Breaking a Few Eggs...Making a Few Omelettes

While I was growing up I remember my mom and dad using the phrase..."you gotta break a few eggs to make an omelet" whenever I was (or we were) in the middle of one of those things that has to get worse before it can get better. Well, that has kinda been our spring and early summer in "our Knott so normal life."

So much has happened the past six or so weeks since I last posted. I say that every time I post, but really it has been crazy. This past spring was the busiest I think our family has endured in our 8 year history. Sam's schedule bordered on insane for weeks on end, but the Lord was/is faithful.

Let's see...what has happened. I'll try to post pictures so as to cut down on some of my "wordiness!"

Our Baby Girl...turned six the end of April...and then she graduated from kindergarten the end of May. It is so funny for me to see her personality grow and develop. Being up on stage...not really her thing. She had a great year; she loved loved loved her teacher, Mrs. McQueen. I am so thankful for her patience with Cel throughout the year.

After graduation, started our summer break. I am only working one day a week technically...the rest of the week I'm keeping up on email and meetings, etc. It has worked out fairly well. I can't believe only have 2 1/2 weeks left till we're back at the daily grind. Being back in a routine will be nice, but it's always sad to see summer come to a close. And here in the Midwest, it seems like school starts so early compared to back East...such is the life, I guess.

We had a visit from Papa and Grandma Esther. The kids had so much fun. Unfortunately Grandma Esther is always the one shooting the pictures so I don't even have any pictures to share from their visit. That same weekend we got to have the cousins spend the night. They had so much fun in the pool. It was the first swim of the summer.

We've of course spent some time at the park. All of that playground equipment, and their favorite thing is the water spouts in the "zoo" area. Carson is hilarious splashing through the water. He is truly a Tank as he plows through EVERYTHING recklessly!

They enjoyed the sandbox at the park too. It's always a little scary where all you find sand after they're out of the sandbox! :)

Breaking eggs...did I mention breaking eggs...well, we've been doing some of that...literally! The kids are still helping with the care of our chickens. Cel is managing to find buyers even through the summer. Carson periodically gets his hands on an egg...that rarely ends well for the egg! It has been interesting to see the kids learn about animal life...and death through all of this. Speaking of animal life...we've had two new calves born in the past month...Max and Ruby. To those of you who watch kiddo cartoons...no, it is NOT a coincidence...they were named after the book/cartoon characters! Both had uneventful entries into this world...thankfully! Amazing to watch them run and play around just days after their birth. Figurative breaking of eggs...yep, we've done plenty of that. We have CERTAINLY made our share of messes this spring/early summer! You may recall that Sam started the project of the downstairs hallway and workout room earlier this year. That project is basically done (one more mirror to hang)...it looks great. I am unfortunately unable to share any pictures at this time because my camera had an run in with Carson...hoping it's fixable. It looks so much better then it did before. I've enjoyed using my treadmill in its fresh surroundings!

Then of course there was the other major project Sam took on. The replacing of the yucky carpet in our dining room with wood floors. We definitely made some messes!


First, we had to empty out the hutch...



Then, it was the work of tearing out the old doors and trim...

We decided to add some color to the room before we added the flooring...some of you gave some suggestions. Burgundy won out...and I love it! This is the BLAH before picture.




Then, my amazing husband had the tedious job of installing the wood floors...isn't he handsome?!



It looks so much better than the carpet. Don't ya' think?




So, what I didn't foresee was that this project would lead to the staining, polyurethaning of 10 doors for the entire "old" part of our house...which of course means the same for trim and baseboards! Wow! When that portion of this project is complete, I'll post some pictures because I'm so just proud of Sam and how it all is turning out.



So here's a few closing shots of the bright spots in my life!

Here's a boy who's already serious about basketball...amazing!

Yes, he is probably up to something no good...notice the keys in his hand. That is why I can NEVER find anything! He's my unpredictable---cranky----hilarious---stubborn---clever---my little man.
My girl growing up so fast...notice all the missing teeth!
Sometimes during weeks when the kids don't see Sam, we'll head down to his office/plant to take he and the crew dinner...the kids LOVE the equipment.



One of my favorite things is a pretty sunset. There's nothing like a gorgeous end to the day to make us remember we serve an Almighty God...and awesome Creator...a loving Father. I needed this reminder when I saw this particular sunset.