Sometimes the best pictures aren't set up or taken with a fancy camera. ♥

Tour via Video

For faraway family.

Tour in Pictures

Well, I didn't get yelled at, so I'm assuming I can show pictures of our house, now.

Now, I will give you the disclaimer that I give everyone who has come to see our new home for the first time: this house needs some love. More specifically (as Cher puts it), it seriously needed us. Here we come to the rescue!

The view as you step through the front door. Let me say this now - we are NOT keeping the hardwood floors. End of story. It would be a pain to fix and it's just not practical for us with two little clumsy boys. So, that being said, the living room part will be carpet and the dining room part will be vinyl.

The window will be replaced (along with the three in the dining room) some time before winter.

The view from the opposite direction. Love our door!

The dining area. I have forever wanted a window seat!!!

Our nice, big bathroom. Well, big to us. You have to understand we're moving from a 900 sq. ft. apartment into a 1,330 sq. ft. house. It feels HUGE to us.

The boys' room, A.K.A "the princess room". Can you tell two little girls once lived here?

I swear it won't stay this way. This room will be transformed into a little boy's paradise, filled from floor to ceiling with all things race cars. Can't wait!

Two sets of book shelves, two closets, cupboards for storage, another window seat, and a built-in toy box. The coolest kid's room ever! It's like it was built just for us.

The storage in this place is amazing. The prior owners did a fantastic job utilizing the space.

Our room. Again, more awesome storage spaces!

The fairy light switch covers are being evicted, by the way.

More shelves. Love it!

My big, beautiful, bright kitchen. It's perfect as-is. Just going to swap the fridge around to another wall out of frame.

This kitchen makes me want to be all Betty Crocker-like. =)

Down the stairs into the mud/laundry room.

Look! A washer and dryer that don't require quarters! And I don't have to share them with my neighbors! Mind-blowing!

Funny story - I was doing laundry here the other night and just as I finished putting the load into the dryer, I immediately turned to ask Matt for more quarters...

Another pink room. Again, not going to stay that was. I detest pink. This will be a guest room/classroom.

Please come visit us, family! =)

More shelves! And a funky closet. They dropped this room so you wouldn't bonk your head on the slanted ceiling, but they had to leave the closet on the same level as the rest of the house.

I love '20's-style houses. They're like a big puzzle.

The boys' fenced (albeit dead) back yard. The wonderful propane grill is ours. It was cemented in (oh, darn) and couldn't be moved.

The house couldn't be more perfect for us and has great potential. We've already started work on it (next post, hopefully) and we're eager to move in in October. Yeah, we still have to wait until our lease is up, unfortunately, but by that time, most (if not all) the rooms will be painted and flooring will be put in and it will be perfect to move into. Some things are definitely worth waiting for. =)

New Playset

Some dear friends from church donated this to us. Rob had a blast playing with it today, to say the least! Here's a cruddy cell phone picture of the playset itself.

 Ah, that's better. Brought the good camera out.

The smile says it all. He is so thankful for his yard and new house.

 What a handsome boy you've become...

How on earth he was able to crawl through that hole, I'll never know!

Nobody Dies Early

Beautiful Truth from a man currently battling brain cancer.

God is sovereign.

More Rob-isms

More Robby hilarity...

5/5/11: After sending him to his room, too busy to look, I asked Rob, "Are you still in here?" There was a pause and then a little voice replied, "No?"

5/6/11: Rob is talking to (more specifically, bossing around) an oscillating stand fan. Should I be concerned?

5/11/11: Quote from Rob: "Ice cream does not make me sick. It makes me SO happy!"

5/12/11: Today, evidently, shopping makes Robby "so happy" and not sick. Good to know.

5/12/11: Rob's walking around, petting his brother's head, saying, "Nice puppy. Nice puppy." *sigh*

5/13/11: Rob just went up to the stand fan, gave it a hug, and said, "I so love you, fan!" You just can't make this stuff up.

5/15/11: Heard from Rob on the way to his room this morning, "Dad-gum, dad-gum...the Bible tells me so..."

5/16/11: Rob, while talking on his toy phone: "Hello? Hello? Anybody there? Hello? My phone is dead!"

5/16/11: My biggest, but cutest Robby irk: Rob: "Can I have ____?" Me: "No." Rob: "How about now?" Me: "Still no." Rob: "How about....NOW?" Me: *beats head against something solid*

5/16/11: Rob's full of these today, evidently. Said to his brother, as Drew was pulling him around by his shirt: "Stop, Drew! You're going to make me naked!!"

5/17/11: According to Rob, God never takes people's stuff, thus he shouldn't. Decent theology for an almost-three-year-old, I think.

5/17/11: Rob just ran in here yelling, "Shake your butt! Shake your butt! Shake your booty! Shake your booty! Shake your body! Shake your body! C'mon, Mama! Sing with me!"

