Week #8: Cement Slabs, Curbing, and Rock - Oh My!

This Week...

...Raleigh and Jordan came for a visit. They are back in Washington! We are so excited to have them closer to us. Let the party begin! Raleigh got a job as CEO of Tri-City Orthopedic. Wahoo!

...Court Concrete came to pour our basketball court and shed slab. Jason came home for a minute to check things out. It's always fun to watch the process as the guys prep and pour the cement. We're so grateful that they were able to fit us in their schedule. Originally they told us it wouldn't be until the middle of March, but they had a cancellation and got us in. It was a blessing because then our backyard timeline could continue on track.

...Brother Rowell let us use his post hole digger. We had a long day of post hole digging ahead of us. With the loan of Brother Rowell's tractor, friend, and digger, we were able to crank them all out in just over an hour's time.

...Brother Boneck let us borrow his cement mixer. We had a long day of cement mixing and post setting ahead of us. With the loan of the cement mixer, we were able to set the majority of the poles in one day. The kids had a great time helping Jason with this part. Once the kids got home from school, Benjamin worked tirelessly with Jason. He took his job seriously.

...we had curbing installed. It was awesome to get it done before the grass went in. These guys are super fun to joke with and they do a great job.

...we got some loads of rock. We called our good friend Seth Romm for his help to haul the rock. We had a whole day of rock hauling and a whole day of rock moving ahead of us. But because of the help of our friend, we got the rock and had it moved around the yard in a day's time. We were so grateful. We paid him and his friend to haul the rock in his truck. But he moved the rock out of the goodness of his heart. He had another job up Rd 44 where he was using a front loader. So he brought it down and took small loads of rock around the yard so we could spread it out. I think the cinnamon rolls we shared with them went a long way to help them feel like their efforts that day were worth it. (His truck was seriously the coolest! Two beds and buckets fit into each other so that if he needed dual hauling capacity he could have it on the spot. Awesome!) Let the work of spreading it out begin!

...Lainey celebrated the 100th day of school. I went in to help out with all the stations.

...who knew that a box of 1,000 craft sticks for $4.99 from Walmart would keep them occupied that long. I purchased the sticks for Cub Scouts, but the kids have been using them non stop since I brought them home.

...Grandma and Aunt Reesie came for a visit. Of course we had to play a game of Ticket to Ride.

...we had some silly moments. This is their response when I give them chores to do or tell them to clean up.

Paul and Claire hamming it up on our quick trip to Yokes.

...it was so fun to watch Lainey read from the Book of Mormon. She knows a lot of words. I love watching as her finger tracks along the verse.

...Paul did well at his piano lesson. He doesn't always place his feet squarely on the ground. A lot of the time he wraps them around the bench legs, swings them, or crosses them as shown below.

...we attended reading night at the school. The kids had great time wandering to all the stations. We saw a lot of people that we new.

Claire and Ben make a book mark with Emily Little

The kids got their free book and root beer float - Nixon Wahler, Lainey, Noah Wahler, Paul, Joanna Pluff, Tyson Pluff, Ben, Nathan Wahler, Claire

This is the Bradley family that lives kitty corner to our old house on the opposite side of the park. Melissa, Colton, Addie, and Matt. We met them in their front yard just after we moved in when Lainey spontaneously ran over to give Addie a hug as we were heading home from a walk. She sure helped us break the ice.  

Paul, Tyson Pluff, Evan Purvis, Zach Alvarez, Ben

...we said goodbye to Elder Whiting. He was transferred over to Kennewick. This rodeo winning, hard working, mission rule obeying missionary will be serving in a new area. We sure loved sharing in the joy of missionary work with this Elder. 

...we went to the Temple again. I can never have too many pictures of this beautiful building and the view never gets boring. It's s amazing how so much hope and love and faith and peace and courage and promise can be seen and felt when I gaze upon this building.

Week #7:Trenching and Post Setting

This Week...

...we went to the temple. Much needed comfort and peace to help with every day responsibilities and worries.

Lainey drew a pretty good picture of the Temple. How sweet is that? It warms my heart when they draw things like this.

...we started trenching the backyard. It's time to put the sprinkler system in. Jason taught Paul how to run the trencher and he was a big help, when he wasn't distracted reading his book. Travis came and helped us quite a bit. Lainey loved jumping over the trenches and the kids even started a game of softball. 

Despite all of my warnings to use the bat with care, Paul smacked Lainey right on the cheek in full batter swing. Oh man! She had gone in too early to retrieve the ball and Paul had swung the bat. We set her up to rest on the couch and then had a easy to understand conversation about holding back until the batter is done.

Elder Cordon and Elder Whiting helped us lay the pipe and fit it together. They were great helpers. 

Then came the task of starting the fence. The Elders also helped us set some posts. They stopped by in their suits and wouldn't be persuaded to stand by. Then they came back in service clothes ready to get dirty helping the cause. Lainey tried to help wherever she could and Benjamin was helping when we wasn't distracted with snacks.

We were certainly grateful to Jason's cousin Angie and her husband Chris. They were so willing to let us borrow their truck to haul fence supplies and other tools. 

