Aren't these just the cutest little kids you've ever seen?

These kids happen to be me and my little brother, Steve. He's 11 months younger than I am. So in these pictures, we must have been 2 and 3? Maybe 1 and 2?

I don't remember these pictures being taken, and I'm not sure you can tell, but I'd been crying. In fact, there is a trace of a tear on my face. (You can see it in real life, not sure you can online.) I hated having my picture taken. Still do. But up until I was in Kindergarten, I cried every single time Mom took us to get our pictures taken. In fact, I distinctly remember Kindergarten picture day. Mom asked me to please not cry, because I was a big girl now. I was so proud when I got home and told her "I didn't cry Mama."

These pictures are "preserved" in plastic. In the later sixties, one popular craft project was to make these plastic thing-y ma-bobs. I remember Mom and Grandma doing some. I know Mom made herself a turtle pin cushion and Grandma had this "paperweight" of Steve and I.

I remember the jugs of the liquid plastic that they poured into molds. Then they tinted a small amount of plastic and poured it on top of the clear to tint their item. That's what I hope you can see in the picture above, the layer of color.

So, they poured plastic, laid the pictures in, poured more, and then another layer that was tinted. It was a short lived craft project, because this paperweight and Mom's turtle are the only two items I remember having around the house.

But still, it's a nice memento of a very cute little girl and her innocent looking brother who was never innocent.

The Pellet Stove project part 2

It dawned on me just last week, that I had never posted a "finished" picture of our pellet stove/rock wall project. Maybe I never posted those pictures because

• we finished it 6 months or more after we started the project
• Miss Kat had the camera
• I never got around to it?

Let's face it, with me...any of the above reasons could be accurate.

So...without further ado...ta da!

We halted our initial project about 1/2 way up the wall...because Kev wanted a "chunky" "rustic" mantle. And, living on the High Plains...an area also known as the "Great American Desert", chunky, rustic wood mantles are hard to come by.

Let's face it, trees are hard to come by...well, trees of any size. And sawmills are non-existent. But, after looking several months, and after preparing to drive several hours to Eastern Kansas, we discovered that there's a sawmill 30 miles away from us. The sawmill owner is a tree trimmer and he has it just for fun. Kev talked to him and he happened to have recently cut up a Black Walnut tree. Kev drove up, and for $50, brought home a huge chunk of lumber.

He decided to leave the bark on, and the white wood that is usually tossed. He then cut the mantle and the supports for it. We sealed the bark with polyurethane and Kev placed a few finish nails in it. He hopes that will keep the bark on our mantle for all eternity.


Kev has at least 1/2 of his chunk of wood still in the garage. He say's he's going to make a coffee table out of it...someday. I'm not holding my breath. But, I have to admit, our mantle is pretty. I like it and I'm proud of what we accomplished.

Just in case

Kev and I went out to the farm on Saturday. Our purpose was to look for deer and deer sign, but we didn't see any, so we spent some time just riding around on the 4 wheeler, and looking through the grainery.

I imagine it was actually built by my Great-Grandfather, Harvey L. Woodruff. It hasn't been used to store grain for years and years. Instead, it's become a storage shed. Because, you know, old farmers never threw anything away. They stored most of what they stopped using--just in case.

I like the grainery. I like exploring the stuff in it, and I think it could be restored and made into a little cabin. It just needs repair and a roof and windows and maybe a little extermination, but it's in pretty good shape for as old as it is. Kev refuses to consider remodeling. But, he does think the foundation would be a great foundation for a new "hunting" cabin. But I'm not holding my breath that we'll ever do anything with it. I'm not even sure we'll ever get it cleaned out.

Remember I said that old farmers kept everything? These are just a few shots of "stuff" still stored in the grainery... When was the last time these horse collars were used? I'm guessing the 30's. I know Grandad bought his first tractor in 1929... But, we still have the horse collars...just in case.

And this is a mish mash of...stuff. Hanging on the wall...just in case.

