House update pics!

These pictures really don't do the new paint job on the house justice. I will try to take more pics in the morning when the afternoon shadows are not making the house look darker. We are really pleased with the improvements so far. Now, all we need is a new front door, new shutters, a new roof, a front porch that wraps around to the side with a hot tub sunken in the deck, new furniture for the deck, new landscaping, etc. etc. etc. One project always leads to another. I wish the projects would also lead to a pot of gold in the backyard to fund all these projects!

The other big achievement for us this fall is a brand new furnace and central air that was installed yesterday! We have lived here for 9 years and the furnace was "30+" years old when we bought it. Not very energy efficient. We've also had to use 3 separate air conditioners to cool the house. Not anymore! Woo-Hoo! We are moving up in the world. I hope our heating costs see a big reduction this winter.

Where does the time go?

I mean seriously, where DOES it go? The older I get, (gasp--I feel like I'm 75 today, damn RA & fibro) the faster time slips away. It's even more evident when I look at this blog. My last post was over 2 weeks ago. I look at the pics of the kids and they are growing up so fast. Sometimes I just want to stand in the middle of the room, put my arms out and say, "STOP!" Just so I can soak in everything for 1 uninterrupted minute. I know, get over it. That's not going to happen. As I sit, I have 2 kids breathing down my neck for bedtime stories. So, I'll just post pics for now and leave the words for later. In the photo of Allison above, I made her antennae for her "fairy butterfly princess" costume and it cracks me up every time I look at this picture to see them drooping down. In the pic of Cole and Dingo, I was really trying to get the dog to turn around and smile too, but he is about as cooperative as my computer mouse right now. But, I really like this picture of Cole, so maybe I can get the dog to "smile" next time. Cole helped carve a lot of his pumpkin this year. Allison was way too girly to get her hands in "gross pumpkin stuff". Cole's picked out the monster pattern and Allison had the happy face. Finally, Russ and Cole posed for the last picture of football season. We had a blast watching Cole play and improve. I'm really sad the season is over. I swear, watching kids' sports is the best entertainment!