6.17.2026

An inside work day.  Jim had to sharpen the chains on both of the chain saws...

His wheels came in for the blasting cabinet!

First step to attach them was to get the end off the floor.  Jim lifted it up and I slid a piece of wood underneath...

Jim had to drill holes in the cabinet to place the wheel assembly - this side is all done!

Time was running out, but we got the other side up off the floor and Jim started working on this side...

High 76/Low 51.4

6.16.2026

I had to have a procedure done at the hospital yesterday, just as a follow up from another procedure.  Isn't that the way it goes as we get older?  Everything looks good but it occupied a lot of the day.  

Jim did get a little time to finish bending the steel for the wine rack...

He has been working on the getting the newer cabinet ready to go in the pole barn.  He's going to use this to store car/machine parts and fluids.

Because there are just a few containers of fluids!

He also made two Craigslist sales and was able to take care of both of them at the same time in the late afternoon - nice when that works out.

Today, I spent all morning running errands and after lunch, we decided to go play outside in the woods.  There were downed trees in this side area that we wanted to clean up...  

Cutting this trunk into pieces...

Two trees had fallen different directions so we wanted to get them cleaned up...

Cutting the tree...

Dragging it out...

This area looks so much better now...

Plus, we accumulated quite a few more piles for chipping...

These trees also came down at some point so we worked on dragging some branches out.  Jim needs to sharpen the chain on his bigger chainsaw before we tackle these trunks...

6.15 - High 66.3/Low 53.4
6.16 - High 73.3/Low 48

 

6.14.2026

Flag Day is a holiday celebrated on June 14 in the United States. It commemorates the adoption of the flag of the United States on June 14, 1777, by resolution of the Second Continental Congress.  Yay for the red, white, and blue!

Cindy and Bryan and bought us wind chimes to commemorate my mom's passing, and it was finally a good day to get them hung up.  Jim drilled a hole for the hook...

Hanging them up...

A close-up view...

They look really nice here and the sound is so pretty!

This also reminded us that we had wind chimes in a box that we have never hung up.  I bought these wedding bell wind chimes for our 10th wedding anniversary and we had them hung up in Ohio...

We knew that one of the vanes was missing from the box - we think it's in another box somewhere but that would be like looking for the proverbial needle.  I did an image search of the heart symbol and found the website, where I was able to order two new vanes.  They said they need replaced every 10-15 years, so I think we're due.  An updated picture to come once we get the new vanes!

We walked up to the pavilion this afternoon and it had been a bird nursery apparently.  There was a next on both the front and back sides plus this long nest hotel in the side!  

Jim did a little more grass cutting before coming in to exercise.  They're calling for rain this evening but we've been waiting and have had none, so we'll see!

High 81.9/Low 59.8

6.13.2026

Jim did some bending on the wine rack loops - so far so good!

This afternoon, he did some rearranging of storage cabinets.  He got his old one in the pole barn emptied and loaded up on the 2-wheeler.  He moved it into the auto bay temporarily.  He's going to clean it up and maybe try and sell this one.

Then he started moving the newer one into place.  After I took this picture, he got it in place and leveled.

Time to get ready for church! 

High 82.4/Low 60.7

6.12.2026

Another day where it was supposed to rain, but we're still waiting.  Jim did a little more grass cutting this afternoon, and then worked in the metal shop.

He's starting to cut the steel round bar into pieces that he's hoping to turn into our wine holder in the kitchen (cue the excitement!).  Cutting the steel bar...

He welded some old pieces together and tacked them to the solid round piece he bought to shape the steel into the right shape.  The first piece is tacked on - it was getting late in the day to actually heat it up to see if he could bend it.  Stay tuned!

High 88.1/Low 72.1

6.11.2026

We've had threats of rain for the last couple days, so Jim has continued his cleaning and organizing in the shops.  He's also been spending some time updating all his car maintenance files on the computer.  He took out my winter tires and stored them in the pole barn until they're needed...

This afternoon, he got more grass cutting done before rain is supposed to come later on.

He took this small metal plate from the Bobcat when he was trying to clear the blockage the other day.  Jim has ordered the wheels and some different sanding compounds, but decided to give the blasting cabinet a try.  Here's half and half - all the rust is gone!

Doing the rest...

Very cool!  All the rust is gone and Jim can now paint this plate and put it back in place.

6.10 - High 82.8/Low 63.5
6.11 - High 85.7/Low 66.7

6.9.2026

We started the day going back to the urologist/surgeon for Jim's 9-month checkup after his prostate cancer surgery.  The doctor was happy with his PSA results and his recovery.  He doesn't have to go back for 6 months.  We are thrilled!   

This afternoon, Jim hooked the chipper up to the Bobcat for the first time this year...

Then we headed out to clean up our piles of branches and trees that we have accumulated...

We moved on down to the end of the driveway...

It's amazing the size of branches/trunks the chipper will take without a problem...

Everything looks so clean now!

High 82.1/Low 53.3