Log Splitting time!

Sunday 9 September, 2018

Dear family and friends,

Happy Birthday (yesterday) to my brother Steve and to Joshua White (tomorrow our time).

The big news of the week was the Labor Day wood splitting activity held last Monday.  Before we could get started though, we had to move the current wood pile of over a rick of wood.  That is where the younger children were most helpful.  Didn't take them long to move it!  We had Alex, Ethan, Camdon McClellan, and Emma, Charlotte, Matthew, Aaron and Katie Fox plus the two sister missionaries to help with that project.  Then Andy and Lawrence (a friend from church) got down to business with the two borrowed log splitters.  They kept the older ones busy stacking the split wood. But 90 minutes into the project, one the splitters decided to quit and could not be encouraged to work again. So Lawrence, along with Matthew, and Arron used the wedges and sledge hammer and splitting maul approach and were very successful with that effort.

 Yes, even Rachel wanted to help her mother.

 Here is part of the helping hands crew.

Then one of the oil seals on the second splitter started leaking.  We bought 5 gallons of hydraulic fluid and used half of it.  By the time we finished, it was a constantly pouring out fluid; at least the wood will burn hot after being soaked with oil!

I now have a wood pile that is approximately 65 feet long, 4 feet high and 16 inches deep.  By my reckoning, that is about 8 rick of freshly split wood.

By 2 pm, we were finished; the wood was stacked and the chips cleaned up. The sisters had left earlier, and Miranda and her children left shortly after 2.  Andy and family stayed for an early dinner of 7 layer dip we didn't have the appetite to eat the previous night. So for 24 hours we had a joyous time of playing, eating, working and having fun.

Tuesday afternoon, we met the sister missionaries at church to help them teach a lesson to one of their investigators.  He is an interesting man and is willing to learn.

Thursday evening we had invited Lawrence and his wife to come and place some games with us and visit.  It was low key and required that I make some congo squares (after all, you can't play games without food!).  Friday night the O'Briens had invited us for dinner; she made liver and onions for Chuck and me. Again, a quiet get together.

One of the projects that was on my list of to does was organizing the cupboards in the laundry room.  It had become a collection of sheets, towels, detergents, essential oils and all other related items, many of which needed to find more suitable homes.  It took a couple of evenings, but I was successful in making room for the essential items and organizing the 76 essential oils and 25 plus other Young Living products into a usable order.  Wonder how long that will last!

Saturday I finally worked on the love seat that has been neglected for at least eight months.  This is the one on the 1890's photo of Uncle Otto's NY apartment; we discovered over a year ago that the back seat brace was broken and I had dismantled it to replace the wood piece, restring the springs and then reupholster it.  It has been waiting months for me to install the webbing, which I did yesterday.  this week I will tie the springs.  Then we have to decide what to do about the upholstery.

Sandy has done well this week.  No great new revelations.  After losing weight and then going up/down a pound or so every other day for several weeks, she has gained at least one pound which she has maintained.  The past couple of days she has had an increase in pain on the right side where the tumor is.  Heat seems to help decrease the pain..  She contacted the doctor this past week about starting the immunotherapy and we hope to start that this week. One of the sisters from church stopped by yesterday to give her a pedicure and visit.  That is always therapeutic.

Doctor appointment dependent, we hope to escape to Branson for a couple of days this week in honor of our 48th anniversary.

Love,
Tom and Sandy