Pink!

Here Zoe is last year:

and the year before that:

Now it's time for her third Race for the Cure. I'm horribly behind on fundraising (maybe because of this? Or this? Or, I suppose I could just be lazier this year, unfortunately), but we would both certainly appreciate any help you may be able to provide.

With your help, I've raised quite the money over the last 5 or 6 years towards this effort. And it's not just about finding a cure. It's about helping and supporting all of the people affected by this disease. Approximately 207,000 people will be diagnosed with breast cancer this year, and nearly 40,000 will die from it. Funds raised during Race for the Cure help these people, as well as their families and loved ones. Please support us in whatever manner you can. We really do appreciate every little bit!

Celebration

Remember this guy?

Well, he's hitched! The ceremony was gorgeous and moving, everyone was beautiful, and a fun time was had by all before, during, and after.

Zoe and Grandma waving at the farmers

playing with Grandpa's hat

hanging out on the front porch

We decided to drive out there this time, as Zoe's hit that magical age where she no longer flies for free. Who has the money to buy three airline tickets? Certainly not us, the Renovators. She's probably flown more in the first two years of her life than she will the next ten. So for the price of one airline ticket, though considerably more time, we drove there and back. On the way there we started right before bedtime, and drove straight on through morning.

Ugh.

Let me repeat.

Ugh.

Us drivers could not wait for that sun to show it's pretty little head, in the midst of Memphis traffic. (Which, by the way, the bridge over the Mississippi on a major interstate? It's down to one lane, only 11 feet wide. In both directions. Yipee. Try doing that on no sleep.) Zoe did decide to sleep from about 9pm to 2:30am. After that, though, pretty touch-and-go on all fronts. Thus, the plan of the non-driver sleeping while Zoe slept did not work. We were thankful to get to Grandma and Grandpa's house, and even more thankful for naptime.

Martha's brother rehearses holding a bouquet

A few days later, the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner (and drinks out with cousins and the groom), and the following day the wedding and reception. I had the honor of standing next to my brother as he and Martha said their vows. The ceremony was performed by someone they had known for over 10 years, which meant it was meaningful and specific to their lives. I think everyone watching cried at some point. Thankfully, my dress had pockets, which meant that Matt was able to get a tissue for his own tears. A neighbor from our old house was able to watch Zoe during the ceremony, which allowed Kyle and I to both able enjoy the ceremony. In the rush and emotion of everything, though, we of course forgot to provide her with snacks, which meant during the photos post-ceremony she was a bit cranky. Nothing that PB&Js at the reception (can you tell there were a fair amount of the smaller-age set anticipated to be in attendance?) couldn't help.

a beautiful bride and her handsome groom
(and us too)

Zoe wearing her second dress of the morning.
Yes, I'm glad I brought two!

And then the newlyweds were off - a classy hotel downtown and a beach-side week-long honeymoon. The rest of our extended family gathered at Grandma and Grandpa's house for a huge bonfire, dinner, drinks, and merriment.

there was a fair amount of cheering
over the Wisconsin game that night

On the way back we opted to drive 1/3 of the way, stop for the night around midnite, and then continue on the next morning. Little One, however, was completely out of sorts when we stopped at the hotel, proceeding with a fit for about a 1/2 hour, followed by delirious happiness and really wet kisses for an hour until sleep finally met us halfway. Mom, Dad, and Zoe slept in the formation of an 'H' in a king bed Kyle drew the short end of the stick with Zoe's feet stuck in his back all nite, but we survived. (Thankfully) Zoe was getting sick so she slept for about half of the remainder of the ride the next day. We were all glad to be home, and she perked up a few days later, back in her routine.

A truly memorable weekend. Congratulations Matt and Martha. Thank you for sharing your day with us.

Framing! Sheathing! Skylights! Oh my!

