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I'm glad to report that my husband and I continue to make progress as we rush to get our downstairs finished. We've been able to get our dining room to the point where all that's left to be done is the sanding and staining of the floor. This means the unique flower bouquets that have graced my walls for almost a year have now been removed permanently!!! A big thank you to my mom who came over on her Saturday to help us with our big painting project.
(I apologize mom, but I had to)
While my mom was hard at work painting our walls, I gave her cup of water to cool down. Well, I shouldn't have given her a cup that looked exactly like the red, plastic one she was painting out of. As she yelped, laughed and then washed her mouth out, she turned and said "no wonder the water was taking forever to come out." Thanks mom for that good laugh and memory that I will never let you live down. :)
The disappearing of the bouquets...
(bonding with my walls)
installing the wainscoting!
(another thanks to mom Landis, who helped paint both coats of the wainscoting)
Ta-da!
The evolution of the floor...
My husband also worked very hard at installing the wood flooring on the
one side of the living that doesn't have it. We both have a new appreciation for people that do this for a living. What a physically demanding task!
Half of the living room has wood floor and the other had this. (above)
Off to work he goes...
The end result! ...of the floor and Dustin
We recently sanded all the floors that you saw. Our next step will be to stain it!
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Our latest project has been the downstairs living and dining room area. My husband has been working so hard to get these rooms to a point where we can start priming the walls. Our radiators are currently out for the purpose of refinishing the floors easily. So we're in crunch time mode to get our radiators back in before the weather starts getting a lot cooler. We're excited to see these rooms start coming together, yet exhausted thinking of all that needs to be done. My husband works all day doing physical labor and comes home to a house that requires the same physical demands. Please pray for strength and a renewed spirit.
~
Reminder of what the walls in this room used to look like... sponge paint: greens, yellows and browns.
Blue walls with hand painted flower bouquets... :/
A Winter Wonderland...
or the result of spackling and sanding a large room.
Special thanks to our brother in law, James. He was a big motivator for my husband when the next step was to sand all the walls. Not a fun job at all. James seems to come when the worst jobs need to be done. Needless to say, it has helped us so much!
Spackling some odds and ends.. not as fun as I make it look.
Doing some touch up work.
Amazing friends came to help wipe down walls, vacuum and paint!!!
Taking a time out...
Finished... no more scary looking walls.
This guy needs a hug. :)
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We've decided after finishing the bedroom, the downstairs living area would be our next project. We've just started but already we have accomplished a lot. There is much to do but this time around we don't have walls to tear down or big structural issues, so we hope to have this project go a little quicker than the last. Time will tell.
On another note, our electric is now done in the laundry room and bathroom!!!
Big thanks to our cousin who has helped us out tremendously being our electrician! We would be behind in progress if it weren't for his willingness to help. He has given his time generously without expecting much in return. That is a rare quality. Needless to say it's been a blessing.
Two very talented guys working together to rewire the laundry room...
This my friends, is what we used before we were able to flip a switch, a halogen light.
I no longer have to stumble in the dark to find it and blind myself when turning it on.
we have light!
Another exciting accomplishment, we have drywall on the downstairs ceiling!!!"
watch the progression...
Our cousin and Dad Landis helpin' out.
I'm amazed at how different it makes the room look.
We're gettin' there!
After a hard days work, what better way to celebrate than
with tape measure jousting :)
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Mrs. K's Toll House:
To start off the Christmas season, my mom, two sisters and Grace hopped in a car and drove to Mrs. K's Toll House Restaurant to meet a couple of my relatives that live in the Maryland area for a lunch in! That evening became the never ending ride accompanied by mother's Christmas singing due to the snowy forcast. ...love you mom! :)
Mrs. K's TollHouse
The House:
Little update on the house. Well, we've survived a month of living in our new home and surprisingly enough we have gotten a lot of big things accomplished. And that is all thanks to Dustin! We received our brand new appliances, we've gotten new windows, a new roof, a new water softener system, fixed a nasty leak, put in a new beam in the ceiling and started on electric! I need to keep reminding myself of this big list when I get impatient with wanting the next project to happen. Slowly but surely!
I can see out of my windows!!!!
The new beam! Now we are less likely to fall
through the floor now. Woo!
The fixed leak from our upstairs shower!
Celebrating the first of many Christmas' in our new home.
Landis Family Christmas:
What fun time we had at the Landis homestead! Mom Landis made us a fabulous Christmas dinner. And as usual when we were done, we all unbuttoned our pants and ventured over to the couches! Never a dull moment.... or a quiet moment with 5 nieces and nephews running around. :) That is until someone had the brilliant idea of putting on a movie! As hyper as they are I love them all! It wouldn't be a family gathering without all the noise. Also, the newest member Micah, celebrated his first Christmas! He is now 4 months old!
Mom & Dad Landis attempting to read the Christmas story
This seemed to be more appealing to the kids...Foot War!
Baby Micah being adored by oldest sister, Kyla!
Vitto Family Christmas:
Another new family member that experienced her first Christmas was Gracie! Now at 6 months old, she can sit up all by herself, eat big girl food, and giggle like her mother! All the kids slept over Christmas eve and woke up all together on Christmas morning. Mom was a fabulous host as usual and made an amazing breakfast for all of us that morning. My grandparents and my aunt and uncle drove down to visit for the Holidays and again, there was never a dull moment. Eating and laughing was our specialty. Grace was pretty much the entertainment for Christmas. At one point all 12 of us were crowded around the table just watching as Grace sat in the middle of the table, laughing, squealing and smiling. We're entertained easily.
Gracie in her cute Christmas dress!
The siblings!
Grandpa's pride and joy!
Gracie preparing for Santa Clause
3 goobers :)
Grace opening her first present
A Phillies fan is born!
The beautiful quilt that my grandma made us as
a housewarming present!
Me and my Gracie-poo!
Grace and Grandma!
Eric & Heather's Wedding:
Our friends from church invited us to their beautiful Christmas wedding! They met early on in high school and have been dating ever since. Six long years to be exact! They have been waiting so patiently for this day! It was a beautiful ceremony!
Eric sang the song that he wrote for Heather when he proposed to her.
There wasn't a dry eye in the Church!
Me and my love relaxing and enjoying the reception.
Merry Christmas, Happy New Year!
