Bella Turns Ten

One decade ago, we welcomed Miss Isabella Grace into our lives. She was born into her Daddy's hands in a home waterbirth...weighing in at 9 lbs. 12 oz!  We had no idea what we were doing, but we had a stack of cloth diapers, a bunch of slings, and a boppy. Our main objective every day was to stare at her as much as possible, studying every detail of her little face.

Fast forward...and now we have THIS! A vibrant and shining young woman who is full of life and dreams. She spent almost 4 years of her young life traveling the country...and had more experiences under her belt by age 7 than most do when they are 50!

One particular memory that stands out was in Malibu, California. I couldn't find her for a moment. After determining that she hadn't launched herself off the cliff into the ocean,  I located her...sitting with the neighbors next door. None of them spoke much English...they were from Germany and France. But Bella didn't care. She had taken up a seat around their fire and was animatedly "talking" with them. Eating their cheese and crackers. 

She has always been that way...engaging everyone she meets!

Each flame here represents a year of growth...unique, happy, amazing years. 

Lucy's eyes tell the story here. She wants to be just like her big sister...and wants to be with her constantly, as evidenced by much kicking of doors. ;-) Bella graciously takes her under her wing, and they have many adventures together.

Bella's current passions are many...interior design, fashion design, Harry Potter, Minecraft, singing, dancing, and parkour. She stays up late, sleeps in late, and is growing growing growing. Pretty soon, we'll be sharing clothes and shoes!

Nana and Papa have been at every single birthday party for the last 10 years...and this year was no exception. It was such fun to have them (and my brother Scotty!) in our new home for the celebration...eating meals on scaffolding and giggling at doggie antics. 

Many hours were spent on lawn chairs in front of the fire. Laughing and talking about life's joys and challenges. 

And this. Power rangers and card games. So many card games. Kings in the Corner and Slapjack are favorites. 

Nana and Papa have gone back to Iowa now...and we are back to house projects and welcoming the spring to the mountains!

Happy TENTH year of life Bella Boo!

Floors for Days

It's beginning to look a lot like a HOME in here! Matt has been working on the floors all week long. Piece by piece...cut by cut...it's all coming together.

We were doing research on the different trees on our property...and I was SO EXCITED to discover that the beautiful pines surrounding our house are douglas firs! The same exact trees that now cover my floors. It might seem trivial...but I feel so much more connected to our land now. And to think that they could be in this house for the next 100 years makes my heart all warm and happy inside. 

This is the face of a man intent on making a beautiful home for his family. I am constantly in awe of his work ethic and his ability to just keep going...even though he is exhausted and has 356 slivers in his hands.  

He decided to purchase the specialty nail gun made for flooring...after starting out with just a regular nail gun. So glad...because it went a lot faster after that! But boy oh boy...that thing is LOUD! Boom boom boom!

For a few hours this week, he had one of his employees come up to help finish the great room. Lucy was thrilled...she is quite enamored with "J.J.". She has affectionately named him that. Even though that's not his real name. tee hee! 

We now have all of the great room installed. The hallway is done as well...and the master bedroom is started. All we have left is the art room (finishing this weekend) and then we get to start sanding and sealing it up!

After considering all of your ideas and looking at lots of photos...we've decided to keep it as natural looking as we can, using a clear-ish satin sealant. BUT...now that we've decided that...we have to decide on a brand. Oh my goodness...it can be very overwhelming. We've looked at Monocoat, Bona, and Minwax.

My goal is to use something with very low VOCs and little odor. It appears we can buy Bona locally...but Monocoat we would have to order. Although, Monocoat seems to be REALLY expensive. We would need about $1,000 worth of sealant to cover our 1100 sq feet of fir. Goodness. So...that's the goal for next week. Onward! 

Oh! And look who stopped by for a visit! Nana and Papa! My mom can ROCK the safety goggles, no? And my dad grew an awesome beard! It was so fun to show them the house again...the last time they were up here was the very first time we looked at the house. Lots has changed...to say the least! 

This little peanut (a tiny replica of my brother Dan) gave his stamp of approval as well. Future builder/contractor in the making ;-)

I'm off to town now to prepare for a little Harry Potter sleepover Bella is having with one of her dear friends tonight. It's her birthday on Monday. 10 years old...whoa! Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

Waves of White

At 3 a.m., the house went quiet. Completely quiet. I felt a chill in the air and snuggled further down into the bed between two warm little girls. After a few minutes, Matt whispered, "the power is out". It had been snowing when we went to bed...but there was just a light dusting on the deck. 

It's fairly common in the mountains...with the wind and snow...to experience power outages. We have a big Honda generator, but it's currently at Matt's shop. So, the only thing on my mind was how I was going to boil water for my coffee in the morning. "Matt...can I boil water on the grill?". I drifted off to sleep wishing I would have bought those snow shoes a few weeks back. And that I was glad I filled the bird feeders yesterday.

By the time I woke up at 8 a.m., I heard the sounds of crickets singing from the noise machine. And the heat had come back on. Coffee could be had! Matt was already out pushing snow...waves of white flowing over the top of the blade.

11 inches.
On April 3.
I love my mountain life.