Take One!

Last week, Savannah got to participate in our church's week long day camp. The theme this year was Power Lab and the kids learned about God's miraculous power. Savannah learned that God gives us the power to be thankful, the power to help others, the power to be brave, the power to live forever, and the power to tell others about God. What an honor it brings to a parent to see your child learning about her heavenly maker. As part of camp they got to be involved in a daily field trip. Savannah was thrilled as she got to take her very first ride on a real school bus. Just some of the things she got to do was watch a magic show, play at the beach in Anacortes, swim in the church swimming pool and water slide. She did get to go to a pony farm, but she chose not to ride the horse. This surprised me as Savvy loves horses(remember her 4th birthday?), but as I understood it she didn't want to ride alone and the teacher was unable to ride with her. By the way, Savvy's favorite thing at camp was the realationships she made with her two teachers. It was really sweet seeing the young girls give Savvy hugs everyday as we left her at camp. And seeing what they signed on her camp shirt, "I love you!". God really put some neat girls in Savannah's life this week. The second best part of the week was that Savvy came home exhausted. The first? Watching her perform songs they had learned throughout the week.

The Power!

You Never Let Go

It's "Dog Gone" Fun!

And I never thought I'd say that. I guess having a husband and two daughters who love animals I was bound to lose the battle. So....we got a puppy. I guess the multiple betta fishes just didn't cut it. The timing couldn't have been more perfect as Savannah had a Scooby Doo birthday party. Somehow, hosting a mystery clue party with a puppy as the final clue just seemed right. As the only one who was worried about falling in love with a puppy I'd have to say I think I am the one most in love with the puppy. Josh left the decision as to what breed to get up to me and I chose a Cockapoo. She has all the best qualities of a Cocker Spaniel and a Poodle mixed. At first glance you would think she was a stuffed animal because she has the appearance of one. With her curly, fluffy, red hair and dark brown eyes how could you not fall in love with her.

She loves getting her belly rubbed, chewing on chew sticks, and getting cheese cubes for "sitting". She will follow you around all day and is sure to be in the middle of all the action. After only 3 weeks with her we have her just about potty trained. This process has seemed much more easy then potty training a child. She is crate trained which I've been told is very important so I guess we are doing something right. Now if we could just get her to stop biting (or nipping) at everybody's feet we would be the happiest dog parents alive.

So I'd have to say that having an adorable little ball of fur with the sweetest temperament isn't as bad as I imagined. Little Ginger has been the highlight of the summer and I am sure we will continue to grow fonder of her. I guess it's a good thing that 5 year olds have birthdays and ask for things that you normally would never give into. Seeing your child smile in complete wonder and awe is worth every piece of poop we've had to pick up in the yard:) and will continue to have to pick up:)

Here Comes the Sun Do Do Do Doo!

And I say, It's alright! Well, we're back from vacation and I'm back on the blog. Not that a whole lot of people have noticed, but I haven't blogged since November. I have reason for that which has mostly to do with the remodel and which I will explain in the next blog (with pictures!) It seems I've been a little overwhelmed with all the projects and the finances that the little things start to slip. It probably also has a little to do with a new Guitar Hero addiction seeing as how I needed a reward for all my hard work. I guess I really needed a break from the daily grind. But you don't care about that so I'll get right to it, then.

So I've been at Costco now for a whole year so I finally got my vacation time paid out. My anniversary date was July 3rd so I was all set for our annual summer vacation. This year we stayed at my mom's house in Ocean Park which is just a little north of Long Beach on the Washington peninsula. I won't bore you further with the details of our trip since most beach vacations end the same way - sand all over your car. The girls are always thrilled to go play in the ocean and here are a couple pictures to show just how brave they are. Paige is a little timid about the water but she loves the sand. Savannah, however, is fearless with the ocean. If she could swim yet, she would be out among the waves. I was a little chicken because the water was too cold, yet both girls were out jumping and sitting in the water. Of course we had a great time having fun and taking time to relax but Savannah's favorite part of the whole trip was coming home. Ahhhh...

Which means back to the honeydo list for me!

The Finish is in Sight

So here's the latest update on our remodel. We are almost finished, at least the builders are. We still have to lay tile, install wood floors, and add baseboards and any other finish work. We are also out of money so it's going to get very tough from here on out. We are definitely excited for the end though. We've been through lots of bad weather. So this post won't real funny or anything. I just need to pad my November posts a bit and the Christmas holidays will probably give me enough stories.

