The Blue House

What we've always called the Blue House is once again turning blue!! Randy's been getting some of the new siding on up to the window height. Windows were supposed to be in a couple weeks ago... maybe today...

Mallory and I have been waterproofing the basement. We're using the same thing that's used on swimming pools, but it was no match for yesterday. We got quite a bit done yesterday before noon, but I checked last night and a lot of it was just plain sweating off the wall. Have no idea what to do about that. This whole project is beyond me. I'm not sure these walls ever dry during the summer. But anyway, it will all look better than before, and some of it will look really nice. I let the boys help paint the other day, but Morgan was getting stuck with the low stuff and soon got sick of it and left. Then he started bombing us with dirtballs through all the holes in the floor to show his disapproval. When I got back from taking care of that, I found the other two had painted the new toilet. What joy! Matthew said he thought it needed waterproofing. Now they wonder why they're not painting anymore. I told Michael that his boys were ruining my daughter. Grandma even caught them all skinny-dipping in the pool early this week. Matthew was very clear that it was his idea and that Mallory shouldn't get in trouble. Mallory is so smart when he's not around!! Morgan just got straight into his jammies. He was pretty sure that just going to bed was going to be his best option. Needless to say, they haven't been in the pool lately!!

I got all the locks, a couple doors and paint for the doors yesterday. Well, I'm sending Scott after the doors, but I dropped the $700 on them!! We quit at noon and I went shopping. As I was coming out of Home Depot I heard that it was 102 degrees. It doesn't seem much better at the moment. I think the humidity is right up there and the temperature is bound to follow. I'd best get moving before it gets too much worse!!

Coming along!

It really looks as though I may have a home soon. Homelessness can get quite depressing, but the progress on the blue house is raising my spirits a bit. It seems like someone is always waiting for someone else to finish something before he can get to this or that, but I guess that's all part of it. Michael's trying to hold me together and have some patience, but it's hard. Last week got pretty hot and this week sounds like the same, so we may not get much done except in the mornings. We're missing VBS this week and the kids ganged up on Daddy making Mommy look like a monster, but if I don't have the mornings to work on the house, I'm not sure anything will happen this week. The kids understood a while ago that we would be missing a lot of things this summer like VBS and swimming lessons, but I did get them to 5 Day Club. I'm also missing scrapbooking all summer. Can't even remember the last time I got to work on that. I'm doing a couple tins for my mothers-in-law and would like to get the second one finished and get those in the mail, but it's just a big juggling act to get this all done and get work done on the house. There's very little I can do anymore, but Randy keeps finding something to keep me busy. It makes me feel better. With all the rain last week, the basement is even too wet to paint. I left some fans on, so maybe Mallory and I can get some painting done today. It's not too bad working in the basement. We really had a great time with our cousins at a birthday party yesterday, so it's nice knowing that I haven't completely ruined their lives and abolished fun. Anyway, have to get ready for another day. Need to see what this week's plans are and where they include me. Have to make sure we get the arch and island figured so the electrician will come this weekend. He also wanted the closet figured, but I think that's far enough for what he needed to see. The siding is in and it's really pretty. The cabinets come this week, so the garage is really going to be full!! Hoping to get the siding and windows up this week. A few doors would be nice, too!! Ok, time to get the troops moving!!

A House?!?

I planned on blogging a lot more of what's going on daily at the new house, but I come home so exhausted that I'm not doing very well at that! The bedrooms in the old garage are framed up, the new hole to the basement is through, but the staircase hasn't been moved. The plumbers came over yesterday to move and cut in the new bathroom arrangement, and approved my garage sale potty!! I got a Kohler toilet at a garage sale for $3.00, and had them check it out. It was the right size to fit and it looks like a go! That is good news, as it may be the only item that comes in under budget!! I got all the siding pulled off and we burned it Tuesday. I got a lot of the shingles pulled off, but could only go so far. They were mostly waiting for the fire so they could "wrap" the house. Don't ask me on that one, but it's some kind of waterproof insulation/barrier that will keep out moisture but still allow the house to "breathe." Strange stuff these boys carry. Mom and I picked out all the lighting on Wednesday last week, but have had many changes come up since then! Things can look so different just from the house to the store! Our electrician is a real fireball. He roughed in all the boxes and put up some cans and the main light fixture encasements, then grabbed a sledge hammer and helped Michael take out the fireplace. That took the longest and the most equipment!! But now it's gone, and we have a new wall and a lot of new roof! Yesterday we put up the rafters on the garage and gave it some walls. That's me running the forklift! Sorry, Mallory was doing the photography and she didn't get that part! Hoping to finish the roof today. I need to get down there soon and spray for bugs. The kids and I are getting eaten alive!! We spend the whole day scratching. So I wanted to get over there with the Tempo before work begins and see if we can have a better day! I'd best get moving. I'll post later when I see the house and remember what all I forgot to post!!

