I've been silent on this blog and on social media for a few weeks. The first week involved a lot of this:
I spent a week on Myrtle Beach with my family and had an absolutely fantastic time. Babies + sand + water = just what the doctor ordered!
As soon as I got home, I was unfortunately hit with several rather large challenges in my personal life (note: my health is fine) and a very unexpected death in the family. I am dealing with all of this by making a virtue of necessity:
I learned how to chop wood. A line of tornadoes swept through my town in May. We lost several trees then and more keep falling. A few weeks ago, one fell on the house. We had it and several others cut down. These are RIDICULOUSLY large trees and we now have literally tons of firewood to split, stack, and season so we can burn it in 2020.
This is what tons of wood look like:
I never had a desire to chop wood but it is an incredibly effective stress reliever and I rather enjoy it. It's me vs. the log and most days I can hear the logs laugh at me. When I succeed at splitting the wood, it feels great and it is super satisfying to see the stack of split wood grow ever-higher. (Note: I do not stack the wood. I am married to an engineer. 'Nuff said.) Every day I go outside and spend an hour or two swinging a sledgehammer or maul and work myself sweaty.
When I roll another log off the pile, I dislodge it and RUN out of the way! These are over 30" across and 15"+ tall. Once they are on the ground, I roll them and wrestle them into place and get all kinds of muddy and meet all kinds of critters:
toad
newt
We have a fascinating selection of bugs, spiders, and beetles living in our woodpiles. I won't share those photos; you are welcome. You'll know when I come across a snake, though, because you'll hear my screaming wherever in the world you may be. I do NOT enjoy snakes. They are all neck and completely untrustworthy. While we do have a few copperheads on the property, to me all snakes are poisonous and I threaten to move somewhere more civilized whenever I come across one.
My brain is beginning to function again, life is calming down, and I can't wait to share more quilting goodness with you soon!
I spent a week on Myrtle Beach with my family and had an absolutely fantastic time. Babies + sand + water = just what the doctor ordered!
As soon as I got home, I was unfortunately hit with several rather large challenges in my personal life (note: my health is fine) and a very unexpected death in the family. I am dealing with all of this by making a virtue of necessity:
I learned how to chop wood. A line of tornadoes swept through my town in May. We lost several trees then and more keep falling. A few weeks ago, one fell on the house. We had it and several others cut down. These are RIDICULOUSLY large trees and we now have literally tons of firewood to split, stack, and season so we can burn it in 2020.
This is what tons of wood look like:
I never had a desire to chop wood but it is an incredibly effective stress reliever and I rather enjoy it. It's me vs. the log and most days I can hear the logs laugh at me. When I succeed at splitting the wood, it feels great and it is super satisfying to see the stack of split wood grow ever-higher. (Note: I do not stack the wood. I am married to an engineer. 'Nuff said.) Every day I go outside and spend an hour or two swinging a sledgehammer or maul and work myself sweaty.
When I roll another log off the pile, I dislodge it and RUN out of the way! These are over 30" across and 15"+ tall. Once they are on the ground, I roll them and wrestle them into place and get all kinds of muddy and meet all kinds of critters:
We have a fascinating selection of bugs, spiders, and beetles living in our woodpiles. I won't share those photos; you are welcome. You'll know when I come across a snake, though, because you'll hear my screaming wherever in the world you may be. I do NOT enjoy snakes. They are all neck and completely untrustworthy. While we do have a few copperheads on the property, to me all snakes are poisonous and I threaten to move somewhere more civilized whenever I come across one.
My brain is beginning to function again, life is calming down, and I can't wait to share more quilting goodness with you soon!
