Ahhhhh....forward progress

   As nice as the roof looks and as "cleaner" as the inside looks, I just haven't felt like I did yesterday.  Monday made "forward progress" at the house...in my opinion!  Not that all that Jack and Josh have done isn't forward progress, but, my oh my...how nice it was to actually see a new window in place.

   Last week was "porch week" where Josh and Jack placed the wrap around porch on the house.  It looks nice and will continue to be a much anticipated space to enjoy time outside at our house.

  
   This week is finally "window week".  Out with the old and in with the new.  Of course, we had to choose the day with 35+ mph gusts to start this process.  And, after the opening was cut (from 2 previous windows being puled out and the framing between them cut out) we decided to put a much larger window in that area instead of our original choice. But, why not?  It's only the 2nd largest/heaviest window unit we bought.  And we'll only have to take it right out the north side of the house...upstairs...RIGHT where the wind is blowing the strongest.

   Pictures will prove that we survived...although I wasn't sure we were going to get it up the stairs in the house to begin with.  I pretended to be helpful, but might have added labor to that process as I held the middle portion of the window as it was in route.   Anyway...the final outcome was very pleasing to our eye!  And I'm excited to see how all the other windows will look in their new spots!

Easter Campout

   Saturday afternoon, we decided it would be a good night to camp out in our yard. Since we can't live in the house yet, why not enjoy Easter morning with breakfast by the campfire as the sun comes up!?!

   So, we left the house to go back to Mama and Papa's to get tents, sleeping bags, food, etc. (amazingly I know where each of those things are and they are easily accessible).  And we headed back to our house with all the supplies.  The boys were excited...especially Joe who kept saying, "I am just so excited. I like camping out!"

   As we waited for the dinner to cook, the boys hunted Easter eggs.  They found all but one of them hidden in the (thick) grass near the barn.  After a thorough search, we finally found the final egg.  Then, they enjoyed finding the surprises inside the eggs (candy, money, and Legos!).

 

Our burgers were well worth the wait...as were the roasted marshmallows.  By then, we were all ready to head to bed.  It was a cool enough night to stay comfortable yet warm enough to stay warm.  So, we slept!   And although we didn't hear any coons during the night, I did hear a train whistle several times in the distance at about 4:15 am.  I feel sorry for those that have to hear that often! 

Sunday morning (Easter), I got up to get the fire started.  Just after I got it started, the wind really picked up...and never died off.  So, breakfast took longer to fix since the heat wasn't staying constant under the food.  And the boys finally wanted out of the tent b/c it was being blown around so much!

  We ate a quick breakfast before jumping in the car to head back to Mama and Papa's for showers so we could get to church.  (Jake had made sure we thought through the time frames the night before so we wouldn't miss church.)   The boys wore their ties with jeans and cowboy boots.  I didn't get to take a picture before church...but caught Joe later. 
 

Overall, it was a memorable event.  I'm not sure if we'll ever find reason to camp out the night before Easter  again...or maybe it will be a new tradition! :) I'll let you know next year when I see the weather forecast!

Good Friday

    So, it's Good Friday and all week, we've been re-enacting the events of Passion Week day by day.  The stuffed animals have come in handy (which was a spur of the moment idea on Palm Sunday when I sent Jake and Joe to the town nearby--their bedroom--to get a donkey--"Sled" the stuff animal--for Jesus--Joe's bear--to ride).
   Below, you can see that Jesus has been put in the grave (under the recliner) and has 4 soldiers guarding the tomb.  It appears two are guarding while 2 have fallen asleep.  But no worries...they'll take turns until Sunday! :)

Opening Day

   Opening Day of baseball season is usually bittersweet when a Cubs fan.  Sweet because the season is about to start again and it means a chance to soak up a game at Wrigley.  Bitter because the Cubs usually start the season with a loss...which sets such a questionable tone for the season.

   So...to keep the sweet side of things...Opening Day is a big deal in our house.  The pillow cases get changed to Cubs pillow cases.  Breakfast usually consists of some form of baseball shaped objects.  And then there are the library books for reading good baseball stories.  Oh, and don't let me forget the traditional dinner of brats!!!!

Breakfast this year...pancakes with strawberries and yogurt.

And here are some shots of Jake gearing up for Opening Day.  (Joe still was sick...so not as participatory!)

Swimming

   The Decatur County Tiger Sharks swim team has a spring swim clinic in the month of April.  During the last 45 minutes, there is a "learn to swim" portion.  So, Jake had originally said he wanted to do this. But suddenly when it came time to try it, he had cold feet.  However, Joe was packing his bag at 10 am Monday...ready to swim.
    So, I figured Jake was anxious about his swimming skills having not been in the water for many months.  It seems to happen at the start of every summer this way.  And then by the end of the summer he gains a bunch of confidence and really excels. 
   I decided to take the boys a little early and let Jake watch what was happening.  As we sat watching, Joe kept saying, "Come on, Mom.  Let's go swimming!"
   Finally, I got the okay from Jake to try it.  So, the boys got changed and I got them registered.  They headed into the pool area, sat down with the other kids, and just tried to absorb all that was around them.  Joe stuck close to Jake (and, of late, reaches his arm to hold onto Jake, too, wanting to keep the familiar close by).  They did well...especially since Daddy got to get in with them and help adjust them to the situation.
    And afterwards...they were both glad they had gotten to go swimming.  They were freezing cold in the water, so that made it a little tougher.  But they were excited for Tuesday.

   Later, I found out that Jake never took his undies off when putting his suit on.  Joe found this really funny.
   When we got home, Joe was very focused on taking his bag to the bedroom and unpacking the wet things and helping hang them up.  Very cute...especially as he comments along the way on what he is doing!

Ho-ho-ho-hosanna

     The stomach flu almost kept both boys from getting to sing in the Palm Sunday Children's singing.  However, Jake recovered from sickness and was able to participate.  Poor little Joe practiced very well on Saturday, but came down with the flu on Sunday.  So, he watched ("I want to watch and sing from my chair" he said) and we were sad he didn't get to join in...especially on Monday when he asked what day he would get to sing up front.
Here are some pictures from the practice time on Saturday...

Take a listen to their practice...

   Jake did a great job singing with confidence.  He was so nervous before the practice time on Saturday... "Mom, what should I wear to practice?"  "Mom, I'm kind of nervous."  So, we talked about how I get nervous when I play the piano in church, but that we play and sing for an audience of One...so we don't have to worry about all the people listening in when we're focused on the One.
   On Sunday, I asked Jake if he was nervous.  He said, "Nope!"   Oh...and he looked pretty sharp in his dress shirt and tie!  :)

I want to keep doing more...

   For a kid that doesn't like eggs, Joe sure likes coloring Easter eggs.  He delighted in dipping them (very carefully, too) and watching them change color.  He carefully rolled them and patiently waited.  Now, of course, Jake did the same exact thing.  But it's so much more amazing for Joe to do such things! :)

When Joe finished coloring his 6th egg, he immediately said, "Mom, I want to keep doing more...!"

As of right now, there are 3 uneaten of Jake's hard boiled colored eggs and all 6 of Joe's uneaten.  Imagine that!  Also funny was Joe ready to crack the hard boiled egg (for Josh) but poised to crack it like a raw egg.  We had to explain that it was hard inside! :)