On our last trip out to Utah, Alexaus got a 55-gallon drum and is planning to make a composter with it. That was the beginning of March, and she didn't really have anywhere to use compost, so for her birthday I built her a couple of planter boxes. Here they are:

The bottom is supported by 6 2x4s

One of three drain holes in each box...

1.8ish planter boxes

1.3ish planter boxes

They're 8x3x1, plus 4 inches on the bottom for the 2x4s. Originally I thought of putting them on the patio, but it's 10x10 and the boxes dominate most of the pad, and they fit perfectly against the house (there's a bed of rocks that they're sitting on that has been overrun by the grass), so that's where they'll sit. We're debating painting them or just filling them with dirt and having done. I'm sure I'll post before they're planted, but that'll be coming soon.

Minor update - the scooter's back together again, but it's not running as well as it should be - or as well as it was for that matter. So, time to start troubleshooting it and figure out what I screwed up and if it's fixable or not. Otherwise, I'll probably just replace the head, cylinder, and piston. That'll be about $200. Not ideal, but gotta do what ya gotta do. We'll see.

So it's been awhile since I last posted. Apparently a little longer than I thought - December! Anyways, we're moved now, mostly settled into the new house. We just got internet today after waiting forever. We also got a new puppy-dog - well, new to us. He's about a year old, and no idea what breed(s) he is. Purebred mutt. We named him McKay.

Best Paw Forward

His Better Side

Gotta Love the Kibble

In addition to a dog, we got a garage, which enabled me to do some auto repairs. Those of you who have heard the Honda know that it was loud. We thought initially that it was designed to be that way, 'cause it actually sounded decent if loud. Anyways, last week an awful squeak started coming from under the car, and it turns out that the muffler was virtually disconnected from the exhaust pipe due to corrosion, so I fixed that and it sounds worlds better. Amazing what a muffler can do for you.

Where the worst break was (this is after I separated the exhaust from the muffler with a few hammer blows)

I've also been able to tear the scooter apart and now am putting it back together. I was going to replace the head, cylinder, and piston, but 1) the unit that's in there isn't too bad and it's bored out, and 2) replacement parts from Kymco run ~$250, and they're not bored out, so we'll keep it as is and see what happens.

Other than that, things are going. 3 days after moving into the house, we went down to Utah for just under a week, and we're planning another (shorter) trip next weekend for one of Lexie's roommates wedding, and the following weekend is a trip to Portland. We must really like to drive...