Summer activity

Once again it's been a long time since the last post. Work continues at the pace of 8 hours a day more or less for me mostly, inside, plus a few hours or more most days for Sandy, mostly working outside, in the heat, moving soil to the front hillside and grading the entryway at the front door. The heat has been oppressive for weeks now, so one can only work at most 30 minutes at a time outside.

Inside the temperature had been up to 20 degrees lower inside (low 70's) but the humidity was above 80% all the time. It was so bad we began to find mold on drywall and doors, especially areas that weren't well ventilated. Our small dehumidifier was able to drop the humidity in one of the bedrooms at a time, but had no effect in the larger areas. We purchased a Kenmore unit that is rated at 70 pints a day and it brought the humidity in the entire building down to 50% (where we set it) within a few days. Though the indoor temperature in now in the high 70's, the humidity throughout is hovering at 50% and it feels great coming in from outside.

I don't find hanging drywall, taping, mudding and applying a primer coat as worth showing in a post. When the walls are all done I'll post a video walk-through.

In July we took two grandsons back east and visited my son in Maryland, my sister in Delaware and Sandy's uncle and aunt in Ohio. On the way home we brought my granddaughter from Maryland who stayed with us for a week. Then my other son visited from North Carolina with his two who live in Germany. They stayed a few days and I went back to Durham with them for a week. We all then went back to Maryland to take the Maryland granddaughter home. She is only seven and she was away from home for over two weeks. What a gal!

There was virtually no time for work the short week I was home in mid July. All that got done was getting two heavy wires pulled through the tube in the floor for the oven and stove top.

Oh yeh, and I got some help painting.

Audry paints the first wall, in the smaller bedroom

while Lucas and Kira work on another.

Graduation number 2

Our week away from home is nearly finished, but not before we see grandson Nicholas Riddle graduate. He has been at Carolina Coastal University for four years and plans to go off to Illinois College of Optometry after the summer.

Here's Nick going over the hill.

Dad (Barry), Nick, and Grammy (Sandy).

Since Nick was all packed there wasn't much for us to do, so we said our goodbyes and started home.

Salute! How we spent Mayday

We took a long week off at the end of April to drive to Jacksonville, Florida. Under the live oak trees on the campus of Jacksonville University, my son Andrew got his BA degree, magna cum laude, on May 1st.


Not only that, he also was recognized as an ROTC officer candidate.


Got some added recognition from Andrea.


Was sworn in.


And got his lid from daughter Audrey.



What a day!