It's been a whole year since I last posted, and so much has happened. I'll spare you the details, but suffice it to say...I went to Australia, Germany, and places all over the US, from Tampa FL to Chicago IL, from LA to Dallas, Grand Rapids MI to Seattle WA. My stamp company is doing well, and I have some big projects coming up at work that will also make lots of people happy with their coloring.
Last month we bought a house. It's an older home in Springfield, which means it has repairs yet to do, but it has a yard! I love my yard and I love that my family has space to run and play. We got a good deal on the home and the repairs are all do-able, even if Brian and I are not the kind of people to do-it-yourself.
If the kids run out of places to play outside, they can always play inside, like in the kitchen sink for an impromptu bath...(we won't go into the things that went into her stomach to warrant needing this bath). I like having a separate living room that I can keep nice and clean for guests, while the kids have a playroom to watch movies and destroy without me worrying so much.I love all the little things this home has...you can see the stamped concrete driveway and porch in this photo, as well as the solar panel on the roof for the hot water heater. It has 3 garages, 3 bedrooms, a living room and a family room, as well as two full bathrooms. I have skylights, a security system, energy efficient appliances, and raised garden beds. I feel truly blessed!
Technically, we live in the county, so our taxes are less as well as our other utilities. But we're close to everything, and only a few minutes farther from work than before.
The kids love the house. AnnaMae has fun vacuuming. She enjoys cleaning the carpets as much as she loves messing up the carpets. It's a lot of fun to clean in your underwear :)
My annoyance is with the yard. There is so much to do to the yard! The previous owners neglected it quite a bit, so I have a lot of work to do to bring it back up to speed. All the other homes in my neighborhood have really nice yards, so I want to clean up my yard to match. At least repairs on the yard are inexpensive.Here are the kids enjoying the back porch...I love my giant porch! AnnaMae and her cousin Juliet have so much fun together, and who can blame them? Two little girls, close to the same age, and having a blast all summer long. Thank you uncle Dan and uncle Larry for all the help you've given us with fixing the new place.
Luke just wants to get into water fights with dad every night. As long as it waters the lawn I really don't mind what they do! Strangely, they never seem to water the spots in the lawn that really need it, they prefer watering the weeds and the porch. The blackberries are getting ripe, and we had a few raspberries this year. I have a giant grapevine, so we shall see this fall what kind of grapes it produces. I also have a huge walnut tree and a large, annoying evergreen. However, the trees keep my house well shaded, such that I've only had to use the A/C a couple times this summer.Summertime means a chance to take photos of the kids in their natural habitat- playgrounds. This summer we've had a chance to get some good shots. Here are a few cute ones to leave you with before I head back to bed...
