Oh Look, It's snowing again.... wait!!!

I know... it's a small miracle, but it looks like the snow is finally melting!!!  Thank goodness!  I have a livingroom full of building materials that I really would like to clear out!!!  It's been too long!

As you can see, the five foot pile of snow on the deck has melted - although, we have been told that there is still about 1.5 feet of snow on the back deck.  The jacuzzi is showing itself again, thank goodness... But, we are not quite ready to fill it and get in.

We didn't have anything collapse over the winter, even thought there were many cabins in the Duck Creek area, just up the road, that had cabins and decks collapse with the heavy snow fall.  I guess we built a really strong deck!

 

Up until this point, I thought I was going to have to drink to drown my sorrows.. BUT, it seems there is a little light at the end of the snow packed tunnel!!!  

I have a nephew who is getting married the beginning of May and my 2nd brother and his wife are wanting to come visit the cabin and check it out... I have warned them that we have snow and we've been a little wary of the roads...  But, here's hoping.  And, here's my funny...  My brother called to book a motel room in Panguitch for a night, and then decided he wanted two nights.  He asked me to confirm that the motel got the information correct... there was a little language barrier, so I called the next day to make sure they got the booking correct... When I called, I told the booking agent who I was and the immediate response was, "Oh, Mrs. Jim... how are you?"  I swear, I don't think anybody knows my first name... But, I told them what I wanted, and, they started the conversation with, " yes, we have a booking for a Spenkler (insert all 26 letters of the alphabet in here) hoffen? I have heard our last name slaughtered so much in my lifetime, it amuses me at this point.  Spiderhoff is my favourite.  But, I started to laugh when they said, "The first name is... Bairtone".  Oh, ya... that's him... They said they had never heard that name before, and I told them that it must be a Canadian thing because I've heard it all my life...  Giggle. But, I am looking forward to seeing family again.

We were planning on taking a trip to Canada this year, and I applied to have my green card renewed last December.  Well, the post office tried to deliver the card the middle of December, but said we didn't have a mail box - you know, the mail box that we have at the end of our driveway that's been there for the last 17 years... ya, that one... It was supposed to be redelivered to the house the next day, but somewhere between our house and the post office, it got lost.  I have applied three times to have the card remade, but Immigration and Naturalization won't reissue until the old card is returned by the post office...  So, I'm kind of stuck until they figure out what to do... Being that the card is expensive, I am not willing to spent a whole lot of money a 2nd time when it wasn't my fault.

I have continued to purchase rocks for my outside shower grotto... We've probably collected 100 different rocks now - and they are nicely stored in boxes in our carport.  This is one of the rocks I purchased... I love it.

We celebrated our 16th anniversary at the end of April, and Jim always comes up with interesting gifts.  This year, he bought me Canadian silver dollars, one ounce pieces.  I love them...

We have this standing joke between the two of us... Jim knows that I am terrible at directions - it's like that part of my brain just isn't there and I give directions usually by a business location that is close to the place we need to go.  When we were first married, I was trying to explain to Jim where I needed him to go and pick something up.  And, I told him to go up the hill on University Parkway, and turn a left at the Honey Baked Ham store.  I remember, there was this pause in this sentence, and then I heard him say, "The Honey Baked Ham store.....?"  Made perfect sense to me... so, now, whenever I am about to give him directions, he makes a crack about the Honey Baked Ham store...  uhuh... Well Jim called me on our anniversary as he was driving home and mentioned he just went by the Honey Baked Ham store.  Ha, Ha,. . .I came home from work expecting to go out to dinner, and there on the counter was... food from the, you guessed it - The Honey Baked Ham store.  It was perfect!... One, I will never forget...  

We've purchased the last stove pipe sections for the wood burning stove... and, the price of the pieces that we needed have doubled from last fall to this spring.  Jim was expecting to pay about $250.00 for the two parts..... instead it cost $500.00. We know that prices have increased, but this was crazy.  We were planning on putting in the stove pipe for the wood burning stove as one of our first projects this spring.... that, and putting the railings and balusters around the deck....  We are anticipating the grandchildren from Alaska will come and visit this summer, and that 20' plunge around the deck would not be good.  Coy is kind of used to running around the deck, but we feel we need to be safe with a whole herd of grandkids around.

