We Spring Ahead

We 'Spring Ahead' this week and lose an hour of sleep tonight.  So when you go to bed tonight set your clocks ahead one hour.  By setting our clocks ahead one hour it will be lighter in the evening but our mornings will be darker for a while.  The sun won't be coming up until 8:00 am starting tomorrow morning. 

Lisa and I ran some errands yesterday in Newport, our road is better but still needs some work.  Lisa and George's wooden floors were delivered yesterday and we sold our huge lawn mower so it was a productive day.  

We are going to take a little drive either today or tomorrow since it is going to be nice and we are ready to go do something.  Check back and see what we do and don't forget to set your clocks ahead one hour tonight before going to bed!

Crafty Cottage Creativity or CCC

Crafty Cottage Creativity or CCC is what has been going on during our cold stranded days here at the farm.  Technically we are not stranded.  If an emergency arose we could get out but we are trying not  to leave to  give the road a chance to "heal", does that make sense?  Hmmm, probably not.  The final hill to the farm is steep and the gravel that was on it has been absorbed by the mud.  The last thing we need is for the road to create huge ruts so we, Tim, George, Lisa , our neighbors Reg and Cheryl and I have agreed to stay off of it for a few days and we have. We are hoping that the ground or road settles.   During this time the Crafty Cottage has been full of creativity.  I finished up all the door prizes (including some surprise ones), made some St. Patrick's Day crafts with Lisa and finished my March card for my CCC card club.  The goal today is to send out the door prizes and club cards.  We went from 74 degree temperatures on Wednesday to 27 degree temperatures yesterday.  Right now everything is iced over so just walking down our steps is a hazard. Only time will tell what will happen.  Oh well, we have food, we are warm and we have our friends so life is still good here at the farm!

The Wasp War

I have waged a war against wasps the insects not White Anglo Saxon Protestants.  From the time the Crafty Cottage was built it has had a wasp issue.  We were able to keep it under control while we finished up the inside but once everything was enclosed there was one area with  a thin gap that we missed.   Well we now know that wasps have built a nest in the one area and  I have been waging war with the wasps.  With the cold weather it was maybe two or three wasps a day.  Not so much yesterday.  I killed at 40 to 50 wasps and swept  about 15 to 20 out the door.  Now I have a lot of respect for nature and I am not a person to kill bugs unless they come inside.  That is when they become fair game.  Tim has closed up the gap and I think the wasps are trying to escape their nest and since they can no longer access from outside they are leaving it through my cottage.  Yesterday was our first warm day (74 degrees) but it is short lived and it is cold again and we are expecting snow.   So who is going to win the war?  I won today's battle but I know there will be more.  If, by the time we leave on our trip, I am still having issues we will bomb the cottage right before we leave and again when we get back.  The war is not over but I am hoping to be victorious soon.
Tim and George worked on George's new old truck yesterday and it is running pretty good now.  After working on the truck Tim put side trim on the golf cart.  That is one step closer to getting the cart going.  Check back and see how the wasp war is going. Maybe we need another freeze, brrr!

We Have Booked Our Flight!

We have been searching flights for Hawaii and after figuring our dates and searching for the best prices we finally booked our flights.  We are going to Hawaii for Rory's first birthday. Rory is 9 months old now and she is walking.  Jenny caught her first steps on video so we could all share in the moment of Rory taking her first steps.  Tim and I are getting so excited now to be with Rory, and Jenny & Nate, that we are counting the days.  We still have some time to go but at least one major hurdle is out of the way.  We have always flown United Airlines when we have gone to Hawaii but this time we are flying with Alaska Airlines.  We even booked the flights directly with them  The best part, it is a non stop flight both ways; we are flying from San Diego.  Our trip out to San Diego is  still in the planning stages but we do have three  places we are definately stopping at along the way, Branson, MO, Rocky Mountain National Park, CO and Hurricane, UT.  We are getting to San Siego early so I can be with my Mom on Mother's Day and attend Pam's May SAS.  So, some of the plans are under way and once we have our itinerary I will be posting in this blog and in my Travels With Ruth blog. If you have any suggestions on some things to see along the way please let me know by leaving a comment below, email, text or message me on Facebook or Twitter.

A Quiet Day

It was a quiet day, those happen sometimes, so not much happened.  I worked in the Crafty Cottage making my card club cards for March and Tim ran into Greemeville to drop off the engine from the golf cart to see what is wrong with it.  Tim has been working on plans for our deck and they are coming along.  Once we decide on the plans the fun begins and hopefully there will be pictures to show our progress. Check back and seeI

The People Of Walmart

If you are on Facebook then I am sure you have seen the pictures of the people of Walmart.  Well I never took them seriously until I saw one with my own eyes and I am not talking about a picture.  Lisa and I went grocery shopping yesterday at Walmart and as I was waiting for Lisa to get finished checking out I had a woman walk by wearing a white linen, see through, strapless  top and skirt.  Now if it were summer the outfit would make sense but it was 48 degrees outside.  The woman was rather large with her belly hanging out then as she past I could see everything but I didn't want to.  Now, I take my hat off to that woman for being so confident to walk around in that outfit I just wish I didn't have to see it.  I did not take a picture because it was an image I wanted to forget.
While Lisa and I were grocery shopping Tim and George did some tree trimming around the RV and  driveway.  There were some dead trees bordering our driveway but now they are gone and George and Lisa have more firewood.
We did manage to get down the road but I was pretty skeptical while I was driving down it.  Most of the road was still covered with snow and ice even though most of the snow has melted around the area.  I very slowly drove down the road looking for any gravel or non iced surface.  I did make it out only knowing that I will have to drive back up it to go back home.  Well by the time we got back from shopping a big portion of the road was better but the final hill was still slick.  We made it up the hill and safely home.  I guess it's just another day at the farm!

We Are Melting

The snow is beginning to melt and by the end of today it should all be gone.  Tomorrow the rains are suppose to begin.  Knowing the weather is important especially for planning on doing something.  The weather affects our road so much.  The past couple of days we have not been able to leave because the hill is all iced up.  Our neighbors Gator is stuck at the bottom of the hill.  So we are hoping today that the higher temperatures will melt the road. Once the rains begin, and if the forecast is correct, then the road will be too muddy to use.  So, we will try to get out today to do some shopping.
I spent all of yesterday designing the fourth door prize for my sister's SAS.  I have all four cards designed I am just waiting for the matierals I need to arrive and I can make the forty cards.  Actually 36 since I do have 4 completed.  I did prep with the matierals I had on hand.
Tim spent the day working on the golf cart motor.  He is going to have to take it in for repair because it needs things he can't fix himself.  After the motor is fixed the cart should be ready to roll!  With it being so cold and snowy he has not been able to work on the golf cart for almost two weeks.  The next few days will be wet but at least they will be warmer.
Our March project will be starting soon.  We will begin to build the deck around the RV.  Tim has been planning the deck and has a list of what is needed now all we have to do is purchase the items on the list and hope for some good weather.  Check back and watch our progress!