Wednesday, April 30, 2014

Cold and Cloudy, So We Painted

Today was another cold and cloudy one, so we decided it was a good one to stay inside and tackle our painting project.  Right after breakfast, John got busy taping all the trim.  We laid down some plastic to protect the carpet, and then got busy.  I did all the painting along the trim while John got busy with the roller.  

After an hour or so, we took a break for lunch and then got back to it again.  By early afternoon the job was done.  It was a bigger painting job than we first thought with four doorways and an angled wall.  We're letting everything dry overnight and then we'll put the hallway back together tomorrow.  That's one more job off our "To Do List".



Tuesday, April 29, 2014

A Sunny Day At Last

We had our first clear, sunny day in just about a week.  The only drawback to today was the wind which had gusts of 25 MPH.  At least the sun felt nice and warm when you were out of the wind.

John spent most of his morning up at Matt's helping him work on the wood splitter.  They replaced a broken part and then proceeded to change the oil and do some other maintenance.  While he was gone, I stored our travel crates away and did some cleaning.  The last cleaning was in January, so the furniture had a nice coating of dust.

I have been wanting to repaint our upstairs hallway and the stairway with the same color I used in our living room.  It'll be three years this summer since we updated the kithen and repainted the downstairs and I am determined to get this job done this spring.  I wanted to get it done last summer, but all of our time was taken up with closing the business and getting ready for the big sale in the fall.  I spent some time today taking down pictures and clearing out all the little do dads and knicknacks.   Hopefully we'll get started on this job tomorrow as the weather is suppose to be cold and rainy again.

Today was John's birthday, so we went out for supper at Applebee's in Bemidji.  On the way through town, we stopped at the golf course and bought a membership for this summer.  We have decided we are going to try and play golf at least once a week or more as we have time.

Monday, April 28, 2014

All Day Rain

As you can probably guess from the title of this posting, John and I were pretty much house bound today.  We have had a dripping valve in the basement, so this morning John went up to Matt's to pick up an extra one he had on hand.  From there he ran into the hardware store in Clearbrook to pick up a couple of parts needed to install the new one.  Once he had all the parts, it didn't take him long to get the job done--no more leaks.

With all the doctor appointments, etc. of last week, I still had quite a bit of unpacking left to do.  This afternoon I finally got the last box emptied and just about everything put away.  Even though the weather remains on the cool side, I have started pulling out the summer clothes and getting some of the winter items stored away.  Think I'll hold off on putting the heavier jackets away for a little while as it looks like we'll be needing them the rest of this week.

Sunday, April 27, 2014

High Winds All Day

The temps dipped slightly below freezing overnight which left our back steps and walkways with a slight covering of ice.  By the time we ate breakfast and left for church temps were just high enough to clear off the ice, so it was easy driving into Clearbrook.  This was our first Sunday back at the church and it was good to see everyone again.

The winds were extremely strong all day, so John and I just vegged out most of the afternoon watching the PGA.  Since we can't play golf right now, and with the way the weather is going, it will be a while before we can, at least we can watch it.  

 

Saturday, April 26, 2014

Busy Saturday

This morning John and I spent some time cleaning and re-organizing the basement.  When we were in Grand Forks yesterday, we stocked up on flour, sugar, and other items that we purchase in bulk.  After an hour or so everything was stored in plastic buckets and put away on the shelves. 

Matt, Sam, and Rachel came down to our place so John could help them cut some wood for redoing a hunting shack for Rae.  After they got the wood done, they all stayed for lunch and visited for a little bit.  The rains over the last couple of days had caused ruts in our driveway, so John got the four wheeler out and dragged the whole drive.  Now it's nice and smooth and hopefully will stay that way for a while.  

Today I finished up in the office and got all of last year's paperwork that needs to be kept filed away.  Our home office is now back to normal and you can once again see the desktop--at least for now.
We spent a quiet evening watching the movie "Captain America" and a couple of other favorite TV shows.

Friday, April 25, 2014

Out of Town Day

Since today was my birthday, John and I decided to take a road trip to Grand Forks for some shopping.  The snow of yesterday melted and we found the roadways to be clear and dry.  We arrived in town a little before lunch time, so our first stop was Culver's for something to eat. 

Following lunch we shopped at several different stores and slowly crossed the items we were looking for off our list.  Our grandson is getting married in July out in California so I need an outfit for the occassion.  Since the GF mall was nearby, we stopped in there so I could look at what the different stores had in the way of outfits I could use.  I found something I liked in the first store, tried it on, and bought it.  I'll still keep looking, but at least I have something I can wear if I don't find something I like more. 

Our original plan was to stop somewhere nice for supper, but neither of us was hungry enough for a big meal, so we stopped at DQ for some ice cream and will save the special dinner until we celebrate John's birthday next week.  

