Dyeing, Twisting, and SNOW!

No no no!   I mean "dyeing" as in YARN, not "dying" as in Death, silly blog readers!    I was sorting out some of my yarns and had a bunch of plain average looking wools that needed a sprucing up of color before I sell the skeins.  This yarn is a bit too thick for my sockknitting machine, so I decided to put some nice fat skeins on Ebay with custom dyeing colors.

I have some dyepots that are specifically labelled "DYES ONLY" for using dangerous chemicals.  I don't like using the bad chemicals, so now I mostly I dye with food safe colors as in kool-aid, easter egg dye tablets or Jaquard brand dyes.  Then I don't have to worry about contamination or bad fumes in my lungs.  Rosie is taking my dye stuff home with her next month.  I can continue to dye if I want in food safe containers like my soup pot when we move into the motorhome.

I put the pre-wetted skeins of yarn into the pots, one at a time, 

and sprinkle the dye on top of each skein.

The water has some vinegar and salt added.

The dyes slowly sink down as the yarn is steamed (never boiled) 

About a half hour later, all of the dye is absorbed into the wool! 

The water runs off clear.  I rinse them a few times to get out the vinegar smell and 

I hang them outdoors to dry and freshen up. 

These are three huge commercial skeins of yarn that I dyed in tones of blue, 

and the others are coral/salmon color that I added browns to them. 

Next up were some average 4oz skeins of wool that were blah minty green or a strange blue. I lay them in turkey roasters with each skein on their sides, and make stripes with the dyes. When knit up in socks, a hat or a scarf, they make a nice repeating pattern.

WOWZER they sure came out purrrrrtttyyyyyyyy!!!!

I got that dyeing done on Monday.....

Then on Tuesday the wee little Chelsea girl woke up with a fever!   Her mommy dropped her off here before work as the daycare of course doesn't let sick ones in.  When she got here, she was full of silliness and great appetite and kept herself very very busy!  She was helping me twist more fringes on the edge of a rug.  And such concentration for a 2 year old is quite amazing.

It turns out her fever was from the long-awaited eye teeth to arrive, which they did sometime during the day.   She spent the whole morning being creative before konking out for a long nap.

She woke up to Miss Ellen and Miss Connie who came from Illinois to dismantle my favorite rug loom, a Newcomb Studio Loom.  Once that little stinker saw the wonderful array of sockets and wrenches and pliers in my tool box, she was busy busy busy!  Granfaddah would have been sooo proud to see her working!  

She wrenched and twisted and matched up sockets to the heads of the nuts and bolts on the loom.  Quite a busy girl for the hour or so it took to dismantle the loom.  Can you imagine doing that with a 2 year old underfoot?   I didn't take any pics, but I did do a screen capture from the video camera we had recording the whole process for Ellen.  That way Ellen can re-assemble the loom by watching the video tape in segments backwards.

Can you see Chelsea in the lower right corner???  Such a Loom Mechanic! 

Sadly, the loom was loaded up by Ellen and Connie into her van, destined to a new home with someone who will love it as much as I did.   Sigh.  

The big blanket loom will go on Sunday... and the other Union rug loom will go in mid-March.  Then I will be down to my last Union rug loom and Tools of the Trade table loom (those both go with me) 

Last night we were warned about an impending snow storm.  At first, the weathermen were not sure where it was going to hit.  We were right on the border edge of the storm between massive amounts of snow (2 inches falling each hour)  or freezing rain and sleet.  We got the snow.  We woke up to about 8-10 inches of heavy wet slushy snow.  Steve took one look out the window at 5 am and thought "heck with it".  He decided to call in to work. This is the second time in 14 and a half years that he has ever called in on a snowy day!   (he has to use up a day of vacation pay to make up for it)   

This is what we saw out the window as soon as it was light.... 

Yes, the plow went through, one swipe, but left a huge pile of thick chunks blocking the driveway.  When snow is this wet, it doesn't blow through the snowblower very well.  But if you don't get it shoveled out of the way quickly, the upcoming decrease in temps will freeze it thick and solid as a huge chunk of ice!    We enjoyed a cup of coffee and some sweetrolls before he trudged on out to take care of it.  The neighbors next door left for work before the plow went through, so both of their driveways were plugged up too.  My darling Steveio took care of both of them plus ours.  What a way to spend a "vacation day", huh?

