either, just a check-up). And then...well, I don't know. The world is my oyster. I may go have a late lunch with my husband. I may finally redeem the gift certificate for a pedicure that my sister gave me for my birthday (IN MARCH!!!)

Before I get too excited, I should clarify that there will be work done on the house later this evening. And I will be there to do it. But for now...I choosing to soak in the breeze, free wi-fi, and my open-toed shoes.

Enjoy your day...wherever you are...whatever your doing.

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Rain Rain Go Away...

Here's a pictoral update on the flooded house. It has been inspected and condemned. And we are so thankful to also say that it is 100% insured. We will still need to deal with the demolition and removal but in the larger scheme of things...we are a-okay!


The water rose to the gutters.

This is the front door.

The fridge floated onto it's back.

The counter tops were warped.

The laundry room

The washing machine...full of water. I couldn't get anyone to stick their hand down there.





These worms met their fate on the window screens.


The most striking part of this was the smell. It smelled like hot, old fish. Peooey! There were lots of people pulling carpets, furniture, clothes, toys out of their houses and marching them right to the curb for trash pick-up. It was so sad.

The city deemed the house a total loss and our insurance company covered it. Praise the Lord!

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What We Did on our Summer Vacation

We are back from our whirlwind vacation.

The secret mission mentioned earlier was a surprise birthday celebration for my grandmother who turned 80 years young in May. The family gathered for a weekend at Shaver Lake in California. It was great to have everyone together...it's been a long time. John has now been officially inducted into the family clan helped by the fact that he made eggs for breakfast both Saturday and Sunday.


Happy Birthday Grandma! We love you!

We arrived back in KC around midnight Sunday night. With a quick switch of dog sitters (thank you Spring and Heather) we were off on our road trip to Oklahoma to visit John's parents.
We were slightly delayed with the news of the flood that hit Sunday. As you might recall, we moved John's house back in August to make room for our new house. The old house has been sitting in a nearby town with a for-sale sign in the front yard. Well, on Sunday the house and it's for-sale sign were underwater. We were not able to get to our street to see the house up close but we were able to see it from the highway.

The white roof at the base of the electrical box is our house. The grey "fence" behind the tractors is actually water.




The water seems to be receding now so it's time for safety inspections, smelly carpet clean-up, and insurance claims.
We made out much better than a lot of people. No one was living there and from what we can remember we have only lost a washer, dryer, and a shop vac that was stored there.

We made it to John's parents using alternate routes (the highway we normally take was closed). We drove through several little towns which were so cute, although soggy. His parents have gotten lots of rain as well. They are drenched but not drowning.


We were there over the 4th so we blew some stuff up. What doesn't scream Independence like legalized explosives! It was my first time so I felt a little rebellious. It's not legal where I grew up.

We start the flood clean up this weekend and will hopefully get some work done on the new house (which is dry and safe).

We cannot help but feel grateful seeing what we've seen this week. The flood is a big inconvenience for us but it is just that...an inconvenience. It is devastating for so many others.

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