Thursday, April 24, 2014

Oh, No, Snow Again

Well, winter returned today.  Everyone here has been complaining about the cold weather and the snow today has really dampened everyone's spirits.  It was just plain miserable to be outside today.
On the bright side, however, the birds are returning and we have seen ducks on the pond along with a few geese.  At least the moisture will green up the grass.

When we were in Bemidji the other day, we purchased a new bird feeder and seed.  John put it up and today the birds began feeding. 




 John and I spent the morning doing some chores around the house and then, after lunch, he went to the dentist to see about the tooth he chipped off a couple of weeks ago.  While he was gone, I worked on cleaning out files in the office and then went up to Sara's for a haircut.  The rest of our day was spent hanging out around the house and hoping the snow melts away by tomorrow.

Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Couple of Busy Days

Tuesday morning we were up and out the door bright and early for my 8:30 a.m. doctor's appointment.  It was the usual check up with refilling perscriptions and blood work; however, he did give me a couple of steroid injections for the bursitis in my hip joints.  Since we didn't have time for breakfast, we stopped at Mc Donald's and then did some grocery shopping.  Our next stop was the accountant's  to sign our tax forms.  They weren't quite ready for us, so we told them we would take care of it in a few days when we were back in Bemidji.  Last night we were invited up to John and Jo's for supper where we spent the entire evening visiting with the kids and catching up on their winter.

When we returned home yesterday afternoon, there was a message on the answering machine from Pain Management.  They needed to change my Friday appointment as the doctor would be out of the office.  There was an opening this morning, so it was back to Bemidji once again today for a follow up regarding my back.  When that meeting was done, we headed back to the accountant and got the returns signed and on their way.  By now it was after lunch time, so we stopped at BK for a quick bite and then went on to Wal Mart and Home Depot.  The weather was on the nasty side this afternoon with cold temps, high winds, and rain, so we just hung out around the house for the rest of the day.



Monday, April 21, 2014

Home Again

We arrived home early Sunday afternoon and were so thankful to see that everything was okay with the house and shop buildings.  John and I got the car unloaded and after relaxing for a couple of hours, headed to Bemidji for supper and to pick up a few grocery items.  There was absolutely nothing to eat in the house.  On our way home we stopped in at Matt's and visited for an hour or so.

Matt dropped in this morning for a visit while he was waiting for Hanna to get done with her driver's training and weight lifting at the school.  While the guys talked, I got started on making some bread.  I did manage to get a couple of boxes emptied today while John ran into to the post office to pick up the mail that was held for the past week and to let them know they can begin delivery at the house again.  Tomorrow we will head out bright and early as I have an 8:30 a.m. doctor's appointment and then we'll visit the accountant and take care of a few other errands.  The rest of the unpacking will have to wait for a day or so.

Thursday, April 17, 2014

Relaxing Day

We had another beautiful day here in Gillette with sunny skies and cool temps.  This morning, with the kids off from school, we all went to the local library and then headed to Wal Mart for some grocery shopping.  This afternoon everyone went outside for some "lightning" basketball and when that was finished, Isaiah and I managed to squeeze in a game of Scrabble before supper. 




This evening we attended the Maundy Thursday service a Dave's church and then spent the remainder of the evening visiting.

Wednesday, April 16, 2014

Visiting Family in Gillete

Before leaving Cheyenne, WY on Tuesday morning, John and I took a little ride around town and decided to spend a couple of hours in the WY State Museum.  This covered the entire history of the state and was a first class museum--best of all, it was free.  Right across the street was the state capitol building.




After leaving the museum, we hit the road north up I-25.  We stopped for lunch at an Arby's in Douglas and then continued up route 59 into Gillette.  The weather here is still chilly, but at least there is no snow on the ground.

Today the boys had their final day of school before Easter break.  John and I spent the day visiting with Amy and Dave and pretty much caught up on what has been happening here in Wyoming.

Monday, April 14, 2014

Icey Roads in the Morning

Dumas, Texas had some light snow overnight, but the streets seemed clear in town.  As we drove further north out of town, the roads became covered in solid ice and we saw quite a few cars in the ditches.  John could only go about 25 mph and we considered turning back and waiting for the temps to warm up above freezing.  However, we persevered and continued northward.  Once we reached the Oklahoma state line, the roads improved and were completely clear in Colorado.  We reached Cheyenne, WY a little before 5 p.m., ate supper at an Outback right next to the hotel, took a little drive through the town, and then called it a night.  Tomorrow we plan to do a little touring in town before heading out for Gillette.

