Mission Post #5--May

I just figured out that I have seven months of blogging to do in order to catch up before we go home in seven weeks. Can I do it?

Well, spring came, and everything leafed out and bloomed. Here is a patch of wildflowers we found down by the lodge. If anyone has any idea what they are called, I'd love to know. They tell me they are very rare, but I haven't found anyone who knows what they are. I love the leaves that actually look more like green flowers than leaves.

My front yard dogwood lost it's white blossoms, and looked beautiful all green and leafy.

With the change in weather, we began to get lots of work done. Here's Stan doing his least favorite job (painting), and with a smile on his face. What a guy!

The amphitheater hasn't been used for years. It was overgrown, and several of the seats had fallen into disrepair and needed to be removed. Members of one of the local stakes came out one weekend and really cleaned things up for us.

Clearing the land around it meant having to cut down some trees--even some that had grown in the middle of the seats. I'll tell you--anyone who thinks there is a shortage of trees just hasn't been to North Carolina. The trees tend to take over, just like the weeds.

Here's how it looked when they were all through. What a great job they did. Now we just need to replace some seats, pour a concrete slab for a stage area in front, get the electricity hooked up for lighting and we'll be in business. It's really a pretty area with the seats overlooking the lake.

We also got started in earnest on the new bath house. I can't wait for that to be done. Keep scrolling and I'll show you why.

Here's the old bath house--circa 1940.

This picture doesn't show how bad it really is. See that black spot around the pipe going into the ceiling. Yuk! The ceiling has rotted there, and rotten stuff just keeps falling through to the ground. Ugh! I really will not miss cleaning this place.

There are about six cabins (probably built in the 30's & 40's) that sleep a minimum of 12 people. They are all going to be replaced with nice new ones, and you'd be surprised at how many people are upset by that. They have been camping in those cabins since they were Boy Scouts, and their fathers camped here, too, so they feel really nostalgic about those old cabins. I think we'll keep one for storing sports equipment, etc.

Here's one of our cabins--up close.

Check out the door on this one, and there are a couple that have holes in the floor.

But not to worry, we'll have this place in top shape in no time.

We went to Casey's in Clemmons (near Winston-Salem) for Mother's Day. What fun! Her girls love to put on plays, so of course they entertained us on this occasion as well. Left to right: Maya, McKenna, Alexa, and Livie. They are so much fun to be around. We will surely miss them when we go home.

MORE TO COME!!