Falling

Last weekend, it really began looking like Fall.  The leaves are coming down.  We've had an "Indian Summer" of sorts, with temperatures in the 80's...so really it's been warmer recently than all of August was!  Just yesterday, it dropped back into the 70's outside, and I've had the windows open to gather in all the fresh air!

 Not only leaves are falling from the trees, the nuts (black walnut, hickory & acorns) have been dropping as well.  The ones in the chicken yard are the size of lemons!  It's a wonder none of the hens have been conked on the head.

Actually, maybe they were - they were acting really goofy last week.  I washed the cover for my futon, and hung it on the highest clothes line, which comes very close to the chicken yard.  Apparently when I pulled it up there, it freaked them out - they squawked and ran and flew to the other side of the yard.  About a dozen of them must have flown out, because for the next couple of hours, we saw chickens happily grazing in our yard, and we had to flush several of them out of the woods.

I finished staining the entire tree house.  JP had to put me up in the bucket of the tractor to reach the highest parts.  That wasn't exactly fun since I'm quite afraid of heights!  It looks much better now, especially since I cleaned the inside really well too, and even scrubbed the decks, which were growing some mildew.

This week has been excessively busy.  J landed a part in the winter play, so she has had play practice AND soccer practice after school.  She also had 2 home games this week.  I estimate that I spent over 4 hours just driving to and from the HS to pick her up or take her to something.  I also spent 5 hours at soccer games, 2 hours in Library meetings, and about 8 hours cleaning.

Today the Sears repairmen were out again to look at my oven.  This was the 6th time, but they FINALLY found the problem - a short in something located in the bottom oven that actually controls the top one!  Of course they had to order another part, so they will be back in 2 weeks.  Sheesh.

After they left, I was able to sow grass seed out by the driveway where my dad cleared a bunch of brush, and also harvest my squash.  I only planted 5 plants, and this is what I got:

38 Butternut, and 12 Acorn Squashes!

This afternoon, I took a leisurely drive out in the country to the apple orchard that I like to use because they don't spray.  I bought 2 1/2 bushels of apples for my mother and I to make applesauce.  It was a lovely outing.

Now I am sitting at the computer, getting ready to pay the bills, and the only thing falling at the moment is me - falling asleep.  I am so grateful for a weekend in which there are no soccer games!

Enjoy your Fall, everyone!

Volunteering

I have felt a bit overwhelmed this week - stretched a bit thin.  I have lots of outside projects to complete, and a dwindling number of decent days to do them in!  By this afternoon, although today was a truly awful day, I am feeling somewhat better.  I am making a dent in the To-Do list AND I was able to keep my calm and NOT YELL AT MY FAMILY even though today was super sucky.

Yay.

So, the tree house is mostly stained.  All of the railings and the stairs are finished, on all sides.  I was unable to reach some of the beams underneath, and still haven't decided if I am going to try to make that a priority yet this Fall, or wait until Spring.  The completed part looks great however, and is already working to shed water.  Yay.

 

The Chick-bit house is coming right along, although I haven't helped much with it this week.  We should be able to move the hens in by this weekend.  Yay.  I'll post pictures when they are moved in.

I spent a lot of time this week volunteering for a couple of very good causes.  I helped out at the PTA's Book Fair at the Elementary school one afternoon.  I restocked books, and helped several children make book selections that were within their financial means.

I spent this morning crawling around in the flower beds at our Public Library, weeding, dead-heading plants, trimming bushes, and in general cleaning out the beds.  I offered to do this at our last Board meeting when the Director wanted to hire someone to do it.  I enjoy gardening, but there is still a LOT to be done there...I may have bitten off more than I can chew with this one!

Good causes, enjoyable work...yay.

Now, we are finally getting the girls to bed (yay), and I can head there myself.  I'm exhausted.

Yay.

Die Job

Our major kitchen appliances are failing us right and left lately.  The ice maker on the refrigerator sprung a leak a couple of months ago, which lead to major buckling of the hard wood floor where the water sat for hours.  Although we repaired the leak, we could not get the ice maker working again.  We are getting by with ice made the old fashioned way - in trays, which is a pain in the patootie for our family that loves ice in our water bottles!

