Staycation 2009 has been, very possibly, Isaac's favorite vacation EVER. July has been a non-stop barrage of big equipment, loud motors and interesting trucks that has left Isaac gape-mouthed, glassy-eyed and on the edge of his seat. (Plus, mom and dad are getting a lot of projects done!)
Jeff has 2 weeks of vacation + 1 week of layoff this month, which is going to make for some strange finances, but also gives us plenty of time to work around the house. Would I rather be on the coast? Maybe, but I sure enjoy seeing things come together here at home too. Our biggest project so far has been a new sidewalk. The man who built this house, God love his frugal soul, poured a sidewalk just long enough to reach the porch....about 15 feet short of the front door. So it looked weird. And it was sinking. So, my darling step-dad called in a friend with a mini-excavator to save us some labor and dig a new walk. Isaac loved it! Although he did point out that A) this excavator wasn't a JD or a CAT, and B) it was very badly scratched up and needed repainted. He had a chance to sit in the cab and do some steering which he enjoyed thoroughly!
The following night, a neighbor with a tree trimming business called us with a full load of clean wood chips; and when I say full load, I mean a full load. He squeezed his truck into the backyard through the double gate with at only an inch or two to spare and dumped a pile of mulch 6-7 feet high and probably 12-15 feet wide in every direction. The kids stood on their playground and watched in amazement as this truck tilted the bed 20 feet in the air to dump the mulch. On watching him finish his job, Isaac declared that he wanted to drive a tree truck when he grows up. The driver said NO, be a doctor or a lawyer. I says I'd rather him be poor and happy than rich and tied up in litigation.
Yesterday, our concrete arrived and you can imagine their excitement upon seeing a mixer truck pull into the drive. I think Isaac has been itching to see one up close for quite a while as cement trucks aren't a regular at Ritchie Bros. auctions. It was a fascinating experience for them to listen to the engine, watch the mixer turn and see the cement come sliding down the chute. All in all, I'd have to call this one of Isaac's best weeks ever!
Still to come on the staycation agenda....finishing the chicken coop. Jeff has the floor and 3 walls framed so he's making great progress, but with little time to spare. We're hoping to get the new coop done before the chicks hatch, which could be in a matter of days. After the coop, we have a deck to disassemble and bring home; a gift from a friend who's replacing his wooden deck with a Trex deck. All we have right now is a crappy, cracked patio, so the plan is to powerwash our friends deck and reassemble it here at the Run. The final week of Staycation I DO intend to have some fun...we're tossing around the possibility of going to a waterpark, museum or zoo. Plus the kids are dying to go fishing at 'Uncle Joe's' pond. And we can't forget Poker Night At Papaw's. Isaac is the Poker Night mascot and will be there with the guys, eating deer stick, drinking soda and putting pennies in the pot.
So til next time, til our projects are finished and I can post lovely pictures, best wishes from the Run.
5 comments:
Sounds like a lovely time. I love staycations!! Have fun and can't wait to see teh photos.
FABULOUS month! That sounds amazing! Perhaps I'm jaded from living out here on the coast, but really, getting projects done like that sounds much more appealing - we're already suffering traffic-snarling brush fires out here. I should likely hit up freecycle more often to accumulate more materials for the project I want to get done when the weather cools off enough for heavy labor...
Fun, I love this kind of entertainment! Those are the fondest memories to create for your family. Our tree removal staycation last year was a similar feeling.
I'm laughing because only real homesteaders and preppers like us would consider a staycation with yard projects a VACATION! I love it!
Sounds like you've had a lot of similar projects at your house. We started our new chicken coop, landscaped the front and side yards, and today, we had a guy come with his bobcat to level out more area to extend our vegetable garden and add a large section for fruit trees. We also cleared an area for goats - well, leveled the dirt. The goats will take care of the rest!
It's so funny to read the posts here. I know most of these people(excepth Heather who I actually know) in a blogging kind of way. I wonder if we do know each other better, just because the process of writing makes one think a bit deeper. It takes the impulsivity out of my speech for sure.
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