Sammy's Fourth Birthday - Ms Fix It and The Pool Man

Arthur was parked at Cook’s Lake RV Park for November as we began our 5-month winter stay in the Memphis area. Across the winter, we planned on taking care of a number of personal items too difficult to accomplish when we’re on the road. But this situation also allowed us to drive Sid for some out-of-the-area travel while Arthur sat. Our first drive was to Hollywood, Florida, where we helped celebrate Sammy’s birthday and Thanksgiving with the Gomez family.

Sarah threw a great party for Sammy and invited extended family members, some neighbors, and friends of Sammy’s from school. We helped decorate inside and outside, and there turned out to be a great crowd. Sarah arranged crafts, games, and a dance for the kids. Despite the stress of planning and worrying about entertaining everyone, the day was a huge success.

An easel was set out on the patio as pictured. I thought these before and after pictures were the perfect metaphor for a children’s birthday party. Kids (and a few adults) sure enjoyed the markers and white board.

Sarah brought out the birthday cake, we sang “Happy Birthday,” Sammy blew out the candles, and everyone cheered. But all didn’t go as planned. Don’t miss Sarah’s reaction and wait for the end once the video goes black.

Fortunately, it was a frozen ice cream cake that was undamaged. I applied the 10 second rule and miraculously returned it to the platter. It was almost as if nothing happened.

Unfortunately, I didn’t take any pictures of our terrific Thanksgiving meal. MFI did most of the cooking and Sarah was her sous chef. The food was delicious and paired well with all the wine we drank.

Our visit to the Gomez house just wouldn’t be complete if there wasn’t a project to work on, and they never disappoint. During an earlier visit, we had discussed enhancing the scrawny 4″x 4″ columns on the front porch. I went as far back then to go online, research the options, and determine the cost of materials. At that time, the cost was higher than expected and the timing wasn’t optimal. But now, they had done more research and decided to simply wrap the posts in wood and enlarge them to 6″X 6″ columns.

Michael and I purchased the materials and discovered a significant savings if we went with deck planking rather than dimensional lumber. When we started the installation, we considered mitering the rounded edges of the planks for a nice squared off appearance, but the labor to do this would have been excessive. Michael decided to leave the edges rounded, and when we mocked up the first column-wrap, the exposed rounded edges actually created an interesting visual detail. The project scope also added a fascia board at the bottom of and running along the perimeter of the porch roof structure. Installation was finished in one day. I caulked all the joints and applied two coats of house paint, and as usual, drying times for caulk and paint extended project completion to three days.

Sarah and Michael are renovating their dining room space. It is a longer term project they’re finishing in stages. During our earlier trip in May, MFI prepared a detailed set of plans for their desired banquette and end cabinet. Michael and Sarah selected a wall paneling, which Michael installed first. MFI’s plans were given to their cabinet maker, and that company manufactured and installed the banquette and cabinet before our return. Michael had purchased a beautiful piece of wood from which he wanted two floating shelves made and hung above the new dining room cabinet. We drilled holes for hanging the shelves, and voila, the next stage was done. This space is starting to come together nicely.