I'm Back................

Doesn't seem like it's been almost a month since my last post. We went on vacation to South Carolina for ten days. When we got back, Fraidy Cat was gone. We had a great time and really hot weather. While we were coming through Kentucky, it was neat to see the tobacco hanging in the barns to dry, I will post a couple pictures I took. After we got back, Keith & Gary worked on the building. They got 8 of the trusses up last Sunday. All the block work is done. When they get the roof done, all that is left is the window and doors. I'll post a picture of them putting up trusses. As Keith has so many auctions, his time to work on the building is limited. I hope we get the roof on before snow.

When we got back, we went to Christy's grandparents 60th wedding celebration. I will post a picture of Christy's family there.

I went to Salt Fork State Park last week for three days of Public Finance Training. I have received my Certified Public Finance Administrator designation. I have to go to Deer Creek State Park for three days of software training week after next.

Keith is keeping really busy with auctions. This month he has had auctions on the 1st, two on the 3rd, 4th, 6th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 13th, 15th, 16th, 18th, 20th, 22nd, two on the 23rd, 25th, 27th and the 29th. That's a lot of auctions. That makes 20 auctions in 31 days and getting ready for the auctions on the days in between. Tonight he is in Michigan. He left this morning and is getting the auction ready for tomorrow.

Tomorrow I am keeping the kids so Kurt and Christy can go out to celebrate their 13th wedding anniversary. While I have them I am taking them to get their pictures taken. Keith and I will celebrate our 37th anniversary on the 18th. (Well we won't really celebrate that night as he has an auction at 6 p..m.)

Fraidy Cat

Yesterday when I went out to my car to leave for work I could hear a cat or kitten that really sounded forlorn. I just couldn't tell where the sound was coming from at first. Keith came out and found it. He was laying on one of our chairs on the front porch. I tried to approach him, but he wanted nothing to do with me. So I left for work. When I got home, Keith told me he had fed it some milk and a smoky link. Didn't know cats liked smoky links, but apparently they do. He was there again this morning, and Keith fed him again. He just was really spooked and didn't want anyone close to him. During the day, Keith was working on the building, putting the sill on to set the trusses on, and I would talk to the kitten, but he still did not want me close. After several tries, he let me pet him and the way he acted he had never been petted before. But soon he had his engine running (really purring). When I tried to walk away from him he just kept getting under foot and did not want me to leave him. He has a really plaintive cry. Maybe he will stay around for awhile. So I told Keith I named him Fraidy Cat. Took a couple pictures of course.

Wild Turkeys.

Yesterday when I looked out the kitchen window there were six wild turkeys within 30 to 35 feet of the house. I got my camera and thought I turned off the flash - Not!! So when I took the picture though the window it startled them. So I thought "Oh well, I'll step out the back door and take their picture." They can really run fast and they were out of camera range before I could get a picture. I was surprised at how long their beards were. They almost hit the ground. They were all tom turkeys. They were out on the other side of the pond most of the day. Today they are back and I have been watching them with the binoculars. It is so neat when they spread their feathers out. Too bad there is no hunting season of wild turkeys up here except in the Spring. They are really good sized.

Happy Birthday Times Three!

Saturday we celebrated Sarah's (July 11), Kevin's (July 24) and Christy's (September 7) Birthdays. I baked three cakes and we had burgers, hot dogs, salads, etc. Kurt, Christy, Kraig, Casey, Chloe, Cayla, Grandma Engler, Grandma Whitman and Uncle Denny all came and helped us celebrate. Kurt and Christy gave Kevin and Sarah tickets to the Kruse Auction at the Auburn Cord Duesenburg Days so they went Saturday night. Sunday Keith, Kevin, Sarah and I went over to Auburn to see what was up on the square. There were booths with crafts, etc. and the bronze statues. I will post pictures of the birthday kids with their cakes and some pictures of the bronze statues. In one Kevin is trying to share their ice cream cone. I bought a cuckoo clock at an auction and will also post a picture of the kids waiting on the cuckoo to come out at noon. We had a great weekend with our family.

Hare today-gone tomorrow.

