Not a Shingle Problem

We have three sheds, two have similar shingles and are in need of new roofs, and a third that we are lucky is still standing.

 

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before we started

For our weekend project after seeing the Eagles, we decided to roof two of our sheds. There’s nothing better than the feeling of a tool belt wrapped around your waist, going up a ladder, hammer in hand and nailing up shingles with the one you love.

Mitch starting to get out the shingles
Mitch starting to get out the shingles, the dogs keeping us company
The first row already done
The first row already done
Mitch on a roll
Mitch starting a new row while I get a drink of water
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An eighth of the way done and sun screen is needed
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first one complete and we are pooped, but we keep on keeping on, and start on the second shed
Me enjoying my roof top time after we got done working the first day.
Me being brave and strong (because I was sitting on the roof hammering most of the time just praying not to fall off) after finishing the first roof.

 

The second shed behind Harvey the RV
The second shed behind Harvey the RV
Mitch stretching out sore muscles on day two of roofing
Mitch getting wild celebrating our first completed shed as we prepare for the next one
Rooftop yoga, going to start a new trend
Rooftop yoga, I’m going to start a new trend

 

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The finished product

 

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What a difference it made, brought the whole place together
One of the roof tops when we finished
One of the roof tops when we finished
us showing off our completed project after two days of work
us showing off our completed project after two days of work

We got 3/4 of the roofs done on Saturday, so even though we were very sore, had a couple blisters and were pretty tired we finished up on Sunday around 1 p.m. Mission accomplished.

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It’s about time guys! That didn’t look too hard

Check, check sweetie!

 

 

Life In The Fast Lane

“This is a once in a lifetime opportunity” I tell myself as I stare at the computer trying to wrap my head around the cost of two tickets.  Eight minutes after tickets went on sale the affordable ones were all sold out and only the most expensive ones were left. I knew those too would be gone in a minute, I had to decide now.  I remind myself that it’s a lifelong hope of Mitch’s to see them, it would be a dream come true… and click, I select confirm. I bought two tickets to see the Eagles live in concert at the Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena on May 29th at 8 p.m.!   I wasn’t sure if I was going to tell Mitch about getting the tickets, and was thinking about making it a surprise. I hadn’t known anything about them coming to town until an hour before tickets went on sale. I was so excited that I hadn’t missed the opportunity and was a little perplexed that hadn’t heard anything before about them coming.

Thirty minutes after buying the tickets I get a call from Mitch at work and he is beyond bothered.  He proceeds to tell me how he’d been trying to hide the news that the Eagles were coming to town so he could surprise me with tickets.  He called tickets-west right when they went on sale, but was actually three minutes too early and had to call back. Well, he couldn’t get through after that, busy signal, busy signal, finally got through and then somehow got disconnected.  He was beyond frustrated and finally decided to call me to go online and buy the tickets.  A grin begins on my face and a great feeling of happiness comes over me as I get to rescue his day!  “Baby, I just got us tickets, less than an hour ago!” He   said, “What, you did? You got tickets already! Oh, you are the best wife ever!” I was so proud of myself that I actually got the tickets and knew it would be a dream come true for my sweetie,  plus I just love it when I do something to warrant him saying, “You are the best wife ever!”

Going to get in line at the Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena
Going to get in line at the Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena

I’m an “on time attender”, Mitch is a “get there early, the earlier the better”.  Since seeing the Eagles was more for him, I told him he could set the time and I would be ready with bells on.  We arrived before they opened the doors at 6:30 for the show at 8 p.m.  We had time to get a couple souvenirs, cha-ching spendy,  and a pretzel and nachos with a couple sodas, cha-ching! Good thing we don’t drink alcohol anymore cuz that cost was probably through the roof!  We made some friendly conversation with the folks behind us, and they were kind enough to snap a photo of us together in front of the stage before the seats filled up.

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We’re finally  going to see the EAGLES! Wahoo!

This is the first and only concert that Mitch and I have been to in the 9 years we’ve been together.  “Check, check” we said to each other as we always do for first time experiences together.  After this photo was taken we were approached by a stadium worker and was told that no smart phones are to be used, even before the show and we were given our first warning.  We told him, take it easy, and you better share that info with the girl down in front because she said we could take pics before the show started. I joked with the lady who took the picture and told her that it was “her” first warning, and thanks for taking one for the team.

