Giant Jenga

You can't say the Nelson family doesn't know how to have fun. Check out this great party game!

Who Needs A Radio?

I get my very own concert every day at naptime and bedtime and sometimes in the middle of the night. Lewis has sung himself to sleep since before he could form words. Most of the time he makes up songs about his day, but recently he's been singing Christmas songs. I love this kid!

2nd Place

That's the love of my life there in the red white and blue sweater. Sorry ladies - he's taken. :)

Our New Home

With the help of many many people, we moved on November 19. Here's a glimpse of our new space. We are loving it. This is the view from the front door.

The kitchen is wonderful. I love the space, the countertops and the hardwood floor that Corey spent a lot of evenings installing and finishing. I'm still not a fan of stainless steel, but I didn't have a choice in the matter.

An Evening Soak

This has been the highlight of almost every evening since moving into the house. The boys are loving it; especially when dad hangs out in there with them.

Lest You Think I Was Joking...

Yes, we really do have a urinal in our new house. I apologize in advance to all of you ladies who will use this bathroom at our house in the future and get a funny feeling like you are using the men's room.

House Update - Hardwood Floor

This is the lovely floor in our kitchen/dining/entry area. It's beautiful. I miss Corey like crazy right now, but he does good work! Can't wait til the house is a place we can relax, instead of just being the location of Corey's second full-time job!

2011 Thanksgiving Tree

Last year we made a Thanksgiving tree to remind us of things we are thankful for. It was a great little project for the boys and me, so we did it again this year. Here's the list the boys came up with in no particular order -

• Football



• Jesus



• My brothers



• My preschool



• God



• The house



• Both grandmas and grandpas



• Music



• Mom and dad



• Cousins



• Friends



• Neighborhood



• The secret spot on the deck (Corey has a surprise for the deck at the new house and the boys are dying to know what it is.)

New 26 Letters a Million Stories Post

I just published a new post on my writing blog. Head on over to www.26lettersamillionstories.wordpress.com and take a look. If you are interested, click the follow button. I'd love to have you follow me on the writing journey.

House Update - Getting So Close!

My husband builds a sweet house. I love it. It's been fun to watch it go from Corey's brain to a piece of paper to a completed home. He's pretty awesome. When I asked Lewis if he liked it, he said "yeah, but it has a flat spot on the top where it should be poinky like a mohawk."

Scott, Leo and Ian Dickens helped Corey lay sod in the backyard. After doing the front by himself, I think he was very grateful for the help.

The stone on the fireplace is beautiful!

Woodwork is finished and painting is done.
LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the woodwork and the paint is perfect too!

Halloween 2011

Dwayne Wade, Lebron James and Superman - It sure is handy having a seamstress mom.

Corey said this is what our children would look like if they had my hair.

Our three plus one - Josiah the ninja.

I had to take a picture of the boys trick-or-treating at our old house. That was a little weird.

Budding Song Writer

There is a budding writer in our family, though his writing style is not quite like mine. The following was written by Carter. Go ahead and sing it to the tune of London Bridge.

Verse 1 - Farting gas is flowing down, flowing down, flowing down. Farting gas is flowing down. My fair lady.

Verse 2 - All the kids go toot, toot, toot. Toot toot toot. Toot toot toot. All the kids go toot, toot, toot. My fair lady.

Verse 3 - Now the air's filled with a stench. With a stench. With a stench. Now the air's filled with a stench. My fair lady.

Verse 4 - Now the kids will surely die. Surely die. Surely die. Now the kids will surely die. And that's the end.

I think he may have gotten his inspiration from Ren and Stimpy ;)

Sunday = Church and Football

When I finally made Carter go to bed partway through the Eagles vs. Cowboys game last night, he said, "but I've only watched 2 1/2 football games today." Obsessed a little? I think so.

House Update - Front View

The trim carpenter told me I had found a good designer for our home. I agree with him 100%.

