Summer Project: The Building of a Playhouse, Part 2

After we unwrapped our package of pieces, I burst into hysterics. "Easy to Assemble" kept coming to mind as we laid out piece, after piece, after piece...

But, we weren't intimidated. We could do this! And so we began. We quickly decided that the hex screws provided just wouldn't work efficiently so it was off to the hardware store for phillips-head screws and a phillips-head drill bit. Great decision!

Dylan makes himself at home and all our hard work was well worth it. Now I can look forward to enjoying my grandsons enjoy their new playhouse just like their Mother and uncle did several years ago.

Summer Project: The Building of a Playhouse, Part 1

One of the reasons I fell in love with my home 34 years ago, is that it has a large, fenced in backyard. My two young children and their friends loved creating their own magical world back there and I knew they were safe.

They had a swingset and miscellaneous toys but their backyard playground was not complete without a playhouse. They wanted a treehouse but their father was afraid of heights so they had to settle for a homemade playhouse 2 feet off the ground. Even then, I was the one who got on the roof to put the shingles on. ;-}

It was a huge hit with the playmates. One year we even had a birthday party in that tiny house!

But alas, the termites took up residence so it had to be demolished and taken away right when I started having grandchildren.

So, I decided that with Colin 4 and Dylan 1, this was the summer to build them a playhouse. I knew I couldn't do it alone, so I asked Lori, who was about to visit, to help me. She was eager to help (even though she had already comitted to helping me make a quilt of Daddy's ties) but once again had no clue what she was offering to help with.

I researched various possibilities on line and decided on a cedar version. It would come in pieces but "easy to assemble."

Lori and I defined the area where it would go and realized it would have to be leveled. So, I went to a gravel place and purchased many bags of pea-size gravel to be spread in the designated square. Uncle Charles was drafted to carry the 70 pound bags to the back yard.

At last, the big day arrived and the enormous truck (large enough to move an entire household of furniture) arrived. We watched as rather small package was unloaded into the driveway and eagerly opened it to see what we had in store.

To be continued.

Alzheimer's Foundation quilt show

On September 24th I attended the Alzheimer's Foundation quilt show in Chicago. A group of friends from the Alz. message board had been planning this reunion for several months.

My message board friends: Nancy (nsw), me, Joyce & Eileen (back row); Lori, Deb (mundee and Jackie (front row)

We gathered the night before, some meeting for the first time, to get to know each other in person and talk about our journey through Alzheimer's as caregivers. We laughed and teared up and had our respect for one another reinforced ten-fold. Joyce's daugher and SIL, Theresa and Mike, met us at the hotel with their large van and chauferred most of us to the quilt show. (What a stress-free gift!)

Here's Daddy's square. And me holding it up with a sea of quilts behind me.

The love and attention put into each and everyone of those quilts was a sight to behold. Over and over again you saw how a community of family and friends gathered around each and everyone of the loved ones affected by this horrible disease. You saw how they gradually turned from a vibrant person to one whose brain had devoured their being.

It was a testimony to the loved ones and the families.

On the way to the airport, my daughter asked me, "Do you think Granddaddy would have wanted his picture shown in association with Alzheimer's?"

I've thought about that a lot and here's what I've come up with. Daddy was a man of causes. He contributed all manner of resources: money, time, notes & letters. If this quilt show contributes any awareness of the need to fund research on Alzheimer's, I think he would be pleased.

Also, those quilts weren't just about the loved ones but about us caregivers. After his death, I was going through thousands of pieces of papers and came across a receipt for a contribution he had sent to the Alz. Assn. (long before his diagnosis). There were various categories to choose from as to how you wanted your money designated. He choose "Caregiver support." I think that says it all.

No matter how many toys a child has, (and trust me Dylan has plenty!) it's always more fun to get into (literally) the pots and pans.

just like his Mother.