Craziest Christmas Ever!

This has been one of the craziest Christmas' ever. Aaron started the week out with an unexpected trip to the ER and was admitted for two days for dehydration. He was released on Wednesday. He is scheduled to have surgery on January 4. His daughter, Evelyn, was sick with a stomach bug and was vomiting constantly. Then on Christmas day Sandy, Aaron's wife, and Nathainel were both sick and vomiting constantly. I had a stomach ache all day but managed to fight it off without any other symptoms. All three of us spent Christmas day/evening laid up in bed. Later that night Cody woke up vomiting all over the carpet and had diarrhea. Today Carrie and Becca both started vomiting and are currently sleeping it off. Cody slept all day Saturday and is feeling fine today. Whatever it is, it seems to be a 24 hour bug. And last but not least, my mom fell at the bottom of the stairs on Christmas day and fractured her leg. She and Jerry spent almost the entire night at the ER. Here are some pre-sickness pics.

Still Working on the Pole Barn

I was awakened this morning at 4 a.m. by the sound of heavy rain pounding on the top of the camper. It has not stopped since and I think it's going to continue throughout the day. Yesterday we got our delivery of steel roofing for the pole barn but not until 3 o'clock in the afternoon. Unfortunately, we only had enough daylight to unload the steel. I was really hoping to get the roof on before we head back to Michigan for Christmas. We are planning on going back on Sunday. The weather is not being very cooperative today. I might have enough time Saturday to get most of the panels on and install the trim when I get back. Here are a few more recent pics.

Time to Build the Pole Barn

First we unload the lumber. We dug the holes on Saturday and put the poles in on Sunday.



We put the skirt boards on first and then the bracing and headers.




I hired two guys to help me and Sandra put the trusses up. These things were a beast to handle. It took six hours to get 9 trusses up and braced. They are 40 foot long and must weigh a ton. It took 3 guys to carry them and set on top of the walls.




Our kids decorated a "Christmas tree"!

Starting a New Project

We installed new gates this week at the entrance of our drive. Sometimes when we leave for more than a day or two we don't want any uninvited guests to stop by.



We woke up to a half inch of snow Saturday morning. The kids were really excited. Me, not so much. I moved south to get away from this stuff. I think I may have to go look for a place in Florida, or maybe Hawaii. I hear it's 80 degrees there right now.











We got a lumber delivery on Saturday for our pole barn. Sandra and I started drilling holes on Saturday and put the poles in on Sunday. Monday I will try to finish the wall framing and move on to trusses. Supposed to rain Monday and Tuesday. I love building in mud!

Buck Fever Strikes Again

Swine flu may be the newest virus going around the country these days but there's another sickness that goes around every year at this time. It strikes millions of men, women, and kids. Sometimes you can see the signs, but most of the time it strikes you out of nowhere: Buck Fever! It's a sickness with only one cure. You have to get out into the woods, climb into a tree or a blind, and quietly wait and hope for that big rack to meander into your neck of the woods and well within range of an easy, clean shot. There are very few things in this world that can excite a man, or woman, more than harvesting a whitetail. I am in Michigan again to finish a couple of jobs and, of course, November 15th was approaching fast. If you live in Michigan for any length of time you know the significance of this date. It marks the opening of deer season. I received a call from my Uncle Dave in Quincy a couple of days prior to opening day and he invited Jerry, my stepfather, and me out to his farm for a few days of huntin'. He has 63 acres of prime huntin' land. I had a great time as usual. I love getting out in the woods and just sitting there listening and observing God's creations, absolutely beautiful. Unfortunately I did not harvest a deer, YET! Michael, Dave's youngest son, was the only one to take a buck opening morning. It was a very nice six point. Michael calls it a "wall hanger". There were five of us out there and everyone was seeing deer, but not close enough or big enough to take. Here are a couple of pics from the trip.

Michael's "Wall Hanger"



Michael & Cody with the 6 pt.



Dave let Cody drive his new farm toy "The Mule"



Jerry brought his dad's shotgun to hunt with and it fell apart when he fired it. I don't think it's been fired in years. So off to Gander Mountain he went. He bought a new Remington 870, 12 gauge slug shotgun. Merry Christmas Jerry!! Here's a pic of Jerry sighting in the shotgun with Frank calling shots.

Settlin' in!

We finally got back home 9 days ago. It's been a busy week of course. It wouldn't be a normal week if it wasn't. We are trying to get our lives back to a routine, at least somewhat predictable from day to day. When we went back to Michigan for what was supposed to be a week, turned into two weeks. Sandra only brought enough school work for a week and now they are trying to catch up on a week's worth of school work. Next time she is going to take twice as much as she thinks she will need, just in case. I got a call the day after I got home from a customer that I bid on back in June. I am putting a roof on his home right now. I hope to finish it by Monday. A couple of other jobs that I bid in Michigan last month have come through and I will be back once again. I don't mind making the trip to earn some dough, after all, you gotta go where the work is. It's just tough on Sandra and the kids. She likes to have everything planned out for here schedule and when mine changes, so does hers.
Last Saturday we were in Lowes to get some material to insulate and drywall the schoolhouse and there was a building class for kids going on, so naturally my kids wanted to join in. Below are some pics.



I didn't have my regular camera with me lately, so I had to use my phone. I took the SD card out of my camera to put it into my deer camera. Cody and I set up our stand a couple of weeks ago and set out a lick and a camera to see what might be on our dinner table this winter. Here's what we saw.




Does dog taste like chicken?!! If these guys are around when I'm out there we might find out!

Sandra and I insulated and drywalled the schoolhouse last weekend. We also added three more windows. It's too dark during the day for the kids to see their books. It really brightened it up. I got a good deal on two of the windows from craigslist. I had to drive 45 minutes to get them but I only paid $60 for two. We decided to heat with a portable propane heater instead of using a wood burning stove. The stove required too much space and the initial cost was a lot more. Also, if work stays consistent, we will be building the pole barn soon and we will be staying in there. We are going to heat it with a wood burner.
we got our water service put in on Thursday. It's cool to finally have water, only problem is that it's a half mile from my house! Now I need to run a water line from the service to my property. They recommended using a 1 1/2" pipe, twice what I was going to use. They said that since I was 300 feet higher in elevation than the service, that I may lose a lot of pressure. This would help reduce friction loss and provide greater volume. Otherwise, we may need a pump to help with pressure.

Sandra and I signed up at the church last Sunday to get as Jeremy says "plugged in" and "connected" with other families. I workout at the Powerhouse Gym here in town and many of the people that also workout there go to the same church, including the pastor. I met one couple the other day and the invited us to join their life group on Mondays. It's really funny to me to see how God works in my life and if your in tune to those kind of things you really can see the hand of God in your life. Before I moved here I really wanted to live in a town where my family could really connect with locals. I love living in a small town, a "Mayberry" if you will, or "Walnut Grove" for those of you a little younger, where you know everyone and everyone knows you. Just the other day I was at the gym and looking around I realized that I have seen the same folks at the same gym, same church, same China-mart, same gas station, same Waffle House, ect. over the past six months. Just then I saw my opportunity to have the kind of small town life that I always wanted, a real community feel. The benefit to being in a small community is that you have more opportunities to run into people that you "do life" with. When we attended Metro South, we would meet families that we wanted to spend more time with and connect with, but you run in different circles. You shop at a different grocery store, live in a different city, kids go to a different school, eat a different restaurants, workout at different gyms, ect. It makes it very difficult to stay in touch with each other. I don't want just a Sunday morning community, but an everyday life community.

My Crazy Summer!

Where do I begin? This has been one crazy and unpredictable couple of months. It all started with the week before Labor Day. I was just coming up to Michigan to pick up my wife and kids. School was about to begin and Sandra was anxious to set up her school house. Of course, I didn't bring my computer with me because I didn't plan to stay long. I must have sat around with Cody in Alabama for two weeks with no work to do. I passed out some cards and tried to make some things happen, but nothing did. I came back the week before Labor Day so Cody could get his cast removed and our plan was to go back after Labor Day. As it turns out, Aaron sold a roof and I stayed to help work on it with him. Then, as I prepared to leave once again, Jeremy called with two more roofs that I bid for him 8 months ago and both of them just happened to call while I was here and available for work. Then a friend of a friend called me and needed a roof on his son's and his daughter's house. I sold both of them and on top of that I did the neighbor's house. Besides that, I have been busy with some small jobs that Jeremy has sold. Now just today another friend called today and wants me to do a roof that he sold and doesn't have time to do. CRAZY!! God has really blessed me with a lot of work recently. Why here? I don't know, but who am I to question God's plan for me and my family. He has never failed me when I needed Him the most. I know that He has plans for us in Bama. I am anxious to go back home, but work is work and I never turn down an opportunity to earn some money. After all, if your going to ask God for work, then you have to take it when He gives it to you. It's been in the 40's here and in the 70's in Bama. Unfortunately, I only brought shorts and tee-shirts to wear. Sandra and the kids have started school. We did make one trip back down to get some things and check on our home. Cody and I set up our tree stand and set out some deer attractant. Today is opening day for bow season. We are both sick with buck fever and can't wait to put in some serious time in the woods. I don't have too many pics to put up because I didn't have my camera over the past month and wasn't able to take any.