Poor Duke is up to his belly in the snow.  

His little legs poke right down into the thick snow and he is wedged into place!  

He actually "peed" while laying down in the snow!  LOL 

 Duchess said "heck with it" and stayed up on the porch! 

I guess winter is finally here.  We lost some branches off our trees, and our cedars and arborvitaes out front are bent wayyy over.  There are power outages all around us, but we are still on.  We are due for high winds kicking up, and more snow tonight, falling temps and freezing.  Let's only hope it melts soon and spring will be here before we know it??????

Bathroom and Doors and Weaving

We got a lot done again this weekend....

We did a thorough going over of the master bathroom.   First we cleared out "stuff"....  check out how much "stuff" we had over the washer and dryer!!!  Good thing this all hides behind the folding mirrored doors, huh?  (the bifold doors were removed before this pic was taken)

The whole bathroom got a fresh coat of paint, same color as before but just cleaned up and brightened up the room.    The ceiling and all the interior walls needed paint.  The two walls along the exterior of the house are all pine, so those don't need any paint.

The inside of this washer and dryer closet was all freshly painted too.  We bought new shelves and added a third bracket to each span to prevent sagging.  It sure looks nice now that it's done!

We put only the most important things back, and culled the rest to either donate or the dump.

Then we had an incident ----  my insistence on adjusting the bi-fold mirrored doors.  For over 14 years I have asked REPEATEDLY for Steve to adjust them "upwards" on the little pivot point on the bottom.  Year after year, I have asked him to adjust the bifolds, as they were always scraping and grinding and binding along the bottom track. He always grumbled that they could NOT be adjusted.  He can reach down behind there but I can't.  My arms are too short to reach down while leaning either over the washing machine or the dryer.   I asked him why can't the pivot be adjusted on the outside bottom with a thin wrench.  He said : "NO" .... Well, why did they include that cute little flat wrench then?

About the third year of ownership, the doors dragged so much that one panel CRACKED the mirror when opening it!!  That year we had to buy a new double set as they didn't sell the singles.   (There is an extra bi-fold door now in the basement we are planning on leaving for the new owners)

Well---- this time,  while the doors were off and laying on the floor, I took a good look at that bottom pivot point myself.  Lo and behold, there IS an adjustment, just as I had figured.  AND it could be reached from the outside on the bottom with the little flat wrench!

Mr. Fix It was goaded into working on them, and they are finally adjusted === and they work PERFECTLY!  The sliding doors have never, ever, ever worked this good!!!  Effortlessly gliding open and shut.  No binding, no scraping, no grinding.

What a guy , eh?

I wrote on the cute little wrench with an indelible marker: "TO ADJUST BI FOLD DOORS" and hung it from the shelf above the washing machine... for the future owners.  LOL

So here are the finished walls around the bifold closet doors, around the top of the shower, and also the painted wall goes around the left behind the toilet and around to the master closet/changing room.

These walls behind the sink and around the tub didn't need any paint, but I did dust off the light fixtures and the hanging ivy over the tub. I am thinking after all of our work today, a nice soak in the whirlpool is in order.   Hmmmmmmm?

Once the bathroom was done, I had to keep on painting, you know how that goes.   The brush and roller were still wet with paint.   So I did up the interior sides of both of the entry doors on the east and west sides of the house.  Got rid of all the doggie paw marks and little grandtot dings and scraps.   My locksmith hubby removed the knobs for me, and put them back on when dry.

  

I did take a little break this weekend to get some weaving done too.  Soon this loom will be going to a new home, so I whipped out this rug and finished another one down underneath it, already wound on the takeup beam. 

The biggest loom might have having a new home this week too.  I had started this blanket a while back and decided to finish it off.  Well, not quite but I got a lot more done than I had, so I should finish it up by tomorrow.

