Chorus and Band Concert

Chorus and Band Concert evening was a bunch of fun.

 Here is a picture of our favorite performers.  They were nervous but did a great job.

Lily, Mia, and Elie

ESM 4th and 5th grade band

ESM Choir

Our performers with Grandpa Dave en route to our Root-beer float celebration.

December Birthdays

With December and it's birthday craziness under our belt I can post some pictures of the festivities.  Benjamin got this lego set from his birth Mother.  He was so excited.

 His only company request to help celebrate was to have a visit from his birth grandparents.  They were super gracious to accept a dinner invite and pack that into their already busy weekend schedule.  We sure love them and are grateful to them for their support of our little family.

 Benjamin's other request was for a ventriloquist dummy.  He was promptly named Dave and has been preforming with Ben ever-since.

 This was the first public performance at school!

 The birthday cake was a Mystery Machine.  What a fun time  How can he be 9 already?  Benjamin's friend Kimball Coffey and their family came to celebrate with us on Ben's actual birthday.

Ben is a great kid with such a fun personality.  He is a joy to be around and we love his sense of humor and whit.  We are so happy to have him in our family.


 Andy's birthday was celebrated in traditional Christmas Eve fashion around here.  He was thrilled with his Scout book and got the game Cover your Assets.

He opted to forgo a cake and chose Apple-crisp for his birthday celebration.  It was delicious and a fun shift from the cake manufacturing December that I an use to. We are proud of Andy.  His is a math wizard with straight A's in school.  His teachers go on and on about our quirky nut-job!  He definitely makes for good entertainment around these parts!

 Connor delighted in a Trumpet of his very own for his birthday.  Previously he had been borrowing a trumpet from the school.  Now, he has his own.  We are treated to Star Wars and Mozart 5th often.

 Connor's cake of choice was a cheesecake.  It was also mighty delicious and a perfect way to spend New Years eve.

Connor turned 12 and was ordained a Deacon.  He is a great kid that makes good choices often.  It is nice to see him pass the sacrament and watch him make good friends at church.   

We are proud of these boys and grateful to have the chance to celebrate them!

Fall in Upstate NY

Fall in upstate NY is beautiful. Here is a view from our driveway. I love this time of year.

We used the Columbus day holiday to finish the siding on the house and move in to the addition.  The floors were refinished and are beautiful.  The addition really looks lovely!  Joseph did a terrific job on the siding.  He is so glad to be done with that project.

House update

We are chipping away at the siding and related projects on our addition. The grass is just starting to come in and we are definitely feeling grateful for the increased space and the nice new traffic flow this expansion has allowed.

This is where we closed off the old opening to the living room.  It made a nice recessed space for the piano and made the living room much more symmetrical.  After the flooring is complete and heating we will work on the door trim and crown molding.  

 I love the wall color that we choose.  We did a pearl stencil on the walls after the paint was up that I really love too.  It's very subtle but in the right light looks lovely.

I'm so happy about our new space.  After the floors get sanded next week we will bring the computer and computer hutch back up to the family room.  Slowly we're getting everything put together and I am loving the result.

Installing Hardwood

Our hardwood floors are in and looking so nice. Special thanks to our friend Dave Ward (what a great last name) who came with his family on a precious Saturday morning and helped us install them. Andrew got to us the chop saw and didn't chop off his fingers. He was a great helper!

Joseph's Birthday

While we face our birthdays with less and less excitement at the prospect of getting older - the kids on the other hand think it is a time for celebration. They never let our special day pass without some birthday surprise. This year Lily decorated the basement and made a word scramble for Daddy to solve. Joseph was lucky to get the dutch oven he hinted at and a new tool bag. He got a flashlight with a laser-light in it too that the kids are all to willing to play with.  Alec chases it like a cat which amuses Joseph greatly.  Sometime when I am busy packing lunches before school he gets the light out and Alec is on the prowl.  It is kind of a crack up.

1000 Islands

We took some time out of our construction project to do one more camping trip for the summer. We went to the 1000 islands and found that there is a whole other part of New York state that we want to explore.

The weather is turning cooler and while we were expecting it, the kids were disappointed that they couldn't swim.  They enjoyed exploring and playing in a new and exciting place.

The coastline was beautiful and we will definitely make it a point to go back!