On Saturday morning, JP had just finished heating water on the cook top to make coffee.  He lifted up the tea kettle, and we saw sparks and heard a small explosion and the thing blew the circuit.  Once the circuit was turned back on, the cooktop read an error message, which lead us to the knowledge that we would be sinking around $500 into repairs...about half of the value of the cooktop...plus information that it would probably happen again.  We decided to replace the cooktop with a different brand.  Luckily, although our main cook top died, we still have our 2 back up gas burners that we can use until our new induction range arrives!

Yesterday it became obvious that something died in the closet in my bedroom.  I was hoping it was merely stinky shoes, but after fairly thorough investigation, that does not appear to be the case.  Now the stench is leaking into the bathroom, so the culprit must be in the wall between the two.  I've had the door and windows open all day, hoping to air out the place, and it is somewhat better.  Let's hope this is short lived!

This morning I got another section of the tree house railing stained.  It has been extremely blustery today, to the point that it actually blew the stain off my brush on several occasions!  Apparently it also blew my ponytail into wet stain too, a fact which I discovered in the shower several hours later.  2 shampoos and conditioner treatments later, it is still stiff and sticky feeling.  Now THAT'S a bad dye job!

There is still a lot of staining to do...I think I'll
need a ladder at some point!

On the bright side, Dad and I finished putting up metal on the inside of the Chick-bit house.  The ceiling panels, into which we had to cut 6 holes for light fixtures, were a killer!  I'm currently sitting here with a heating pad on my shoulders, trying to recover!

It has turned out to be a rather laid back evening.  The girls are finishing up homework, and I should get some dinner fixed.  JP works late, so we will either watch a movie this evening, or carve our pumpkins.  Ah...no soccer practice tonight!

8 Days and Counting Until Summer Break!

I can feel it in the air...summer is coming!  The girls ask to eat dinner outside every day.  It is not quite dark when we tuck the girls in at night.  Everything is green and growing.

The birds are nesting everywhere:  my ficus, the tree house, the barn.  The hummingbirds are back, and Kali is determined to catch one.

I feel like the garden is at a really good place this year, despite the fact that I didn't "put it to bed" the way I'd hoped to last Fall.  Everything is planted, except for the little plants, which are going out this weekend.  I've had so much more time to attend to it, that we are able to keep up with the weeding and mulching and mowing and planting.

 

It is tree house season again.  The girls haul their lunches up their in the bucket and pulley on the weekends, and have been begging to sleep out up there.  We have a bunch of kiddos coming this weekend, so JP asked my Dad if he could get permanent steps up out there, and finish installing the railing too.

 

He got right on that job, and this morning I helped him install the grand stairway to the tree house!  It is amazing!  Even Stella runs up and down the steps.

The stairs are 10 in. deep - easier to
climb and MUCH safer!

 

I went up and cleaned house up there this morning, dusted, swept and shook out rugs and blankets.  While I was up there, I got another good look at the garden.  It's so GREEN!

We ate our dinner out on the veranda this evening (hot dogs from our favorite itinerant vendor, who has returned from his winter hiatus.)  JP started the mowing even before we returned home from Voice Lessons tonight, so the scent of fresh cut grass surrounded us.

I am looking forward to an extra day to spend together this weekend.  We are easing ourselves into Summer Break, and it will be here before you know it!

Rock-A-Bye Baby, In the Treetop...

I think this is the third year that we've had a Cook Out on the Hill for Memorial Day with all of our friends.  Our crowd was a bit smaller this year, than years past, but we had a good time anyway.

JP found a giant 2 man sling shot, capable of shooting water balloons up to 200 yards.  We managed to dent the side of the barn a few times in the process.

Afterward, the girls invited 2 of their girlfriends for the FIRST EVER INAUGURAL TREE HOUSE SLEEP OVER.  We packed them in like sardines, and despite over night temperatures that hovered down around 35 degrees, they stayed snuggly warm up there.

They had a walkie talkie in their possession, should they need to contact us.  We heard from them only once, at about 10:15 PM.  "Daddy!  Help!  It's an emergency!  There's a giant cockroach on the ceiling!  S.O.S.!  S.O.S.!" 