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So to recap. Here is my beautiful yard back in April, and it remained that way all the way through June. We had a pretty awesome birthday party for Savvy then. Of course that was the last good day my grass saw since the ponies had it for lunch.

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Phase 1: Destroy yard, build foundation. Yup, all the dirt and concrete that made up the patio had to be removed and place on top of my yard. Sigh...the price of progress. This all started in August so unfortunately, we missed out on the rest of summer in our backyard.

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Phase 2: Start building according to plans...right! This is where we got hung up for a few weeks. Initially, this was all the framework we hired for. But somehow the contractor convinced us the house was all wrong and we needed to build more. So we had to go back to the drawing board and back to the bank. Oh, and trust me on this - NEVER EVER use LendingTree.com. It's only a big headache.

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Phase 3: Destroy Mother-In-Law. So now it's October and we're finally getting to see some demolition. The roof came off and the rains came down. It also happened to be the worst rainstorm of the year. We did find out the roof and walls were supported with log beams so we're hoping to find a way to incorporate them back into the room. Plus those log beams weren't exactly stable either so the east and west walls had to be completely removed and rebuilt. Yay!

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Phase 4: Trusses! The magic word! Engineered by the finest minds in the 2x4 industry. My dad warned me not to raise the roof because of the cost, but when did I start listening to my parents? This was at the end of October and the rain was still coming. We needed to build and seal this off soon. And we couldn't do laundry either since it was all outdoors. (Don't worry, I just turned my undies inside out.)
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Phase 5: Boxed In! So by the first of November, we finally had all the walls and roof covered. You can see in the picture where the bathroom (left) and walk-in closet (right) will be in the master bedroom. We installed some french doors and built the laundry room up for inside access. By the end of the month now, we've got plumbing, electrical, insulation, and some siding done. We had some pauses in work because of inspections but we should be done within a couple weeks.

RatatouEEK!

So most of you have heard "The Rat Story" by now, but for those who haven't, let me fill you in on the "Worst Week of Sleep Ever (Title in Progress)"

We've heard things in our walls from time to time, but nothing has ever ventured out into our home and never left evidence. Well, I just happened to be cleaning out the side of Savannah's bed because a ton of her books had fallen down. Lo' and behold, there were a colony of little poops. Now, I had just made Savvy's bed about a week before and actually Swiffered out the crackers and various other snacks that had been down the side because of this very fear...that animals would enter our abode! Now we had to wonder what happened to the animal. Fast forward to about 12:30am, Brooke began hearing rat noises downstairs. We had an argument about the actual location and the actual existence of said rat, but as always Brooke won. The rat had disappeared because of the commotion and did not return until an hour later. Brooke decided to prove me wrong and went downstairs at the next sign of noise. Sure enough, the rat had left behind more poops and some carpet threads he was digging out. The hunt was on. I spent the rest of the early morning trying to find him and actually managed a glimpse of him. He was pretty big. Not cat big but maybe chihuahua big.

After a fruitless night of attempted captures, I went to Lowe's and bought a handful of rat traps and some poison. Again, the rat began his attempt to get upstairs in an effort to jump up on our bed, lay some more poop, and probably bit Brooke in the neck (at least that's how Brooke imagined it would happen.) Anyway, I searched high and low for him all night and still couldn't find him. I watched him run under the fridge then under the table and then disappear. That rat knew how to hide. And he obviously was not falling for the traps. We also figured that he couldn't get back upstairs and that was his ultimate goal. So I went back to Lowe's and got the ultimate trap...the Glue Trap. Since I knew he would be back at the door, this trap was ideal. I laid the 2 bases right at the base of the door. At 11:30pm, like clockwork, the rat showed up again. But this time, instead of digging and tearing noises, we heard shuffling and squeaking - the little pest was caught! Now the fun began.

