Housework, play practice, church, wisdom

Mama met with the painter yesterday morning. I went out for a few minutes just to get a kiss (which was no problem)and try one more time to set up the remote I purchased for the garage door (which has been a real problem).  After running through the sequence several times I was about to give up again but to my surprise the remote actually started to work. I have no idea what I did differently but I was happy with the result.

We also learned how to use the key pad on the front door deadbolt – it’s pretty neat. I will replace this unit with a new one as soon as the work being done by others is complete. At that time I will replace the locks and knobs to all the exterior doors and change the code for the keypad on the garage door opening system – just to be safe.

While Mama straightened out the painter on some final details, Grandpa unloaded fence posts and various other items they had brought to the property and Grandma sat in the sunroom on the little bench Mama had brought and read her Bible. I am assuming they were there a good while but I had to get back to work. We also discovered that the small unit stubbed into the sunroom is both an air conditioning unit and a heating unit. That will be nice.

This evening Mama and I are going to meet at the house and start some of the repairs/upgrades I need to have done in the master bath before the painter gets there. I am stripping out the old, very short vanities and putting in something taller and more to Mama’s liking. I should not have a problem getting the new vanities set today and tomorrow, but we will see.

I am taking tomorrow off as well as next week. There is little going on at work at the moment. With our boss leaving and the new boss not being in position quite yet, we are caught up on all the old initiatives and have not received instructions on the new ones. Since the holidays are upon us there is a lull that comes every year at this time. It is a perfect time to take some time off.

After Mama and I work at the house for a while tonight we will have to get back to the church for another play practice. We had a good time Tuesday night and were able to come up with the sequence of the scene and the rough approximation of the lines we will be saying. Tonight, we will refine those further.

We had a great service at church last night. It is a joy to be a part of a good church. The pastor preached about wisdom and its various parts, learning, knowledge, understanding, discernment and seeking Godly counsel. We need that so much; especially discernment and Godly counsel.

It served as a reminder to me that at those times I think I have the answer, I generally need to be asking better questions – ensuring that my pride and trust in my own intellect do not keep me from seeking God’s instruction. He has the answer for every question I ask. I just need to ask rather than assume I know the answer.

In many situations I can always fall back on the instruction my father gave me years ago: if you need an answer right now, the answer is NO.

Mama’s life, coordinating contractors, projects

Mama’s life is about to get much busier. She, Grandma and Grandpa spent the entire day on the road yesterday – most of it in north Dallas, getting items we ordered or found online for purchase and pick up. I met them at the house at about 4:40pm and I helped Grandpa unload the gas range they had picked up in their circuit through Dallas.

Grandpa and Grandma headed back to the farm as soon as we were unloaded while Mama and I headed to downtown Chico to check it out. It turned out to be a very cute little town square with a park, a large playground and a small outdoor theatre. There is a Post Office an auto parts store, a well-known hardware store and a florist shop around the square. There are several other smaller shops as well as a tea room in the mix of businesses. All of this is only four miles from the house.

Today Mama has to meet the painter at the house so he can get started on the ceiling work. I think she is going to meet with the lady doing the flooring but that work cannot start for several days yet. Tonight is church. Tomorrow night is play practice and Friday night is RU. Not much home time for us in the next several weeks.

Play practice actually started last night. So after Mama and I went to Chico to look around and try out the Mexican restaurant there we headed to Decatur to talk to the people at the AT&T store about internet options – no luck with that. We went to Starbucks for some hot tea and on to the church for practice.That is kind of how our evenings will be going for the next few weeks.

As far as the move is concerned, we can move some things into the garage of the house in Chico but we are very limited on the furniture items we can take to the house until the flooring is completed. The painting will not hold us up too much because the painter said he would be done by Saturday. We have not heard an end date from the flooring people.

Mama and I are hoping to be able to set up our bedroom at the house by Thanksgiving but we have not cleared that up with those working on the house. It would work out pretty well for me since I am off all next week. I am thinking about taking Friday off also but I have not rearranged my schedule to make that possible yet.

At some point in the very near future I am going to have to start building structures at the new property. Until this point I did not fully realize how beneficial it has been to have all the buildings in place at the farm in Bowie. There we already had a barn, several out buildings and a chicken coop.

