Mother's Day

Mother's Day was different this year.  It was a good different.  We hosted lunch and instead of it being my mil and parents, our party included my aunt, uncle and cousin from Kentucky and my grandpa along with the afore mentioned guests.  It was fun to have everyone together to 'celebrate' this Hallmark holiday.  We don't see each other enough and it was fun to spend the afternoon together.  X fell in love my cousin.  He thinks Luke needs to come back and play X-Wing some more.

After our guests departed, I snoozed through a movie of C's choosing.  After dinner, we decided to take the kids out on the bike trail.  It was fun.  C didn't make the entire 1st mile on the balance bike and the return mile trip back to the car was a bit long but it was still fun.

Our biker gang

C spent the majority of his trip here…lucky Jut

X waiting for someone to get him started

Happy to be outside

E spent the entire time she was waiting for us to catch up collecting rocks from the side of the trail…until her basket broke from the weight.

I look at this picture and wonder where his bike disappeared???

Preview…

E claims she dances for the recital because she 'loves preforming before an audience'.  Today was picture day.    The theme this year is the Beatles.  She's dancing to "Here Comes the Sun" with toy instruments.  It is a fun song and she's enjoying dance very much.

Do you notice the socks under her tights?  I didn't notice until we got home.  Sometimes that girl makes me shake my head.  Crazy girl.  Someday I'll probably be able to tease her about that.

Extreme Home MakeOver Continues…

Drywall is up!  Mudding/taping is in progress.  We maybe painting next weekend!!  Flooring is chosen.  Paint colors are chosen.  Landlord notified of intent to move out at the end of June.  Yipee!!!

Now, we just have to get busy painting, packing, sanding, staining, and figuring out how to circumvent the red flag of occupancy regarding the fireplace.  How many more things can we cram into the next six weeks???  A garage sale…a birthday…and I'm certain there will be more….

Playing Outside

Let Me Show You My Jedi Pose

The Force is strong with this one, don't you think?

Tree Removal

So, tonight at the new house…the kids and I got to watch Jut and Dad take down a tree.  I really wish I would have had the camera.  The story would be much more entertaining with pictures.

I'm happily cleaning up on the front side of the house.  Here comes Dad holding a chainsaw.  He heads over to a tree.  Then, Jut drives the tractor over to a tree.  Dad climbs into the bucket on the tractor. (Thankfully minus the chainsaw!)

The kids are watching amazed asking, "What is Dad doing driving the tractor?  Why is G'pa climbing in the bucket?  What in the world are they doing?"

Then Jut pulls a lever and raises Dad up into the air inside the bucket.  The kids next to me are going nuts.  I'm thinking that this has disaster written all over it…and my cell phone is dying and I won't be able to call 911 when needed…and my kids are going to be eye witnesses to this potential disaster and scarred for life.

However, Dad wraps a rope around the tree.  Jut lowers him down and basks up the tractor to pull the tree in the appropriate direction.  Dad fires up the chainsaw and down comes the tree.  Dad cuts it up a bit.  Jut drives the tractor away with some of the branches.  Seems all anticlimactic when I write it down.  I was holding my breath for a few minutes and the kids were going crazy.

What I've learned…it is not just the little boys that I'm going to have to worry about while living on the farm.  The big boys might turn some of my hair gray too.  It must be that Y-chromosome.

Extreme Home MakeOver--Sidings finished…drywall is coming

The house is coming along…the siding is finished.  There's a bit of facia to complete…and gutters.  But, otherwise the outside is looking much better than a few months ago!!  It is a huge box without much aesthetic appeal, but it is going to be wonderful on the inside!!  And hopefully a porch will someday make it all a little less boxy.  :)

Here is E showing off her bedroom with the drywall mostly hung…and the boys' room.  The upstairs is 95% finished and they'll start downstairs tomorrow.  It is really starting to look like a house on the inside too!

We met with a hardwood floor guy today.  He was encouraging about refurbishing the original flooring in most of the downstairs.  So, that was fun.

Daddy and daughter posing outside the house today…it was a bit too sunny for pictures, I guess.  

Yesterday, I went looking for what flowers remained from G'ma.  I found several places daffodils were blooming.  Tulips are coming up next to the house, despite all the construction and boards lying on top of them.  And I found these purple flowers blooming in one of her flower beds.  There are still touches of G'ma in her yard that she so lovingly tended for so many years.  My discoveries made my heart smile.  I also decided I love the barn foundation…and it will be a backdrop for many pictures in the years to come until I find something else to do with all that wonderful rock!