We're just excited in anticipating getting back to work.. and, clearing out my living room/warehouse.

The adventure is coming out of pause zone, and we are continuing..

Love, Jim and Cheri

Man plans, God laughs....

Be Open To Whatever Comes Next!

To start.... Jim and I were at Pioneer Book in downtown Provo this past weekend... I was actually looking for a book on Coco Chanel.. they didn't have it, BUT, Jim found a fascinating book called... Cabin Lessons... It's a story about this retired couple who bought a piece of property by Lake Superior, and decide to build a cabin.... sound familiar?  It's actually really interesting and well written.  There are little quotes all the way through the book that have made us stop and really giggle... We've decided to use some of these quotes in our blog... so, if you see something along those lines, you'll know I'm not quite as witty as I think... I've stolen them... rather, borrowed them... that sounds better.  But we will not plagiarizer, quotations will be identified!

And, the stupid snow is finally starting to melt... I do not believe that the snow storms are ending - we've had our hopes dashed so many times this year, it's crazy, so I'm not going to make that prediction... But, we are starting to see our jacuzzi again, so that's a plus...

As many of you know, our family went to Disneyland in December.  While there, I tried to have all kinds of activities for the family to keep it interesting... One of them was playing FISH with actual gift cards.  Jim used one of his gift cards this weekend, at Home Depot!!!  I highly recommend this game for families - it was a blast!  (Yes, it's kind of expensive, but so worth it.)

In case you are wondering, Jim's shirt says, "I complain, therefore I am".

And, we went to the Rock Show in Spanish Fork on Saturday, and again on Sunday... I'm still collecting rocks for my outside shower grotto and we picked up some really pretty rocks...It was fun explaining to people why we wanted specific rocks, and when they heard, "outside shower" some got a little panicky...  They just need to loosen up a little bit.... 

Here's my collection of newly purchased rocks.... I don't have a clue what names are... for most of them... I did at the show, but, I've slept since then...

One of the rocks I bought because I thought Coy would get a kick out of it... It was advertised as "dinosaur poop"... When I asked the vendor how he knew it was dinosaur poop, he said..."lick it"...  Um.... not happening in my world, but I knew the story would amuse Coy... (I called Coy last night and told him about the rock, asked him if he wanted to lick it to verify it authenticity... he started saying NO before I finished my sentence...  )  Giggle.

This is Zebra stone.  Once it gets sealed it will be very black and white.

Here's a better picture of the Zebra stone.

I know this one is petrified wood!!!

I don't know what this one is, but I loved how it was so unique and different.  Little globules!

So, if you can identify any of these rocks, or want to lick all the stones to figure out which one is dinosaur poop, let me know!  Giggle.  The seller said this one is dinosaur bone... So, we've got dinosaur bones and dinosaur poop!!!

Jim came with me to the show, and just about got eaten by a T-Rex...  Giggle.

I saw this picture online, and absolutely love the look.  We have kind of the same idea we are going to put into the loft bathroom - at least the hardware is the same, but I'm loving the old doors/windows. In the loft, I have raw edged sheets of wood that we are going to hang like these windows.... Really heavy, but so pretty...  But, these windows... I am not sure where I would put them, but I love it.  So elegant.  First of all, I've got to find the windows before I go any further.  (I can just hear Jim groaning about this one....)

And, we're still waiting for the snow to stop....I have family coming to visit at the end of April/beginning of May and I was all excited to show them the cabin... ya - that's not going to happen... sad face... Do you think I can convince Aidan to put off his wedding until maybe July or so?

As always, the adventure continues.... Love, Jim and Cheri

"If all the difficulties were known at the outset of a long journey, most of us would never start out at all."  Cabin Lessons

Almost there....

It's still snowing... I have absolutely nothing more to say about that...  sigh.. Last week, the Jacuzzi was totally covered in snow... this week, we can see a little of it... But... it's still freakin snowing...

This next picture below was taken 5 years ago, same day.. in the exact spot that the jacuzzi now resides.  All the garbage from the framing was piled there... After a couple of trailer loads taken to the dumpster, the area was cleared and 4 years later the jacuzzi now has a home...

