Remodeling...

Our friend Robert recently received a $60 gift certificate to Home Depot.

And blessed us in the process.

For the past few years, we've had a tarp tied up over our front deck, which is 8x10. Recent
winds tore the tarp halfway down, which meant it wasn't very useful.

Last weekend, Robert offered to build a real roof over the front deck. Although $60 didn't cover
all the expense, it made it doable. In two days, the deck was transformed into a much more
usable area. We've been able to put a table and chairs there, and the roof makes it much easier to get in the front door without getting drenched.

It got me encouraged enough to trim all the schrubs and trees around the house. We've recently given away all of the old cars that were scattered around the place - in total, 4 old cars were hauled away since the first of the year. Some were here, some were next door. We gave away the school bus and the old camper as well.

Although there are still many things to fix, replace and get rid of, the place looks better. I'm feeling more energized and less overwhelmed.

We made some new friends in the process. Mr. Danny received our old school bus, to turn into
an RV or extra living quarters. His grandson, Justin, a young teenager, made friends with us
immediately and ended up with a camcorder and some old radio equipment to tinker with.
We were happy to get rid of some of the clutter, and they were blessed to receive it. Then, we were blessed by Robert and the porch project soon after.

I hope others will look around and bless someone else in similar ways.