Long time between posts= long posts

Seeing as it is fall and I have a ton of leaves to rake I thought I would compost some of them into the pumpkin patch.  I love running the rototiller which was handed down from my father and from his father-in-law.  This old thing is a beast a really can tear up the ground and now hold an even more special place to me since my grandfather passed away last week.  Every time I use it I can think of all the times he used it and really will enjoy it even more.  I have been having some issues with it and finally it stopped working half way through the job.  After lots and lots of carburetor troubleshooting I finally ran a compression and found the compression was much too low, so I was forced to tear into it and see what was the problem.  Right away I noticed this head gasket looked a little worn.  After a couple day I got off my butt and finally got a replacement from the guy around the corner (less than $3) and put the engine back together.  The thing started right up and really has some power now.  It was dark when I finally got it running but I had to try it out, so I donned the headlamp and went to work.  Tilling the soil is great therapy.

 

Pretty obvious where the air was escaping.

 

Last week I had a job about 10 miles from the in-laws so we headed out early and spent the week at their house.  It is so nice being able to see your kids at the end of the day and I know they had a blast a grandma and grandpa’s as well.

The boys love to play the piano.

James just let one and was letting us know in this picture.  Auntie Paula's glasses were a lot of fun to play with.

Seriously cute.  The sliding glass door was licked clean by the time we left.

Having fun with grandpa petting the cat.

Again on the Piano

and with the Cats....again

Since work does not have to pay for me to stay in a hotel and I also have a food allowance I could  go out to eat with the whole family at a nice place and it did not cost me a dime.  So nice to have a good meal and say thanks to the in laws for housing me in such a practical way.  James liked the ribeye bone.

James got these car tracks a while ago and has been having a great time playing with them.  Mom and him set this one up and I was really impressed with Brenda's building skills on this.

 

Brenda had some MOPS get together game night last weekend so I got to take the boys to the mall and the play area there.  Since it gets so dark so early it is kind of hard to play outside.  I detest the Mall normally, but this one here is not busy so it is actually tolerable.

Playland time

I thought I had posted this picture before, but guess I forgot.  My mustache is much bigger now.

 

Two weeks ago we also got the opportunity to have a couple of my co-workers from San Jose who now live in Helena over.  It was a blast catching up with them and having our kids play with each other.  We had the other people we worked with in CA that are up in Spokane on a job over for dinner as well and it was so much fun catching up and seeing people from the past.  It is really amazing the people you run into at various parts of your life and you never know when you are going to run into them again.  It really is a small world.

That little girl is so cute.

James is unaware that this train is actually broken.  We got it and it never worked so he just sits on it and pushes it around.  He loves to push his brother and goes around about 100 times without stopping.  I have no idea what I would do if I had that energy.

Brothers having fun.

James is getting more and more daring.  He loves to wrestle and jump off things.

Not always a smooth landing, but fun to watch.

The boys again...and yes I realize this is now a kiddo blog.

Brenda just hanging out and being herself.  Sunglasses inside is probably not needed, but when you look this good who cares.

 

While down in Sunnyside I got a chance to ride in Jims new speedster and actually got to drive it.  There is a lot of fun to be had driving old model T’s and they each really seem to have a personality.  Each one of the rides a little different and all of them turn heads wherever they go.  James had a blast riding it as well.

I will spare you my political rants this time.



Fall Flair

With the threat of weather and winter fast approaching I thought it prudent to finally get someone to take a look at the roof and the minor leak it has.  The leak did not go into the house, but just onto another old roof section since the leak was at the interface of where the previous owner added on the front porch.  I could not figure out why the valley was leaking but upon inspection he had installed flashing and then nailed every 6 inches down the middle...bad idea.  There were several time where words were exchanged between me and the roof.  the previous owner also used shingles stacked up on each other as spacers and a lot of other non industry approved techniques that lead to the leaking.

