Some Babble, Some Photos

I've been dragging my feet on this because I'm not typically a resolutions type of girl. I figure, I break most of them anyway, so why bother? But, I do have a few goals for 2011, and although I'm a little late to the party, I thought I should jot them down. You know, as a reminder.

#1 on my list of things to do this year is read through the Bible. Confession: I have never read through the entire Bible. And I really want to. I downloaded the 90 day schedule, and it's looking like a lot. Especially right now when we are in the final weeks of house building, I'm pregnant, etc. etc. But I realized that I can always find excuses not to find the time. So I'm going for it. I doubt I'll have it finished in 90 days, but even if it takes me six months, it's a goal I want to achieve this year. {Anyone else gone through the 90 day program? Any thoughts are greatly appreciated}.

#2 I would love to make some time for activities that I used to enjoy, but have completely left behind since becoming a mama. Dance team and pageants used to be a huge part of my life. It may sound silly and shallow {?}, but I would love to be involved again. No Mrs. America for me, I can't imagine competing now, but I would LOVE to make it an annual tradition to attend the Miss Oregon pageant each year. And there is no reason that I can't attend local dance team competitions in the spring. The more that I think about it, the more I realize how important it is for me to show my girls what I used to be involved in, and even more importantly for them to see that I haven't always just been "Mama" ;) Besides, these are activities that I know my daughters would enjoy too.

And I suppose if I was going to add a #3 it would be to make more memories with my family. Last year we didn't get away much. This year I would love to plan a couple of trips to the beach, maybe a museum, the zoo, and more local attractions. Of course, now that the interest rate is going back up, and we'll be refinancing a brand new house soon, having even one extra cent around is looking pretty bleak. But a girl can dream.

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And while I'm here {computer time has been limited these days!}, I may as well do a quick house update.

I cannot say enough about the finish work that my husband has done so far. He bought the unfinished wood trim, sanded, lacquered {then sanded and lacquered again, and again!}, and then put these GORGEOUS window trims together.

You can't truly get a feel until you see it in person, but oh my. He did an amazing job. Seriously, I'm thinking he's going to have to make it a side job ;)

And look what was installed Christmas day . . .

Cabinets! Woohoo! The countertops are done, linoleum is being installed on Tuesday, and Jeremy and my dad have been tirelessly working on the floors. It's coming together :)

House Update

Time for another house update!

I'm feeling like we're getting somewhere ;) The electrical wiring is done, insulation is in, and we are smack dab in the middle of sheetrock. Hopefully by the first part of November it will be complete, and we'll be moving on to interior painting, hanging doors, and putting up trim. After that we'll have cabinets installed, then flooring, the banister, and then . . . we'll be close to being ready to move in! Funny, when I say it like that, it sounds like we're almost done. We're FAR from almost done, but things are moving along quite nicely. Our goal is to be moved in by the middle of January. We'll see.

Since it's been awhile, I thought we needed some photos.

Have y'all seen our exterior color? I couldn't remember . . .

In the above pic you can see just how close our current home is to our new one. Crazy, huh?

These were taken last week as the insulation was installed.

And these were taken yesterday after sheetrock walls went up and the first taping and mud took place.

It was almost impossible for me to get the pictures I wanted. I'm not trying to be a whiney baby, but I REALLY want another lens. My 50mm is just not cutting it in tight spaces. Anyway.

Hopefully you can still get an idea. It is AMAZING how the sheetrock has changed the whole look of the inside of the house. No more "walking through walls" ;) It looks so much bigger.

You can't really tell, but this is our living room.

And this is our back porch that my dad and Jeremy are working on. Aren't they doing a FABULOUS job?! I LOVE it! We're using cedar for the railing and pickets and a composite for the flooring. I can't wait to set up my table and chairs out on the porch, and enjoy a beautiful sunset while eating dinner. Ahhhhh.

I'm hoping these next few months fly by! :)

Am I The Only One Who Runs Out of Blog Titles?

Um, it's October. What the heck? Where is time rushing off to? Can I just say that I am a little panicky that there are only 12 weeks until Christmas? Do I have you all in a panic now? {Please don't tell me that you are already done with your shopping, k?}

Anyway.

Happy 1st of October! I'm feeling so sad for my blog. Poor thing just doesn't get much attention anymore :( What with house-building and homeschooling and day-to-day upkeep. And no offense to Blogger, but I recently found another place that I love. And it is consuming all.of.my.computer.time! Any of you belong to this fabulous group? So much to learn, so little time.

So. What's been going on around here . . .

We are finishing up electrical on the house. What a relief this is. I had no idea what a job it was! Do I sound like a broken record? Our front door was put in a few days ago, the painters are coming this weekend to finish the exterior, next we wire for phone service, and after that a few more odds and ends and then . . . and then . . . and then . . .

