More Progress

The house is progressing nicely. Wendy feels as though we aren't getting a commitment on our closing date. As for me, I'm not worried. I'm fairly confident that on or around April 29th we will close on our new home. It's very exciting. 

One important note: a close friend has become our construction manager. Good news that we will have someone we can rely on to get us into our home as quickly as possible. 

Here are some of the updates that we can see as our home progresses to completion. 

1. A/C unit installed

2. Gas hooked up

3. Garage door painted

4. Front door installed and painted. 

Guest Post by Dave

Big Baseball Dreams

Ethan took a break from his Taekwondo and is pursuing his dreams of being a baseball star. He has had to change teams multiple times but he has been dedicated to progress. He used to be a little afraid if missing the ball but now he wants to make the hits so bad he will make some wild swings. It may be the only way to make a hit when you play kid pitch.

I took a couple videos of Ethan making the big hits. He first one he makes good contact but it ends up a foul ball. You can see how his swing is not necessarily a clean swing but he hits the ball. The second video the hit is good and he almost surprises himself. You can tell because his running is not necessarily straight.

Guest Post By Dave

Love in the Air

Paige has a friend she has been friends with for a long time. They are almost betrothed and we as parents do little to squwelsh it. The house we are building is going to be just down the street from his house. Here's the latest note she wrote. 

Should I be worried?

Getting So Close

Our home is moving along at a good pace. They continue to manage our expectations as well as jump around in their estimates. We hear one week it's moved up to the end of April and the next week it could roll to early May. 

We know it's close as we go to watch the progress. They just put in all the hardwood floors and covered then with paper so I didn't get a picture of them. I just went last night and the electrician had been there. We have light fixtures and outlet covers. 

The brick and stone work is all done and they have framed the walk from our driveway to the front porch. 

They finished our showers and the only things missing in the bathrooms now are sinks and faucets. 

The fireplace stone is I and it looks great. We are excited to have a fireplace that actually puts out heat. The one in our last home was purely decorative. 

Looks like we are waiting on landscaping, carpets, sinks and faucets, inspections and many little touch-ups. It can't be too much longer. 

Guest Post By Dave

Wood Work. Done!

This morning Addy and I stopped by the house before I dropped her at school. It was a little early and they are locking the doors on the house now but the garage door was open. We didn't know the garage door was open when we first got there so we walked around the side of the house to see inside. Bad idea! Lots of mud on the shoes that takes forever to get off. 

When we discovered the garage door was open we tried to clean off some mud and then headed inside. 

I hadn't been to the house in awhile and I haven't updated this blog. Things are coming along nicely. The texture is done and the cabinets are all in. They have all the wood work and stairs all in. Now I suspect we are into the painting and staining stage. But what do I know. We should receive an email from our sales agent today to update us on what is next. 

We are continuing to get excited. But now it feels like it is starting to drag on. We are so blessed to be going through this experience of building a home. You realize quickly that it takes much longer than they do it on tv. 

Guest Post By Dave

Paige's Date with Mom

As an investment in date nights for Wendy and I, as well as for the kids, I bought season tickets to Dallas Summer Musicals. It didn't cost a whole lot for 6 shows because we bought seats way in the back but it has been nice Wendy and I have already enjoyed White Christmas and Ghost. Tonight it's Paige's turn. Her and her mom are going to see the Little Mermaid. I had hoped she would be more excited but it may be that I am comparing her to Tatum who was so sad that she is not going. Paige sounded excited this morning and I'm sure she will have a great time. 

She needed to take a bath before they could go because it's going to be a late night. She also needed to dress up. We'll look at that they match. How sweet?

I decided we should take the whole family when Wizard of Oz comes. So I'm going to buy 4 more tickets for that show. I've even invited Grandma, we'll see if grandpa wants to come but I'm not sure. 

Guest Post By Dave

Energy Efficiency

A very exciting part of our home is the energy efficient features that come standard. And of these features the foam insulation is going to be the most exciting cost cutting feature. Our old home took a lot to hear up and to cool down. And when it never really got to a good temperature. With the foam insulation that encapsulates our new home we should expect to have some serious money as compared to our old place. 

It is pretty cool to see what it looks like to have the inside of our house covered in foam. 

Guest Post By Dave

Our New home

I'm a little behind schedule but the construction of our new home is not. Better late than never, I always say. 

For some strange and wonderful reason we came to the decision th build ourselves a new home. I really do know the reason and I think it has been a long time coming. I know Wendy would agree as well. She has been praying for the opportunity to upgrade for some time.  

We did many great things to our old home and when we left it, it looked the best it has ever looked for us. Of course, that is only my opinion. 

The stars aligned with our house getting a good price, a good location for a new home and our finances working to our favor. 

