Emmett and Sarah go to Ohio

So, I wasn't around for any of this, but that doesn't mean it didn't happen.  It's ok.  I'm in a place in my life where I can admit that.  It does mean that the writing is going to be limited.  This may be an explicit pleasure for some of you. 

Chatting with G-Grandma H

Staring down Maggie

Guys, I can walk!  If only you'd let me try.

My tub at home is definitely bigger.

That's enough visiting.  Time to recharge.

Learning from the yogi.

Meanwhile, back in Ithaca...  I had to take pictures of myself cause there was no one else around.

Zach and I got a ride in.  I love mud and rocks and bikes.]

Hobbs and I hung out and whistled MASH

Checked out a beaver dam in the canoe.  

And missed my babies.

If you have a story to tell about the Ohio trip, leave it in the comments or post your own blog.  I'd love to hear more about it.

Emmett meets Ohio

We're on the road back home from a quick Labor Day trip to Ohio. It was high time that Emmett got to meet the great grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and the supporting cast from his folks' home state.  I'm kind of a giant stress ball right now, but was able to put the majority of that on the back burner while we enjoyed our visit. We drove in on Friday evening and stayed at Grammy and Pop Harrington's house.

Grandmas Harrington and Cressman came over on Saturday for a little visit after we had breakfast with Kurt and Denise and wandered through the market. At the market Sarah ran into some old friends and we got a chance to see just how much the farmers market has grown in Medina in the last few years. What was a few tables when we first went has grown to cover most of the square. 

Grandma Cressman has awesome rings!

The swing and the camp chairs got a lot of use this weekend.

Shannon and Marjie came over on Saturday, also.

That evening, we gathered around the campfire. We all agreed that it was one of too few fires this summer. That said, it was an especially pleasant time.

Dad and Sarah and Emmett and I got up early on Sunday and headed out to the flea market. As usual we found lots and lots of stuff, but managed to come home with just a couple of treasures. On Sunday afternoon Grammy H graciously hosted a picnic and all were welcome.

Great Grandma harrington was there, and so was great grandma Cressman, Kurt and Denise and Alyssa showed up and Andy and Gail, too. Larry and Lynn stayed for a while and Linda blew through for just a few seconds on our way home from the Outer Banks. Veneta came with her friends Carolyn and Susan as well. Shannon came back and brought Ben with her this time. Nathan showed up, and so did Emily and Nakoa. 

We put some food out that we had picked up at the flea market that morning. It was way better than that sounds. Dad grilled some brats from the Piggery and we served some pulled pork.  The beer came from as far away as Belgium and as near as Ithaca and Cleveland. 

Grandma and grandpa Rockwell get there turn holding the newest great grandkid. 

Back in mama's arms after a long and eventful day.

We woke up this morning and made a leisurely time of it, sharing coffee and breakfast and stories, as usual. Pops took his turn with the chopper. 

One last family shot before we hit the road. Thanks to everyone who made our trip so much fun. We look forward to seeing you all again soon! Come on up and visit if you don't want to wait for us to come back.

Concrete Countertops

I don't even remember where the idea came from... maybe just something that had been in one of our minds for awhile, but we knew we wanted new counters, and neither of us were terribly impressed with much on the market.  I think Sarah brought home a sample chip that looked a little like concrete to me and the project went from there.  It took awhile to pull everything together, but come together it did.  Here's a quick tour of the process.  Skip to the end if you just want to see the new counters.

Making the forms in front of the old white house... boy does it look horrendous now that we're used to the new colour (green?  I've been told a few times, but I can never remember... it's definitely an earth tone... like green or brown).  I've written it before, but it bears repeating, loving to work with the person you love is a blessing that should never be taken for granted.  We're lucky enough to enjoy working together AND have skills and traits that compliment one another (Sarah may or may not feel the same way... it's possible my traits don't compliment hers, but that she is compensating for me).

Tools of the trade.

