Gotta get it Done before Summer

There is not much to say today.  It has been an incredibly busy few weeks. In fact since our return from London, we have had very little downtime.  We took the trailer on our "Shake Down Trip".  This is the first trip of the year to make sure everything is in working order and make repairs for the season.  We were actually hoping it was going to rain the full Easter weekend so we could rest up from our trip, but the rainy weather subsided.  We stocked the trailer for the summer with the staples of canned goods and snacks and tested the water, air conditioning and furnace.  My husband caulked and resealed areas around the trailer and I did a deep clean of cupboards and tabletops from the winter storage.  Our most enjoyable upgrade was removing the jack knife sofa and replacing it with two recliners.  Yes, we glamp now, instead of camp.

Our other big project was removing my old raised garden bed outside the kitchen off the firepit patio off, building a retaining wall and adding dirt and gravel to level the area off creating a new barrier garden around the perimeter of the upper level patio. I say our project, but it was more my plans that my husband and some help from our daughter, executed.  Though I did assemble the new planters.

Did I mention we are horse sitting our daughter's horse, Troubadour?  It is the muddy season.  Keeping that horse relatively clean seems like a futile battle.  But a clean"er" horse is a healthier horse.

I also had a few projects from the fall and winter that I wanted to get off my work bench and finished.  First was a mirror someone from the Nextdoor app gave to me.  Actually, she gave me two. I finished the first one several months ago by painting a 3D falling leaves design on it. This was a good camouflage for a few scratches on the mirror.  It adds a nice reflective light in the small bedroom.  

The second mirror is very large and the antique frame was too difficult to repair.  So I decided to repurpose the naturally antiquing mirror into a window frame to accent an area in the eating area which is still being updated with a new countertop and cabinet doors to hide the washer dryer.  My husband did the heavy lifting on this one. I love the custom stain. I can't wait to finish this area.  

My third winter project I only recently even got to.  My Grammie and Papa had a schild's rocking chair made from a small whiskey barrel.  I know they had it when I was a child so at least the 1970s, but I am not certain of it's age.  I was hoping to clean it up and give it a subtle upgrade when I had grandchildren, but my grandson is almost three years old and likely won't fit well into it.  It had become lost in our attic and I forgot about it until this winter.  I was able to sand it and make a minor repair or two, gave it a new stain color and seat cushion.  It is so cute!

Then 2 1/2 weeks after London, should I refer to it as A.L.?  Anyway, we traveled to Columbus, Ohio for the weekend to watch my youngest daughter receive her Master's Degree in Public Health.  We were very excited to have my oldest daughter, join us in the trailer for the weekend.  We all wanted to avoid the price gouging prices of hotel rooms on graduation weekend.  The trailer was tight for space, but we really only spent a few hours there a day as we were partaking in all the graduation celebrations of ceremonies and celebratory meals and treats.

We have spent the time since returning from the graduation celebration preparing the yard for the summer and the house for my youngest return to the nest before she embarks on her new career.  We will be moving her back to the area this weekend.  We are blessed to have been able to get together with friends for dinner and a baseball game and even managed to squeeze seeing the musical "Shucked" during this busy time. 

Reflection:  My husband mentioned last night yet another yard update/repair that we should do.  I looked at him warily.  We have worked the past several months to get the yard ready for summer relaxation and I do not want another "project" that will tear up the yard.  I want to relax when we are home and not traveling.  I want to sit on a chair and watch the clouds, not excavators. We will see who wins this mini battle.  Yes , the repair needs to be done, but can it wait until fall? This is not to say I don't have other things I want to be done, but looking at a mud pit for the summer is not in my plans.  We have such a limited amount of summer in Northeast Ohio and I want to squeeze every ounce of sunshine out of it.  I don't want to work so hard making the yard look nice that I don't have time or energy to enjoy it. What is your favorite part of summer?