This is one nasty storm!
Spooky!
Nice to have the rain, though. My grass was crunching under my feet!
Friday, September 14, 2007
Finally Back Online!
We’ve accomplished quite a bit the last few days, including finally getting our high speed Internet connection up and running. So, I am back to posting again, and thought I would give a quick update.
The movers brought our stuff last Friday. Everything arrived like we thought it would and we have unpacked a good 30 of the 100+ boxes so far, and partially unpacked another 30-40. I am guessing we will still be unpacking for a good while, but we have the essentials down, such as the kitchen, the master bath, the master closet, and the office. Maybe by Christmas we will have the place the way we want it.
All of the rooms are painted except the master bedroom. We also need to wallpaper above the chair rail in the dining room. Stacie wants the kitchen painted, too, but that can wait a bit. I just have a few small areas to touch up throughout the rest of the first floor and we can decide then what to do with the playroom and upstairs bedroom.
A couple of things I discovered this week about our new home/area:
Fire ants! Ouch. I was attaching a hose and put my hand down to steady myself. The next thing you know I feel a stinging pain in a couple of places on that hand. I look down and there are several small ants locked on to me in a crouching position. I decide to take a quick revenge on these little knuckle biters and throw them in to a garden spider web next to the spigot. But then, quite suddenly, I get that same burning and stinging sensation on my feet. I look down and discover another dozen ants biting anywhere my flip-flops didn’t cover. Ouch! About the same time I discover they have taken a good hold of 6-year old Ethan’s feet, as well. So, being the good and protective Dad that I am I … no wait… I got them suckers off of my own feet first, and then helped out poor Ethan, who was clawing at his own feet. I told him to step away from the little dirt area and run and get me the ultimate revenge maker. That can of sprayed death… RAID! And took our revenge we did. Hearty these suckers were. We sprayed the entire area, and came back an hour later and discovered that they were making a mad yet valiant attempt to crawl up the wall of our house. Splash! I hit them again and sprayed a good five feet in diameter (being careful not to hit or affect the aforementioned garden spider) and gave them a sense of shock-and-awe. The carnage was displayed quickly as more and more ants piled out from the hill to meet their doom. Soon there was nothing but a patch of ant bodies, three and four ants deep. As we walked up the steps of the deck, madly scratching our hands and feet, we felt a sense of pride in killing off our new found enemy.
The cows! There is a cattle farm behind our house. We moved our two labs up over the weekend and they had a difficult first night. The cows only come up to the pasture behind our house at night, so when they dogs began barking like crazy at midnight I knew that had to be the problem. I grabbed my flashlight and went out and discovered two of the cows sitting right up on the fence as if they were taunting the dogs. I walked over toward the cows and they took off running. I think it was good for the dogs to see that I wasn’t afraid of these large beasts, as they have barked very, very little since then. I like having the farm out back. It reminds me of the country, and with a couple of horse farms at the beginning of our street we do feel like we are out there a bit. It is nice out here, even when the breeze brings the very faint smell of cow-patties into the back yard.
We like Sanford. It has some issues like any big city or small town, but we like what we have seen so far. I am especially glad that Stacie and the boys are happy to be here. That makes a big difference, and allows me to focus on some other things. We’ll be seeing you around town!
The movers brought our stuff last Friday. Everything arrived like we thought it would and we have unpacked a good 30 of the 100+ boxes so far, and partially unpacked another 30-40. I am guessing we will still be unpacking for a good while, but we have the essentials down, such as the kitchen, the master bath, the master closet, and the office. Maybe by Christmas we will have the place the way we want it.
All of the rooms are painted except the master bedroom. We also need to wallpaper above the chair rail in the dining room. Stacie wants the kitchen painted, too, but that can wait a bit. I just have a few small areas to touch up throughout the rest of the first floor and we can decide then what to do with the playroom and upstairs bedroom.
A couple of things I discovered this week about our new home/area:
Fire ants! Ouch. I was attaching a hose and put my hand down to steady myself. The next thing you know I feel a stinging pain in a couple of places on that hand. I look down and there are several small ants locked on to me in a crouching position. I decide to take a quick revenge on these little knuckle biters and throw them in to a garden spider web next to the spigot. But then, quite suddenly, I get that same burning and stinging sensation on my feet. I look down and discover another dozen ants biting anywhere my flip-flops didn’t cover. Ouch! About the same time I discover they have taken a good hold of 6-year old Ethan’s feet, as well. So, being the good and protective Dad that I am I … no wait… I got them suckers off of my own feet first, and then helped out poor Ethan, who was clawing at his own feet. I told him to step away from the little dirt area and run and get me the ultimate revenge maker. That can of sprayed death… RAID! And took our revenge we did. Hearty these suckers were. We sprayed the entire area, and came back an hour later and discovered that they were making a mad yet valiant attempt to crawl up the wall of our house. Splash! I hit them again and sprayed a good five feet in diameter (being careful not to hit or affect the aforementioned garden spider) and gave them a sense of shock-and-awe. The carnage was displayed quickly as more and more ants piled out from the hill to meet their doom. Soon there was nothing but a patch of ant bodies, three and four ants deep. As we walked up the steps of the deck, madly scratching our hands and feet, we felt a sense of pride in killing off our new found enemy.