I had contacted a roofer and he gave a me a quote of $2400 to fix the two valley's.  I just about fell over and for that much I could go to roofing school and fix the roof and still come out ahead.  After watching a couple of youtube videos and common sense in hand I got to work.

Water damage on the roof required some additional attention.  I did not get a picture of the finished project, but I figure if the past crap job only leaked a little there is no way mine is going to leak.  To top it off I only had to pay less than $400 for the materials...awesome.

With all the runs to Hopeless Depot James got his fill of popcorn and sitting on rental equipment.

North Idaho in the fall is amazing.  This is a picture I took at work the other day...it was a good day at work.

I got a chance last week to run over the St Regis and throw a line in the water.  I did not catch any fish but got some good time alone on the water and was glad to do so.  The Tamarack trees throughout the area look like they are on fire

Matthew is being so very cute nowadays and should be walking shortly.  He pulls himself up all over the place and really is fun to be around.

James has a bunch of cars that I got off craigslist a few weeks ago and is constantly asking for the "car"....I try to explain to him he has about a hundred and I have not idea which one he is talking about, but he knows and is adamant.  He also likes to haul things in his truck as shown here.

James was a horse for the churches fall flair party.  Here is is with his friend the lion.

Since Brenda and I were just going to go as cowboys I thought I would grab a lead rope and clip it on James "mane".  Everyone thought it was funny and I am sure some thought that having your kid on a leash was cruel, but I don't care.

James and Mom.

Matthew being a cute rooster to round out the farm theme.

 

And now, for another political rant: 

Health care rollout seems to be all in the news nowadays and I am a bit miffed since it is now open enrollment at work.  Since everyone now has a right to coverage the insurance companies actually have to account for those people who have life ending illnesses and under the new law can get any coverage they want.  This increased cost is of course getting passed onto the consumer of course.  Next they are going to make the companies provide life insurance to everyone even those who are going to die in a month and make the rest of us foot the bill.  Thanks Government, because of the new law I have insurance that 10% higher cost and provides 50% of the coverage it used to.  Good job providing for your responsible citizens (please note the sarcasm).  Oh, and where is me $2500 saving I was promised as "average American household"?

 

The website rollout is another one of those things that miff me.  So now, I am required to get health insurance and because most of it is online I have to get internet.  So the government is actually requiring the purchase of 2 things….wait, I also need a computer, electricity, and money to pay for it. To make this money I actually have to work since I cannot borrow all I want like the government does so that is another thing I am now required to do.  Does anyone else see a cascading effect here.  Marxbama here we come.  Another thing that really is annoying and frankly pandering to me is when the website rollout is blamed on someone, but the Obama claims to take “full responsibility” for the problems.  It is easy to take full responsibility when there is no punishment.  When you are not going to get fired or really be held accountable it is really easy to take responsibility.  Heck I also take responsibility then when someone else fixes it, I can also take credit…moronic government officials are really trying my patience.

Selkirk Loop and Ione Train

Fall is distinctly upon us and the frost is covering the ground in the mornings now on a regular basis.  We picked all of our apples two weeks ago and got moving making 9 gluten free apple crisps for the freezer to keep us ready at a moment’s notice if we get company or friends over.  The pumpkins did not do so well this year and I can actually pick the biggest one up by myself so I think it only got 125lbs or so.  The sunflowers were huge and the biggest head must be something like 20” across.

Here is James talking on the phone.  I guess the guys at the part department got his order wrong because I swear I heard him say " NO, I ordered a right side solenoid starter coil, not the bottoms stator bearing...that would be ridiculous".  

James also likes to make Matthew laugh.  Sometimes he can be a little rough with Matthew, but so can I... so I guess he gets that from me.

 

Last weekend we headed to Sunnyside to see the in-laws.  We were already planning on going down there and then I got a couple days of work down there scheduled at the last minute, so it was pretty cool to get paid to drive down and back.  Jim’s newest model T speedster is just about done and it fired right up on the first crank which was fun, but we ended up pulling the axle apart due to some “noises”.  Jim did most of the work, but I had a good time all the same.

