- Decade Challenge -

Not too sure how this "decade challenge" originated that everyone is posting about on their social media accounts this month, but here's mine:

Jay to the kayyy, lolz.  

As everyone was posting their pics from 2009 vs. 2019, I realized that EXACTLY 10 years ago -- like "down to the weekend" exact -- I met Brian on a roadtrip to Mizzou...

...and then -bada.bing.bada.boom-, 10 years later, there's this!

So cheers to 2009 through 2019; I wouldn't change a thing!!! :)))

- Odds & endS -

Afternoon naps x2 kids is a rare and beautiful unicorn [!!!], so I'm sitting down right meow with a cup of coffee and a little update of odds and ends in the form of new house work; hopefully knocking out these tasks will lead us right up to the finish line!  My house posts have been rather sparse lately, but I think that's just because all of the work that's going on now isn't really big "picture worthy" changes, just moreso little, well, odds and ends that have to be done to pass inspection!  [Gonna stop typing now, because it seems like forming run-on sentences and excessively repeating "odds and ends" is my specialty this afternoon and so! I'll let the pictures tell the story.]

I recently made big, boistrous posts about Papa Mark finishing the tile showers...

...and Brian throwing up the fireplace and stone column...

...but ohhhh man, there's lots more finishing work to report!

Brian's been working hard on nailing in trim in closets and putting up casings around the doors...

...digging out the driveway and forming it up for the concrete guy to come pour...
...and working alongside our custom cabinet guy to measure for the bathroom vanities [sooo much love for Eickhoff Woodworks; we adore you and your beautiful work, Tony!].

He painted the front door...

...installed our very first toilet...

...and hooked up heads and levers and whatever else all this stuff is inside the showers.  Cheers for running water and our first functional bathroom!!!  Wahoooo.

One night, we rented a dumpster and filled it to the top!  The basement and garage and tons of construction trash from inside the house was finally thrown out and wheeled away! #phew  Larry and Pat stopped by that evening to say hi; just so turned out it was the one and only evening we had the dumpster [and a babysitter!] and so we didn't have time to sit and chat, but they put their work boots on and stepped right in to help! Thanks, guys! 

While my dad installed the master bathroom lights [and had some pretty good helpers for the task, if you ask me!]...

...Brian worked on putting in a temporary laundry room sink.

Oh, AND -- we have a working kitchen faucet/sink!! It has a really cool "tap to turn on" function, and Harper just thinks it's the greatest thing since sliced bread. If you ever visit our shack, assume that your trusty tour guide will probably have this on her top 5 list of things to point out! 

With the random streak of warm weather this past weekend, Brian and his dad and brother worked on putting in the downspouts [which, I believe, means we're ready for a flood!?]...

...and hmmm...what else? 

Ahhh, I don't know...but I'll post a few more pictures as we go! The finish line is near!

We are running sooooo super low on Daddy time these past few months, but the photos illustrate why!  The poor guy is getting exhausted, but he keeps putting one foot in front of the other and he never ever complains!  I guess he knows that putting in all these extra late nights and long weekends will make everything soooo worth it in just a few short weeks! YAYAYAY! 

- summer.fall.winter.BOOM! -

Did someone say, " S N O W  D A Y ? !"

Yessss!

But first, can I just have seven seconds to sulk about the fact that we were totally gypped out of fall this year??!  I. LOVE. FALL, and I'm so mad that we only had a couple weeks [at best!] of legit autumn weather.  It went from scorching hot through September/early October to freezing cold in November -- and with very minimal "happy weather" in between! One month the kids were picking out pumpkins and planting mums in their summer sundresses, and the next month we were bundling up in five layers to trick-or-treat in our FROZEN wardrobes.  What the hey????

But still, we set the bipolar weather aside and carved out a few "fall weekends" for ourselves, and they were full of all of our favorite things!

...Like crafting!

And drinking hot chocolate! [Scarlett's first time!]

We played at the park with friends without sweating our booties off...

...conjured up a few fun fall treats for Harper's snack day at Pre-K...

...planted a tree at the Children's Museum with Harper's class...

...and alsoooo hit up the local pumpkin patch with Grammy!

We even enjoyed a special lunch at Freddy's afterwards! 

[Amidst all of our fun, we also checked on Daddy and took food out to the house for him almost every evening! Looking so forward to a quickly-approaching move in day!]

So there! Non-"fall" weather, you couldn't/didn't stop us from enjoying the season!!! 

#happyfallyall

.....Although, this will easily go down as the shortest season ever, because now we're officially on to winter!

- Let It Go: Halloween 2019 -

Elsa brought a little too much frosty magic to Halloween this year...

I mean, seriously???! Freezing temps and even a few snowflakes spotted on October 31?  No. Thanks.

Very luckily, we were able to squeeze in a quick photoshoot [which, again, was not a fan favorite...]...

...our first ever "trunk or treat" at the parish...

...a Halloween parade...

...and some LEGIT trick-or-treating...

...alllllll the weekend before the frigid temps rolled in! 

On the "real" Halloween week, the kids stayed occupied inside with Halloween card decorating with Mommy...

...pumpkin carving with Daddy...

...and cookie decorating with Grammy!

So much Halloween-y fun!  Not thrilled that we had to sit out the official town trick-or-treating night, but since we had so much other fun to distract the kiddos, I guess we'll just "LET IT GO!" for this year! 

Happy FROZEN Halloween 2019 from Anna, Elsa, Olaf and Sven! :)