Up, up, up!

We headed out of town Friday night for a family reunion in WV, which was great. There was 80+ there from my dad's side of the family. It was him and all his first cousins.

Emily and the kids picked me up from work and we headed straight to my mom and dad's place so I didn't get a chance to check out the progress that was made all day Friday. Emily and I took a cellphone flash light tour of the work last night after we got back. We aren't sure if the guys worked Saturday or not, but the results are exciting! The plywood has been laid on top of the main floor joists and the back walls have been erected on the main floor.

It was a little nerve racking to have the kids up there with no railings, but the boy wan't too happy about it either. He stayed just long enough for me to get the picture above and then high-tailed it for the ladder.

That opening on the left is where the stairs will go from the kitchen to the basement.

Framing is awesome. It goes up so fast and you start to be able to really feel the space.

Joists!

Eric has a double-header in softball tonight, so the kids and I are on our own. We checked out the back of the house as soon as we got home, and then the little one and I braved the mosquitos to take some pictures after dinner!

Look at all that framing and all those joists!

I'm really excited about the windows, too. They're going to be so nice and big!

Gelato and Framing!

We had leftovers for dinner, followed by a haircut for the little dude and then gelato at Sugarland. Yum, yum, yum.

In house news, we got some framing started today! I am finding it incredibly awkward to have these guys working on our house so hard. Every day when we get home, the little guy runs around the house to see what they've done. And then we stand there and watch them work and it's just... awkward.

I kind of feel as though I should pick up a shovel and help or something, but of course I have no idea what I'd do with a shovel (I don't even see any shovels...). It's just weird having people work that hard near you, you know?

Moving on up!

I've been horrible about taking pictures over the weekend, but I did take some of the progress on our addition. We have wood!

I have no idea what comes next, but I'm excited to see whatever it is!

Finished! (Part 1)

The foundation is done! It's so fun to go stand in the space where the room will be. I think it'll be inspected and then we'll get a slab!

The yard is still in wonderful shape, too. (Ha.) Do you see our newest addition? There's a yellow port-a-potty at the corner now.

It's ridiculously hot out today, so after story time at the library we're having a quiet afternoon inside. After we read a bunch of books and played a few different board games, I figured the kids could go ahead and rot their brains for an hour or so.

Taking Shape

Look at how much work they did today!

The little one and I went around to take pictures after dinner. Eric and the big guy walked around in the basement area while the ladies were at swimming lessons, but the little one and I stayed safely above grade when we got home and peeked. (The boards looked a little bouncy to me.)

In swimming news, both kids have swum by themselves for a couple of seconds! YAY!!!

Progress!

The little guy has been rushing to the back window to see what's been done every day as soon as we get home.

Look what happened today! We are all feeling much better about everything.

It's really neat to see it taking shape.

Beautiful

Our beautiful yard and crawlspace continue to be beautiful...

We had a massive rainstorm over the weekend and I was seriously worried the house would fall apart. A big crew worked all day today, and we should have a good portion of wall tomorrow! I think we'll all feel better when that's done.

Mom-Son Day

The little one and her daddy are away until tomorrow, so the big guy and I had a  nice day on our own.

He rode by himself! Every time he passed me he did something different-- saluted, waved, blew a kiss. It was hilarious!

Swimming and Footers!

The kids have swimming lessons this week and next-- Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday evenings-- so things are a little nuts around here. The little one and I got home and had a snack before bedtime while the big guy and his dad were at the pool. We've lived here long enough that we're starting to see friends and neighbors at things, so both kids have friends in their classes.

As far as house news, we have footers now! We also had an inspection today, and it went well (everything was signed off on)-- hooray!

Rebar!

We have rebar in a trench! It's very exciting to see the outline of the space. We should have concrete tomorrow!!

Also, I've decided that being a big brother must be a pretty good gig. The little guy put together a puzzle. When I asked him to clean it up, he invited his little sister to "play" with him by helping put it away. She was thrilled!

Bless her little heart.

Baseball and Dirt

The kids and I got home Saturday, and Sunday afternoon we headed over to our neighborhood baseball field to practice.

There's been a TON of progress on the addition! We have a giant, basement-shaped hole in the back. There should be concrete this week!

We're also really beautifying the neighborhood with our gorgeous side yard.

Beach Day

We went to the beach yesterday, and there's nothing like the gulf coast in north Florida. It was wonderful!!

We also stopped at the World's Smallest Police Station!

Outside

My mom let me sleep in a bit today, and this is what I woke up to see:

Awwwww. Also, look what else we saw from the back deck!

Happy 4th!

We traveled down to Florida for the fourth of July, and we all ran a one-mile fun run in the morning. The kids did a great job!

 The little guy finished in under 11 minutes, and the baby finished in around16 minutes!!

Grandma rocked it, too, especially with her awesome new knee. :-)