5/23/11: Laying here eating animal crackers with Rob. Evidently bears say, "Hi! I'm a bear!"

5/24/11: According to Rob, Daddy's machete is used for killing dinosaurs. Now I know where Matt goes at night...

5/25/11: Rob's been requesting goats from his animal crackers today. Matt just asked him, "So, do goats taste different than the other animals?" Rob replied, "Yeah!" Laughing, Matt asked him, "What do they taste like, then?" Without skipping a beat, Rob says, "They taste like oatmeal!"

6/2/11: Rob spotted some little black birds on the lawn outside. He exclaimed, "Oh! Penguins!"

6/17/11: I just pulled out some brown yarn. Rob got all excited and asked, "Are you going to make a cute, little brown poop, Mama?!"

6/20/11: Rob just came over and started sniffing me. I asked the dumb question, "What do I smell like?" That ornery Daddy smile creeps across his face as he yells for all to hear, "YOU SMELL LIKE POOP, MAMA!!!" and runs off.

6/23/11: Awoke to my oldest screaming at the top of his lungs. I ran to his aid, only to find him standing in an inch of water in the bathroom. He decided to "help" by trying to flush an entire double-roll of toilet paper down the toilet. I'm still speechless.

7/6/11: So, instead of actually putting his toys away, Rob decides to go another route. I walk in there to check to see if he was done cleaning, only to find the floor indeed empty, but the crib quite full. Drew was completely engulfed by books and toys. *palmforehead*

7/8/11: Rob just told me that he heard a bird "squeaking" outside. Why is that so cute and hilarious?

7/10/11: I love hearing Rob crack up over Mr. Bean. :)

7/13/11: Rob, when asked about VBS today: "Pastor Bear was being funny again and Mr. Graff had an owie on his leg and was eaten by a shark. I love that."

7/20/11: Rob just informed us that he wants to be "the princess of the comfy race track". I'll take "Random, Yet Disturbing Statements" for $100, Alex.

7/24/11: Rob just told us that his best friend is Lightening McQueen. I think we need more playdates...

7/25/11: My 3-year-old thought the living room was seriously lacking some of that lovely, permanent Sharpie color evidently, so he took it upon himself to do some redecorating this morning. Happy First Day Back to me.

7/26/11: I asked Rob to go get me something and he replied, "I am on my way!"

7/26/11: Overheard from the boys' tent: "We're going to Space, Drew! We're going to the moon so we can go to the park and take a shower and go shopping!" Oookay.

7/27/11: Rob, speaking to the Kix he was vacuuming up: "I'm gonna get you! Got you! Got you!"

7/31/11: Rob: "I'm going to scare you, Mama! RAWR!" Fail.

8/4/11: Rob to Drew when Drew tried to give Rob his waffle: "No, Drew! You eat it! It's good for you!"

8/5/11: Rob: "Drew's the baby, not me! He poops in his pants!"

8/5/11: According to Rob, Drew is "the best buddy [he's] never seen". What?

8/6/11: Me: "Rob, girls have different THINGS (aka anatomy) than boys do." Rob: "Yeah. Shirts."

8/9/11: Rob, while looking through a cat book: "And this kitty's hungry. He wants a peanut butter sandwich and chicken nuggets."

A New Chapter Begins

A lot of you already know what's going on, and I don't even know if I'm "allowed" to say anything yet due to the sensitive nature of things, but I guess I'll find out soon enough. The key in my last post? It belongs to our new home. Our very own house with our very own yard with our very own privacy. No more inspections. No more harassment. No more cramped spaces. No more speedbumps (if you've ever lived here or visited, you know what I'm talking about). Freedom to do what we want, when we want, how we want without the fear of losing our home or being "scolded". Finally, we have hopefully found some peace. Well, in three months, anyhow. Unfortunately, we're stuck here until our lease is up, but that will give us plenty of time to prepare, move, and clean.

Remember this house? Yep! And it's still just as wonderful as the first day we walked into it. We absolutely love it and we're looking forward to working on it. In fact, we went to Home Depot today and bought paint and supplies, ceiling fans, a ladder, a hose, lounge chairs for our front porch, and a mailbox. Talk about fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants home improvement. I felt like I was just put through a timed shopping spree, having to make some quick decisions on how I wanted each room to look. I'm thankful to have had my aunt with us, because I would have been absolutely LOST without her! This is all very new to us!

Here's our two cart-loads worth of stuff (minus the cute pot - that's Cher's). It was so overwhelming! We're so used to just "window shopping" that I was afraid to start throwing things into the cart!

We are so excited about this new chapter in our lives and are so immensely grateful for what we have been given. God has been so amazingly kind to this little family and has used the people around us to help our dream become reality. He has beautifully orchestrated this event from beginning to end and I'm in complete awe of the countless blessings He has showered us with. Even when things seemed dim, He was there and I trusted Him every step of the way. I knew He was in control of what was meant to happen - house or no house.

