Happy Birthday, Benjamin!

We celebrated Benjamin's 10th birthday this past weekend. No more single digits in our family!


We had a fun filled day that included indoor surfing (at a local mall), new toys, and sharing birthday cake and ice cream with neighborhood friends.

Happy Birthday, Benjamin!

Winter Wonderland!

On Monday evening we got an ice storm and the schools (basically the whole city!) have been shut down since then. This morning we awoke to several inches of snow.


An early birthday present for me!

Happy Birthday, Grace!

Happy Birthday, Grace! It's the big 13! We are celebrating with a snow day, movies, and vanilla cupcakes. We love you!

Our New Back Patio

We started our new back patio project in November, finished in December, and I'm finally getting around to sharing pictures! You can see the before and during pictures HERE.


There is a hot tub on the far end, which is Phillip's Christmas present for the next 10 years!


Hopefully the pergola will keep the area a little cooler in the summer.




My favorite spot to sit.


There are fleece throws under the table for cold evenings.


Thank you for stopping by and taking a look!

Back Patio - Before and During Project

We had made good use of our small back patio over the past 12 years, but we were ready for a change.


When we moved here in '99, Phillip had plans of putting in a hot tub, eventually. Now that the girls and Benjamin had outgrown the sandbox, the space was available.

Several other things got the project moving along. The wall behind the ivy needed replaced due to rotting wood, then a few months later we got termites. It was recommended that we remove all the dirt and wood chips from the sides of the house.


The work started in mid November with a new drainage system.






Extended cement slab.


New flagstones.




All finished!