Post Hole Porch Prelude....

The last big truck came to Shangri La Ti Da with supplies for our garage, deck and upstairs screened in porch.

I can remember how exciting it was to get the first load of house building supplies as we started this adventure!  And getting the last load was pretty exciting, too!

Still need a few garage roofing supplies, but not a BIG truck full!

And then the fun began.  Post holes.  Four to start for the upstairs porch and then 10 more....LATER...for the garage.

Here are the tools.  Nothing fancy or electric. 

Good old fashioned human power.

And here is where the porch goes....

commence digging!

I was in charge of the spud bar to

loosen up the dirt...and I use the term 

dirt very loosely, because it was anything

but loose....lots of hard pack and clay!

That spud bar weighs about 305 lbs!  

OK.  Maybe there is one digit too many

in there....but not by the end of day 2....it 

weighed at least 305 lbs. by then.

My little husband had the clam shovel to 

pick the dirt up and out.

Hole 32+ inches deep and 12" square.

Bricks in the bottom for the post to sit upon.

See that one nice band of topsoil....about 5" worth and it 

got covered with the dirt dug out from the house hole...

but it was a nice little break.

Our good friend, Rick, came to help and that was such a blessing.  I could have done what he did, but then we wouldn't have had anyone to take the pictures!  

Get it level and build supports.

Yep.  Still level.

Put in some concrete...

...and some more concrete.

Those things aren't going anywhere for awhile.

Ready to see how much it is starting to look like a porch?

I did a happy dance!

I love working on the house with my little husband.  And I love when help comes, too!  And I love that I can start to see my porch.....ahhhhh.

A Tale of Two Cats

Once upon a time there was a very old cat named Willow who lived with a couple of people who said they were about done with having pets...they wanted to travel and such...
Then there was a stray cat and a very long and cold winter.
Soft hearts made a warm spot for the stray and it took all winter and into the Spring for him to warm up to them enough to get petted...just an outside kitty.  Don't want to upset the old Willow.
Until the stray started loving them and they named him Weaver.
And he gets to live inside as much as he wants, but he still has a bit of the wanderer in him so some nights he goes on walk about.
Willow and Weaver like each other. Weaver is respectful and Willow is tolerant.
And I get to watch/look in on them when the people travel.

Here was today's visit.

Hello.  Glad you came to visit.  

I'm Weaver, the new guy.

Follow me.  Let's go in and eat!

 Since I am the new guy,
I have to let Willow eat first.

I'll just sit here and hope there is some
 of that soft food left.

 OK.  He's been eating a while.
Maybe I will hover on this side.

 Oh, I might as well just eat some of the crunchy kind.

Willow says, "Now that's a good idea, Weaver Boy.  

I don't like to be rushed."

 Pretty tasty.

Um.  Are you coming home soon?

I kind of miss you.

Oh, and Larry thought the flowers were getting too much rain.

He's an engineer.  Can you tell?

Life in the cat lane.

Let it Rain, Let it Rain, Let it Rain

A couple of things green and sparkly....something about a soft summer rain....you can almost hear the plants growing, almost see them changing as you watch....almost.

Here's praying for soft summer rains and cooler temps to my friends in hot and dry places....or you could come and visit here!  

Bring a hammer or some other tool useful in house building.

Grin.

Scallopy Bits

I am so lucky to be married to a man who can take my visions and create them for me....in wood.

So, we have scallops on the outside of the house up in the pointy parts of the roof.  (You would think I would know what these parts are called after all this house building time, wouldn't you?  But, I don't.)
I love the cottage-y look it lends.  Definite cute factor.

Wanting to carry that cute on down closer, I dreamed up window trim with scallops and my little husband made them for me...and painted them and put them up and caulked them.  Yep.  He's that kind of guy!

Have a look...

Hey, you can see my back door....lovely green.

He was pretty proud of himself!

Love.

Then it was time to move on to the front door trim.  It needed an extra piece to tie it to the door style....see the dental (how do you spell that word for this meaning?)  molding piece?