Sunday, April 13, 2014

On The Road

John and I left Brackettville around 7:15 a.m. and stopped at Mac Donald's in Del Rio for breakfast.  We hit some rain as we drove north, but soon the skies cleared and we had good roads all the way to Dumas, Texas.  The further north we drove, the cooler it got.  There is a winter storm in the Denver area and heading into the area we will be heading for tomorrow.  We'll have to wait and see how things are in the morning to determine if and when we can continue our trip to Wyoming.

Saturday, April 12, 2014

Packed Up and Ready to Leave

On Friday we played our last round of golf for the season and both John and I had a good round.  I made par on the final hole so I ended up on a high note.  The rest of our day was spent packing.

Today we gave the house a good cleaning and mopped all the floors.  Since we cleared out the fridge, we went to Burger and Shake for supper and then visited with Ralph and Gerald for a bit before heading home to load up the car.  We are planning to head to Wyoming before going to Minnesota, so we have been looking at what would be the best route to take.  It looks like we'll go via the Denver area.  Hopefully the winter weather will have moved on before we get there.  Our plan is to be on the road by 7 a.m. with our first stop in Dumas, Texas.

Thursday, April 10, 2014

Packing, Cleaning, and Golfing

Our weather has continued to be sunny and hot.  Today started off with temps cool enough for us to wear long sleeves when we took our morning walk.  Once the sun got above the horizen, the temps begin their climb with the high reaching into the 90's.

John and I have been playing golf everyday trying to squeeze in as much playing time as we can before we leave here.  This afternoon was couples' golf and we played with Wes and Shirley.  We all played a good round ending up three under par which earned us second place along with some prize money.  This evening we met up with Chuck and Lois Endris at Burger and Shake.  They are leaving Sunday so we wanted to have one last meal with them before they head out for Indiana.  

We have had a change of plans concerning our trip home.  John and I have decided to head to Wyoming to visit with Amy's family before heading to Minnesota.  We still plan to leave Sunday and should get to Gillette by Tuesday.  We'll stay there for three days and then head east to Minnesota.  Hopefully we'll have good roads and weather.

Tuesday, April 8, 2014

Another Beautiful Day

The morning was nice and cool when we left the house for our walk.  By the time we return to the house, the sun is above the horizen and the temps start on the rise.

Since this week promises to be on the warm side, John and I have decided to golf in the mornings.  John had made arrangements yesterday to play with Ralph and Wallace this morning.  When we got to the clubhouse, we saw John Carlson looking for someone to play with so we invited him to join us.  It took a little longer to play nine holes with five of us, but we eventualy got through the front part of the course.  With most of the Winter Texans gone, the course has been pretty empty.

Following lunch, John went with Lyle L. to help him install a new toilet for a friend who recently had back surgery and couldn't lift anything.  When he got home, we headed off to Del Rio to pick up some distilled water for the golf cart batteries and some weed killer for the driveway.  I have been wanting to eat at Gattis Pizza for a long time, so today we finally made it there and I must say we weren't disappointed in the meal we ate.

Our evening was spent watching "The Voice" and the women's NCAA final game.   

Monday, April 7, 2014

Quiet Day

It was a little on the cool side this morning when we took our usual walk so we were back to long pants and hooded sweatshirts.  Friends of ours purchased a house down the road from us and have been renovating it this winter.  Lyle and Ann were at the house when we walked by, so we decided to stop in and see what improvements had been made.  They have removed walls, added doors, and refurbished cabinets.  There is still quite a bit of work left to do, but it's going to be a very nice house when they get it done. 

After breakfast John was invited over to Wallace's to do some carving along with Betty and Chuck.  While he was gone, I got started on some laundry and did some more packing.  This afternoon John got the shed finished up and stored all the outside furniture inside.  Our To Do list is slowly growing smaller.  Since it was so nice this afternoon, we took a golf cart ride over to Unit 37 and visited with the Sandwick's and Ralph.  It's now less than a week before we head north.

Sunday, April 6, 2014

Lazy Saturday and Busy Sunday


Saturday was a rather lazy day for us.  The weather was cool and breezy when we left the house for our usual morning walk.  Following breakfast we went into town for some milk and a few other items we needed.  When we returned home we headed out for the golf course to play nine holes.  Driving was a little difficult due to the strong breeze, but we managed to have a decent round.  The rest of the day was spent sorting and getting more stuff packed up.

Today was our final Sunday here for this winter.  Following the church service, Sam and Leta asked us to join them for lunch.  We drove around the corner to Barbara's Table where we all ordered the special--roast beef.  It was absolutely delicious and we all were stuffed when finished eating.

