Finished!!!

Bruce finished the kitchen over the weekend. He started tearing out the last cupboards, sink, and drywall Thursday. And had everything in by Sunday. The kitchen looks fantastic.







Our new countertop. Gorgeous!



The finished product. It's a far cry from how the kitchen looked before we started. Thanks Bruce for working so hard!

Keeping Quiet

It's nearly impossible to keep gifts a secret with a 2 1/2 year old in the house. Especially when she goes shopping with you, picks out presents, helps wrap them... We're just asking for trouble. Happy holidays.

The Holidays

Gearing up for another year of holiday cheer, we've begun the traditional Christmas preparations. Saturday we went to get a tree. Typically we go with my parents to a 'cut it yourself' place. So, we bundled up, loaded in the car, and drove to meet my parents. We followed them to the tree farm only to find the place closed. No sign, no trees for sale, nothing. Dang. Not knowing where else to go we headed for the local grocery store who had trees for sale out front. It just isn't the same. Those pines and spruces have been cut for months. The forest scent is long gone and the needles can't seem to fall from the tree fast enough. As luck would have it, a lady walked by and said 'If you want fresh trees, come to our tree farm. ' I recognized her as a teacher at my old high school, her son is a substitute teacher for my brother's school, and they live out by my parents. What a small world. So, after a few false starts we had the opportunity to take Carlie on her first hayride to find a tree. It was a lot of fun but it was freezing. Maybe 25 degrees and windy.

Last night we decorated our beautiful white pine. We dug out the box of decorations and turned on our favorite Christmas music (Andrew Peterson's Behold the Lamb of God). Carlie was so excited to help string the lights and hang the bulbs and other ornaments. Our tree is a little bottom heavy when it comes to decorations... Afterward we wrapped presents all the presents, except for Carlie's. Carlie wrapped a few by herself - and she really likes tape. It was a nice evening home together preparing for the holidays, the Holy day, preparing to celebrate the birth of Jesus together.

Cookies and Logic

Life at home with Carlie is vibrant, exciting, and often times - illogical. She's almost three and has a system of logic that only she can understand.

For example: Yesterday she wanted a cookie, not dinner. This was the subsequent conversation.
Carlie: Can I have this cookie?
Bruce: No.
Me: I'm making dinner. You'll be eating noodles in a minute.
Carlie (tearfully): I don't want to eat dinner. I want to eat a cookie.
Bruce (picks her up): You need to eat healthy food to grow up big and strong. You can't eat cookies all day, you would get fat. You want to be healthy.
Carlie (angry): But I want to be fat!

Um. Nope. Probably not. But I bet she did want that cookie pretty bad.


Sometimes I'm good with the preschooler logic stuff. The day before the cookie incident I scored! Dinner can be hard because Carlie is so excited Bruce is home. She dances, sings, doesn't sit down at all to eat. So....

Me (completely exasperated): Jesus gave us this food and He wants you to sit down and eat right now.
(note: I had already told her to sit and eat, but what I wanted didn't matter. But she does want to make Jesus happy. One day she asked if He could peel her apple instead of me)

Carlie (stops dancing): Did He say that Mom? Is He saying that now? Can you hear Him?
Me: Yes Carlie.
And then she sat down and ate her dinner!

I wonder what tonight will be like, but I bet it won't be boring!