Future American Red Cross volunteer...

My nephew Spencer spent the day with me today and he loves the American Red Cross. He is leaving shortly for Mexico as they live there part of the year and there is a Red Cross office located close to his home there. So while he was here I made him an official "Future Red Cross Volunteer" by giving him a hat and making him a badge that says "Future Red Cross Volunteer." He was very proud of that status. This will be the generation carrying on the work in our footsteps.

You're looking good Spencer!

and the work continues...

And no, I really did not get to use this thing. I just get to hold it and hand it to the boy's Poppy  as needed.

  I really like this color. Reminds me of old barn color.

Mark took this picture. Wonder what I was looking at?

And here's poppy posing so Mark could take his picture.

Can you tell Mark is whistling while he waits to give Poppy some more nails?

Never too young to learn how to work.

Studying why this window is not level. Hmmm...
Mark loved picking up the acorns. I remember doing that as a kid. Some things are timeless.

Getting closer to having the gazebo enclosed before the cold winter winds start to blow.

More chickens have arrived!

My sister is needing a place to keep her chickens for a few months and my thinking is "the more the merrier" so today the "little flock" has expanded. And these chickens are laying too! I'm calling the rooster "Rooster Cogburn". I'll have to think about a name for the chickens.

And she has these beautiful speckled banties. I think they are so pretty.
They seemed to settle right in without much fuss. Notice my other banties are no where in sight. They're such a bunch of chickens! Ha. Ha.

The Siding Is Going On!

Doesn't it look great? I had a bunch more pictures but accidentally deleted them. And they were so good too. So far we have made it with no accidents, even though Mark's Poppy walked off the end of the saw horses and rode it down.

 We only had enough of the log siding left to do the front but it should look O.K. when finished. Looks like a little cabin in the woods to me.

Small Town Festivals

Several of my grandkids go to a small rural school close to where we live. This past weekend was the annual festival for the small town their school is located in. Don't you just love the feel of small town get togethers? Where everyone knows everyone else and can drag their lawn chairs to the middle of the street and enjoy the music and local talent? Life is good in small town USA!

Enclosing in the gazebo...

It was decided to enclose the gazebo.   Every year the screen gets torn off and birds fly in there and then in the Fall the leaves all blow in and of course in the winter the snow does the same.

. So let the work begin!!

As soon as the saw started up, Koda does the hands over the ear thing that he always does.

Mark's job was to pick up all the little pieces that got sawn off the big boards. He did that in between picking up Hickory nuts and acorns. Remember making little faces on the acorns and how their little tops look like little hats?

In went the windows. Mark had the camera and was just snapping away. Actually, he took some pretty good pictures.

He took this one of Koda and I .

By the end of the day we had the back wall up and two of the windows in. Making good progress!

Happy Labor Day Week-End!

What better way to celebrate Labor Day Week-end than by poking a hot dog on a stick and cooking it over the fire? And that is just what we decided to do this evening. I had been adding small sticks and limbs to the fire pit all summer so we already had a stack of dry wood just waiting for a match.

Doesn't that look good? The blacker the better for me!




Poppy demonstrated the proper way to hold your stick just the right distance from the fire.
And the proper way to eat your hot dog. Forget those paper plates!


What Koda really wanted was just a bun with cheese and catsup on it. So he took his hot dog off.

Poppy and the boys enjoying the fire and the evening.

And what's a wiener roast without Orange Pop?

Somebody is getting some lovin! And enjoying the attention I might add!

And here's Nana holding Kaden who just kept looking up at all the tree branches in wonder.

Momma and the boys.

Was a wonderful evening. Can you believe summer will soon be over? Cooler weather is already here. The walnuts are falling off the trees, the flowers are turning Fall colors and Spider Webs are everywhere!!!