NEW YEAR!!!

 

And, we start the new year off with a bang... With the snow we got late last year, it didn't really stick around. We have had such incredibly mild weather - mid 50's and the snow didn't like to hang around.  So, this is what it looks like...  Actually, I kinda like it. You know how I feel about the snow. The evening are still kind of on the chilly side, but the days are very, very moderate.

This picture was taken the weekend of 1/24/2026 and you can see, we don't have a whole lot of snow...

But, the road is in pretty rough shape.  I sure wish the county would take a little time and even it out... The spring is always a nightmare with the mud in the ruts.

We pulled up into the driveway, and I was greeted with his huge pile of rock.  Remember, I haven't been at the cabin since the summer and I was a little surprised by this.  Jim says its for the completion of the septic system.  We ran out of time finishing the septic runs at the end of the season last year, so this is a project for 2026.

This is the pile of "stuff" that was packed into the truck for our trip to the cabin.  It had been piling up in either the livingroom in the Provo house, or outside in the carport and it was due time to take a trip south.

Here's a picture of the property from the deck.  It shows the incredible lack of snow, which I don't mind at all.  We had a little bit of a problem getting up the hill to the cabin - it's really shaded with trees so the road was icy, but we turned around and went up the back way and didn't have a problem.

AND... the furnace is working beautifully.  We only stayed one night, but it was warm and toasty the whole time.

Last fall, I decided  wanted to try my hand at making gourd bird houses.  I had them drying in the carport and it seems I did something right.  Jim drilled the holes and we scooped out the membrane and seeds... Nobody told us to wear masks while doing said job, and let me tell you... the dust that is created is... bitter... really bitter.  I was researching how to finish these off, so we still need to drill some drainage holes, and coat them with a finish to preserve them, but I am really excited to see a measure of success.  Research taught me that the birds like these in clusters, thus, the four that are going to be secured all together in the trees.  It was a fun project.

And, this oak door made it's way to the cabin.  I am not completely sure where it is going to end up, but I think it's the downstairs bathroom... But, I could be wrong.

And, this is about my favourite thing ever.  I bought these Hallowe'en figures for the deck.  I think they are about the cutest ever.  Jim is not a fan, but he humours me... I also bought three Christmas dogs for the Provo house, and they look absolutely darling.  Again, Jim is not a fan, but it makes me happy. The house looked so cute at Christmas with the snowflake lights, Christmas wreaths AND Christmas dogs.  I had these all lined up, staring at Jim in the livingroom.  I don't think he was amused...

As said before, I haven't been at the cabin in a while, and Jim has just been sending me pictures.  But, actually being at the cabin, and seeing all his work in person, it looks completely different and I am absolutely thrilled and amazed at the beautiful work he has done.  I didn't realize that he had put the backsplash all around the kitchen and it looks fabulous.  I absolutely love it.  

And, he has always taken pictures showing the far side of the kitchen and all the cabinets, and I didn't get to see the opposite side... and, it's amazing also.  He does superb work.

Jim and I spent an evening at the Delta Center with friends to watch the Toronto Maple Leafs play the Utah Mammoth... We showed up ready to cheer our team on...  and.... it was a complete disaster..... I was thinking that the Leafs forgot to show up... It was a total blowout - 6 -1....  Sigh... I always say I would like to see the Leafs win one more Stanley Cup before I die, but, I don't see it happening this year.  So, I guess I need to live another year.  

When we were sitting watching the game, I got a little text message from my grandson Coy... he gave the row and seat he was sitting in.  He was waaay across the arena but, I found him!  If you look three rows down, the child in the yellow/orange hoodie... that's Coy!  That part of the evening was nice....

Before the game, Jim and I had dinner with our accountant Adam, and his son (can't remember the son's name) and, my friend Lori (from Toronto) and her husband.  It really was a nice dinner and we really need to do it again! Thank goodness for a few good things that evening...

My son, Brad and his son, Ben are still in hockey mode up in Alaska, and I appreciate all the pictures they send me to keep me updated.  I don't know who took these pictures, but they are amazing.

I believe Ben is in his 2nd year at goal, and we can see his improvement every year.

...maybe we should get Ben to play goal for the Leaf's... I am almost positive he could do a better job.

...looks so cute.

And, this is my son, Brad, showing his coaching skills!  He looks so intense.  He is totally enjoying coaching Alaska youth, and then playing on a team with adults.  It's a great game for all ages... He looks a little bossy here.... I told him he was a total badass.. Giggle... (And, I love the Toronto Maple Leafs ballcap and shirt that he is wearing!)

I call this Brad's "don't even" face...  Giggle.

