We need a foster home for a week!

So we are planning on driving up to Logan (and Salt Lake) in late June. We will be arriving on the 29th. However, we are looking for a loving family who will let us (and our dog...but she is the best dog ever) stay with them for about a week. Any volunteers?????? Please?!?! --Andy

Random pictures

Here are just a few random shots from the past few days....



Lainey loves to eat her frozen gogurt:




Ethan with some awesome bed head:

The kids new swimming pool: (notice our lawn... the damn dog pee is ruining it!)
Lainey was all ready to go swimming at our new community center pool. I took some pics of our swim yesterday and will post those soon. She is such a daredevil, she scares me to death! The child has NO FEAR!

The kids and I had some yummy fruit with orange cream cheese dip. YUM!

Lainey with a mouth FULL of bananas:


The kids are making their own personal pizzas on english muffins:



It is rare that Lainey will hold still long enough for me to do her hair. I got lucky the other day!

Finally, the rest of the house!

See, what did I tell ya, we got our butts in gear and finished the house! Wahoo!

Here is the view of the living room from the stairs:




Now from the other direction:



We incorporated some of the Japanese stuff into the house:


Here is the kitchen:


Our family photo wall:

The upstairs hallway:

The Master Bedroom:





If you are wondering why we don't have a comforter, you can ask Andy. He is what one calls a "blanket hog." So to remedy that, we bought separate blankets. We got these ones in Japan and although they aren't that pleasing to the eye, they are SUPER comfy. Lainey likes to roll around on the "two beds"while saying "mamma's side, daddy's side, mamma's side, daddy's side."


Our new dresser:
Lainey had 3 sliding doors on her closet and they kept slipping out of the tracking. It was driving me nuts so, in true Annie style, I ripped them out and put up curtains (well, Andy put them up)! I like this so much better anyway!




Et Viola! The house is done! It is such a nice feeling.

A few more pics

I know that I have really been slacking on posts lately... I don't even really have a good excuse! I wanted to post a few more pics of our excursion to Sequoia to show that we did in fact have Grandma Pat here for a visit! She was here for a week and it was so nice to have her here. I truly enjoy her company and wanted to thank her for coming out to visit us! I know that Lemoore isn't as exotic as Japan and that there isn't a whole lot to do around here, but we hope she enjoyed her visit as much as we did. The kids absolutely adore her and even though it takes Lainey a bit to warm up, by the time Grandma Pat was ready to leave, Lainey wanted to leave with her!




Ethan found himself a huge walking stick:


This last photo is a bit out of place, I know, but I just had to show Lainey's use for her headbands. She refuses to wear them on her head, but sure seems to like dressing up in them! Just in case you are wondering what is on her arm, it is the remnants of her Hello Kitty tattoo. I made her a half sleeve, it was awesome!

Andy is off today and tomorrow so we are going to get the last of our pictures hung up. I know that I have said this before, but really, I am going to post pics of the rest of the house soon!

Sequoia National Park

We decided to head out to Sequoia yesterday after Lainey's nap. I haven't heard too much about the park but it is a short hour and 15 min drive from our house. It had to be one of the coolest places I have ever been. The winding roads up the mountains were amazing and a little scary at some points. The giant sequoias were more than impressive. I am sure we will visit the park many more times while we are here. Yosemite is only a 2 hour drive, so I think that will be our next adventure.

The view from the bottom. We hiked up to the top of the granite dome and took in the the awesome views.


On the way up.....
Taking in the scenery



General Sherman, the largest tree in the world.

Ethan's Room

We got Ethan a new loft bed and he absolutely LOVES it. We are super happy how his room turned out:


Andy forgot to shut the closet door before he took the pic, but as you can see, that is where all of Ethan's "excess toys" go.

Next up will be the rest of the house..which will be coming as soon as Andy has a day off!

Lainey's Room is DONE!

Sorry it's been awhile since my last post..we have been just a wee bit busy. We have a few more pictures to hang and the garage is a disaster area, but our living space is pretty much done. WAHOO! Andy hung up Lainey's pictures today (as well as cleaned our couch and carpets, hung more pictures, painted Ethan's toy box, the list goes on and on). He is a saint in my book. They say a way to a woman's heart is through chocolate...mine is through clean couches and carpets. I am one VERY happy mamma. Thanks Andy for all you do!


Here are a few pics of Miss Lainey's room...

I have no idea what this says...Lainey loves it though. Every time I have her in my arms she yells "TUNNEL" as we swoop through it.

We made her a "dress up" wall:


Her kitchen and beloved horse Miso:



Lainey posing for the camera:

That's all for now, but I will post pics of Ethan's room soon!