Aug 10 - recovery

Zoe's nap was three hours.  That says it all.  We were all recovering from having the gang here :).

Actually it wasn't all that bad.  The noise level was high but everyone was good. 

I went fishing; came home with nothing, not even memories of "the one that got away".  It was a very quiet morning.  Perhaps I've fished out that one spot but I didn't want to go too far.

I took Zoe out in the kayak, pulling her kayak behind mine with a rope.  I came back a couple of times to see if she was ok but she didn't want to get out.  Kayak speed isn't exactly high speed, but she seemed to like it.  Later on, Sandy pushed her around in the kayak in the cove; she loves that too.

While Zoe was having her nap, Emma helped me move the newly cut maple from the side of the garage to a spot in front of the woodpile by the barn.  I can now split said wood.  I still have 3-4 pieces that I cannot lift by myself; will get help from Jason or one of his guys.  I should have asked Aaron to give me a hand when he was here but with all the other wood in the way, we couldn't have moved it very far anyway.  David will be up later in the summer and he can give me a hand ...

Speaking of which ... when David was cleaning the upper beams a couple of weeks ago I didn't even think to ask him to clean the ceiling fan blades.  I hadn't realized how dirty they were ... so ... I brought down the ladder and did those.  I couldn't quite reach the Great Room fan blades all the way with the vacuum hose and the 2nd-to-longest ladder so I did part-way and then used the duster to finish the job.  The fans were so bad that had they been turned onto maximum speed, they would have shed big dust "worms".  I also need to do the fan in the loft but that's simply a matter of using a step-stool.

Why the fans ?  It was hot.  85F outside hot.  It's cooling off overnight so it's bearable.  The house is well insulated so it holds the cool through the day.  I haven't even run the A/C this year; the cover is still on the outside unit.

Sandy did a bunch of washing and tidying and cleaning -- bedding, towels, picking up kids stuff, vacuuming -- the house is probably cleaner now than when we got back with the kids.  

What else ?  Not much.  Emma and I went down to see Wayne but he wasn't home.  I guess that'll have to wait until I get back.  I'll check again today before we leave ... speaking of which ... yes, today's the day.  We're thinking of leaving after Zoe's nap.  Of course she'll sleep five or six hours knowing that we're waiting for her !  Assuming that we get away around 4-5 p.m., that puts us into Reading about 12 hours later.  Hopefully we can put the kids back to bed since it will still be dark and get a little shut-eye ourselves.  If we leave any later it will mean stopping at a rest stop along the way for some sleep.  That's ok too ... we'll see what the day brings.

I've been fussing with the hitch rack seeing if I can bring it along with the bike on top.  Perhaps I'm wasting my time and should simply bring the little trailer.  That is what I bought it for.  I don't want to be piled up to the ceiling of the car again with Abby squashed in there.  The trouble is -- what do I do with it at Jeffrey's ?  I suppose that they could move their one car away from the garage and leave room for the trailer by the garage door.  Otherwise I'm worried about it being stolen -- I'd have to buy a tongue lock -- of course I have one of those in Florida !  Yes, perhaps bringing that trailer is best.  All of our luggage can go in there along with the bike, giving Abby lots of room.

I moved Jim's trailer in front of the barn.  I will re-wire the lights next week when I'm back as well as pull that wheel bearing for replacement.  Another chore for next week will be picking up the 3-wheeler in Parry Sound.  Apparently it's ready to go.

What else ?  Not sure. Oh, I exchanged emails with Jason.  They are coming tonight and then leaving as I return, assuming that I return after the weekend.  Sandy isn't sure what she's doing yet; depends on Jeffrey.  If he's still home, she's not needed.  We'll play that by ear.    Jim and Bonnie are supposed to be back from Parry Sound mid-week; Jim's had some doctor's appointments scheduled. 

The summer has almost flown by.  This weekend in Reading, the following weekend in Toronto (my bike ride, at least in Toronto for me), and then we have Labour Day Weekend in front of us and it's September !  Wow. 

Onward ...