Well I can definately say that if I were to give these first few weeks a label it would be "Trial and Error". That rock is as hard as a.... um.. rock? We have drilled and drilled and drilled.  We have broken 3 bits already. But we were granted a tender mercy when the Dexpan did indeed produce cracks!!! The stuff worked! So for now we're just drilling holes throughout the day, filling them with the demolition compound before we leave, coming back the next morning and if the rock isn't already laying on the ground we're knocking it off and repeating. There's several layers of rock to work through before we can start to see any facial features begin to appear.  Like I've said before...She's in there. We just have to unveil her. I can see that the pose I chose to put her in is going to be much more of a challenge for a novice as myself. Putting her straight forward might have been simpler but I'm hoping the end result will be worth it. When I finish each day I drop in and report to Grandpa. I just really need to work through these outer layers more quickly so real progress can be seen. Not because I need the project to pass quickly but I just want Grandpa to see her begin to form.


WE HAVE CRACKS!  We have had rocks fall that would have literally taken days to chip out by hand.

Another broken drill bit!  This has got to stop.  Lanes Dad told me that when they get hot they get brittle.  And with the rock so hard they definately get very very hot.  So maybe the trick is to get 4 or 5 and trade them out after each hole to allow them to cool before forcing them to penetrate again.  Any ideas?

Grandma has aquires a few markings of measurements. And a strap holding her in place so we don't risk her falling forward when we stand her up.