On motorhome news... We did a Fleet Farm run this morning.  (farming/automotive chain in the midwest)   Steveio picked up 32 quarts (8 gallons)  of diesel oil for the motorhome, as he is going to get an oil change done as soon as it warms up a bit out there.  For now it's amazingly spring-like in Wisconsin.  We were up to 38 degrees today and sunny.   But never fear, our weather is known to turn on a dime, and we can be buried under feet of snow as late as April.   

He also picked up a headlight relay switch for an operation on the rig... seems Safari headlights are pretty dim, not wired properly from the get go.  The guys on our yahoo group  http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SafariCoaches/ have found that wiring in a relay with a better source of 12v can make the lights brighter.    

Last weekend, we had bought a trailer hitch for on the back of the Tracker.  Today at Fleet Farm, Steve picked up a shiny new ball and locking hitch pin for the receiver too.  That will also be a warm weather day project in the garage to get it bolted up and into place.  Although we are selling our boat to our kids, we may wish to *borrow* it when we come back into the area in the summers....   so it's a good idea to have a hitch, just in case! 

In family news---  soninlaw Mark made it home safely from working down in Arkansas for a few weeks.  Little Chelsea is so happy to have her daddy home again, as is the very pregnant Erin.  It's a relief to have him back, safe and sound. 

Heather and Jesse called this morning from the airport in Milwaukee, they made it home too from their week long vacation down in Florida at Micky Mouse's house. Little Jameson had a blast and they will have memories that last a lifetime.  Jesse's wonderful parent's, Lisa and Kevin took them all down as a Christmas present.  What a great thing to do and Keven also enjoyed turning 50 in the Magical World of Disney! 

Well, I am gonna pop some ibuprofen  and hop into that tub.... ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

. 

Looms on the move!

After our busy weekend of house projects, this week has focused more into my loom room stuff.  

I am just finishing up this customer order for a Caterpillar Rug ----

It has inlaid sections of knit scraps of socks from factory waste, and on the white rags, they really pop out with vivid colors.  I have also done some of these on black fabric rags, and might try some with blue?

When the rug is done and off the loom, I add more brightly colored yarns to the fringes and twist them with a twisting device to make little rope-like tassels.   How cute is that?

  

My loom sales are moving right along.  The Newcomb Studio loom will be going to Ellen from Illinois, who is due to pick it up sometime soon.  The big Nilart LeClerc blanket fly shuttle loom might be going to a gal from right here in Wisconsin.   She is seriously thinking about it.  She has to check with her husband on Friday, but it might be going on it's way to a new happy home too.  

Then the 4 harness Union is going to be going to a dear friend from Missouri.  She and another dear friend from Tennessee are going to meet up in Illinois and come here together in Mid March....  we are going to have a good girlfriend week and sort and dig through a lot of my stash.   My empty totes that I bragged about in my last blog will be put to good use, because we are going to fill them up with stuff to send them home with each of them!  LOL 

I will be left with my 2 harness Union rug loom and my beloved 8 harness Tools of the Trade table loom.  Those are going with us in the motorhome.  The table loom rides anywhere--- in the livingroom--- in the basement laid on it's side--- or even out in the Tracker as it's towed down the road.   

The bigger Union loom can be broken down to a pile of boards and couple beams in about 20 minutes, and stowed away in the basement compartments.   A blog reader was concerned if I set it up under the awning of the motorhome for a few days/nights and just cover with a tarp.  She was worried about theft.   Reasonably so....  but we have a cable lock from a motorcycle that works out well to lock anything down to the tire or jack on the motorhome when sitting outside.  Plus, this big ole Union rug loom is a rough looking beat up piece of working equipment. It's like an old shovel or rake to a farmer.  It's a tool.   It's not "purdy" like my table loom, which is worth much more $$$.  

This is my Loom Room studio------ It was originally 2 separate bedrooms but we took down the wall and made it into one huge room.   The future owners can either use it this way as a big family room, or make it back into 2 separate rooms if they wish. 

