May 28: Just Had to Share

Forgot to share this fun happening.  I love sharing new ideas with my father-in-law.  This trip I shared "Angry Birds" on the Nook Color.  He got so involved with it that at times that he just did not even seem to hear us.  We decided that we wanted to provide him some stress relief as he is going through this moving process, so we added more games to the Nook Color and left it for his use, and then we purchased a Nook Tablet to replace it.  It is truly a win/win for all of us.

Clouds and the Sky Fascinate Me

As we drove today, we saw a number of intriguing cloud formations.

Traveling Across South Dakota

As I have said, we traveled across the state to assist my father-in-law. We took lots of photos from the truck windows. Thought I would share some of the better ones --- The weather was not great so the windows were not always spot-free.  South Dakota is such a beautiful state with so many different landscapes.  Hopefully, our next trip we can better photos.

Looking east across the Missouri River from Al's Oasis

 The next group is looking west as we travelled past the Badlands and on toward the Black Hills.

On Saturday, we took a break and drove up to Hill City.  We went to the Prairie Berry Winery and had lunch in town.  It was one of those days when it was misting most of the day.

On the way back to Sioux Falls, the weather was still cool, but the drive was pleasant.

May 28: Home Again

We spent the last week helping my father-in-law prepare for the move to our house. In many cases I left the choices to  Kevin and his dad, but I did pack up a number of pots and pans.  Dad loves to bake.  He is not making the move here until next month, but we spent a week sorting through and deciding what he wanted to bring to the house.  It was interesting to hear his stories and look through all the treasures.  Can't get my head around living in the same place for more than a few years, he has not moved for 16 years, and 80 years of living does tend to mean there all kinds of possibilities for accumulating.  lol

We are back home with the truck and trailer and have unloaded the boxes and pieces of furniture.  We are not unpacking his treasures until he arrives.  As we discussed, he has a lot of years to get it all settled. 

For the next few weeks we are going to be work at getting our own things settled and work on developing a real routine.  I have fabric that is calling to me and wood that needs to be carved.  What more can a girl require?  Life is GOOD!

May 25: Where Have I Gone Again?

We are on the road helping my father-in-law pack up to move in with us. My nephew is house sitting for us so that makes it easier for us. We are so busy with boxes and stuff, but we are having a great time with all the memories. Life is GOOD!

May 19: Plan of the Day

Last night, we spent a very enjoyable evening sitting around our friends' fire pit and just renewing our friendships.  Then this morning we decided we would sleep in a bit before getting started on the next projects.  In order to do these projects, we again made a trip into Sioux Falls (not really a long drive but always means spending money). 

Before heading out, we finished the last of the laundry, now that the washer is in good working order, again.  We discovered that a screen needed to be repaired (It was repaired at ACE and is back in the window already.)  We also figured out how to put the screens into the storm doors, so we have a very nice breeze coming through the house. 

After returning from our errands we unloaded the car and had lunch,and then we started on my project.   Here are a few shots of what it looked like when we went down into the studio after lunch.  Horror of Horrors, what a mess!  BUT I see the big picture in my head and am hoping that it comes out just like I have envisioned it.

This is how the entrance to the studio looked
when we headed down to the space to start
working this afternoon.

Once in the studio this is the next mess you
could see.



As you continued  to look right you can see even more mess,
but there is also the promise of organization starting to happen.

Here is the man in charge of making the wall cabinets functional.
The countertops will not go on until June, but I can start filling them.
Once that is finished, he will be building shelves in the triangular
sloped nook.

As you can see, we are really starting to set up myquilt studio.  Actually, I am taking a break while Kevin finishes rearranging and installing two more shelves for my quilting books, sketchbooks, DVDs, and patterns.  Tha tnook space just is not big enough for the two of us to work in it at one time, and we decided that once  he has the shelves done, he will be free to go work in the wood shop while I arrange books and fabric to my heart's content.

Life is GOOD!

May 19: What Was Accomplished Yesterday

I can honestly say that there are many spaces that have been put together. With the exception of  adjusting the sheers, hanging pictures and the big mirror, and locating a few of Kevin's wood
turnings, I think the kitchen and living rooms are finished enough to entertain.  Life is GOOD!


Living room from the upper landing. (Sheers need adjusting, but
will have to wait until I can get to my machine.)

Picture needs to be hung and the other table runner needs to be
 found.  I plan to plant an ivy in mom's swan once we are a little
more settled.

Look, I even have a plant.  That is a sign that this
is a more permanent address!

We can only fit one table into the floor plan.  We took out the leaves
until we have extras for dinner.  The wall with words needs to be
repainted.  The big mirror will hang right where the words are and
 will making this feel like a bigger room and also reminding everyone
 that a smile improves everything.

The cookbooks are so happy to be back on their
shelf.  I have already spotted a few meals that I
want to make very soon.

I .

May 18: Happy Birthday Jim

My brother turns 60 today.  I made him a lap quilt with homespun plaids and had planned to show him with it today.  Alas, with all the unpacking and shuffling of things I can't locate the thumb drive with the photos.  I gifted him with it in March because I did not know where I would be today.  No matter.....Happy Birthday, Big Brother!

Life is GOOD!