By the time he made it up the tree to rescue the damsels in distress, the vermin had scurried back into a crack.  Cute.

It has been a long week.  The power was out overnight twice, necessitating L and I to start school at McDonalds on their free Wi-Fi on one morning.  J had SO MANY field trips and fun things and very little school last week.  L had her last Speech Therapy session and her first Piano Recital.  So...it has been nice to be a bit lazy today!

We have 4 more days of school, no more piano lessons, speech therapy, or swim lessons this week.  It's do-able.  I think I can...

Tree House Take II

A month or so ago, JP noticed that the beam supporting the tree house was bowed.

The bowed supporting beam

It worried him significantly, so he removed the ladder, and put the tree house off limits until further notice.

After some internet searching, he found a used, steel I-Beam listed on Craig's List about 45 minutes North.  The price was right, so a couple of weeks ago, we headed off on a Saturday afternoon, pulling the trailer with JP's truck.  It took 4 men to load the 18 foot beast into the trailer (which is only 12 feet long.)

The following day, JP drove it to our Handyman friend's farm, where they cut it into a 12 foot length.

The girls used it for a balance beam to do gymnastics under the garage lean-to for about a week.  Last week, I scrubbed the heck out of it with a wire brush, spray painted the entire thing with Rust Stop, then painted it with Rustoleum Enamel.

Shiny new paint job!

This afternoon, JP and my Dad jacked the tree house up off the supporting beam, and ever-so-carefully replaced it with the I-Beam.

I-Beam in place under the tree house

 

As soon as the ladder was replaced, the girls scurried up there with an armful of baby dolls each, and haven't been seen since.

Notice L's "bangs", which she
cut herself this afternoon!



Tree house B&B:  back in service.

Close Enough

Well,we did it! Dad and I got all of the trim up in the tree house this afternoon!  Every door, window and corner has been trimmed.

The girls and I brought the rugs up this evening to see how they look.  This is a view from the entrance door toward the door that leads to the deck.

JP managed to find these bunk bed cots, and the girls wanted to get them set up and try them out as well.  This view is from the deck looking toward the entrance.



The really nifty thing about the bunk cots is that they fold down to become a sofa when not in use as a bed!  It isn't a very comfortable couch, so I plan to make some cushions out of memory foam to make it a bit comfier.



I actually have plenty of sewing to do for up there.  We'll need some cute little curtains for each of the 4 windows if there is to be any sleeping going on.

JP still wants to build a fold down table hinged to the wall below the peach colored window (you can see it in the top photo), and I need to touch up some paint.  We should hang a few pictures too, of course.  On the whole, however, I think it's close enough to being finished to call it DONE.

Plan Q

I decided against attempting the laminate flooring in the tree house on my own, despite the success with the van a few days ago.  I'm glad I made that choice.  We had a lot of difficulty with it.  I appears that the Big Lots flooring is of inferior quality (surprised?) and couple that with the fact that the floor of the tree house is not quite completely flat, it was not lying flat, nor locking together.  After laying a whole box with it not improving, we gave up and returned the remaining unopened boxes to Big Lots, with the plan to buy a remnant of linoleum to put up there.

While at Big Lots, however, we found some bright rugs, and made the snap decision to paint the existing floor, and add a couple of large throw rugs that can be easily removed to shake clean.  They should add some much needed color to the space.  I think we are up to about Plan Q now in our tree house interior decorating.

So...I went up to the tree house to do some MORE painting this morning.  The existing floor is chip board, which I discovered is not easy to paint.  I employed a painting method that some of my West Coast friends stumbled upon (quite literally) to paint their basement stairs a couple of years back.  I call it the W.T.H. (What The Heck) technique, and it involves pouring the paint out on the floor, and swiping it around to fill in all the nooks and crannies.

Here's what things look like now.  Once I get a second coat of paint on the floor, my Dad can install the trim around the windows and door (which is already painted and ready to go.)  Then we can start the REAL decorating.

These Little Moments

I traded some of my pretty pink and brown eggs at the Farmer's Market for some even lovelier pears - buttery yellow with red cheeks.  I almost didn't make it there before closing.  Both dogs found something nasty to roll in this morning, so I added "Give both dogs a bath!!" to my list of things to do today.

