Progress!

Well, we closed on our house Friday.
We sure were hoping for 80 degree weather...but instead, it was FREEZING.

That didn't stop Joel! Saturday he spent the day trimming our trees (I mean, shrubs).

Then, yesterday, when the weather man said, "66 degrees" it thunderstormed and hailed and was really cold. But we still managed to do a few things over there:

Joel knocked out the cupboards over the bar,

and over what will be our fridge...

took out some flooring...

And I did my part by pulling wallpaper.

The thunderstorm was lovely, and even better? We had friends stop in to see the progress!!! We look forward to many more fun times in this house (especially once we get the heat on!).

It's A Bird...It's a Plane...It's BUZZ LIGHTYEAR!

Oliver saw Toy Story and Toy Story 2, and has "been" Buzz Lightyear ever since.

This morning, while he was 'Buzz', we had the following conversations:

Buzz: "Woah, what's that?" (Pointing to our fire) "Is it lots of rockets blasting off?"
Me: "No, Buzz. That's our fireplace. It's keeps us warm."

Buzz: "Mmmm, I just love coffee."
Me: "You drink hot stuff?"
Buzz: "Oh yeah. I even like hot sauce. I have that on my spaceship. And I put it on my tortilla roll-ups--they have beans, rice, chicken...They're really good."

Buzz: "Mom, say, 'Buzz, do you have a Walmart?'"
Me: "Buzz--do you have a Walmart?"
Buzz: "No." "Say, 'Where do you get food?'"
Me: "Where do you get food?" (I really LOVE conversations that go like this...)
Buzz: "We grow our own pumpkins. We eat pumpkin seeds."

(and to Lily) "If I came to college, maybe I'd marry you. But I married Woody."

(climbing into his spaceship) "I gotta get in. I need to go to Shipshewana."

Weekend in Nebraska

We got to go visit some friends last weekend from Nebraska. Kara and I roomed together in the same mod in college, and ever since we've been good friends. Unfortunately, they moved to Husker-land a few years back--but they make frequent trips here, so we stay in touch.

This was only our second time visiting them, but we decided it needs to become a yearly tradition--what a great weekend we had!

Braden (their little guy) is almost 3, and they have another one on the way in just a few weeks. Oliver, Braden and Lily played so well together the whole time! We enjoyed good food, Rook until late into the night, scrapbooking while the kids took naps, outside playtime (well, the boys did this), and great quiet evenings talking together.

Thank you SO MUCH for letting us crash with you, Brad and Kara!!!!

(Oliver and Braden spent two hours outside Saturday playing in the snow and mud!)
(Oliver's first 4-wheeler ride)

(Oliver and Braden "played" a game together...with the dad's help, of course!)

If Wallpaper and Gold Fixtures were Cool, I'd be Miles Davis

Because this house is LOADED with that stuff. (And yes, I did just date myself by referencing "Billy Madison".) We finally have an official signed contract on the house we're buying so I feel okay to post pictures. Let's just say, we are PUMPED to get into the house and get started. Let me also say, it has "potential". (So when you see picture after picture of ripped-out flooring, old light fixtures, broken doors, ugly cupboards, and wallpaper galore...remember that. *POTENTIAL*)

Here they are:

The kitchen

The adjoining family room (which we'll be using more as a dining room/family room)

The formal dining room (which we'll be turning into a guest bedroom/office)

The entry way

(yes, that IS the storm door lying on the floor.)

The living room

Master Bedroom

(yes, that's Oliver wearing a mask. Don't ask.)

Kid's bedroom

Downstairs bathroom

(won't that mirror look cool painted red or white or something???)

We can't WAIT to get started replacing, painting, installing flooring...
but this is definitely a long-term project.

Feel free to stop by and see our progress!
(But wear your best work clothes--we'll likely talk you into staying!)

{Junior} Mr. Berean

A few months back, Oliver was asked to be a junior attendant for Berean's Winter Homecoming. (This is the school that I teach preschool for) He was excited, but didn't really know what to expect. I was excited--but EXTREMELY nervous that he would chicken out at the list minute.

Thankfully, he did SO well!!! He and Ellie (a friend of his) walked hand-in-hand (in the dark!) and sat down on their little chairs, just like they were supposed to. (Oliver later told me that it was okay that he had to walk in the dark, since he's nocturnal.)

(sorry it's blurry!)

They sat quietly and patiently while the jazz band played, and while the candidates were being introduced. And when it was over? They got a present! (Ollie can VERY easily be won over with tractors.)

It was such a fun evening. And I STILL can't believe how brave he was.

Snow Days

Snow days are fun...they're nice for a change of schedule, change of scenery, an excuse to make yummy treats and drink way more hot cocoa than I should...

But they can be a bit stressful, too. At least I found that was the case for me. Day one...we had some major melting down (by all 3 of us). So when I found out we'd be home again Wednesday...I made a plan. I announced that, even though we wouldn't be going to regular preschool, we'd have preschool at home. Ollie was hyper with excitement. He then announced that it was "pre-k, mom, not preschool". (Pre-K's are older...)

So, since it was Groundhog Day, we had a place to start.

First, we all got dressed.

Then, we looked up Punxatony Phil himself (online) to see what he predicted--sure enough--spring is near! (Plus, then the kids could see what the heck a groundhog was.) Oh, and we watched a couple short little youtube videos about groundhogs--they both involved highly cheesy singing..but the kids were VERY enthralled.

Then, we worked on the letter 'G' (for groundhog).

Ollie also made a picture for Cubby Bear.

(Lily pretty much just wandered around during this part)

Next up was snack. If you use your creative imagination...you can see that this is a little dirt mound (biscuit with cinnamon on top) and the little prune is our groundhog peaking out.

Finally, we acted it out. We had our groundhog hide in his hole, then PEAK OUT!

Ollie and Lily both tried it, too. (Oliver was convinced he saw his shadow.)
(can you see her 'peaking'?)

Later, I decided it was center time. (Which means, 'you kids go play on your own for a while!') They found dress-up clothes to be quite entertaining!

And no morning is complete without singing and dancing.

Thankfully, we survived two days being snowed in.
And we are SUPER excited to be able to go back to preschool again!

He Grew A Pouch!

A week or so ago, Oliver asked me if God would give him a pouch. So we prayed...and God answered!

This is where Cubby Bear spends most of his time: taking a nap, eating, playing, going to school (except he sleeps in Ollie's backpack DURING school), and pretty much any other time. It is pretty cute.


The funniest thing for me is that Ollie has conversations with Cubby Bear. (And Ollie does all the talking!)

"Where are we going?"
"We're going to school, Bear."
"What's that?"
"It's a place where I go to preschool."

"What's that sound?"
"It's the radio."

It's a little odd to hear him conversing alone with his bear, but I suppose that's normal.
And very entertaining.