Getting stuff done

Doesn't seem like much is getting done, but little by little it is.

The craft room is basically done (just needs a knob)

The bedroom is done (just needs the trim replaced)

Got the dinette out today!

Got the jack knife couch out today!

Got the new/old table sanded and it its just awaiting the stain.

Will be picking up the recliners Thursday.

and I think that is all the structual type stuff we are doing at this time.

Sooooo,

now we have to start putting stuff in there and making it home.

What are we going to take with us and what is going in storage and what is staying behind?  

We don't know....sigh...but we are getting there.

Critters

We live in the woods.

Not the woods like most people imagine (at least not anymore), but the woods of N. Central Florida.  Kinda scrubby and now has a lot of people living out here.  There is a pasture behind us and we live on our own little 2.5 acre plot of nature.

Why am I telling you all of this, specially knowing we are leaving soon?  Because until the day we leave we will be having critter stories...

If you scroll back thru this blog, or search, you will find a couple few of them.

This one is new, and not too exciting, but still interesting...but I need to go back a few years to preface this one...

When we first got Annie, she was about 5 or 6 months old and Tug was gettin on up there in years.  They had a couple Alpha issues there at the beginning, one of which had to do with a rabbit.  Now Annie was, and still is, a bit ungainly...built weird I guess, Australian Cattle dogs seem to be a little longer than normal, but rather barrel shaped?  I don't know, just different.  Whatever it is, she sure doesn't look very fast or agile.  But she managed to chase down, catch and kill a rabbit one day - before she turned a year old!!!  Tug took that opportunity to 'explain' to her that He was Alpha....took him a while, and a bit of effort,  but he managed to growl her off that rabbit and took it away from her.  Mission accomplished.  No further tests of leadership ensued.  When we had to put Tug down, Annie started a little bit of Alpha stuff, but it settled pretty quickly...looking back on it now, I think the chasing cats when stressed thing was part of that and we just didn't recognize it...but I could be wrong.

The Great Mouse Killer

Fast forward to last night.

Sitting in the living room, watching tv and there is a bit of a commotion and then Annie jumps up and in a flash is across the room, growled the cat off and killed the mouse that Rosie had just caught!  Stood over her trophy like a champ.  We let her stand there for a couple minutes, just to see what was going to happen.  When nothing did, Trav took the corpse and disposed of it, and gave all concerned a victory treat.  After all, what they did was a good thing. 

Well, get up this morning, and start my coffee and Rosie is kinda interested in something under the stove...we watch for a few, no movement and figure she is just hyper because of the night before.  We don't hear or see anything and just go on about our morning.

About thirty minutes later we hear a commotion and some squeaking and Annie rushes into the kitchen and the squeaking stops as she proudly brings a mouse into the dining room and drops it.  Rosie caught it, Annie took it and poor Trav had to kill it and dispose of it.  Treats all around!!!  (not for Trav lol)

The highly valued mouse catcher

The cat is still on high alert, but we haven't seen, or hears,

any further signs of rodentia - and are hoping that is the lot of them.  But if it's not, I am confident that the expert team of critter catchers living with us will handle it in a professional and humane manner. 

Gotta love our babies - they earn their spot in our lives by more than their unconditional love. 

Oatmeal anyone?

So the last few days have been a tad difficult for me.  Friday I woke up with a migraine - and while I managed to keep in under control, it messed with the whole day.  Towards the end of the day I felt much better, but was exhausted, so decided to take a short nap.  I guess that was a mistake.  Woke up with no headache, but was a little dizzy.  This dizziness, or vertigo, has persisted for over two days now.  It eases up, but then I look down or tilt my head wrong, and it's back.  It's not as bad, but it is still lurking in the background.  sigh.  So why is this a problem?  Well, imagine living in a house that has three steps leading into it, with no sturdy hand rail to hold on to...it's a bit of an adventure to come in or out.  And then there is getting in and out of the camper...that's fun. 

It also causes one to be a little less attentive to other activities, as the main attention is staying upright and not wandering sideways like one is inebriated.  lol  how is this important, well...

opening a new canister of oatmeal this morning turned into one of those 'funny moments' that we will be referencing for years to come....why? because in my effort to stay upright and straight I wasn't paying attention to the opening mechanism of the canister and ended up with the lid in my hand and nothing else...the canister was on the floor, on it's side and over half of the oatmeal was spread artistically across my kitchen floor..... sigh again.

I am truly blessed in many ways...one of which is a husband with a keen sense of humor....he instantly started laughing and joking about how it happened and started cleaning it up...meanwhile I'm standing there in utter disbelief at this really really clutzy action.

So, How is Your week going??????

Craft room, before and after

are you ready for this?  I know I am so very pleased with it.

