We have 3 birthdays in June: Naomi, Chase and Joanna. Amy had a party for Chase and Joanna on Saturday, June 28th. I had planned to have Naomi overnight on Friday, then all day Saturday and take her along to the party. However, Andy didn't feel well all day Friday and into the night. So we had to do a rain check for Naomi. But we were still able to do the party on Saturday. Chase had turned 8 and Joanna is now 6. How the years fly by.
The kids had fun playing in the pool and holding Dawn's baby, and the adults enjoyed chatting, eating and admiring Amy's gardens.
My mother moved to her assisted living apartment this weekend and is very happy there. It was quite a project to go through all her things and decide what to keep, what to sell and what to give away. I was fortunate enough to get an old clock that still works. It had been a wedding present to my grandparents who got married on January 1, 1928. I found just the spot for it. I have decided not to wind it up because it chimes every hour on the hour and half hour. I'm afraid it would wake me up all night long. I will probably wind it up for the kids when they're here, then stop it when they leave.
We had been feeling the need to get some masonry work done. When we first built the in-law addition and put in the new garage, we built the driveway around a huge maple tree. I loved it and didn't want to cut it down even though I was told it probably would die because of all the pavement around it. But I really wanted to try to save it so we had the driveway go around the tree. Well, "they" were right and the tree did not do well so we had Christian cut it down a couple years ago. Meanwhile, that cut-out in the driveway needed to be filled in. It was difficult for Dad to maneuver his truck around that cut out. At the same time our chimney was starting to look ragged. The paint was chipping and the corner bead was exposed and rusting. So one day when I got home from work, Andy showed me the local newspaper ads with masonry and brickwork contractors. I called and got 5 estimates, then decided on one that I had the most confidence in.
We are very happy with how those two projects turned out.
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| It should be easier for Dad to get his truck in and out now. |
On the 4th of July, Andy and I drove up to Berks County and spent 4 hours with my brothers and sisters and our annual picnic. It is such a blessing to have a good time together with them. Our only child able to attend this year was Amy and her family. She is such fun with the most interesting stories! It ended up being pretty "cold" that day, but some of the kids still went swimming. The adults were all sitting around with sweaters on!
On Saturday, July 5th, C and C came down. Christian did tree work all day, trimming dead wood off our elms and making sure no branches were touching the house. What a lot of work that was. He did all the trimming, Andy worked all day at dragging the branches to the street.
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| Christian up in the nifty lift-y |
I fed everyone lunch and dinner. Naomi was a good helper in the kitchen.
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| Claire is actually holding a chicken! |
What a pleasant day it was, sunny but not hot, with a nice breeze. Perfect for eating on the deck. We didn't get all the branches cleaned up on Saturday - just too tired, but finished up on Sunday afternoon. Whew...what a lot of work. So glad to get it done, though.
I'm finally getting some blooms on my morning glory vines. But I am sorry to say that we did not get rid of the trumpet vine. Somehow it managed to hang on to some roots and is sending out runners that are coming up everywhere. I am constantly looking for them and digging them out, but I have a feeling this is going to be an ongoing battle.
Well, maybe it's a good thing for me not to become too complacent. It's good to have a mission in life. So I guess my current mission is to rid the world of weeds and invasive plants - at least in my little corner of the world.
1 comment:
Yay for morning glory blooms! It's so hard to be patient isn't it :) That trumpet vine is such a bugger to get rid of! I'm sure you'll triumph in the end though.
The clock from grandma is so neat, I was wondering which one you got. Was so nice to see you on Friday :)
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