Parties and Contractors

We really had  great time at our teens and moms get-together last night.  We had Lacy and Allysa, Tracy, Sami, Coie, Ryann, and of course, my girls, Ashley, and Briana.  All teens--very sweet teens.  I love this bunch because I don't have to worry. Lots of giggles and a few loud ROFL is about all you hear out of them.  Just provide them with a lot of food and a place to talk.  They all have precious hearts , and we don't have to worry about whether their conversation is appropriate or what is going on.  It's such a shame that so many parents out there, even some homeschool ones, miss out on the opportunity to have a great time with their teens.  I love the teen years.  We moms had a pretty good time ourselves.  I had great time.  The moms here were Pat, Maria, Gena, and Jen.  Yes, we know Gena didn't have a teen girl here, but we just like her company!  Some of us used to have a group of these girls and moms that got together once a month and did something fun--game night, putt-putt, window shopping, eating out, etc.  Some of these are different girls, but I sure hope we can do this more often again. 

    I am spoiled!  My husband is a contractor.   We bought our house 16 years ago-dirt cheap.  It was a pretty good size house then, but it needed lots of help.  Most of the years we've lived here we couldn't afford to do much to it.  A few projects here and there--mostly painting, new kitchen countertops (replacing the canary yellow ones), and some other hit and miss projects like leveling out our hilly backyard and building a deck.  Once James started building, the projects around here started picking up.  First he added on a workshop next to our garage, a new front door, replacing some floors, etc.  When we started adopting our 4th child, we had to have another bedroom, so he tore the roof off the garage and added a second floor above it, which became a large master bedroom.  A screened porch became our schoolroom and a covered porch adjacent to it became our craft room last year.  This year's biggest project is a new laundry room.  For the last 16 years, guests have had to go through my tiny laundry room to get to the bathroom.  It's a pain, especially trying to hide all the unmentionables.  So, he is adding a new laundry room on the other side of the bathroom.  It will also be big enough for my freezer, extra frig, and laundry sink.  I can't wait!  Also, the spot where the washer and dryer are now will become a pantry.  I'm really excited about that since we buy a lot of bulk food, which now sits in the corner of my den. 

    The only way we are able to do these projects is because he does most of the labor himself, and sometimes what we do have to hire out we get a discount on because they are his subs. 

    The house still has a long way to go before it is close to "there", but it's tons better and more suited to our family.  I need to remember to thank him more often!  Yep.  I'm spoiled.  Sometimes it takes having other people here to remind me of that.