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The empty stage and stadium before the show

 

This cellphone situation becomes the issue of the night.  There’s gonna be a heartache tonight, especially when the guy next to us halfway through the show, was removed for continuously using his phone. The arena workers would stare into the crowd searching for lyin’ eyes lit up by the light of cell phones.  They would come and give warnings, and if it were a repeat offender they would already be gone from the arena.  I felt like a new kid in town in class when I would try and pass notes without getting caught.  Honestly it became such a distraction, there was no peaceful easy feeling.  I was a victim of love, just trying to snap a couple photo’s for this post.  It loomed over me that at any moment they’d swoop in and take me away. I was taking it to the limit, a total desperado, but I wanted to get a couple pictures to capture this once in a lifetime experience.  I can’t tell you why, I guess we’ll all have to just get over it, realize we’re in the presents of fast company and sneak a pic when they’re not looking.

The Eagles singling Hotel California
The Eagles singling Hotel California

 

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14,000 souls, not an empty seat at the Eagles Concert
The band waving to the crowd at the end of the show
The band waving to the crowd at the end of the show

They were amazing!  They sounded great, gave a great show and were beyond our expectations in their performance.  The artistry they posses as a band is insurmountable, and I love that they look like everyday people with their plaid shirts and jeans.  It’s awesome to see that all the years of fame hasn’t faded their skills, and when we heard them sing it gave us chills!

 

PS. If you haven’t guessed, all the words in Italics are song titles from the band!

 

 

 

 

The Class C Experience

I would like to officially announce that we’ve drank the RV kool-aid and finally see what all the hype is about!

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What kind of kool-aid you talkin’ bout ma?

 

After 9 months of traveling the country in a Dodge mega cab, loading up a camper, hauling a travel trailer and all the steps required to set up or hit the road I was so over RVing.  Thankfully we now have Harvey the RV and got to enjoy the traveling experience we were all hoping for two years ago!

Lets go already kids!
Lets go already kids!

No more having to worry about slides, taking out the generators from the trailer (travel trailers do not have built in generators like all the other types of RV’s) and unhooking from the truck.  What a relief, what a difference and what a blessing that we had to go through all those tough times, to now have such a wonderful experience.

How sweet it is to have Pops as happy about it as we are!
How sweet it is to have Pops as happy about it as we are!

We began our journey with home made coffees and we had those down before we made it through Spokane, so we made a coffee stop on our way up to Kettle Falls to see Mitch’s sister Nettie! We all had plenty of room while traveling, of course Milo still prefers my lap, and Charlie loves to hang out with Papa.

Best cup holders and cubby spots ever!
Best cup holders and cubby spots ever!
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Charlie had the hardest time adjusting to the new RV, but towards the end he started to relax and enjoy the ride.
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Hey Dad, are we there yet?
I think you need to make a window I can look out of when we travel
I think you need to make a window I can look out of when we travel, I want to see nature too!
The beautiful scenery on the way to Kettle Falls
The beautiful scenery on the way to Kettle Falls

Once we got to Nettie’s place, due to some overgrown trees, we were unable to drive all the way down the road, so we set up nearby, put it in park, and called it good!  So much easier! When we needed A/C all we did was push a button and the generator started and Yahoo!

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The Family hanging out with Nettie

Beyond happy to be reunited and not a minute was wasted, stories were shared and the joy of family time was treasured.

Mitch brought his sis a beautiful hydrangea, and made her day.
Mitch brought his sis a beautiful hydrangea, and made her day.

Nettie and I hit it off from the minute we meet, she couldn’t have been any sweeter.  Her little world in the woods was sprinkled with flowers, blue jays, humming birds and Bald Eagles.  We were lucky enough to see all of it when we visited, but only the flowers stayed still, long enough for me to take pictures.

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This is the view from Nettie’s place

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She gave us some bulbs of her Iris’s, and let us dig up a few of her daisy’s to take home and have for ourselves.  We decided to put them all in the same area and name it Nettie’s corner.

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Giving big kisses, making up for lost time and making the memories last till the next time we meet.
Loaded up and ready to head back home
Loaded up and ready to head back home
Heading back home after our first adventure
Heading back home after our first adventure
Home sweet home, nice to have you to come back to!
Home sweet home, nice to have you to come back to!

Our first of many journeys was relaxing, enjoyable and first and for most EASY!  So, if you ask me, if you ever buy an RV, go with a Class C!

Onto a couple other items before our next encounter,  flowers and food!