Well, now I know why that rabbit in my last post let me get so close to her. After we had the lawn mowed, you could see that she had been setting on a nest. I will post a picture taken on the 1st of the nest and if you look close you can see her babies. The next picture was taken on the 3rd and they are out of the nest but still staying close. They were not afraid of me at all. But on the 4th, they were gone.

Update

Christy won a contest on Froggy radio and won tickets to a Poison concert in Indianapolis last week, so we got to keep the kids overnight. It was fun. I will post pictures of the kids and a bunny we watched in the yard. Gary and Keith have been working on the building. I will post a picture or two I took tonight when I got home from work. The have two and a half walls done! Gary is coming back in the morning and they will work some more on it. Tonight there was a hummingbird in the garage for quite awhile. We couldn't get him to go out. I have a picture of him on the ceiling fan in the garage. We watched six deer (two fawns) playing in the back yard Sunday. It was so neat! Looking forward to company for the Labor Day Weekend. More later.

Wild Turkeys.

This morning we had several wild turkeys in the back yard. We have been watching one lone tom turkey almost every morning between the pond and the woods. This morning when Keith told me they were in the back yard, I took a picture through the living room window. You can see my clothesline. It did rain last night and early this morning. They later moved into the woods and then came out again between the woods and the ponds. If you click on the picture to enlarge it you can see them better. Some of you may never have seen wild turkeys, but at our old house we used to have large flocks. (We counted up to 80 one time) in our riverbottom.

Now We Have Scaffolding!

Keith & Gary put the scaffolding up this morning. They have been working since around 7 a.m. It is now 5:20 and they are still working. It is cool and overcast so it is much more comfortable to be working than it has been. I went out and took some pictures of the progress so I will post them.

More Progress on the Building

Gary came Friday night and he and Keith laid the corner blocks. Saturday they started at 6:30 am laying blocks and worked until 4 p.m. The block on the pond side of the building are up to my chin on the north corner. Today (Sunday) Keith is out cutting blocks. He started at 6 am. He has to cut 100 blocks. Some in half and some just the ends off. Obviously I don't know anything about laying blocks. Some are starter blocks I heard them say. Last I went out to check, he was half done. Anyway he has to get done today as they have to take the saw back tomorrow. Gary can't come Monday night and Keith has an auction Tuesday night but I think Gary is coming. This building project is taking at lot longer than expected as Gary got called back to work and can only come after he is done working. I don't know how they lift those block around as they each weigh 55 pounds. I am glad I'm a girl and they don't ask me for help!!!

The pictures are from the bottom up - Gary Friday night making sure everything is level in the corners. Keith mixing the mortar (He is the tender). Keith cutting block on Sunday, Gary laying block on Saturday. A couple views I took of the progress this morning from the pond side of the building. My roast is smelling pretty good in the oven, time to throw in some vegetables and clean the sweet corn - Yum!

A Weekend of Firsts

Well, I drove by myself down to Kevin and Sarah's in Cincinnati. That was a first! I ate sushi, that was a first! and I tried edamame, that was a first! Three firsts and all on Friday!!

I had a great time at Kevin and Sarah's this weekend. Really felt right at home. Gilmore was my buddy, he sat beside me on the love seat. He let me know when I took his side. He just sat there looking at me and would not lay down. I asked Kevin what was wrong with him and he said "You're on his side!" I sat on the other side and he laid right down beside me.

Saturday morning Kevin & I took Gilmore to the dog park while Sarah was grocery shopping. First time I have been to a dog park.

We went to Matt and Katie's Saturday. Katie had a really nice farewell party for Matt who has to leave for Iraq. Had a nice crowd and more food than we could eat. Lynn and Greg and Jon were there and Matt & Amanda.

Sunday we went out to Chipolte and had a nice lunch and then shopping at Bed, Bath & Beyond. I started home when we got back from shopping. Made it in three and half hours. Made really good time.

While I was gone Keith & Gary poured the floor in the new building. I am posting lots of pictures from the weekend. Hope you enjoy them. Thanks Kevin & Sarah for the great weekend and I just had to prove to myself that I could drive down alone. I DID IT.

