Fishing on a Wednesday

Fishing at H Lake one evening. The storm was rolling through from the Northwest.

Northwestern sky.

Northern skies over the dam.

Same evening, South sky.

Southeast sky.

More Southeast sky.

C fishing at the outflow. I don't remember if he caught anything, but I think it was relaxing for him. I was sitting in the truck bed, on a blanket, reading a book. He likes to keep me near.

The Point System

An extra three points (in the game of life) for anyone that can guess what type of project might grow out of these colorful sketches . . . And yes, they took me a LONG time to complete! Let me see if I can go figure out what C is doing and get a picture of that too!

Quickie

Warning: no picture post . . . .

Just wanted to let everyone know that C took his RLS exam yesterday. It is the second part of his testing to become a licenced surveyor (LS). He passed the first exam in October or last April (I can't remember) on his first try to become an LSIT (I always say that stands for Licenced Surveyor In Training, but it may be something else). Yesterday, he took two parts of the exam: the national portion and state specific. We are hoping that he passed both and will be granted his LS in June sometime. If he only passes one, he can go back in October and retake the specific test that he needs to. He did a lot more studying this time around, so we are both hopeful. He's also just glad that it is all over! I sent him off with a hug, kiss, and a care package that contained lots of trail mix, gum, gummi bears, Gatorade, and Smart Water (surely that helped, right?). He's home and happy to be concerned with other things now!

The same evening he left to head to the town where the test is, I drove to T town, halfway between our hometown and where we live now. I surprised my dad at Red Lobster (completely orchestrated by my mom - she's great at this stuff!) for an early birthday dinner. It was funny to watch the realization spread across his face that yes, that was his oldest daughter walking in! We had a really nice dinner and just talked. I love to just sit and listen to my dad's stories - and I hope that he loves to tell them! My mom was just so excited that she kept smiling at us! We missed C and sister B, of course, but we'll figure out how to get the whole family together soon! There is a family reunion coming up in June after all.

Right now, C is trying to load up the Dodge and the rest of that wood to take back to his parents. Tonight, the guy that C and R got the Dodge from is having a little get-together (he's been in Iraq and is back for his two week R&R) and we all thought it would mean A LOT to him to see the Dodge in all it's finished (mostly finished) glory. It's a sweet surprise. He really wanted to give (yeah, GIVE - C and R traded and engine block and some other random stuff for the Dodge and another truck) the Dodge to someone that was going to do something with it - C sure has. I'm so proud of him and what he's done - I think this guy is going to love it!

I'm kind of cleaning and kind of blogging and kind of waiting around to see when I get to pick up/meet up with M. She's one of my favorite people and she came from FL to visit her family up here. So we are going to get a little time together and then it's off to the airport tomorrow morning. [M is one of my childhood friends (think seven or eight years old) that made the transition to adult friend! Somehow, even though she moved away at age ten, we still had a lot in common and continued a friendship through letters, which we still do to this day, along with a few phone calls!] I can't wait to see her and bring her home! We will see if we can get some pictures of us - although C getting pictures of his outing is about impossible!

Dodgin' on the City Streets and Country Roads

This should say everything! We are legal with antique tags, registration, and insurance! How exciting! I didn't start this blog soon enough to capture exactly what a labor of love this Dodge was for C; how much work and fabrication he has put into it over the last year.

Complimentary picture of the Wagoneer (still in the driveway, runs, but is waiting on a transmission swap so that it can drive).

On the street!

C turning off of Main Street. Only two gauges so far and neither is a fuel or mph gauge - yikes!

Spring time dirt road driving. Twilight.

Just a pretty picture! According to C, the windshield on these trucks are worth quite a bit because over the years so many have been broken (very fragile once the glass is taken out and it is removed from the truck). I'm sure C could have built a replacement, but the original gives the Dodge a Look.

C driving; very serious. Truck was making a little bit more road noise than it should (yes, we know the cab is open so we can hear it all better).

Country road and shadow puppets - if you look really closely, you can tell that I was there!

