It's Not All Work, so Jack is NOT a Dull Boy

 B has been very busy this last week.   Now that nice weather has decided to stay, he has been able to get some work done around the house.  Of course, not all of it has been work.  He's had plenty of time having his 2nd childhood (actually first since I think he led the childhood of Alex P. Keaton).

During the beginning of the week, he and I spent time swinging and watching the birds on the lake and noticed that a tree in the backyard hadn't leafed out.  After closer examination, we discovered that what we initially believed was a late bloomer was instead a dying tree.  B fought with the chainsaw for the better part of the day before finally felling the tree.  The rest of us helped clean up the debris.  I learned how to use a chainsaw!  I'm always leery of learning a new skill for fear of then being required to use it later, but I think that it was fun enough that A) I think that B will keep the fun to himself and B) if he doesn't, it was easy enough that I won't mind.
Don't get any ideas, Dear.

For safety, the kids had to stay out of the backyard for the day until the tree came all the way down.  Since the younger two have been finished with school for a couple of weeks and boredom has already settled in, this was difficult for them, because what could be more fun than watching a tree come down?  After they saw the tree come down, they understood why they received the "talking to" from Dad about staying off of the boardwalk.  They noticed the huge divets the tree left in the yard too.  Then they thought of how their bones would be crushed.  (Kind of cool thought if you're H though.  Boys.)

 Looking for something to do, B decided to take a bike ride which ended at his friend's house a few miles down the main drag in town.  His friend was getting ready to head over to spruce up a rental to prepare it for the next renters.  B joined him.  It was a painting job, which then caused him to feel immense guilt over not having done the  deck at the back of our own house.  So the next morning, bright and early, B pressure washed the deck to knock loose the paint.  Guys are so inventive.  I would have gone the old-fashioned route and sanded the entire thing--by hand since I don't use tools that I don't want to
 accidentally break.  Actually, I tried to bribe the boys into doing it for me earlier this year, by paying them $100, but they turned me down.  (Now they have to pull wagons in the humid nights of July.  Guess they'll see if they chose wisely.)  You can see the huge difference the paint made in the second picture.  B says that he can't see a difference, but the kids and I could.  K says it looked like snow on the deck for the first few mornings because the color was so light.  I have to agree.  Now I have a lovely, freshly stained deck to enjoy with my new-ish cushions from last summer.  Ahhh....where is that glass of iced tea and my book?  My chair is ready!  Doesn't it look better?

 Now for B's fun.  Crewsade needed some equipment to get them started.  The members each pooled together $100 and B scoured the web for some great deals on a mixer, amps, microphones, speakers, music stands and much, much more.  He decided that the equipment needed protected and since the boys have decided to take their show on the road eventually, they'll need something to make hauling it around easier and safer.  With some supplies he had leftover in the garage from other projects and after 2 hours at Lowe's and $50 of his own money, B drew up some plans for a mobile crate.  Here are the results.

H and I helped one day after the other two kids left for camp.  We both like these projects as much as B, so we had fun and got a lunch from McD's to boot.  (H's favorite place to eat.)  H also got a ride from dad before the equipment was mounted.  H and I helped paint and cut wood.

This is the finished project.  Looks professional, doesn't it?  It has removable, hinged covers for the top, front and rear for travel.

 This is some of the equipment set up.  The kids haven't seen it yet since they are all away at camp now.  B gets to play on it first.  :)