I got this selenite piece as part of Jim's Christmas present... It's about 3' tall and I thought it would be beautiful on the hearth.  It's been sitting in my office, hiding, for about 6 months, so I am glad it made it to the cabin. It is super heavy and super brittle. It really looks beautiful.

AND, I got to visit with Cosmo, the BYU mascot a week ago. We went to Brick Oven pizza for dinner and Cosmo was there... I have never really been into BYU sports, but Cosmo is a BYU celebrity.. Everybody knows Cosmo.  So, this was kinda fun!  Go Cougs!!!

And, here's another part of Jim's Christmas presents... Jim's saw at the cabin died just about at the end of the summer, and he was hesitating to buy a new saw.  He saw one in the store, but didn't want to spend the money.  I figured he would buy one in the spring.  So, I decided I would get him the saw and surprise him.  And, he was surprised and said I was sneaky...I was thrilled he liked it and actually wanted it.  

I don't have a picture, but I was so incredibly impressed with the tongue and groove work Jim and Ben have done on the ceiling.  It is exceptional.  When you look at pictures, it looks kind of flat.  But, when you see it in person, it has so much detail and personality, I was absolutely blown away.  I was sitting on the couch, early Sunday morning and just kept staring at the ceiling, in absolute amazement.  I'm not usually taken with a ceiling, but this is beautiful.  The craftsmanship is exception and the colour and placement of each piece is fabulous.  I was absolutely blown away.  Jim is such a stickler for exactness and precision.. it shows in everything from the cabinets, and backsplash and ceiling.  It's absolutely beautiful.

Whenever I write a new entry on the blog, I always send it to Jim before posting - he's my editor.  On this post, he questioned whether I should post something personal.  We talked about it this morning, and I've decided to post how I feel, BUT, if you don't want to know, JUST STOP READING NOW.  I'll never know, everybody has a different opinion on life, but, this is how I see things right now.

On a personal note.... I am one of those terrible people that is obsessed with the program, "Landman".  I know, I know... the language and some of the situations are questionable, but, it is totally amusing me.  In the season finale, there is a conversation between the two main characters, Tommy and his ex-wife Angela... and, I absolutely love the dialogue.  Tommy is talking to Angela and he says, "I know what you want out of life...  You want every meal to be memorable, you want every moment to be an experience, you want every night to be a honeymoon, and I think it's beautiful."  I love this... And, this is a lot of the feelings I have about my life right now... and, in talking with Jim, he thinks it's beautiful also.  This year, my New Year's Resolution is to be true to myself.  I'm done with the "I'm going to lose weight" or start a journal...I want to be true to myself and uncompromising to my values and my heart.

With that, this edition ends, and the adventure continues.

Jim and Cheri

Facundo Cabral wrote songs about how suffering is a school, and pain is a teacher.

"From cradle to grave, it is a school," he'd say. "If what we call problems are lessons, we see life differently."

Sigh..... (This episode began before Thanksgiving.... sorry - I've been busy.... )

 OMH... first snow of the season...I have absolutely nothing positive to say...

I hate snow... It is pretty, but it's cold and wet and me and my arthritis are not fans...

And, with all that, our pipes froze...  here's the scoop...  It snowed, so it got down below freezing, and before Jim left the cabin a couple of weeks ago, our furnace failed.  We were in desperate need of a little vacation, so we were not going to be there for a week or so.  Jim was expecting the furnace to run, but a relay failed and we again, had no heat.  He didn't get the toilets and sinks etc winterized (that means draining the water out of the lines) and they froze... Sigh...

Well, the furnace got fixed this morning..... there was a relay that failed... We thought it might be the transformer and Jim purchased a new one, but it didn't get installed.  Thank goodness, because it wasn't the transformer, it was the relay. The HVAC people showed up this morning and after the $175.00 fee for just driving to the cabin, it was running.  Another sigh... Home ownership is great...

We are continuing purchasing items needed to complete the cabin, and this week's purchase was epoxy.  This is sealing the wood floor in the kitchen.

And, we got a little more flooring for the great room.  I want a patchwork kind of look in that room, but, finding natural wood flooring instead of laminate has been a little difficult.  But, we found this box of bamboo, and snatched it up!

I think it's really pretty.  I love this colour.

We took a little va-cay from Utah and spent a week in California.  This picture is from Cambria... We have friends that would take a few days every once in a while in Cambria and we were enthralled.  This place is so beautiful and I highly recommend going.

And, Jim wanted to visit Hearst Castle.  I had never heard of it, but it is absolutely magnificent.  

I told Jim that I think I want this pool in my backyard.... he didn't answer.

This is more of Hearst Castle.