I still have a lot of yarn to sort, sell or knit/weave up, eh?  Oh you can see a caterpillar rug in black on the rack in the right side of the photo.   Soon I will start selling off the "Sheepie Decor" of the Loom Room and put items on Ebay.  I have been selling quite a few items that way and have only run into one "Whacko" buyer.  She got all upset and up in arms about seeing two shipping charges on the invoice.  (she was being given a choice between Priority or Parcel rate shipping) .   She accused me of hidden fees, changing shipping charges or price gouging her????   I tried with 8 messages going back and forth to explain,  but she could not see the light.  So for the first time since 1999 of selling on Ebay, I have gotten my FIRST negative feedback.  Sigh.  At least I got to state a response to her negative feedback, and hope it does not deter any future buyers of my items. 

Just behind the wide loom room, I have a hallway that leads to a full bathroom, a long closet under the stairs and into the back guest bedroom. Technically it is not a "bedroom" because there aren't any egress windows, so when we stage the house for the market, we will remove the bed and make this an office/sewing/bonus room.   It is kinda L-shaped and we have been using it as a guest room with the closet chock full of my weaving supplies.  The carpeting is all in now, we laid this piece ourselves as it was leftover from half of the loft.  We got the closet doors up but need to finish replacing the trim along the carpeting where it meets the walls.  Then that part of the house is done.

An egress window could be cut out the side of the house, where it would come up near the side deck.  So it could become another bedroom if someone wanted it to be with a little bit of construction work.  

I am planning to move my sewing machine and cutting table into here during the staging process.  Perhaps it will appeal to some crafting person to have a separate room for their needs, along with a big closet to store items in.  Off to the right is another room of mechanicals (water heater, well tank, sump pump and storage shelves)

Lots of options, 

so tell anyone you know about a great house 

that is gonna be for sale soon!

It never hurts to ask, right?

.

More House Prep and Steveio's "Man Cave"

We got a lot more done around the house this past weekend.

I cleared out the closet in the guest bedroom which had doubled as storage of my weaving and fiber supplies.  There were 16 rubbermaid totes in there.  I was able to condense, sort and repack so I only have 7 totes now.   That means NINE empty totes!!!!  Whew what an accomplishment!   I was so proud of myself I even Facebooked the announcement!

Then I painted the closet,  This room used to belong to our daughter Heather.  At one time, we had let her and two friends (Amanda and Jessica) help her paint the room BRIGHT turquoise.  They added this little bit of closet graffiti .... I almost hated to paint over it, it's been there for about 13 years.

Once Heather moved out after graduation in 2003, we repainted her room with a nice creamy beige but never had done the closet.  Thank you for decorating our home, Jessie and Manda! heh heh

Speaking of Heather, she and her husband Jesse, and our grandson Jameson went to Florida for a week to hang out with Micky Mouse.  Little Jameson told the ticket gal: "I AM GONNA DRIVE THE PLANE!"    heh heh.  He was even wearing his airplane sweatshirt -----  Here he is with his little cousin Scarlett, from Jesse's side of the family.  

Back to work here. Steve and I laid the carpeting in the guest bedroom downstairs.  This was the piece leftover from half of the loft.  We cleared out the room, laid the carpeting ourselves and then put everything back in the room.  Whew! But we needed mop board trim to go around the room, so it's kinda undone yet.   

That meant a trip to Menards.  (for those not in the midwest, it's a chain similar to Home Depot or Lowes) By the time we got outta there, it was close to $100, but we picked up a lot of things for the final touches on the house. New shelving boards for the closets and laundry area, the trim boards, some new outlet and switch-plate covers etc.  Plus we have a little grout job to do around the edges of the fireplace hearth, so we found some matching grout for that too.

On Saturday our Galaxy tablet did a new update on it's own, which functions as our router hub to bring the internet signal into our home.  Now Steve's older laptop with network USB device won't hook up right.  I struggled with the settings for over 2 hours.  I suggested he just get a new computer, since our income tax refund came.  I know our daughter Heather wanted a laptop because she and her husband share one.   Ya ever share a laptop with a spouse?  It's HARD to do!!!    We will give Steve's old one to her because it will work fine on their DSL line.  This is the same laptop we got from Jim and Dee of http://tumbleweed-jimdee.blogspot.com/   So it will live on, still being a part of our family.   

Steve knew of a student who was selling a netbook because he needed a Mac computer for his schooling.   The young man brought it over, showed it to us, hooked it up and it works just fine on the new-fangled connection of the Galaxy tablet.   It's a Asus Eee Netbook, smaller than a laptop, 10" size, and it's only about a year old.  New it was $400, and he sold it us for $125.  Good deal! 

