Sept. 15-21, 2019 Anniversary, Park x 2, Brenda: Buff Orpington: Fly Strike

Sept. 15-21, 2019 

Wedding Anniversary, Park (twice this week), Canning, Brenda: Buff Orpington: Fly Strike

Hello Friends!

Happy Anniversary to us!  21 years already!!!  Dh is in the middle of a very busy time at work so he didn't get the opportunity to take any time off, but he did get home early enough for us to go out to eat at a new place in town and go on that bridge walk at Grand River Riverfront Park.  It was great having another Date Night with Dh!!!  

Chicken Trouble:

I had such a horrible surprise on Monday morning when I went in the chicken coop I immediately saw Brenda, my Buff Orpington, with blood beneath her on the roost.  When I picked her up and looked at her bottom I saw maggots swarming around.  I am generally a strong person, but, man, that just about kills me.  I brought her inside the house and washed and washed her to get off all those nasty bugs.  



Then I left her alone for about thirty minutes while I got my breakfast.  When I came back out to check on her I saw that there were maggots above her tail; some had rushed out of the wound and hid from me!  



So I took her and washed her, from head to toe, repeatedly with dish soap in a full sink of warm soapy water.  I spent almost an hour washing her over and over again until I was positive I got every.single.bug.  

Fly-Strike:

After hours of research online I found out that flies can just attack any animal; especially if that animal has any diarrhea stuck on their body.  Brenda must have had some poop on her bottom and a fly must have laid eggs in that poop.  Then the eggs hatched and maggots attacked her skin.  Luckily, I caught it quickly and they had only damaged the top layer of skin.  The online reading said I was supposed to wash and clean her wound 3-4 times each day.   The hard part is after the baths I had to blow-dry her dry and that took forever!!!! 



 Chickens feathers are so dense!  Brenda was so unwell she never resisted but was such a champ. I spent so much time helping Brenda this week, hours each day, and am so glad she seems like she is going to recover.  The first few days I was really worried she might have some kind of infection internally that might be unrelated to her fly strike and I was so concerned she would die.  So far she is improving more and more each day, she has really come far this week.

Family Meeting/Fun Time:

On Sunday we had a family meeting to sort out how things are going with our 17-year-old daughter.  She suggested that she and I find more time to do 'fun' things together to get our relationship back on a more positive note.  Lately, when I see her I am reminding her to do her chores and complaining that she has to be reminded too.  So, this week Dd and I went on a hike together at the new bridge park (Grand River Riverfront Park) on Monday.  We are going to try and find time each week to fit in something fun.

Swiss Chard and Greens from garden

Bible Study Fellowship:

Last week was a bit hard.  There were not any helpers showing new people where to go or what to do.  I was a little disappointed at how hard it was being new as if being new and not knowing anyone wasn't hard enough!!!  But, I enjoyed having a new Bible study to work on each morning.  I am enjoying our research study on the book of Acts.  I really dug in deep with my Bible Study this week.  After our class and lecture, I went to a little seminar afterward on Bible Navigation.  I couldn't believe there were only two other women that attended it!  We have around two hundred women that attend our group and they kept selling the seminar as offering lots of chocolate!  And they did have lots of chocolate! Yum!  It was nice being in a small group and getting to meet some nice ladies.

Garden/Canning:

Another great garden week!  I've been enjoying having kale and swiss chard smoothies each day.  I'm still picking green beans and canning them.  Everything is growing really well, but I've had to water a few times this week.  



Dh dug up ALL the potatoes... now I have to can all those!  Oh boy!  I've had to water a few times this week.  I can tell the bean bushes are getting thinner, so the end is in sight.

Herbs:

I've begun digging up some of our herbs and have planted them in new potting soil.  After I get the roots happy in the new dirt I will bring them inside.  I plan on watering them heavily for the next two weeks to help encourage root growth.  So far, I've potted some Basil, Thyme, Parsley, and two different Rosemary plants.  Last year I didn't get the Basil in before the first frost and regretted it all winter.



Painting the Deck:
Can you believe I am still painting the fence and decking?!!!  I spent time two days this week on painting and I've pretty much got 95% of it done. 