We've had a couple of storage units that have been filled with building materials for the last several years... we are in the process of emptying them and closing them out and/or moving things around.  This is what we found in the one unit yesterday - a chair made out of desert scrub oak wood...  We re redoing the seat platform and making it more stable instead of macramé.  Jim wants to have a regular seat put on it, and I have already purchased a sheepskin to put on said seat... It's going to live in the great room...  We have the coffee table that some what matches it already in the living room... This thing must weigh 150 lbs. . . .

In digging out the one storage building, we found boxes of this backsplash tile...  I flat don't remember where I was going to put it... Might have been a backsplash in the downstairs kitchen, or maybe in the bathroom... I just don't remember... I really like it, but don't know where it's going to eventually land.

And, we have five boxes of it!!  So, if you have any amazing suggestions, I'm open for creative ideas...!

And, hockey season is coming to an end.  Coy is in tournament games, as is Brea...  The player in the middle of the picture with his stick up in the air is Coy... but, I don't know for sure... Giggle.

And, Brea is also in tournament games.  Her games last weekend were in Homer, Alaska...  She is such a strong little player... So proud of all the kids.

And, here is Brea and Brad, sporting their new hockey sports wear...  I swear, Brea just does not take a bad picture, ever.  Brad just looks like he wants to... snarl...Giggle

I found this copper bell that I thought would look good on our deck... It's not huge, but it really is pretty.  Hope it doesn't turn green.  I am so looking forward to getting back to the cabin...

And I'm still collecting rocks etc for our grotto.... I came across this turtle a couple of weeks ago.  It actually came from a collection that Jim's mum had put together.  Whenever they travelled, she would buy a turtle as a momento of that trip.  I saw this turtle, and thought it would look great with the rocks and the frogs that I already have.

And, we found more oak flooring for the great room... we're getting quite a collection now... in a world where everything is manufactured, our natural oak floors are going to be beautiful.

With that, we are still anticipating getting back to the mountain and working..... gonna be a busy summer - but unlike last year, we are going to take some weekends off... Driving down to the cabin every weekend really took it's toll last year...

...the adventure continues.

Love, Jim and Cheri

February 2023... Spring can't come fast enough... sigh...

We got an update from the company our door camera is from... The system was shutting down for a couple of day as they update the system... and, this is what it looks like now!!! Colour pictures!!  I am totally excited...  It looks so beautiful... still too much snow, but it looks beautiful!

This picture is 5 days later... after the Valentine's Day snowstorm..

What is interesting about the door camera... we were in Home Depot and we saw a display with the same camera advertised that the new camera was an upgrade... that you can now get colour images... I asked Jim if we wanted to upgrade to the colour, and we agreed that we were good with what we had... and then, just a couple of days later, they do a system update, and we got instantly got colour pictures... hmmmm....

Every year, at the beginning of the season, we print off a list of things we want to accomplish during the spring/summer/fall..  This year, I asked that the list be made a little bit bigger because it was so small last year, we had trouble reading it... Wow.. did it get made BIGGER...  It printed out on three poster paper (bristol board for all you Canadians) 27" x 34" sheets!  Oh my... we can really see it now!!!  We don't have enough wall space at the cabin to put the three sheets up there, but it fit in the hallway in the Provo house... I am a smaller set made for the cabin...  Giggle...

I was in Lowe's Building Supply center a week ago.. I don't even remember why Jim and I went, but I saw this thermometer and I loved it. I am going to put it by the jacuzzi just so we are aware of the temp down there...  We were in the jacuzzi once last year... the water felt really nice and warm, until we adjusted to the temperature, and it was freezing.. and, getting out was terrible... the air was so freakin' cold - even a bathrobe didn't make it warmer!

Jim found me this rolling pin.  I have a collection of different types, styles and sizes of rolling pins in the kitchen, so I think this will fit in nicely.

I found this little basket a couple of weeks ago...  Not sure what I am going to do with it....(Jim and I go through this all the time... I want to buy something, and he starts with.. "What are you going to do with it?  And, I always answer... "I dunno... I'll find a place"...)  So, that's how this one is ending up.. I'll find a place and let you know!

