A Little Trip to Bruder Bear's

Did you miss me??  It was time for a little get-a-way. Dan had to be in McCall to give a talk last Tuesday morning, so we took advantage of that to plan a visit to Bruder Bear's.  We drove to McCall Monday, and following Dan's talk, we headed out for southern Idaho.

John and Karen were both working Wednesday and Thursday, so we had a chance to sit around and enjoy the incredible views from their deck.  Their house is right on the Snake River and the water is wide there due to slackwater from a downstream dam.

Some kind of gorgeous, huh?

John took Friday off and he and Dan began to work on a new dock. Their house is on the bluff side of the river, so they have stairs which zigzag down, somewhat like the stairs on a lookout; so instead of a beach, they use a dock as a sort of deck between the hill and the actual boat dock. The guys purchased the lumber and brought it around in John's boat. The poles for the supports were already in place and working from the boat, they began to attach the 2x8's to form the framework.

Here you'll see John in the boat and Dan in the lower center as they move in the planks:

They were forced to discontinue the plan to use the boat as there were so many other boats on the water that the waves kept John's boat in continual motion, which didn't work too well. Plan B: work in the water.

By eight o'clock Sunday evening, they were done. The frame is ready for its Trex decking. Here's Dan rolling up the tubing from the compressor to the nail gun. You can see the framework behind (the other half is behind the Russian olive tree on the right). I know it looks like it's sticking up in the air, but it's actually me who was up in the air--on the stairs--getting everything in view. The guys were well pleased with their work.

So, you ask, what were Karen and I up to as the guys slaved away? Well, so glad you asked. On Thursday evening, as Karen was fixing dinner, I brought up the subject of the wallpaper on her soffits. Both of her daughters had been "encouraging" her to get rid of it but so far, she hadn't. I sort of lifted an edge and said that it looked like it would be easy to take off. Karen came over, gave it a bigger yank, and we were off. Turned out there was another border underneath, but with a little work and a few hours of time, we got it all off. There was white paint underneath, and with a little touch-up, they'll be good as new.

Saturday, in addition to the dock work, a party was on the schedule. A local reception for the daughter of some friends was on the agenda so Karen spent the morning baking three delectable desserts, and John spent the afternoon deep frying eight, yup, eight, turkeys. We all had a good time at the party, which was held outdoors at the home of the bride's parents, in spite of a couple of rain showers and a beautiful lightning show. Oh, and the father of the bride did a bad slice job on two of his fingers as he carved a turkey. He refused to go for stitches until the next day and wore a lovely gauze mitten the rest of the evening.

As usual, we had a fantastic time at the Bruder Resort and loved every moment. The visit, the fun, the work, and food were all perfect. Thanks, Bruder Bear! XXOO

A Long Time Ago...

on a very hot day, I was born sixty-two years ago today! How the years have flown!!  The hospital in our little town in the canyon had no air conditioning and my poor mom endured not only labor, but 100+ heat getting me into this world.

I've had a lovely day, lazing about and enjoying my air conditioned house and chatting with family on the phone. Dan was going to take me out to dinner, but tacos sounded good and so I made us some.  They were just right.

Here's a picture of me not long after this day all those years ago:

I really was little once!  :-)

My Two Daniels

Papa Dan and his little namesake, a pretty special duo:

Note that, with no planning, they are dressed alike:  blue t-shirts and denim, although Daniel's are overalls. 

UPDATE:  My two Daniels also share another trait:  We all know Papa Dan is a forester who loves his woods, but did you know little Daniel loves the outdoors, too?  When he is fussy, if he's taken outdoors, he quiets right down and stares at the trees.  It's amazing!

Nuttin' Much...

goin' on here. Dan is home from another jaunt to Coeur d'Alene, and is out helping Amy's father spray weeds on the farm, and I'm trying to get motivated to do a little redecorating by watching HGTV. I just watched a $100,000 kitchen/family room redo that ended up quadrupling in price when they decided to add "outdoor living space." According to my math, that would end up being $400,000. Reality check?!? Mercy me!

However, I am pleased to report that I dusted and vacuumed last night and that the smooth surfaces of our house are dust-free and shining. As much as I hate those chores the results are hard to deny. And all for the price of a few sprays of Pledge and a little aerobic exercise as I pushed the vacuum. Score!!

I'm also working on a project for the shop and I'll share it when I get a little further along. It's out of my color comfort zone at the moment, but I think I'll like the final result.

Happy weekend!

Fourth of July

A little late, but that's me. :-) It was a great family weekend and so I'll just share some photos.

Gigi and Daniel:

Great Papa and the little man:

Ann and Cameron:

Keaton:

Below is a sleepy Daniel in one of the two bibs my dad brought back from Tombstone, Arizona back when Ann and Matt were little. It's been dribbled with a lot of cereal in its day!

Great Papa and Gigi were up on Friday for the day and we had a good time shopping and eating burgers. Ann, Eric and the boys were back on the 4th for grilled sausages and then Cameron and Keaton put on a great fireworks display for us. As we cleaned up the kitchen, the boys arranged all the different fireworks in the order they wanted to set them off, and then took turn lighting them. It was a wonderful and very special evening.

Summer, Ahh, Summer!

I truly think summer has arrived and how wonderful it is!! We had a small Bible study in East City Park this morning, starting at nine, and it was so lovely.  Lots of people, especially small children, were about, and our table of four was just right for sharing what we've each been learning.  A great start to the day!

Dan is off in Coeur d'Alene, working again, and so I'm puttering around the house.  Lots of chores to do, but all day to do them.  We've been doing a little work in the kitchen and it's looking so good.  Cleaning out closets is next on my list--the ones in the boys' room and the downstairs guest room are just piled with stuff that's on its way OUT.  Time for order and space.

In the sewing room, I completed a purse last week and love how it turned out.  I bought the pattern when we in Longmont last November and several weeks ago I decided it was time to be brave and tackle something new.  Yes, another buffalo to be tamed.  It was interesting to make as it had lots of interfacings of various sorts to make it sturdy and firm.

I think I'd like to make another one, this time all out of one fabric. There's a cute red print at the shop that would look good with denim (my uniform!).

And now, I'm off to get to those chores. Or maybe a nap. Hmmm... :-)

Bein' A Grammy

Last Wednesday was Ann and Eric's anniversary (15!!) and I got to watch the boys while they went out to dinner.  Dan was out of town for the week, so I asked if it would be okay if they brought the boys over here since I'm a world class chicken heart when Dan is out of town and go NOWHERE after seven.  I know, how silly of me. But that's the way it is.  :-)

We had our usual gourmet meal of chicken nuggets (the Disney ones from Costco), tater tots, and applesauce. Hey, it was boys' night out at Grammy's and nutrition is out the window.  They also had ice cream cones.

I managed to capture a couple of pictures of the boys, and then Cameron grabbed the camera while I was on the phone and snapped a couple of me and Daniel.  I'm so thankful for computers and cropping because one was so perfect of Daniel, but not so perfect of me.

So here are Cameron and Daniel:

Keaton, playing on the Webkinz site:

And the cropped picture of Daniel:

It was a fun night and I loved every moment.  Well, except when we couldn't get the pak 'n play to set up so Daniel could go to bed, but then a miracle happened and we got it to work!