Lots of sketches.  Lots of math.  LOTS of measuring and remeasuring.  If memory serves, this page is a combination of my sketches and Dad's.  It's pretty great to get to share ideas and learn with him.

One day, while working on the counter tops, I turned around to see Sarah looking at paint chips.  (That's a little hyperbole, but the point stands)

So, somewhere along the line, I lost the pictures of pouring the concrete, or maybe we didn't take any because we were so engrossed in the chore.  But it did happen, and we eventually wound up with big slabs that looked pretty much like sidewalk.

Getting ready to grind and polish.  We did most of our work in the front lawn, which has its advantages and disadvantages.  It was certainly nice to work outside on sunny days.

This is what the slabs looked like fresh out of the mold.



We had to buy a specialty tool for this job, a wet grinder.  If it hadn't been for that investment, the countertops would have come in well below $300.  The wet grinder is pretty fun to use on warm sunny days.  I could not figure out any way to do this work without getting soaking wet.  I guess I could have bought a rubber apron, but I already own a bunch of axes and knives, so that seemed like just a bit too many checked boxes on the serial killer survey.

Demo was pretty fun and straight forward.  Plus we got to clean up all the mold and nasty from under the old sink.  It was super gratifying to bust out the Sawzall and chop out the stained crappy counters and cabinets.

There was a lot of framing and support to do.  Concrete is heavy.  That is probably why one usually finds it on the ground.  The counters need to stay ~3' above the ground, so... bracing and support.  I LOVE it when the little bubble is between the two lines!

Grandpa Cressman's circular saw saw heavy rotation (get it); which was a great reason to spend a bunch of time thinking about him and grandma.

1/2" off!  We had to take the counters back off, unscrew the cabinets, and move them 1/2" to the right! 1/2"!  Oh well.  Live and learn.

Where is the water running?  No where!

Lots of little scraps of wood.  Thanks to a couple friends, we had all the scrap 2x4s we needed and didn't have to buy any!  Reduce, REUSE, then recycle.  Lots of supervision, too.

"Slow down.  Take breaks." -Pat Harrington.  Yessir.

Voila! Ignore the unpainted cabinet.  We need to install a backsplash, then decide on new wall and/or cabinet colours, but this is a pretty good start.  Sarah waxed and polished the concrete like Ralph Macchio, 'til we could see our reflections.

I did some problem solving (of course) and got the sink cobbed together in a way that holds water.

And it works!  Holds stuff off the floor with a bit of flare.  Look to the comments for the inevitable oversights or exaggerations that Sarah will correct.  Come on over for dinner.

Saturday's Soirée

On the Saturday after Thanksgiving Veneta and Sarah and I hosted a little get together for a small group.  Bob and Jenn did a lot to help us get ready, too; cleaning and moving furniture, cooking and serving, etc.  It was a real team effort.  ALL OF THE PICTURES ARE BY DARREN.  I didn't take any once the party started.

It paid off big time.  It was so great to have a quieter, low key evening with the grandparents especially.  We always feel like we haven't had enough time to sit and chat.  Thanksgiving dinner is great, but there are so many people and all of them are a little tired from cooking and eating.  It was really nice to have some light hor d'oeuvres and quiet conversations.

The fire was awesome, if at times a little hot or a little cold.  Bob and I tried to keep an eye on it.  I let it go out.  Bob burned the room out.  We made a good team.

We definitely benefitted from hosting post turkey day!  Bob worked his butt off in the kitchen, prepping the baguettes with pesto and serving and pushing coffee, beer, wine, and anything else he could get his hands on.

I spent some time aggravating Zhora and considering roads not taken.

After a little more play, it was time for the reveal.

"Taadaa! We're getting married."

Ian is a friend of Veneta's who agreed to say some words for us and make it clear to those present what was actually happening.  Sarah bought a nice new snowflake sweater and I wore my best flannel.  I even tucked it in.

Ian is really tall.

With our powers combined...

we're married!