 There are a few places I couldn't get to because I didn't want to damage incoming poppy, iris, or other flowers that I can safely bend now so I can reach the wood behind the plants. 



 You would be surprised how much wood didn't get painted because a hydrangea was in the way!! 

We had high temperatures this week and I wanted to take advantage of that heat so my paint would cure best.  



Power Outage:
Can you believe we lost our power again this week?!  Two weeks in a row!  We had to drive into town to refill all our red jugs with gasoline as we had used all our gas up.  What you might not realize is that running your house on gas is way more expensive than propane or electricity.  It cost almost $100 to refill all our cans/jugs.  Luckily, we were only without electricity for around 18 hours this time.

Flooring:

Dh finished the last doorway to our bedroom.  We have been talking and figuring out what our next steps are going to be.  Our plans are to finish the hallway after we buy a stair tread kit.  We had to figure out how we were going to handle the stairs going downstairs before we could figure out the hallway.  After we get the hallway flooring down then we can start on the stairwell landings - they are going to be covered with our hardwood oak flooring too.  But, we will have to buy special kits to redo the stairs. 

Dd's Academic Progress This Week:

Grace Co-op Classes:  

Dd is back to having full-time lessons each day. 

Science: Anatomy/Physiology

Art: Painting Studio

History: The American Civil War

Writing/English: Analytical Writing for Essays and Research Paper

Math Tutor:

Algebra 2

Physical Exercise:

Physical Therapy: two visits at office

Daily exercises: 2-4 x per day.

Next Week:

I signed up for another Bible study through the church I've been going to and it begins next week.  I wouldn't sign up for two different bible study groups except it is also on the book of Acts.  I am hoping that the two separate studies will help me to get a more thorough understanding of this book and get deeper than I might if it were just one study.

Hoping Brenda continues to improve, although I might still have to keep her separated from the other chickens due to the wound on her bottom.  I know she desperately wants to be back with her family.

I am hoping we can also get back to doing the flooring.  I'm really tired of all the tools and equipment all over our main floor!!!!  I'd love to have a semi-tidy home again; not that I'm ever 'tidy' but I do try!!

.........

Sept. 8-14, 2019 BSF, Canning, Cleaning, Grace Co-Op Begins, Power Outage, Fallsburg Park Festibal

Sept. 8-14, 2019 

BSF, Canning, Cleaning, Grace Co-Op Begins, Power Outage, Fallsburg Park Festival

Pictures Coming Soon!

Hello Friends!

This week Dd's official "Senior Year" began.  We plan on her having another senior year again next year as a "Super-Senior Year."  

Grace Co-op School Schedule:

Science: Anatomy/Physiology (Apologia)

Art: Painting Studio

History: The American Civil War

Writing/English: Analytical Writing for Essays and Research Paper

Math Tutor:

Algebra 2

Senior Year(s):

This week her co-op classes started on Friday.  On Tuesday Dd drove to her math tutor's house for her first Algebra 2 class.  Unfortunately, her Algebra I teacher doesn't teach the Algebra 2 class at Grace, the teacher who she had for Geometry does, and Dd didn't click with her teaching style.  So, to keep the math teacher that she learns best with she will have to drive 45 minutes, each way, to stay with her and continue learning Algebra.  I wish she could just have lessons on Friday's instead of turning two days each week into driving.  The amount of snow days in Grand Rapids is amazingly high!  The less she has to drive in the snow the better.

Garden/Canning:

Dh got into the canning action this week!  He canned 6 quarts of potatoes this week.  We planted five beds of five different potatoes this year.  The green beans are still coming in and I'm still canning as often as I can.

Cleaning:

With the past few weeks being so busy with the flooring and all our furniture moving all around I needed to spend time this week just cleaning---the bathrooms, the kitchen...hard to keep up with it all.  We had to take off all the covers on all the switches and outlets.  I am trying to get them all back on now that the painting is done.

Furniture:

This week we were able to get some of our living room and dining room furniture back where they belong!  We didn't get it all back in this week, but at least we have a sofa and chairs again!!  