It runs on Windows 7, and has everything he needs, including Office and even Skype with a camera for talking to the grandkids.  The keyboard is a tiny bit smaller, but it will be a nice device to have along in the motorhome.  He only plays Hearts on Yahoo or MSN, and browses Ebay and Craigslist.  That is the extent of his computering. 

Now that he got to buy something from the income tax refund, I get to buy something too!  Not sure what yet, but thinking... thinking...  We also splurged on a new hitch for the back of the Tracker, so that was our "together" purchase.  Our other Tracker had a nice hitch on the back, and twice now we found ourselves wishing the new Tracker had one too.  The rest of the refund will go in the bank.  No trips this year.

By the time Saturday night rolled around, we were pooped and I was aching sore and feeling yucky.  So I filled up the big whirlpool tub and soaked till I was wrinkled up like a prune!   

This is one thing I am gonna really miss about this house.  My tub!    I do have a tub in the motorhome, but it's not nearly this big.  Heeeeee heeeeee.

Sunday morning was another day full of tasks around the house again.  The spring on the dishwasher door broke so Steve fixed that.  I cleaned out the coat closet.  We installed new carpeting in the bottom and I think I threw out more stuff than what got put back in.  So I call that a success.   

After lunch, Steve and I sorted some more items in the basement storage area of the house and he carried out about 5 huge "body bags"  errr heavy contractor bags to the garage.  Destination St. Vincent De Paul's Thrift Store!  

I was planning to hostess a meeting on Monday evening for my Homemakers group, called HCE Home and Community Education.  It's kinda like 4H for little old ladies. LOL     

I needed to set up for 12 ladies to come and eat a late evening luncheon and have a meeting.  I had Steve haul in our extra folding table from the motorhome (we carry it in the basement of the motorhome for those times when we are boondocking without a picnic table).   Borrowed a half dozen folding chairs from Erin and we were good to go!  

Did I ever post a pic of my freshly painted kitchen? 

(excuse the clutter on the countertops while cooking) 

Lots of room for cooking for parties, just not so much dining area room. We put Steve's chair over by the fireplace by mine, to make room for the meeting table.

I baked up a banana bread in a bundt pan (I double the recipe) and had a little leftover batter, enough to bake a separate loaf (no nuts in that one)   Oh, I add a dollop of vanilla to my banana bread, and sprinkle brown sugar on the top to get a coffee-cake tasting crust.  When cooled, I inverted it onto a platter and drizzled on icing.   

The other thing I planned for little luncheon meal was something I enjoy making for the grandkids.  Our meal is just supposed to be a little snack for our meetings, not a big full meal.   These fun little piggies in the blankets are made from tiny smokie sausages, and crescent dough cut into strips, and extra diagonals with a pizza cutter.  Wrap up each little piggie and bake for about 10 minutes until done.  I use parchment paper so they don't stick from the cooking sausages.  

Now, here is the part where the "Man Cave" comes into play.  See, with all these elderly gals coming here, in the darkness, we felt it was probably best to NOT have the motorhome sitting in our driveway.  Not only would it make more room for the parking cars, but avoids the problem of someone possibly backing into it or creasing down the side as they are trying to maneuver in the dark from an unfamiliar driveway.   

We decided that Steveio would load up the dogs, some take-out chicken, and a few beers.  He drove our rig over to the neighbor's driveway!!!  Heh heh it became a haven to escape the clucking hens who overtook his house for the evening.  He had his little netbook, and a tv, heat, lights, and two doggers to keep him company.  What a great "Man Cave"!!!

Charlotte, my co-hostess made veggie pizza and Valentine sugar cut-out cookies. 

Along with some candy dishes, coffee and laughter, we had a great meeting! 

Once the meeting was over at 9:30, I walked across the yard and knocked on the motorhome door. Ahhh my man let me enter his "Man Cave" and we relaxed together inside for a while, pretending we were somewhere other than a driveway in Wisconsin in the Winter.   Soon it was 10 pm and the news came on the tv.  I got out and guided him over into our own driveway, he backed into it's own space again, and we went back in the house for the night.  

