The final product: House pictures

OK, here are the pictures. I know there are tons, but this is our first house and I'm a little excited.

The house overhaul

I finally got the house clean enough that I thought I was ready to move EVERYTHING over. I had been bringing large loads over to house everyday; once in the morning when I took Mia to school and once in the afternoon when I picked her up then cleaned for a few hours till Brant couldn't handle it any more then went back and packed up some more. But last weekend we rented a truck and moved everything else over. Jared's Dad got here that night and began overhauling our bathroom.(The tile and the walls behind it were really messed up). I think we about killed him, he worked so hard and he was a big life saver. He also helped overhaul the yard. Jared's sister and her fiance came for a few days which was such a huge help to keep the kids busy. We LOVE Sara's fiance, Brad. My kids have liked a lot of her boyfriends, but this guy hit it out of the park! Mason is absolutely sold on him. Brad played with him for hours on end.....Thanks Brad and Sara for keeping my kids happy during a crazy week. Then my parents flew in on Thursday and didn't stop working and cleaning and organizing for the next three days. I can't believe how much work got done this week. I LOVE the house now and the yard went from a complete disaster to something we can now work with. We filled 18 huge bags of leaves that hadn't been raked last fall. Then Russel and my dad hauled 2500 pounds of yard waste to the junk yard! What a transformation. I went from being completely overwhelmed with this new house and yard, to relieved and so happy with the way it all turned out. I have the best family in the world.

Easter Weekend

Easter weekend was a big weekend for us. We closed on our house that week, so even though the house wasn't ready to move in(it needed a lot of work and cleaning and a lot of appliances), it was perfect for a little sleepover. We grabbed our sleeping bags and slept in the basement. (sidenote: the basement flooded a month ago, so the previous owner had it ALL redone before we moved in, so the basement was the only part of the house that was clean and livable.) Anyway, the kids woke up and found Easter eggs and played with the new golf set before heading back to the apartment to listen to conference. It was a fun little camp out.

January/February Update

Mia has been busy the last month in school and with friends. She was a flapper girl in her 2nd grade play. She spent every spare minute for two weeks learning her dance and speaking part. She makes a very cute flapper girl.

Mia had a Valentines play date here with her school friends and then they went to Lizzy's house for a sleepover. What a fun holiday weekend for her.

Sprinkles Anyone???

Mia had a school project to research one type of penguin; make a visual project of the penguin and it's habitat; and present a 5 minute presentation. Mia picked the Macaroni penguin. Up to this point in her school career I have been able to handle her projects, but my creativity hit a major wall here. So, luckily Super Dad stepped in and saved the day with this paper mache penguin that was awesome. (Yes, we were THOSE parents that did a lot of her project for her, but she did the research and memorized her speech and helped with as much as she could, so give me a break). She is so great at presentations......what a girl. I'm very proud of her.




As for the boys, they have been up to no good. Brant discovered that he can put half a banana in his mouth at one time.....big cheek pictures are always funny.


Mason spilled his yogurt AGAIN.....but this time it was funny because somehow he did this......... (I asked him if I could take a picture before I cleaned him off)

I am at a total loss to know what to do with this kid. He can climb up anything. He moves chairs until they are where he wants them and then grunts and pulls and cries till he gets on top and then smiles because he is so proud, but then gets SOOO mad when I pull him off the computer or piano or table. He climbed up to the computer last week and fell off and majorly bit his lip. Luckily my friend's husband is a Doctor and came over and cleaned him up. Wow, blood everywhere and two big holes in his face later.....he still climbs on everything. I spend most of my days with the chairs in the middle of the living room where if he climbs up he won't get anything. UGGGGGGGGG!

"HMMMMMM What will happen if I push this one????"

Anyone want to sword fight????? We've got some experts here.


Brant found an orange, peeled/decimated it and ate it. Yes I feed him. He just really wanted that orange. Plus it's fun to make a mess, right?

Even though the boys can be very mischievous, aren't they angles when they sleep!