A New House!

And here is the post for which you have all been waiting!

 We finally closed on our new house on the day before Thanksgiving.  After we signed, we headed over to get right to work.  Look at that proud homeowner.

 There were still some beautiful fall colors on this cute little tree.

 And there is Christopher Martin himself.

 And our magnolia tree.

 And there were a few flowers blooming.

 Here is the back deck.  Ever much more than a stoop.

 Chris jumped right in abating the lead paint.  Too bad for you, you missed him in his white paper suit.  

 The living room.  As it was.

 Our first visitor.

 She ventured down into the cellar on her first whole-house tour.

 The master bedroom.  Everything already looks so different!  We have painted every room since these pictures were taken.

 The master bath.  Our clawfoot tub should go here someday.

 The boys' room.  

 And the bathroom.

 And the music room/Chris's office.

 And the kitchen, as it was.

 And our second (much more helpful) visitor.  (Sorry, Heather!)

 And the butler's pantry.  We are currently taking applications for butlers.

 And the dining room.

 And two boys very excited about some late-night mopping.

 The Habermae stopped over for a little painting party.

And there you have it.  I hoped you enjoyed the tour.  

Come back soon for some updated pictures!

The Old Camp House & A Stone Wall

The old camp house is being torn down, so yesterday my dad and the boys went up for a little walk down memory lane.

 I lived here from age 2-12.

 This is a little nook in the bathroom that I enjoyed standing in sometimes.  Don't ask me why.

 And Josiah in the nook.

 And Papa demonstrating eating at the bar.  The record player went on the shelves over his head.

 Then we headed up for a play date with Mittens.  She was thrilled to see the boys, as always, I am sure.

 Then we decided to build a little stone wall. 

Caleb was a great helper.

Happy Less-Than-A-Week 'Til Thanksgiving!

Autumn Days

 The other day I asked if someone would like to sweep the leaves and sand off the porch, and was surprised when Josiah volunteered.  Then he surprised me again by finding the hairdryer and attempting to blow the porch clean.

In sadder news, the boys have stopped napping.  Now they have to stay in their rooms for an hour and rest.  Sometimes Caleb still falls asleep.  I love the way he is following the rules and staying in his room.

Pilgrim Dishes

We celebrated my 30th birthday last night, and among many spectacular presents that I received, these dishes from my mom were a favorite.

 I added the Pilgrims myself.

 Sketched them on the back of black construction paper and cut those puppies out.  Noses are tricky for me.

 I put double-sided tape on the back, and woila.  

Now we can't have anyone over for dinner until after Thanksgiving.

 If you would like to try your hand at cutting out sillhouettes, I recommend pointy scissors.

I cut my boys' heads out with kids' safety scissors, and that was not the ticket!

Speaking of tickets, the other day I was shopping with Caleb (while Josiah visited Jenn - a fabulous system!  Thanks, Lou) and we were looking for something, lotion maybe, and I was picking up bottles, reading the labels, and I said, "That's not the ticket."  After that, anything I would look at the store, Caleb would look at the item seriously, look at me, and say, "Is that the ticket, Mom?"

Hike to the Bluff

If I've posted this before, stop me.  I know I have uploaded these pictures a few times, but little men in Disney undies keep coming along and changing to  new websites.

 We took a fun family & friends hike to the bluff.

 The boys had a great time, except that Caleb's shoes were a little on the large side, and he kept losing them and crashing.  But as we all know, he is prone to crashes even under the best of circumstances.

 Looking out over our fair city.

 Heather looking at me with her "Angry Eyes"! 

 Caleb being a reindeer.  He has a cute head.

 Papa was proud of his kitten, Mittens, for taking the whole hike with us.

The boys climbed this fallen tree over and over with Mittens, and all three fell off at least once each.

Caleb is 3!

 We celebrated this handsome boy's birthday on Saturday with a fun Monkey Party!

 Jennifer found this clever way to make a 3 cake. 

I thought it turned out nice and jungley - like a zebra/lion's mane combo.

 And now, for an interview with the birthday boy himself.

What is your name?

"Umm, Taleb."

Any more parts of your name?
"Not Josiah.  Dat is Josiah right there.  (Points.)

What is one of your favorite things to do?

"Play Momma's I-pad.  I love Momma." 

What else?
"That's enough." 

What is your favorite food to eat?

"Tookies.  Tocolate tookies.  Turkey tookies."

(Josiah brought home a turkey cookie that he made at Moms4Moms today.  Thinking about this cookie that he did not get to eat tears Caleb up, and he gives the rest of this interview with his head down on the desk, in his very saddest voice.  Bribery with M&Ms commences.)

Who is this cute baby?

"I can't tell you.  Pickle head.  Lydia."

What is your favorite book?
"Nothing.  I just want you to scwatch mine hand."

(Caleb is an itchy fellow.)

Who are some of your favorite people?

"Only Lydia.  But I can't tell jokes."

The boys had a great time opening the presents!  Josiah did lots of helping.

"Dat me and dat Josiah.  Huh!  What?!  I want you scwatch my hand a little, Mom"

I love how Chris and I are both rescuing Caleb from falling in the flames in this candle picture.

"I loved Roary the Race car and Bongo from Lou."

Favorite book?

"Happy Halloween, Biscuit."

Favorite movies?

"Dorwa the Explowa, Thomas the Twain, and Diego."

Chris enjoying his Craig's List find that he got for the boys' birthdays.  

"I love dwiving."

"I love to play tars, and with Henrik with him twains."

If you could go anywhere in the world?

 "I like going to Luke's house."

Tell me something you love about Josiah.

"Tas him my bwudda."

And your Momma?

"Tas her my momma.  Her tute.  (Cute!)

And your Dad?

"I love him so very much tas him handsome."

"Now you dive me more tandy?"

There were five M&M's given in exchange for this interview.