Bible Study Fellowship:

BSF started this week.  It totally wasn't what I had built up in my mind.  I thought it was going to be a  'college level' class with high expectations for me, the student.  I found the women in the class were just like the women in my last Bible study at church; some new to Bible study and some beyond my level.  The majority of ladies in my small group are fairly young women with young children and babies.  There is nothing wrong with the group, it was just so different than what I had built up in my mind!!!  I'm looking forward to growing with these ladies.  

Flooring/Door Ways:

This week Dh had a very, very busy time at work but he did try to figure out how to work on the doorways.  His first attempts didn't work right and he had to keep trying until he finally got it together correctly.  He does such a good job and he makes sure everything looks professional; which takes four times longer, but is worth the wait!

Fallsburg Park Festival:

Saturday morning Dh and I had another special date together!  We went to a festival at a nearby park that showcases artist.  We had a really nice time together.  After looking at all the artist booths we sat at a picnic table and just listened to some live music.  

Power Outage:

There are two major things that makes living in Grand Rapids so very different than any place I've ever lived; and I've lived in state after state after state in my life!  1) Very Little Sunshine!  The only place in America that has less sunshine than Grand Rapids is Seattle, Washington.  We just have so many cloudy days and many of those days have precipitation in one form or another.  2)Power Outages!  Unless you live in a place that loses it's electricity often you probably can't relate to this.  I know I never had lived anywhere where I needed a generator as often as I do here.  The other part is that when we lose our electricity it doesn't come back on for usually more than 24 hours, often days!  It is, unfortunately, part of our "normal" life here.  Saturday and Sunday this week were without power-- we had tornado warnings and super bad winds.  Dh and I were bunkered down in the basement with our critters.

Donating to Thrift Store:

I took in four big boxes of stuff, mostly clothing, to our thift store this week.  So glad to be able to let go of stuff.

Gardening/Canning:

This has been a remarkable September for Grand Rapids!  Usually our high temperatures are around 70 degrees, but this year has been close to or in the low 80's.  Our grapes are purple and getting better and better each day!  We look forward to making jam soon.  I'm still picking green beans and canning them every few days.  I'm still watering and weeding as the garden is still doing really well!  I'm making kale and swiss chard smoothies most days from the greens in my garden.

Dead Hen:

Hestia, one of my favorite Black Sex Link hen's died this week.  She was just laying on the ground, peaceful and as if she were asleep.  She had been coming out the door as I went in each morning and eating grass and things until I would pick her up and put her back in the coop.  If I had to guess what happened I'd guess she must have eaten some green bean beans.  I didn't know they are a toxic poison to chickens.  I don't know, for sure, what she ate or what happened, but I do know she was a master escape artist and would gobble up anything she could eat.  I also know I have a big garden full of green beans and perhaps she ate one too many of those toxic white beans... I really miss Hestia!  She was such a great hen!!!

Dd's Progress This Week:

Dd's Academic's This Week:

Grace Co-op School Schedule:

Science: Anatomy/Physiology (Apologia)

Art: Painting Studio

History: The American Civil War

Writing/English: Analytical Writing for Essays and Research Paper

Math Tutor:

Algebra 2

Pizza Shop:

Dd is really enjoying working at the pizza shop!

Home Economics:

Dd has been making PUMPKIN ROLLS from scratch!  She made one GF so I could have some and brought the rest of it to her friends at work.  Her friends liked it so much she made another roll just for them.  She can cook and bake like a pro!  

Physical Therapy:

Dd had two Physical Therapy sessions this week.  She is supposed to be doing exercises at home each day; up to four times a day.

Dd is still really busy, between friends, working, lessons, and her twice a week PT sessions.  I really miss spending time with her and having our old easy-going interactions.  She is really growing and stretching as she becomes an adult.  It isn't an easy process for any of us.  I love her SO!

Next Week:

Garden, Canning, BSF, closing the pool...

.................

Sept. 1-7, 2019 Flooring, Dd to PT, Hike, Canning Green Beans

Sept. 1-7, 2019 

Flooring, Dd to PT, Hike, Canning Green Beans

 Pictures Coming Soon!

Hello Friends!

