Chocolate Stashes: August 2015

I’m on a roll here, so I’ll just keep on blogging. Late last summer, I started working on our deck. I cleaned it and started staining it, but it seemed like every time I was off work, it rained. Then the weather got cold, so I had to put the project on hold. I picked it up again this spring, and we have been enjoying our outdoor space all summer. We got a nice new grill, and we are on our third propane tank already! At least part of our dinner gets grilled almost every night.

It was a nasty mess before. We never used it.

The pressure washer made a world of difference!

The stain I used was Behr semi-transparent stain with sealer in Espresso. It took two coats. Tim liked it.

The old furniture got a fresh coat of paint.

I wanted a cabinet outside with storage for my potting tools and to provide a surface for food and drinks while we are enjoying the deck. Here is the cabinet:

Here is the story behind it: Metal cabinets were very popular in kitchens in the 1950’s. I remember my grandparents still having them when I was little. Granny and Pop remodeled their kitchen in the early 1980’s and replaced the white metal cabinets with oak cabinets. Never to throw out something that was still usable, my Pop moved the metal cabinets to his storage shed and filled them with tools and hardware. I asked my dad about them and he told me they were still there but in terrible condition because the roof of the shed had leaked. But being the sweetie that he is, my dad got me a cabinet, sanded it, repainted it, put casters on the bottom, and delivered it to me! I love the result! I imagine my frugal Pop would be happy to know that the metal cabinet he bought in the 1950’s is now on its third life!

A few more photos:

A typical weekday night. Just ignore the ugly recycling bins. They have to live somewhere.

The grill master in action

Citronella tiki torches don't work very well for mosquito control.

Two more happy projects:

Rosemary helped me plant a clematis plant by the birdhouse.

I made an address plaque. It is now hanging on a tree at the end of the driveway.

My last update was in June, and for once I have to say that we have not had much going on since then. There have been lots of doctors and dentists appointments, getting vehicles worked on, and sprucing up around the house, but nothing substantial. I have not worked much overtime. We’ve just been living. I have tried to stay off the internet and enjoy life in the moment.

The outcome of all the medical stuff is that Will is getting braces on Monday. He currently has spacers in. Bonnie has an appointment to have her wisdom teeth out during Thanksgiving break. All the kids started back to school on Monday, August 10^th. They are doing Georgia Cyber Academy again this year. Bonnie is in 10^th grade; Will is in 7^th grade; Luke is in 6^th grade; and Rosemary is in 3^rd grade. Three weeks down, and they are trucking along.

I have made the decision to go back to school. I have applied to the Family Nurse Practitioner program at Georgia State University. I took the MAT in June, and I completed my application in late July. It is a fairly involved process…. letters of recommendation, goal statement, APA writing sample. Any time I wasn’t working on it, I felt like I should have been, so it was a great relief to get it done. If I get in and everything goes as planned, I will have an MSN and be a FNP-C when Bonnie starts college.

Three days after Caidleigh died, we left for our annual family vacation with my parents. We went to Saint George Island, Florida. As always, great fun was had by all. One thing that made it different from past vacations is that Matt’s first cousins were there at the same time, and we love hanging out with them. They always go in the late Summer, but it is always the week before or after us. Without even planning, we went the same week this year, and our houses were less than a mile apart. Matt and Carey fished together, they all came over for games one night, and Matt and I had a double date on date night this year. We actually had fun! We went to a microbrewery bar, out to eat on the waterfront in Apalachicola, and then hung out by their pool drinking until the wee hours of the morning.

Our big dog, Sailor, has been mopey since Caidleigh died. We have tried to go out to play with him more often, but when we’re not out there he just lays on the porch with his head on his paws. I haven’t seen his tail wag at all. Our hearts weren’t ready for another dog, but I felt like Sailor needed company, so yesterday we got a puppy. Luke and Rosemary went with me to get her. She is half Collie and half Australian Cattle Dog. We named her Ginger. I think that she and Sailor will get along just fine. He was happy to see her. She had a whiny first night, but hopefully it will get better.

Ashby is well. He gave us fleas. He stayed with some friends while we went on vacation, and we bombed the house the morning we left. When we got back, the fleas were worse than ever. [Note to self: Spectracide bombs don’t work.] We bombed again the next day with Raid. It was a logistical nightmare to come home from vacation and immediately have to vacate again, but the second time worked. Fleas have been few and far between since, and all animals are properly treated. Good thing, too, because by no fault of his own, Ashby was close to joining Tim in the great outdoors!

Some photos of our happenings: