Chinese Origami

David gave me a Chinese Origami set for Christmas. I've been working my way through the book, and here are some of the results. Thanks, Dave. It is fun and challenging.

Nativity Scene

First, there was the star. It relocated to the west, then, I made nativity cutouts. 

So now we have Mary, Joseph, and Jesus with two little lambs.

Christmas Star

Beautiful day today, so I thought I would get out and wax creative.  I made this Christmas star out of quarter inch plywood.

 It has four pieces. I hung it on the hook pole by our front door.

Happy Birthday Dear Sarah!

Sarah celebrates her third birthday.

The Family at Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving 2011

Here it is, thanks to Phil. This is in Charlotte at Phil's house. From left to right, standing: David (holding Emily),  Becca, Phil, Anne, Tim, Erin. On the table: Eli, Sarah, Henry. Seated: Marcia and Jim. In between: Bryce, Spencer, and Artie (on Grandpa's lap). We are sooo blessed by God.

Woodstock Arrives

Woodstock arrives.

Today, I created a friendly addition to my recumbent Snoopy.  Yes, it is Woodstock, the little yellow bird who likes to sit on Snoopy's stomach.  Now Snoopy will have company for the winter.

Before Woodstock's arrival.

Thanksgiving

Our family all got together for Thanksgiving this year.  We met at Phil's house in Charlotte, NC.

Here are Henry, Spencer, Eli, Arti, Bryce, Emily, and Sarah.

I will post the whole family (15) as soon as I get a picture to post.  We have much to be thankful for.

Houses For Rent

Open and ready for the winter season.  Newly cleaned and refurbished houses are ready for immediate occupancy.

Nice Neighborhood

Barn Roof

Spacious

Efficiency

Traditional

Clean

One Dog Owner

Emily Comes Home

Emily - 2 days old

Mom and Emily spent two days in the hospital while Mom recovered some from her c-section.  Sunday, they came home.  She is a good sleeper. She's got a head full of beautiful hair. 

So far, Frank the cat is ignoring her.

Say Hello to Emily

Suzie now has a name, and it is Emily.  So, references to Suzie on this blog refer ultimately to Emily who was born November 4. She is so pretty. 8 lbs. and 20.5 in. Welcome to our world, Emily.

Ancestry.com

My boys gave me a membership to Ancestry.com for my birthday. Well, it has been a journey trying to fill out my family tree.  My mother's family and my dad's family all grew up in the same part of the world, Cherokee County, Alabama.  I have traced to my great-grandparents on both sides, and that is where it seems to end for now.  Benjamin Franklin Roe, 1845-1912, and Sarah Jane Roe, 1845-?.  On Mom's side: William Marion Archer, 1848-1948, and Mary Keener, 1865-1912.

However, on Marcia's side, I was able to go much further back. Her grandparents were Roy and Sydney Jones. That is where the Joneses end.  Sydney Keller Jones's line continues back seven more generations to Georg Keller, 1670-1750, in Germany on her father's side.  Marcia's great-great grandmother was Eva Kern, David Keller's wife (1775-1850).  Her parents were George Kern and Juditha Kern. Juditha Kern's father's line goes back six more generations to Steffan Kern, 1542-1583. Katharina Hanssen's (Steffan's wife's),  father was Lorentz Hanssen, 1525.  On her grandmother Bessy Newton Lowe's side, it goes back eleven generations to John Newton, 1572-1633, in England.

So far I have identified 184 people in the Roe/Jones family trees.

This is a picture of the Roe side. The Jones side is much bigger. It won't fit on one screen.

Duct Tape Wallet

My old wallet was wearing out, so I used it as a pattern to make a new wallet from duct tape.

It is a tri-fold wallet.  The only thing that is not duct tape is the picture holder that was in the old wallet.

I even have a few dollars in it. So far, it is working very well.  We were in Wendy's yesterday for lunch and the lady said, "Is that made out of duct tape?"  I said, "Yes, it is.  I made it myself."  It didn't take very long to make either.  I guess I have less than 30 minutes in it.  It was kind of fun.

House Cleaning

Today, I decided it was a beautiful day to do some house cleaning.  Bird house cleaning, that is.  I took down all of my bird houses and cleaned the old nests out.  While I was at it, I re-painted those that needed it.  When I took the roof off of one of the houses, I found a little tree toad. It was cool outside today, so, the toad was lethargic. I brought the bird house in and took his picture (see below).  Then, I returned him to the tree and continued my bird house maintenance. After, I finished, I checked on the toad, and he was in the same spot I left him on the tree.  I hope he finds a good place to winter in.

Six bird houses.

The toad was in the house on the right.

Fall is upon us.

Tree toad hiding out in bird house.

Released back to the tree.

OK, now what?

In the Tree

Recumbent Snoopy is now in the tree in our front yard.  He will weather the fall and winter and be ready for spring.

Recumbent Snoopy Bird House

Here's the classic recumbent Snoopy on his dog house.  Having completed my first Snoopy bird house, this one went much smoother. I reduced the size of the door a little and did the bottom (3/4 inch pine) a little differently. By removing the two front screws, the bottom will hinge down for easy clean out. The rest of the project is all made of 1/2 inch plywood.  The ears were cut from one piece and then split so they are mirror images of each other.

Completed:  9-28-11.

Snoopy Bird House

Here's the World War I flying ace in his Sopwith Camel.  "Curse you, Red Baron!"

I have been thinking about this bird house for several days, and finally decided to take it on.  I looked up images of the WWI flying ace online and free handed something like this one from memory.

I cut it out, assembled it, primed it, painted the roof, and sketched out Snoopy all in an afternoon. Then I set it aside to dry for a day. 

Here's the bird house ready to be detailed.

After it had dried, I got some new paints and finished it up.  Next spring, this should make some birds a new home. 

I am visualizing some new houses even now. This was fun.

Completed: 9-25-11

Our New Floor

God gave us a new floor. Last week I recieved a check from the school district for my sick leave. I was not expecting that. I thought I had already received that compensation, so it was like new money to me. So, we have been needing a new floor for years, just didn't have the money. We went to Lowes and picked out a laminate floor.  Today, a Lowes installation team installed our new laminate floor in about five hours. Chris and April are the owners, and Frank 1 and Frank 2 are their helpers. They are from Guatamala. They were all fast and efficient workers. Glad I let Lowes install this great floor.

Frank 2 with the last piece going in.

Kitchen/dining area

Entrance Hall

Half the grandkids

This is Henry, Sarah, and Eli.  At the present, they are half our grandkids.  Missing are Bryce, Spencer, and Arthur. However, little Sarah is getting a new little sister in November. In the picture they are at the pool on Labor Day, 2011.  Sarah likes the big slide.

And a little child shall lead them --- God

 An  atheist was seated next to a little girl on an airplane and he turned to her  and said, "Do you want to talk?  Flights go quicker If  you strike up  a conversation with your fellow passenger."

 The  little girl, who had just started to read her book, replied to the total stranger, "What would you want to talk about?"

 "Oh,  I don't know," said the atheist.  "How about why there is no God, or no Heaven or Hell, or no life after death?" as he smiled smugly.

 "OK,"  she said.  "Those could be interesting topics but let me ask you a question  first.  A horse, a cow, and a deer all eat the same stuff - grass. Yet a  deer excretes little pellets, while a cow turns out a flat patty, but a horse  produces clumps.  Why do you suppose that is?"

 The  atheist, visibly surprised by the little girl's intelligence, thinks about it  and says, "Hmmm, I have no idea."

 To  which the little girl replies, "Do you really feel qualified to discuss why there is no God, or no Heaven or Hell, or no life after Death, when you don't know crap?"  She went back to reading her book.

Rocking Foot Stool

Rocking Foot Stool

Today, I made this rocking foot stool. It works great. Now, I can put my feet up and rock at the same time. I saw something like this at the Mast General Store in Greenville. I didn't stop to examine it. I saw them at a distance as we were leaving the store. But, I did a search online and came up with some ideas. So, this is the result of my thinking. I made it from materials I had on hand. The rockers I cut out of a piece of treated 2x6. The verticals I split out of the same 2x6. The top and bottom cross members were cut from 2x4 treated. The berber carpet was cut from a piece I had left over from carpeting the computer room.

Suryia and Roscoe

Roscoe and Suryia

Suryia, the orangutan, and Roscoe, the Blue Tick dog, are unlikely friends that live and play in The Institute for Greatly Endangered and Rare Species (TIGERS) , Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.  You can see a video and read all about their friendship at this site: http://www.suryiaandroscoe.com/index.php

Suzie's drawers are at home

Today, we made the trek to Simpsonville to deliver Suzie's change table.  It is now in its home awaiting Suzie's arrival in November.  Mamma Becca has done a marvelous job with the room. Two walls are in stripes, and the other two are polka dots. It's going to be a happy room.

I have added a finished picture to the Stuff I've Built page.