The Transformation

BEFORE

It had been well over 2 1/2 years since Owen had his hair cut, aside from an occassional trim. And I think his long hair was beautiful (except in the morning before it was brushed. That was a little scary sometimes.)

Though Corey does the boy haircuts at our house, I decided to leave this major cut to a professional. I was a little sad watching all of that hair drop to the floor. It's kind of like the end of an era. This cut was 100% up to him, and he loves it. I think he looks pretty handsome with short hair too.
AFTER

We spiked his new do into a mohawk for school the next day. It may be short, but it's still unique. And Owen is all about being just a little different.

House Update - Boys being silly

Carter is standing in the living room area with the kitchen cabinets in the background. I love them. They are almost like the ones I had in the old house.

Owen hanging out in what we have dubbed the Grandma and Grandpa bedroom. Mom and Dad, Steve and Vickie, and anyone else who visits will sleep in this room.

The siding is complete on three sides of the house. I'm very happy with how it looks.

The boys playing under the stairs.

My Football Boys

Grandparent's Day

Carter was excited to have Grandma and Grandpa Nelson attend Grandparent's Day at his school. They got to do fun things like eat cookies and play games.

An Uncommon Sight

Sometimes it is actually relatively peaceful in our home. We even managed a 300 piece puzzle together. Lewis bowed out after putting many pieces of his own liking together (I waited until he left the room to undo his hard work.) Owen was gung-ho for about 10 minutes, and then decided puzzles are too frustrating. Carter was in it for the long haul and was still working on it with me when bedtime rolled around.

House Update - Drywall

If you are getting tired of house updates, you might want to stop visiting this blog for a while. I've got relatives who want to see pictures, so I try to keep them posted. The above photo will probably be our favorite room in the house - the theatre room.

The above photo is from the fireplace looking into the kitchen area. The door is to the mudroom and on the left side of the picture are the stairs.

This is standing at the north wall, looking toward the front door.

This photo is taken from the southeast corner of the basement. The fan is in the bathroom doorway, and the other two doors are to bedrooms.

House Update - Deck

Corey's been working on the deck ceiling this week. Pretty sweet, huh? Last time we built a house, Owen was the superhero. Now it's Lewis, though he is not nearly as obsessed with costumes as Owen was.

House Update - Ready for Drywall and Siding

This is the view from the back of the house. The deck is one of Corey's projects this week. The house is getting to the point where I will not be seeing him much. For the next five or six weeks he will have a fulltime daytime job and a fulltime evening job.

Here's the view of the great room from the southeast corner of the kitchen. I am so excited to have a woodburning fireplace. The fireplace is one of my favorite things about the house I grew up in. You can see my mom through the wall. She is standing in the masterbath.

This is the view from the dining area toward the front door. The area on the left side of the photo with the drywall leaning on it will be the mudroom/laundry room and will have a door leading to the garage.

Jets Football

Owen is number 21. He's the one with the long blonde hair hanging out of his helmet.

Carter is number 37 in the huddle. It has been so much fun watching them play this year. I have loved every minute of it. And they were so excited to finally get a win yesterday. Tackle football has been a great experience for them! They are going to be sad when it is over.

My handsome towhead!

What's Wrong with this Photo?

I shouldn't even post this photo, but it is so funny. Just look at that all-American boy smile behind that 12-pack. Between the empty beer cans, the "smokers" (aka cigarette butts) and this empty beer box, my child has had much exposure to things he has never had his hands on before. This lovely box now sits outside our apartment door with a variety of treasures in it, including a piece of a shingle, a couple straws, a plastic cup, some sticks and some rocks. I've said it before, and I'll say it again. Apartment living is an adventure.

The Orchard

Lewis had a ball at the Center Grove Apple Orchard with his preschool class. His favorite parts were the corn pool and the jumping pillow.

The Urinal

Pretty sure I'll be the only gal in town with one of these in the bathroom. I guess my husband heard me complain one too many times about cleaning up around the boys' toilet.