Deck Rebuid

Down goes the deck... We knew when we purchased our house that the deck was the first major thing to be replaced. Poor craftsmanship, chipping paint, it was bad. Sam's dad offered to help and we were thrilled to have the free labor :)

Job site. I'm not sure how many trips were made to Menard's during the project, but let's just say Sam got pretty close to the people in the lumber yard.

Allie loved going out and picking up scrap pieces and tools at day's end. She checked on Sam and Grandpa Tom constantly to see if they needed any "nacks" (snacks).

As you can tell from the pictures, Sam and Tom had variable weather conditions. They enjoyed everything from 50s and sun to 35 degrees and a light drizzle.

Wheelbarrow ride

Allie tested out the new and improved stairs.

If you've seen the movie Christmas Vacation, recall the scene when Clark grabs the chain saw and fixes the newel post. Sam was trying to recreate that moment.

The project went very smoothly, except for the last railing. It just took a little extra measuring and maybe an extra board or two.

The (almost) finished project. Sam is working on a few built-in benches and planters before the snow flies. Now we just have to survive our first North Dakota winter and we can go enjoy it!

Halloween

Allie took every chance she had to ride our pumpkin before it was carved.

That's right, Sam brought out the power tools to carve a squirrel into our pumpkin.

Cinderella loved trick or treating and was disappointed to learn it was only one night per year. Special thanks to Uncle Jeff for the Cinderella dress, Garbie for making the very warm princess cape and Aunt Michaela for the trick or treat bag! Her light-up princess shoes were an added safety element.

Moose and Rocky were quite fascinated with the night and kept a constant watch over the front door.

Pumpkin Patch

It felt like we were going to blow away (thank you North Dakota wind) but we had a fun time at the pumpkin patch just outside Grand Forks. Allie hoped right on the tractor and got to work.

Trying to beat Sam through the hay bale maze

Pumpkin bowling with the help of Grandpa Tom. He's here for a long visit to help Sam rebuild our deck, and partake in fun stuff like the pumpkin patch.

Bean bag toss. If you look closely, the bean bag is mid-air.

Chasing Grandpa Tom through the corn maze. Allie had more fun going off the path and blazing her own trail.

The pumpkins were HUGE. Now the family debate beings as to what to carve - a princess crown, a Herbie cat or a K-State Powercat?

Fall is here...

Allie loves to watch Dancing with the Stars and we dance around the living room while the celebrities dance on the show. She knows the difference between the fast and slow dances and she dances as such. Sam caught us in action.

Before Mass one Sunday...

Being married to a golf course superintendent has its advantages. Sam brought home the necessary supplies and put down the fall fertilizer application, with a little help from his assistant.

Allie made sure Sam had the calibration correct...

Another morning before Mass. She loves her squirrels!

September

Allie has always liked the movie Finding Nemo, especially Dory the fish and Dude the turtle. When Tom and Janet were here, Allie and Grandma Janet made fish out of paper plates and then Allie and Sam made a green turtle. There are turtles in the ponds at Sam's course and he was able to get one in a bucket and bring it home for Allie to see. She wanted to show her paper turtle to the real one. Dude wasn't very happy in his bucket so Sam and Allie promptly returned him to the course, as Allie said, "so he be with his family and be happy."

Allie and Sam had a Daddy/Daughter weekend in mid-September while I made a trip to Omaha. They went to the shop at the golf course to check on the crew...

...and then to the clubhouse to complete payroll.

It was great to have dinner with Mom, Dad and Jeff.

The next night, Mom, my best friend Michaela and I saw Jersey Boys. It's a fantastic musical!

Turtle River State Park is about 20 minutes from Grand Forks and we went for a short hike and a picnic last weekend. Sam said it was good for his soul to be out of town and back in nature for a while. You can take the man out of nature, but you can't take the love of nature out of the man. Here's Sam and Allie calling for squirrels.

Allie still loves her backpack, and thanks to her being a peanut, still fits comfortably in it. Pony got to come to the "turtle park" too.

Happy girl - both of us

They have cross country trails and a great sledding hill, so we'll be back in the winter.

This is Wormy. Sam and Allie planted trees while I was in Omaha and Allie rediscovered worns, this time with a new found love for them. We even found a book about a worm at the library this week. Don't worry, Wormy is safely back in the dirt outside.

First Day of Preschool!

Allie started preschool today! She was very excited to go and play with other kids, have art and music time and have snack. No tears for this girl, just excitement.

This picture was taken exactly 3 years ago today. She was so little! What a difference 3 years makes!

Garbie and Pa Visit for a Cinderella Birthday

Garbie and Pa got here on Friday night and we started the weekend off with a Cinderella princess party to celebrate Allie's 3rd birthday! There was no way she was going to be patient enough to have it later in the weekend. She loved the Hello Kitty purse and play make up from Aunt B, Uncle Ronnie, Great Grandpa and Great Grandma.

Uncle Jeff had the best present - the Cinderella dress! It's on 3 or 4 times a day and will probably go on vacations with us, if it's not worn on the plane. Her blond hair adds to the costume!

Garbie and Pa gave Allie a K-State tricycle for her birthday!

Allie watched in amazement earlier in the day as we turned cake, frosting and a Cinderella barbie into a Cinderella cake. She was very excited to blow out the candles.

No Cinderella princess birthday would be complete without a group photo and crowns for everyone!

She's getting the hang of it more and more each time we go for a ride. Allie is very good about wearing her helmet and so far, hasn't had any accidents. She did trip running up the driveway to her bike and that resulted in two skinned knees. All part of being a kid.

The tricycle was missing a piece but luckily Sam is extremely handy and was able to fix it in no time. Cinderella got to go to Menards with him. She was the only princess there!

Hard to believe she's already 3!

Making sure Pa had his ball teed up correctly. Dad and Sam played at Sam's course on Saturday morning while Allie, Mom and I went shopping. Everyone was happy!

Taking Pa's order at the "restaurant" at the big park

Getting ready for Mass

Being new homeowners, things of course start to fail on you. The first thing to go here was the garage door opener. Sam and Dad had the lovely task of installing the new one. They didn't plan to match, but got a good chuckle when they saw how the other was dressed. Maybe this is why the project went so well...maybe it was due to the blue cans....

Moose was exhausted after the weekend was over.