So, SO busy!  Dh is taking a few days off again this week so we can install our new oak flooring.  We finished the master closet and bedroom last week, as well as painting that room.  This week we need to start on the living room.  We had moved all our bedroom furniture and 'stuff' out of our bedroom and now we are moving it all back in, plus as much of the living room furniture and 'stuff' as well!  The kitchen, garage, sunroom...every room upstairs and downstairs seems to have something extra in it while we are working.  We are living with our small world upside down right now.  Plus, Dh decided we should paint our walls too, so all the paintings and framed things on the walls had to come down too!  And, I had a lot of stuff on the walls!!!!  

Pool:

We still haven't officially closed our pool this year, though it was a burden the whole year due to an un-found leak.  It takes a few dedicated hours to draining the pool and then getting anti-freeze in all the underground pipes and we are so busy with the flooring that we haven't gotten around to closing the pool yet.  So, each morning (and throughout the day, to be honest) I keep an eye out for frogs and toads that accidentally get into our pool.  The frogs always jump under the pool blanket and swim away from me, but the toads usually seem overjoyed for me to pick them up and escort them back to the grass.  The fun part is that I've found some massive toads this year!!!  So fun for me!!  I had planned on us closing the pool this week, but the flooring was, of course, way more of a project than we thought it would be.  We *thought* we could easily get all the flooring done before Dh had to go back to work on Wednesday!  And, that didn't happen!  Only Dh was surprised!  I knew things would turn up and go wrong...that is why I hadn't wanted to paint, but oh, well!  

Monday: Living Room day one

We painted the living room Colonial Blue, the first coat (I did a second coat on Thursday).  It took most of the day for Dh to figure out how to start on the flooring in the living room because nothing was coming out square.  The fireplace was installed out of alignment and that really messed with Dh's calculations.  Finally I had the genius idea for him to go back to YouTube and put in searches for how to figure it out and it actually worked!  He did find some new video's that he hadn't seen yet and it helped him find ways to calculate and make it work!!!  So thankful for YouTube!  It helps us with so much of our figuring things out, from gardening to car repair, to installing hardwood floors for the first time!  By the end of the night I think we had 5 or 6 rows done...not much progress, but we got over the problem of things being off and how to work around that.

Tuesday: Reducer/Fireplace framing

On Monday Dh tried to find some reducer boards at Lowe's, but they didn't have any so he had to make his own ones with the help of his rooter.  It took most of the morning, but he was able to completely frame in around the fireplace tiles so we could have the new flooring square up with the fireplace.  Dd helped us with the flooring on Tuesday and we ended the night by having completed 33 lines of flooring!  Not bad, but Dh had to go back to work in the morning!

Dd back to work: Wednesday

With Dh back to work I had to double-time it on trying to catch up on all my chores I'd stopped doing while we did the house stuff.  I had loads of laundry back on the line, canning all day, and picking green beans, and everything else too.

Grand River Riverfront Park:

My new friend, Lori, invited to show me a new park this week and we went on Wednesday.  Lori had asked me to go last week when Dh was off from work and I had to decline and was so glad when she texted again to show me this new park.  The trail is blacktop and not much of a difficult walk, but the view is spectacular over the new bridges!  We walk on these bridges over Grand River and it is really gorgeous!  So glad she showed me this treasure and I look forward to showing Dd and Dd as soon as I can!

Canning Green Beans:

Wednesday I canned 14 quarts!  So many beans!  I started back canning at 6:30 am on Thursday!  Thursday I canned 20 pints.

Dd's MRI results:

So, Dd has a Chronic Compression Fracture and started her physical therapy this week on Friday.   I'm so glad there is a local PT place local for us to go to b/c they will be seeing her twice each week. She is supposed to do new exercises up to four times a day.  All this because she had fallen while roller skating years ago.  I was a bad mom and didn't get her x-ray'd back when it first happened.  

Flooring:

I had to move the flooring again--- I think in the end I had to move the pile 3-4 times!  That was a lot of work!  Thursday, after Dh got home from work, we worked on the floors from 7-9 pm.

Saturday: Finished Living Room Floor

We still have the doorways, two of them, still to do, but we did get all the flooring done in the living room!  

