I took the girls up to my parents for a few days over Shelby's spring break from school. I wanted to help them with a few projects as a thanks for the painting work my mom did here. We headed up Wednesday afternoon. We made a pit stop at the Rockford airport to pick up my grandma who was returning from my cousin's wedding in Florida. We arrived at my parents' to learn the sad news that a family friend Phyllis, had passed away that evening. Long time ago I used to mow their yard in the summer and my mom currently worked for her cleaning her house. When in town I often took the girls by the assisted living home Ervin and Phyllis lived in. They liked to ride Silver the horse and Phyllis always had cookies. Ervin passed away on January 23, 2010. He was 93. He and Phyllis had been married 71 years! Yes, you read that right. 71 years! Can you imagine?! Phyllis, also 93 died 2 months and 1 day after Ervin. It was like she started to fail mentally and physically the day Ervin died. I helped my mom do a little cleaning at their house to prepare it for their daughter and granddaughters to come for the services next week. On Thursday I took down the 2 rows of snow fence. Despite my older, loving brother's doubts, I unhooked 2 wires per steel post, pulled at least 12 steel posts out of the ground and rolled several sections of fence before my dad came home from work at noon. I also helped my dad move large sections of a walnut tree that was cut down last fall. Another task my brother didn't think I was capable of doing. :) I did leave a small tree branch to cut up when he goes this weekend for Easter.
On Saturday we planned to have a bonfire and roast hot dogs and marshmallows for lunch before coming home. The girls had colored some eggs for decorating. While they dried my dad started the fire. He had been burning the grass in the cow pasture since they no longer have cattle there to eat it. The wind and the long grass caused the fire to get a little out of control. I helped my dad make about 4 trips from the house to the pasture with containers of water. I rode on a walnut tree stump we loaded in the back of the truck earlier that morning. I held on to the side of truck for dear life as I bounced up and down over the bumps in the pasture as my dad drove like a nut. That last trip to get water he grabbed his cell phone and after we dumped the water I said, "Just call the fire department and call it a day". We just couldn't get ahead of it. That hot fire and smoke was more than I signed up for on this trip for sure! Once Shelby realized it wasn't all so bad the girls were excited to watch from the house the 4 fire trucks that arrived to fight the fire. You can see on the hill above the truck some of the smoke and a large area that burnt. My cousin Ben who was the ring bearer almost 14 years ago in our wedding was one of the firefighters that came.
After the excitement of the fire, we did get back to cooking hot dogs and marshmallows on the bonfire. Here is Shelby roasting a marshmallow and Morgan eating a S'more.
Before the fire the girls had colored their eggs. Next step was decorating. They used puffy paint to do this. Must say nothing beats the old fashioned decorating with crayons before coloring. They had fun anyway and I guess that is what matters.
Since we spent so much time fighting the fire, we decided it would be best to stay one more night and come home Sunday instead of Saturday. So after church today the girls decorated Nonny's doors for her.
We started our trip by learning of a death. Unfortunately we ended the trip by learning my great aunt Rosemary died early this morning. So my parents have two visitations and funerals this week. One of the hard facts of life.
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