At Chico we have a fair sized barn but nothing else as far as animal related structures. So I have to build a chicken coop, a hog building and a working barn – versus an open shed-style barn. I suppose that is part of the fun and since there is no real urgency we are going to have fun doing those things.

At some point I will probably build a shop building, but that is a ways off.

Meeting at our house, planning, car issues, Dallas bound(?)

Mama and I met at the house in Chico yesterday evening. I got the keys and one garage door remote from the title company late in the afternoon and Mama was chomping at the bit to get to the house and open it for ourselves. She picked up Victoria on the way and the two of them got there very quickly after I arrived. They brought a skunk smell with them. Man, was it powerful.

We have noticed a strong skunk smell at the Chico house the last several times we have gone there but were never quite sure where it was originating. Yesterday, as Mama and Victoria drove up the county road to the house, she got the impression that a skunk sprayed the truck as they passed. I would not be able to argue with her based on the power of the odor when she arrived.

After sorting out the keys we were given and failing to get the remote I bought programmed properly, we headed home – at least I did. Mama and Victoria went from the house to the local Sherman Williams dealer. I have not learned yet who that is, but they were able to cross reference all the colors Mama had picked out from another paint swatch so the painter can get the right colors per the selections Mama has made.

Painting has always been a challenge with Mama because she likes a large amount of variation from room to room. We have always ended up buying two gallons of six different colors rather than five gallons of two different colors. The end result is a lot of gallon cans with a little bit of paint left in them.

That in itself is not bad. It is trying to match the color several years down the road that has presented the biggest challenge; or trying to touch up one patch of wall only to have the color come our slightly different from the rest of the wall and not having enough volume of paint to do the entire wall. Still, amid the variations in color throughout the house, it always comes out looking good to her.

Grandpa is going to look at the little van this morning because I noticed it leaking transmission fluid at the front of the engine yesterday when I stopped to open the gates at the Chico house. That usually means a loose or cracked transmission cooler line, but I did not have enough light to diagnose it yesterday evening.

Depending on how that turns out, Mama and Grandpa will leave this fairly early this morning for Dallas to pick up my oil and to get the gas range we have been negotiating on. I told Grandpa that if the little van needs to go to the mechanic they should drop it off on their way out of town. If it is an easy repair, that is all the better.

Mama is not sure about making the trip today to get the gas stove from the guy selling it. I do not know if it is only the time on the road, her fear of Dallas traffic, or thinking something is amiss with the seller, but she is a little reluctant to go today. She asked me last night if I was going to the extra effort and expense of putting in a gas stove just to make her happy.

Well, duh!

Weather woes, moving, busy times ahead

Mama and I got to sign all of our paperwork on Friday afternoon so our portion for our purchase of the house and property in Chico was complete. We are waiting on the sellers to do their part so we can get the transfer of property into our name.

It did not stop us from going out on Saturday afternoon to clear out around the gates on the property. We should be able to take possession of the property this evening. The seller’s realtor is working to get the keys, garage door remotes and other related items to us right after their closing. That is scheduled for 4 pm.

Grandma went with us to start the clean up and walked over the property planning where she was going to build her garage apartment so she could have enough trees around her to feel like she was in the woods. I was getting a little bothered until I asked Grandpa what she was talking about. “She’s just talking. Don’t pay any attention.”

I suppose that is the way he has always handled it. So I just let her keep talking. Grandpa is very anxious to get started moving our farm implements to the new property and getting that few acres set up for our smaller operation. I am relieved he is so excited about the move. He will save me a lot of hours of labor related to the move and allow me to concentrate on Mama’s move- in projects.

Mama and I had a challenging drive home from church last night. It had gotten very cold through the day and some freezing rain actually made it to our area. It made the roads very slick in places and we passed by four wrecks on our side of the road. There were two accidents on the other side of the road. Mama was pretty tense for the entire hour it took us to get home…but we did make it safely. One of the young ladies at the church said to Mama last night, “You are not going to miss that drive, are you?” Well, no.

 I was not anxious to get back on those roads this morning so I slept in and left after the roads were clear. Even at that I still ran over some icy patches between our farm and Bowie. After I got to Bowie the roads were clear.

