Visiting and Departure

The last 2 weeks Pop has been visiting us. Pop is my father and the grandfather that Fi spend the most time as a baby sleeping on. A common phrase I've had to hear from her since she could speak was "but it's Popppppp" meaning "he-who-can-do-no-wrong". Now we laugh but as a young 22 year old mother hearing the constant unrelenting praise of my father was incredibly annoying. Ok so most things annoy a 22 year old.

Anyway, THE POP came to see us. He stayed 2 weeks and in that time:

1) Built a really cool bunk bed out of falling/dead trees in the yard and a few 2x6's. Unfortunately my digital camera is MIA so I only have a few photos from the beginning of the process.

Here's the plans. Feel free to modify them to fit your own needs:

And here's dad outside with borrowed tools starting to cut. It's really colder here than the 85 in TN so Dad froze most of his trip.

I'll have a finished product view once I can get more film developed. Well I can't go around with *no* camera, right? That's like going around without a left arm. And I'm left handed, btw.

Edit: D found my digital camera inside the same recliner that originally ate my cell phone. 

Plastic bags under the legs help keep the carpet clean while the logs cure.

2) Ran new cat5 under the house from the external phone "box" to the master bedroom. This is a HUGE DEAL because the original phone line in this house was mouse chewed and we received less than half of the internet speeds we paid for. And we have the cheapest plan. Oh and I couldn't call people because no one could understand me through the buzzing and hissing. This means we were able to disconnect the phone line in Fi's room (insert evil laugh) and move the router and all to the master bedroom. I won't say she did it, because she probably didn't, but there were times when she was in time out an our internet would mysteriously go down. Hrm.

3) Tightened up our drafty house. While in the basement he realized there was a serious draft so he stuffed our non functioning chimney with grocery store plastic bags and got on top of the house to seal both chimneys! Suddenly I wouldn't feel air drift across my toes at night. He also found a broken window and sealed it up, then replaced a shorted out outlet that was such a fire hazard I have no idea how I didn't notice it when I stacked our cardboard boxes of storage items in front of it. Yeah. The plastic of the outlet was brittle and burned and had been turned backwards in the wall box. Why remove it when you can simply bend the wires turning it around wrong?

4) Trick or treated with us! We did the children's museum and the local lions club event halloween night. At the children's museum Pop won a prize! Two tickets to the movie theatre in Rhinelander and dinner at a nice local restaurant! Fi said, "Cool he and I can go when he comes back!" without missing a beat. She knows where she stands with him.

5) Made breakfast every morning and did a load of dishes. That sounds so boring right? But do you know how awesome it is to stumble out of  bed to children already fed and starting lessons and coffee in the coffee pot waiting for you? In case you've somehow missed this fun fact about me: I don't do mornings. I can barely make sentences. Or walk. I bump into thinks like an awkward teenager and when my brain says "Please hand me that mug so I can pour myself a cup of coffee," my mouth says "Give me that blue." So two weeks of breakfast and coffee was like a luxury cruise for me. Also maybe the children who sometimes can't translate mama morning speak.

6) Offered to buy our Gallatin house. I'd rather say some foreign investor bought it from us but nope, it was Dad. I think he was very aware of the stress owning that home was causing us emotionally as well as finically. Plus he's done so much work on it since we moved and could rent it for a while or long term and be there to check on it. I didn't want renters because I *hate* absent landlords. I've had a few in my life and it's too complicated. Dad offered us a price we can take and get out from under our mortgage (yay) which frees us up to try to find a 2nd car for our family (yay) and maybe afford a Christmas (yay) since we'll no longer have so much tied up in that house!!! I still feel a little mixed emotions over the whole thing. It's that proud girl always living just under the surface, not wanting to depend on others and feeling like dad bailed us out. I keep reminding myself though for him it's an investment and he'll figure out how to make money off that house in the end.

There was a lot more that happened in those 2 weeks but it was a blur to me. I'll update with photos if my digital camera shows up again or as I get 35mm developed.

Just to keep myself informed lets review all the ex-electronics in my life since moving here:

1) Ipod Touch - stolen by movers
2) Cell Phone - nearly destroyed in a metal parts recliner, then washed, then disconnected to help family budget
3) Digital Camera - been missing long enough now I'm assuming it's gone but it was over 5 years old and starting to have white balance issues and focus problems. Maybe due to use by a photographer who constantly tweaked it instead of using it as a point and shoot.

Keep your fingers crossed. Maybe the digital camera will return or I'll keep my mouth shut between now and Christmas and santa will remember me and still bring me a new digital camera. :D