Summertime

We had lots of fun this week! Naomi got to go to Isle Royale for the night. She stayed on the boat. The weather was perfect and she really enjoyed it! No moose though. The girls and I got to play a bit of disc golf and got some work done on the woodshed while she was gone. 

Also got the roofing materials ordered. We went back and forth between metal and asphalt. Tricky decision. Ended up sticking with asphalt as the metal was three times the price and the house isn't really designed for it. Was able to get a deal through a friend, so that helped too. Not looking forward to that job!

Finally made it back out to our land for a cookout last night. It was a lot of fun! If the logging operation does move forward, that will be the last one before things really change out there. 

Getting the woodshed started.

The girls were a bit help with the gravel and setting up the poles!

Finally went for my first bike ride of the season...in August...haha.

Lots of fun!

New fence in our backyard!

Family Time

We spent a great few days with Caryn & Paul! Wonderful that they could come back up for another visit. They made it on Wednesday, along with my parents, to watch the girl's final soccer game of the season. Bummer that it is already over! We also had some fun checking out the maritime museum. Missed the lighthouse tour though, so we will need to do that some other time. 

I was able to finish the chicken coop and the solar dehydrator! Sure is good to have those crossed off the list. Started that dehydrator two years ago. Even made it out to a friend's house. He is a builder and is finally building his own place. I will help him out this fall/winter. Right on the big lake. 

Did a lot of thinking about our new roof too. Going back and forth between metal and asphalt options. Sadly, the metal was almost twice the price we expected, so we might need to go with asphalt. Also had an article come out this week about our ideas, and I am really happy with how it turned out!

https://news.engin.umich.edu/2026/08/building-sustainable-furniture-structures-and-community-in-marquette-pete-cook/

Chicken run.

Maritime museum.

Solar dehydrator.

Sunset Lake

 

We weren't able to finish up the chicken coop before we left, but both girls helped out with it! There isn't much left to do. Restarted work on the food dehydrator as well, but didn't get very far. Got a heavy thunderstorm that recharged the pond and the gardens. Much needed. 

We did manage to start the big roof project. A little nervous about that one. Got everything measured out and we will get quotes on the metal from two places. Not many outstanding questions. Even worked in a bit of disc golf and ice cream with the girls! Went out for a fancy anniversary dinner as well. Naomi really had to work for her meal!

It was a wonderful trip to Wisconsin. Got to celebrate my Grandma's 90th birthday party. She was doing really well and it was fun to see so much family. The girls had a blast on the lake. Swimming and tubing. Even caught a few fish to bring back to our pond. Tricky to catch. Made it back just in time for a game of soccer - parents against kids - followed by a pizza party. It's their last week. 

Dinner at the lake.

The big party.

Fish made it home.

Sunrise over Sunset Lake.

Anniversary dinner.

Our first water lily!

Tired from swimming.

Ice cream!

Best & Worst

Amélie really covered the spectrum this week. She found some baby bunnies next to our driveway that were in pretty rough shape. Eyes still closed, not much more than a week old. She was thrilled to have the chance to try and take care of them. Her best day of the summer. A couple days later she had her worst day of the summer when the last of the three died. She tried her best and it was a good experience for her!

The girls finally got to play some soccer, but Monday wasn't the day. Big thunderstorms and still some smoke. Abigail got to spend some time on her own in Escanaba learning to make stained glass! She really enjoyed it. When I picked her up I had to park under the tree because a huge storm with lots of hail was nearby. Luckily it just missed us. 

We got the doors finished up downstairs, I made some closet shelves, finished up the inside of the greenhouse, and started on the outside of the chicken coop. Should have some chickens coming after we get back from Wisconsin this coming weekend. We had three butterflies emerge in the greenhouse! Two of them didn't make it for long at all, so there won't be any eggs this time. Also got a new client. I will start some work for them in September. Really nice people living just a few blocks away. 

Baby bunnies!

Black swallowtails in the greenhouse.

Finally finished.

So small!

Inside part of the coop.

Nature's garage.

Easy access to eggs.

Hopefully a fun place!

Winter in July

It feels like two weeks in one. Summer and Winter. We started off with so much heat and sunshine! Beach, pontoon boat, swimming, even put the finishing touches on the porch project. Amélie had her first paying customer! She baked cinnamon rolls and a gluten free apple rhubarb crisp for some of our friends. She asked 20 dollars but they gave her 40 - the loved it! She did have to bake the cinnamon rolls twice though as the first batch failed. 

Then the smoke rolled in. No more sunshine. No more outside time. Thankfully I have two filtration systems set up, so the air in our house is fairly clean, but it definitely feels like winter. Plenty of inside projects to do. Finished up with painting the downstairs doors. Sleeping downstairs. Made a quick bench for a client and a few small shower shelves. Even got a new bed to complete the bedroom set from my grandma. The outside air from unloading that and doing some grocery shopping really got to me though. Felt pretty sick yesterday. Who knows how long it will last. 

Beach time!

Hanging out on the pontoon boat.

Smoke plumes from the Canadian wilderness.

Porch bench made from the old porch decking.

The Doors

We have had some false starts this week! It began with a swarm box that was full of honeybees. Thought we had captured a new colony, so we brought it down, opened it up, and found out there were only a few inside. A colony had just discovered the bit of honey I had left in there and were robbing it.

Then we got busy with painting seven doors and the trim around them. Installed them and decided it was the wrong color. Back to square one. Naomi had a special trip to Isle Royale planned for this week and that fell through, but she still has the vacation days, so I guess they will be for painting. What a bummer!

We did get to have a lovely dinner at our friend's cabin on the lake. Amélie was in heaven. Dog and swimming. She gets to bake something for them this week! Made some progress on the chicken coop and finally got the tree chairs hung up. Got the trailer up to speed apart from the lighting. New decking turned out well. Kicking off another heat wave here. So glad we have AC! 

Trailer is ready to roll.

Robbing frenzy.

Fun at the lake!

Sad lawn, happy girls.

Ribs and Crayfish

We had a fun fourth of July. Went down to Escanaba to drop some door handles off for Kile that I made and cut the lawn. Then we stopped at the Rapid River to catch a few crayfish for our pond. Went to one of Naomi's colleagues house for a party where the girls got to try ribs for the first time. They also got to ride a horse and play with the dogs. 

I finally put together the firewood cribs this week and cleaned up a couple brushpiles. Made some progress on the chicken coop as well, but it is getting a bit late for chickens and Dominic doesn't seem to have many. Hopefully we can find a solution!

Naomi has started painting the doors downstairs. Lots of work. At least we get a break from the heat. The girls had their soccer game canceled because it was too hot this week! Sure felt good to swim in the big lake. Amélie refused to put on her swimsuit because she only wanted to get her feet wet. Of course she ended up swimming in her clothes. 

If anyone asks, it's not a shed, it's a raised bed!

Abigail needs some practice.

Searching for crayfish.

Horse riding lessons!

Lots of fun at the old farm.