(20 November 2013)
So...busy... but so happy too. :-) BYU has become bowl eligible and accepted an invitation to play in the Hunger Bowl. This Saturday they'll take on Notre Dame, though I won't get to watch it (at least live) due to our ASL temple session. Oh well.
The house is still a work in progress. My dad came down to help us build a banister for the stairs leading to the third floor, but we ran out of time. He's coming back over Thanksgiving to help us finish it! We've also found a contractor to finish the master bathroom remodel, starting just after Thanksgiving. Maybe I'll have my jetted tub for Christmas!
Cody is doing very well. He's learning new words and signs every day and parrots everything we say. He's in a phase right now where he wants to sign everything with two hands, even if it is a one-handed sign (like mom or milk). He likes his milk in a cup with the lid off but water in a cup with the lid on. At daycare, he moved into the "Toddler" class now that he's two. His latest fascination is with the potty. He likes to take his turn to sit on it when the other kids do, but he's only successfully used it for its actual purpose twice so far. For now, he can just sit there and be like the bigger kids.
For his birthday, Cody got a toy train set, which he's played with every day since then. He had an Elmo costume for Halloween, but he was actually fighting bronchitis that day, so he wore it a few days later for some pictures.
(8 September 2013)
I had so much fun watching BYU take down #15 Texas yesterday. The game started late after a lightning delay (deja vu from the week before?) but then the game was very fun and exciting. I was watching with a bunch of friends while Cody played with about 20 other kids, so it was a win/win!
(1 September 2013)
Finally! Football season is here again!!! My beloved Cougars fell 19-16 to Virginia yesterday. They played 1 quarter before lightning and then a downpour forced the game to be suspended for two hours. As such, I didn't get to see anything past the first quarter, but that's ok. Reading the summary, it sounds like some execution errors did the Cougars in: a botched snap resulted in a safety, a punt that was blocked and a tipped ball that was intercepted by Virginia (and later turned into the winning score) all played a factor. I did get to see this play. What a jump!
Cody continues to do very well! He loves cars, trucks, trains, airplanes, fire engines, ambulances and police cars - as well as rocks. The kid loves picking the river rock out of the tons of gravel in our driveway.
(4 August 2013)
We spent most of the last three weeks with either my mom or my dad, which was wonderful. I know Cody enjoyed being spoiled by his grandparents.
BYU football season is coming! Here is the AP pre-season poll. Highlighted teams are those that BYU will face this season.
(14 July 2013)
April - June pictures are up. I still need to combine the movie clips into something I can share, but first I need to find time to figure out how to get my computer to read the files from the new camcorder...
(3 July 2013)
The infrequent blog updates continue, but it's because we are busy with renovations. Seriously, I go to work in the morning. When I come home at night, we have dinner as a family and some play time before putting Cody to bed. Once he's down for the night, my husband and I tackle whatever project needs doing. It won't always be quite this crazy. In terms of house renovations, we've done the following:
- The framing for the door to the attic and the installation of the door itself, including the drywalling of the framing.
- Installed all the full panels of drywall for the ceiling.There are still a few places that need to be drywalled, like around the lights, but they are all small areas.
- Drywalled two of the walls in the attic
- Installed sink in the laundry room
- Replaced the sink in the hall bathroom with a much cooler one
- Replaced the ugly counter in the hall bathroom with something better
- Replaced the fixtures with bronze versions (towel racks, etc)
- Installed one of those water-saving, variable-flush toilets in the hall bathroom.
- Installed closet rods in the two guest bedrooms
- Finished the framing around the windows in the two guest bedrooms and Cody's room.
Since I last posted, Cody's vocabulary (in both English and ASL) has continued to grow by leaps and bounds. He's speaking English more than he has before but he's also picking up new signs every day. He's very good at communicating his wants which we love. He's also mastered the word "no" which we don't particularly love but aren't surprised by since he is rapidly approaching the terrible twos.
ASL signs that he knows include milk, drink, mom, dad, Mikey (his name sign), food, fruit (though modified a little), music, cracker, shoe, banana, blanket (though he signs it as bed), wind, rain, book, car, bird - and I feel like I'm forgetting others.
English words that he says (not just understands) include uh-oh, no, mine, truck, moo (though he says 'boo-ah'), cracker, woof-woof, bad kitty, daddy, mama.
(18 May 2013)
I'm not normally this bad at posting here! It's just one of those busy times where I hardly have a moment to sit and think, much less update a blog. It's a good kind of busy though.
Since the last post, the following has been done for the house renovations:
- The attic floor replacement is complete (well, the sub-flooring).
- Additional panels of drywall have been installed on the ceiling in the attic. It isn't quite done, but getting there.
- We've done a bit of work relating to the new stairs (adding drywall in some places, doing framing and installation of a little shelf, etc).
