never trust a groundhog

Today I painted the last of the touch ups on the fireplace area so we are all back to normal. It was a bit of work to get all the fire damage fixed up and I am happy to have it done. A big thanks to Dax's Dad who drove all the way up to help us. Here are pics of before, during, and after the repairs..

Hunter was a darling student of the week in his class last week and also sang in his 1st grade program entitled "We Love Winter".

I can only love winter son long because as I type it is currently -10 degrees outside. When you live in this town, winter is generally not a pleasant time to go out sledding or playing in the snow. It is spent trapped inside your house with nothing to do so you make cookies too much. And I don't care how good your house is insulated (mine happens to be quite so), nothing can keep -10 out completely. This is why the woodburning stove is crucial. For the couple of weeks it was out of commission, our gas bill went up $40 from the previous month.

Nothing quite warms my heart quite as much as my sweet little baby. I got her 6 month picture taken and also got Mack's done too. He was one the last time I got a profossional shot of him.

I hang out with these two a lot and I sure do love them.

Mack is still on his diet of cookies, candy, and syrup. What an inspiration!

Dax has been working hard and was recently workin' it with mohawk for a few days. He shaved it off because he had to teach a lesson in church and wanted to be taken seriously. I think it would have been a great attention getter/keeper.

fire!

If we had to have a house fire, this was the one to have. As my neighbor was helping me carry my sleeping kids across the street to her house, she asked me what else she wanted me to grab. The only thing of value I could think of were people we had in our arms.

You couldn't ask for more excitement in our quiet neighborhood. 3 fire engines, 2 police cars, and an ambulance (which no one needed, thank heavens). More and more neighbors gathered to find out what was going on and if we needed help. I am grateful that there wasn't much they could do.

A fire started inside our wall from an ineffective seal in the chimney pipe. We happen to live across the street from 2 city firefighters who we called to come take a look and they called in the rest of the team. A hole was punched into the wall from the garage side and they sprayed water into it to put out the fire. Some beams and studs need to be replaced, some sheetrock, paint, carpet pad and trim and we're back in business. Easier said than done, but all my valuables are safe and sound.

We stayed the night at our neighbors which my kids thought was so cool. Except Hunter, who pretty much slept through the whole thing. He woke up around 2am and said, "Where am I?" We came back home this morning to a mess and we are not sure where to start.

But...really we are so blessed and I know we were/are watched over and protected.