September 1, 2007

The new porch is moving quickly considering it is only being worked on one day a week. Nathan and another one of  Pee Wee's sons, Kevin, both came to help him on Saturday. They finished the framing and joists for the south side of the porch, and they will work on the east side next. Harper will take the doors off the cellar/basement and chisel (or sledge hammer) the cement frame during the week. We'll have to use a tarp to keep the rain out until the new roof is added.

This isn't the best picture of the chicks, but they're usually on the move, and it's difficult to get a good shot of them. They are growing strong, and they are now staying out during the day like the others. For the most part, they stay in their separate group. Hopefully when they're a little older they'll eventually assimilate with the other ones. The one on the left is a Silver Laced Wyandotte; the one on the right is a Light Brahma. The Buff Cochin and New Hampshire Red are in background.

If you know me, you know that I don't get squeamish when it comes to nature, but if you don't like spiders, you should skip the next few images. It's an unusual spider that I've been watching for the past few weeks. It's about the size of garden spider, but the markings and shape of its abdomen are very different, and I've never seen one like it. I have been meaning to take a few shots of it while, but when I saw it leave its recently trapped fly to go for the larger green June bug, I knew I had to get the camera. If anyone knows what kind of spider it is, let me know.

September 7, 2007

Harper had to do some heavy-duty demolition around the back steps and cellar entrance to make room for the new porch floor.

September 8, 2007

The guys got a lot done again. I took these around 2:00, and by 4:00, they had not only finished building the joists, but installed about 10-15' of the decking. I'll try to get another picture up soon.

I've been working in the guest bedroom (still). I finished painting the crown molding, and I've started on the first coat for the windows and wainscoting. The smell of the oil-based paint is overwhelming, but it's worth it to be near the end for one more room.

September 15, 2007

These show some of the progress in the guest bedroom--I'm getting so close! Check out the color difference between the "plaster" in the first photo and the following two. They are taken just moments apart, but with large windows on three sides, the color variations when clouds pass or at different times of day are noticeable.

While I was inhaling paint fumes inside, the guys were sweating in the summer heat in the back yard as they finished installing the floor/decking. The sound of hammering drowned out the usual Saturday morning noise, but hopefully the neighbors didn't mind too much. Kevin lost a few rounds to the hammer, but it didn't slow him down a bit; although I did notice the other guys using it as an excuse to stop and give him a hard time.  I think Kevin might have been a little distracted--he will become a father for the first time within days. Good luck, Kevin and Tiffany!

This photo is taken from the east window in the guest bedroom. The low part of the roof on the left side of the image is the only part of the porch that will be left as decking instead of covered porch.

This week we need to figure out what we want to do with the steps. There will be one set at the back and one for the side door (the one I put my shoulder through that's pictured above). We might use treated wood, but I know it will be a matter of time before I start lining the steps with potted-plants, so I'm thinking stone might be a better choice. We have some stacks of beautiful Oklahoma river stone to use for a patio, so if we can find some thinner cuts of it for the steps, that would be perfect.

September 29, 2007

My granddad, Conrad "Connie" Millican, passed away last week, so we spent last weekend in West Texas with my family. It was an emotional time, but we know he is in a much better place now. I can't say enough to express my appreciation to our friends and the communities that did everything possible to support our family in the past couple of weeks. It was truly overwhelming.  This picture of my brother, sister, and myself with Granddad has always been one of my favorites.

September 30, 2007

The guys built all the columns and the main upper support beam yesterday. Harper will prime them this week, so they can go up next weekend.

When we came home from West Texas late last Sunday night, I found my rooster, "Fatty," had been killed a few hours before we arrived. It was pretty horrible, and something I never want to happen again. We knew it had to be an opossum or a raccoon, so Harper has been setting a trap every night to try to catch the culprit.

Friday morning, Harper called me (I was out of town for a teaching conference) to let me know he had caught this opossum. He took the picture with his cell phone. It's pretty young, so we aren't sure if it's the guilty one or not. We have still been setting the trap every night. Harper took it out to his parents' land to let it go. As much as I wanted it to pay, we know it was just doing what animals do to survive. It would be different if we didn't have somewhere to take it, or if it was sick or something.

I don't want to end on a sour note, so here are the ever-growing "chicks." They are three months old now, and they stick close together. I have them trained to pose on the bench when I tell them to. Just kidding--I'm not that crazy. These pictures are taken within seconds of each other, and I love how they illustrate the chicks' "monkey-see, monkey-do" mentality.