200 Posts! And what I've learned about roofing.

So, apparently, I've had a lot to say. In honor of this 200th post, I'm changing things up a bit. I'm tired of the look. So, I'll rearrange the furniture a bit. It's better than a complete remodel. No major complications and it doesn't take several months (ask me how I know...the kitchen STILL needs some finishing touches). Anyway, the new look is just that...it doesn't mean that I've actually found something stimulating to talk about.

I will, though, leave you with a laugh.

This winter has been harsh. I'm told that it's the harshest winter in 20 years. I remember when I was a little girl living in Fremont, however, that there were days when you could barely open the front door from the snow drifts. I remember my mom throwing the dog outside for his potty break and him sinking down into the snow over his head. This winter wasn't even close to that. But, there has been some talk that this winter may be the start of a cycle in which we go back to those kinds of winters.

Anyway, because of the cold, snow, and ice, as you know, the garage didn't get finished all winter. But every warm day we had, we were out there tackling part of it. But warm here means wind. And lots of it. Without much out here in the country to break up the wind, it really gets strong. Of course, when it is also 60 degrees, we can't let a little wind keep us from working on the shingles.

One day last week, we were all up on the roof trying to do just that. The wind was pretty bad. 25 mph. Un-nailed shingles would blow off the roof. When we'd finish a bag of shingles, Caleb would stand up and let the wind catch the bag and blow it clear across the yard. I was a little nervous about the wind making us lose our balance and so encouraged the kids to stay low to the roof. What I forgot to be concerned about was the ladder.

Ah, the ladder. Yes, it is a very necessary item when you are up on the roof. And did you know that 25 mph wind can knock one over? Well, it can. And it did. So there we were, all 4 of us (Abby was inside, but then, she's not much help when it comes to roofing), up on the roof. Without a ladder. And, here is the kicker, without a phone.

We did see a car coming, though, so things were looking up. We ran up to the top of the roof and began to wave them in, shouting, and generally trying to look distressed. They were nice enough to wave back as they drove on by.

Don and I spent a good 5 minutes arguing about who was in a better position to break a leg by jumping. He thought he should do it as the man of the family. I told him that we needed him to continue to earn a paycheck. He declared that he'd be fine going to work with a broken leg as his was mostly a desk job now. I said that if I broke a leg, the kids could just wait on me hand and foot.

In the end, we decided to try to lower Caleb down and let him jump the remaining couple of feet. We were worried that he might not be able to lift the big ladder, which would've left us in much the same unfortunate position, but he managed.

I wish I could say that I've become a master roofer. That we've learned how to put shingles on most efficiently or that we now know how to keep the lines of shingles perfectly parallel. But all I've really learned is to always bring a phone. Or, just make sure that all of the walking family members are not on the roof at the same time in such gusty wind.