Mama and Grandpa did not go to Dallas today. She is going to make that trip tomorrow even though we got assigned play practice that evening. It will be a long day for her. I suppose mine will not be any shorter since I have an eye exam that afternoon after work. Both of us will get home that evening and have to head right back to Decatur.

I suppose it has something to do with the time of year we are getting into - the Holidays; Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s. Every year seems to be busy at those times. When you add to that the move we are making and all the purchases, repairs and upgrades required to make that happen, it fills an already full schedule.

I keep telling myself, this is going to be fun.

Maybe today, Allie, health report

Mama got a call from our realtor yesterday evening with good news. The bank had contacted her and let her know that they may be ready for us to close by 3 pm Friday – today. We will have to wait to see how that turns out but it is very encouraging. At the very least, if we do not get things done this afternoon we will be able to close on Monday. Flooring and painting can be done through next week and Mama and I can begin to really move in the week of Thanksgiving.

Grandpa is anxious to begin migrating our farm equipment to the Chico farm. Once he gets the tractor on that property he can get to work cleaning up the buildings and land. That is a fairly large project albeit not nearly what we ran into on the farm in Bowie when we first moved there.

Yesterday evening I was out in the cold wind replacing a headlight in the Uplander. I broke two nails and punctured the skin on two fingers and my right thumb. I think I could conservatively say that I made ten trips into the shop for tools, rags and cloths. Mama reminded me that it would be nice to have a garage to do such things in – tools handy, doors shut to the wind, a concrete floor, plenty of light. Yeah, I could get used to that.

Allie seems to be doing well with the pups. Feeding her a few bites of cheese worked in getting her appetite going. She eventually ate a fair amount of her dog food and drank a considerable amount of water. So Mama is a little less worried about her overall. There is still some concern about her continuing to provide enough milk for all the pups but we will let nature take its course and only intervene as needed.

One of the pigs is in heat but thankfully Mama does not want to breed them. I am not sure how long that will remain off of her radar but I am a little relieved that we are not dealing with that breeding program for now. I cannot imagine how she would seek to keep newborn piglets safe from the cold. No, wait! Yes I can!

Maggie is still struggling with the lingering effects of strep throat. In the past it has been a difficult infection for her to deal with. If I remember correctly, one New Jersey winter, she and Chase had strep at the same time and we were combating the effects for several weeks before things got significantly better. Continue to pray for her that she will be a good “sick mommy” patient.

After continuing to feel the effects of whatever I was sickened by last weekend I am finally better. I am still not 100% but I am close – at least as far as what 100% is relevant to my current age and overall health. I am still not sure what I was dealing with - and the list of potential causes is impressive depending on who you talk to – but it proved to be less serious than Mama, Grandma and several other health care un-professionals were trying to make it.

Grandpa is on the mend. His blood pressure was hovering at 205 over 165 for a week or more. After seeing the doctor he is on a blood pressure medication that has reduced it to levels his body is comfortable with. One of the most helpful outcomes is that he and Grandma realize they need to change their diet significantly; less salt, less fat (lard), less coffee and coke. Contrary to what they may now think, there are still plenty of food choices remaining

Please continue to pray about a place for Grandma and Grandpa.

Update: Closing is today at 3 pm. Mama is ecstatic!

Puppies, cold air, cow talk, closing soon(?)

Allie finally finished delivering her sixth and last pup at 9 a.m. All the little ones seem to be doing fine but Mama is worried about the little mama; she has not eaten since she delivered the pups. I am hoping her natural survival instincts prevail today and she can disassociate herself from the pups long enough the nourish herself. If that becomes an issue, it will be a very long six weeks. I suggested that Mama give her a couple bites of cheese to spark her appetite. Maybe we can get her interested in eating – although we may never get her filled out while she is nursing this litter.

Mama was going to run to Dallas with Grandpa to get my Amsoil order and to pick up a gas range she has a lead on but now that the neonatal unit is open at the farm she does not want to risk leaving her 3 ounce charges unsupervised. I believe the sextuplets will do fine for a few hours but we will have to get them through the first several days before any reasonable assurances can be made concerning their viability.