I was a guest reader for L's class today.  I did this on line, so no one had a clue that I hadn't yet brushed my teeth for the morning, or brushed my hair for that matter.  One of the little girls told me afterward, "Thank you for that beauuuutiful story.  That was the most beautifullest story I ever heard!"  How's that for gratitude?

The tree house trim is all painted.  Done.  I'll post pictures when it is up...things are looking very sherbet-y up there:  peach and periwinkle windows and doors, and lime green walls.

It was a lovely, warm and sunny November day today.  I had only a few minutes to soak it up, to charge up my batteries for the long, cold nights.  I hung some laundry out too, the days that I can do that yet this year are limited.

I am thankful for all the little, special moments today:  the gorgeous pears, the gushing first grader, the sunshine, the sense of fulfillment in finishing a job, and even the fresh smelling dogs.  It's all good, and I need to remember those things when the days seem otherwise dark.  That's hard to do!

I need to go check on the turkey.  It's been out of the freezer and in an ice chest since Monday night.  Luckily, we don't need to cook him until Friday.

???

Something big went down at work today that I am not at liberty to discuss.  Suffice it to say we will be short staffed for an indefinite period of time.  I am already being asked to "think about whether or not you can give us some more hours."  (Which will only happen IF my Mom is able/willing to put in more hours teaching L, and IF JP and I decide that is the best thing to do right now.)

SIGH...

...Just when I thought we were marching right through the Holidays without a glitch!

I spent a couple of hours after the girls went to bed tonight painting Tree House trim pieces in the Wood Shop.  Luckily I was using low VOC paint, so in the solitude I was actually able to clear my head, instead of becoming a bit high and nutso.  I can probably knock the rest of the trim out in another night.  That just leaves the floor to install, and we can call it finished.  Furnishing it will take a while longer, but I don't feel quite so rushed to make that happen.

My middle brother called this afternoon.  He just had hernia surgery on Friday, and is recovering in a recliner in Texas with a bottle of pain pills and an ice pack.  I felt a bit bad that I didn't call him first, although I did try one time (still having some cell phone issues, mine is officially dead after its washing machine ride.)  BAD big sister, BAD, BAD! I think that I was able to answer some post-op questions for him, does that make up for it a teeny bit?

I'm thankful, in any case, that I got to talk to him today, and that his surgery went well and he is recovering as anticipated.

Happy Healing Thoughts to you, my Bro!

Grab Bag

Another week has flown by.  My parents are unexpectedly in California right now.  My Great-Uncle Howie, who was actually no blood relation to me, but a foster child who grew up with my Grandma and became family that way, passed away this week.  Mom and Dad flew out to be with the family for his funeral, and are taking a couple of days while on the Left Coast to visit my Mom's brother near LA (I think that's where he lives - JP says San Diego.)

Uncle Howie was a mortician before he retired.  I remember visiting when I was Jr. High School age, maybe even a Freshman in High School.  He took me on a tour of the Funeral Home in which he worked, and talked to me about the things he did.  I was completely fascinated, and was seriously pursuing that career choice for about a year and a half.  In the end, I decided to work with the people that are still living, and it suits me fine!

We missed a soccer practice this week due to torrential down pours, and that brings our total soccer commitment down to 6 remaining games or practices...just one more week!  It really seems to have flown by this year, and thankfully I have not been so incredibly stressed out as last year during the whole season either.

Last weekend, in The Great Garden Clear Out, I pulled the jalapeno plants that were still covered with peppers.  I had a 2 gallon bucket full of peppers sitting on the counter all week, trying to decide what to do with them.  I canned a bunch of hot peppers a couple of years ago, and they were very disappointing:  mushy and flavorless.  JP uses lots of canned jalapenos on his weekly tacos, so I really wanted to be able to use these instead of having to buy them!  I did a bunch of internet research, and finally stumbled upon a comment about a recipe for canning hot peppers.  This person said that they used the "inversion method" of canning so that the peppers would stay more crisp.