Date Night:

Friday Dh and I had a Date Night!!  We went out for ice cream and then went to Menards to look at molding and consider our options for the next steps.  While we were there we walked most of the store and had fun picking our favorites of most things---favorite counter top, toilet, bath tub, garage door...it was really fun!  Then we picked two ceiling light fixtures for our living room and headed home.  The one good thing that has come from Dd working so much is that Dh and I are actually getting lots of time alone together.  We are getting a chance to reinforce our marriage after so many years having Dd with us for everything. 

Emgality:

This week was my second time trying Emgality for my migraines.  I'm still trying to decide how this is working for me.

Dd's Progress This Week:

Dd was sick this week, but slowly got over it.

Pizza Shop:

Dd enjoyed working at the pizza shop this week.

Dd spent Monday with her friend Hailee.  Hailee's German Shepherd had puppies and they brought three of them over to our yard for a little visit.  Most of the puppies have already been adopted, now that they are older, and they could travel a little.  Dd also spent the night on Saturday night.

Dd's MRI results:

So, Dd has a Chronic Compression Fracture and started her physical therapy this week on Friday.   I'm so glad there is a local PT place local for us to go to b/c they will be seeing her twice each week. She is supposed to do new exercises up to four times a day.  All this because she had fallen while roller skating years ago.  I was a bad mom and didn't get her x-ray'd back when it first happened.  

Physical Exercise:
Physical Therapy: 1 session in office
Exercises at home: 2-4 x per day

Next Week:

Bible Study Fellowship: BSF starts, for me, next week!  I'm really looking forward to a group bible study again.  I've not had any "fellowship" since that Worship Meeting back in June.  When we lost our church I lost my friendships and church fellowship.  I know I might not click with this group; but maybe, just maybe, I will?!  I'm hopeful.  

............

August 25-31st, 2019 Flooring Begins, Master Bedroom and Closet: Painted and Hardwood Flooring Begins, Rescued Hummingbird

August 25-31, 2019

Master Bedroom Painting and Flooring Begins, Rescued Hummingbird

Airing out the wood flooring

Hello Friends!

Our tomatoes have finally started turning red so I brought out the frozen bacon and we finally had some BLT's!  Nothing says summer like a BLT!  Last week and this week I was completely migraine free!  So awesome!  I am thinking the Emgality is actually helping.

Flooring Prep:

The flooring boards I unpacked and re-stacked in the dining room, in a ventilated pattern, have had their two weeks of adjusting.  This week we had to move everything out of our bedroom and bedroom closet to prepare for the flooring.  It is just amazing just how much we managed to cram into our closet!  The rest of our main floor was jumbled up with all our bedroom stuff!  What a mess!!!!  Our world is officially upside-down! 

Flooring:

Dh took off Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Monday, and Tuesday from work so we could put down our new floor.  We have never put in hardwood flooring before so it took us a long time to make any progress.  

New pale pink painted walls and repainted the white cabinets and door.  This is the floor before the flooring.

We started in the closet in the master bedroom and it took the entire day, Wednesday, to get that small space done, but we learned a lot.  



Master Bedroom: When we first moved in the master bedroom had dark, dark blue wallpaper and pet-stained dark royal blue carpeting. 



Master bedroom when we first moved in:

Sophie walking through the master bedroom.  I know it looks pretty, but it all seemed dirty and old to me.

 For my allergies and my sanity, I pulled up every inch of carpeting from the whole house within the first week of purchasing the house. 



 I Kilzed (oil-based paint/sealer) all the floors and most of the walls afterward.  Then we picked some neutral paint colors to paint the walls and floors.  




We were surprised to find particle board flooring under the carpet; which is one of the cheapest floors you can get.  



So I covered the particle board with coat after coat of oil-based paint and many coats of polyurethane to seal and protect the floors.



  Our plan was to buy hardwood floors as soon as we could and this year was the year to invest in our flooring. 



