Updates

On a whim, a week and a half ago, my I-like-my-time-off-as-long-as-I-have-something-to-do husband decided that "we" (meaning "he") were going to update the kitchen. When we bought this house the kitchen was not the selling point. The kitchen has been on our list of things to do ever since we moved in, but we just haven't had the time. We bought a portable dishwasher because the kitchen didn't have one, and we were lacking major counter/cupboard space. Within days of moving in we hung some cupboards on one wall, but the kitchen has never been practical or very fun to use. We adapted, but it took some effort.

Thanks to my super-handy husband, we now have a kitchen that looks nice (ignore the non-painting...we didn't have time to do that before our summer guests arrive) and a dishwasher that is installed under the counter that I don't have roll across the floor and plug-in to the wall and sink.

Pay no attention to the water bottles on the counter.

Places to Go

Moments before this picture was taken, Gianna entered the room and said matter-of-factly, "I need the keys."

For now.

I really need to post some new pictures of all of our summertime adventures, but for now just a quick update.

My dad is thankfully recovery very well. I am so grateful for that.

Our trip was fun, but long. I think each year it will get shorter, not because I enjoy being around our family any less, but I love being home more and more.

We really do feel settled here. Our house feels like home and our town feels like home. It's nice.

Brett decided on a whim last Saturday that our home needing a little updating. So, our kitchen was targeted. Poor unsuspecting kitchen. I didn't get any "before" pictures because Brett didn't give me any time before he had things ripped up. There will definitely be "after" pictures. Not everything will be finished. We are hoping to make it to a stopping spot in time for a few weeks of some very important visitors! If not, then I'm afraid we'll have to serve pizza and sandwiches every night. One more day on it and I think we'll be good to go.

Aidan and Emma have been playing really well together for the past two days. The usually get along well, but the past couple of days they have been having a lot of fun. This is good, unless you are their little sister. Poor Gigi. She's been my shadow and I've been trying hard, amidst our mess, to pay extra attention to her.

I've been staying up late for the past few nights planning next year's school year. Tonight I'm going to go to bed regardless of the piles of stuff that still need my attention.

Veronica is growing up so fast. She loves grabbing my face and giggles any time Aidan says anything. He will ask me what time we are leaving, "giggle, giggle", tell me he's going outside, "giggle, giggle", inform me that he wants to have a snack, "giggle, giggle". Truly, it matters not to this little one. She loves her big brother and no one is going to convince her otherwise (and I wouldn't even try).

Do over!

Yesterday was a do-over day. You know, the kind when really nothing seems to be going right. We were almost hit 3 times driving into my parent's house, I was stood up by my lunch date (she wrote the wrong day down and has since been forgiven, I was bit by a dog (ouch!), and we almost ran out of gas on our way back from a friend's house.

Good thing our whole trip hasn't been a do-over. We've been having a lot of fun. The kids have been fantastic and we've just had a great time.

On Location

This post comes while staying with some great friends in Fort Collins, CO. We have begun our summer journey and we have about two more weeks to go until we pull up into our little garage in northwest WI.

The beginning of our trip was fantastic with lots of cousins and lots of my dad. He's looking fantastic. He's up and about and I think he's being pretty reasonable about taking naps when he needs them (I'm sure this part is hard for my dad who probably hasn't had a good nap since he was...oh, 3!) I'm anxious to get back and see him more. Every day he has been improving. He might even get to expand his walk and try some "hills" soon. Poor guy.

The kids have had fun with my sister's kids and will be very sad to come back to my parents' house to find that their bosom buddies are gone. We could have done without the hardships this summer, but I'm so thankful that these kiddos are forming such sweet relationships.

Last night before bed not one, not two, but three of our children were crying and saying how they just wanted to go home. They've never been the homesick type before so this was a new one. I have to admit that a three week long trip is not exactly my idea of a great time anymore and this will probably be the last of them. It just gets too long for everyone.

Right now I'm sitting in a house with 4 napping children...three of which are mine, and hope to get some Newman Center work done. The fall will be here before we know it.

I'll leave you with a picture of Emma before her ballet recital. She's getting so big.

Progress

A lot has happened since I last posted. My dad finally woke up on Sunday evening and is now slowly, but surely healing. His speech still leaves a bit to be desired, but according to my mom everything that he has been saying has been spot on. In other words, everything he says is right for the situation, he just isn't saying as much as we would like him to. Of course, he is still on some heavy pain medication.
My mom told my sister that we might get a chance to talk to him tomorrow. I'm not sure how I'm going to handle that since my last conversation with him was a short one on Saturday before they came and got him for surgery...not easy. I can't wait to talk to him and I'm even more excited to see him. We were given strict instructions not to drop everything and go, so we'll be heading out soon at our regularly scheduled time.
In the meantime, dad could use some major prayers. He's an electrical engineer...if that's not enough to convince you...he really likes to be in control, and does not like being told what to do. So, this long road to recovery which is full of dos and don'ts is going to be tough for him both physically and emotionally.

Update

Thank you everyone for praying for my dad. He was in surgery from about 10am or so until about 4pm yesterday afternoon. He had open heart quintuple bypass (5!). Everything went well, but we are still waiting for him to wake up. My mom has an incredible support system there, but I think we are still going to leave in the morning to be with them. Please continue to pray for my dad. The surgery was obviously very invasive and he has a very long and painful recovery ahead.