Why We Can't Wait to Move to Huron (And A Few Random Updates)

My apologies to anyone who is still checking in on our blog from time to time, only to be disappointed at the lack of posting. We have been crazy busy getting the house ready to list, and most nights find me (and Chris, on the nights he's home) organizing, cleaning, and trying to stay on top of the normal clutter of life with small children. But tonight (for a little while, anyway) I figured I'd catch you (Yes, you! All 8 of you still reading -- five of whom are grandparents!) up on what we've been up to. As you might have guessed from the picture above, we made the trek to Huron this past weekend to check out the sights and drop off a load of junk treasured possessions at our storage unit. It took roughly 12 minutes to check out Super WalMart and the giant pheasant. For real.

But seriously, it seems like a nice town. We realize how blessed we have been the past few months. A wonderful job with great benefits that will still allow me to be at home with the kids. What more could we ask for? Well, maybe someplace warm....

Now for the random updates! The kiddos and I spent a week in Brainerd in mid-February when my brother Ben, sister-in-law Ryan, and niece Lorna came to visit all the way from California. Yes, I really am fearless (or foolish?) enough to drive 5-1/2 hours with a four year old and two one year olds. Everyone was on their best behavior and I had a good audiobook to listen to -- we even stopped for lunch! We had so much fun hanging out with them, it was hilarious watching the two little girls play.

Favorite Ellie quote of the week (to Grammie):

Ellie: "Grammie, sometimes it's hard for me to understand what Lorna is saying, because I (insert quacking duck hand gesture next to her mouth here) speak English."

The boys had fun trying on lots of Papa's hats and generally wreaking havoc on Grammie and Papa's house. These two are animals! They had their one year well-child exam a few weeks ago, and both are doing great and meeting all of their milestones. They have, however, fallen off the growth curve in terms of weight. The pediatrician did not seem overly concerned about this, and mentioned that it was probably due to the fact that they NEVER STOP MOVING. EVER. So we left with strict instructions to bring on the whole milk, cheese, and butter and pile on some pounds.

On to home improvement news: As of this Friday, our house is ready to list! We have re-floored the basement bathroom, got all new kitchen appliances, re-roofed the house, reorganized the small army of toys that has invaded every room, and gotten rid of junk, junk, and more junk. It feels good.

There were many more shots like this, but honestly this was the only one I could find that didn't have any visible butt crack.

After shot of the bathroom

New kitchen stuff -- wish we could take it with us!

Ellie's room after toy-ectomy was performed

While I found treasures like my old glasses and retainer (which so does not fit anymore -- sorry, Mom and Dad!), Chris unearthed this gem from the late 80's. Yep, DC Talk.

It hasn't been all work for us. We have been out to enjoy the sporadic nice weather when possible. It's late winter in South Dakota at its finest -- today it's 25 degrees, tomorrow it will be 57, and then this weekend there will probably be a blizzard.

Hopefully I will have a little more time on my hands in the days ahead to be a better blogger. I promise I have loads of hilarious, heartwarming stories and pictures -- it's just the time to post them that eludes me.

Until then, enjoy the pheasant one more time.