On the fence

I didn't get to go to the gym. Gigi tricked me into babysitting my niece, Alice, while Gigi ran to the store for a while. By the time I was freed from the extra responsibility, the child care at World Gym was closed.

But I made the most of what I had left.

A couple of weeks (probably MONTHS!) ago I cut down a section of our fence, by the garage. My intent was to make a long gate that would allow direct access to the backyard. While I was proud of my efforts (especially considering it was completely unplanned and entirely free-styled) my creativity greatly outweighed my experience. I ended up with a twelve foot wooden gate that was so heavy that I was the only one who could move it. And the ended end nearly gouged a rut in the earth with only a few weeks of use.

To make the gate more practical, I split it in half and hinged both ends. Now it opens in the middle, doesn't carve up the yard as much, and anyone can swing it open. The original post which bore all the weight of the twelve foot gate still leans a bit. I can't straighten it, so there a bit of trickery involved in securing it for the night. But over all, I'm much happier with it. And it gave me an excuse to use the power tools. Liam helped hold the frame. Meg helped hold the boards while I cut them. And everyone behaved.

I also managed to seed the bare patches in the front yard, and walk the grounds with a bag of ant poison, killing any mounds that I could find. And, of course, Meg watered the corn.

All in a hard days work.