Insulation and Sheetrock! Woo-hoo-hoo!

Of course that means that we are getting close to a time when I am going to have to be making a LOT of decisions. Have I ever mentioned that I'm not much of a decision maker? Well, I'm not. I'm much happier when someone else is making them. I guess I'm always afraid I'm going to make the wrong choice. But Jeremy is so busy with the building part, and let's face it, he's not really into choosing appliances, paint colors, light fixtures. I find it all exciting, I just don't want to mess it up.

Yep, life is about to get even crazier.

In other news:

♥ Kenners went in for her post-op check yesterday, and the doctor is happy with the way she is healing.

♥ After her appointment we met Gramps for treats at Baskin Robbins.

♥ We have had some gorgeous, sunshiney weather this last week that we all have enjoyed.

I'd say we've had a blessed week!

Oh, and before I forget . . . a couple of Friday Funnies {just for you Heather} ;)

{These come to you specially from, who else, Makenna}

♥ Last night as the girls and I were washing faces and brushing teeth, Kam got into the Q-tips {again} and started shoving them through the heat vent {again} ~ this is a fun game for her, don'tchaknow. Kenners was the first to notice:

Kenners: Mama, Kam is making a mess of the ear cleaners again.

Sierra: Ear cleaners?! {snort} They're not called ear cleaners, Makenna. They're called Q-Tips.{Sierra feels the need to constantly correct Makenna, in case you didn't already gather}.

Kenners: Well, you use them to clean your ears, don't you? So, they're ear cleaners.

~~~~ I don't know. As I'm typing this, it doesn't really seem that funny, but I got a chuckle out of it last night. ~~~~

♥ Last weekend Kenners was still feeling a little under the weather due to surgery, so I was trying to comfort her by telling her she'd be good as new soon.

Me: Hopefully by Monday you will be feeling a LOT better.

Kenners: Already I feel 4% good. Maybe by tomorrow I'll be 2% better.

Sweet girl. Always lookin' at the glass half full ;)

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Whew! Anyone still reading? No? I don't blame ya.

Warning: More House Pictures

Thought I should put a disclaimer out there for y'all who don't want to see the millionth installment of our building pictures. Hence the warning.

You're very welcome. ;)

So, here it is! We've started siding. It is officially starting to look like a real house on the outside!

And there you have it. A little mini update. I'm thinking this siding business is a much bigger job than anyone anticipated. You can't tell so much from the pictures, but our house is very very tall. And that Tyvek paper is a pain in the you-know-what. I'm sorry, but I don't want Jeremy up there, three stories high, swinging from unstable ladder to unstable ladder. No thank you.

Anyway.

We are headed out for a play date with friends. Hopefully it will involve a pool as it is supposed to be near 100 degrees today.

I'll be back soon ;)

A{nother} House Update

It's time for another house update! It's been awhile, hasn't it?

This will be short and sweet, as there isn't too much to report.

The framing is complete, the windows installed, and HVAC is underway. In the next few weeks we will work on siding and electrical, and hopefully we'll be ready for insulation and sheet rock by the start of Fall. Progress, yay!

Here are our stairs. We're pretty excited to have stairs ;)

And the view of the left side of the house.

I mentioned before that it's almost impossible to get a front shot due to the fact that our current home is smack dab in front of it. And when I say smack, I mean it. Can you see it?

Hopefully I'll have more to report soon!

House Pictures

Okay, seriously, I know you guys are getting tired of the house updates, so I will try not to post any more for a little while. But . . . the trusses came the other day, and our house is really beginning to look like . . . a house! :)

I can't help but post a few pics.

Our side wall had to be lifted by crane.

Ta-da! There it is.

The first truss going up.

And the last.

A side view.

And a view from the front. Kind of. It's hard to get a good frontal picture, as our current home is right.in.front. of it!

So, that's that! All caught up on house pictures. In a week or so we'll have windows!

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In other news, my sister arrived this afternoon and the kiddos have been having way too much fun playing. My inbox is overflowing and I'm missing my blog friends, but I'll be back soon ;)

Hope y'all are enjoying Summer!

We've got walls . . .

Just a quick house update for y'all :)

We've got {some} walls up, WOO-HOO!!!

Now if the rain would just hold off for a few days maybe we could get the rest of it framed! :)

House Updates

It's been a little while since my last house update. Mostly because our weather has left a lot to be desired which has resulted in some delays. {That and we've had non-weather related delays too. Isn't that just the way?}. But since many of you have asked. Here ya go.

You're welcome, Julie ;)

The start of the rough plumbing. Woohooo! {Who knew you could be so excited over plumbing?}

This will be our basement. Can you see the stairs through there? Stairs! We are big time, people.

And a little side shot.

This is how it will stay for a few days. We are waiting for approval from the county before we proceed much further. In a couple of weeks {fingers crossed} it's actually going to look like a house!!