A New Month, Fresh Goals And 40 Years Of Marriage

 WOW, August already! This year is just whizzing by. The years keep whizzing by too.

This Sunday, the 3rd, marks 40 years of being married, and it's a def "who'd a thunk it?" as those who were around us in the beginning know. We went through so much, nobody honestly expected us to make it. I don't even think we thought we would, life was so tugh on us back then. But here we are. 40 years after Mark spluttered his way through his vows and took me to be his "AWFUL wedded wife" much to the amusement of everyone who was there. Later those same words showed up in "Five Weddings And A Funeral" but he did it first, LOL.

We're heading to one of my favourite places, the Best Western Riverside, in Dillsboro NC. Our room has a balcony overlooking the Tuckaseegee River. We sleep with the balcony door open, listening to the water rushing below and (nice!) it's high enough that the mosquitoes aren't up there! Last time we were there, I took my exercise bike and pedalled on the balcony but this time I'm giving Mark a break from trying to lug it around for me.

I paid for him to have an online photography course so today we went and got him a new laptop, as his old one was slow and wouldn't have been conducive to him being able to do a lot of what the course modules require.  I also blew money on a programme for me that does children's flip books (so I can sell them to folks whose little ones can access them on a tablet or computer), and does videos from books etc so I'm going to be spending a lot of time learning how to do that.

Today has been a "getting ready" day before heading out tomorrow, cleaning the vehicles, packing clothes and sundries, making sure we have everything covered that needs to go with us. It's been hectic.

Just praying that my body doesn't give me gyp on this trip, I don't want to spoil it like I did my birthday one.

Enjoy your Friday!

It's Been All Go

 We've been busy, busy, busy now for a few weeks. Hubby had been working on the hallway bathroom since we found we could not get the walk-in tub in there.  Even with the door off and the jambs taken down, we were still about an inch short of being able to finagle it. We did a re-think, and decided to put a shower in instead, rather than stress ourselves out bemoaning that which would only be accomplished were we to remove part of a wall to do so. Nope, we already have more on our plate than we need, so ... a shower was the way to go.

Then we found out my grandson was coming to stay, from England. Somehow I couldn't see a 21 year old wanting to sneak through his grandparents' bedroom in the middle of the night, if he needed the loo, so getting the shower fitted (and then the toilet put back in) became a matter of urgency, not an "as we get to it".

Hubby did a smashing job, the shower and loo were in just in time for Jacob's arrival. Nothing special, but functional.

J had a jam-packed time with his sisters, they went hiking, they went to the movies, they went to an outdoor concert, the pool, I think he needed to go home to get some rest! Added to which he helped Mark with some projects while he was here, and he had fun shooting with Mark, his sisters and his cousin. Not something he can do like that, back in England.

We tried to take him to different places to eat to try stuff he can't usually get back home. Volcano Korean BBQ, Ginza Buffet, Milano's and more. If nothing else, that boy was well-fed! All the way from the top of his head down to his tootsies more than 6 feet away!

It may have been his first solo international journey but it seasoned him for future ones - the train broke down halfway to the airport, in England, on his way here. His first flight back was cancelled and he stayed with us another day, then there were delays ... and then he arrived back in England but his luggage didn't! Plenty of glitches.

Mark's been working some more on the bathroom since J left, we have a lot to do but - for now - it's fine as it is. The shelf behind the toilet has to come down to accommodate the around-the-loo shelf stand. That's currently where the sink unit will be eventually, but we've lain a board across the floor and popped it on that since we have to pull that floor up and replace it due to wet rot .

Having got the hallway bathroom functional, we've stopped using the one in our bedroom, which also has the wet rot (the bathrooms back on to each other -and to the kitchen sink area - and it's one continuously damaged piece of flooring) so that it can begin to dry out somewhat. It will be a major project when we get to it.

This heatwave has been horrible and some of my plants have fought a losing battle, despite watering. I have more seeds to plant again soon ready for Autumn but I want to see the worst of this heat over with first.

The bees are flourishing, We've stopped giving them the sugar water (it was fermenting in the heat!) so they are just getting water until the seasons change and we go back to sugar water. Right now they have plenty of pollen and nectar around, so they are happy bees.

Maybelline, our big hen, died recently leaving just Henrietta in that pen and the other chicken, that we were given years ago, in the other, so we have now combined them. That gives us a total of 3 pens that they can be moved between, meaning that the 2 not in use can start to overgrow a little and then we can pop them in there and let them scrabble around in the greenery.

We're going away to Dillsboro (and poss Cherokee) for our 40th wedding anniversary next month, and so we've been taking Brunel and Lightning to doggy day care one day a week for the past few weeks, to get them ready for a 3 day/2 overnight stay at the doggie hotel. Lightning still doesn't have time with the other dogs but has got much better with people and goes in quite happily, and they say he's such a good boy, so snuggly. That's good as for too long he was terrified of people and other dogs and snarly with all! At least now he's ok with people.

