Marching Band 2009

I just wanted to say how proud I am of my Emily. This is her second year as a member of the BYU Cougar Marching Band, and I enjoy attending football games just so I can see her perform. She loves being part of the group and has made many friends along the way. Thanks, Emily, for all your hard work and enthusiasm. Rah-rah, rah-rah-rah, gooooooo Cougars!

Emily, 2nd from left (wearing glasses)

New uniforms this year!

Family Room - Finally!

Just a couple of shots of the new look in our family room. It's too bad I haven't got any money left for some new furniture, but that will come someday!

Getting There

More of our work in progress!

* * * * *

Family room - replaced flourescent lighting with recessed lights.

Jacob's room

Paint job in my office

Tile floor in work room

New tub, vanity, sink, and tile floor in bathroom

Diana asked me where everything from the basement was put during this remodel process. Well, it was all transported to our already overstuffed storage room, upstairs to the living room, guest room, and Reid's office, or outside in the garage or on the back deck. In other words, we've been living in a disorganized mess, but we're slowly putting everything back in place.

Progress

These are not really "before" photos; more like "in progress" photos.

Bathroom

Family room

Craft/sewing room

Laundry room

Stairs

If You Give a Mouse a Cookie . . .

If you want to do a little tile in the basement, then you have to get new carpet, too. If you're getting carpet in the family room, you might as well get the bedrooms done, too. If you're getting new carpet, then you have to paint all the walls. If you're replacing the ceiling in the bathroom and Hyrum discovers an illegal dryer vent, you have to replace it. If he finds that the tub surround is cracked, you have to replace it. If you're replacing the walls around the tub, you might as well replace the tub. If you're getting a new tub, you're going to need a new toilet and vanity. If you're getting a new vanity, you'll need a new countertop and sink and faucet and lights and medicine cabinet and mirror. If you're getting new carpet in the family room, you might as well replace the hated ceiling lights with recessed lighting. If you're replacing the lights, you should replace all the light switches and outlets so they match. If you manage to get all this done in a reasonable amount of time (and not too much over budget), you can sit in your new basement and enjoy a cookie!

Last week before we left for Seattle, we ripped out the carpet and did prep work for all the painting that needed to be done. We left Jacob in charge, and he did a marvelous job, with fantastic help from Emily and Lauren.

I should have taken "before" pictures of the entire basement but forgot, and my dear friend Dorothy took these photos with her cell phone and shared them with me.

So we're in the process of redoing the entire basement (except for the storage room). It has turned out to be a much larger project than anticipated, but it will be worth it in the end.

Can you tell Jacob is proud of the work he's done? So are we!

This week the tile will be done and carpet installed. Then starts the process of putting everything back where it belongs. You should see the rest of the house! Stuff is piled everywhere in the living room, Reid's office, and the garage. It will be so nice to have it all put back in its place in newly remodeled rooms. I'll post photos of the results!

I Guess We Should Have Killed Our Pigs

Maybe Egypt had the right idea (just kidding). We know that pigs have nothing to do with whether or not you get the swine flu. So I don't know what to blame. Jacob has been really sick since Friday, and no matter how much I begged him, he just wasn't getting any better. A quick trip to the doctor this afternoon brought some bad news - Jacob has swine flu. That means another week at home, resting and trying to get better. There's really nothing they can give him to make it better. However, they have given all the rest of us in the house (even Sarah and Emily even though they aren't living at home) a 10-day course of Tamiflu that will hopefully prevent us from getting the flu. Wish us luck!

February Vacation

Let me tell you a little about our not-so-recent vacation (end of February) to Moab and the San Rafael Swell. The last time we were in Moab was about 10 years ago, and we did as much hiking as our young children could stand. Andrew wanted to hike to Delicate Arch (in Arches National Park), but the rest of the kids were whining and complaining, so we never did that hike. It's three miles round-trip, and you come right to the base of Utah's most famous arch. We said we'd just have to come back another time, but never got around to doing it with the kids. This time Reid and I came by ourselves for a much-needed break.

Part of the trail leading to Delicate Arch - pretty strenuous but doable.

Delicate Arch - notice the sheer dropoff on the other side of the base, and notice that I did not go anywhere near it!

The brave hiker - we hiked about 10 miles in 2 days.

The trail to Sand Dune Arch.

Sand Dune Arch

Landscape Arch

Morning Glory Arch - not actually in Arches National Park, but accessible from Highway 128 along the Colorado River.

Base of Morning Glory Arch - there is a stream of water coming right out of the rock.

On the way home from Moab, we took a dirt road along the north side of the San Rafael Swell that took us to The Wedge. This spot is also called Utah's Little Grand Canyon. That's the San Juan River way down at the bottom. In conclusion, fantastic time, great weather, good hiking, and fine company. I'm kind of liking this "almost empty-nester" life!