Our motorhome was a little disappointed, as were the dogs.  They all thought we were going SOMEWHERE!    

Soon, little motorhome... soon....  

.

 

FOR SALE- LeClerc Nilart 12 Harness Loom 60" weaving width

PLEASE NOTE.. THIS LOOM HAS SOLD

My loom-selling has been going great, this is the LAST loom not spoken for. One sold on Wednesday, and 2 more looms are finding new homes in the next few weeks.  I am putting this one there in as many places as I can, including Craigslist and all the weaving groups and loom sales pages as I can.

Leclerc Loom
Nilart 60"  maple loom
12 harnesses, 14 treadles
low castle with drop in harnesses
jack loom action
front hinged treadles with spring return assist
easy tie up with loops of cords and metal rods
sectional beam (rakes can be removed and restored back to plain beam)
fly shuttle boxes mounted on underslung beater
6 dent reed on the loom

dimensions:

60" wide weaving width

69" width of loom

15" on each side for shuttle boxes, 99" overall width

49" tall

38" deep folded up

60" deep unfolded

Wonderful loom with wide enough width for blankets, and 12 harnesses for creative patterns.  Solid hard rock maple from Canada, the LeClerc looms speak for themselves.  Top of castle slides off to easily add or remove harnesses.  Smooth jack action on dual lever risers that lift the harnesses for a nice large shed.  Back beam can fold inwards to create more studio space while the loom is still warped.

I added the sectional beam rakes but could be easily restored to a plain beam.  Some rust was on the hoops when I bought the rakes but does not hamper the weaving process.
I added the fly shuttle boxes to the beater and found regular shuttles will work, but the end feed fly shuttle in the extra package works even better.  I have also used ski shuttles on this loom for thicker yarns with great sucess for blankets.

The front hinged treadles extend underneath the weaver which is wonderful for "dancing across the treadles" with the feet, but most benches or stools won't get the weaver close enough to the breast beam for easy weaving.  So my husband made the heavy solid sturdy bench in the extra package.  I highly recommend the purchase the extra package which has a much higher value than the $250 asking price.  If the buyer does not select the extra package, I will sell those items separately later.

I bought this loom in Canada and have enjoyed 10 years of weaving on it, anything from narrow scarves to towels to runners to coverlets and blankets.  Very versatile loom.  It can be broken down into very small parts.  I hauled home in the back of Jeep Grand Wagoneer and the piled up pieces didn't even come up to the level of the windows.

I am selling due to moving and downsizing. We are retiring and living in our motorhome, which this lovely loom just will not fit into!  Sad to see it go, and am hoping someone will love it just as much as I have.

Must be picked up, I will not ship and no longer have a truck to deliver.

$1,750 for the loom itself






$250 extra package includes
12 dent reed
custom made bench able to span the treadles to get up close to the loom,
2 large bundles of extra heddles (I think 200-250 in each bundle?)
metal clips to assist with sectional warping that slide over sectional hoops
end feed fly shuttle with 20 wooden pirns that works well in the fly shuttle boxes
60" LeClerc temple/stretcher to weave full width without draw in

MORE PHOTOS AVAILABLE ON www.kareninthewoods.com

You can contact my via email:  pfundt@gmail.com

(after reading my first comment from Karen and Al,
I decided to edit this post and add this information)

Never fear, I am NOT getting out of weaving!   ----  

I am going to take my Union rug loom with me, it will break down in 20 minutes and stow in the basement compartment easily enough.  I have room for four large totes of supplies and tools in the basement compartments too.  I can set the big loom up under the awning any time we are parked somewhere for a few days and cover with a tarp at night.  Also at some RV parks with community rooms it would garner a lot of attention (and sales) if I could set it up for a week's stay (with permission) Maybe even give some lessons or take some custom orders??  Who knows.. the sky is the limit! 

Then inside the living area of the motorhome is  plenty of space for the Tools of the Trade 8H table loom... that is my one for towels, totes, and scarves etc.  If we do want it out of the way, it can go in the back of our Tracker vehicle we tow behind the motorhome. 

