A major project began this week: Replacement of broken sidewalks. I have many photos of the action plus a Gallery of photos.

Lilacs make another appearance as they are at peak this week. I hope you enjoy the pics.

We knew we needed to replace the sidewalk that had been taken out when the water line was replaced. Mervin, the cement guy, came out to give us a quote for the work. To meet the minimum amount of cement that needed to be ordered, we expanded the scope of the work to replace a section of the Main Street walkway and another section around the south end of the house. (This section runs between the east porch and the south walk that goes out to the garage.)

Work began this week. While not yet fully completed, the cement has been poured and all that remains is to remove the rest of the forms and cut the expansion slots. Here are a few photos of the action.

Removing broken cement on Main Street walkway
More removal around east porch
Cement truck arrives
Pouring begins, south side
South section as of Saturday morning, 5-24-2025
7th Street where sidewalk had been removed for water line work.

We are now looking at a fair amount of work to clean up around the new walkways, but are pleased to have the new walks in place.

If interested, I have created a new Gallery with these and other photos of the project.

I have a few more photos of lilacs and other plants from around the yard. A recent rain and few days of strong winds have done a number on the lilacs but their fragrance is still strong.

More lilacs
Butterfly bush beginning to bloom
Honey Locust tree leaves are golden in spring

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Penny

Those damn outside cats walked across the wet cement at least four times. One of them actually waded into a freshly-poured section with ALL four legs. (I had to grab that cat, scruff him, and wipe down his legs with a soapy wet towel. Idiot.) The work crew was patient about repairing the damage every time.

Mervin, the cement contractor, is one of my favorite Iowa people. He is such a pleasure to work with; his crew of young people is a well-oiled machine of worker bees. His team does have the unfortunate habit of showing up around 7:00 a.m. however. After retirement, we rarely “do” 7:00 a.m. anymore.

Rock on.

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