dry wall!

So, while were were on the cruise, here's what happened at our house!  It looks completely different...

from the front door

great room

kitchen

dining area

nursery/Emma's room

looking up at loft

master bath

looking down from loft

working hard

Livie's room

Looking good :).  This week we picked out paint colors - it'll all be painted before we know it!

cruisin'

It feels like forever since the last time I blogged.  Probably cause it's been about a month!  So, what's been going on?  A LOT.  Including going on vacation with Chad's family.  

Yep, all 25 of us...12 adults and 13 kids :).  We first took on New Orleans for 3 days and then a Carnival cruise ship to Progresso (the Yucatan), and Cozumel, Mexico.  It was an adventure to say the least!  Thank you Greg and Beth for a great vacation, time with family, and lots of memories.

For the most part, the girls were really good.  

Livie LOVED being around "all the kids".  Whenever we'd go back to our hotel room or cabin, she'd always ask, "Where'd all the kids go??".  

And it was WONDERFUL to have a week with Chad.

These pics are of us riding a ferry to the aquarium in New Orleans.

At the aquarium...

Here's all the kids...besides baby Emma.

Livie was scared of the parakeets...can you tell?

Onto the BIG boat!

Emma learned to sleep almost anywhere :).

The first day at sea was a little windy...

But the kids were able to enjoy the pool a bit...

 

Our first stop, Progresso, was probably more authentic Mexico.  Kinda a cloudy day, not too warm.  We ended up at a dirty beach with some lawn chairs...supposedly an 'all inclusive resort" ;).  At the time it was a little disappointing, but we did get some good laughs out of it.

Hahaha...nice Nate :).

The kids loved playing in the sand...

Another great napping spot for Emma :)...

The next day, was Cozumel...and that day was probably the best day of the whole trip.  Sunny, gorgeous, warm.  

Dave's new friend :)...

She sleeps again...

Some of the family swam with dolphins, while others of us just hung out by the pool and beach.  It was wonderful.

I think this is my favorite picture of the whole trip (sigh).

And the last one I took. 

A few other things we'll remember:

- Chad's deep sea fishing adventure in New Orleans

- The massage I got on the boat...wonderful

- Livie getting sick on formal night and puking on my lap and the floor during dinner

- Livie falling from her bunk (above our bed) onto the floor in the middle of the 3rd night on the boat

- Livie eating TONS of food - she truly got her money's worth :).  We weighed her when we got home and she had gained a whole pound (5% of her body weight)!

- Yeah, Liv had a memorable trip...

- Reactions from everyone on the boat about Emma.  She was the youngest we saw on the boat (you have to be at least 6 months to travel) and just got tons of attention.

- At least 5 people saying, "Wow!  That's such a real looking doll!", in reference to Emma sleeping in the stroller.  They seriously thought she was Livie's baby doll. 

Overall, it was great to get away...but great to get home too.  Next post?  What happened while we were gone!

a big week

Here's a little video to get this blog post rolling...

If you didn't catch that, she's singing a portion of "Veggie Tales".  And the facial expressions are ALL hers.  

That video was taken this past monday after spending the entire weekend with Chad (which is probably why Livie was singing around the house ALL day on monday).  His singing is pretty contagious.  At least to her ;).

It may sound kinda funny to say we spent the entire weekend with him...but anyone that knows our lives right now, knows that is not normal.  So, in case you're wondering how we got to share a whole weekend together?  Well, we got snowed in.  Up in Chicago.  Yeah.  Fun.

The plan was for the four of us to spend some quality time in driving to Chicago on friday to pick up our new table and chairs...and then come straight home.  Well, the weather had some other plans for us. An hour into the trip, it started snowing.  By the time we got to Chicago and actually got everything into the trailer, the snow was coming down thick.  So, picture this.  We're driving in Naperville (small streets) with Chad's big truck pulling a large trailer, our girls are in the back seat (doing pretty good for the circumstances), snow is everywhere and not stopping anytime soon (maybe by 11pm??), traffic is bad, and we're all starting to get hungry.  No one is in the best of moods (to put it lightly).  Not a smart idea to drive back to Peoria at this point.  So, we booked a hotel.  And after some directional difficulties...my bad :(...and much bonding time, we parked, checked-in, ate, apologized to each other, and relaxed :).  

The snow did stop around midnight.  And driving home the next day was a breeze.  The end result of it all?  A memorable weekend away :) and a great table and chairs (which we already have set up and are thoroughly enjoying).

The house is coming along great.  I don't have any new pictures because honestly, I haven't been there much lately.  Instead, I've been meeting Chad places to go over tile and cabinetry.  Which is really fun!!  Chad's been working and overseeing that everything is getting done perfectly.  We passed inspection for insulation, so that has been getting installed this week.  And the next step should be drywall.  Yay!

The girls both have had colds again.  But other than that, they are doing great.  Emma has learned to roll from her tummy to her back this week.  Such a milestone for her.  No more rolling to her tummy and getting stuck!  And so she's loving this position lately.  I'm thinking crawling is right around the corner for her...

And Livie is pretty well potty-trained!  Just in the past two weeks, something clicked.  She doesn't need to be reminded to go, hasn't had accidents, and I actually find her going by herself A LOT.  I'm still nervous to take her out without a pull-up (just in case we end up somewhere without a toilet), but I'm working on it.

Apparently, her baby is getting trained too...

One more video.  The excitement (and love) Livie has for Emma :).  I think its mutual most days.  And sorry it's so dark.  I downloaded an 8mm vintage camera app to my phone...still trying to figure it out!

Last thing, which probably should have been the first.  But it's hard for me to have words to say about it.  My mom had back surgery this week.  The majority of her spinal column was fused together in order to correct her scoliosis and prevent further curving and pain.  She's had a bad curve for years and her and Dad have prayed about this for a long time. 

Today, she is 2 days post-op, really tired, on a lot of pain medicine.  It's really hard to see my mom like this.  Probably because she's my mom.  You know?  The one whose always been there for me.  But I praise God that she's doing well, that her doctor said surgery went well, and that God's in control.  

She's got a long road of recovery ahead of her.  I'm sure God's got lots planned for her and our family through this :).  We love you mom!