This is the kitchen... Talk about an amazing kitchen - this one rivals my dreams.  The guide that we had gave us all kind of history about the kitchen and it was fascinating.  The thing that impressed me, was the cupboards.  They were all made with used shipping containers - so that no wood was sacrificed.  Really amazing.

After that little break from building - and I must add, a must needed break I truly think Jim was kind of burned out from the building process, and the little time away was much needed.  And on to the ceiling in the kitchen.  We finally got the last box of tiles in, and Jim completed the ceiling and the can lights.  As he was nearing completion, he realized we were just a couple of panels short of completing the job so I had to order another box in... and of course, it takes weeks...

And, it looks so pretty.

The guys turned their focus on doing some repair and winterizing on the outside of the cabin.  So, Ben got the job of going up the boom and repairing some of the tyvek.  I am glad it's him and not me... I don't do very well with heights.. and neither does Jim.

I don't know how good a no trespassing sign is going to do.  We have installed cameras all around the building and put a sign up... it seems that during the winter, we have uninvited visitors who are scrounging for..."stuff".  Hopefully, between the cameras and the sign, we'll stop this problem.

Jim installed the under cabinet lights and I love them. They are motion sensitive and automatically turn on whenever they detect movement.  I think it's great.

And, the first piece of sheetrock on the ceiling went up - it's so exciting!  We bought the sheetrock lift about a year ago, so this was it's maiden voyage.

And, here's the finished product of the first piece!

And, the kitchen lights went back up!  I love these lights, but then, I love the stained glass look on just about anything.

Now, isn't that pretty?

The winterizing work has continued with Ben at the peak of the cabin, on the boom.

It seems he likes this stuff...  It's beyond me.

With all the work going on, Jim found another box of my moose dishes and ran them through the dishwasher.  I love these dishes, mainly because I love mooses...  Or, is it meeses...?  I prefer, moosesis..  giggle. I've probably got enough dishes for a party of 40 right now.. so, come on over, we'll have a party... no paper dishes needed here!

And, we got the estimate to repair the front end of my car after some guy backed into it... About 3k... sigh... very sad.  We took the car in to have the estimate for repair done, and they couldn't get the hood open, so, the repair estimate is still up in the air.  I really like my Kia.  It's been a great car.  Me and the chipmunks under the hood have been friends for a while now.

With that, this issue ends... The building process is going to slow down considerably with the winter and the snow, but I'll post any time something amazing happens..... or doesn't happen.. Giggle.

The adventure continues.

Love, Jim and Cheri

If an engineer is all alone out in the woods and nothing is broken, will he still find something to fix?

Slowly... but surely.

 I am not sure if this is going to be the last post of the year...  But, here goes...

The ceiling tiles in the kitchen are almost all installed... and, I am totally pleased!  We had to purchase special can lights to go with the ceiling panels, and they also look amazing. The kitchen is coming along nicely.

And, the top cupboards were built and installed.  I had a gentleman from work who is a master carpenter build the cabinets for me, and he did an amazing job.  We just need to put the doors on - and they have not been shipped yet. Everything just takes time.... and, I'm not that patient.

I saw this fish on marketplace and couldn't help but buy it for Jim.  I told him it was to go with the "Big Assed Bass" that is in the bedroom.  It was bought as a joke, and Jim actually really likes it and put it up in the bedroom of all places.  So, the bass now has a friend.

My Kia Soul got into a fight with a truck, and kinda lost.  Actually, Jim was parked at a store and wasn't even in the vehicle when it got hit by some kid in a truck.  The kids wasn't particularly friendly, and the kid's insurance company, Progressive, has not been really co-operative.  We got an estimate today, and the repair company couldn't really give us an accurate number, because the hood is stuck.  They said when that happens, that the support for the radiator is broken along with who knows what else, so we have to get the estimate sent to the insurance adjuster... but, it's not looking hopeful.  I really like this car.... $30.00 worth of gas and I drive it for about 2.5 weeks.  It's great.

Jim and I took a quick trip to Arizona to see my oldest brother, and it was an amazing visit.  It was just relaxed and great.  Barron and I revisited different events in our youth and we laughed and cried and joked with one another.  I hadn't thought of some of these stories for I swear, 100 years.  It was such a nice visit.  

While in Arizona, Valerie, my niece, my sister in law and I decided to make butter tarts.  I found a really decent recipe in a Canadian cookbook called... Marty's World Famous Cookbook".  This guy used to have a restaurant in Bracebridge, Ontario... Jim and I would go there when we visited his parents.. and they had the best buttertarts...  So, we tried his recipe...  