May 17: Working on the Woodshop

We have done all the paperwork and written the checks for the permits, etc., to become a custom woodworking shop, but we have to wait for county approval for the actual conditional use permit before we can actually start operating as a business (June 25th). Therefore, Kevin has plenty of time to work on setting up the shop and doing some of our personal building like shelves and such while I work on other spaces in the house. Today is Kevin's first day of sorting through what is actually there. Our nephews Sam and Colin helped us haul the wood purchased in Vermont, boxes, and machines into the space. Kevin and I purchased and  moved in most of the materials that will be used for building shelves and tables.(My carving gloves came in very useful! - NO SLIVERS for me!)  Now he is sorting through and working out how he wants to arrange things. Once he tells me what space is for my carving area, I have free reign in its design.  Later today I will go down and help hang some 4x8 sheets of sheathing materials on the wall so he can mount a few things. I am great at "holding".  Life is GOOD!

May 17: Meet My Neighbors to the North

I am certain that from time to time you will have more opportunities to meet my neigh-neigh-neighbors.  Sometimes they come right up for a visit and other times they just kind of nod and carry on.  Today they seemed rather distant, but we have not known each other for long, so I guess I can appreciate the fact that they are not always ready to visit over the back fence.  Life is GOOD!

May 16: Worker Bee

Today has been an unpacking and organizing day.  We working in the 30x30 garage getting ready for parking the cars, etc.  We also decided that we would take an 8x12 space and create a workout space for the two of us.  We are not looking for a full blown gym, but we do need to have a place for my recumbent bike, weights, stretching, and maybe some wall weights with pulleys.  We are going to mark the area but leave creating the actual raised floor and such until we have the quilt studio, wood shop, and the main areas of the house pulled together.  (After all, we are getting quite the workout with the moving in and organizing.)

Occasionally we see a plane heading out or in to the local airport.  I don't think we are in the flight path for them.  However, we are in the flight path of the blasted white-washing birds.  For some reason they seem to fly right over the driveway where my dark blue car is parked and leave their calling cards.  What is up with that?

May 15: South Dakota Here We Are

We arrived in South Dakota on the evening of May 6th.  We settled in at the hotel and plotted out what we thought we were going to do for the week.  Then we woke on May 7th to a completely different version of our plans.  The movers were not to deliver our household goods until today, May 15th, but apparently there were crossed messages.  We also thought we were supposed to do the walk-through on our house, but that needed to be put off until Tuesday.  That was fine with us because we could then spend time just looking around our old stomping grounds and getting familiar with all the changes that had taken place of our 31 year absence.
Because of the confusion of our plans we chose to stay in a hotel rather than to ask for lodging with family or friends.  We had very pleasant supper and visit with my sister Wendy's family on Monday.  Tuesday we did the walk through, met with the banker.  We also took time to celebrate my 59th birthday.

On Wednesday we started with the closing on our house.  While we were there, we talked about the odd things that had happened after some closings.   One thing that we discussed was that just once our realtor's client discovered the mailbox missing.  GUESS WHAT WAS MISSING AT OUR NEW HOUSE?  I ask you, who takes a ratty old mailbox?  Fortunately my sister Becky and her husband delivered a mailbox as a housewarming gift.


At 1:00 the mover showed up with his truck and our household goods.  It was amazing to watch this young man maneuver his semi up our driveway with its twisty path.  He and a crew of 3 others unloaded all the boxes and furniture and did some of the unpacking.  They worked well together and finished their part of the task in about 5 hours. Then the real "fun" began.  Below are two shots taken in two of our garages.  The house was so full of boxes and furniture that we could not have any others brought inside. 

 Believe it or not, we had already started the process of downsizing before me moved from Minnesota to Vermont last July.  We have purchased a smaller home with a perfect outbuilding for our custom woodworking business.   Added to that, my father-in-law is going to come and live with us so he will need to have some of his own space as well. I guess, now we will have to make more decisions about what to keep and what to let go.  (Having lived in Vermont with a minimal amount of things will make this an easier task, but it will take time.)

Thursday and Friday, we had the help off two of our strong nephews when we went to unload our storage units.  It was a delightful time getting better acquainted with these young men.  On Thursday night my sister Becky and her husband helped us with more of the unpacking.  This family help was quite an unusual happening from our perspective simply because we have made repeated moves with the Navy to locations where we have known no one.  Sure does make the experience more fun!


Opening more boxes and searching for the key for our curio cabinet took up most of the weekend. We did spend a little time removing the bar in my studio.  Did not really take the parts out as much as reconfigured the space.  The cabinets were bolted and glued into place on the concrete floor.   It only took 5 metal cutting disks and my Dremel to remove the bolts.  The studio is not my first priority this week, so I don't think I will be down there doing much, but it is nice to know that Kevin made this task a priority of sorts.

Yesterday we traveled to Minnesota to bring back our pontoon boat that has been in storage for almost a year.  We had dinner with Navy friends on Monday and breakfast with a quilting friend and her husband today.  Loved having time to visit with good friends.

Tonight we sat rocking on the front porch and just enjoyed some down time.  Life is GOOD!

May 11: Another Adventure

We have arrived in South Dakota and are truly excited about all that is ahead for us.  Soon I will be back to blogging on a very regular basis.  I have to finish up some thoughts on my Vermont adventure blog but should be up and running with this one by Wednesday, May 16th.

Life is good1