 It was a huge ordeal, it always is, and we had trouble getting our flooring this spring.  Then after it came in, Dh decided on the spur of the moment that it would be the best time for us to also paint the walls of the living room and bedroom before putting the new (and expensive) new flooring in.  He was right, it was easier to paint without worrying about getting drops on the nice floor, but that also cut into the time we had allotted to do the floors.

The closet is to the left, with the tools in the doorway.  The master bath is straight ahead with the very old linoleum that needs to be replaced!

Painting:

Thursday morning was a bit of a surprise to me----Dh had decided NOW was the time to paint our walls, before the new flooring was put in!  What a shocker for me!  It took me a few hours to convince, as I had planned on us rocking through the floors during his few days off and not painting!  I hadn't had any time to consider what colors I'd want to paint our bedroom or living room either and I generally like plenty of time to consider all my options.  But, I was pushed out of my comfort zone and we went to the hardware store to look at color choices.  In the end, I chose a pale pink (or the light pale pink of our favorite peony plant) for our bedroom and my favorite shade of Colonial Blue for our living room.  It all turned out very well, but I was completely surprised by the turn of events and hold on the flooring project.  Luckily, Dd did spend one day and help us to paint the walls.  She generally has been very, very busy with her life and not helping us with things anymore.  She has a job and friends and is seventeen....you can imagine.  But, she spent one day helping to paint and later in the week spent part of one day helping with the flooring.  It made a huge difference having that third person helping and we really moved along that day.  Thursday---painted master bedroom. 

Master Closet:

Before

After

We painted over the four-year-old paint; which was "cream in my coffee" color to a pale peony pink.  We put down the oak flooring...soon to be covered by our clothes and shoes!  But, I guess we will know it is there even if we can't see 95% of it!  It does seem funny to be painting over paint that isn't even five years old, but we were tired of such boring neutral colors

Friday: Flooring in Master Bedroom

Although Dd was visiting with her friend Lexi all Friday, Dh and I did manage to almost get half of the flooring done in the master bedroom.  

Saturday:

It took the entire day, but we did finish the master bedroom by 9:30 at night!  

Hummingbird Rescue:

When I walked through our outbuilding/barn on Saturday morning I heard a weird sound and couldn't figure out what it was.  After checking on my chickens I walked back through the main room and heard the sound again.  Being curious I followed the sound and found a hummingbird stuck trying to fly out of a closed window.  She let me pick her up in my hands and bring her outside.



  It was AMAZING seeing just how extremely tiny they are in your hands!  Wow!  I was so glad I found her and was able to help get her back outside and free!!!  What a blessing!!!

Garden:

I did manage to pick green beans between working inside the house.  Boy, those beans are coming on fast!!!!

Donating:

I'm continuing to go through all my stuff as I've had to move everything out of my bedroom and gather boxes of stuff to donate to our local thrift store.  It sure is a great feeling giving away stuff you hope someone else might benefit from.

Dd's Progress:

I'm not hearing much about what Dd is doing in her free time lately.  She is on a big independence kick this summer.  I know she works at her pizza shop and loves that.  As the days get closer to her Grace co-op classes get closer she is wanting to do more and more 'fun,' 'summer,' things with her friends and have fun 'while she can...'   

Physical Education:

Dd did go swimming at Lexi's house on Friday.

Next Week:

More Flooring!

...........

Aug 18-24, 2019 Caning Green Beans, Trading in Truck, Dd MRI, Painting Deck, Silkies to New Home, Hornets

Aug 18-24, 2019 

Canning Green Beans, Trading in Truck, Dd MRI, Painting Deck, Silkies to New Home, Hornets

Pictures Coming Soon!

Hello Friends!

Pretty good week!  I finally broke my migraines and was able to get back to double-timing on my chores.  The heat finally wore off and we were able to turn off our air conditioning on Wednesday.

Truck:

Dh spent hours each day researching available used trucks online throughout the week and we drove to a dealership on Saturday and brought home a different used truck.  This truck is a 2010, much younger than the 2002 we had before.  I am really hoping this truck won't cause us so many hours of repairs and will be able to be driven most days!  Imagine if it didn't break down for a year!  Wouldn't that be awesome!!!!  

