The Cement Crew

Or as our 'foreman' Nate told us, "It is not cement, cement comes in a bag and you mix water with it...THIS is concrete!"

Last weekend Lenny, Kelly and a few of their friends joined us for the weekend up north to pour the garage floor. It was a blast. Good food (Kelly is a great cook!) wonderful weather, camp fires that would have made you jealous Jan! And a lot of BS flying around. Oh and some work did get done.

Chris and Lenny having a little fun with the equipment.

This is the true use of the gas powered thing a jig!

The supervising crew??? Take a look at the back of Lenny's shirt.

SOME of the crew actually did manual labor...wonder where David is? Running a motorized machine as is usual perhaps?

The completed project.

Relaxing by the camp fire.

A 'Man's' Best Friend

Those that don't have dogs/animals as part of their family find it hard to understand how we who do get so attached to them.

The term a man's best friend is so true (although it should be a person's best friend!). They love you unconditionally. They listen to you no matter what you have to say, they may even wag their tail at you even if you are not making much sense. When you feel blue somehow they sense it and make you feel better with just the look in their eye. And when they pass it is like losing a part of your family, because they are.

Our neighbors and good friends lost their best friend Sunday. He battled a long illness and will be missed by the entire neighborhood.

In memory of Buster-we will miss you.

The Newest Finished Projects And....

A wonderful picture of Grandpa and Dezbah Daisy

And my latest completed projects:

I'm patting myself on the back over these. Socks are not the easiest things to knit, especially when the person that is trying to teach you doesn't believe in patterns....WHATEVER I say, I need a pattern. So after many times of ripping them out, and after many months, I didn't give up and actually got them done. Cant wait to start my second pair! I am not a sock wearer but these may just convert me.

This is the funnest bag and coin purse. Given to Jess for her birthday which was yesterday.

And the baby booties for Dezbah

David's New/First Grandbaby

We picked Dezbah Daisy (and her mom) up at the airport August 1st. This is the first time that David and I have met little Dezbah and she is cute as can be as well as a very good baby. Rachel is a fabulous mom and I bet Melvin is the best of dads. Melvin is working so was not able to join his family this trip but Rachel and Dezbah will be here the entire month of August.

Look at that expression, cute as can be.

In her 'cradle board'. This cradle board is over 40 years old and I suspect has been in Melvin's family, used by all over the years.

Mom and daughter

A very happy and proud great grandma!

Precious!

The four generations.

The First Harvest

I have really never been a gardener, that was always mom that had the green thumb. I could do a tomato plant or two and of course last year had the wild pumpkins.....but this year I ventured out and actually put in pumpkin seeds, cucumber seeds, the usual tomato plants and pepper plants. I have picked a few tomatos but just found this morning that I have cucumbers! So I had to take pictures of course!

Here they are the first of many cucumbers

We are going to have tons of pumpkins as well and hopefully more tomatos and some peppers.

I know I know...pretty sad that the first picked cucumbers are such a thrill huh? Yeah well the simple things in life I guess!

When The Fish Arent Biting!

And your sitting on the water with not much to do (too choppy to knit!) these are the ever so dumb pictures that get taken!

But wait.....just as I am taking these boring pictures my line begins to bounce and yes I have a fish on my hook. Hurry up, put down the camera in a safe place (after all David is driving the boat....you know what I mean Mikey!) and bring that fish in! It was a nice northern that we actually kept. OK ok so it bit on my hook and David pulled it in...minor details...it's still my catch! AND we even turned the water on in the live well this time. You see, the last time we were out I caught a very nice perch that got put in the live well but someone (and it wasn't me) didn't put water in it...needless to say fish have to have water to survive! And that's a REAL fish story.

The camper is gone from our lot. Sold it on Ebay for a very good price. Was a bit sad to see it go as it served us well, but it looks much nicer without it there.

We again had our momma doe and her two fawns and what seems to be maybe last year's button buck scampering in our pond. They run, play and hop like a cat or a dog. Very fun to watch.

Stay cool and out of the humidity!

It Is Way Too Hot!

Will this heat ever quit? And we are headed for the northland this weekend where it is even hotter than here.

Saw this butterfly attempting to get nectar out of the oriole feeder. I chased him around trying to get a 'perfect shot'. He (or she) really did pose quit nicely.

And here are our neighbors and friends Chrissy and Brent. Brent is a machinist-does great work-and has gotten this old car running. He purchased it at an auction (I think). The original owner has passed and the wife has cancer. The last time it was driven was in a parade that Brent is taking it to this weekend in honor of the original owner and for the wife. It will be quite touching I am sure. By the way, that's Peeko trailing along behind wondering why he doesn't get a ride!

