Think Spring

Has February really come and gone that quickly?  Is that even possible?  I'm ready for the cold and wet weather to transform into beautiful spring days, to be sure, but it seems like only yesterday that we had the new chimney liner installed.... and that was over a month ago.

So, I suppose, if I were to look at the February in coastal Virginia in the most positive light, I'd be able to acknowledge that the cold, wet (did I mention wet) weather has afforded us lots of opportunities to build fires in the wood stoves. 

Yes, I said wood stoves (plural) because we (STILL) have not finished the old farmhouse rehab sufficiently to actually move in.  Nevertheless, I work every day from my office there, so being able to build a fire in the wood stove downstairs makes the whole work from home thing just a little more cozy.  And, of course, we have to keep the wood stove in the garage going, since we still live in the apartment above.  We are burning right through all of the wood.....

We are making some interesting purchases on Craigslist and that is always fun.  We are shopping for specific furniture that will work in some of the challenging spaces in our house.  Last November we happened on a listing that offered what looked to be a pretty good deal on some old bedroom furniture.  Once we owned the furniture, I became interested in its history.  I discovered through some exhaustive searching, a site where volunteer experts help people like me get an idea of the age and construction of their vintage furniture.  It turns out that the bedroom set we purchased is about 90 years old and in pretty decent condition for its age.  It is considered 1920s colonial revival set made of tulip poplar, sweet gum and maple.

We made a really LONG trip, sitting for HOURS in traffic, to get exactly the right sized sleeper chairs from a woman who just so happens to live 45 miles away....over bridges, through tunnels, over more bridges..over terrible roads filled with potholes, stopped on the bridge for an hour while the VDOT workers picked up their cones and such (they were apparently repairing the crazy potholes).

And, when we FINALLY arrived at the seller's home (by this time nightfall had long fallen), the seller welcomed us and took us upstairs to show us the two sleepers....  Well, it took another hour or so to get those two over sized chairs down the rather narrow three sets of  stairs, and into the van.  Yes, they are RED.  Yes, they look HOT PINK in the pictures, and YES, they fit into the spaces where we need them.

We stopped for a late supper on our way home and FINALLY arrived home a little after midnight.  We'd left the house at about 5PM.

We are definitely being hampered by the inclement weather.  Right now Joe is in the process of building a "sled."  The sled will be used to hoist some VERY HEAVY pieces of furniture up the fire escape stairs to the second story.  His plan involves a sled, a pulley, a tractor and some rope.... and MY plan includes crossing my fingers, holding my breath and trying not to look ...  Of course, we'll have to wait until the rain stops for a minute or two before we can put our plans into action.

On the, "they are having more fun than I am" list for late January - February were:
1. My brother and sister-in-law, and four of my grown nephews and nieces flew out to San Diego, CA to visit with another of my brothers and his family. Two of my brothers and four of my nieces ran a half marathon in Carlsbad, CA (and enjoyed a fun week visiting -- we on the east coast don't get to see those on the west coast NEARLY enough!)

2. My daughter and son-in-law and granddaughter are currently in Hawaii... yes, it's for work, BUT.....  (just sayin')

3. My nephew and his wife celebrated their FOURTH anniversary by flying from their snowy Kansas City, MO home to sunny Orlando, FL to run in the Princess half marathon.

On the, "oh, I've been there and done that, and I'm really excited for you, BUT, " list are:

1. My little brother and his girlfriend bought their first home (end of December) and are
"enjoying" all of the fun of fixing it up to be just the perfect house for them....

2. My niece bought HER first house and is, likewise, putting her mark on it (LITERALLY) and is in the process of tearing out walls....

Nevertheless, we have the cold and the rain, and maybe even snow next week (are you kidding me???) and MAYBE sometime in between all of this exciting weather, Joe and I will be able to haul some very heavy furniture up to the second story of the old farmhouse!

Meanwhile, we are waiting for SPRING!