Viking Horns

You might have to look really closely to see that Uncle Jake put Viking horns in McCabe's hair!

PlayDough

As the weather has started to get cooler and cooler, I got more and more nervous about how I would keep an active little boy entertained all winter. My neighbor suggested playdough. Leighton loves playing with it. He doesn't understand how to use cookie cutters yet, but he likes to put dinosaurs and farm animals in.




For those of you who don't get the priviledge of hearing his precious voice start to say words, I thought I would share how he says some of his favorites!

Die - Sa = Dinosaur
Dow = Cow
Ho - Dow = Holy Cow
Peacheese = Peaches
Flowey = Flower
Hammey = Hammer
Baaa = Ball
Waaa - Weeee = Water
Ju = Juice
Mill = Milk
Nack = Snack
Pho = Phone
Babe Seep = Baby is Sleeping
Paci = Pacifier
Bot - Ball = Football
Pee - Sa = Pizza
Nuggie = Chicken Nuggets
Peas = Please
Noo - Noo = Noodle

There are several more too! And there are some that he says correctly too! It is so wonderful to hear him communicate and begin to understand us as well.

Luke the Leader

Luke is the leader of our family. He is a great servant leader! Unfortunately this means we all had to wear Iowa gear!

First Hair Cut

Angela cut Leighton's hair this afternoon after Sunday morning church. It was sad to see his long locks get cut off but he is still just as handsome!
Thanks Angela! (And thanks to Rick for sweeping his hair off of the church floor!)

Update on the House

We are getting very excited to move into our house. We have been renovating for a couple of months now and are reaching the end of the process. We have learned so much and Luke has gotten to help with all the projects. We have encountered so many blessings along the way that remind us of God's goodness and his faithfulness in our lives.

I wanted to post some updates on the house. I wish I had pictures to share ... but I don't!

Here are some of the projects that we/others have completeled or are almost finished with:
1. Painted 2 bedrooms, the hallway, the kitchen, the living room and the dining room.
2. Drilled holes and blew insulation into all of the outer walls (Yes that means re-painting!)
3. Gutted Kitchen, laid kitchen floor, hung kitchen cabinets, installed some of the appliances, got the countertop put in.
4. Bathroom gutted, cement coard hung, tub surround and floor tiled!
5. Textured the upstairs attic/bedroom
6. Installed new windows
7. Cleaned and extended gutters and other various outdoor projects.

Still to Come:
1. Painting the upstairs bedroom, the bathroom, the entryway, all the outerwalls that were insulated, some ceilings and the doors.
2. Kitchen Lighting
3. Chair Rail installed in living and dining room
4. Get a railing for upstaris
5. Rip out carpet and re-carpet upstairs
6. Massive cleaning of the house from walls, floors and corners, to sinks and tubs
7. Massive cleaning of everything in the house from furniture to clothes.
8. Setting up and decorating! (I cannot wait for this one!)

Any guesses on how long that will take? Our guess is 2 more weeks. But anyone who knows us knows that we have been saying "only 2 more weeks" since we got the keys on August 28. That statement will eventually be true, so we are sticking with it!

Thanks again to all those who have helped and are still helping.

Thanks to Luke for being an incredibly hard worker and provider.

And thanks and praise to God for allowing us to have a place of our own!

Gardening Shovel

Leighton would not put down his gardening shovel when we were playing outside today. I am amazed at how much he explores and digs and gathers. It was a fun fall day and I enjoyed spending it with my sons.

Raking Leaves

Leighton helped grandma & grandpa rake and fill the bucket with the leaves.Then he would carry the bucket to the space behind the fence.
Then Leighton dumped the leaves out of the bucket.
And then Leighton run back for more raking and more buckets full of leaves.

These pictures don't even show how amazing Leighton was at raking. He really did help rake leaves for about 30 minutes. He loved carrying the leaves, emptying the bucket and returning for more. He was such a hard worker.