The cows! There is a cattle farm behind our house. We moved our two labs up over the weekend and they had a difficult first night. The cows only come up to the pasture behind our house at night, so when they dogs began barking like crazy at midnight I knew that had to be the problem. I grabbed my flashlight and went out and discovered two of the cows sitting right up on the fence as if they were taunting the dogs. I walked over toward the cows and they took off running. I think it was good for the dogs to see that I wasn’t afraid of these large beasts, as they have barked very, very little since then. I like having the farm out back. It reminds me of the country, and with a couple of horse farms at the beginning of our street we do feel like we are out there a bit. It is nice out here, even when the breeze brings the very faint smell of cow-patties into the back yard.
We like Sanford. It has some issues like any big city or small town, but we like what we have seen so far. I am especially glad that Stacie and the boys are happy to be here. That makes a big difference, and allows me to focus on some other things. We’ll be seeing you around town!
Monday, September 3, 2007
Much To Do, Little Time To Do It
Sorry I have been quiet for a few days.
Painting. Painting. Painting.
Fixing this. Repairing that. Replacing something else.
We are fixing up the "fixer upper" that we bought. Great house, but it needs a little love. So much to do the next 4 days. Then the wife and kids arrive at their new Sanford home. I want it to look nice for them!
I'll be back shortly.
Painting. Painting. Painting.
Fixing this. Repairing that. Replacing something else.
We are fixing up the "fixer upper" that we bought. Great house, but it needs a little love. So much to do the next 4 days. Then the wife and kids arrive at their new Sanford home. I want it to look nice for them!
I'll be back shortly.
Sunday, August 26, 2007
Let's Play Ball!
Gabe went all season (2006) without a basket. He had missed a few, but he didn't understand much of the game in his first year, so getting in to position for an easy bucket didn't always click. So we preached the offensive rebound his last game of the season. And, wa-la! His first ever hoop, recorded by his grandma for all to see.
Now they call Gabe "Dikembe" and he stands a good head -and sometimes shoulders, too - above all the other kids his age. At 8 years and 3 months he stands at 5'1" and is a shot blocking monster. So we are excited about the possibilities of the new sports complex being built here in Sanford by Chris Palme and Craig Sturdivant. We would have the boys right over!
Here's to hoping they make it a success.
Hoops Reality
This is actually pretty funny. The 11 Guys You Always Find at Pick-Up Basketball.
Basketball paid my way to college, and I have played in 30+ states and in Europe.
Been there. Seen that.
Warning: A little bit lof language here and there. It would probably be funny even with the volume turned down.
Basketball paid my way to college, and I have played in 30+ states and in Europe.
Been there. Seen that.
Warning: A little bit lof language here and there. It would probably be funny even with the volume turned down.
Friday, August 24, 2007
Things Are "Moving" Right Along
Home/Relocation Update: We are getting some traffic on our home in Winston-Salem this weekend. One couple said they are anxious to get moved and are visiting just three homes with the plan to make an offer on one before Monday. Let's hope ours is the one! We really don't want to carry two house payments very long. There is another couple that has expressed interest and might be coming during the week.
Here in Sanford everything is on track. We will be officially official in two weeks from today as Sanford residents. There is much to do.
If you have a recommendation on the following, please let us know!
1. Home security system.
2. Propane service.
I think we have the phone, cable TV and High Speed Internet figured out. We also are buying carpet from a locally owned business and will hopefully make some decisions on furniture this weekend. All that is left is our closing next week, a little painting, having the carpet installed, and the moving company to pick up our stuff and move it down here. Hopefully all of that will go smoothly.
Here in Sanford everything is on track. We will be officially official in two weeks from today as Sanford residents. There is much to do.
If you have a recommendation on the following, please let us know!
1. Home security system.
2. Propane service.
I think we have the phone, cable TV and High Speed Internet figured out. We also are buying carpet from a locally owned business and will hopefully make some decisions on furniture this weekend. All that is left is our closing next week, a little painting, having the carpet installed, and the moving company to pick up our stuff and move it down here. Hopefully all of that will go smoothly.
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Mrs. Wenger's
I have had a few lunches at this little cozy country corner type of place. I haven't walked out hungry yet. The sign in the front is all new and modern and everything, but I wanted to get a shot of the old sign on the side of the building. The place has been around a good while, apparently. And from what I hear the food has always been this good.
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