Kraig & Casey's Sleep Over

We took Chloe and Cayla home last night and picked up Kraig & Casey. They stayed all night and today and we took them home tonight. We played games, watched a movie, went shopping etc. It was too hot to be outside. Got up to 92 degrees today. I am also posting a picture of the progress on the building. Keith, Gary and Jim are pouring the floor Saturday morning. I am going to Cincinnati to spend the weekend with Kevin & Sarah.

Chloe & Cayla's Sleep over

Chloe and Cayla (in the socks I got them that Cayla calls her dancing socks) dancing around in the living room. Chloe & Cayla stayed all night Tuesday and we watched a couple movies as it was too hot to go outside. (Lady & Tramp and Jumanji) I felt sorry for Chloe when it was time to pick up Kraig and Casey. She was very sad. When we got to Kurt's house Cayla gave us a underwear fashion show. (She got Dora underwear.)

Bronze Statues

Tuesday my Red Hats went to Auburn to see the bronze statues that are displayed there done by J. Seward Johnson. This is the smallest town they have ever been displayed in before. They have been in Paris and many large citys. It cost the town of Auburn $45,000 to rent them and $40,000 for the insurance to have them there. They are really something to see. They are pretty lifelike. On the close up of the woman who has been working in her garden, you can see the sweat running down her face!

There are twenty scattered over the town. Mostly around the courthouse. I will post several pictures, but if you get the chance to see them - DO. They will be in Auburn until September 15th.

Building Progress

Keith worked this week on backfilling around the foundation. He hauled about sixteen loads of pea gravel and leveled it getting the floor ready to pour.

Casey will soon be 10!!

Casey's birthday is the 29th and she will be ten! An important birthday for a girl. So Keith & I got her an American Girl Doll for her birthday. Her name is Emily.

Her party is tomorrow night and Keith has an auction in Edgerton that he listed, so we will be unable to go. We went over tonight to take her gift to her. By the look on her face I think she liked it. Isn't Casey beautiful??

Money the Bunny

I went over to Kurt's tonight just for a visit. Got to meet the new member of their family, their first pet, Money (the bunny.) He is a Steel Dutch and so soft and cute. Thought you might like to see a picture of it. Kurt built it a nice little hutch and the kids really seem excited about their pet bunny.

40th Class Reunion

We attended my 40th Class Reunion Saturday night. I was the head of it this year as I have been for six of our eight reunions. I stood up front for the business meeting and told them that I was done and that I wouldn't sit down until someone else volunteered to be the head of it for the next one. It took some time, but finally they must have got tired of looking at me as Ron Stoner agreed to be the head of it and Jestine Schmidt agreed to create the booklets like I have done for each one. We had a great time and saw some of my classmates I haven't seen in ten or fifteen years!! Twenty five classmates out of seventy attended and with spouses we had forty six. Not too bad a turnout.

I helped serve the sherbet as people just were setting and waiting to be served even though I announced they should help themselves. When I started taking the sherbet around, one of my classmates said "Now that takes planning this event a little far - the dessert matches your outfit!" We had rainbow sherbet and by golly, it did match my outfit. Was not planned as I just ordered sherbet - any kind. I am attaching a picture Keith took of me serving dessert. Oh, also first picture on the blog of my new haircut & color.

The following day, Sunday, we met at a classmates lake cottage for a cookout. It was a fun weekend.

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!!!!

I spent my birthday holiday with my best friend, Vicki, and we went to Sauder's Village. I will post some pictures.

Things have been hectic here at the Whitman's. Kurt, Kraig, Casey, Denny, Tom & Keith worked Monday cleaning out the garage and moving the hot tub. I think only two more loads and we will be done (stackable washer & dryer and waterbed). The closing should be before the week is out! We also sold a building lot and that closing will be soon too.

Today Keith & I worked outdoors. I finally got the plants that Kevin & Sarah got me for Mother's Day and my birthday planted. They also got me two hanging baskets. I planted the clematis out by out trumpet vine on a trellis yesterday and planted the daylilies and hostas today. It is not quite done, need to add some more stones and a good rain will wash the dirt down through the stones. I will post some pictures. I think I am ready for a nap, so more later.

Oh, I got my hair cut short again and highlighted. Pictures will follow sometime.