I opened the door to get out but the rat used the opening as leverage to loosen himself. Brooke tossed me a bag to stuff in his face to keep him from getting away. I squeezed out the door and closed it. The rat was laying there, obviously exhausted, but still alert. He was now very nearly free with his tail and hind end the only thing holding him back. I quickly flipped the one half of the glue trap on top of him making a rat sandwich. I picked him up like a pair of tongs. He tried to bite me. I got angry. I planned to fling him outside quickly since I didn't know how long I could hold him in the trap. But he managed to get a slight grip on the floor, twisted himself out of the trap, and ran past the open door underneath our coat rack. That's about the time Brooke heard loud cursing downstairs. I laid down the traps and pulled out the coat rack. I saw his tail as he tried to climb up the wall out of view. I ran to the kitchen to grab the real tongs I had laid out for just such an occasion. I tried to grab him, but he sensed my weak attempt and ran back through the house, past the OPEN DOOR! and under the refrigerator. I laid down the traps again and started yanking out the fridge. I managed to run him over two times, yielding two satisfying squeaks. He ran out across the kitchen, albeit at a slower pace and tried hiding up in the dishwasher door. Now I had him! His tail was hanging tiredly down so I grabbed him with the tongs. I tried putting him in a plastic sack when he started doing this hurricane spin move. I managed to get it over his head but I held tight with the tongs. I went the the trash bin, flipped the lid, and aggressively slammed this giant inconvenience to the bottom, relieving me the burden of sleepless nights and paranoid wives. I came inside, cleaned up, and opened the door to go back to bed. Brooke asked if he got away (because of all the cursing.) I said back, "It's all over. Go back to bed." We never slept so well.

So, go figure, Ratatouille was released on DVD the next week. Grandma Joni decided it would be fun for the girls to watch on a babysitting night. After the whole movie was over, Grandma asked if they liked the movie and what they thought about the rat since the girls were very aware of the work it took to catch the filthy bugger in our house. Savannah replied, "That rat was a good rat because he didn't go poop once the whole movie. He held it in the whole time." Well said.

Halloweek

The night is finally over! We had such a long week building up to Halloween and it's still only Wednesday. I guess Thursday, Friday, and Saturday are for candy stuffing and Sunday is the Candy Sabbath. It's not like you, the reader, have forgotten this but Halloween is a night for candy. All the dressing up is fun and all but it's not the main purpose of the night. If it weren't for the candy, nobody would bother dressing up to knock on doors and say, "See my sweet costume?" I know this because I saw a young boy dressed as Professor "Mad-Eye" Moody (from Harry Potter) and his costume consisted of a halved styrofoam ball with an eye drawn on it attached to a string, a stick with another styrofoam ball attached to the end, and gray sweat pants. That's not what you call a "good" costume. That's an excuse to get candy. I guess there is at some point an attitude change where it's fun as an adult to dress up because the cool thing about being grown up is you can buy a ton of candy for a lot less cost and effort as a costume.

So our week started Sunday with Pumpkin carving, which is my favorite activity on Halloween. The three pumpkins shown actually grew in our garden in the back. The two big ones had already been picked weeks before to make room for the builders as they worked on that side of the house. Savannah was upset that we hadn't gotten her a pumpkin to carve so we dug out a flashlight and went searching for any little pumpkins that may have survived a trampling. Lucky enough, there was one such pumpkin close under the eaves. He was resting on top of a water pipe which explains the deformity. But I love deformed pumpkins for making interesting carvings. Savannah help by drawing her design on her little pumpkin for me to make a carving out of it.

On Monday, it rained all day. Brooke made pumpkin seeds.

Tuesday, we headed out to Schuh Farms' Pumpkin Patch like we do every year for pictures and pumpkin hunting. Paige didn't have a pumpkin of her own so we had her pick one out. We dressed the girls in their costumes and had them run around the field looking at pumpkins and generally playing around. Despite the cold and frost, the girls had a fun time like they do every year we go. Luckily we had a dry, sunny morning since the rain does not want to stop this month. We went home with a tall, skinny pumpkin, some farm-fresh apple cider, and two tired girls.

Then came the big day. The morning was pretty regular - make mess, clean up, make mess, clean up, eat breakfast, make mess, clean up, etc. Then NAPTIME! Daddy's favorite time of day! Soon after they woke up, we got dressed, put on makeup, grabbed our flashlights and bags and drove downtown. Every year Sedro-Woolley closes down the main street for a children's parade. Since this was the first year Halloween fell on one of my non-work days, I was excited to participate. Unfortunately for my expectations, it was more of a walking mob than a Shriner-Driving-Small-Cars type of parade. But, again, it's all about the candy. Each storefront handed out treats to all who came. As we walked up and down the street with the crowd, the girls were rewarded with candy, toys, a donut, and a toothbrush from the downtown dentist. Brooke and I are such good parents that the toothbrush was our girls' favorite prize. After freezing their little wings off, we decided to go back home, eat dinner, and wait for mommy to come home before heading back out again.

