New House - Part 4

These pictures show the primary reason why we decided to move into a place with more bedrooms.  We realized that having all 3 kids share a room wasn't working anymore.  There was an increase in sibling fights, plus Will is at the age where sharing a room with his little sisters wasn't a good idea anymore.  Kayla is a bit jealous of Will for getting his own room (she has started asking for her own room in her bedtime prayers), and she doesn't appreciate the fact that Sarah isn't very good at helping clean up their room, but for the time being the situation is going well. 

New House - Part 3

One part of the house that's a bit of a novelty for us is having 2 bathrooms.  We don't use the back one very often, but it's nice to have it in case we need it. 

Back bathroom

Main bathroom

The legacy lives on

Will has been taking piano lessons for about 4 years now.  He struggles with wanting to practice, but he has natural talent and is quite good now.  Now he is entering a new phase in his musical career.  He has decided to join the 5th grade band, and his instrument of choice is the trumpet.  He had been debating for a while whether to do trumpet or trombone, and I have to confess that I secretly hoped he wouldn't choose the trombone.  This is mostly because he comes from a long line of trumpet players.  My dad, my grandpa Rollie, and my great-grandpa Ray all play or played the trumpet, and I wanted Will to continue the tradition.  He just got his trumpet today, and I am excited to see how quickly he picks it up.  He is really excited about learning to play, and I hope that excitement continues for a long time. 

New House - Part 2

Today's pictures are the front living room and the front entry.  This is the area of the house that Bill and I love the most, and the area that we made sure got unpacked and put together first before anything else.  We love having two separate living rooms. There's a room in the back of the house (picture coming later) with the TV and computer, which we call the entertainment room.  This front living room is where we do things like FHE, scripture study, home/visiting teaching, etc. 

Only in the Midwest...

Will you find a festival devoted to cheese.  Every Labor Day weekend hundreds of people travel to Arthur, Illinois for their cheese festival.  We used to go almost every year when we first moved here, but we hadn't gone for at least a couple of years so we decided to make the hour drive on Saturday.  We had hoped to make it on time for Bill to compete in their cheese curling competition (he's a two-time champion of the event), but unfortunately we arrived just as it was ending.  We were still able to find plenty for everyone to do to have a great time.

The happy festival attendees

 

The bounce houses and pony rides were popular attractions

   Any cheese festival has to have a cheese and mouse mascot as part of the parade

New House - part 1

 As most of you know, we moved into a new house about 4 months ago.  We are loving it!  There is so much more room; the kids can walk to school; we are near friends, a park and a walking path, etc.  We are still unpacking things and getting settled, but it already feels like home and we are so grateful for the people and circumstances that made it possible for us to live here.  Since I can't give everyone the grand tour in person (although we are always up for visitors!), I will post pictures at various times.  Today's pictures are the kitchen and our great backyard.