Our Cute Yellow House

Having your house painted doesn't necessarily hit the top of the "exciting" list for most people, but when you've been working for three summers, almost single-handedly, to paint your house, and you finally hire someone and it gets done in a week...that's exciting! I've always loved yellow houses with red doors. Doesn't she look cute!

P.S. I think I'll celebrate the end of my house painting days with a massage, or maybe a manicure!

Happy Birthday to Me

Here are pictures of our new microwave...a gift from Mike's Dad and Step-mom for my birthday. It really makes the kitchen look finished. Not only do we have a new microwave, but our malfunctioning outdoor flood light has been replaced, and the trim on my countertop has been re-glued. Thank you Grandma and Grandpa Mundy!

Ben's Birthday Party

To quote Ben, this was the "coolest day ever". The superhero invasion (SIXTEEN OF THEM) began around 11:00. We played the spiderweb game, ate hot dogs and cupcakes, and Ben was given so many fun presents. Grandma and Grandpa Mundy were here to help (thank goodness!), the weather was perfect, and we all had a ball. I have to agree...one of the coolest days ever.

Happy #6 Ben!!!

Have no fear...the RED RANGER is here!!

Gas to get to Mom's Neighborhood Garage Sale: about 50 cents

Red Power Ranger Costume: $3.00

Having a son with super powers who can leap small minivans in a single bound: Priceless.

Trike-a-thon!!

Here are some cute pictures from Sam's Trike-a-thon today. It was a fundraiser for his preschool which is adding a multi-sensory room for kids with special needs. Sam did fifteen laps, half of which were on the back of a tandem trike with Ben. It was very sweet. Ben peddled so hard with Sam in tow that when he took of his helmet to eat pizza, his hair was drenched with sweat. Notice he is dressed as a Power Ranger (see next post).

Goodbye, Good luck, We love you!!

This morning we took Mike to the airport to start his new adventure/job with MACTEC Engineering. We ate nachos at the airport while we waited. Both boys wanted to be on his lap. We watched his plane fly away, and the kids seemed okay. I think I was the only one who was a little teary. He flies to Kennesaw, Georgia today, and leaves Friday for Kabul Afghanistan. He will be doing architecture and planning for the Afghanistan police and military. We will see him again on January 5th, his first visit home. It will be a year of some sacrifices for our family, but the blessings of this job coming into our life will affect our family for the best.

We love you Dad!

My New Job

I can't count the number of times I said (to myself and outloud) that I probably would never do engineering work again. I'm now eating those words, and really enjoying it! A woman I worked with briefly at HNTB over five years ago has started her own firm, and called me a few weeks ago to see if I would be interested in some contract work. As she described the work, I started thinking about spreadsheets, mechanical pencils, neat calculations on graph paper, and my calculator, and I got so excited! (What can I say, I will always be a math nerd at heart). I said yes, and I'm about 14 hours into my first project. Here is a picture of my "spread" on the dining room table.

Sam's Walker Antics

While sitting on the couch one day last week, I heard Sam say, "Mom, look at me!" I turned to see him standing in his walker. He had gotten up there by himself, which is a first, and a big surprise to see him show interest in the walker when he's not being made to use it. I got a video of him pulling up, and then doing a little trick. This was his idea...don't panic when you watch it.