New food
Hannah has been much better at trying new foods. Don't get me wrong, she is still picky, but less phobic. Considering how she was a year ago, this is a vast improvement.
Hannah tried something new this month: a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. She asked for one, and I gladly gave her one. It took her a while to eat it, and she hasn't asked for one since. I've offered it a few times, but ever since then she declines.
Deck stain
We stained our deck with the help of the missionaries at the first of the month. It looks so good! When we bought the house the inspector said we needed to stain the deck in about 3 years. Well, time goes quickly and it's been 3 years! So hard to believe,
Hannah enjoyed herself. Well, she enjoyed helping clean the deck the night before. The boys had fun playing with the pressure washer (uh, I mean trying to figure out how it worked).
Hannah wanted to help "paint" the deck the following day, but I didn't want her get stain anywhere (like our hair, the house, etc.). Not to mention, Hannah would have painted one spot over and over again, and that would not have been good for the stain on the wood. So, Hannah and I watched the men throughout the day.
There were a few spots on the deck that were still wet from the night before, so we pulled out the hair dryer and helped moved it along. It delayed us a little bit, but we still managed to finish before the sun went down. The weather for that weekend was gorgeous and it wasn't hot at all. It was a pleasant 70-75 degrees with a very nice gentle breeze.
The deck looks WONDERFUL, and it feels so good to have this project off our list, and especially done before winter approaches! We got a professional quote for staining the deck and they wanted $475 for a 10' x 30' deck. YIKES! I'm happy to report that we did it ourselves for $193.45. That's right! We saved $281.55 by doing it ourselves (with the missionaries help of course). We could not have done it without them. They were an incredible help.
Here's a shot with one coat added to the railings (we did 2 coats total for the whole deck).
And here's the deck all stained and finished!
Cooler weather is here
We are definitely in the fall season. Leaves are changing and the temperatures are dropping.
I took some neighborhood kids to the bus stop a few days this month, and it was chilly enough that we had to pull out some of our coats. Hannah was excited that she got to wear her new coat. It's a little big, but she'll grow into it. Look at what the humidity does to her hair!
Sleeping beauty = Mommy and Daddy
We were sitting in church one Sunday when Hannah showed us this picture:
She said "this is Mommy and Daddy." It made our hearts melt. Then Nathan comically said "the camera adds 10 pounds." We had a good laugh.
Preschool
Hooray for preschool! We started up again this month and WE have been so happy about it.
Hannah was so excited to use her new backpack (someone gave us this backpack for free). Purple and pink are her two favorite colors so she was very elated when she got it this summer.
Hannah loves going to preschool. She loves making crafts, singing songs, playing with toys, reading books, doing work stations, etc.
And, mommy is happy too. I am enjoying lunches all to myself, organizing and cleaning our house in peace and quite with no interruptions, etc. We all love preschool in our house.
Our little get away
Nathan's brother Danny had a drop off in the Pittsburgh area so we met up with him one weekend in Brookville.
We had some friends that let us house sit in the country for the weekend, and we had so much fun!
We watched some old movies, saw several neat buildings in Brookville, drove around some backroads of the country, and we also went to Punxsutawney (which is known as the weather capital of the world).
Have you ever heard of Ground Hog Day (the event or the movie)? Well this is where the real event (not the movie) takes place folks. The actual event on Ground Hog Day takes place at Gobblers Knob. So we went and saw the site where "Punxsutawney Phil," the ground hog, makes his annual appearance on February 2nd.
Hannah didn't care too much for the place (it was a little over her head), but she did enjoy playing with a caterpillar while we were on the "tour."
We also took Danny to see the 99 acre property and tractor collection of some church friends near Brookville. Danny fell in love with the area, while Hannah enjoyed riding in the "new" car. At times, we felt like we were in the Indiana Jones ride in Disneyland.
We had so much fun in Brookville. Often times, when we would get in the car Hannah would rest her head on my shoulder, or the cooler, and would just take a cat nap.
FPU
Nathan and I started Financial Peace University (FPU) this month. We have both been pretty excited about this class, but I have been looking forward to this all summer long! This class is amazing! It helps you achieve your financial goals by showing you how to eliminate debt, save for the future, and give like never before. We are challenged and motivated to make a plan for our money and change our family tree forever. Within the first 90 days of this class, the average family pays off $5,300 in debt and saves $2,700. It's a 9 week course (one day a week) that helps people get out of debt the same way you learned to walk -- one step at a time.
We love FPU and would highly recommend this class to EVERYONE!
Park
Lastly, with the autumn season underway, we are trying to take advantage of the parks a little bit more before it gets too cold. After Family Home Evening one night we drove over to the "orange" park (as Hannah calls it) and let her run around.
This kid loves parks, and loves them even more with her favorite playmate (Daddy)!
2 comments:
David C said: "Great post, Rachel! Thanks! Miss you guys!"
I'm glad September was healthier than August! Your deck looks amazing.
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