Meanwhile, I had a long chat on the phone, with my illustrator for Mister McAfferty's Cat, and we ironed out so many issues. She sent me a pdf of all the sketches for the illustrations, and is now starting the colouring process on them, so hopefully this project will soon be complete. 

Methinks that is all of my update, although I may have forgotten some things (my mind becomes more like a sieve, day by day!).

Major Decluttering And Other News!

My new stand-up recliner is in boxes in the living room, and hubby's new adjustable bed arrives tomorrow, so today is the "sort out the bedroom" day before tomorrow morning, when it becomes the "move-out-the-king-size-bed" and "move in the new stuff" major effort. Today is clearing shelving units and organizing in chests of drawers (yes, we're still pack rats but our messes will be hidden from view and -for awhile - organized.

I definitely do not need AVON papers from 10-15 years ago, LOL.I had a drawer full, all packed neatly in large envelopes. AVON memorabilia, that I'll be dropping off on team members the next time I go to Fountain Inn.

I reorganized my "reliving my childhood" into a plastic drawer-type tub, Bunty annual at the bottom, yarn, knitting needles, pins and darning needles oon that, and topped by my 2 Sindy dolls, some Sindy clothes and accessories.

Hubby found blueprints from a class he took when he was working construction in Florida in the 90s!

Damp-cloth wiping down everything and will lemon polish surfaces later.

The dogs aren't sure what's going on with all this hustle and bustle. We're hearing some whimpering, as they are not in here with us, and want to be. There's no room. Ha! Decluttering actually means there's a lot more clutter for a bit - I have piles of stuff on the bed to be put away in a new place. 

Hubby is about to take some stuff to donate to Miracle Hill, and pick up the dresser that he bought from there, yesterday.It has a (separate) thick glass top that our grandson, Dylan, will be coming over tomorrow to help him get off the truck. The drawers part should be ok for him to slide off by himself. That'll be replacing the shelves we currently have the tv on. Dylan coming over also makes a good excuse for him and Lily to have brunch somewhere with us. Good family time.

In other news, I've started on a new book. "That's God!" It's in its early stages yet but I'm hoping it'll come together nicely over the next few weeks. "Mister McAfferty's Cat" is proving a nightmare to have illustrated. I'm doing so many revisions, and getting bombarded by originals being re-sent, without the revisions or my notes being taken into account. Very frustrating. It's pushed my blood pressure up a few times as I've struggled to go back through old emails and pictures to see what I've said and done before, only to find that none of it seems to have been taken note of. UGH!

I was frustrated earlier in the week by the idiots who've been building a home behind us. They seem to like upsetting our bees. First time they parked a huge truck by them, left the engine running and proceeded to unload materials, where they could have parked infront of the house instead of alongside our fenceline. They were there a couple of hours. Poor bees were well stressed. Then, had another machine, maybe a mower or something, and blew sand all over the hive where he could have driven it the other way and blown it away from them. Again, stressed them out.I drove down to complain but he stayed on the far side of the house so as not to deal with me. 

My granddaughter and 2 great grands are on their way back from their vacation to and from Niagara Falls, with all the interesting museum and fun things along the way. From the photos she's been posting, they've had a blast!

Also, found out my grandson, Jacob, is coming to stay in a couple of weeks, all the way from England! Haven't seen him in over a decade, and he just turned 21! Excited, and so looking forward to it!

Catching Up On The Last Couple Of Days

It's been a good couple of days.

On Sunday, Angelica and Samantha put up some more of the fake ivy screen along the fence, which is blocking some of what makes the dogs go crazy. If it's not something loud, like a nosiy truck or school bus, and just maybe somebody on a pushbike or jogging, then it doesn't seem to bother them as much. Very thankful for their help, and they've done a good job.

Hubby and I were down the field. His bees already know him and he goes over and talks to them. It's neat watching their behaviour. 

We haven't mowed near the hive as there's a plentiful supply of dandelions to keep them happy until the wildflower mats flourish. 

Mark put up 2 posts and cable, and then planted 2 of the grapevines, as well as some other flowering plants.

The dogs got to come down there with us and after an initial sniffing sround the hive, they decided to leave the bees alone. We were a bit worried about Brunel, as he's an eejit sometimes and likes to catch flies and things that hover near him. Thankfully, he seems to have decided that's not a great idea with the bees.

Unfortunately, the promised rains didn't come, so I was out last night watering all the plants in the front yard, and we had to take a hose down the field so's Mark could water everything down there.

Mark had his appointment with his cancer doc yesterday and he is stable for now, white cells still high but red cells coming up, immune cells coming up and no kidney issues. YAY. His next apointment is in 6 weeks.

