Last week I wrote about my experiences (here, here, here, and here) volunteering with Habitat for Humanity.

My mother-in-law, not to be out done, shared an episode in the on-going renovations at the family home. It’s been a long standing family joke that Red Green has to be based on my father-in-law. While it’s not accurate, if you’ve me my f-i-l, you’d understand the comparison.

Here’s what she had to say:

As you know Ian took out a wall in our kitchen last fall and we have been in a construction zone since then. Well. Ian and Dan have finished the floor and have put the bottom cupboards together and have put on the plywood to make the counter top. We are going to tile the counter top. We have put in a front loading washing machine and dryer in the kitchen. Leon’s sells the under counter version. I love them, love them, love them. They use so little water and are so quiet.

I have been home the last 2 days. I have a rotten summer cold and am hacking out a lung so I have been home watching them work. I will explain to you why it has taken so long. They went to home depot to get some glue and came home with wood for the arbor in the backyard. They have built a 2 story ( maybe I am exaggerating a little bit but not by much) over the patio. The idea is too provide a place where the climbing vines can go and then they can take down the leaking metal roof over the back porch. So they played outside for a while. Then they decided to install the air conditioner in the wall of the family room. So they cut a hole in the wall on the hottest day of the year. I must admit it really didn’t take them too long to install it. Then they went back to Home Depot to buy foam and trim to finish off the trim around the newly installed air conditioner. They came back with the supplies and also with a new front door lock. after the air conditioner was done they took off the front door and installed the new lock. And that was the entire day’s work and nothing was done in the kitchen!!!!

You should be happy you have Drew. He is not as attention deficit as his brother and Dad.

I’ve often said my mother-in-law could make a fortune with a stand-up comedy routine. All she needs to do is tell stories about my f-i-l and the boys growing up. She’s got the facial expressions and voices down pat. The stories she can tell would have even the most humour impaired person rolling in the aisles laughing. A sampling of the greatest hits include:

• “He had a flashlight and a hatchet in his hand, so of course he propped the window open with the hatchet…”
• “four hours after the cast came off the arm, we were back at emergency getting on put on his foot/leg…”
• “fell asleep and rolled off the boat…”
• “threw all of their shoes off of the boat…”
• “opened the door and pushed his brother out of the moving car…”
• [boys] “What about the dog?”
  [Dad] “I left him for you.”
  [Mom] “You said WHAT to the boys? What were you thinking? They’ve never had a dog before!”
  [Mad rush outside]
  [Narrator] “The dog was on the chopping block. Paul was holding the dog, Ian was stroking it’s head, and Drew was trying to heft the axe over his head…”

Most days, we’re just amazed that any of them grew into adulthood, let alone productive members of society. And yes, I know I’m really lucky to have Drew.

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