House Work

WARNING - No cute kid pictures here... Strictly homeowner business.

House work -in a big way. We have known we needed to replace our siding for quite some time. We finally got serious about it last Fall. However with all the rain and our flooding issues, we felt the need to handle that first. So, now that our drainage system and regrading is all done and seems to be working well (we just need to plant grass this Fall), it was time to revisit the siding project.

We met with a couple companies, but went back to the one we actually had a contract with last Fall. Their crew showed up last Monday morning (8/23) and worked most of the week. They actually ended up needing to order more siding to complete the job, so it should be finished this week. We also had some roofers come to analyze and repair a problem area we've had that caused some water damage on our porch ceiling. Then today a crew came to install a new gutter system. And sometime this week another crew will come blow more insulation in to our attic. SO... There's a big dumpster in our driveway, there have been lots of contractors around, LOTS of pounding, and LOTS of nails, but we are VERY pleased with how it has turned out.

Jason, being the detail oriented guy that he is, has photographically documented the majority of the project. He has taken 577 photos and 18 videos (so far). :-) Love him!!! :-) But I'll just share a few. ;-)

Bye-bye yellow sidingNaked house
Our dumpsterWrapped houseSiding going upRoofing workGutter systemMostly done
A photo of the finished project will eventually be posted. But you get the idea. We've gone from a yellow house to a blue/gray house. We'll have a little bit of painting to do to finish it off, but it feels wonderful to have this done!

The next post will return to cute pictures of little girls - as Rachel turns 1 on Saturday! :-)

Heidi's First Day of Preschool 2010/11

Heidi started back to preschool last Tuesday. She is going 3 days a week (T, TH, F) and really enjoying it. She thrives in that kind of environment - always something to do, somewhere to go, friends to be with, and plenty of projects. :-) And half of her class from last year is in the same class this year - so she has "old friends" and "new friends." I'm sure it'll be another fun year for her!

Watch me go!

Rachel has really taken off with her walking skills. She is definitely walking more than crawling.

She has also learned how to climb the stairs and has started trying to climb other things too - Little Tikes slide (the slide part, not the stairs), bunk bed stairs, etc. Let the chasing begin! As well as the bumps and bruises.

She eats most anything she can pick up and put in her mouth. And she really prefers the whole thing if she can handle it - rather than me tearing whatever in to pieces. Case in point - waffle.
American Idol 2027??
It's still hard to believe she'll be 1 in less than 2 weeks!

Look What I Can Do!

Rachel started walking this weekend. They are truly baby steps, but she's getting the hang of it. And very much enjoying it. No matter how many times she falls forward or back, she gets back up and tries again. :-) She's done as many as 6 or 8 steps before touching the floor.

1st day of 1st Grade

Summer is officially over for Emma. 1st grade started today. We met her teacher on Tuesday and she seems really nice. Emma has a couple friends from last year in her class this year, so that'll be good. Just as she ended last year, she will participate with a general ed 1st grade homeroom and go to lunch, recess, and specials with them. Then all of her academics she will have in a small group classroom. This year I believe there are 6 students in the small group class - 3 1st graders and 3 kindergartners. And she will have the same teacher in the small group class as she had last year - for which we are very thankful. :-)

Here are some pictures from this morning. It's a very early morning for all of us in that her bus picks her up at 6:37! And this morning they were at our driveway at 6:30!!! Hopefully it will slide a little later as they get in to a routine. So, these aren't the greatest pictures, but it's the first day of 1st grade! :-)
Breakfast...Walking out the door.On the bus.
I had hoped to get some pictures this afternoon when she got home, but she was asleep on the bus, so I had to carry her in to the house and then I didn't think about it again.

We are excited about this year of school and are praying that she has a year of tremendous growth and development.

Rachel is 11 Months

These 11 months have just flown by! Rachel is cruising all over the place and will walk anywhere if you're holding her hands. In fact, that is very much a preferred activity for her. So if you start walking with her, you better be ready to go for awhile.

She took her first bath in the big bath tub recently. She probably outgrew the baby bath tub a long time ago, but we generally bathe all the girls at the same time - and didn't feel it was in Rachel's best interest to be in the tub with the other two yet. So she got her own time in the big tub and really enjoyed it.And she discovered bath toys. :-)
And at 11 months, she has already figured out that the remote control is a coveted item. She's not quite sure what to do with it, but she grabs it whenever she finds it - until Emma comes and takes it out of her hand.