It is not one hundred percent finished (are craft rooms Ever done?) but it's a good start.

Thank you Trav for All the hard work you put into this project, it means the world to me!!!



Now look closely at this first pic...imagine, if you will, the concept of turning this into a craft room.

and then look at these and imagine, if you will, the happiness in my heart at the success of this transformation!!!!!

Missing in action

Missing in action...

with Action being the operative word.  We have been busy.  Doesn't mean we are getting a lot done tho  lol

We have finished the bed and gotten a mattress!  Still need to do the bedside tables, put them back I mean.

brand new memory foam bed!

The craft room is progressing.  Got the table (thank you Jesse) in there and discovered that the legs are in the way, so have to rethink that option.  But the pegboard is ready to go up and the paper holders are at the ready as well (thank you Althea).

framing the pegboard

table in and paper holders at the ready

 The template is made for the cat door into their room, now to install it.

We have been given a reprieve in terms of leaving...the sale is later than we originally thought, so we will have time to finish the reno as well as start getting the fur babies acclimated.  Thank you God!


We are now trying to figure out the logistics and waiting on the van to be found.


Hopefully my retirement and SS checks come in on time as we are not getting any richer at this point. :(


We are thankful for all the blessings in our lives right now and always, and are looking forward to the day we start this new journey.  Thank you all for your prayers and help and concern and love.  It means the world to us!

Working on the Camper

Working on the camper

We are tearing stuff apart and figuring out how to do the things we wanted to do.  Trav is good at the figuring out part and I do a lot of the grunt work. 

We tore the bunk out today and discovered that the bottom bunk, the one that covers the outside storage will work better for us if we leave it there and make my craft room on top of it…that way the cats will have their own room.  You know, for their litter box and food bowl, and they can be serviced thru the outside storage door.  We are formulating a new plan for the craft area that I think will work out even better than the one we had originally devised.  I am starting to get a little more excited about this now…there will even be a place to hang the paper holder!!!!!

 

Flying out

Flying out

It’s going to be a long day.

But well worth it.

Leaving Gainesville at 6 am means arriving at the airport around 4:30 – 5:00

Arriving in St. Louis at 10:21

Buses leave airport for lodge at 12:45

Trip to lodge usually takes about 2 hours

Again, Long, Long Day

Won't be posting until I get back, hope you miss me! lol

Spouses

Getting ready for Spouses.

I have done absolutely nothing to get ready for Spouses this year.  Nothing…too many other things going on.  Proves I really need to go, doesn’t it?

What is Spouses? You ask?  It is a retreat specifically designed to help the spouses of Fallen LEOs relax, connect and recharge.  Heal.  Help each other.  Make new friends.  Build a support system.  Feel less along. 

It is a weekend of crying and laughing.  Loving and hugging.  Playing and healing. 

It is like nothing else I have ever been a part of.

I am blessed.

We have a camper!!!!

Ok, well, looks like we have a camper!!!!

We were getting just a tad stressed.  Make that a LOT stressed.  The hearing was yesterday morning and I think there will be, maybe, ten days after that to get out?  Not sure, never had this kind of thing happen before.  But I know it’s getting down to the wire and we were not sure we would have anything to live in.  Again, I trust God, but…always that but…it sucks, that but.  But it exists and I have to deal with it every day.

In this case, He is coming thru for us, just as he always has in the past.  Maybe not in ways we would have liked, or soon enough to ease our stress, but (again with the but) He has Always come through.

Believe it or not, after all the stress, angst, and fear, we wound up with the first one we looked at.  He finally talked his ex into a lower price and it was ours.  It is a smallish unit but it has the bunkroom we are going to convert into my craft area and a door to close off the bedroom when Trav is having a bad time.  It is newer and has NO LEAKS!!!!   The roof is due to be sealed, soon, but it has not leaked yet that we are aware of.   It has ducted AC and two entrance doors.  Means we can always get to the bathroom!!!! (and open it to air it out, if the need arises).  (pictures below taken by seller, more to come from us later). No, it’s not perfect, there is no perfect RV as far as I know, but it’s as close as we were ever going to get and we are ecstatic to get it.  Yes we are, believe me.

 

 

We still need the van, but that will happen.  It is not as urgent as having a home.  And the young man from whom we are buying this God send, delivered it for us!!!!  It is sitting in our front drive as I type!!  We are ready to start moving stuff into it and packing stuff and and and

And if you think that wasn’t enough to worry about, I am leaving for Spouses Retreat on Friday – wheels up at 6am!  So won’t be here for 4 full days…and leaving Trav and the fids without a home was not something I was really looking forward to.  Non refundable airline tickets as well, so no backing out.  Sigh

 

Thank you one and all for your love, help, advice, and prayers….they were all very much appreciated.