John had made plans earlier in the morning to play a round of nine holes with John B. and Ralph R.  Ralph just turned 91 and wanted to be able to say he played golf at that age. 
As soon as we got home, we changed clothes and headed off to the clubhouse.  John B. is leaving on Wednesday, so this was his last round of golf this year as he has to load up his golf cart for the trip north to Wisconsin.


The two John's getting ready to tee off
 

Ralph still has it at 91
 

Carol getting ready to chip
 

John B. making his putt
 

Ralph, John and Carol

John and I had just walked in the door from golf when Amy called and said the kids wanted to Skype.  We spent the next hour hearing about their final grades for the semester and catching up on the family news.  Our evening was spent watching the women's NCAA semi-finals.  Only six more days before we head north.



Friday, April 4, 2014

Slightly Cooler Today

When we left the house for our walk this morning, the temp was 61 degrees, that was ten degrees cooler than yesterday.  The humidity of the last several days finally broke and it was very comfortable being outside.

Since the forecast was for highs in the 80's, John and I decided to golf this morning before it got too warm to be out on the course.  We played 18 holes instead of our usual nine and both had a decent round.  We were back home by mid-afternoon and ate a late lunch before John headed back out to the shed for more clearing out and I cleaned out the kitchen cabinets.  We are slowly checking off the jobs on our to do list.

Thursday, April 3, 2014

A Hot One Today

John and I were up early for our morning walk as we wanted to get it in before it got hot.  Fortunately, the sky was overcast this morning so it was fairly comfortable to be outside.  We started running the AC a couple of days ago as the humidty has been a little on the high side.

After breakfast John worked out in the shed getting it organized and making room to store the outdoor furniture for the summer.  He still has a little more to do before that job is done.  I started going through the canned goods and other food items to see what we can leave here.  I also started organizing the storage room in the house and getting some items packed for the trip home.

We had some activity out front the last couple of days.  There was a broken water valve and the water company had to dig down quite a few feet to replace it.  Our water was shut off for a couple of hours, but now all is well again.


 
This afternoon was couples' golf and boy was it hot.  The temps reached the upper 90's while we were out on the course.  We played with John and Theresa and, even though we ended up one over par, we came in second.  I think the heat took its toll on the golfers as all the scores were on the high side.  We have one more week here and then we'll be heading north.

Wednesday, April 2, 2014

Unexpected Rain

John and I were up right on time, got dressed in our walking clothes, opened the door to head out and discovered it was raining.  Where did that come from?  It wasn't in the forecast.  Needless to say, our walk was canceled.  We ate an earlier than normal breakfast and got ready for our day.

Wednesday is men's golf and, after keeping an eye on the sky, John decided it was going to be okay to play.  He headed down to the clubhouse where only one other person showed up--his golfing buddy, John B.  Even though the course was pretty wet, the two had a good time playing.  While John was busy with golf, I headed into town for a haircut and a stop at the post office to pick up the mail and to fill out a mail forwarding form.  Our mail will be sent to Bagley starting on April 14th.

The skys cleared off around noon and the temps and humidity started on the rise.  John had a dental appointment this afternoon in Uvalde.  The Rio Grand Electric Company is on our way, so we made a quick stop to arrange to have our power turned off for the summer.  John's time at the dentist was pretty short.  She just smoothed off the sharp point on the broken tooth and told him he will probably need a crown.  Since it would take two to three weeks to get that done, it was decided to just wait until we get home.

Our next stop was Wal Mart to gas up the car and since Applebee's was right across the street, we stopped in there for an early supper.  We made one more stop at HEB for a couple of grocery items and then hit the road home.

Since it was such a nice warm evening, we took a golf cart ride and ended up visiting with Chuck and Lois for an hour or so and then stopped in to see Ralph R. before heading back to our place. 

Tuesday, April 1, 2014

Weather Warming Up

The weather here is southwest Texas is starting to really warm up.  Today's highs reached into the 90's and more of the same is on tap to the next several days.  Our day started of overcast, but by noon the sun broke through and the it started to get hot.  There was a nice breeze all day which made it very comfortable in the shade.

Since it was going to be hot this afternoon, John and I headed off to play nine holes right after breakfast.  Our afternoon was spent taking care of a few chores--John washed the car and I did some laundry and packing.  This evening was the final RV potluck for the year.  Our numbers were way down as many folks pulled out yesterday and today.  We still had a delicious meal and played cards afterward.  John B. won our game of "31" and then we played two games of "Chase the Ace".  John won the first game and I won the second.  What a good way to end our season.

John broke off a back tooth yesterday while eating breakfast, so tomorrow afternoon will be a trip to the dentist for some stop-gap measures until we get home.

 

Roofing Being Done Everywhere!!

John and I have been keeping pretty busy over these last several weeks.  Our weather has turned quite warm, but the nights cool down very ni...