Day 64: Saturday, a lazy day

I slept late in fact I overslept. Ivy and I were the only ones up for a long while. Finally, Olivia came down stairs. The party on Friday night had been fun and the kids had gotten to bed much later than normal so sleeping was not a bad thing. That is why I slept so late. It was icky outside; cool and damp with light rain, the kind of weather that can descend on upper Lower Michigan at this time of the year. I have spent many of summer morning curled up on the couch, planted in a chair reading, or watching the lake through the windows.

The plumber came back in the morning and worked in the lower bathroom. He was adding the plumbing fixtures before the tile workers come next week. He had pulled the old tub out the day before and was back to finish his work. He worked for several hours before finishing. When finished, it will make it easier for Grandma and Grandpa Weaver them to get in and out of the shower. Before Grandma had her shoulder surgeries last year, in January and again in June the Weavers were frequent visitors to the cottage visiting at least once a month. We had been up here together before New Years when she had gotten sick. The illness led to four months at the Care Center in Versailles. When they were able to come back up in mid-May, Beth came with them and brought Olivia and Ivy along for the fun. That was when they decided to replace the tub with a shower.  It will be completed late next week and provide peace of mind for all of us.

There was not much on the agenda for the day. We did need to go to the dump, but that was it. The excitement of the day was when Ivy got loose and raced up the lakeshore stopping at the Weaver’s. In the 1940s the Weaver Brothers Egg Company had two Weavers – George, Grandpa’s father, and Don. Don decided to move north and settled in Grayling. He told his brother George about Grayling and George bought a cottage a few houses down the lakeshore from his brother in the late 40s or early 50s. It has been in the family since. Uncle Don and Aunt Florence have since passed away and their son William now lives where their cottage was. We know them as Uncle Bill and Jeanie though they are really second cousins, I think. Regardless, it was Bill and Jean’s 50th Wedding Anniversary celebration Saturday night and we had been invited.  Ivy stopped to visit them as they sat on their deck. It was a good thing, because I am not sure how far Ivy would have gotten before I caught up to her. We stopped to visit and talk. Olivia arrived and took ivy back to the cottage, but a few minutes later Ivy was racing up the shoreline chasing ducks. Olivia was running after her, but Ivy was much faster and left Olivia and I in the dust. She ran out onto a dock after some ducks and that is the only way I was able to catch her. I picked her up carrying her back and before I got the leash from Olivia and it was safe to put her back on the ground. Ivy seemed pleased with herself and her brief taste of freedom. I walked her back to cottage and put her on the tether in front. When Beth came home she mentioned she wanted to got the Weaver’s party in the evening, I told her I would stay home with the kids.

The plumber finished his work and had just enough time to make it to the dump before it closed. We stopped at the grocery before heading back to the cottage. It would be a movie night with the kids upstairs watching Transformers or Old Dogs. Beth left for the party and the kids and I had dinner, leftovers from the cookout. The kids headed upstairs for their movie night. They watched quietly enjoying the movie. I read downstairs and worked, it was peaceful.

Just before the movie finished upstairs, Beth came home from the party. The kids went to bed and we talked about the day and the party. She had had a good time visiting with relatives and friends we rarely see. It has been a good summer. July is over and August begins tomorrow. Eighteen days remain for me, with twenty something for the kids; the days have counted in so many ways. It had been a good day and the forecast for tomorrow is million and six times better.

Thanks for visiting MtDC. How are YOU Making YOUR Days Count?