April 12, 2007,

Yes, I know, its been exactly one month since I last posted. So much has happened since that time, I'm not even sure if I can remember it all. According to the airline ticket stubs, Donna and I flew to Kansas City on March 14th, where Julie picked us up at the airport, and we traveled north to Jefferson City.

Dan was in a pastors conference, and it would not be over till the next day, so we stayed over night there and the whole family then came home on the 15th. Micah had a upset tummy and had been vomiting off and on, so stayed at their motel with one of the assistant pastors wife. He was happy to see us, but still couldn't hold his food down for a few more days after that.

We enjoyed our stay, think my major project was building a toy for Micah, a car wash machine so his trains could stay clean (no water, just make believe) It really doesn't look like much, but Micah is very happy with it. I know I'm supposed to be building something else, but I've got to ask Donna where the sample is, thought we brought one home, but don't recall seeing it around.

On the way back we flew into Denver, and the flight to Portland was over booked, so we took the next flight, and UAL was nice enough to give us two free round trip tickets to anywhere they fly here in the USA during the next year, so that was a profitable 3 hour delay in Denver, and our bags were here waiting for us, so didn't have to wait at a carrasol for them to come off the plane.

God home on the 21st and the next day, Paul and I started remodeling their bathroom. Took out a heavy cast iron tub, took the plaster and lath off the wall and put in waterproof sheetrock, then a new iron tub (much lighter) and a shower surround, then pulled the old toilet and put in a nice new one, found it a bit crowded so turned it 45 degrees, for more leg room. Then because the tank lid wouldn't go on, had to cut a hole in the wall, and custom fit it. Next came a new pedestal sink replacing the antique that was in there.

You can't believe all the challenges there are on a old remodel. The toilet was held down by 4 screws in the floor, and no place to attach the new one, as there was no iron ring around the waste pipe, just open air space, so I took some continuous threaded rod & put a plate under the floor to thread it through, will put a nut on the rod and that will hold it down. A new exhaust fan was also needed, so Tuesday, I drilled up through the wall plate and made sure it was open to where the new fan was to be, and yesterday, cut a hole in the wall for the new fan, and put a vent in on the outside. Got beat up pretty well by the 3 inch hole saw I was using, atop of the ladder against the house. IT WORKS, and thats good news.

Today was some minor adjusting to the fan housing, and putting some corner strips on the new partition at the end of the tub. Since the sheet rock mud has to dry, it was a short day, and I picked up some molding for around the walls near the ceiling.

Can't help but think of Joshua 14: 7 & 8, where it talks about doing things wholeheartedly, thats what you need to do on a project like this.

Sad news out of Kansas right after we got back, Dan is assistant district superintendant, and their friend Steve Ortmann is the District Supt. That Saturday night after we got home, his wife died suddenly from a fall and broken neck. She was showing some friends how to get onto a zip line (a cable strung from a tree down a steep incline to a tree below) She didn't get on the swing properly, and was hanging on, laughing at the goof and she either fell or decided to get off part way down, and tumbled over & over and died instantly. So sad, as they were a very loving couple and she left 6 children behind. His sister is Ray Adams wife.

My neighbor Laura, is supposed to arrive back in Portland tonight, was in Boise last night on her way home from Kansas City, where she has been for last 2 or 3 weeks, working her job from her parents home. One of my next tasks is helping her put molding around the windows and the baseboards on her remodeled home. Would have been best if the carpenters did it, but they wanted too much to re attach them.

I've went on long enough for this blog, noticed as I dated it, its my Dad's birthday, were he still living he would have been 109 years old, and would have been one of the last WW I, veterans alive. There is only a few of them still living.

So, I say cherrio, for now.