So we get things started with selling our home quickly. We had three offers after only 6 days. It was the fantastic help of a great realtor Michele Crawford and her team of professionals. Not to mention all the hard work and stress Wendy went through to get our house ready to sell. I really can't say enough a about the amount of effort Wendy put into this whole process. Then we sign for the home we like, visit the design center a couple of times and try to make the best decorating descisions we can. And we are on our a way. 

We had many delays with weather and holidays (we started the process around Thanksgiving) but our builder has worked hard and our house is going up fast. 

Before we even had our pre-construction meeting they had our water land sewage lines in. 

By January 19th we had concrete poured and ready for framing. 

They were moving along and BOOM, we were framing. 

By February 4 they had finished plumbing and into the electrical. 

Our pre-drywall is tomorrow and we are getting super excited. 

Guest Post By Dave

Christmas 2011

We love Christmas! Carriage rides, hot cocoa, gingerbread houses, pajamas, elves, and more memories made with loved ones. I am so grateful for our wonderful blessings. We got to enjoy some great time celebrating Christmas this year. I hope my kids are able to realize how blessed they are not only to have a nice home, clothes, food, and gifts under the tree but to have a knowledge of Jesus Christ. It is the best time of year hands down

Impromptu trip to Tennessee

What do you get kids who have way too much stuff and a mom who is stressing about how to entertain 4 kids for a week for Christmas? A trip to see family! Dave and I decided that some of our Christmas budget would be better spent on Christmas memories rather than Christmas gifts so we suprised our kids the week before Christmas with a trip to Tennessee to see their cousins. This trip was a lot of time on the road since my brother Kevin moved to Eastern Tennesse and we made far too many wrong turns but when the cousins got together it was well worth it.

The kids spent a ton of time, playing, fighting, fighting, playing. We had several rainy days and a lot time inside made for some cranky kiddos. That's what family is all about right?

We really enjoyed our time in Eastern Tennesse, the weather was perfect and that part of the country is beautiful. My brother took us to a park near them that is inspired by The Chronicles of Narnia...one of the coolest parks I have been to.

It was so nice to be around my brothers, play games all night, watch the kids play, and catch up on so much. I couldn't think of anything better for Christmas than that time with my brothers that I miss so much.

Oh Canada......and 8 states along the way.

Roadtrip!!!

We had been siking ourselves up for this trip for a long time. Canada is a long way away from Texas, especially with 4 small kids in the car. I can honestly say we had some adventures along the way.

Tatum had no trouble entertaining herself, thus the body artwork done in the early stages of our trip.

Our car broke down in Colorado adding a little extra relaxation to our trip since we were stuck in a hotel with no car to get us around.

We stopped in Utah for a few days visiting good friends and showing our kids our roots at temple square.

Picnicing in Wyoming

Family Reunion in British Columbia, Canada

We finally arrived in Canada-first to Calgary and then another 6 hour drive to our cabin on Shuswap Lake, British Columbia. HEAVEN, even if we are sharing a cabin with almost 50 other family members. Its all about spending time together right?!

Addyson with her cousin Kayla

That is some seriously cold water....seriously!!!

Ethan exploring nature with dragonflies.

Margaret Falls, supposedly you are supposed to be able to walk behind the falls but as you can see that was not the case. But Dave had to try it of course while I bit my nails and freaked out a little.

The kids were prepared to swim in the pool under the waterfall......um sorry kids, that aint happening. It was a great hike and so pretty though.

It looked like a good tree to climb I guess.

Lee Family Talent Show

No Lee family reunion is complete without our Lee Family talent show. Here are just a few our family's talents:

Paige is Justin Bieber's biggest fan and should really get a spot as his backup dancer, she has some pretty sweet moves, not to mention her sidekick Tatum is possibly the cutest backup dancer I have ever seen.

Addyson also did a little Justin Bieber number with her cousins Kayla and McKenna. There was even some rapping thrown into it.

Ethan showing off the stuff he has learned in Karate.

Dave couldn't let the young kids outdance him.

We had a great week at the cabin and enjoyed our time spent with family. The kids don't get to see their cousins in Canada so we were so happy to give them the opportunity to get to know them a little better.

Oregon

On our way home we figured what the heck Oregon is just south of British Columbia lets pay my brother and his family a visit especially since my Dad was visiting at the same time. We miss living in Oregon for sure. Visiting in the summer is hard because it is so perfect but I had to keep reminding myself that the weather is not that nice most of the time and we do really like Texas, just for different reasons. It was so nice to be outside and not dying of heat exhaustion. We took the kids for a hike through the greenest trails they have ever seen.

The kids with Grandpa Peterson.

Family is the best!

It was really hard to leave Oregon and get back to the road but we were excited to sleep in our beds and get back to our schedules. The ride home was rough with everyone getting sick, me getting a kidney stone, and taking the long route home but we made it alive. So many adventures, we would do it again in a heartbeat!

Addyson's 9th Birthday Party

Okay, so it has been a long time since I have sat down and blogged, needless to say that I am a bit behind. The more behind I get the less motivated I am to spend hours posting pictures and journaling about the happenings of our family so I am just going to start with the most recent and maybe I will slowly slip in some old stuff.

So, the most recent news at our house is that our oldest Addyson turned 9 years old! She celebrated her 9th Birthday with a "Spa" Themed party! Months ago when she was planning out her party she told me that she wanted to go to with a bunch of friends to get pedicures and of course the $$$$ was all I could think about- thats like $25 per girl. And where she randomly decided that she wanted to get pedicures I have no clue because the last time we tried that with her she sort of freaked out and refused to let anyone touch her feet?! Anyway, so I decided to have her friends over to our house for a fun night of pampering!

The girls loved the face masks!The cucumbers were Addyson's touch.

Paige was in heaven at Addyson's party- she loved hanging out with all of the older girls and she always digs girly stuff!

Four of the most amazing friends volunteered to help get the girls beautified!

We got the girls all sugared up on cupcakes and a candy buffet and let them loose and party!

All of the girls invited showed to Addyson's party, she has some pretty wonderful friends and was very lucky to be able to celebrate her Birthday with so many friends! Happy 9th Birthday Addyson!

Cruising to Mexico

Just in case I haven't said this enough, We have the greatest group of friends! They are so great, that they were all willing and excited to take 5 days away from jobs and kids to

Par-tay! With 27 kids between 8 couples that was no easy feat but we did it and it was a blast!
5 a.m. the morning of April 17th our amazing friends Earl and Cyndi(the newlyweds) picked us up in what we like to call "The Party Bus". Earl has a bus just laying around to haul people around and what better time to use it then to haul 14 of us down to Galvaston together. We arrived, boarded our boat, had some food, and slept! Exciting, I know, but we needed our energy for the good times to come.

It was the ideal vacation for all of us. We had our hubbies (with no kids) for some great couple time and we had super fun friends to hang out with in between. Dave and I don't always have the same interests but each of us felt free to do what we wanted because we knew that the other always had someone else to hang with.

The girls had a lot of "girl time"

The guys had their "Guy time"

Lots of relaxing, sunbathing, reading, chatting

Late night hot tubbing.
Late night junkfood fests and games.
Good times with Darla at the Karaoke Bar.
Dancing, even those who don't dance- they danced:)
Getting dressed up and eating nice dinners.
All the girls on Formal night
And the men!

The first stop was Progresso, Mexico.

Dave is not much of a sunbathing type of guy, as you can see by his ghostly glow. So, he opted to skip the beach and check out the Ruins at Uxmal with the Newlyweds, Justin, and Andrew.

When we went to Progresso on our last trip we visited the Chichinitza Ruins, which was very cool but we weren't allowed to climb the pyramids- not cool. At Uxmal they were able to, I was a little jealous.

Justin, is the photographer of the crew. He took some amazing pictures.

While they were hiking around the ruins in sweltering heat the rest of us were enjoying some sun and sand on a private beach. We played a little sand volleyball, got massages, and swam in the ocean.

It is a good thing that we had an ex spanish teacher in our group to do the negotiating. Dave T. was able to get us a screaming deal for the private beach- Raul was our guide who hooked us up with transportation to and from the beach and he even threw in some ice cold Cokes. We learned a lot from him and about him and he even invited us to his home on our next visit:)

Second stop- Cozumel, Mexico

We chose to do an excursion that involved rock climbing, repelling, zip lining, and snorkeling. It was a great excursion for me- that stuff makes me feel so alive! I loved it!

Dorky picture but I love it!

Enjoying the sunset on our last night. We even saw dolphins leaping in the water.

Our last day at sea we had a big scare when the captain saw a lone buoy in the water a little late and took a VERY sharp turn which caused the boat to tilt quite significantly sending everyone into Titanic mode. There were people screaming "we're sinking"! We even had friends who were standing at the edge of the ship contemplating jumping! I would be lying if I said that it didn't scare me but alas we lived to tell about it:)

The aftermath in the cafeteria. I lost my mongolian grill- dangit!

On our way to the shuttle from the pier we noticed camera crews trying to get stories about "the tilt" so of course some of us couldn't resist getting in front of the camera and telling the most dramatic story possible. Unfortunately the camera crews later interviewed children, which of course trumped our story.

We really missed our kids and were excited to get back to them but it was definitely hard to re adjust ourselves back to working and running and stress. I just wanted to lie down and take a nap. I realized a couple of things while on this trip: 1. I really can be a fun and adventurous person when I am not stressed 2: I am not as old as I feel 3: I am very very lucky to have been able to go on this trip. We made some of the best memories and got even closer. A bi-annual couples trip just may be our new tradition.