The knife sharpener...or grinding wheel. We kids used to love sitting on this and "riding the bike". We'd sometimes sharpen sticks on this. I should really look to see if we can clean this up. I'd take it home...just in case I needed to sharpen something.

Some things, were hung from the rafters. To protect them from mice and other critters. I have no idea what is in any of these buckets and barrels. I didn't get a picture of the mattress hanging up there as well. Personally, I wouldn't sleep on it, but it's there...just in case.

Heaven forbid we threw away some bolts and nuts. Instead, let's keep them...just in case anyone needs a bucket full of rusty old bolts.

Now these are really treasures...Those arched pieces of wood are actually wagon bows. The very same wagon bows that were on the wagon my Great Grandfather Harvey had on his wagon when he and his wife, Mary, came to Meade Co. No idea when they were used last...but we still have them...just in case!

(and seriously, if you have any idea of what we could do with them, I'd love to know cause I would like to do somethingwith them.)

This is a shot of Grandad's bolt bin--minus the bolts, cause they are in the bucket. The bin used to live in the garage, but it blew away in the tornado which hit in 1973. But, we saved the bin...just in case!

Also in the grainery is a bed frame--wooden. And it looks like the pieces of an old wardrobe. It's been dismantled, and it looks like all the pieces are there. Kev and I keep telling ourselves we're going to dig both out and see of they can be reconstructed or salvaged. But, we are secure in the knowledge that they are there, waiting...just in case!

New windows

The front of our house looks a little different. Instead of three small windows in the living room, we now have this: Kev and I bit the bullet this summer and ordered new windows for the main floor. We desperately needed new windows. The original vinyl windows leaked badly, and a couple wouldn't open and one (our bedroom window) broke last winter as we tried to close it.

Not very energy efficient. So, this summer, the first of July, we ordered Renewal by Anderson Windows. And, upgraded our three small living room windows to a nice big bay window. They were installed the week of my surgery. (great timing.)

Now, we can sit by the window and hear the waterfall run into the pond. and we can watch the fish swim in the pond.

And then there's this view...we've already spent hours sitting in the bay window, enjoying the view.

Yeah, it just sucks.

We stained the oak trim yesterday and put some poly on it. We're now trying to figure out what kind of window treatment to get because we both like to see out, but at times, even we need to be able to shut the curtains. Who know's what might happen in the living room! And I need to make a cushion for the seat. Which will be a first for me!

I think it was a worthwhile investment. Especially when I'm sitting in the bay window, enjoying the view.

Cheaters

Three cowboys were riding in the pickup, all three sitting in the front seat.

Which one is the real cowboy?

The one in the middle.

Because he doesn't have to drive, and he doesn't have to open the gate.

Somehow, I'm never the "real" cowboy, cause I always have to open the gate.

Barbed wire gates are sometimes difficult to open. If it's a new gate, and it's nice and tight, it's almost impossible to open.

Here's how you open a barbed wire gate...

If it's a tight gate, you lean against the fence post.

Wrap your arm around the other side of the post and grab the gate post and pull it towards you. This lessens the tension on the loop allowing you to lift the loop off the gate post and open the gate. And sometimes, you just don't have enough lead in your britches to pull that gate. At times like that, your Dad, brother, or husband come to the rescue. But they whine and pout about having to help you out--especially if they were sitting in the middle.

I much prefer using a cheater to open gates, like this one...This is a nice way to open a new gate. All I had to do was lift on the handle (on the right side) and it pulled the gate post in and I just pop the cheater off the post and open the gate. Of course you can just drop the gate, but usually, you have to drag it inside, while the guy driving comes in the pasture. Then, they wait until you close the gate.

This is one of the nicer cheaters I've used. Sometimes, a cheater is simply a stick of wood chained to the fence post. You wrap it around the gate post, and lean on it for that extra leverage to move the gate post.

In this case, everyone loves a cheater! Especially me.