Trick or Treating with the girls is fun year after year. You never know how they'll react. Savannah loves scary monsters and cartoons, a combination which has manifested itself in a love for all things Scooby-Doo. Paige is a little scaredy cat and frightens easily. So as we are door knocking from house to house, a man in a scary masked opened the door and held out his candy. Savannah took one look at him and turned and ran to hide behind me. Imagine our suprise when sweet, little Paigers walked right up and said "Trick or Treat!" I guess we could have guessed that reaction since Paige's affinity for candy is pretty high as well. The girls got plenty of scares and excitement so we went back home. The best part of the night was watching the girls drool over their piles of candy like pirates and their gold. Savannah looked at every piece and picked out all the candy she didn't like. Then we wrapped up the night with a screening of Monster House and into bed. Now we just have to hide the candy.

A Spooktacular Halloween Costume Party

Costumes...this is what every child looks forward to come Halloween time. What should I be? Savannah scanned the racks looking for a Freddy costume (from Scooby-Doo) but ended up eyeing a sparkly Tinkerbell costume complete with shimmering silver wings. Little Paigers also eyed all the sparkly, shimmering costumes and chose a Ladybug that also included glittery wings and a ladybug wand. The girls couldn't wait for the day to come when they could wear their carefully chosen costumes. It came soon enough when they got invited to their first kids Halloween costume party.

The evening began when they entered through thick fog with spiders, bats, and pumpkins lining the entrance into the party. They were greeted by a huge life size talking banana (my friend's husband). They then stood in complete awe when they saw a whole room full of children their ages dressed in all sorts of fun costumes. Among them was Snow White, Captain Hook, Minnie Mouse, Dumbo, a cheerleader, and a pumpkin to name a few. The girls were directed to a decorating table where they got to decorate lunch sacks with bat and spider designs. Or I guess you could say they glued as many eyes and cotton balls they could to a black circle on their bags.... it was SUPPOSED to be a bat or spider, but with toddlers it looked more like a uniquely and well glued sack. Little did they know these sacks would be used for all the prizes and treats they won from games they got to later play. The fun had only just begun.

First up was Musical chairs. Savvy played one round and decided she wanted to sit out and watch the other children play. Little Ms. Paige actually won the game. Seeing her scamper as fast as she could for a chair once the music stopped was hysterical. Actually seeing little 2 year-olds wandering around aimlessly was hysterical. Savvy sat on the sidelines cheering her little sister along and nothing was more cute then seeing Paige winning the game. She sat so proudly in that chair with a huge grin on her face. She got to pick a prize from a big sack of Halloween prizes. She chose a Mummy flashlight which made Savvy jealous so the next game, Pin-the-Nose on the Jack-O-Lantern, Savvy was first in line to play. After being blindfolded and spun around in circles Savvy managed to pin the nose on the pumpkin right in the exact middle. She was so determined to win a game after seeing the cool prize Paige won. Needless to say Savvy kept the lead after about 15 other children tried to out win her. She picked a flashlight too, only hers had interchangeable heads on it that made Halloween pictures on the walls. The night also included cookie decorating (and eating which Paige liked the best), a fishing game where they threw a fish pole over a curtain to retrieve a "prize". Some of the prizes they came home with were a Halloween whoopie cushion, Halloween hair rubber bands,and a Halloween blowup hat. Oh and I must not forget the Frankenstein pinata that gave them so much candy that they really don't need to go trick-or-treating. And Savvy's favorite thing of the whole night was the hallway they sectioned off that had strobe lights and an animated ghost wandering around making spooky noises. Paige was a little more bashful in wanting to go see the ghost, but Savvy couldn't get enough scares in her to stop looking through the curtain.

Nothing is more rewarding than watching your kids have the best time of their life right in front of your eyes. Watching the girls get their first taste of Halloween fun was just priceless. It was definitely a spooky and spectacular Halloween party.