Something about the truck not shifting right, but I think C fixed it because we got going pretty fast. Just look at how big that truck is compared to him! You can completely rest on those front fenders and all of the running boards (leave the rear ones alone for now - we don't want to find out if they can support your weight or not) - they are tough.

Main Street and the windshield - did I mention that you can put the windshield down just like on some of the Jeeps? Very cool.

Me! Yes, I knew better about the hair - I should have gone with a ponytail. Later I fought with the tangles. Any more advice from convertible people?

C's baby got a bath because he never puts anything away muddy (yeah right!).

Saturday Evening Sky

I was driving North on I-35 to meet sister B on Saturday evening (after a full Saturday of shopping!). I tried to stay on the road while appreciating the beautiful sky. It was something about the clouds, colors, and light. I'm not sure that I have a picture in here that does that evening justice (of course I wasn't taking pictures and driving - that would be dangerous and dumb!), but I wanted to post a few.

I think it looks a little like we have mountains in the distance.

Clouds hanging low.

Ooo, this one is pretty. Looks like the clouds are gathering for a purpose.

Like a low hanging ceiling.

An underpass (everyone has seen these), but a reminder that you come through them and there is light on the other side. Sometimes that is a good thing to remember. And yes, my evening with sister B was very enjoyable - that girl is hilarious!

Easter 2009

A little late in posting our Easter! But there are a few pictures, so I did get the photograph thing half right (as in, no pictures of actual people). The story for Easter also goes that we were going to spend a quiet weekend up here by our selves - many contributing factors to not going home. Our favorite Easters in the past have included a lot of family (R+AM+little E, of course!). On Thursday, I began to receive text messages from my mom. She wanted her family for Easter; specifically, her girls. So while there wasn't an Easter egg hunt, my parents and sister came over and we had a really relaxing Easter (relaxing for me because Mom brought ALL the traditional food!). Pictures in random order:

This is awesome for two reasons: this is the candle holder C made out of an automatic transmission for our wedding (he made about twenty-five for the reception), and the colors are bright! C is such a wonderful craftsman!

Another wedding-type reference: the lead candle holders are from some very dear friends on the R family side. They came with strict orders to use them, and in obeying, I have never put them away in a cabinet. Of course, here they are egg holders! Champagne glasses are beautiful too, from Mom.

Crazy butcher block set up: Easter basket from Mom, wooden bowl of eggs and Crunch (they apparently don't fit in eggs, but the Butterfingers do!), cupcake pan with eggs, and one of those bright pieces of FiestaWare with grapes and celery (Mom tries to keep it a little healthy!).

Part of the table (I am so grateful that C gave me this table for our first Christmas up here!). You can see an interesting take on scalloped potatoes, ham, and cranberry salad; all courtesy of Mom!

Salad, my only contribution besides a clean bathroom! It was tasty at least!

My favorite part: The green beans. They are what my grandmother used to make and Mom has gotten very good at making them. These always have such a great flavor! Thanks for bringing these, Mom!

Abby came with Mom and Dad. She had fun, but didn't care much for our house guest, Ginger.

Boris didn't know what to do with himself - he's one of those dogs that needs to be right in the middle of the action (translation: constantly underfoot).

So, Boris and Ginger (N&A's boxer) spent a little time in Ginger's crate. We let them out so that they could have a nice Easter too. And no dogs gained possession of any plastic eggs, which is a feat in and of itself! Hope everyone else had a lovely Easter.

Finished Bedroom

We finished the bedroom Sunday evening and sister B (over visiting) and I picked up everything, but left the room alone to dry. It is nice to have another queen sized bed in the spare room (I usually call it the orange room or the library).

C was so sweet and moved all the furniture back in after he got off of work on Monday evening! Either he was sweet, or sick of having my dresser and bookshelf in the hallway. He even rearranged; we are really big on changing up the furniture arrangement when we can. Please ignore the weird camera/mirror thing going on in this photograph.

Nice color - we both like it. Now I need some pretty linens to pop against the neutral walls. I'm thinking a blue (can't decide between light or deep) and a burnt orange color for the bed accessories. C and I also need to decide on a design for the bed/headboard - I think he can make us something really unique and functional.