A-ha!  A bit more research revealed that this method is safe only for jams and certain pickles.  After sterilizing the canning jars and lids, the cold, sliced peppers are packed in jars, and topped with a boiling mixture of water and vinegar, salt and garlic is added, and the lids are screwed on tightly.  Following this, I turned the jars upside down and left them sitting on their lids on a towel for 5-6 minutes.  After righting them, every single jar sealed!

All of the recipes recommended waiting for 7-14 days before trying them, so I am not certain of the potency yet, but I got 8 pints and 7 half pints of sliced jalapenos canned.  They look beautiful!

Our friend, C, spent the day with us today.  We tested the maximum capacity of the tree house, and found that 3 girls with paint rollers and 2 adults with a paint brush fit with room to spare, although it gets kind of messy!

We got a primer coat of paint on the walls inside the tree house.  I also started staining the tongue and groove boards for the soffits under both porch roofs.  We are planning to paint the walls the same pale green of the girls' rooms, and then use other bright gloss colors to paint the windows, doors and trim.  The ceilings inside will also be tongue and groove, but I plan to simply put a coat of clear poly on them and leave them blond in color.  JP also installed the ceiling insulation today, so that the Hickory nuts falling out of the tree onto the metal roof no longer sound like gun shots from the inside. 

JP and I set an old telephone pole into a 4 foot hole just down hill from the tree house today.  This will be connected to the tree house post with a beam, and will serve as the swing set.  This project keeps evolving.  Now we are looking for the perfect name for our tree house, so let us know if you have any good ideas.  We have thought of "Hickory Haven", "Martins' Floating Castle", "Motel 46", and a few others...but none of them quite flow off the tongue like we'd like!

Last night I spent the night at the Hospital for a sleep study.  Although I did sneak a sleeping pill in, and took it right away before they hooked me up to about 47 different tubes and wires, I slept very little.  I hit a wall about 3:00 this afternoon, and plopped down on the giant bean bag with the girls to try to figure out a Halloween costume for C.  At this point, after coffee, iced coffee, black tea and various other caffeinated beverages, I have been awake as long as I can possibly tolerate.

Heading to bed now for some lovely ZZZZ's.

The View From Up There

My Dad has continued to work on the treehouse all week.  I spent some time one night painting the exterior of 2 of the windows too.  At this point, the exterior is done except for staining the siding and deck railings, and putting the metal on the roof.

All of the windows and doors are from the Habitat for Humanity Restore, so we have more recyling going on here!  My Dad turned the front door into a cute little dutch door.

The interior remains only partially finished.  We are waiting for my friend to come back from Wyoming and drywall the walls and tile the floor.  I guess if all else fails, JP and I will finish it on the weekends.  The ceiling isn't finished, the windows need interior trim around them, painting, and finally something durable and waterproof on the floor.

There is a lovely view from the composite deck out front, especially this time of year.  Do you miss the Fall colors West Coast people?

Now all we need is a way to get up there...

How to Build a Tree House in 146 Simple Steps

JP took off work last week to work on the next big Poplar Ridge project with my Dad:  building a tree house for the girls.  It ended up being a bit larger of a project than any of us anticipated, and it rained most of the week - which was good for our thirsty well, but not so good for being in a tree.  JP drove in to the lumber or hardware store at least once daily for additional supplies, and Lowe's delivered a large pile of wood and insulation on Monday.

Step 1:  Pick out your trees.  These 2 trees, one hickory and one probable ash, are in our side yard, and already serve as shade over our hammock.

Step 2:  Build the house in 2 sections under the barn lean-to because of rain.  They even insulated and began attaching the interior walls while these were on the ground.

Step 3:  Build the roof panels and deck panels under the garage lean-to because of continued rain.

Step 4:  On the first sunny day, drill holes for the massive bolts.

Step 5:  Tighten the massive bolts...it will take several people.  L even helped out.

Step 6:  After the "foundation" is bolted to the trees, lift up the first section of house.

Step 7:  Bolt the front deck and first section of the house to the foundation and each other.

Step 8:  Lift up the second section of the house.

Step 9:  Bolt the 2 sections together.  Aren't the Fall colors starting to be lovely?



Step 10:  Put on the roof panels.

Step 11:  Cover the windows and doors with plastic because the week is over and the tree house is far from done.  Plus they are calling for more rain.