more on the house

Downstairs bathroom

yay! it has a shower that works


Katie's bedroom--she's was totally willing to take the smallest bedroom on the condition that she didn't have to share.


We put the closet organizers in every closet. It makes me so happy to open them. One of my favorite things about the house is the doors--I love them.

the big move

Christmas isn't the ideal time to move. Moving in a storm isn't ideal either. Moving to a house that's not quite finished isn't probably a good idea. Moving, then having Christmas, then going out of town 2 days later isn't the best idea either. Getting home from vacation and preparing for a new school less than 48 hours later can get a little hectic. Aren't our lives EXCITING! It turns out driving 12 hours to get to my brother's wedding was a little stressful. Do you know that parts of this country got 57 inches of snow in 12 days? We happen to drive right to that area. Stores were being shut down for collapsed roofs--pretty crazy. The miracle is we did it all and are still alive. There was only one small accident when my dad backed his tractor into our car while clearing the driveway (tractors are needed for very long driveways in the country). I suppose its not very funny, but it makes me laugh thinking about it.

Anyway, as of last night we have closet shelves installed in 2 out of 6 closets. The others have no rods and no shelves which is continuing to make the house messy. Oh well, come what may and love it right? We hope that the dryer outlet will get swapped out for a new one today so that we can finally do laundry.

Isn't it so beautiful. Its definitely my favorite room. Its so nice to be able to fit our table in its own spot. The skylight gives some great light too. You'd be surprised how much I had to clean just to get this picture. Other pictures may be weeks away.

Getting Yelled At

Yesterday my kids missed the bus. Since it was only their second day at a new school I happily drove to the school to pick them up. As I approached a bus that was stopped, the bus driver (who happened to be our bus driver) waved me down to stop. Seeing that the kids were safely off the bus I rolled down my window and stopped to talk with him. I thought he had some information on why my kids missed the bus. Anyway, as I got closer he yelled stop, stop STOP. By this point his face was really red and he was obviously mad. What I thought was him wanting to talk to me was really a motion to stop until he had shut the bus door. Yeah, I know, pretty dumb of me not to have thought of that. I was a little distracted about the kids missing the bus and wondered if they would be safe standing outside the school waiting for me. Anyway, even after I profusely apologized he was still obviously mad. He impatiently waved me to move along. As I drove on I felt that terrible "being yelled at" feeling. You know the one, someone hates you (or at least it seems that way) when you didn't intentionally make a mistake. You even apologized for your mistake and they are still holding it against you. It made me think about my own yelling I sometimes do at home. I thought the kids probably feel the same way, like they're hated. I think speaking kindly to them even while dealing out consequences will help them feel happier and better about themselves in the long run. Sometimes when I yell at Grant (seems the thing to do when he's wielding a sharp knife) he just lays down and cries. He obviously doesn't understand and doesn't really deserve to be yelled at. So I'm determined not to yell anymore.