More Yardwork

Raked and weeded the oval, the southwest side of the horseshoe, the rose bushes and the containers in the back yard. Made burgers and fresh green beans for supper.

We’ve been working on Dixon since Thanksgiving. Actually, we started Thanksgiving morning. We took off Saturday afternoon for a trip up the coast to celebrate our anniversary. Otherwise, we’ve been raking and running to the transfer station.

No Seconds, Light on Dessert

We went to Sandy and Steve’s for Thanksgiving, a 25-person extravaganza.

The meal was delicious, and no need for seconds, at least not for me. Art brought an apple pie that was out of this world, and Sandy’s pecan was top notch, as always. Our cake was a hit with the little girls, Ella and “Gabs”.

A good time was enjoyed by all.

Yard Work

We got a bit behind the curve last week but got a fair amount of leaf and plant cleanup done today in the back yard. We completely filled the truck – again.

On our way to Framingham for Thanksgiving dinner shortly.

Front Yard, Back Yard

Ron and I raked leaves and picked up a truckload of brush today from the back yard at Edgewater. The guys from Bousfeld put down more loam and grass seed. We’re expecting rain tomorrow and a couple more warm days, which should help.

Leaves

James and I cleared the front yard at Edgewater this afternoon. Most of the leaves are down and I think Peter was right: we do have fewer than in other years. We needed only two trips to the transfer station.

I imagine there’ll be more, but everything on the ground was so wet that it was difficult to get a good mow. Will try again.

Monday. Already.

We promised ourselves a quiet weekend, and that we had; even so, it went awfully fast.

We were pretty wiped out on Saturday, although we did muster up the energy to do a serious food shop, some laundry and a tiny amount of yard work.

Sunday we read the Times, did a transfer station run and attended a marvelous concert of Renaissance music by Ensemble Passacaglia at Han Dun. I was pining for some of the avant-garde artwork in the shop.

I wanted to work on leaves, but it was windy both days and my muscles still were so tired that I spilled a full cup of coffee on the kitchen table.

Big Week, Big Day

Our homeowners insurance company scheduled an inspection today at Edgewater, so Peter, Bonnie, Ron and I have been working over there all week.

We interviewed four dump run crews to help us: one turned down the job, one never showed up and one skipped his appointment because he had to work late.

The guys we did hire were fantastic: two fishermen from Falmouth, who have a dump run business on the side. We were so fortunate; couldn’t have asked for better people.

My heart was breaking for Peter, seeing thousands of dollars spent on so many items, some of which was still usable, end up in the trash. Given the time frame, it was impossible to sort it all.

We rented a storage unit for overflow and Ron and I brought a futon frame over the other night, in the pouring rain. We’re hoping to use it at Dixon once we bring the trundle bed over for Emme.

Ron has been working with a cast on his right forearm, but even so, he’s managed to accomplish a lot, including hauling very heavy boxes, installing hardware and making repairs.

We were lucky enough to find a handyman/carpenter to help Ron reattach a railing.

I did a lot of cleanup in the kids’ rooms and the kitchen, and have been washing windows and working on the kids’ bathroom.

Yesterday, we separated the boys’ bunk beds and put up a new miniblind for Emme. Prior to that, we helped with Peter’s office and the family room.

Peter and Bonnie worked on every room: the bedrooms, bathrooms, living room, kitchen, family room, office.

Bonnie did an amazing job with their bedroom. It looks absolutely beautiful, like something out of a magazine.

Peter even was able to set up an area in his office for a home gym.

The inspector arrived a little before the appointment time and did a fast walk-through.

We passed.

Fox News

Although he never actually watched one of their broadcasts, Ron has been fuming for months about how bad Fox News is, especially since for a lot of people, it’s their only source of political reporting.

During the last Presidential election, I actually enjoyed watching Fox, especially when Brit Hume was the Special Report anchor.

So, the other night, I asked Ron to please watch Fox’s prime time news shows with me so that we could decide for ourselves if they are really as biased as the progressive media would have us believe.

Ron was right. I couldn’t believe how bad it was and how naive I’ve been about their influence. Good for Ron, and shame on me.