In Case You're Wondering...

I realized most of you are probably wondering, "What the heck is Crackel Manor???"  Well, after Steve and I bought the house in 1984, and he being the nicknaming guru he was, he nicknamed our home "Crackel Manor," as it is located on Crackel Road and it was more house than we thought we wanted and certainly cost more than we planned to spend at the time!  As I was only 28 years old at the time, it was a lot of house for me.  But we fell in love with it, and it was Steve's pride and joy, hence the concept of "manor."  Nothing was too good for our home as far as Steve was concerned, and I plan to continue that in his memory.  Thought you'd like to know!

4 O'Clock Update!

I went to check on Mike around 4:15 and I can't believe how much he and Norm accomplished today! Mike's still out there working (he'll be home late, Mallory - sorry!). All four walls are up and the roof will be done tonight. Then it's siding, shingles and detail work. I'm psyched!

Step One: Building the Shed

Building a shed toward the back of my property has been something I've wanted to do for a couple of years, but Steve resisted it. Since it's just me and the kitties now, guess what? Up goes the shed!!! I am excited about cleaning out my garage and putting all my "stuff" in the shed, so the garage will be a more streamlined and clean place for my "fleet." (If you didn't already know, I have three, yes three, cars: my "kittyvan," Steve's Buick Lucerne and my toy, the Mercedes convertible.) I know I should sell one, but it's too hard to part with any of them (come on, I need them ALL!). So, the first step in my home improvement plan was the building of the shed. Rather than order a cookie-cutter shed from Lowe's or Home Depot, a close friends' "future son-in-law," Mike Danks (sorry Mike, it's true!) and a friend are building it for me, complete with vinyl siding and shingles to coordinate with my house. (PS: Mike has his bachelor's degree in Construction Engineering, so I am in expert and capable hands!) They are making amazing progress.

Of course, they had to start by clearing an area in the woods, then laying down a limestone gravel pad. Next, they put the wood base down, then started building on top of that.

Well, right now Rascal is competing for my attention... stay tuned for daily updates!