Well, we left to celebrate (next post).
When we came back, someone had dropped a house in our backyard!
Zoe was thoroughly confused as to where the slab went, but now she's climbing through walls like they've always been there. This is of course the part that seems to happen the quickest, magnified by the fact that we were out of town. It's pretty much slow-going from here on out, with small things that are hard to actually see. The next big jump will be the sheetrock on the inside - we're all looking forward to that.

checking out the shower, just like last time

What we're not looking forward to: the actual connection with the existing house. So far we've been relatively lucky as there's been little impact on the interior of the home; we've just been reduced to a 2-1 with no study (or, the study has been moved to the kitchen table). Once the connection happens, though, our other rooms will get tighter as we have to shift items back and forth to allow for finish materials in the new portion, as well as in the existing. Not to mention dust, dust, and more dust. But, all towards a goal, I keep reminding myself...

Skippin' School

A couple weeks ago Zoe had to stay home from daycare. She had a temperature the previous afternoon, and they won't let you back in until it's gone for 24 hours without meds. Kyle stayed home with her pre-nap, and we switched off during nap time. She of course was feeling fine the whole day, so they were able to go out and enjoy the beautiful weather we've been having. Here are a few shot from the Zilker Zephyr. It's a big hit with the toddler set.

Plumbing prep, slab pour

our new vehicle?

As part of the addition work, we're replacing our sewer line. Since we moved into the house, the sewer line has backed up/overflowed into our bathroom twice. That stuff is gross. This was in thanks to it's make-up (yup, that's basically glorified cardboard) and the proximity to the large pecan tree in our front yard.

swinging in a construction zone

a construction find - an old Coors pull-tab can

Since then the beams for the new slab have been dug, the slab was framed out, rebar placed, plumbing roughed in, and Monday this past week concrete was poured. Zoe usually asks where the workers have gone, and we have to explain that they have to go home to see their own families and sleep in their own beds. She thinks they should bring their beds here and sleep in the new house. I'm not so sure they would agree, what with there being no walls or roof.

Zoe checking out the shower with Dad

we'll have some grading to do...

Second Birthday Party

she ate the frosting

off of only three cupcakes

This year we opted for a combo party with all of our rodeo crew. Last year we had four separate birthday parties on two weekends. This year we went in together to rent out a place on a Sunday morning, have them cook for, and clean up after, us. This year's planning (in large part thanks to Valerie and Dallas) definitely wins. I think all of the kiddos had a good time, as did the other kiddos in attendance. And thanks to mimosas and beer available, I'm pretty sure all the parents did as well.

most of the kiddos in attendance

balloons are so pretty

wait, they float?

bring them baaaaack!

This group of babies
and this group of toddlers
are now this group of two year olds.
Wow.

Oh. I nearly forgot to mention - we had karaoke. With this footage, how could I forget?

Pre-Construction

good bye spa
you were great except for that whole
harboring-dead-animals thing

This post is longer overdue.

cutting sheet rock to install piping for the new water heater -
you really don't want to know what's in a plumbing wall from the '50s

This summer we started our 'pre-construction' phase on the house. In part this was jump-started by the Texas Trade Up appliance rebate program (which ended up being this total debacle for the state in terms of organization, which was eventually all blamed on the consulting company they/we hired). I sat in front of the computer for hours while various websites crashed, all while continuously re-dialing two different phone numbers (yes, this was the strategy for a state with nearly 25 million residents) until I reached a live person. I did this twice so we could get some rebate money back on 'trading up' our water heater to a tankless unit

sayonara, you old clunker

and our a/c unit to one that wasn't 15 to 20 years old.

there was barely enough space in the attic for the ultra-efficient a/c unit,
that there are actually two guys standing on this ladder

Both are so much more efficient than our old units, are sized for the square footage of the 'new' house, and our utility usage has gone down. We also took advantage of rebates provided through the City of Austin for the a/c and the Texas Gas Service for the tankless. We are so thankful for all of the rebates. But really, I'm especially thankful for instant hot showers and the extra 16 sf in our (soon to be old) laundry room.

look! actual side-by-side machines!
and space for a person to stand in front of them!

look what fits in our car!
(child not included)

At this time we also went ahead and changed our den (back) into a bedroom, so currently we technically have a 3-1. Zoe's old room (yes, the one we labored over) was turned into storage + some friends have temporary custody of a single bed and living room chairs + the den received some flowers courtesy of Dr. Seuss = Zoe has a new room.

funky flowers where French doors once were

And so it begins....

!!