Life

It's been a long week. We're having a slight problem with yellow jackets in the house, so we've been dealing with that almost daily. Last night, we figured out the main point where they were entering the house. We hosed it down with spray, then I used expanding foam to block it off. Not another bee at all last night.

Today, they're back, though no where near as plentiful. So, they still have a place to enter the house at, just not sure where. We put a yellow jacket trap in one of the windows they seem to favor, and have killed 2 that way. Not real effective, if you ask me.

I also have been up on the roof spraying the area they are entering at several times now. Boy, isn't that fun? They are coming in at a spot I am too scared to walk over to, though, so I get up to where I can go, which is closer than I'd be from the ground, and spray from there. We have a 3 level roof. The back area above the dining room is just 1 story tall, and a nice wide roof with a gentle incline. The next section is the steepest, where it's a dormer style room underneath, so the walls in that room are slanted along the roof, creating a steep incline over a 2nd story room. Then the 3rd section is where the front of the house has a "full" upstairs, and a full 2nd story roof. Very high up, but less steep than the middle section.

The bees are coming in through a section where the middle roof & front roof meet. We did have a neighbor get up there, and unleash an entire can of spray on them. I have dead larvae all over my roof, but it didn't kill the nest. He wants to caulk it, but I don't want it caulked until we figure out where they are entering the inside of the house at. If they can escape into the house, it defeats the purpose, ya know?

I also have a trap set up on the lower roof, but so far, nothing. I want to hang a trap from the gutter where they are coming into the house at, but I got scared senseless yesterday trying to get up the guts to go over to that section. I've been up there before. Back when we bought the house, we had to paint the chimney cap, so I was up there then. I had nearly a full on panic attack up there, and had to have Nick lift me down from the peak, because I was scared to walk down the incline. Not fun!

Anyway, so we're dealing with that right now. Fun!

I'm also still editing photos. I have 3 sets to finish, but the first one is almost done, yay! I am going to try and finish that one today, and get a good ways into the second one, so I can try and get them in the mail soon. I have 2 shoots this weekend, maybe, but it's supposed to rain tomorrow so we'll see.

I had one earlier this week, but the mom got sick, so we're rescheduling it. I've also had a lot of interest from friends and family of mine, and of the people whose photos I took. So far, I've been asked to do 3 more shoots, with a possible 4th one, and have had multiple others ask me about my prices, and what it includes.

Originally I had planned to take photos this fall for free for friends & family, then try and go public in the Spring, and start charging. However, I think I'm getting more requests than I can handle, so I decided for people who are not my friends or family, I'll do their photos for $25 to help cover the gas (most of them are in Grand Rapids, so it's a bit of a hike to get there), and maybe lunch as well.

I have to say, the amount of support and encouragement I'm receiving from friends, family, and strangers alike has me in awe. I am excited to see where all of this will lead, and thankful for the support I'm getting.