We mastered the filling, but we really need to tweek the crust...  It tasted fabulous, but it was a little on the overly flaky side of life, and we had a hard time getting them out of the tart pan.... But, the flavours of the two were incredible.  And, thank goodness there are no calories, no carbs, no fat grams in buttertarts... It's like eating celery... Trust me.. Marty's restaurant in Bracebridge is no longer, but the cookbooks still exist... and, they're wonderful Canadian recipes.  Highly recommended.  Working with Valerie and Alicia was amazing...  I am blessed to have such amazing family.  While in Arizona, we visited with my brother Barron, his wife Alicia, their daughter, Theresa, and their daughter Valerie and her husband... and for the life of me, I can't remember his name... he's a tall kid with pretty eyes...  Giggle... (I'm doing a final edit, and I remembered Valerie's husband's name... Chris... I think...) 

We had so much fun making these little gems... It was just relaxed and so much fun.  Amazing memories.

Barron got up in the morning, and had to have another one.  Jim took a couple home with us, and he had two for breakfast the next morning.  

Jim and I worked the state of Utah election again this year.  This is the third time we've worked it, and it's beginning to be our thing.  Jim and I both agree that it's something a little different, it gets us out of the house, and even though we can't vote, we are contributing to the community... and, it's lots of fun.  It was a little on the cold side, so I brought along a quilt that my sister in law gave me when we were in Arizona.  She does absolutely beautiful work.  And, it's toasty warm.  Thank you, Alicia... You rock!

Here's Jim on election night.  He always get the job of telling people they are too late to cast their ballots...  And, I swear, we hear all kinds of excuses from..."I thought the polls closed at 9"... to "traffic was just too heavy"... to, this year we heard..."What if I just throw it in the box and you don't look".  Seriously?

And, the furnace is up and running!  Thank goodness, because it snowed for the last couple of days that Jim was there.  We are having a few programming issues - but, they are going to be sorted out next time Jim goes.

And, I always send cookies with Jim when he goes down to the cabin.  They are a great pick me up, and he really likes them. This time, I sent cookies from Great Harvest Bread, and I also sent a loaf of cinnamon swirl bread.  Jim loves it for toast late at night.  

Unfortunately, he still had cookies left over from the last time he went...  I told him he just doesn't eat cookies fast enough.  He just looks at me with that, "Do you want to kill me" look.  Giggle.

The work on the tongue and groove ceiling has been officially started and it's a lot of work, but looks fabulous.  I am totally excited.  It's going to take quite a bit of time, but it's going to be exceptional when completed.

And, the doors for the corner cabinet and the spice rack came in and was installed.  They haven't been varnished yet, but that's in the near future.  I am wanting them to be more of a honey colour...

And, here's what they look like opened up...

And, the doors for the upper cabinets came in and were installed.  I am absolutely thrilled with all the cupboard space there is... And, the whole thing looks amazing.  Jim does beautiful work.  I miss him terribly when he is gone, but I appreciate all the work he does.  Kinda love that man.

The tongue and groove ceiling wood has been stored down below the cabin, covered in tarp... so, it had to be brought up...

There still lots of work before installation, which includes cutting and planing... which makes tons of sawdust.  Jim bought a vacuum to suck us all the sawdust which made it easier to put into bags and throw away.  But, it's still super messy... Jim says he is glad that I haven't been there because I would be freaking with all the sawdust everywhere....

And, here's a little more progress on the ceiling...  It just looks prettier and prettier all the time.

Here's another shot from the loft.  The others are from the great room.

This is the planks of wood after they have been planed, cut and varnished.  I love the different colours in the wood.  

And, here's another update.  These pictures are taken over several days...  so, you can see the progress.

And, another update...

We had beautiful skies here in Utah last week. We were told we were going to be having a showing of the aurora borealis... But, the only colour we could see is... red.  But, I'll take it.  It was more prominent in Southern Utah than in Provo...

And, yep.... we had snow... snow for a couple of days... I still hate snow... It's evil.  In that respect, it makes me a really crappy Canadian...

It looks pretty, but I don't want to travel in it, or play in it.  I'm good with a roaring fire and a blanket... looking out the window.... and that's even a stretch for me.

And, after that beautiful snow fall.... (And, I'm being really generous with the word "beautiful") this is what we deal with... Like I always say, snow is of the devil....

Kane County doesn't feel it's their responsibility to keep our roads in good shape, so we fight this issue every fall and every spring.  

Jim came home with tons of mud on his boots and his pants...  Sigh...

I had laser surgery on my right eye while Jim was away, and it seems to be coming along nicely.  First of all, I didn't know I had cataracts, and then I had to have a little touch up work done.... still seeing halos and can't drive at night, but it's getting better.

With that, this edition is closed, my sweet husband is home for a bit - thank goodness (really miss him when he's gone) and, the adventure continues.

Take care, Jim and Cheri