Church:

On Saturday I had such a major migraine I decided to stay home on Sunday and lounge/recover a bit.  So, I used our laptop and we all watched a live-stream of Ada Bible Church's service.  Dh wasn't thrilled, which really disappointed Dd and me a lot.  It's amazing how long the hurt from a church separation can affect your every day.  

Letters:
When we first stopped going to our old church I received cards from a few friends and had been wanting to write them back for a few weeks.  This week I finally got those letters written and mailed.  I wanted to make sure I thanked the women from our church that had sent a card.  

Canning Green Beans:
We put in a frozen ham hock in the crock pot and cooked it down for three days to get some good bone broth, then removed the bones and used the meat and broth to be the liquid in 20 pints of our canned green beans. This week was a lot of picking green beans and canning them.  I think I worked on green beans every day.

Painting Deck:
Yup, I'm STILL painting on the deck and still have more to go.  I'm hoping to get it wrapped up before the first frost.  I spent three days painting this week and still have more to go!  

Chickens: Two newest Silkies:
A friend had given us a bare-necked Silkie rooster (Radagast) and that seemed like a good thing.  Then they offered two other Silkie roosters (Gandalf the White and Gandalf the Gray) and so I thought I might as well try to bring them into the fold.  I was already having to do all the work of having a new chicken in tractors and separate from the flock for one new member, why not do it for three?!  Things went well while the roosters weren't in the coop, but once I finally adapted everyone to accepting the new chickens a problem started.  At first, the Silkie roosters were not interacting with the hens, the three boys were just staying in a tight click.  Then Radagast began to hang out with the hens more and the two Gandalf roosters were not acclimating well.  I'm not sure what happened but the white rooster started attacking and chasing me, then the gray one decided to do it too.  The worst part is that when they would bite me they would clamp down and lock down their beaks on me, my feet, and not want to let go!  When they would see me they would get all wound-up and start scurrying over to get to me... it was really creepy.  After a few days of this I decided to contact the friend that gave me the boys and let her know there was a problem and see if she could find them a new home.  It didn't take long before she had found them a new home together.  Thursday night I gave the two fluffy roosters back.  They were physically so extremely cute!  I just loved watching how they walked and ran around with their fluffy legs!  It really is too bad they were so uncomfortable with our brood.  Radagast is doing great and seems to be completely unaffected by his competition leaving!  He is truly 'the man' now and is thoroughly enjoying himself.   

Hornets:
I couldn't believe I had missed a huge paper hornet's nest in the corner of my house in my backyard in my garden area.  I came out the back door to my garden and accidentally the door slammed, which really stirred up a mess of hornets that got my attention.  I had no idea I'd been walking under a big nest all summer!  I wish I could say I was the perfect greenie and left the nest alone; that I respected the bees enough to live along side them for the rest of the summer, but I can't.  Not just for my sake, but for the rest of my family I made the decision to bring out the hornet spray and remove the danger from my immediate yard.  Boy, if those bee's attacked Dh or Dd...  They were fierce, it took four tries to kill the nest, but I eventually removed the danger.  I hated to do it.  I actually carry spiders (any bug) outside if they are found inside my home.  I try really hard not to kill anything.

Truck:
Saturday morning Dh and I drove to the car place he had finally settled on after researching it all week.  He actually suggested driving to Kentucky to look at a truck, but I voiced my un-interest in that idea!!!  The place we went to had a lot of trucks and we spent hours driving truck after truck until we found the best one.  The salesman was the epitome of a car dealer!  Oh my!  He was quite the stereotype, but we just worked with him.  He literally took advantage on every side and didn't give us any break on the price of the truck and then insulted us by offering $1,500 for the truck we've put in $20,000 on!  Sometimes you just have to accept your lumps and move on and this seemed like one of those times.  It really hurt, to be honest, but the older I get the more I realize it is all God's money and in some situations we are blessed and in some situations you just have to accept and move on.  I am so relieved to be done with that truck and to see Dh in a 2010 truck instead of a 2002 truck.  I really 'feel' like I can trust this truck to keep Dh safe.  

Drawing:
I fit in some drawing this week.  I'm really trying to work on doing some 'fun' things for me.  Dh met me at Costco (after I returned the roosters) and we had dinner there and had a mini date-night together.  It was so nice to sit and chat with him.

