Still trying to build a stream to the pond. The way I have it now just isn't to my liking. Before I foam it in and make it more or less permanent I'm re-thinking how I want this. I also have tons of weeding and general yardwork to do, but have a commitment to make 3 scrapbooks for a woman, so that has priority. Boy I wish I could afford medical insurance.. I'd retire in a minute flat - then I'd have more time for the fun things in life.
Anne

Well, I am working on my pond still. Needing to do lots of rock work, which I'd love to have done by fall, but lack of rocks is killing that plan right now.

I always have a mile long list that never stops growing. Part of the list includes:
1. Cleaning out the garage ruthlessly.
2. Finishing the siding work on the house. Just a small, but hard area to work.
3. Building new garden beds for veggies as swimming pool will be moved to current garden area next year.
4. Replacing windows on the garage. We will also be sectioning off an area inside. It will be my hubby's "Man Cave" where he can work on projects without using the kitchen table.
That is just a short list. Like I said, my mind never stops turning. And, with working 40+ hours, that leaves me without enough time. When I retire in 20+ years, my list will only get longer. All I have to do is get richer. LOL.

I've always been so busy and had so many obligations with the boys, a list just didn't cut it. Obligations always overlapped. Then they were on their own and I thought I could have some free time but it didn't happen. Now I am officially a senior citizen and have memory problems (names, dates)thanks to anesthesia during surgery. Boy, do I ever need lists! Now if I could just remember where I put them. Sandy

Gee, Sandy, I have problems with memory even without anesthesia! Although... I did have my UPPP fix in April...

Our summer this year, well,
- first, all the weeding and mulching that didn't get done last year when we were renovating DD's house, and I had a very late start due to the rainy weather.
- All the waterlilies need repotting, we've only done three so far (ended up with five). Ten or eleven to go.
- And we're looking to buy a lot to build a small home on to retire to. Our five-bedroom house was perfect for us and the four kids, but it's too big for us now, and the knees are getting older, so we want to have a one-floor home. If we find the perfect spot, it will have waterfront on a small natural pond, or access to, or at least the view... and/or room for us to put in our man-made ponds and create a new little paradise, like we have now (or better). Surprisingly, there is actually one such piece of heaven for sale, 6 acres, mostly flat hay meadow, with a piece of Shoreland Protection Act between it and the 20 acre pond behind it... only two other houses on the pond... It's a bit further away than I would like, but otherwise it's perfect. We're going to have a second look next weekend.
- Cleaning out half of the contents of the house. Bringing it to the dump, the recycling center, or Goodwill, putting it on Craig's list, at the side of the road on Saturdays...
- DD and fam from California are coming over for three weeks in August. By which time we should have enough space cleared! They'll switch between us and the other side of the family, and have rented a little place for one week at the ocean. It promises to be lots of fun and busy in spurts.

- And all this between family stuff. My dad is doing very poorly. He's 89 and at the end of his life. My sister and I are good with this, but my brother is either in denial or angry. So all the gardening, cleaning and looking for real estate is a welcome escape!

:) Mary

Sandy,

This is a weird year as for once I have NO projects. lol The yard and pond are taking care of themselves as I spend time with my family and close friends. Usually you would find me cleaning the pond twice a week, but I finally understood that I was doing way TOO much. So I added a lot of veggie filtraion, as small trickle tower, and fewer water changes. Life is good, and summer is the best time to appreciate the small slice of heaven that we call our yards.

Warm Regards,
Lisa

Lisa, you make me jealous. I don't seem to have a minute to spare anymore. Too much computer.
Mary, I'm sorry to hear about your father. No matter what happens, your brother is going to be difficult unless you can get him involved in caring for your fathers needs. When the body fails us, we do sometimes just stop. Unless it is experienced or we are capable of empathy it is just not easy to understand that we are being selfish. On the other hand, I have seen people with a zest for living who defy all the odds. Sandy

Sandy, Dad is much improved in the meantime. At least physically he's hanging in there. My brother, the problem is that he DOES get involved with my dad's care, too much so - and he orders everybody around in the process.

Brother has to go through the mourning process; the denial and anger are just part of it, so Sis and I do our best to be patient. Sooner or later he'll be our nice brother again.

:) Mary

The kids in town are back to school! It's over already!

So, how did I do with my list?
- the California kids have come and gone. We had a blast.
- we did get the house cleaned up! We didn't get rid of half of everything, but it's a lot better already. The rest is now is on the winter list...
- weeding and mulching, check, of course I need to make another round of weeding now!
- never re-potted any more water lilies. Oh well.
- We're waiting to see if the owners of that lot will drop the price when winter is coming. Meanwhile, we're having fun planning what our next house, yard, and pond will look like...

:) Mary

Well, here it is, 2 months later. What can I say? I tried. LOL. I was able to get my hands on a few more rocks. Also, been eyeing a huge pile of very large flat rocks by my house. Planning on calling owner to beg for them. We will see. Did get the majority of garage cleaned out, still some 'fine tuning' to do. Siding and windows were a no go, but hubby is almost finished with the Man Cave. Fall looks like it may arrive sooner this year, so rushing around and getting things cleaned up. Wanting to go shopping at the Pond Store to buy a few essentials, like netting and a small aerator. All in all, it has been a great summer.