While at Lowe's, I found these two frogs... Actually, on the first night we were there, I bought one "spitting frog" and, after I thought about it, I went back the next morning, and bought the 2nd one.  I am going to put one of the frogs, in the rockwork in the grotto... I thought that would be cute.. and, the 2nd one is going to live by the jacuzzi...  Or, maybe, both spitting frogs will go in the grotto...  And, yes, they are "spitting frogs"...  They have a little nozzle on the back end that you attach to a water source, and they spray water.. I think they are darling..  At least, with this purchase, I have a rough idea where at least one of them are going...  I put the dollar bill beside them to give you an idea as to size...  These are not baby frogs... these are mama and daddy frogs!

I have been looking for a couple of quilt ladders for quite a while, and just couldn't find what I was looking for...  I came across an old ladder that is going to be perfect!  Right now, it doesn't look amazing, but Jim is going to split it in two, and we'll sand it and then varathane  - gonna looks amazing! I originally wasn't going to buy it, but Jim pulled a sneaky and bought it for me!  I love it.

And, we found a solid oak door for the downstairs bathroom this past week.... I loved the grain in this door and think it's going to be amazing downstairs...  I am a BIG fan of oak cupboards and floors and doors... Jim likes knotty pine, but it seems too busy for my taste... Oak is calming and beautiful... (The dark spot to the bottom right of the picture is just a shadow from my phone... this door is now stored in the hallway of the house in Provo... We're running out of space in the livingroom....)

Well, that's about all I got for this week...  With all the damn snow in Provo and in Alton, I'm losing hope for the possibility of spring any time soon!!!

The adventure continues.... in the snow...

Love, Jim and Cheri

 

.... still snowed out.... grrrrrr.... (And, this post is a little on the late side... sorry...)

Well, it's still snowing and I'm counting down the days until spring.  We were told that this year has the highest snow load ever, and we are hoping that our deck is going to survive... We've got a 4 foot drift on the deck by the front door.. We put a door camera up in the spring and it is triggering constantly with all the movement of the snow...  No animals, but lots of snow...

And, our Bryce Canyon is looking absolutely beautiful covered in snow...  how about we keep it in the canyon and away from our cabin...  don't think it's going to happen...

In last week's blog, I mentioned that we found a guy in Lehi that had a huge collection of rock - some of which I wanted incorporated into my grotto... and, it was rainy and muddy and the guy told me that we should wear boots... Well, here's the boots we bought... Unfortunately,  you can't tell which are girl boots and which are boy boots... maybe, that's why I don't like them much.  Jim loves his boots and has worn them several times now... Me... it was a one time event....

Here's some of the rock that I've picked out for the walls in the grotto.  I think these rocks, mixed with the flagstone is going to be amazing...Jim hasn't quite caught the vision yet, but I have and it's going to be amazing.

...Opalized agate

Pidgeon Blood agate

...more rocks... don't know the name of the next bunch...

Jim says it looks like coronary plaque!

This was one of my favourites...

Tiffany Stone

100 years ago, when I first got married and was moving to Texas, my father bought me a bread knife - he said he wanted me to have something to remember Ontario by.  At the same time, he bought me a corning ware pie plate and a couple of other little kitchen things.  I still have them and they have travelled with me over the past 40 years to Texas, and Idaho and Utah.  This past weekend, Jim bought me a new bread knife, as we are starting to downsize to move to Bryce.  I guess this will be my remembrance of Provo...  Still feels a little strange to me...

Here's the knife that my dad bought me... it's a little worn, and the handle is split a little, but it still works amazingly well..

And Jim found this case for me this past weekend... and, I love it.  It's from the 1940's and I  think I am going to display it in the loft bathroom.  I think it's a cosmetics case, but it is all leather on the outside and just beautiful. And, it's in beautiful condition.  I have a collection of antique mirrors and brushes that I am going to put in it..... I love it.

And, here it is with a few pieces added for show!  Perfect for a bathroom..

And, I was looking for a light fixture for the downstairs basement bathroom...  it's a really small room so it needed just a certain size of light fixture to go over the sink - and, I think this is going to be perfect.  

And, here's our hockey update for the week....  Here's our Ben, who plays for the Ice Mice, and my crazy son, at the rink in Alaska..... This is Ben's 1st year on the ice...

And, here's Coy, who plays for the Provo Predators!  This is  Coy's 5th year playing hockey!  He's a solid little player!

Hopefully, the stupid snow will melt... soon... I'm so tired of winter... I really need just a little bit of sunshine to lift my spirits..

As always, the adventure continues....

Love from Jim and Cheri