Auntie Claire

We had a really nice visit with Auntie Claire and my parents. It was a full house! Claire stayed with us for a couple extra days and we had fun at the pump track, taking a hike, and hanging out around the house. It was great to spend some time with her. 

My dad was able to help me out quite a bit with the window well project. We did a lot of digging, picked up a load of gravel after he dropped off some lumber, and even got started with the bricks. Nice to see things moving along. Just need to get it filled in before the next big storm. 

Naomi has been working hard and is looking forward to a more laid back August. July has been very busy, and tonight my friend Scotty and his wife are coming for a couple nights. They will bring a friend too. Today there are a couple art fairs in town so hopefully we can check those out. 

Hiking by the Dead River. Found some thimbleberries!

Dug out.

Hooked on Harry Potter.

First load of bricks.

Family Week

On Saturday we picked up Auntie Claire and the girls from my parent's house and drove down to Central Wisconsin. Got in another quick round of golf before heading out. We had a lot of fun at the lake! The house has been rebuilt after having a tree fall through it last year. They are almost finished with the landscaping. So many natural disasters there. Almost back to normal!

Also had a chance to visit my Grandma. She was doing well in the new apartment. She decided to sell her house, the one they built, and she wants family and friends to take all the stuff she has collected over the years. It will be interesting to see how that process goes. It was strange and sad to walk through the house and say goodbye while figuring out what would be useful in our house. 

The girls had camp on Wednesday and I got a bit of work done with the insulation project. It has a new level of urgency as while we were gone 2-3 inches of rain fell in an hour and the holes I dug around the foundation filled up. Water got about a foot above the bottom of one of the new windows and started coming into the basement. We were so lucky to have our neighbor Rick think to check on our house as his yard turned into a river. He brought over a pump and cleaned up the flooding downstairs. Definitely owe him a big favor! I took out some drywall and insulation. Also fixed the dehumidifier and got that running. Still have a big mess to clean up but most things are dry. Managed to get the guest room ready enough for my parents to stay in for a couple nights while Auntie Claire sleeps in the girl's rooms. 

On Thursday the girls each had a really big day! Abigail went to make a ring with Kalil, and Kalil offered her an apprenticeship. We will give Kalil money to pay Abigail with, but it is super special that Abigail has her first job. Somehow, Amélie managed the same! We brought her to help French Claire in the food truck. She brought orders, took orders and payments, and cut up a ton of pickles. French Claire paid her the 20 bucks she got in tips and said she could come back anytime to help out. Both girls got a job in the same afternoon and they absolutely love it. Really special. 

Part of our roof rack blew off in a huge thunderstorm.

Fun on the lake.

Amazing spot to eat!

Sad goodbyes.

Sad hellos.

Birthday sweaters from Norway!

Another great spot to eat.

Uh oh.

Bad timing to be away from home.

Two Down...

I finished up two projects yesterday! The garden is finally done (for now). Had to wrap up the last of the tomato cages. I also got the tools organized and that was the last step in organizing the garage (for now). Started laying out the tile for the wood stove, that's my indoor project, and worked more on the exterior insulation, my outdoor project. Good to have one of each to focus on and not more right now. Having 5 going at a time was too much. 

Sunday night we got to eat dinner with the neighbors. Monday the girls had piano and a bit of rest. Tuesday they had camp. Wednesday I applied for the permit to install the wood stove, we had a really nice visit with our friends at the farm, and I took the girls to my parents house and spent the night there. It was a great visit. Fun to try out the completed bathroom and see the giant carving my dad is working on in the garden. Managed to get the golf course going too!

Amazing how much work I can get done when the girls aren't around. Even had time to meet with a local author yesterday. Nice guy. He wrote 20 books! Main income comes from editing other people's work though. Last night Auntie Claire made it to Escanaba. The girls are ecstatic. We will pick them up this morning and head to Aunt Jenny's house at the lake. Luckily Naomi gets to come, so this is our official summer holiday. 

Beavers are making a dam.

Working on the wood to hold the exterior insulation in place.

Lake levels are back up to normal!

My favorite golf course.

Naomi and I got to eat out. Bodega is great.

Organized, finally!

Fun at the farm.

Late Nights

We had a special holiday weekend. Naomi took Friday off. On Wednesday night Marquette did the fireworks show. It was very impressive! Almost as impressive as the sunset. They combined it with a laser show on the Ore Dock, fireballs, and even exploded charges under the structure which made the most incredible sound. It was surprising and Amélie cried, thinking the Ore Dock was exploding. We met a nice new family with girls similar to ours in age there too. Just moved to town this past week. Didn't get to bed until after midnight - a new record for the girls. 

On Friday we headed out to our campsite and neighbor Rick joined us for dinner. Weather was perfect and the bugs weren't bad. Picked up some wood ticks on the trails. Another late night. Naomi and I had headaches on Saturday, but Amélie was able to play at a friend's house while the three of us hung out at the campsite. That made the headaches more manageable. 

Puzzling out how to get a wood stove into the basement. Tricky as the floor and roof joists don't line up. Some of the basement walls don't line up with the living room walls either, and the stove pipe needs to go through the living room, so it's all very complicated. I think I figured it out, though. Also worked on the garden more. Finished the gate, brought in more wood chips, and pruned back a bush that was shading out part of it. Need to make some tomato cages today. 

Got some new demos lined up the week for the teaching business, so maybe there's still some life in it. Decided to take down the website because it isn't getting used. So that is sad. Worked hard building that!

Naomi took the girls to a dog hugging event at the library.

Garden is looking better.

Another cutting board for Kile.

Mushrooms found the compost!

Finished a little project for my new client on the lake.

Interesting fog.

Quite the sunset!

Fireworks time.

Camping out.