New (old) toys at Grandma's house.

Th first drivers of the Speedster T.

Back at home messing around

No pants....no problem.  This is a good rule to live by.

 

This past weekend it was my time to go out and ride the GS.  I have wanted to do the Selkirk loop into Canada for some time now and things just had not worked out, but I was determined to make Saturday work.  It was a brisk day, but that is about all you could hope for this time of year.  Before I left,  Brenda and I talked and thought about doing the train ride in Ione this year, but like every other year it is sold out online and you could go up hoping to get a ticket, but chances are slim.  Since it is 2 hours away that is not a good idea to risk it.  During my ride, I passed through Ione and then turned around and thought I would stop and see if they had any tickets for Sunday.  To my surprise they had some and sold me enough for us to ride the train.  With tickets in hand I continued the loop. 

 

On the Ferry

 

Just outside of Nelson BC I noticed a sign saying the time the next ferry left was at 1:10…Yikes. I was 30km away and it was 12:50, so I took off and rode like the wind.  I arrived at the ferry right as the gate closed in front of me.  Luckily the captain saw me and then re-opened the gate and let me on.  That saved me a 2hr wait so I was pumped.  The ride was awesome and made me once again realize I could ride my bike all day every day and not get tired of it.  380 miles and 8hrs 30 minutes of riding and I arrived at home with a big smile and happy attitude.

Kootenay Lake is awesome and Canada is going to be some place I go and see a lot more of in the future.

 

Sunday Brenda and the boys stayed home from Church since Matthew had a slight fever.  After church I booked home and we left at about 10:50.  I was once again against the clock since the train left at 1pm and we had a 2hr drive to get to it.  Well, we arrived about 8 minutes before the train left and were happy to have made it.  James was so excited as we told him on the drive that he was going to ride a train, he kept pointing out every train we passed.  When we got there he was speechless stuttering and pointing while his eyes were as big a dinner plates…that scene alone was worth the drive.  We got to ride in the Caboose and had a great time.  It is pretty old school as they let you walk out on the back of the caboose and stand there with just a small safety chain across the opening as you ride on a trestle 200ft over a huge hydroelectric dam (and me holding James).  I was probably having as much if not more fun as James.  The ride is only about 90 minutes roundtrip, but on the way back the engine goes on a siding and moved to join with the caboose and pull us back to town.  We had a great time and the weather was perfect.  Such a nice time of year to get out and see the fall aspens, maples, and tamaracks.

What is that sound? A TRAIN!

Brenda and Matthew on the back of the caboose.

James pointing out the Engine and where it is going.

The Boys and Mama

And then there is me trying to blend in with the local flora with my red 'stache...hot...so hot.  I have to beat the women off with a noodle.

Back at home it is time to make some music.

Soda, Tetons, Bozeman

A couple weeks ago we got back from CA and the week right after that I had to fly to Soda Springs ID.  Yes, that fateful city along the Oregon trail where carbonated water flows right out of the ground and is free for the taking. Kind of a cool place, but out in the sticks just does not begin to describe it.  There is a lot of Phosphate mining in the area and I was there working on a mine reclamation. I will be back a lot in the next few years, and as it ends up I had to go back the next week, although I knew that going into it.  Soda Springs is a cool town if you happen to be in the area and if you need a brief history of the town with all the major attractions just let me know...I got 5 minutes to spare.

 

So, knowing that I had to go down there and that the job would only be about two to three days in length I worked with a co-worker to arrive on Sunday and then be done by Wednesday.  That would then allow me to bring the family and go on a little vacation after the work "week".  It also gave us a chance to go to Lava Hot Spring just 20 minutes from Soda Springs.  That alone is well worth the trip.

