It's beginning to feel a lot like winter!

As it begins to get colder, we begin to work faster to get our wood stove in. So here she is... isn't she beautiful! We really owe a big thanks to the local guy who sold it to us for a fraction of it's value. It is going to be toasty warm in our house this winter!



And now for the next project on my to-do-list.
Jeremy's to-do-list consists of finishing the chimney pipe up and out the roof,
I'm not doing that one.

We need a coat closet, so this one will have to do. Don't worry - it will look much better soon!

Home Improvements

Our latest adventure in remodeling....

So, key things to notice... coat closet on the right, horrible pink tile on the floor that is breaking apart, white painted stair landing and step

And then begins the transformation... bye bye closet and tile.

Yes, I let the kids help with some of the demo, and no, Emma's blood did not test high for lead.

We then tore out all of the existing wall to the studs and put up concrete board on the wall and on the floor. I sanded, then sanded, then stripped, then sanded the landing to get the white off.. idiots!

We then put up another wall that is 6' tall made of concrete board as well. There is a 2" gap at the bottom to allow full air circulation.

Here is an inside look at the wall. The concrete board plus the metal studs plus the second concrete board under the paint, make this a zero clearance wall.

Now for the latest... I stained the stair and landing... don't look too close, I couldn't get the white all off... grrr!!!

We put down much prettier tile on top of concrete board, so it won't break up when we walk on it.

We put tile on the fire wall, we wanted it to look more like stone.

Still a gap at the floor for air.
Close up of tile.

The finished product so far!

Next, wood trim on wall and floor, wood stove in and chimney put in! We are almost there!

And remember, this was our first time with anything tile related - I think we did just fine!

Summer time!

New kitty Flash giving lots of love

Haydn's latest haircut

One of our new horses, Flicka - isn't she beautiful

Emma refuses to take a nap - in normal places at least

Leighanne's three month old pictures

Mohawk... just for the summer.... don't worry!

New backyard swing built by Jeremy and I

New porch finally finished! On to the next project... pictures coming soon!

Well worth the wait!

Well, although it has been a lifetime since I have updated our blog, it was well worth the wait. On April 15th, Leighanne Meredith joined the family. She was 6 lbs 7oz and 19 inches long. She is well loved and I have so many helpers I don't know what to do with them all!

Enjoy some pictures

We blessed Leighanne on June 12th here in Nebraska.

It was great to have Nana and Papa here to share in the special occasion