Ta-Da!

Yahoo! The floors are in! Life is slowly returning to normal as we wipe away the sawdust and put everything back in its place. The boys are exhausted and the dog is sliding all over the floor, but all in all, life is good.

Meanwhile, Down on the Farm

We had to be away from the house during Operation Pergo, so my parents are kind enough to have us over. My mother flew back from Pennsylvania on Tuesday and brought my grandmother with her. I hadn't seen her in 5 years and she hadn't met the boys, so we especially needed to visit with her. Luke got a little restless, so Papa Dave offered to take him for a ride on the tractor. Luke was thrilled. After the tractor ride, they squeezed in a little baseball. Luke has a very exaggerated stance when he throws the ball, but he can throw pretty well for a little guy. He gives us a good laugh, too.

He even posed in mid-throw and said, "cheese!" I'm not sure where all of this drama comes from, but it certainly is entertaining. He has really been a good sport about being out of the house all week. I feel bad dragging him all around, but he seems pretty okay with it. What 3 year old boy wouldn't love a tractor ride with their Papa?

When we got home on Wednesday night, this is what we found. It looks great, even in it's half-finished state. We weren't quite sure what we were getting into, but I think we'll be pleased with the end result. It certainly is a messy little project...sawdust on EVERYTHING.

Operation Pergo

The "flooring guy" came this week and tackled a little project we're calling Operation Pergo. This is day 5 and it appears we are in a holding pattern. He had to use his handy-dandy saw to cut around all the cabinets in the kitchen, which apparently set him back a bit. He worked his tail off on Wednesday to finish the family room, kitchen, hallway and part of the play room. He hasn't been back since. It seems he has some kind of emergency, so hopefully we'll see him today.

This is how things looked just after "demolition". Ripping up the existing flooring took almost a whole day. The top picture is the family room, complete with Luke's "bed". He was convinced he could sleep downstairs for one night, but it just didn't happen. The second photo is the view from just inside the front door.

Look, Friends, It's Free!

My first giveaway, I'm so excited! It's the Dog Days of Summer Giveaway so please leave a comment and you are eligible to WIN! That's right. Something for nothing. No strings attached. Zip. Zilch. Zero fine print. What is this FREE item, you ask? Love and Respect by Dr. Emerson Eggerichs, a fanastic book that will transform your marriage. It's definitely a must-read, whether you've been married 10 days or 10 years. I will hold the drawing on Friday July 27th.

First Haircut

Poor Andrew. He was completely terrified from the minute we started this little adventure. He screamed so loud the other customers left. Oops. We tried the binky, but he kept spitting it out and it kept landing in the piles of hair falling from his giant noggin. I don't mind a little bacteria on the binky, but a binky coated in hair (even sweet little Andrew hair) is just a bit much. Kudos for the stylist, he was a champ...although the end result was just a smidge trendier than I normally go for...

Spiky isn't the best look for Andrew, but at least he still looks like a baby to me, for which I am grateful. I wasn't quite prepared for him to vault right into toddler-ness. He stopped crying as soon as I rescued him from the man with the buzzing clippers. As soon as I offered him a bottle, he was all smiles once again. Luke was very brave, sat in the chair and never made a peep. He is quite proud of his spiky orange hair and requested several photos. Thankfully I was able to move bath time to pre-nap instead of pre-bed, and the orange goo made a quick exit into the bath water. That is some nasty stuff and I just envisioned it smeared all over Luke's room, if left to his own devices. I don't think the creator of that stuff ever lived with small children.

Steve left for a guys' weekend in St. Louis this morning, just prior to the haircuts, so he missed the "spiky look". I thought he would get a kick out of this picture, especially since they look just like him!

We've Come A Long Way, Baby!

One of our stops in Spokane was my alma mater, Whitworth. We strolled around the campus and admired the many improvements. I can't believe it's been 9 years since we graduated. We spent Sunday afternoon with my former roommate, Kristen and her family. Her little dude, Rett (in the middle) is just a few months older than Andy. Kristen's dad said, "You've come a long way since Ballard hall!" He's right. We have and we wouldn't change a thing.

Road Trip!

On the road again...how quickly we have forgotten the trials and tribulations of our last adventure. Spokane was our destination, just a quick 5 hour jaunt on I-90. How tough could that be? Andy screamed for nearly 100 miles, followed closely by Luke's first experience with car sickness. I was ready to turn around, but the men in my life encouraged me to press on. After a wardrobe change for Luke and a quick cleansing of his car seat, we were back on track. I'm so glad we continued, as it ended up being a great weekend. We saw some dear friends, Luke rode the Ferris wheel for the first time and we squeezed in a quick visit with my cousin, Steve. Unfortunately, I was a big slacker in the photography department and the camera remained in storage for most of the trip. Here is one picture of Andy, beaming for the camera. He really does cry, honest.