Everything else matches the window trim.

Happy camper.

Pretty door.  See the same dental molding under the glass?

And to carry the theme a little bit farther....

...scallopy trim around the garden bed.  Can't plant too much yet, because we still have to get in there to do corner trim and battens.

Have not figured out how to keep grass from growing up close to things yet.  I want to be able to mow close enough to take care of all the grass, but I can't get in there even with the push mower.  Ideas?

West Virginia just celebrated our sesquicentennial and our community chorus dressed in period clothes to sing.  I borrowed mine from a Civil War reenactor friend.  It was hotter than the dickens...whatever they are...but fun!

The house at Shangri La Ti Da is coming along....slow but sure...

Tornado Watch

So all day yesterday they were telling us that we are under a tornado watch.   With the images of the devastation in Oklahoma still fresh, it was a little bit scary.  So, I made a little plan and packed a little bag...
The plan was for each of us to grab a cat and stuff them in a cat carrier, then grab the dog and her leash in one hand and my bag in the other hand and run for the car....it was night time and we don't have a TV so I'm not sure how we would have known when to make a break for it, but that was the plan.  My little husband did stay awake and monitor the internet until the watch expired.  Me?  I didn't hear a thing.

And here's what was in my little bag...

...my Bible...

....the quilt I am working on....

...my sewing pouch and glasses!....

...both fully charged Kindles and a real book...

...all tucked securely, with the computer, into my new

favorite polka spotted bag!

Thankful that all I had to do was unpack the bag this morning.  Nothing serious came through here.

Of course, as I was unpacking I thought of so many more things I maybe should have packed.    But, in reality, there is not very much 'stuff'  that I couldn't live without.  

There are things I would miss...but if I have my furries and my little husband...and something to read... and something to make, I would be good for quite awhile.

What about you?

Party!

After 3 years of fun and exercise....yes, both of those words in the same breath....Karyn decided to call it quits.  I don't blame her at all, but I sure am going to miss the friends I made there and the calories I burned and the muscles I tones....but mostly the friends.  I have been seeing some of these sweet ladies 2 or 3 times a week and sharing lives with them.  Now, I am going to miss watching the pregnant ones grow and blossom and I won't hear about the trials and accomplishments of getting that next degree or the weddings of kids and the birth of grandkids or the adventures at work places...one of my circles has fallen apart.  Not gonna lie, it makes me sad.

Maybe it will make my life less busy, but it will also be less full.....ah, well.

To celebrate the end we had a party!  I think I might like to be a party planner (or a meteorologist0 for my next career.

It was fun and nobody cried!

Can't have a party without balloons, right?  

Especially those nice helium ones, huh, Karyn?

Stripes and polka spots and yellow fiesta waiting for food.  

And Camille's pretty pink glass bowl that you can barely see.

Lemon cupcakes with pink icing by Makayla, 

who is raising money

for the Relay for Life team she captains....

as an 8th grader!

Can you tell it was a pink lemonade theme?

Pink jello mousse yumminess with the spoon already tied inside...

with yellow and pink ribbons!

Water...it is an exercise class!...with fancy new wraps...

and more lemons.

I am all about banners these days!

And there she is....our fearless leader!

We all worked together to make it a fun ending and everyone was gracious enough to stay with the pink and yellow theme so it all looked nice, too....ahhhh....a party plan gone well!

Love my zumba ladies!  Don't lose me....I will miss you....

Colors!

These are most likely my favorite colors....today...along with yellow....and purple....
But these are my most favorite.
Today.

 The magic season of burst and blossom.

 When once again God says, "Continue."

The gentle turn from black and white to green and green 

and ever more shades of green.

 Life.  Abundant. Vibrant.  Fragile.  Fleeting.

 When once again God says, "Live."

See beauty in the tiny. 

 See possibility and promise and future fruits.

When once again God says, "I love you...just this much!"

And this is spring in another color palate.

The ornamental red maple with early morning

sun shining through.

Thank you, God for spring!