Wednesday, July 30, 2008

House Pictures

Another kitchen shot gives you a peak through the sliding glass door to the deck. Wish it would cool off so we could enjoy it more.


Main floor bath.

Master bedroom upstairs.


Computer, sewing, guest bedroom.


Dining room area. Sliding glass doors on left side of picture leads to deck.


Mom has a real handle on the kitchen setup. She is mastering the stove like a pro!




Living room facing south.

Living room facing north.




Priority was to get the bedroom and clothes moved in. The yellow tape in the closet door is to remind Ken there is a shelf in the closet and not to hit his head. We are going to put curtains up instead of closet doors to save space.




Supervisor making sure carpet is trimmed and laid correctly.


Next posting we will include pictures of the outside of the house and the flower beds that are being reconfigured by the master gardners. There is already talk of peach and pear trees next year. Ken and I are starting to sleep better. All the silence was too loud for us, so we have to run a fan in the bedroom to make up for the noisy neighborhood we are leaving behind. One of the neighbors stopped me today to say she was very sad to see us leave. Having a squad car in the neighborhood just made her feel safer. Will miss most of the neighbors, but there is a select noisy family that won't be missed.


Other updates - - My sister, Lisa, looked at an apartment yesterday. Now the paperwork and red tape begins. After a massive stroke 3 years ago, I never imagined she would live independently again. It was always our hope and goal for her and that is why we all worked so hard to encourage her to keep working hard. Will keep you all posted on the progress.


Construction Zone

Still has all his fingers!!

How many supervisors does Jim Crosser need?

Waterproofing paint stinks!!!!! My early contribution.


Facing South - - back wall would eventually come out. Old bedroom is on the other side of the wall.






Who needs a ladder?











Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Monday, July 28, 2008

Pictures

July 4th Parade

Guess who got to ride in Papa's squad car for the 4th of July parade? Hunter with his "Cops" game face on.

Ian and Mommy watching the parade. The little guy in the chair behind them is Jon & Amber Elsberry's oldest, Logan (3).


Logan and new baby brother, Joshua, with Jess.


Grandma couldn't see up the tube slide, so just pointed and clicked. Boy was this slide a lot of fun.

Okoboji Vacation Trip

On our way to Okoboji we spent the night with Kelly, Toni, and Alex; who is now 15 and has kissed a boy. We made sure to give her some grief about that one.

We had a great time cooking breakfast for 150 people each morning. With a Chuck Wagon that has a full grill, freezer, 2 small fridges, and a 4 burner stove (all industrial); cooking was made easy.

Friends we made on the trip - Robert & Robin Bair. They have invited us to go kayaking up near Decorah some time. Not crazy about the open water, but you only live once, right? Should be alot easier than Dragon Boat racing, right Andi?





Sunday, July 27, 2008

Vacation Picture

Need someone to cook breakfast and make coffee for 150, just give us a call. We know people that can help organize it for you.

Will try to post more pictures at later time. Having "upload" issues.

Friday, July 25, 2008

Okoboji Vacation

What a great week! Arrived home safely from a fun filled, restful vacation! I was so amazed at how much we really needed to take some time for ourselves. Saturday started with getting last minute things packed in the camper and waiting for Sue to arrive. We wanted to make sure we got to spend some time with her before we left. We arrived in Estherville about 5:00 ish and found our way to Kelly & Tony's. Thanks again for the great supper, a place to drop and rest for Saturday night, and coming out on Wednesday to relax with us.

Sunday morning we slept in and just before noon we were on our way to Okoboji. After a quick stop at the Spirit Lake WalMart to pick up some supplies, we were soon at Gull Point Campground. We had to wait for the camper in our spot to leave, but not too long. Didn't take us long to park and get settled into our home for the week. Not long after we got settled a few of the 35 families we were spending the week with started to arrive. Yes I said 35 families - - our church has a trip every two years (different places). It is a vacation trip but we all ate breakfast together, had sack lunches, and ate supper together. We met so many people and made some new friends. We were the official photographers for the trip - - we ended up taking about 728 photos. We spent the week helping cook breakfast, washing dishes, boating, sitting on the beach, sitting next to the lake watching the boats, fishing, and taking naps. Total relaxation!!

Once we arrived home, we laid the carpet in the new room downstairs. (Thanks for doing the painting Sue! Looks Great!!) We still have to texture the walls and part of the old ceiling. Saturday we will spend the day at the old house sorting, packing, and pitching some more. August 1st will be upon us before we know it. Hope all is well with each of you that reads this and have a great week!!

I will ask Ken to post vacation and the house. It is about 9:30 and I'm just plain worn out from all the relaxing. Love to all!!

Friday, July 11, 2008

Vicky's First Blog - What a week!

Wow, what a week. It is exciting to come home each day and see all the progress. Wednesdays are now my days off (I work 10 hour days the remainder of the week M-F) and this Wednesday was spent sorting and packing. I have a couple gals I work with that lost their homes in the tornado on May 25th and they are taking alot of what we thought we would have to garage sale or haul to Goodwill. We picked out paint for the living space and the bathroom (ceiling & walls) and then had to pick out carpet. Can I just tell you that is a lot more stressful than I ever imagined. I thought I had the paint figured out a week ago, but changed the colors at the last minute. The ceilings will be "Linen", the bathroom walls will be "Morning Fog" (a minimal hint of green) and the living space will be "Tuscan" blue. The bathroom will be accented in a deep burgundy rose. I didn't know picking out paint and carpet was so mind boggling!

The construction is moving along so fast and I can't believe we are already starting to prime the new walls. The closet is now moved to the south wall and will open the space up. The existing wall separating the old and new space will come out this week. I can't wait to see how it will look. We are taking alot of pictures and will keep posting them as we go along. When I get home at night I try to do what I can to help out (waterproof paint on the cement wall, priming walls, etc.).

We are hoping to get a lot of the packing done this weekend and some big pieces moved down to the new house (china closet, storage cupboard that used to hold extra groceries will move to the bathroom to hold towels, etc.) We also will be picking up more primer, paint, ceiling fan, and anything else that ends up on the list.

We can't wait to get everything done and moved. Since we will be on vacation from July 20-25, we need to have most everything packed up and ready to move. A lot of stuff will stay in tubs for awhile and we will sort through them as time allows. Be ready girls - you will have some tubs to sort through when you come home. Wait until you see what is in those tubs. You will either laugh or want to shred some of those pictures. HEHE!!

Well it's getting late and it's past my bedtime. Have a great weekend and talk with you all soon.

G'pa

Construction


Grandpa and friend Jim working on the basement. Of course we won't let grandpa get too worn out

Sunday, July 6, 2008

IAN the BIRTHDAY BOY





Sorry the video clips of IAN are toooooooo big to post, Shame they are so good & funny.

Hunter & his cousin

The boys