Wood Stove

Ever since we bought this house we knew we were going to want to put in a wood stove. We bounced back and forth between different locations that we thought it would work, talked about waiting until we converted the garage into more living space. But finally concluded that we wanted one for this winter. It has already been so cold and electric heating is not the most efficient. Thanks to Ben and Liz for helping us get this done and get it done right away! You guys sure take a project and go with it!

It ended up being a 2 weekend process, the first weekend we put in the hearth. A nice porcelin tile. Of course there was a lot more too it then just laying tile. 

Marking the floor for placement: 

Scott ( was also a BIG help) and Paul removing carpet: 

 

Measuring to be sure they are accurate.

 

Hard at work:

 

The little boys painting to stay busy and not be too much in the way:

 

Then some outside play:

 

Zander getting in on the action:

 

 

The little boys and grandma took all the seeds out of my pumpkins so I could bake them. Oh that was great! 

 

Starting Tile:

 Me mixing the adhesive for tile

 All ready for grout:

The second weekend was the installation of the stove itself. Didn't get very many pictures of this process. But it pretty much consisted of cutting a hole in the ceiling and the roof, installing some pipe and attaching it to the stove. We ended up having a cute little bend in our pipe due to placement of the trusses in the attic.

Hole in Ceiling:

 Completed and awaiting inspection:

The boys enjoying the first fire:

It has been soooooo nice enjoy the endless heat from the woodstove. So cozy and I love the smell of a wood burning fire. 

Thank you again to Ben, Liz and Scott for all the extra help with this project!

Zanders 3 year old pictures!

Zander turned 3 in September and I just got around to doing his 3 year old photos. Time goes by just way too fast. He is really into trains, so what a better location then on some near by Railroad tracks. It was cold and windy, so we only spent about 5 min for our session. He was such a trooper in the cold!!

I had these visions of him laying on the train tracks driving his big train, but it was wet and cold and laying was not what he wanted to do, so this was the best I could do for him playing with his train.

He looks so old to me, growing so fast!

Syler's First food!

6 months is such a milestone for babies. They start to really interact on a much higher understanding level. They start to move around and learn how to get from sitting to tummy, back to sitting all on their own. They also get to start on solid foods. A bitter sweet moment in my mind.

With both Zander and Drezden we did a program called Baby Led Weaning(BLW), and loved it. BLW is when you provide the baby with regular foods that have NOT been mashed at all. Things like sliced avocado and banana, steamed carrots, steamed broccoli and steamed apples. Toast in slices, potato slices and more things similar. Then you gradually upgrade to different more difficult to chew foods. The concept is that a baby learns to eat by learning proper bite size and how to actually chew the food instead of suck from a spoon and swallow. 

With Syler we are receiving WIC (women, infants & children) benefits. They provide food checks to ensure that children and mothers receive the proper nutrition. So for him we receive a lot of jarred baby food. So we are doing a mixture of BLW and mashed foods for him. He LOVES babyfood, and has not yet shown much interest in feeding himself real foods. So we will keep offering BLW foods at every meal along with the jarred baby food( Zander was feeding himself at 6 months, Drezden not till 7, every baby is different).

Anyway onto some fun pictures of his first meal, he kept diving for the spoon, it was very very funny, Paul got a video on his phone and I will try to get it uploaded as well.

Enjoy.


Getting ready:

Checking out the spoon:

Steamed carrot:
He was not interested and kept throwing it on the floor

Squash: HE LOVED IT

Syler is 6 Months!!!

When you have your first child people tell you "enjoy every moment, they grow up too fast." You nod your head but still cannot wait for your baby to reach all the milestones and "grow up". You then have your 2nd child and are still excited for these milestones but dont really care when they happen. Then you have a 3rd child, and you realize life is flying by everyday. You dont want your baby to grow up, time goes too fast and milestones are happening while you are looking the other way for just 5 minutes. This was me today, realizing Syler was 6 months old. "Where did the time go?" 

It feels like just yesterday I was going into the hospital to meet this little guy, and now he is sitting up, has two teeth, is babbling, trying new food, scooting around in circles, getting frustrated when he tries to pull himself up to a stand but cant and even gives me a little attitude when I take him away from a toy to be changed. 

What happened to my baby????

It really is all bitter sweet though, these pictures I got of him today show so much personality and growth, it melts my heart and makes him growing up a little sweeter.

Enjoy!

Remember you can click on the thumbnails to bring up larger images.

I have done all the boys 6 month photos starting with a "bath scene" and a ducky. 

 

You may not be able to see, but a few of these next pictures he is watching some bubbles

I LOVE cloth diapers, really I do, so I had to include some with just a diaper bum!! (This one like most of his I made)

I just had to add in his blanket, seemed just perfect. This blanket his great grandma Wagner made him. It is super soft, snuggly and warm! 

Did I mention he LOVES his blankie??? 

 As much as I love naked babies, I figured I should get some clothed pictures too.

There is just something about little baby feet that I love.

Did you get enough Syler cuteness overload??

I didnt think so, one last one: