September 27

It is a rainy day for the arrival of Chuck and Luella from Dallas and the week looks gloomy as well.  Never the less, we will just have fun in the house visiting.  I wish it should be nice and sunny, but whatever will be, will be.

Dean took a nice photo of the two of us at the river looking for the Beavers. It is a most peaceful place to sit and enjoy our woods.  I just  finished reading, "The Hidden Life of Trees" which has made me more aware of trees and their lives.  It's funny how you think of a tree just being that tall thing in the woods, but not how it grows, survives, propagates, nurtures those around it and sound alarms when danger is in the woods.  The trees actually prepare for the different seasons and they prepare for things to befall them in nature.  They do have methods of protection from animals, fungi and little bugs in the soil.
Though I have finished the first read on the book, which is actually Beth's book, I want to re-read and outline each chapter.  It is the most fascinating book, I have ever read.

Final Arrangements

Yesterday, September 24, 2016, Tom, Beth and I sat down with the funeral folder and discussed our final arrangements.  It was a lighthearted meeting, unlike what Beth may have had to face alone in a crisis.  I can rest easy now, that we have all our ducks in a row.

It's so good to have a lawyer in the family and also be the best daughter in the world.  We do have a happy life. She and husband Charlie are happy in their cozy nest in the basement and we roam the upstairs with the 2 cats and dog, who seem to like our activities over their owners life.
I woke up this morning with a dog on my feet and yesterday
Tom and I took an afternoon nap with a cat and dog at our feet.  How cozy can you get?

9/24. Tom has finished the ditch for power lines to the carriage barn and Charlie has two sides up, so work is progressing.   

Tom is confused over the distribution of rocks in the soil.  Many are quite large and others  not so much.

Today is Sunday, September 25.  The exciting news today is that Beth saw a Barred Owl in our woods.  this is exciting and just adds more animal sightings in our 100 acre woods.  

Barn Day 1

Today is September 21, 2016 and work has begun on the carriage barn.  Bob  Runes is here working with Charlie. so far, they seem to be measuring things on the concert pad.  Nothing noteworthy to take photos of so far.
On the wood stove project, Murray oil came yesterday and took out the two gas fire logs.  that project will have to wait on the stove people.
Charlie has many irons in the fire, but seems to be happy seeing things progress.  tom is only a bystander as his energy level is very low right  now, probably because he is in AFIB more.

Today is September 12, 2016 and I am writing about our adventures at the Beaver pond.  Tom and I hop on the 4 wheeler or the Komasaki Mule and ride to the river around dusk.  It is nearly a mile to walk, so we ride.
Settling ourselves in our nice, comfy adirondack chairs, we get our cameras ready to capture any activity.  It is peaceful and serene at our spot.  There is a slight trickle of water going through the tiny logs in the dam that the beavers have so carefully made.  The sunlight dwindles and reflections from the trees fill the pond.
Suddenly one of us spots a beaver swimming and alerts the other.  Tom on his Kindle and I on my tablet might miss the fun.  We gasp in amazement as the skillful swimmers cover lots of water pretty fast.  We are delighted with the sight and can't wait for another day to make our way down to this idyllic spot.  What a treasure we have in our woods. We have lots of animals and are very careful not to frighten any of them when we traverse the many paths in the woods.  Tom and I created may trails when we first moved here some 16 years ago and had such fun making them.  Now we are unable to make new ones, but are happy to travel on the old paths.  I would say that those early years were filled with activity, which we can no longer do, but instead of being sad that we can no longer do,  we revel in what we can still manage.
Having Beth and her Charlie here makes life so much easier for us and they are now taking care of the trails for us.  It is a happy community and like the Beavers working together in their community, we work together in ours.  It is a happy life.