Dd's Week:
DeVos Children's Hospital: MRI
Tuesday I took Dd to the hospital for her MRI.  Luckily, the hospital has made a step-by-step video, posted on YouTube, that shows you how to enter the parking garage and how to navigate every elevator and desk!  I watched the video 4-5 times until I had it down perfectly.  The directions were so good we had time to spare and decided to get ourselves an ice cream, in the hospital, before going to the MRI floor.  Dd got her MRI done and it all went really well.  She'll start Physical Therapy soon.

Apologia: Biology
Dd is still working on her summer science work.

Pizza Shop:
Dd is really enjoying working at a pizza shop and getting a paycheck.  It is so incredibly weird to go to bed at night with her still out and working.  

Next Week:
More Green Beans to Come!  It's garden harvest time.

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Aug. 11-17, 2019 Hot, Migraines, Truck Repair, Unpacked Flooring

Aug. 11-17, 2019 
Hot, Migraines, Truck Repair, Unpacked Flooring

Hello Friends!


This was a hard week and I didn't get a lot done, but Dh worked hard fixing the truck (Dd helped him one night). 



I had migraines that kept me only doing my necessary chores--chickens, gardens, and doctor appointments. 



 A few highlights were that it was so very hot and muggy and untypical of this area of Michigan.  



The heat and humidity made life harder than normal!



Unpack Flooring:



The oak flooring is so beautiful!  So glad we chose this!




Last week Dh brought home our new oak flooring and this week I unloaded it all....all by myself!  I think it was around 35 boxes.  I had to stack each layer so air could get in and around each board.  It took days!





Moved to Basement:
Dh and I moved out of our bedroom to prepare for the upcoming renovation and also because it was just SO hot this week.  By the end of the week we turned on our air conditioning; something we try to avoid.



Truck:
Dh spent the week working on his truck.  We had decided to trade it in and so, of course, it broke again.  It was something with the brake system.  After he thoroughly fixed two tires he found it was the third tire and he had to change out all sorts of parts---brake pads, brake lines, and two calipers before it was running smoothly again.  The worst part was that each time he fixed a whole section and it didn't fix the problem he would be SO disappointed.  Finally, on Saturday he replaced the last part and completed fixing the truck!  I can't imagine just how many hours he has spent working on that truck the past four years, or how much money we have spent on it.  Glad it's over.



Migraines:
After sweating all day on Monday, unloading some of the flooring boxes I had a migraine on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and a major one on Saturday.  Because of the heat and my migraines we turned on the air to make the days a little less difficult.



Dd to OAM:
We are continuing on our journey finding out what is wrong with Dd's back.  This week we went to a specialist and they prescribed her to get a MRI.



Hike:
I've been trying to be more sociable and do more "me" things, you know, for "FUN."  This week our friendly librarian (a veteran homeschool mom), Lori, invited me to go for a hike with her at Fallsburg Park.  It was a really nice time and I am thankful for someone making an effort to be friendly to me!  I didn't feel great and could have easily canceled, but I don't want her to think I'm not appreciative of her thoughtfulness.




Garden:
I blanched greens-- six-gallon bags stuffed like pillows with all the greens.  This year's garden has really been wonderful and so few bugs.  Last year I spent hours and hours picking off bugs from my kales; not this year!  Yay!  This week was a major Yellow Squash week!  







Dd's Activity For The Week:

Bible:
Dd went back to our old church so she could go to Sunday School with her friends.  I went to Ada Bible by myself.  Dh still isn't over the hurt from our old church and deals with it differently than I do.  I feel so hurt I "need" to go to church!  I wish Dd was going with me to Ada, so she could make more friends...I'm praying.



Work:
Dd absolutely loves her job at the pizza shop.  She works as much as she can.  I wish she could get her chores done as well as go to her job though.  It's been a tough summer.



Photography:
Dd continues to love taking pictures a few times each week.

Art:
Dd also draws and paints a lot in her sketchbooks.

Next Week:
Dd's MRI at Helen DeVos Children's Hospital

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