Stay cool and do a rain dance as we need rain badly here.

Where In The HECK Did These Come From?

So I have this friend who is a year older than I (that would be you Karen). She has always told me what each milestone age is like (30-40 etc) and has always been pretty accurate.

HOWEVER she neglected....totally neglected...to warn me about the wobbly skin under the arms. I HATE it, it just appeared out of no where after the big 50. I can see it wobble when I do anything. Yuck yuck yuck. I refuse to wear sleeves in this heat...NO so wobble if it must but I don't have to like it.

I guess I should have known it was coming as my mom had the wobbles as well. Oh I am so turning into my mother. Ah well, that's a good thing I say.

So, the rest of you that are younger than I...beware of the big 50 underarm wobble...it WILL come your way.

The Week In The Northland

We just returned from a great week at the cabin/our soon to be home. It was hard to come back we love it so much up there.

This morning there was a doe and her two spotted fawns in our backyard drinking out of the pond (or as our new friend Richard would call it 'the tank') and feasting on the clover. They would have made a great picture but we didn't want to spook them.

I did get a few other pictures however. When you have taken pictures of almost everything you have to look for unique 'views' of ordinary things.

Like in our woods, these daisies whose stems are entwined

Or these daisies that are among some interesting foliage

Our friend Jan (who loves to take pictures) called to let me know that there was a ditch full of blooming Lillies of the Valley. I have never seen so many at once much less in one spot.

And our first 'dinner party'

Our friends Mikey and Jan and their Cajun/Work Camper friends Debbie and Richard (very nice people with wonderful southern charm...oh yes and Mikey and Jan and nice as well....haha). We fit 6 people around our small table in our small eating area and it was wonderful! Of course David cooked which is always good.

Our first time on the water in our boat in over a year!

It was a foggy morning but very relaxing.

This big guy appeared out of the fog.

And you cant pass a newly opening lily pad without getting a picture!

Another stone was placed

My aunt Etta and uncle Roger came with this memorial. It was done by a 'Nicollet-ite' who makes them for a living. He was a friend of mom's and when Etta asked him if he could do something for her this is what he came up with. It was his contribution he said to mom and to Etta. Very nice i think. It sits, with the other rocks, by her tree.

As I said, a wonderful week in the north woods.

A Perspective

As I sat on our back deck last weekend in the northwoods I closed my eyes and thought about my journey and what I have learned while traveling this journey.

Everyone needs to find and walk their own path. I was fortunate to have not only been allowed to do this(thank you David and Lenny) but supported in the decisions I/we made in regards to my journey. I am certain that some things friends and family may not have agreed with and that is OK because it was my journey and I needed to find my way.

Having said that I have realized now so more than ever that everyone needs to find their own path. I may not like it or agree with it but I need to respect it.

If there is anything that I learned from my very wise Mother it was to never make people feel badly for the decisions that they make. I made some pretty dumb decisions and she never made me feel guilty for them no matter what they were and she was always there for me.

I also found faith. It is not an organized 'religion' that I found nor did I find it in a church or a building. It came from within me and I cannot explain it but I feel it. I know that one cannot control everything and sometimes you just need to sit back and allow whatever is going to be to be.

My hope for all of those that I love and care about is that they too find some sort of 'faith' or serenity....maybe that is a better descriptive word...serenity.

The Cabin

The old pantry that we had in the garage forever. I painted it and we put glass doors on it so that we can display our Moose Country dishes and country etched glasses.Dinning room. This drop leaf table used to sit in our computer room. I painted and distressed it and the chairs. Looks pretty good we think.
Living room. The chair used to be in our living room at home, the futon in our old house...tons of windows.
The kitchen with the handmade cabinets. I even have a dishwasher!
The 'master' bedroom with the home made nightstands.
The laundry area which is in a closet in our bedroom.
Our home made TV stand and clothes closet.
The very small closet that David put shelves in making tons of storage.

The bathroom. The window is an old window pane out of the original cabin. Jess took it to a person who does stained glass and it was redone and given to me by her, David, Lenny and Chrissy and Brent a few years ago for Christmas. We do have a shower.....it is to the left.

The spare bedroom.

And the back deck where we can enjoy a cup of coffee in the morning while watching the sun come over the top of the trees. Or a tea at night waiting for deer to come to the pond. It seems that we do have a buck and a doe living in our woods as they graced us with their presence in the mornings and evenings last weekend. Jessica cover your eyes......this will be my deer hunting spot this fall!

A Beautiful Tribute

I have posted this link before but the website has been updated with 'real stories'. Please click on it and listen as it is a beautiful tribute.

http://www.craigmorgan.com/index.php?