- The master bedroom now has lights! When we moved in, the main light (which was really just two little bulbs) wasn't operated by a switch. Two little lamps were, but those were in the wall that we knocked down. The main light has been replaced with a five light chandelier, two bright lights were added to the wall and an additional light was added above the stairs -- and all are operated by a switch!! Yes, I really am that excited about a switch. I wasn't enjoying feeling around in the dark for a pull-chain on the previous light. :-)
- We've finally started doing some work outside as well! We planted 4 fruit trees (on our 10th wedding anniversary no less) and a bunch of strawberries. The 'pond' that was there has been drained and removed, with the fountain from the old house being installed as a replacement (safer for kids and less of a breeding ground for mosquitoes). The outside area got new river rock (mostly leftover from the fountain project). Just today I took out some blackberry bushes that were threatening to take over the driveway next to the barn.
Cody continues to be a joy, though it is obvious he's a toddler. He's started saying a few English phrases though he still communicates mostly in ASL. He'll say things like "uh oh" and "hi," and has his own terminology like "gagi" for "cracker" and some others I don't remember off-hand. In sign, he is quite communicative. He started saying "mine" if he wants to keep something that is being taken away. He will point to pictures of himself and then point to himself to indicate that the picture is of him.
He loves to play with toy trucks and cars, mostly driving them around all over. He'll point out airplanes if he hears them. He loves to walk around outside. He'll tug and pull and get us to go down the driveway and then throw a fit when we don't let him walk along the road (not much of a shoulder). He's discovered the cows that live across the street since they've started coming out to pasture and he'll wave at them. He also waves to just about every car that passes by when he is outside. While eating, he loves to be facing the windows so he can see the birds flying or the squirrels running along the power lines.
Cody now has a "big boy bed," though he only sleeps on it probably less than half the time. He loves to climb on his bed and play with his toys during the day but thus far seems to prefer sleeping on a blanket on the floor at night. Sometimes we'll put him on the bed and he'll immediately climb off (usually hands-first) but other times he'll just lay right down.
(3 April 2013)
Is my little boy really only a few days shy of being 18 months old?! Wow! He's turned into a busy toddler who loves to explore anything and everything. He's completely fascinated with opening and closing things and with walking around outside and seeing everything there is to see. He loves watching the birds from the window as he eats his breakfast in the morning. He usually has a smile on his face. He loves both parents, but typically prefers Mommy. I can't say I fault that. (grin).
The house renovations continue:
- The attic floor has been completely replaced with the exception of one little area by the stairs which will be done when we get time.
- The wainscotting used as the ceiling in the attic has been completely removed. Half of the ceiling has been drywalled. We're working on prepping the other half and will hopefully be able to make good progress on the drywall there with the help of some friends early next week.
- The "wall" that hid the stairs to the attic in our room has been demolished.
- The "death trap" stairs to the attic have been completely replaced with something much safer. Pictures coming eventually.
Pictures from the first three months of this year are posted.
(3 March 2013)
An update to this blog is way overdue! Well, let's get right down to it!
House updates:
- For all intents and purposes, we are unpacked and moved in!
- The siding installation for the new house is complete! The porch area wasn't done but that's because we're going to be redoing the porch here in a few months.
- The attic renovation is in full swing. The old floor has been completely removed and almost completely replaced (one little section by the stairs remains). We're in the midst of taking down the ugly wainscotting stuff that the previous owners used as ceiling material as well as the (somewhat randomly placed) 2x4s they were connected to. 2x2s are being added to the rafters which is where the drywall will eventually connect.
- The HVAC system inspection was recently completed and all is good there! The framing around the ducts is up, as well as insulation, so we can start the drywalling! My husband estimates that we have 1000 square feet of drywalling to do (including the attic)
Cody updates:
- Cody is a toddler now, almost always on the move. For the longest time, he'd only walk 4-5 steps at a time. If we tried to get him to walk farther, he'd just crawl the distance. On the evening of January 30th, however, something clicked in his mind and he started walking all over the place. He's getting faster and more stable by the day.
- Cody's molars have come in, so he now has 12 teeth - which he is usually showing off by way of a huge grin. He's such a happy guy (most of the time).
- He loves books and puzzles. He'll pick a book or two off of his shelf and force himself into our laps when he thinks it is story time.
- He has a hearty appetite, though he doesn't like pineapple very much. His current favorite food is mashed potatoes and gravy, with yogurt probably his next favorite. He can feed himself with a spoon, though he tends to scoop up too much and spill it on his shirt or bib. That doesn't seem to faze him though as he gets great delight from feeding himself.
(13 January 2013)
Happy New Year, one and all! It was a mighty cold start to the new year for us, but we did finally get heat in the new place on January 3rd. It makes such a difference!! The siding renovation is still in full swing, with the east side and all around the "great room" complete. The south side is in progress, with the insulation and plywood added, so the actual siding installation on that wall should be completed in a few days. Then just one wall left for that project! There are still many others to do.
I did manage to find some time to compile the Q4 pictures. Enjoy! I also put together the Q4 video.
Cody had his 15 month checkup this week. He's 31.5 inches tall and weighs 23 pounds. He got a clean bill of health.
