quote of the day

There is not a truth existing which I fear or would wish unknown to the whole world.

– Thomas Jefferson, 3rd President (1743-1826)

next phase

I was sitting around this morning with nothing important to do and decided to tear out the wall between the new dining room and the kitchen.

t ball

Hunter prepares to swing.

kelly's birthday

Marley, Jenna, and Hunter assist Kelly as she blows out her candles.

Kelly and me 17 years ago.

Kelly and me yesterday

Jenna and I spent the afternoon sitting in the yard watching the cars go by on the highway.

dining room

It occurred to me that I've never given an update on the new dining room. Well, here's the story in photos:
Bill and mike tear out the wall to make a hole for the new sliding door

In an old house it's often necessary to level the floors

Insulation will keep us comfy.

Now we're ready for the next phase.

not hornets

I'm a little embarrassed. That wasn't a hornets nest yesterday, it was a swarm of bees. When Dorothy came home from work we went to the back yard to take a look. It wasn't there. Since a nest like that doesn't just disappear it had to be bees. We just had a swarm in the front of the house last week and I called a beekeeper to come and get them. I guess this calls for a trip to the optometrist.

hornets!

This morning I was cutting down some small trees at the fence of my back yard when I heard this ungodly, buzzing roar. Instinctively I ran to the side of the house. I looked back to see a cloud of hornets hovering above the tree I had been sawing. That was a close one. I couldn't see a nest and I didn't want to get too close, so I drove my truck around in the pasture on the other side of the fence. With the windows rolled up it was safe to get close. The nest was hard to see in the foliage but I soon found it. Now, how to get rid of them?

family gathering

For Mother's Day the men got together and cooked for the mothers. I grilled the chicken, Burk made some twice baked potatoes, and Bill brought corn. We had a great meal.

We also celebrated Karon's birthday. Jenna, Hunter, Marley and Dorothy are singing the birthday song to Aunt Karon.

gardening

The rain has given a boost to the plants in our yard.

storms

When the tornadic storms hit Saturday I was on my way home from the store. I saw the wall cloud in the south west and knew we were in for a rough one. I was halfway home when I had to pull over because the rain was coming down so hard I couldn't see. I was afraid the hail was going to break the windshield of my truck. After the storm eased us a bit I continued home. Later, another wave swept through and golf ball sized hail began to fall. We sustained no personal or property damage but twenty two people lost their lives in our area and who know how many houses we reduced to splinters.

When it was safe to go out I picked up these two hail stones. They had melted down a bit, but as you can see, compared to a dime, they were quite large.

what i'm reading now

Mary Lee Coe Fowler, the author of the blog Full Fathom Five, has written a book by the same name. And a good book it is. In her memoir of a search for information about her dad, a submarine commander who was lost at sea during WWII, she gives a well researched account of submarine warfare in the South Pacific. By interviewing surviving submariners and delving into the military archives, American and Japanese, she puts together the life story of the hero unknown to her during her formative years. Only after the death of her mother does Mary Lee realize the love shared by her parents, and the courage and determination of her father. I read many books and occasionally a gem comes along that makes me say wow! This is one of them. You can buy it at Amazon.com

storm

These are pictures of trees blown down last night in Siloam Springs. There were 6 people killed by this storm statewide

When a tree blew over it took off the back of this house and the roots lifted the front of the truck parked under the carport.