Sharing A Story

When my mom passed her body was cremated and we chose to bury her ashes on our northern property. She is nourishing a newly planted red maple (red was her favorite color and she loved being outdoors) as we put her ashes in the hole when we planted the tree.

Every year my home town's fire department has a fishermen's getaway and this year it was at a resort near our little slice of heaven. My uncle and mom's brother who is 80 something AND rides a Harley, with 20 of his motorcycle riding friends, drove their bikes to the getaway. Wanting to see our northern property......and where his sister is buried I suspect......he and those friends ventured up to have a look (we were not there at the time). Another fella in the party knew where our property-and where Mom's Tree is- as he and a crew were up awhile back putting up our shed. My uncle said that he was standing by Mom's Tree saying a little prayer when his friend tapped him on the shoulder and handed him a rock that he had found on the property (we had put a few small rocks by Mom's Tree previously). My uncle placed the rock with the other rocks and you know what, I think a new tradition was born.

To whoever may visit us in the northwoods feel free to find a rock and place it, in honor of mom, by her tree. I miss her every day but know she is with us.

A Very Happy Anniversary

To Rachel and Melvin who were married in a very nice ceremony 2 years ago today.

And today their family is larger with Dezbah Daisy who is now four weeks old.

Happy anniversary you guys and a very happy first Father's day to Melvin.

Dad and Bobbi

Cabin Update

We are officially moved into the cabin and it is so wonderful! I took pictures but that was before the curtains were hung and we do not yet have the bedroom nightstands in...will do it next week and will provide pictures then.

We both just sat there this weekend (after we were done doing whatever work it is we thought we just HAD to do) and said how pleased we are with the turn out. All of the work has been worth it and then some. Every time I think of working on the cabin I think of being on that roof last summer in the middle of chemo-90 plus degrees out with 110% percent humidity and shingling! I had no business being on that roof-hell I can barely stand on a roof in good health! But it was fun and makes for great memories.

Both mornings that we woke up we had a deer standing in our yard. It doesnt get much nicer than that! The lawn is longer than it has ever been and we have found that it is full of wild daisies. David has decided to leave it grow natural and only mow next to the cabin so we (and the butterflies) can enjoy the natural wildflowers.

There is still more work to be done but we can now do it at our leisure (and yes perhaps get a little fishing in this summer) while enjoying our little slice of heaven!

Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there and to my wonderful husband who I so enjoy making memories with.

Wooooo Whoooo

The real fake boobs are in as of yesterday (nipples as well!) It certainly is an interesting process especially when it comes to me as I don't do anything the easy way. They found that my left chest wall sits crooked (probably due to my heart surgery when I was 5....that side didn't grow as well as the other side). So the doc attempted to center my left implant opening up a pocket on the inside and stitching the heck out of the outer side. However, short of removing the chest muscle (of which they say mine is very firm!) I will probably have things a bit off center. But hey, I have boobs!
The nipples are done with a 'twist and stitch' technique. They pull up the skin, give it a twist and then stitch it.
So I am a tad sore and am trussed up (in hopes of keeping the left side where it belongs) for about a month. And I'm damned tired! Recovering from anesthesia gets more difficult as I grow more mature!
No lawn mowing, no vacuuming, no lifting more than 10 pounds and no raising my arms above my head except to wash my hair. So JESSICA will you please feed the birdies as David refuses. I will be spending the next month knitting away!
In four months I go in for a tattoo party. Yup they tattoo areolas on. Man I about passed out with the dressing change today how in the world will I be able to stand getting tattooed!

Last Weekend's Project

Along with attending a family graduation and the wedding reception of some very dear friend's granddaughter David and I spent our time in the garage completing two nightstands and an armour for our bedroom up north.

We spied these pieces at an antique/gift shop one day and decided we could make them. We have less money into all three pieces than what they wanted for one piece at the shop. David (of course) put them together and I painted and distressed them.



The tall piece will hold some hanging clothes (wont need much once we retire!) and the TV will sit on top.


Next week Monday I have my exchange surgery in Rochester and will get my port pulled out (port was used for my infusions). I wasn't sure how I would feel once done with treatments but ya know, I am anxious to be really done with it all as this has consumed so much of our lives for almost two years! I was once really wanting to participate in the 3-day race (for breast cancer) and the Race for the Cure but had not ever been able to get there. Now I don't feel the pull to do that in fact am not sure that I want to attend....right now I just really want to walk the next leg of our life. So on we trudge my husband and I.



And ending with the latest pictures of Dezbah Daisy taken on 6-4-07.

Dezbah Daisy and her namesake-Melvin's mom.

Rachel says she is growing fast! Is a very good baby but she keeps momma up most of the night. But the family is doing very well.