 

FLOWERS:

I wasn't going to buy any flowers this year....but then I stopped into a flower shop
I wasn’t going to buy any flowers this year….but then I stopped into a flower shop
NO WEEDS!  So far so good folks!
NO WEEDS! So far, so good folks! Mulch beats out rocks any day!

 

FOOD:

There’s a new place out in the valley off the Sulivan Exit near Kohls called Sweeto Burrito.  We had the fortune of stopping into a store and getting two free vouchers for their first opening and then we got to be their FIRST EVER customers!

Our vouchers
Our vouchers

We met the owner and he was very friendly, kind and hopeful for his new business.

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Everyone trying to set up for their first day on the job

We were beyond surprised at how delicious everything was, and they aren’t shy on the meat.  If you’re in the neighborhood and are looking for something different than the regular fast food mexican restaurants around, we highly recommend them.  I had the smokehouse and LOVED it.

See the photo of Mitch and I as their very first customers, just click here .

 

Harvey the RV

There’s more than one way to peel a lemon, and tons of ways to cook with them. When the lemons of life start to get you down, search for a new recipe!

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When life gets too tart, just put some love in it.

Good news to report, we finally sold the camper!  A lovely couple from the coast came over, it was everything they wanted  and just like that we only had the travel trailer left.

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The new owners loaded up and are ready to head home

After a year of trying to sell our beautiful 32′ travel trailer we had no luck, consignment didn’t work, craigslist didn’t work, even running an ad in the local wheels and deals only got us one phone call!

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Willy (camper and truck) and Way (the travel trailer) before we went full timing

We were even willing to finance a loss just to get it sold and had it listed for less than others with similar year and make.  A few weeks ago, and at a loss for what to do, a thought came to me…what if we were still supposed to have an RV in our life?  I made the comment in passing to Mitch, ” I wonder if we just aren’t meant to sell it, maybe we should trade it in for the RV we’ve always wanted…a class C!  Shoot, at least we could use that, we’ve paid on the trailer for a year and haven’t used it once.”

What about you Milo, you want to go camping?
What about you Milo, you want to go camping?

We began our search with a prayer, “Please Lord, give us signs if the ones we look at aren’t for us.” Thankfully he made it loud and clear!  We test drove one, and as we were working the deal to purchase it, it got sold out from under us.  Oh, well, guess that wasn’t the one.  I found a 2002 that was a bit rough, I liked it, but Mitch just didn’t feel right about it.  Thankfully he reminded me, “Don’t get desperate and settle!”

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Pops cruising around with Becky while Mitch tried to figure out what it was that I liked about this rusted out, torn up RV.

Alright then, guess we’ll keep looking!  We both liked another one but the price was so far beyond our budget, thankfully it didn’t work out.

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Mercedes engine, need I say more. Way too expensive for us, but it drove like a dream

We kept the faith and finally, Brian from Camping World found us the best RV for the best price. He set us up with the Camping World in Burlington, WA and with his diligence and willingness to help, our hopes came to fruition. We are happy to introduce you to….HARVEY THE RV.

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A whole new world of possibilities and adventures to come

He’s a 2011 21′ chateau Four winds class C.

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Perfect in size, no slides and everything we wanted and more!

Now we have something that I feel comfortable driving, no more hooking up the trailer, we can all ride in comfort and Mitch won’t have to make as may stops for potty breaks! Plus it’s a great place for family and friends to sleep when they come visit, since we only have a one bedroom house!

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There’s even a queen size bed!

Maybe this is life’s way of giving us a re-do in the RV world, because we’re not done road trippin!  Now that it’s not our lifestyle and it’s just for little trips, I truly believe that we’ll have the experiences I was hoping for when we went full timing.

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Looking forward to making espresso’s before we go adventuring

This is the best example of never say never, cuz never, never happens, and in life we can always change our minds and our futures!

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Big smiles for future traveling miles

Spring has been great to us this year,

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Mitch made a wonderful treasure hunt for me on Easter!

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Each piece of paper was another clue to the next egg! so fun!

Since it’s my most favorite holiday he went all out!

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He even made a basket for pops.

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I was even lucky enough to win a bread maker at Bi-mart when I checked my numbers last Tuesday!  After being members at Bi-mart for the last 6 years our membership number finally came up!

Looking forward to smelling that fresh baked bread smell.
Looking forward to smelling that fresh baked bread smell.

The temperature is beginning to warm up, we’re in the high 70’s now, the tulips are almost done for the season and we’re looking forward to making the most of our summer, hope you all are too!

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Blooming with joy and love!