I do brag on C a lot; he made these shelves after I passed along the idea (kind of leaning, etc.) from some I'd seen in a shop. My favorite fiction is at the bottom (yes I am very selective), and most of the other objects are from my grandma, AM, or S (do you see your pitcher AGAIN? You are all over the blogosphere!).

This picture relaxes me and I am calm as I sit in our bedroom and type. I've always agreed with those that say a couple's bedroom should be their relaxing oasis. I think we did a good job with this - I am so grateful for C's help.

Wood Situation One Week Later

Last weekend, we had a lot of things to do! First priority was to get the tree all chopped up and stacked in a semi-logical manner. C was working with the chainsaw about every night this week and he is so tired! Thankfully, N and neighbor B (who just might own half of said tree) were around to help!

There was a lot of very big pieces of wood as the rest of the tree came down! And the back part of the yard (outside of the fence) is completely sawdust.

This is what is left of the stump - I don't know if we can burn it out or if we'll have to pay someone to come grind it out.

C and neighbor B. The neighbor's lawn tractor and trailer sure came in handy. All of this also provided the means for us to meet this neighbor. He's a pretty nice guy.

Like I said: big wood. There is a larger stack of smaller wood stacked the length of the garage inside of the fenced yard. A stack that is fairly equal to this one is on the other side of the garage. The large majority is going to be hauled out to C's parents' house due to the fact that they heat with wood.

After C raked, the backyard looks MUCH better than it did a week before! The dogs are happy and I think C is happy that he got so much done, but he is exhausted! I promise that I was working hard also, just not on this project.

Starting in on the Bedroom

A few months after we moved into our house, my parents came up with paint and all the accessories and painted the dining room, living room, hallway, and spare room. They did an amazing job and we are so thankful. The previous owners were fond of faux finish (various techniques to applying multiple paint colors to the wall) and we are not. This change really made the house seem like ours. Last December (2007), C and I took on the horrific and unsanitary kitchen remodel ourselves and it looks MUCH better. Modern, updated, and again, more US. So, this weekend I finally got up the nerve to paint our bedroom. Dad had left paint with us about two years ago and I had most of the accessories, so . . .

Yeah, I might have taken on a little too much.

This was a few hours in, after gathering necessary supplies, moving furniture out, and staring at the walls. I'm not sure you can tell, but the walls are white, with a peachy/flesh-toned paint applied over them.

Another good shot of the "Before" paint job. Some visitors seemed to like it, so maybe it just annoyed me. There was A LOT of prep work to do to the walls because they are not in super good shape. A few hours were eaten up with washing, wiping, patching, and sanding the walls (per Dad's instructions).

Close up of the faux finish. Definitely "Before" madness ensued.

The room is painted right up to the window; not sure if you can even tell. There was also a small crisis with the paint. I had chosen a color called Sea Sand. I'm sure that I knew what color that was when I picked it two years ago, but in the time past, I had come to think of it as a milky coffee color, a very soothing brownish-taupe color. It was much lighter than I was expecting! So Dad told me I could add a darker color to it and make my own custom color. I added a little Happy Trails, the color we used in the Dining Room. I was also told that it would dry darker than it went on. So I mixed and applied. Then we left to go over to N&A's for dinner and a little get-together.

Saturday had beautiful weather, but Sunday was much colder, and I had left the windows open a little to get the paint smell out. That bedroom was COLD Sunday morning! We (notice how Caleb volunteered to help even though he was exhausted) painted the rest of the room, and then had to wait forever for it to dry to see if it needed a second coat. Of course, to cover the peachy color, it did need a second coat. Again C helped me out. And if Dad reads this, I never once got paint on the ceiling, but if you happen to look in our bedroom while visiting, please don't actually look at the ceiling. Please.

The color was starting to grow on me in the morning light after it had dried. It could be a soothing, really milky coffee color.

One semi-artistic shot in the bunch. There is some Pale Honey primer/Blank-It (awesome product), Sea Sand, and Happy Trails. I definitely got into the painting project over my head, but that's okay because I have C!