Riding the Dixie

Somone had given us tickets to ride the Dixie paddlewheel boat last summer, but we had already gone.  So, we finally took advantage of a cooler evening and went out again.  It takes a 90 minute ride around the lake and gives some history of the lake and surrounding area.  The girls love it, and were especially happy that since the Dixie was celebrating it's 83rd year they had free cake!  Score.

 Our neighbor Ron was the captain that night, and he let kids try their hand at guiding the boat

 So excited to buy a soda!

 Our precious girls!

 Our favorite spot on the boat, not very crowded, and there is always a breeze.

 the paddle wheel

 Maria's shots

 Anna's shot

 we saw a blue heron resting

 self-portrait

We have plenty to praise God for; settling in for our new routine.

being gone and a race

 We picked a few apples

 and may have eaten a few also.

 Our taste tester!

 While Daddy was running the Fort4Fitness half marathon, the girls and I got donuts at a gas station and then spent some time at the playground at Lawton Park.  We had the place to ourselves as it was only 8am!

 All aboard the choo-choo train.  I remember taking my "sister" Katie here, probably at least 10 years ago, considering she just turned 20 this month! 

 Checking out the bridge across the street.

 I remember going here as a college student with some friends and some of us may have walked on the cement wall down in the water, although I will never tell if I was a part of that or not!

 It was a bit chilly and misty still,

 but the sun was shining brightly.

Great job Daddy, we are so proud of you and your PR for the race.

grandpa's boat

Waiting for grandpa...on the wrong pier, oops...long story!

Not too sure about that water yet.

Maria trying Grandpa's glasses "you looked funny Mommy"(due to the prescription).  Anna was wearing Daddy's sunglasses.

Do you like our leash, she was pretty fearless about the water once she got used to it.

Boy, how Maria's changed!  This was 3 years ago, when we first moved to Culver.

Ha, just noticed Grandpa is wearing the same shirt.  That's pretty funny!

love this one!

just stuff

This is a dress that I wore when I was little...for my preschool pictures actually.  Can you tell I was crying and I did not want my picture taken.

On Sunday the girls protested their naps, and their frustrated mommy yelled "Everyone get your suit on!"  SO we spent a couple hours at the Webster beach...a great solution.

Silly sisters having fun playing together.

a week of projects

From this.....to this! Anything has to look better than the lovely blue marble like laminate counter top!

A coat of primer, coat of base color, two coats of color applied with none other than a paper towel! Many, many coats of polycrylic, and lots of time to set.

Now the wall behind just has to be repaired!

The once wallpapered half bath underwent a skim coat of drywall mud, sanding and a repeat of two previous steps and then priming, and two coats of yellow paint...geesh, I am sure glad it was such a small bathroom. And for goodness sake people, if you are going to wallpaper, use sizing, someone will thank you later!

My double towel bars, one for washcloths, I still need something to go on the walls perhaps, but it can wait.

Kind of turned out to be an Ecuador theme, as several of the items I brought back have yellow...who would have thought! And the shelf was once HOT pink, and I got it free from a garage sale! That picture is a favorite of mine, taken by a Ecuadorian street photographer. The subject is a street kid.

The old drab linoleum was replaced by some nicer looking tile! And it wasn't too bad to install, just a killer on the knees.

Caulking and the rug, which I already owned, help to complete the look.

 

The very, very dark brown door getting a face lift. It will eventually get a large glass window to install (from Crestview Doors, a great option for a door refinish) to allow more light in, and it had some scary block architectural things on the outside... totally forgot to document those things!

Yes, more yellow! (the paint is a story in itself. I got it at the Habitat for Humanity Restore, a great place if you have never been to one, for only $6) It was a nice paint, Dutch Boy brand, and basically a plain white color. I tried to get Lowe's to color it for me...she refused, and was pretty rude. The great guy at Ace told me, oh, no problem, we'll get you fixed up...and he didn't even charge me! I LOVE ACE!

and a new door handle, which I got for over 75% off last year!

Those strange holes are from the blocks that were on the door. Hopefully the new window and trim will cover them, or I will be filling and sanding those things!

And more drab linoleum replaced.

Now I'm in the market for a new rug!

My last project was a bust....moral of the story, follow directions very carefully! It said to mix the silver roof coating with an electric drill and mixer attachment, which I did not have. So, I figured if I shook it up really well for several minutes that should work (kind of annoyed now that they guy who helped me find it at the hardware didn't shake it in the machine!). Well, can you see when I finally got down keep enough to actually hit the silver sediment part...so, now I have a mostly black roof, which totally defeats the purpose of the silver part! The sun room will be hotter now, not cooler, thanks to my oops...luckily it was only and $20 mistake, and a bit of effort. Guess I know what I(or maybe Larry) will be doing next time we are up there. Let's hope that at least the leaks we had been having in the sun room are non-existent now!

We have plenty to praise God for; the ability to repair/update/modify our house to make it a home.