It was starting to get cold in the mountains and on the way down I thought it prudent to delay the scheduled camping and rent out a old forest service rangers cabin just outside of Butte MT.  We have rented a couple of fire lookouts before, but I will have to say they were head and shoulders above this place.  Sooo Soo much dog hair all over the rug, wood floors, couches, and everywhere.  Not a good thing for a guy that is allergic to dog hair.  It did have heat though, but every time the furnace turned on it smelled of dog piss and dying animals.  Since the basement was locked I was unable to remove the air filter.  The smell became unbearable and eventually we had to shut the heat off.  It still stayed pretty warm so we did not have to resort to the electric oven for heat, but we were ready to leave.  Brenda commented that she would have felt cleaner camping.  Poor Matthew could not even crawl on the floor and was relegated to the pack and play as we sat in the middle of the living room in the kitchen chairs which were the only chairs you could actually clean.

 

Soda Springs was good since I had a house rented, albeit a small one.  Work went well and I had a good time working out in one of the most beautiful valleys in ID as far as I am concerned.  They mine the Phosphate Veins in the area and kind of tear up the forest, but after the reclamation it looks pretty good.  Strip mining can be problematic especially when it is on Public Land, but it provides food (fertilizer) and jobs.  I am glad to be part of the reclamation and restoring of this wonderful creation

 

 Thursday we were off for some Family time in Tetons...ohhh yaaaaa.

We blasted through the over crowded town of Jackson and did not miss anything.  Arriving at Jenny Lake that day was shaping up to be awesome.  We looked around and decided to take a walk to hidden falls and inspiration point.

Well the easy trail was "under construction" so we took the intermediate trail and thought we could take the boat back at the end if we got tired.  We had neglected to pack the baby bjorn or the baby backpack, so we proceeded while holding both of the rugrats in our arms.  A long long 3.5 miles we arrived at the end and then saw it was 4pm...crap..didn't the ranger say the boats....stop at 4pm.  Well, we ended up having to walk all the way back yet again holding the boys.  James did walk about 1 mile, but if we expected him to walk back we would have been there a very long time.

As evening approached it was still a stunning view.

James really needed some cheese at the end since he had worked so hard.  Both the boys were troopers and pretty good, but we were glad to be done.

 

I had planned on camping, but the nightly lows of 30 deg F had us second guessing ourselves and if our infant could keep his hands warm while still sucking his thumb.  In the end we decided to get a cabin and it was probably a good choice although they did wake up quite early since they could see us from across the room.

The next morning was epic with not a cloud in the sky and reflecting Mount Moran on the Snake River.

You may see a picture similar to this in a couple of months if you make the list this Christmas season.  Friday we had to leave Tetons and head through Yellowstone to end at my rents in Bozeman.

We did have a good time and had a chance to take a few walks we don't normally do.  Also got a chance to yell at another tourist who parked his car in the middle of the road and started to run directly towards a grizzly bear 100yds away.  Let me set the record straight here, I did not care that he was in danger of getting eaten, but there is no way I was going to be stuck behind his car while he was getting his head split open and arms ripped off.  Eventually I got him to understand English and his wife moved the car while he stood along the side of the road.  I kept an eye out hoping the see survival of the fittest in action, but the bear must have just eaten. 

Matthew was glad to be on carpet and crawl all over the place without borders.

Saturday we headed out to Fairy Lake.  It is about 7 miles down a rather bumpy dirt road.  Usually I am in a work rig and find that it has been on so may mines and dirt roads that the suspension has become "calibrated".  My dads fancy newer car is a little bit tighter and really felt the bumps.  I kept encouraging my dad to go faster because the faster you go the less you feel the bumps, but I think he knew better.  Besides, less bumps but more elbows and slaps from my mother telling him to slow down is not really an even trade.

Such an awesome lake.  We did not catch any fish, but when we got home I headed out to the Gallatin and had a blast.  All in all it was a great trip and good to hang out with the Rents and have the kids terrorize grandma and grandpa for a while.

 

The trip home was uneventful except a couple attitude adjustment stops.  It appears as if fall is upon us with highs here being about 60....is it too early to have cabin fever.