Long time no post

Been a while, but with reason. Computer geek that I am, I've been trying to reformat my computer for a while now. After I finally got all the flash drives I needed to get everything backed up, I actually had to back everything up. That took about a week. Then to start the reformat. It wasn't working, but I felt like I knew that the problem was the keyboard and that the computer wasn't recognizing it in time to start the reformat, so I'd pretty much given up on the idea. Then I found a fifty cent keyboard at a garage sale and picked that up with a lot of other computer parts. A few days later, I remembered that was the hold up, so I decided to clean it up and give it a try. Well, it worked... but that was actually the bad part. At that point, I really didn't have time for a reformat, but there I was in the middle of one. So anyway, now I'm trying to restore everything I need to get back up and running. I was going to post a picture, but I'm missing some kind of driver. It thinks my camera is one of the flash drives. So this will continue, I'm sure...

Morgan lost his first tooth yesterday! Mallory and I were doing some craft sorting and organizing when he came in with a bit of a wiggly tooth. We all made some comments about the pliers and the string, etc. He said he'd do it himself, and about three minutes later, he comes back with a tooth in his hand!! It still had nearly a quarter-inch root on it and my eyes watered with the thought of the pain, but he was fine with it. He was more interested in the cash. He had to call Dad at work and tell him all about it, but I could hardly hear him. I figured this was some man-to-man stuff, so I left the scene. He came to me with the phone and Michael asked if I could hear them. I told him the scenario and he said he believed it was more secret than that. Morgan had told him that he was getting $9 from the tooth fairy. No idea where the figure came from, but keep in mind that I haven't started him on the financial class as of yet. But he seemed sure that's what he'd get. The other two got $1.50 per tooth, so I'm not sure where the bonus kicks in, but hey.
As the day drew on, we were all in the kitchen with Grandma when Matthew made some comment about me being the tooth fairy. Mallory was all over that. I told her when she lost an eye tooth last weekend that as soon as Morgan stops believing, the gig is up and no one gets paid anymore. Matthew is all about truth, and I have to like that. On the second tooth he lost, he asked me if I was the tooth fairy and I had to lay it all out. But I told him, too, that now it's all about Morgan and if he blew it, no cash. So anyway, here we are in the kitchen together when Matthew spills it. What can we do? Mallory tried to get him alone to warn him, but he was all about blowing my cover. We continued on and ignored him and later as we were packing them to go camping at the river, I asked Morgan what he'd do if the tooth fairy didn't find him at the river. Daddy said I'd get the $9!! That was pleasing, but Morgan didn't think so. So later Mom and I went out to the China Buffet for supper since we had no menfolk or kids to feed and I had to get nine $1-bills to put under his pillow. She couldn't believe I'd actually meet his ransom, but I figure if Matthew wants to shoot his own cash-cow, he can watch his brother reap the benefits. I went to put it under his pillow, but can't find the tooth. I have a feeling he may have taken it to the river. I'm wondering if some other tooth fairy will find him there, but all the better. Let Matthew watch him get paid twice!!

New Neighbors

These are my new neighbors. Mama Fox dug a burrow a couple miles from our house and had four little kits. They're getting pretty big and come out and play a lot more in the evenings. I'm a little concerned about one little guy. He's not as big as the other three, and not as red either. Not sure Mom's teaching them about road safety, because they're usually out playing in the road when I come home. They take off for the ditch when I get close, but not necessarily the den. They like to watch me, too. Mom tends to take off the other way in order to confuse me as to where the kits went, but they just don't seem to obey much better than little kids. They hide in the grass, but don't go all the way to the den immediately. Like I said, they like to watch me, too. Last night, the little guy tried to go with Mom instead of going back to the den as he was told. I wonder if he got supper before bed. I'll post more photos if I can get anything better. My little camera wasn't made for this much zoom!

Quickie Trip to the Zoo

Aunt Betty got us a zoo pass for the year as our birthday/Christmas gifts for 2006. Easy for her and oh, what a gift to us!! We were anxiously awaiting a trip when I finally figured out that I was waiting around for nothing. With a pass, it's not wasted to just go for a couple hours here and there. It is an hour away, though, so it has to be a good trip, but we finally quit waiting for a full day. So last Tuesday, we got all our school done in record time and as soon as Daddy got home from work at 1pm, we took off. I really wanted to get there before school got out for the summer and it got really crowded. Also like to avoid Saturday and Sunday. So we got through several attractions before the park started closing. Morgan was pretty disappointed we didn't get to ride the train, but I later found out that it only runs on weekends right now. Still not sure I want to drive alone in Omaha, but maybe I'll make it just up to the zoo now. It is right off the interstate, but it's still Omaha. I can probably talk Mom into going with me, too. The kids may not let me wait too long!!

Exciting Morning

This was the cake from this week. It has been extremely fun!! Took most of the week, but every step was so fun. The appreciation from everyone at church was so fulfilling. I just live for this stuff!! I'll write more here later, but wanted to get the picture posted for now.

More to come...