Camille Marie finally arrives

Little Camille with grandma right after being born on 1/17 at 1:17. She weighed 8 lbs. (yeah, almost two pounds smaller than Lucas) and is 21 inches long.

Proud papa that had to go to work at 7 the next morning.

A little tired, but otherwise a very happy mommy.

The one eyed glare

Finally....

So we have had many requests for updated photos. I know all the pictures just stopped suddenly. I'm sorry, but I can attribute that to many things; the main ones being we moved and were moving in and getting our very slow internet hooked up. It's all we can get out here and I'm okay if I upload one picture at a time. The wait was worth it I hope because now you get to see the updated house photos with Christmas decorations!

We think of last year and how hectic things were building the house and selling our other house and we are grateful it is over and feel so blessed with how everything turned out. We love being out in the peace and quiet and enjoy having the woods as our neighbor. I know we made a list of things we would recommend to anyone that builds a house, but most have them have slipped my mind. Some of them are: It's never too early to pick everything out no matter what everyone tells you,

There are honest contractors out there; if you don't trust yours, find a new one. We loved ours!!!

Make sure all details are on the bid. When you hear we'll adjust for that later, say, "no, let's add it now:)"

Don't be afraid to get different bids from subs that aren't with your contractor. Sometimes it was cheaper and helped us negotiate with his subs.

On the same note, do your own research and online dealers are usually cheaper than suppliers your builder deals with all the time.

Go over every invoice. We saved thousands because of mistakes we caught that were missed. It's your money so you care the most about it.

Lastly, try to be part of the final cleaning. You'd be amazed how many things you notice when you are scrubbing every inch of the house.

Although I haven't gotten to decorating our room yet, you can atleast see the beams which are my favorite part.

This is not a Christmas photo of the house, but since we're covered in snow and it's very cold I didn't want to go outside. Just add a wreath to the door and it's practically the same.

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Outside Painted!

The bookshelves in the study. I know they're half covered with a bed, but you get the idea. When we walked in it was like, "wow" we loved them so much. The crown is going on this Wed.

The outside is all painted now that the weather has been nice. Sandstone for the body and quiver tan for the peaks.

The jack and jill vanity. The granite is on backwards, we know. It's just resting there until they instsall it.

The spiral staircase is one of the kid's favorite things; they go up and down and around. You practically have to be a child to fit; it's the smallest in diameter that you can find--3 1/2 ft.

Master Bath and Entry

The carpenter has started on the entry staircase. Picture five more newel posts and 100 bronze hammered ballisters. It's hard to see, but the bottom two stairs flare out slightly.

The fireplace in the master bedroom with slate floor to ceiling. The beams go in next.

The master vanity matches the kitchen island and has the same dentil detailing under the granite. There will be two vessel sinks that will sit on the counter.

A peak at half the master shower. It carries on around the corner there a little.

Jacuzzi tub with the same tile carried throughout. The border matches the floor in the shower. I'm sure I can bathe all the kids at once, finally!

We're getting closer

A look on the main level into the great room, kitchen and dining room. The acacia floors are in and the cherry cabinets with stained espresso maple island are in. The granite is almost done; they're still working on the bar that's being propped up (as you can see). It's hard to see the floor but they're handscraped and distressed (so the destroying is already done for me:)Monkeys in the basement climbing the ledges in a closet.

Lucas was a little unicorn. The boys kept putting this corner piece on his head making him have a horn. Behind me is the basement kitchenette with the stained maple cabinets behind. The sink and countertops are finally installed. The stain is called washington and is throughout the whole house except the kitchen and master.

The beautiful finished slate backsplash. Yes, the cabinets will darken with time and sunlight. I flipped out too.The cooktop is resting in place so we can visualize pancakes and eggs. I was worried about being able to clean the slate so we had them carry the granite to the back also for easy cleaning. Functional and gorgeous! The knobs and faucets are going in this week and the crown on the cabinets will be finished. Yes, the tops aren't going to be that plain:)

Some updates from the weekend

We went to visit the house this last weekend and there are some new improvements. The doors are in and the trim carpenter is busily doing the casings. We've tried to keep the style pretty close to true craftsman.


Overlooking the new slate tile in the entry way. Yes, the door still needs stained. On the right wall there was a little lip the framers did for some reason that we noticed after everything was drywalled, mudded, and painted. So they had to go back and redo the whole wall so it doesn't quite match the rest yet.

The slate tile in the upstairs bathroom.

Here's a picture that shows the paint color a little better. It's named diverse beige and I love it. The almost complete fireplace in the great room.

The siding and stone are almost done

The masons have been working in freezing weather with a little heater and a tarp to get the stone work done. It's called walnut ridge and I love the color variation and how it turned out. The siding is cement board so that is not the color it will be; we'll paint it in the spring. A look at the side with the installed garage doors.

The back deck is framed and they will be finishing it soon with trex boards. The siding and roof are done for the most part. Just a couple details needed when it warms up.