Just some pics of the family

I love my boys.

Shelby has her daddy's eyes.
And mommy's legs... I believe they call our type of legs = "cankles."
Despite how chilly it is outside, Shelby refuses to wear anything else but pink dresses. AND her new favorite, little pink plastic shoes with a sparkly bow. Thank you Grandma J. for my pretty princess pumps.

More progress on the kitchen

Our wonderful children have had tremendous patience as we have been working on the kitchen since July. So far, they have managed to stay away from the power tools, paint and wires! Shelby has even picked up the broom and she tries to sweep the floor, walls and anything else the big broom will extend to! Harlan has been playing by himself outside. He does a good job playing alone but he keeps telling me that he can't wait until Shelby is 3 years old and can play with him more. They love each other and don't argue often... yet.

The granite is coming... the granite is coming!

By the way, look at that great looking guy in overalls!

We are grateful for amazing friends that have come over to help lift and cut granite in nippy weather instead of going for a morning deer hunt. Rob, you are the best! Thank you to Amanda for lending us your husband for a few hours.

This was the maiden cut of granite. We didn't know what to expect. So far, so good!

So above is the wall behind the stove with just primer. I was playing in my Photoshop program with color for the walls. No, it hasn't been painted in real life yet but I'm thinking of the below color. I have to have COLOR!

So, what do you think of this color for the walls?

Too late! I already bought the paint and I'm going with the red walls anyway!

Kitchen Remodel progress

So this is our kitchen before the remodeling started in July 2010. Yes, that was our only window in the entire kitchen.

You are looking at the North wall that had our stove with no place to put a hot pot or pan of cookies!

Yes, this was our sink area that looked out into the dining room/front door area.

And, yes, seen below was the ONLY counter space we had in the ENTIRE kitchen. It was a dark corner and you couldn't even see what you were working on because the light you see in the center is the ONLY light in the kitchen so you create a shadow on the counter. Total darkness.

Below is a teaser photo of what we have done so far. The counter you see in the foreground used to have a wall. I am standing in the dining room area taking this photo. There is LIGHT! There IS counter space now! Rich has done amazing work and pretty much on his own. He has torn out the lath & plaster, re-wired for more outlets, sheetrock, primed walls & used cabinets, put in can lights, painting, installing hardware on cabinets, put in a great big window, moved and modified the heater duct, granite cutting and MUCH MUCH more.

I'll keep you posted on the progress as I get time to upload these photos.

Dr. Harlan's Mad Lab 6th Birthday

What better way to turn 6 years old than with a Mad Lab party complete with ooooeeeyyy, goooeeeyyy slime and test tube experiments! Harlan had a blast at his birthday party. He had so many friends join him in his mad lab and that is what he enjoyed the most - celebrating with lots of friends. Kids came with crazy mad-scientist hair.

Doctors were greeted at the door with mad lab coats, lab goggles, and mad science kit. First everyone had to make an alien out of play-doh and googly-eyes AND they had to name their aliens. We had names from "Slimy" to "Fred."

Then the kiddos made their way to the test tube concoctions. They took eye droppers and made their own potions (different colored Gatorade juices). Everyone loved this project. They especially loved when they had to drink what they made.

Then, on their way to the "Dancing Spaghetti" station. Well, I think think most of them just enjoyed pouring vinegar and baking soda together rather than see tiny pieces of spaghetti moving in the test tube. Some of them had about 1/2 cup of baking soda and the experiment only required a couple teaspoons. Oh well, they had fun.

Then, we watched as Daddy Rich tried to suck a hard-boiled egg through the opening of an empty Starbucks bottle. First, he had a tough time keeping the matches lit inside the bottle (which kept the kiddos laughing), then after Mr. Rob's help, Rich was able to turn a hard-boiled egg into a sooted hard-boiled egg in a jar!

Then, we made balloons move with static electricity which only kept the kids occupied for about 2 minutes. Then, it was time to move outside for the grand finale. The Diet Coke and Mentos explosion outside. Well, you might call it a small fountain that lasted a 1/2 second but it was another segment to keep the kids entertained.

After cake and lots of presents - Harlan's birthday guests were ready to share their experiments with their families. I believe Brennan is still making test tube concoctions at his house.

Enjoy the photos:

Harlan in New Mexico

Harlan just recently got back from his 2-1/2 week trip to New Mexico. Karen's sister Janet and mom picked him up around the 4th of July and headed back with two 5-yr. old boys in the back seat. Harlan had so much fun on his adventures with his cousin Mikey. They hiked in the mountains, slid down the dunes at White Sands National Monument, saw a 3-D movie, played in the pool and parks countless times and many more adventures which I'm sure I'll hear more about as the year goes on. I hear something about New Mexico just about every day since he has been back. They look a little too natural holding these guns (above) don't they!? Mikey is on the left and Harlan is on the right.

Thank you Grandma, Grandpa and Auntie Janet for taking care of my boy. We really missed having him home but so glad that he will remember this trip forever!

Some bluegrass in the Park

We had a wonderful weekend as a family. We were treated Thursday night with a picnic on the boat. Rich treated us with homemade sandwiches, cantaloupe and fresh-from-the-oven cookies. We found a not-so-windy spot on the lake, anchored the boat and relaxed as we ate dinner just before we went fishing. Rich caught the biggest bass he has every caught before and Harlan and I got a few small ones. We love fishing! Harlan wants to go all of the time.