...Jason and Claire attended a daddy/daughter dinner for activity days. They invited our friends Stephen and Danica to go. They had a blast. The dads were good sports and participated in all of the games. They had to braid their daughter's hair and allow the girls to shave them.

...the school store is up and running. It's amazing how much the kids love all the little things we sell. Christie, Jenn, and Naya run the store and bring such great energy.

...Paul and Saul had a great time writing Ad Libs at Cub Scouts. They were laughing so hard.

...Paul and Claire went with me on a quick shopping trip. We made a trip to the dollar store and they were thrilled by the giant gumball they purchased. I don't know how they're going to get their mouth around that thing.

Week #6: Cupcakes from Yokes!

This Week...

...the Mustang PTO bought cupcakes for the school staff. My board just felt that we wanted to let the staff know how much we appreciate them. What a better way to do that than with a surprise of gourmet cupcakes. One of my board members had tried cupcakes from the Yoke's bakery and she recommended them. They turned out looking so yummy and tasting it too! I was in at the school later that day, and so many teachers were asking where the cupcakes came from. They couldn't believe it when I said, "Yoke's!" The cupcakes were a big hit. 

...I met my sister-in-law, Julie Marie, for lunch. We went to Frost Me Sweet. She had never been there and I really didn't mind going again. I like there Margarita Panini - tomato, basil, and mozzarella baby! I got there a little early and enjoyed some time reading in the sun. We had good food and a great time catching up. I've learned that it's so easy for people to grow apart. If you want to stay close, you have to make an effort. 

...the kids helped with copying of flyers and putting them in teacher boxes. Naya Wahler, PTO board member, and I were making copies, but didn't get done before the end of school. So we just had our kids meet us in the lounge. They helped us count out the flyers for the classes. They were diligent in watching the flyers spit out of the copier. They thought they were so cool to be in the teacher's lounge. Ooooh!

...we surprised Paul with McDonald's at school . He recieved an award for Respect. The award was voted on by his peers.

...Emma had her winter orchestra concert at school. She sat by her good friend Zoey Orton. I'm glad that Emma has this chance to learn and develop her talent on the violin.

...time in the temple is never wasted. Here's a quote from President Hinckley about temple attendance. I believe it whole-heartedly.

...Jason and I went out to lunch at Hacienda del Sol. We splurged and got fried ice cream for dessert. It's so good and not many places offer it on their dessert menu. 

...Paul and Claire got giant gumballs from the Dollar store. Oh the joys of the Dollar Store.

...the kids made boxes for Valentine's cards at school. Lainey made a really cute owl, but didn't get to use it this year. The other three came up with their own ideas.

...the PTO sold bubble grams at school for Valentine's Day. The kids could purchase the bubbles and send a message to a friend or teacher. These two grams from Hector were so sweet. You can never have too much love, even if it comes from yourself.

...Lainey's class did a Valentine's celebration. Jason and I stopped in to see Lainey and help a little with activities. Mrs. Santo and Mrs. Hendrix were more than happy to model the wacky face Valentine's they received from a student. I walked by the fourth grade classes on an errand and saw evidence of their Valentine party already ended. They left their empty Capri Sun boxes and cookie containers in the hall.

...I worked at the Mustang Market Friday morning. There were so many kids wanting to check things out. Naya, Kayla, Christie, and I manned the table.

...we planted a ton-o-bulbs out front. We bought some tulip and daffodil bulbs from Costco in the fall. The kids had a blast planting them around the trees. We can't wait for them to come up in the spring.

...we played a little guessing game after our PTO meeting. Naya had put out all of these water bottles in preparation. We knew we wouldn't necessarily use them all, but we joked about our extreme optimism at the number of attendees. After our few numbers came, I decided to see if anyone could guess how many were actually there. We had five board members, two principals, one parent and one fifth grader.

Week #5: The Building Begins

This Week...

...a little inspiration goes a long way. I stole this from a Facebook post by Leslie, our realtor. She finds such great quotes.

...the building begins. We are working on a work bench for the garage. We? Really? Ok, I mean he is working on the work bench. I'm just support. He had to start with the work bench and organize all his tools, so that he can actually work on building things for the house. Our list is as follows: a little board and batten wall in the kids' bathroom with five hooks for towels (right now we have one towel bar and that is just not enough), built-ins in the family room around the TV, built-ins in the office, built-in bench/cubby organizer for mudroom. I'm sure there's more...garden boxes for outside...I'll come up with more. ;) Don't worry!

...the Three Musketeers helped me count out fliers for PTO. I happened to be copying late in the day when school got out. They were thrilled to be in the teacher's lounge. Ooooohh!

...Lainey's friend Mallory Hull came over to play. They had a breakfast picnic for lunch. They were the cutest little picnic-ers who ever ate in our kitchen. Lainey was in heaven and we were pretty excited too! We love having Mallory come over.

...Emma walks to her bus stop. Since Emma goes to a different school than the other kids, she gets to ride the bus. We live closer to McGee now and so I have to drop off and pick up the four younger kids. Luckily Emma's bus stop is just down at the corner.

...we came back from a date and found the kids all cuddled up together watching a show. It was so cute to me that I had to get a picture.

...Lainey made a K'nex star. K'nex forever!