Old Dog - New Tricks

The learning curve used to level out as we grew older, not so in this age of technology.  Constantly changing or updated computers, cell phones, household appliances, and the like, keep us on our aging toes; not to mention Facebook, email and a myriad of other programs that are continuously being "improved". 

So now we've added another new toy to keep our brains stimulated.

For our anniversary Mike and I bought an IPad!  After a slow start (due to a typo in my email address while setting it up at midnight) we are finally connected and proceeding cautiously.  It is FUN!  And it was cheaper than a laptop. One of the best features is the ease of enlarging the display, very important for tired eyes.   

We now have a carrying case just for cords/cables/chargers for our many electronic (de)vices.  We can probably eliminate the GPS, but until we are more confident on the iPad it will continue to travel with us.  The mini iPod shuffle can probably be retired as well; but the music it contains is no longer on our computer, so I'm having trouble parting with it.  Eventually we will adapt, but first we have to conquer the learning curve.

Forty Years Ago Today

Our wedding party
Mike's cousin Lonnie, brother-in-law Bill and brother Dennis.
Mike's sisters Gaynel and Terri, Sally's sister Dianne

Our Families

 Mike, Glenna, Bud and Dennis
Gaynel, Terri, and Bill

 

Wanda and  Glen

Sally, Bruce and Dianne

   Love never gives up.
   Love cares more for others than for self.
   Love doesn't want what it doesn't have.
   Love doesn't strut,
   Doesn't have a swelled head,
   Doesn't force itself on others,
   Isn't always "me first,"
   Doesn't fly off the handle,
   Doesn't keep score of the sins of others,
   Doesn't revel when others grovel,
   Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth,
   Puts up with anything,
   Trusts God always,
   Always looks for the best,
   Never looks back,
   But keeps going to the end.

1 Corinthians 13:4-7

(The Message)

The House

Saturday, Aug. 28th; first meal in their new home.

Saturday, Sept. 4th

Kevin and Mike working
hard in the kitchen.

The back yard getting
some much needed water.

The newly installed,
bigger and better disposal

I spent much of Saturday
sanding the tiny little
grooves in all the cupboard
doors and drawer fronts.

 









Lunch break; Kevin and Shannon packed a lunch and shared it with
us. They made some great sandwiches
and remembered just how we like them.

Monday, Sept. 6th; we met Kevin and Shannon for breakfast and then spent about six hours at the house.  Progress is being made. 

 hatin' paintin'
(He does NOT enjoy
any kind of painting!)

 

 
We all did some priming and painting.  Mike also got some more yard work done.

and some bright spots in the yard

New digs for Kevin & Shannon

Mike and I have been to Kevin and Shannon's new home a couple of times to help with the remodel.  Their recently purchased home is definitely a fixer and they are going at it full speed. 

<---Shannon and Kevin in the future lounge (aka family room/eating area) just off the kitchen. 

Last weekend we spent a few hours there helping get ready for the contractor to refinish the walls and ceilings.

Kevin and Mike pulled all of the baseboards off and removed light fixtures in most of the rooms.   The next day Kevin and Shannon taped off windows, doors, heaters, floors, etc. 

Shannon and I worked  on removing some wallpaper, (fortunately only one wall had paper) and scrubbing the kitchen cupboards

 Shannon washing 
doors with TSP --->

Yesterday we went back for round two.  A lot had been done during the week. Ceilings had been scraped, walls and ceilings in all rooms (except kitchen and baths) had been textured.

Mike and Kevin tore out the old dishwasher, disposal and the cupboard above the stove.  
 


 I think they really enjoyed demolition. 

Shannon and I spent most the day sanding and preparing the cupboards and drawers for painting.

 Finally, after dark, we were able to get primer on a few of them.

 We did take a couple of breaks for 
meals and to enjoy the surroundings.
More photos to come in the next post.

TW3 or The Good The Bad and The Ugly

In the 60's there was a short lived TV series called "That Was The Week That Was" (or TW3), I loved it.  A year or so later the movie "The Good The Bad and The Ugly" was released.  Both of these titles came to mind as fitting descriptions of the past week.   (August 22-28)

The Good: 

-The first meeting of our new Home Group on Sunday evening.  New friendships are forming.

 

 

-Charlie and Sarah left for a short vacation in Hawaii, enjoying time with her brothers, sister-in-law and nieces.

-Sarah celebrated a milestone birthday.

 

 -Kevin and Shannon finalized the purchase of, and got the keys to, their new home.   It was a short-sale and will require a lot of fixing-up, but they have already begun the work.
 
 

-I got a phone call offering me a part time job, something I've been thinking and praying about for awhile, without actively pursuing. (update: the job didn't work out, but that's okay, the offer was encouraging!)

-We bought a new car!

The Bad:

-The stress and amount of time it took for Kevin and Shannon to tie up loose ends and provide down-to-the-wire paperwork for the funding for their home loan.

-Mike working 8 am - 8 pm on Monday and 5 am - 10 pm on Tuesday plus his normal schedule and responsibilities the rest of the week.  

- Charlie's car breaking down completely Tuesday evening, just hours before they were to leave for Hawaii.  (fortunately we now have an "extra" car we can loan them when they return)

- A dear friend's routine surgery that should have lasted about 2 hours stretching into 8 hours.  (Praise God she is now on the road to recovery)

The In-Between

- Good for Charlie and Sarah, not so much for Kevin, as he willing got up at 4:30 on Wednesday morning to drive them to the airport. (We love that they are there for each other!!)

The Ugly:

- Kevin and Shannon witnessing someone commit suicide at what had been, up to that point, a wonderfully relaxing summer evening enjoying an outdoor concert by one of their favorite groups.

In the end the Good outweighs the Bad; the Ugly will be hard to get over, but we are so grateful that Kevin and Shannon have had something uplifting to focus on this week and in the months ahead.

All in all we are very blessed.  God is good; and we cling to this truth.

 

-------Thank you for stopping by - especially to those who leave comments.-------

Summertime

We have had a very pleasant summer with mild temperatures for our area.  But that is about to change; at least for a few days.  It's going to get HOT.

In spite of all the mowing, trimming, etc. that Mike did over the weekend our yard is quite overgrown. 
The small palm on the left is a volunteer.  We have several scattered around the gardens.

The citrus trees are flourishing and will be ripe in the late fall.  
Lemons                                           Tangerines

 

We have one tree in full bloom (right), I'm not sure what it is; (update: I believe it is a  Crape Myrtle) lots of growth on all the other trees and a few flowers still blooming.

I picked the last of the hydrangeas and hung them in the garage to dry.

I love Autumn and after the hot weather predicted for this week I'll be more than ready for it to arrive.