It has been a heck of a long time since I sat down to write like this. It seems that the more I have to write about, the less time I have to do it. So I guess I will do this in some kind of order...
KID UPDATE
Travis and Chelsea continue to do well. Travis turned 7 years old this winter (I can't wrap my head around how fast that went) and he is finishing up first grade. He has enjoyed this year so much. I think a large part of it is due to the fact that he loves his teacher. She is so wonderful and positive. I have been very happy with this year and have to cross my fingers that the next 11 years go as well. Trav played basketball in the winter and is now playing baseball. He continues to draw and over spring vacation he took a few art courses at the local art museum. He loved it. His biggest news is that he has a new pet. I made this deal with him in November that if he keeps his new room clean for a full month, I would get him a hamster (NO! I NEVER thought it would happen!). I thought he had forgotten about it! On April 10th he announced that he would start his month that night. On May 11th we went and picked out Chloe...a dwarf hamster. He truly kept up his end of the bargain so I needed to pay up. It is kind of cute (in a rodent sort of way). Travis has ushered out the age of trains and found a new love: All things Star Wars!
Travis on his field trip to the ZooAnd now for Chelsea...Chelsea...Chelsea. She is so big now she barely has any baby left in her. She is a spitfire. She is fairly happy, but when she is not, WATCH OUT! She has been taking dance for this school year. I think she drives her teacher crazy because she refuses to listen. She is definitely a girl with her own agenda. But she loves dancing and as long as she is having fun, that is all that matters to me. She is only three-and-a-half after all. She has very little interest in coloring or writing her name. I guess Chelsea is happiest when she can do exactly what she wants, when she wants to! I wonder where she gets that from! She is very girly and has a definite sense of style. The frillier and sparklier the better. Sometimes she leaves our house looking like a cross between a disco ball and a clown, but at least she knows what she likes!
Chelsea in true princess form!THE GROWN-UPS
John and I are working hard. I am winding down at school. We had a new principal this year and it was different (in a good way). This is my 13th year teaching. 11 of those years have been in first grade. This year has been interesting in many ways. I have taken my class so far that it is almost a shame to let them go. ALMOST but not quite. John's knee continues to hurt him. He saw a surgeon and was told that he was not ready to replace the knee yet. I guess the doc feels that he has a few more tricks up his sleeve for John. I hope so. It is awful to see someone you love in so much pain all them time. He is the assistant coach of Travis's baseball team. His grandfather passed away this spring at 91 years old. He used to belong to the Greendale Men's Club. I guess it is only fitting that Travis's team this year is sponsored by the Greendale Men's Club. Grandpa Carl is looking down with his wide jovial smile and letting off a big belly laugh.
THE HOUSE
Construction is done on the inside of the house. We love it! We have decorated most of the rooms over the last few months. Most of it was done before Christmas, actually. The only room that wasn't done was Chelsea's room. We ran out of time. I needed to wait to do this post until we did Chelsea's room. We finished it a few weeks ago. Some of these pictures are taken around Christmas time. We had a family party a few days after. I took pictures before the party to ensure that everything was nice and clean in the pictures.
Now for a photo tour of the house. Since we seldom use our front door, I will start at the back door. It now opens into a mudroom that is open to our newly renovated kitchen. We had a little space so we put our computer in its hutch there. We added an island to the kitchen and redid the floor, back splash and counters. If you remember from my previous updates I painted the cabinets. Then I distressed them to make them look just like I wanted them.
Our toy room is now a dining room. We took my mom's old dining table and stretched it out. It seats six comfortably. We could take out the inserts for a smaller table, but we don't usually bother. We got a new chandelier and were able to put John's Grandma Mil's hutch in there. We also have a glass front bookcase that is now a china cabinet.
If you go in the other direction out of the kitchen, you enter our living room. Not a whole lot changed in there. A new chair maybe and the dry sink I got from Salvation Army finally got a permanent home. The living room abuts the back of the mudroom coat closet so we had to get rid of a window. It used to be where the dry sink now stands.
If you walk a little farther you will come to our front porch. This has always been the best place in the house (in my opinion). We moved our old kitchen table out there and use the other side as a sitting room. It is so comfy and bright. It needs a new coat of paint, but I intend to put that off until next spring. I want to enjoy my porch this summer. Last summer it was a storage area for all of the things we needed to move during construction!
Now for the upstairs. A lot has changed up there. We now have three bedrooms up there. We added a good sized master bedroom. We painted it a sunny yellow (called Melted Butter because John refused to ask the guy at the store for Pooh Bear Yellow). It is plenty big and even has a little sitting area for me! I read and correct papers and watch TV.
Travis took our old room. It is painted a bright blue color and has all of his toys in it. He is happy to have his own space at last. He and Chelsea still bug each other but at least now they can be separated as needed. Travis and Chloe the Hamster are cohabitating quite nicely in the blue room.
Chelsea's room has three white walls and a bright pink wall. Her accents in her room are pale and hot pink. She has a little princess theme going on in there. We put Grandma Mil's rocking chair in her room. It is very small for an adult to sit in, but looks cute covered with pink cushions and her dolls on it.
The downfall to all of the work we did last summer is that our yard is totaled! We plan to do a little work out there this summer. Hopefully we will get it in good condition (or at least usable) by early summer. Maybe that will be my next post!
Well I guess that is all the news I have right now. It is getting close to "Happy Hour" (a.k.a bedtime) here and the kids are calling. There was a lot to report in my 100th entry. Hopefully it won't be my last. Hope you enjoyed the tour.
