Propane lines and pansies

So my husband has proven himself a loving and wonderful husband this week by…not only digging the trench for the propane line by hand (so as not to run his tractor over my yard again causing great trenches and bumpiness on the riding mower), but also filling it in beautifully today. Eschewing the plugs of grass he carefully saved while digging the trench, which had dried up pathetically, he faithfully cut new plugs from the lawn where the shop is going. The lawn over the filled in trench looks better than the area surrounding it!* How many times do you dig a ditch and end up with a better looking lawn? What a man I have found.

*Although now that I think about it, the lawn only looked so bad because he dug a trench with the backhoe last fall for the drain pipe for the one gutter that got on the house and didn’t “dress” the lawn up afterward. Hmmm.

Other news…on a car energy stand point, it has finally reached the point where it makes more sense for Troy and I to drive the truck and his Jetta (both diesels) and park my efficient yet still gas-guzzling Corolla (mpg to and from work has been running in the high 30s). I miss my car, but I am enjoying the power windows and CD player for all my audio books that the Jetta affords me.

Troy also wants you all to know that he has broken ground for the shop. This is why the propane line was being dug. The tank is scheduled to be moved next week, and then ground breaking will continue. The summer is flying by already (and it’s barely started!) and we are anxious for progress to be made.

I should also add that all the trees are down. By all, I mean seven that were on the lawn proper. The company did an amazing job in two days: there is nothing left of these massive trees but some patches of wood chips on the lawn and huge pieces of trunk neatly stacked at the back of the property. (Thanks to friends and family who have already come by to help us chop them up! The wood piles are growing nicely.) Some of the trunk pieces laying on their side were almost as tall as Troy. They were also amazingly rotten. Troy tested the hardness of one piece by poking at it with his knife: it sank easily right up to the handle. Two days after the trees were down, we had high winds and good possibility of tornadoes in the area. We were happy to be able to feel relieved instead of scared for our house, garage, and vehicles. (Oh btw, Troy got someone to tow away the car that was tree-smashed last fall too! Good things are happening.)

I will finish this brief update with some pics I took last weekend, on Troy's urging and conviction that you will enjoy them.

Someone once told me there was something wrong with me because I didn't want to have any kids. Since then, I've tried not to make those judgments on others. But really, David, there is something wrong with you for actively not liking gazanias! They are an amazing flower. (When the sun's shining.)

All for now!

-c