The biggest blessing? Our boys have a yard. A space they can run and play and be safe in. We've never been able to give them that and even the thought makes my heart smile.

So, here's to new beginnings and lots of painting. I hope to document our endeavor as we go along, so stay tuned for updates.

May God be glorified!

I Wonder...

What could this key be to?

=)

Big Breakfast

Drew had a rather large breakfast this morning...

Rob's Third Birthday

We celebrated Rob's birthday with my folks last night and it was a sweet get-together. My aunt made a wonderful BBQ-ed meal and we topped it off with some yummy Lemon Raspberry (Dairy-Free) Cake. I can't believe my baby boy is three!

A favorite from the evening. These two are so sweet together. Quite a special bond.

Not-So-Simple-Ripple-That-Almost-Didn't-Happen-Afghan

Click to enlarge.

Why the lengthy name? Because it's earned it. It's quite the blanket and I've had the quite the journey making it.

Many mistakes. Many back-trackings. Many mishaps. The last straw? One of the colors I chose was DISCONTINUED. I had to scour the internet to find more. Thankfully, someone from Ravelry was willing to sell and ship me two skeins - more than enough to finish. I was elated, needless to say!

 Believe it or not, I want to make another one, but not as big. I love this pattern - despite it’s up’s and down’s (no pun intended). Here’s the final break down:

Measures: 75”X80”
Time Spent: 124 days OR 4.13 months (off and on)
Number of Stitches: 40,432 stitches
Yardage: 5,360 yards OR 3.04 miles
Cost: DON’T ASK!!! =)

This project now holds the record as the largest item I have ever created. It fits nicely on our queen-sized bed.

Pattern: Neat Ripple

Family Photo

Just a quick picture of us for the Church Directory. We had another one in the works, but we're having to put it on hold for the time being. Hopefully you'll see it on our Christmas cards. =)

Thank you to my buddy, Lark, for snapping this for us!

VBS Slideshow

Here's our VBS slideshow I got to present to our congregation this morning. A little nerve-racking being in the spotlight like that, but it received applause at the end. Made me feel pretty good! =)

Priceless

HappyMeal box for a superhero hat and snow cone stains on the face. Priceless.

Sorry for the lack of updates, lately. We're still alive and kicking, I assure you. Just finished up VBS week, which is always insane. I feel like I've been out of town for four days, and boy is my house showing it! Sheesh.

Fun announcements around the bend. Stay tuned. =)

Summer Fun

We went to my family's place for a BBQ yesterday and had a wonderful time. The boys had a blast playing and splashing in the pool. AND we had ribs! YUM!

This is my absolute favorite shot of the night! LOVE!

Stupid pacifier! Oh well. Still cute.

Checking out the flowers.

BIG splash!

Just chillin'.

Daddy got involved. A little.

Playing with brother. Or trying to drown him. You never know.

"Ha ha!"

Whee!

"Starting to get a little cold here, Dad."

What a fun time!

More Crochet Beaded Bracelets

Can you tell I've been having fun making bracelets? All of these are currently for sale in my Etsy shop.

Peek-a-Boo!

Drew has learned how to play peek-a-boo. Very cute!

Time Lapse of the Milky Way

(Better full-screen this one...)

"The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork." - Psalm 19:1

Domo-kun Project

A commission project.

For those of you who have no clue who this menacing little guy is (like myself), Domo is a character from a Japanese (you're surprised, I'm sure) claymation/stop motion TV show. He is described as, "a strange yet very polite creature that hatched from an egg, likes to rock, watch TV, hang out with an old rabbit dude, and pass gas when nervous."

Yeah, I don't really get it either. I don't ask when there's payment involved. Made with 100% Cotton Peaches & Creme Yarn, felt, and has poseable arms.

Matt's "Famous" Chimichangas

Just look at it. Isn't this dish a thing of beauty?

Too bad I'm under contract and can't share Matt's "secret" recipe with you. You'll have to settle for a picture of our out-of-this-world dinner and a recipe for the yummy chicken that filled part of it.

I told Matt that I hope that we get raptured tonight, because I want this to be my last meal. My tummy's feeling quite spoiled right now. =)

Slow-Cooked Mexican Chicken

Ingredients:
1.5 – 2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts (or boneless chicken thighs)
1 (1.5 oz.) pkg taco seasoning mix
1 Cup chicken broth or water
1 Cup salsa or picante sauce

Directions:
Place chicken in a slow-cooker and sprinkle taco seasoning mix on top of chicken. Then, pour on chicken broth and picante sauce. No need to stir.
Cover, and cook on low for 8 hours.
After 8 hours, the chicken is so tender it usually falls apart with a fork. So, use forks to shred, or pull apart, the chicken. Stir it around and let it stay warm in the slow-cooker while you prepare the rest of dinner.