What is keeping me busy

Well I lost my photos for the moment so....Let's talk about what keeps me busy these days and in the past year and why I slack on blogging. 

First life: It's been a busy year of settling the in laws estate, had to sell the house and empty the house and all the meetings and this and this and that. We were lucky as they had everything in order. But things take time. We just closed the estate so it took about a year's time even with all the ducks in a row. We didn't get anything but a car, the car is 17 years old and in good shape. Everything went to be invested in the family's business. That was a surprise we didn't see coming. But it is something we, well I planned on. I wanted to plan our money and set up our lives around not getting anything that way if we got something it would be a bonus. 

So this past fall after tired of having life on hold. Because I can't tell you how many times I've set up stuff and had to cancel and drop life because one in law or the other was in the hospital. We no longer have to drop life. So I got my tush in gear. Got boys signed up for swimming lessons. So they are doing those now. I signed Ethan up for a Lego computer class, he really likes that. That is about to end and I have signed him up for a different computer class. So I now spend a lot of time driving. 

We tried looking for a house last year. that just was a no go. Really nothing out there. So we decided to go onto plan B. took months to find someone to come out here and draw up plans. Got those in hand right after Christmas. We had a builder who we really liked, and had a meeting. And then we hit a wall. Apparently we have to go through a gopher study. WHAT? we don't have gophers? So talked to the builder and made a deal. If the permits take longer then 6 weeks we walk away from each other. but if we get them in less then 6 weeks you do the build. See the builder wants to retire and we were suppose to be his last build. Well we have hit the 6 week mark. We decided not to sit on it and went looking for a new builder. We have one lined up but no meeting yet. So we are waiting for a gopher study. Heck we are still waiting for our first site visit, we were suppose to have weeks ago. We are adding on two rooms. One for Ethan, Tucker will move into Ethan's room and Cole will get his own room In the midst of that I get a craft room. 

We brought in two cats this past fall. One has kidney issues, and needs fluids every three days. After months of fluids and a good diet her numbers are getting better. But the vet and I have decided since she is older, unless or until she goes down hill we won't do any more work on her. She will get her fluids every three days and lots of love and just let her live out her days. The other cat is a healthy 15 pounder. Such a trouble. you often open a cabinet door and find him in their sleeping. How did he get in there? Oh never mind. 

Quilting. I have picked it up again and my brain has ran wild. Pictured are two of my latest quilts. But all my fabric is packed away in the shed. I put a new machine on lawaway. I've had my current machine for 15 years it's time for an upgrade. 

Genealogy. The Dimmick research is massive. And on going and I have plans to put it into three different books down the road. But a curve ball. See my dad doesn't know who his dad is. So we ran a dna test over Christmas and just to the results back. I know who his dad is, I have connected with the family but right now it seems my dad may be the only child of this man, making it more harder to fully connect him. So it's a work in process and will take some time to dive into.  

This past summer we had a fire. We had a massive forest fire. Hubby and I were up north out of town looking for a dishwasher. Get back into town running errands and my phone starts to blow up. Fire, it's a fast moving fire, but at the time it was across the freeway. In the time it took us to get home it had jumped the freeway and everyone was to leave asap. hum it took us a long time to get home, we went one way and they closed the roads so had to spin around and try it again. On the freeway both sides of the free way were just up in flames, all black. So finally get home and get the boys packed up and animals and we leave. Hubby had all the kids and most of the animals and we hid up the road and he stops and yells at me that we forgot the cat. So he went onto my sisters house and I spun around and ran in and got the cat. As I was racing in the police were at our neighbors telling them to leave now, you can see the flames. 

Few hours later we got the ok to come home but you may have to leave again. OMG the mess the black. The firefighters stopped the flames a few inches from our neighbors fence, if that fence would have went our whole block would have been gone. As everyone was on the other side of the fence fighting the fire. In the clean up we found ashes everywhere. How our house didn't go up is beyond me. Spent days without power. And even when we got power on it was limited. Internet was off and on. We are still hooked up to this box, they still need to dig up lines and replace them I think they are still debating if we are getting a new street? A few houses lost. A business. And lots of ground. Could not believe it jumped a six lane highway. 

That took up the end of summer. 

We built three sheds. One for garden stuff, one for storage and one for emergency, which cracks me up because we were working on that during the fire. Now we are in the midst of building a greenhouse. 

I'm sure I"m forgetting a few things? But that is life.