On Saturday evening, we found a bluegrass event at Old Prairie Town called Wheatstock. They had local bluegrass musicians playing for about 4-5 songs all day long. We just pulled up some chairs and watched it. Every once in a while, we made our way to the back of the park to get out of the sun and Karen found a hidden treasure of Topeka. This beautiful garden was the perfect backdrop to take some photos.

Hope you enjoy them.

Harlan - The Kindergarten Graduate and Ready for Summer in New Mexico

So, Harlan has now completed Kindergarten and here is his diploma. Woohoo! Harlan!

He seemed to like school but most of all recess time. Although he will always be the youngest in his class, he seemed to catch on to things well. I spoke to one of the room helpers and she said that Harlan was a really good listener especially during story time. Harlan loves when we read him a book and we are faithful at reading to him at least once a day since the day he was born. When he wants to, he can sound-out and read just about any word. I am so proud of him and I'm amazed how far he has come. At the beginning of the year, he struggled to even write his name and NOW he recognizes site words and tries to spell out words wonderfully!

Here is what he wrote on his last project of what he is going to do this summer.

I love the "kid writing." : )

(Interpretation: "I will go to New Mexico. Harlan")

Shelby's 2nd Birthday

We celebrated Shelby's birthday a few days after her actual birthday because we wanted our good friends and their kiddos to be there and they have crazy shifts. We couldn't really have the party at our house because we were ripping out some awful carpet and tile flooring in our bathroom so we thought guests wouldn't want to use the bathroom outside! Just trying to be thoughtful and all! Soooo, our wonderful friends, The Fishers, invited us to have the party at their place. They are so good to us. So here is Shelby, the princess, posing with Daddy and enjoying her special gifts from special family and friends.

Mother's Day 2010

I spent a great weekend with my family. On Friday, when I came home from work, I was handed my first Mother's Day gift from Harlan. Here it is:

For those of you that don't have the knack yet of reading "kid writing," it reads:

From Harlan

To Mom and Dad

It is lax Day (meaning "it is relax day")

I asked him if I could use this for Saturday instead of Friday since I just got home from a long day at work and wanted to start over on the relaxing stuff. He thought that was a pretty good idea.

On Saturday, Harlan and Daddy went fishing on the boat with our pastor and Shelby and I spent the day shopping and going to an event at the park with the Fisher Family.

On Sunday, Rich had to work but the day was so relaxing while the kids and I watched movies all afternoon! Harlan has now started a tradition and Mother's Day is now "Movie and Mother's Day." I'm looking forward to that for years to come.

Happy Mother's Day to everyone.

Easter 2010

So here is Harlan and Shelby on Easter day 2010. I had to take them to the park at the lake to take lots of pictures of them in their fancy clothes before I make them change into their play clothes. Shelby seems to prefer to run around bare-naked these days. Thank you Grandpa and Grandma Harris for the pretty purple dress. Thank you Grandma Josselyn for Shelby's pretty white shoes.

By the way, I managed to make a few of Shelby

's words out on Saturday and it was "poddy" as she was tugging at her britches and pointing to the bathroom. I did as she asked and the britches came off, set her on the "poddy" and a few minutes later, I heard the sweet sounds of trickling. It was a great Saturday. Our daughter wants to go potty before she even turns two! (I did take a picture of her going potty for the first time but I won't embarrass you and post it).

I just love these pictures and had to share...

Proud Family

We are excited to announce that Muddle had five healthy baby kitties last night. Muddy is a good mom and so far is glowing with pride.

Although we are happy to have new additions to our family, I would still preach to spay and neuter your puppies and kitties. There are too many animals without homes and I am one of those that didn't get Muddle spayed in time. You can bet that I will get this done as soon as I can.

Winter 2009/2010

So we need to update the blog since Christmas has passed! I've been itching to post photos from our trip to New Mexico (Karen's home state). We haven't been home in three years so it was good to see family and friends but we ran out of time and couldn't see everyone. We tried so hard! Anyway, enjoy the photos from the trip.

Here is Grandpa H. with his grandsons, Mikey and Harlan. Grandpa was trying to get his ancient projector working so we can show old movies of us. We got a few going but we'll try again when Grandpa gets the old 8mm onto DVDs!!! Hint, hint Grandpa!

Harlan jammin' out! Former member of KISS.

Grandma J. and Shelby

Here is Shelby, Harlan and their cousin, Mikey.

Forget gifts, there was a box laying around!

Harlan was amazed at the mountains. He, of course, doesn't remember seeing the mountains when he was two so we thought it was so cool that we were going through the mountains and a tunnel. We are standing near a tunnel in the mountain here. Karen has many memories going through this tunnel to play in the snow and go camping. There is an entry point where you can walk down the canyon here.

Karen had her first helicopter ride with our good friend Spencer. He recently became a helicopter pilot trainer and took us up for a surprise ride. I had such a blast! By the way, Spencer can give you a ride too. Just contact me and I'll send you his info. What an amazing experience! This is a corner of my hometown by the way.

Well, I have a lot more photos to share from the trip but I'll won't overwhelm you all at once. I'll leave you with this sweet photo of the kiddos taken in Jan. 2010.

Be sure to comment if you like any of these. We would love to know if our family and friends is reading this. Take care.