Fall is coming. You can feel it in the morning air. Soon the rain will be here, as well. The forcast calls for a strong possibility of rain early next week. Our potting shed has been cleaned out and the old storage boxes under the holly torn down. Now I am charged with sorting and getting rid of stuff. What's left needs to be under cover.

Last week Jack (our neighbor's ex) hauled two large loads of junk to the dump. This week he is cutting wood for winter (for his use). I am going through boxes of old papers and other stuff. Yesterday Richard and I prepared 2x4s for hanging as shelf braces in the potting shed. Today I will hopefully get them hung. The drill is heavy and hard to hold in our artheitic hands and wrists. Getting old is not so bad except that your body no longer co-operates.

We have scheduled a tree crew to cut down a large diseased incense ceder and prune out our big black walnut on September 7. When that is done, Jack will run all the trimmings through a chipper. He is also going to rebuild the portion of our raised beds in the vegetable garden that need repair and do some work on the walk ways. That will still leave some small construction projects that really need to be done. Anyone interested in replacing a portion of the shop roof (the skylight has leaked and ruined the roof from there down), replacing a rotted out sill in a basement window, repairing the back door jam, or putting new glass in a small window that got broken? Jack is not interested in doing construction and these projects really need to be done soon.

Another project that I would love to have done is to build a green house out of a collection of old single-pane sliding glass doors we have out back. It needs to be large enough to allow for Richard's power wheel chair. I invision this green house as being built with pressure treated lumber on a base of concrete block (2 courses high) with a roof of corrigated fiberglass panels. The floor would be of concrete pavers or brick so that the wheels of his chair would not get stuck. Most of the materials are on hand. We would need some block, concrete mortar, and lumber, but not much. Having  something to do besides watching TV would do Richard a world of good, physically, mentally, and emotionally.  Anyone interested?

Blessings

We have a new neighbor who is happy as a clam to work on our yard instead of paying to go to the gym. What a blessing!! He has cut unwanted trees, pruned others, and removed a plot of blackberries that was encrouching on our garden. This patch of blackberries was actually on someone else's property, but they had placed their back fence about 10 feet in from the property line. The blackberries were growing in kind of a no mans land. It really opens up the space.

My blog has changed to the point that it no longer gives me an option to insert photos, sorry. It is amazing that now the vegies are getting sun, you can distinguish one tree from another, and this neighbor is actually making a priority list of more work he wants to do. When the Lord blesses you, he doesn't go half way.

progress

Last week our daughter, son-in-law and grandson came over and did some sorting of "stuff" they had stored in our driveway. It had been there for two years, much of it ruined by the elements. So a big blue dumpster was filled twice and there is still a lot to get rid of. But that is progress.

On Saturday, two strong young men from church weed eated and placed in the dumpster, a ton of blackberries. There is still so very much work to accomplish in order to get the yard in managable shape. But that too is progress.

I have been working on both house and yard. I had much looked forward to family visit last week. We had a really nice time catching up after 35 years.The house was clean, but not immaculate and the front yard at least looked as if someone lives here. Progress.

Last year niether my husband or I were in any shape to have a garden. This year, our grandson till one of our vegetable beds and got it ready for starts. I have now planted some summer vegies. Again, progress.

Thank you to everyone who contributed time and efforts so far. Our son will be here next week end to do some major home repair and hopefully catch up on face to face visit time. So much progress.

scramble

Wow, has it really been nearly a month since my last post? That is some indication of just how tired I have been. That won't (the tired part) change any time soon. I did finally get caught up on "things" around the house that were negected for what time we were gone. Things like bills, laundry, cleaning, ect. But the yard was over grown and our grandson, who was keeping the worst of it at bay, has started a new job. We are extremely glad for him, but that leaves a ton of work for me.

Blackberries threaten to take over the place both in the back vegetable garden and in the flower beds. More common weeds join in to add to to the disaster. I have spent the last several days cutting down (not digging up) johnson grass in the front mound and weed eating around the front beds. Seems the more I do, the more those blackberries and weeds stand out.

I am expecting company next Tuesday, a cousin I have not seen in 35 years. I don't expect perfection of my yard or house, but it would be nice if the place at least looked like someone actually lives here. So I continue to pull weeds, prune hedges, and ect. I ordered a blue dumpster to be delivered on Friday. Our daughter has promised to dispose of her rain soaked junk that has been sitting in the driveway. That alone will make a whole lot of difference.

It won't get done before my company comes, but a group from church who are earning money for a missions trip will be coming on the 16th to do some cleanup, as well. I will have them tackle the blackberry problem. We will make a nice contribution to their cause in return.

The Lord has provided even for this need. We received a letter from the airline we used on our trip to Europe. They will be sending a sustantial refund to compensate for some issues I won't go in to. It will cover both the missions contribution and pay for replacing a broken water heater and the bathroom floor it ruined. Thank you Jesus. You really do meet ALL our needs and your timing is flawless.

Finally catching up

Jet lag is for the birds. The older I get, the longer it takes. We have been back in the states for almost 3 weeks. We stayed several days in the Seattle area before even attempting the drive home. My internal clock is wound too tight and having trouble getting back on schedule. Still, it is better each day. I sleep well and at the approximate "regular" time, but I feel wiped out most of the time.

Amy's family

Egg display-Rothenberg

Amy's house

Amy's back deck

Spire

church square-Spire

Today I finally downloaded my pictures to my computer. It will take awhile longer before any editing is done, maybe all summer at this rate. But I will share a few, as they are.

Too tired to care

We arrived home last evening after a month in Germany and Washington. I slept 12 hours straight, found something to eat (rice crackers and peanut butter) and made a pot of coffee. It has taken all day to empty suitcases, do a load of laundry, and go through e-mail. Mail will have to wait till tomarrow. I need to doa grocery run. We are out of almost everything. But I am fading, so it had best be done soon. I will post a few details and photos later in the week.

Prompting

Most of us have heard of and have experienced the "prompting" of the Holy Spirit. PTL for it, what a blessing. Yesterday, I had such an experience.

While still in recovery from my surgery and not yet able to walk, let alone drive, I received notification that my drivers license would need to be renewed prior to my birthday. There was no way I could do anything about it at the time, so I put the notice on a shelf above my desk and promptly forgot about it. But yesterday morning, the upcoming deadline just popped into my head. So I started looking for the notification. It was, of course, right where I had left it. They say timing is everything and I believe it.

We are about to embark on a journey, a trip for which I need to drive 175 miles both at the beginning and the end of a month long vacation. My license is still good for the first leg, but would have been expired by three weeks for the trip home. Not acceptable. So I went down and went through the process of renewal, got a worthless temporary license (also expires before we return), and hopefully my new one will arrive before we leave. It is supposed to take 5-10 days. We leave in 7. If I had waited even until Monday, odds are we would already be gone when it arrives. On the off chance we miss it, I will have Chris mail it to Rick's house so it will be waiting for me when we get back from Europe.

I truly believe the prompting of the Holy Spirit saved the situation. It certainly wouldn't be the first time and most likely not the last. PTL. Boy, I hope I haven't forgotten anything else of importance! By the way, at 72 years old I still passed the eye exam and do not yet need to wear glasses to drive. When the Lord blesses you He doesn't hold anything back.