The spinning wheel always rides in my closet standing upright (castle style) between my clothes to keep it from tipping over

Of course, the sock machine goes in a tool box and sets up on a folding stool that also rides in the closet.  

I have 6 cabinets inside alloted for space bag shrunken down yarns and rovings....  

I think i am all set!!! 

Some RV stuff today

I know, I know, I know... I have been posting about too many house prep stuff and grand kid stuff.  We need more RV posts and fiber posts.  I have blog readers out there that are family, fiber friends, and RVing friends.  

Today I will do some RV things.

First off, if you have been reading my blog for any length of time, you know our motorhome only has a micro/convection oven.  No LP oven built in the rig.  At this time, I do not want to sacrifice my precious drawers to install one below the cooktop.  So we found the next best thing, my Coleman Instastart oven!

It can run it off the small 1 pound cylinders, or hook to a BBQ grill sized tank, or even a hose from our Extend a Stay device that feeds off the motorhome's big built-in propane tank.  

For the last four or five years, we would stuff my oven in the basement compartment, but it was getting a few scratches from other things around it.  Now I found a heavy vinyl tote bag specifically made for carrying it on Ebay!  So my happy little Easy Bake Oven (the nickname my family gave it)  can ride in style and keep it's pretty finish!

Next up.... remember when we removed our couch?  Well, there was a wide opening cut into the side of the fridge wall  to accommodate a ductwork that snaked under the couch to the other side.  Once the couch was removed, we didn't need that snake duct either.  Steve cut it short and moved the vent over to the side wall of the fridge.    He made this board to cover the wide opening and reinserted the same directional vent cover that was originally on the other end of the duct.  We don't use this furnace very often.... (it's noisy and burns up a lot of battery power)   But nice to have that area of the wall completed and neat looking. 

I think he did a very neat job! 

The next thing up on RV subjects I don't have pictures of (yet).  Seems my MasterMind Husband decided we have room on the roof of the motorhome for ONE MORE SOLAR PANEL...  He has been watching Ebay like a hawk and finally found one that matches the others ones we already have.    I guess that is his Valentine's Day Present to us?    

So he got one more 100 watt panel to add to the other four 100 watt panels.  Our Blue Sky solar controller can handle the extra panel, so we might as well, right?    He made up the brackets already to match the ones he made before.  

If you wish to read about our solar installation, here is a link:

Solar Panel Installation on the roof of the motorhome

I am sure as soon as we get a half-warm winter day, I will be out there holding the ladder and he will be up there installing it.  Ahhhh what a guy! 

We are recovering from our weekend of carpeting installation, and the visit of the grandson.   Things are back in order and more things are being tackled in the great DE-CLUTTER PROJECT!

I ran into town this morning to help watch Chelsea at what I THOUGHT was 4:45 a.m. .. It seems my bleary eyes were looking at a watch saying 3:45, so I was up an hour early, unbeknownst to me.   Yup, I planned to go out in the dark and cold.  While waiting to warm up the Tracker a bit while I was buckling in the car seat.  I drove through the frigid night air into town just as Mark was readying to leave for work in Arkansas.  He seemed shocked that I was there at 4a.m.  Here I was thinking it was 5a.m. by this time.  Drat!   Erin didn't need me till 5:15!    She was still sleeping upstairs, as was Chelsea.   So I made myself at home on their couch and dozed off for another hour.  I had to warn Erin gently by calling up the stairs once I heard her alarm go off, otherwise I would have shocked her to come downstairs to a person laying  on her couch!  Erin got off to work by 5:15 and I got to hang around waiting for the little beetle bug to wake up. 

That stinker Chelsea slept till 7a.m. when I had to wake her up and get her ready for the day care center.  She firmly announced she was going to G'ma and Poppa's house... and see Duke and Ducky!  She was quite disappointed to only be going to the daycare.  Sigh.  But if I kept her out for the day, it goofs up their prearranged schedules of ratio of teachers to students, so she has to go.    I had too much to get done around here today anyhow.  But this evening I ran into them at the grocery store--- don't ya love small towns?   She got extra hugs and kisses again from her Granmuddah.....

Well, off to bed, 

tomorrow I will do a post about fibers, 

I promise!

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