When I got up this morning the outside temperature was 21®F That’s cold anywhere but it is very cold for this time of year in this part of the continental United States. It is supposed to remain very cold through the weekend, finally approaching normal temperatures by the early part of next week. It has put a damper on our outside activities for the moment. It is not so much the cold that is difficult to deal with, it is the brutal winds that have accompanied it.

The special needs young man at our church, Andrew, that Mama and I have picked up on our way to church in the past was questioning Mama last night as to whether we would still be able to pick him up if needed – since we were moving. I teased him a good bit about how much it was going to cost him now that we would have to go a different way to church just to pick him up. His dad and I had some fun with it but I thought it was cute that he was concerned about losing the option of having our help with that part of his life.

Andrew’s dad and I also talked about the cost of cattle. They have two nurse cows and he was looking to buy three bottle babies but he set a limit of $585 per head to the buyers. He did not get any calves at the sale Tuesday for that price. Even for beef bottle calves that price is out of sight.

On the other hand it verifies the price Mama and I were quoted on some bred heifers that are registered Aberdeen Angus. Grandpa had always been interested in that particular breed and after some study, I have adopted that interest. It will be expensive to start with them but in the long run it would be advantageous to have some quality, registered bulls to have for sale.

We got word from the bank yesterday that they would not be able to close this Friday but I would not be surprised if the closing happened very early next week. Mama and I are ready. The painting and flooring people are ready. Grandpa is ready. Once we get the keys we will be off and running.

Continue to pray for Maggie as she battles strep throat early in this pregnancy. Pray especially hard for Aaron.

Return trips, new arrivals, more running, negotiating

When I got the office this morning I realized I had left my computer at home. So I have spent the last two hours driving to and from the office; not the way I had planned on spending the morning. I got to the office the first time at about a quarter to 6. It took about an hour and twenty minutes to make the round trip to home and back to the office. It really makes the need to be closer that much more obvious –and since, at our new place, we do not lose on privacy or quiet it is a big win for me and Mama.

Mama called me almost at the same time I got back to the office to tell me that Allie has had her pups – four of them. Two are the silver dapple and two are black. It is interesting how it worked out because I let her out to go potty at just after 5 a.m. and was a little worried about getting her back into the apartment. To my relief, she was almost immediately ready to be let back in – I could see her looking into the apartment through the front door.

Since the outside temperature was about 23®F this morning she was not interested in lingering out there. So somewhere in between my original trip to the office and my return to the office after getting my computer, Allie had all her pups. Mama and Victoria are relieved and very excited.

Mama has been trying to soften me up and talk me into keeping one of the pups. I already have three inside dog and two large outside dogs. I do not need or want another dog. I have a hard time getting Mama to remember that we plan to travel and having this kind of menagerie to take care of only complicates the issues that normally arise when away from home. Time will tell – but if Allie is a pre-replacement for Rosie, what will the reasoning be for adding a new dog to the list of moochers I am already supporting?

There is a possibility that Grandpa and Mama will go to Dallas tomorrow to pick up an order I am making for Amsoil and to purchase a gas range we have been shopping for to be installed in the Chico house. We have not completely settled on the timing but if it has to wait on me to do the running it will not get done until Saturday at the earliest.

We have also found a wood burning stove I can use as an insert into the fireplace at the Chico house so we can heat the house with the abundance of wood we have available at the new property. Grandpa and I have identified ten dead or nearly dead oak trees that can be used as firewood this year and there are twelve or so trees near the house that need to be removed – all of which can be firewood for many winters to come. I think we would be justified in getting a decent insert for that use.

We are no closer to having the closing date moved up but Mama and I are working with the bank to get that done. I think Mama is okay with the idea of not having Thanksgiving at the new house, but it would be her strong preference to do so.

For me, the sooner the better.

The weekend and beyond

Mama and I had an interesting weekend. We spend Saturday morning at the church for a box car derby. It was a far bigger event than I had imagined. Mama and Erin Echeveria ran the kitchen for a breakfast fundraiser and I helped Sam Echeveria with the actual running of the cars. There were probably eighty people from the church and Christian school there for the contest.

