Carol driving the new lawn tractor. She hasn’t driven a car in 2 years, so it was a special treat for her to be back behind the wheel. Coatrack trying to steal Danelle’s cheese. All the cats want their share of the milk from Danelle’s cereal bowl. The first planting in our orchard wasn’t trees, … Continue reading “May – 2026”
We were hoping that the first gathering of the college friends at Danforth would be a celebration of the completion of our house, but it wasn’t to be. Instead, we had a gathering at the firepit. While it wasn’t the visit we’d expected, we still had a blast catching up, making burgers and chicken, throwing … Continue reading “Friends Visiting Danforth – 5/30/2026”
Ameren Illinois came to the house today to install our power! I’ve been waiting a very long time to get real power in the house. Its been wired and ready to go for a little while. They had to add a transformer on our pole, but I don’t mind. Next was a long trench. The … Continue reading “Unlimited Power – 7/10/2026”
We’re coming up to the house every other day to ensure the trees are watered. To my surprise and delight, the trees are starting to get leaves 10 days after planting. We want to make the most of our visit and decided today was a great day to start installing the beadboard on the front … Continue reading “Beadboard Install – 6/28/2026”
One of the goals of our new house and the land around it was to have a fruit tree orchard. We decided to dedicate a portion of the inheritance from my mom to make this happen. We have wanted to plant trees, but without water, it wasn’t feasible. Today this changes. The first 8 trees … Continue reading “Trees and Insulation – 6/20/2026”
The new house is filthy with dirt all over the floors. While there is still a lot of construction left to do, the dirt kicks up and dust gets everywhere. I’m not sure that it will be good for paint. It was time to try cleaning. We have swept, but it just doesn’t seem to … Continue reading “Cleaning, But Would Mom Be Proud? – 6/13/2026”
Are there water issues with our new basement? Every time it rains, I check it hoping that I don’t see water. Unfortunately, today I found water in the basement. It was easy to chase down the source of this water. It turns out it came from where the water main comes into the house. A … Continue reading “More Water Issues? 6/12/2026”
I love spending time with my kids. Corvin is in town for a bit between college and house sitting. Today, he was willing to spend some time with me. We started by going to Jos A Banks to get him some dress shirts for an upcoming wedding. We walked in in t-shirt and gym shorts. … Continue reading “An Evening With Corvin – 5/26/2026”
Just a week ago, we saw Corvin graduate and moved his stuff home. Just a week later, I’m back at U-Haul renting another trailer. This time, its to take Sonora to her first college apartment. She was already in Springfield for work, meaning we packed her stuff without her. Then Danelle, Corvin, and I drove … Continue reading “Sonora’s First Apartment – 5/23/2026”