Spruce Aug. 18, 2015

Spruce Aug. 18, 2015

It might have taken years, but Dd *finally* got her Chinese kit put together!  She likes to make things while I read our RA's (read aloud's) 

A quick Tuesday update.  The "library" books are getting harder and harder to find, and our shelf space is running out!  Now we have only our fun books left---hundreds (or more) of picture books.  Those books are going to have to wait for me to find a few new (to us) bookshelves in order to come out of their boxes.  Our house in Indiana had high ceilings, so I could stack boxes on top of the bookshelves for lots more books per room, and that doesn't work here in the basement library.  I haven't figured out what we will do yet.

Our house in Indiana---we have had the last two weekends as "open house" inviting people in to see (and hopefully buy) our loved home.  So far, people are interested, but not buying...yet!  Prayers appreciated.

Dh worked something like 64 hours last week...this week will be his third Saturday in a row to work.  He is doing 12 hour days (or longer) on most days, and this week one of his major helpers went on vacation, so he has to cover his 6 am shift.  So, Tuesday through Friday, he has to be by 6 am --and doesn't get home until after 7 pm so far.  It is going to be a LONG week for him.  Thankful that he took a nap after church on Sunday---and quite a long one too!  Poor guy!

This week, as Dd and I were sitting on our deck table eating our lunch a Pileated Woodpecker on the tree closest to our deck!!!  So we sat there frozen, not moving an inch, and watching it eat and peck.  Then after 3-4 minutes of watching it, another Pileated Woodpecker comes swooshing in and lands on that tree and the first one quickly flies away!  While the Pileated Woodpecker was on the tree, there was also, for sharp contrast, a little Hummingbird sitting on one of the lower branches.  Later on this same day, we had a hawk above our pool, in the trees.  What a great day!

Our lessons:

SO we have started back this week to our Core G lessons.  We left off on Week 13.  We are just doing bible, math, and two read alouds for now.  For math--Dd is in Algebra 1, so we are going to start the book over, doing a new lesson each day.  So, Monday she did Lesson One, Tuesday, Lesson Two...etc.  She will be back where she was in no time--and had a good review.  For our RA's(read aloud's) we started The White Stag by Kate Seredy and The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien.  We have already heard this story on audio (numerously) and Dd has read it to herself, but now we are reading it aloud---which is great for me, as I remember better when I've read it aloud rather than an audio.  Dd is an auditory learner, so she can do fine either way.

We have been listening to Redwall, and a Ranger's Apprentice audio (Halt's Peril).  Dd has been taking to Dh about all the Ranger's Apprentice books; and who is who, and all the details.  She gave him a "test" last night to see if he was keeping it all straight, and he did pass! Funny!

Besides unpacking boxes, (finally found my salad spinner!!!! and my Birds of Michigan book and audio) I am trying to get the stairs to the basement done.  Spackle, Sand, re-apply Spackle, vacuum, and hopefully painting will be the next step! 

It has been extremely hot and humid here--and we have been swimming practically every day to cool off.  So thankful to have a pool that apparently never reaches 80 degrees! Yikes!  True, but I am getting use to swimming in 75 degree pool water; it is better than that aquatic (WSI) camp I went to in Maine (in early June), and the water was literally in the 50's and fellow candidates were dropping from hypothermia!  That was officially "wicked cold"!

Here are the latest pictures:

Here are about 5 boxes of empty boxes---we have another five in other rooms...SO MANY BOXES!

Check out the skylight on the right of the roof....I've been working on applying more tar to the seems--used up a whole gallon can of tar already.  We are considering buying some flashing to put on top of that---we had rain coming in our sun room on rainy morning, enough to make me want to cry...and dare to climb an "A FRAME" house...steep!

I could reach the top and top side a little, but going farther down the roof was daunting!  I need to try again to finish this job correctly.  I'm trying to figure out a way to not slide down and kill myself!  I did have Dh on the ground with a rope around his waist, and the fence and me holding the other end of the rope, and tried around my waist, so I wouldn't fall.

Believe it or not, I still found at least ten staples in these stairs as I was sanding them last night!  Then I applied Spackle to the spots that needed it.

Spackling and sanding the basement hall

Re-figuring how to get in more things...

I added two new bookcases (smaller) to the Spare Bed Room...does anyone else think of Narnia when they say "Spare Bed Room?"

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