Patience is a Virtue

Is patience really a virtue, or do they just say that to make you feel better when things aren't going your way? The house is making progress, I can't complain, it's just the way it goes. We still don't have an exact move in date. There are still many things to do and people to wait on. Saturday was an exciting day, our fence was completed and we have sod in the front and back yard! We bought our first garden hoses which was pretty exciting, but that excitement grew thin when we thought about needing to buy sprinklers, a weed eater, and a lawn mower. The new responsibility of taking care of a yard feels a little daunting, but once when we really get to enjoy it, I think it will be all worth it!

I got to help put our sod down in the morning, then when I picked up the kids I brought them back so Benjamin could run in the sprinklers. He was so happy, I just wished I could have watched him from inside my new home. Maybe one day we will actually live there.

And, of course he finds the mud.

Benjamin and Dad riding in the Skid Steer, it moved the pallets of sod around so we didn't have to use a wheel barrel, very nice!

Here is Maggie enjoying her first crawl in the front yard. She has actually taken her first few steps this week. Maybe I'll get a video later.

Our counter tops were installed this week which was pretty exciting too. We had them do a fancy beveled edge to show the natural alder to match the cabinets. The edge will be stained later to match the cabinets.

Top Ten Reasons Why We Love Our Dad...

10. He takes me to the Splash Park, my favorite place!

9. He does all my favorite things with me; play-doh, reads stories, and teaches me how to be an elephant.

8. He lets me lay in his bed to watch Star Wars with him.

7. He takes me to the movies and lets me eat lots of popcorn. (Mom really appreciates those diapers:)

6. He wrestles with me and swings me in the air.

5. He works hard for our family and is building us a house, so we can have a backyard!

4. He takes me to McDonald's to get a Happy Meal and play in the playground until sweat drips down my face.

3. He gives Mom lots of hugs and kisses. XOXOXOXOXO

2. He rocks me to sleep and he thinks I'm the cutest baby in the whole wide world.

1. And the #1 reason why we love our Dad is because he is the BEST DAD EVER and we Love him!

Happy Father's Day!!!

Love, Benj and Maggie

1st Place- Best Looking Grandpa!

And a big Happy Father's Day to my Dad who has always put his family first in his life. Thank you for sacrificing again, digging deep in your pockets to change our flight times for the benefit of my family. I can not express how grateful I am for all you have done for me and will always do for me. You are a great Dad and Grandpa and we couldn't ask for anything more! Have a wonderful Father's Day and I can't wait to see you next month!!! Love, Rachel

The First Four

We were surprised that it has taken almost 3 1/2 years for Benjamin to get his first stitches. With as much bouncing around as he does, I'm sure they won't be his last. He fell on the edge of a window sill, cried a little, and didn't bleed for very long. We were also pretty lucky because it happened just before Seth came home so Dad got to take him to the doctor. Hopefully it wasn't too much of a traumatic experience getting strapped down and all, but he come home very happy with two suckers and ice cream. So hopefully that made it all better.

Here are some other sweet pictures I took of the kiddos today.

Benjamin loves to eat Maggie's ears and nose.

She doesn't seam to mind.

Hugs and Kisses

Peek-A-Boo!

My First Entry

School is Out!!! YAY!!! And I have A TON of scrapbooking to catch up on, so I thought I should submit some pages this summer. For those of you die hard scrapbookers out there, I'm sure you are familiar with Becky Higgin's Sketches. (The best thing that ever happened to scrapbooking!) So this is the sketch that will be featured in the November Creating Keepsakes magazine and maybe they will pick mine! I'm sure they get hundreds so I'm not getting any hopes up for the $100 if they do!

My Sweet Boy

Seth just told me about the most amazing things Benjamin said! For those of you that don't know him too well, or to update you on his vocabulary, he says about 20 words and only a few of them sound like they are suppose to sound. And he certainly doesn't make sentences or phrases. So when I came home from school around 2pm Benjamin was in his room napping. I got Maggie and we took off to run some errands. So when Benj woke up from his nap he was looking all around the house for her. Seth said he actually said, "where's baby?" as he shrugged his shoulders and hands out to the side. And that's not all! Seth played around with him and kept him looking for her and when Seth asked Benjamin, where is the baby? Then Benjamin said what sounded very clearly as, "I don't know". I was pretty excited to hear that story and that he can talk, just when it's super important. What a great brother!

He just finished his preschool class through the school district. He started going as soon as he turned 3 in Febuary and has been riding a bus all by himself ever since! There is also an aide that helps them get into all the car seats. He usually loves it, sometimes it was a little rough getting him out there by 6:45am! (He was the first one on, and the first one off)

I love this picture of Maggie eating his toes. As much as he pushes her around, she can really dish it back.

And another silly picture of Benj. This time the toilet seat is around his waist. And notice the elephant in half these pictures, it's his favorite toy.

We Know! It's GREEN, and We LOVE IT!!!

Yes, it's a little shocking at first. But, imagine the "stainless look" appliances, the dark counter tops, and Seth's pottery to tone the green down. The skins of the cabinets still need to be put on too. I'm sure you can see the refrigerator goes in that big space on the left, then the dishwasher, sink below the window and the oven and microwave hood on the other wall on the right. We are pretty excited!

I was really happy tonight when Seth took me to see the cabinets that were just installed today! I even let out a few screams of joy. Thankyou Bro. Beazer for installing our cabinets. You are the greatest!

Here is our master bathroom. It is the same as the kids bathroom. The title was installed last week as well, and we are very happy with it. As well as the huge vanity! Six drawers! I know the blue is a little light and babyish, but I like to think of it as water, refreshing, spa like. Nice uh?

Sorry, the lighting is horrible! But this is the living room which is painted a Toasted Almond, which we also LOVE! It is also in the front hallway and back hallway.

This will be Maggie's room with a few touches of pink and green. Seth did a great job picking out this dusty yellow. Not too soft, and not too bright. There were just way too many colors to choose from! How could I possibly make that kind of decision!

This is Benjamin's room, we are thinking a Jungle theme. Seth might paint blades of grass with some hidden jungle animals. This was also the first green color we painted the kitchen, but we thought it was a little too neon, so we went to the next shade darker to what it is now.