A total of thirty four cars ran in the competition. With double elimination and then the races by age group it looked like it was going to be a good while to complete all the required races. We did not stay to see who won any of the classifications because we had other appointments to make that day but even leaving early we were there from 8:30 to 11:30. I would not be surprised to hear that everyone was there until after two o’clock.

We went to Trade Days after we left the church and spent about two hours there. We found a couple pretty good deals and visited with our usual contacts there. By the time we got home I was starting to feel badly. I spent the next two and a half days moving from the bed to the recliner to the bathroom – repeat sequence ad nausium. Mama was not in much better shape so we both missed church on Sunday. I stayed home Monday also.

I have to admit there were ulterior motives for staying out of work on Monday. Mama had scheduled for several people to meet us at the house that morning. One of the people was a painter and the other was someone who had done the flooring for a friend of ours at church. Both of them seemed like very good choices.

We got an estimate on the spot from the guy doing the painting and ceiling repairs and it was lower than I expected. We still have not gotten the estimate from the lady who will be doing the flooring but with what Mama picked out I am confident it will not be over the estimate I have in mind.

I was feeling pretty bad but I am glad we got to spend the time with each of them and that both of them will coordinate the work they need to do so that they do not end up tripping over each other or damaging the work done by either of their crews. It really is a good amount of work and having them do it will save me months of labor and frustration.

There is still some uncertainty in when we will be able to close. The bank has the date of the 25^th on all their paperwork and they have had no reason to think differently. Mama talked to the ladies gathering the required paperwork and let them know that we would like to close this Friday.

I am not sure that will happen but it would be nice to get the painting and flooring done the week prior to Thanksgiving so we could entertain there for that holiday. Regardless, we will have a great time with whomever we have joining us for the big meal at whatever location we have to use to share it with them.

Makaila and Mama are conspiring to do something to the cabinets in the house over the weekend following Thanksgiving but it should not interfere with the festivities – regardless of where we have dinner.

Out of town, housing, Chase and Makaila, Mykenzie

Having been out of town for the past few days I have not taken the time to make any updates – and it is not as though there have not been noteworthy things happening in our lives – it is strictly a matter of finding the time to jot some notes down. Getting back to the hotel after dark every night takes the drive out of me just enough that I did not have the focus or energy to sit back down at the computer to put my thoughts in print. Plus, I do not enjoy doing such activities on my laptop. I prefer a keyboard.

Mama and I are making very good headway on getting the loan for the house. I do not see any major hurdles I getting the loan approved by the end of next week, but we are still not sure if a new survey will be required by the lender. I have a few papers to get scanned and sent to the lender as well. I have had the majority of the paperwork in hand since Tuesday but there were pieces of information at home that I needed to complete the file so I will get it all sent off this morning.

Mama was at the house yesterday with Grandpa and Grandma so she could take some photos of the cabinets and spend some time dreaming about flooring and such and while they were there the appraiser requested by our lender showed up. Mama had a very delightful chat with hi. His assessment of the property value should be at the bank today.

We are still at a loss as to what housing to provide to Grandpa and Grandma but I get the very distinct impression that they do not want to occupy the spare bedroom at our new address. They are going to look at a place with Mama today but I am not sold the location or the price. We need to do something to provide a place for them to live but I do not think there is any urgency in it. I would like to have the peace about it that I do about the purchase of our home and property.

I got to visit briefly with Chase and Makaila in their new location – a town house in Amarillo. It is a pretty good setting for a young couple with their habits – early to bed and early to rise. They are surrounded by people who are Mama’s and my seniors. Parking is at a premium on the little strip of street where they live but everyone seems to be able to work out the issue amicably.

They do have a concerned citizen watching over them – every move they make. That can be good or bad depending on your tolerance levels at any given moment. For the moment they seem to be doing very well in spite of the undesired supervision.

Cori told me the other day that Mykenzie asked her if the inside bend of her elbow was the crotch of her arm. It makes you wonder what she has been hearing but in the world we live in today where there are fewer and fewer safeguards for what our children are exposed to I am glad what she is trying to figure out is as innocent as that.

The humor in the question belies the extent to which Cori and Nate have gone to guard her little ears.