Tonight, we attended our great-granddaughter, Lily's, preschool graduation and it was lovely. The whole class sang, and performed to, 3 patriotic songs and did so awesomely well. All the families were very proud, and deservedly so.

 

Our Bees Are Home!

It's been another smashing day, and we've finally brought our bees home. 2 got out of the box, even as Mark was carrying them out of The Carolina Honey Bee Company. One landed on his arm as he walked across the road and he brushed it off and it followed him to the car, along with the other one. He put the box of bees in the back, and those 2 just kept crawling up my back window. I kept watch on them as we drove home. They did check back to the box (where the Queen was with the rest of her crew) but then played back up the window. All the way home.

They all seemed very happy with their new home. Some were a little slower at finding their way in but even those buzzing around weren't bothering Mark as he was doing stuff with them, and he wasn't wearing any protective gear at all.

I stayed in the car, as our ground is too uneven for me to walk on down there. 

The box they came in, with some bees still in it and others going into the hive through the entrance. Just off the right, level with the far end of it, is the berm that my hubby and grandkids shoot at. Unfortunately, you can see the house being built along our back fence line. Why would you build a house that close?

Close up of some of our new babies finding their way in. They are neat to watch. 

So now we just want to give them some space and let them settle in. 

Tomorrow, we'll be down there to plant some more vines and trees. We intended doing it earlier but hubby went to dig and the post hole digger handle snapped, so he has to geta  new one tomorrow in order to accomplish that.

Felt Like A Florida Summer's Day

Yes, it did! I got out of the shower this morning and had to close the window and put the AC on - I couldn't get dry fast enough. I was sweating while trying to get dry! The air was already getting warm and humid. Thankfully, the AC kicked in pretty quickly and I was soon ready to face the world.

We took my 3 newest books to the library for the local authors shelf. I'm hoping that local people will check them out for their children, and maybe buy them as gifts for them, their grands and great-grands. I'd love to have feedback on them from more than my family.

Lunch was a pita from Cava. I always do the "build your own" and have had some excellent compilations. Today's was a Honey Harissa Chicken with red pepper hummus, tomatoes, onions and cucumber. Hubby and I shared it, their portions are very good.

This evening, earlier, we planted 3 wildflower mats down by where the beehive is, so that - when they grow - the bees will have a nice wildflower patch to hang out in, close by. They'll also have all the other trees and plants we've been putting down there.

Then, I planted out the miniatures that we got from Lidl, in 4 window boxes. 2 were pink rose, yellow kalanchoe, pink rose, and 2 were yellow kalanchoe, pink rose, yellow kalanchoe. They should look really pretty once they are all established together.

Tomorrow is our big day, when we go to get our bees. I'm excited. Hubby's been refreshing his knowledge (his dad had bees, and then Mark had taken a beekeeping course a couple of years ago when we first decided we were going to get bees) by reading up on the subject.  We just want to be good bee parents!

Spring Plantings Are In Full Swing, And Other News

Spring has sprung, as we all know, and we've been busy planting. Hubby has been working on a flower bed in the front yard by the fence, I planted the mini roses in the window box, and today I planted the 6 lily bulbs that I bought on the weekend, and some of the cress seeds that came in the mail from a fundraiser for Upstate Animal Rescue Foundation of SC. I also have 3 seed mats from them, one for "honey bees"

and 2 wildflowers but because it's been raining for the past couple of days, I've not been able to get down to the field to lay the out near the beehive. 

Hubby has a couple of new rose bushes to plant down there as well. I want a lush retreat of scented flowers and shrubs down there so that I can enjoy the fragrance along with the running water sounds of the stream and pond hubby is building for me.

I'd bought 4 nice wooden planter tables and hubby put one of them together tdoay. I'm putting the window boxes in them with the miniature roses in, I decided they'd last longer that way. They are quite sturdy but take a bit of time to put together. I'm patient, and thankful my hubby does stuff like this for me.

They'll also be going down the field, to go in a V from the corner of the field, down the 2 fences, behind the beehive area. Just to have everything down there, neat and tidy, looking nice.

Hubby went back to work on Wednesday and oh! that 5am alarm was just sooo unwelcome! Since he only does part-time, and it's only 2 days a week, I must not complain. Bleary eyed I shall be on those 2 days!

We ran out of time with the dumpster due to the rain, so it went back today and I'll rent another in a few weeks so that the rest of the demolition of the old building can be completed, ready to concrete a base and get prepped ready for the new one.

On a different note, Mister McAfferty's Cat ... it seems my project is harder than I expected. So many revisions of illustrations, I got so fried, and have had to request them do them in order and we get them right before going to the next. I'm glad they are patient with me, I must be one of their most awful nitpicky authors.

That's about it for this time. It's still raining, and looks like it will be for much of the next week.