A view of the stairs.
Another view looking down from the deck over the new section we just planted and mulched. Chad still needs to finish that section on patio pavers.
The newest section of landscaping.
We went to a wedding the end of September. We had a great time. Ava has balloons tied to her piggies! She wanted to sleep with them, but had to settle with them tied around her bed posts. 
Chad put in our curvy stairs, added another retaining wall, and filled everything with black dirt. Now it's time to plant the rest of our plants before they all die. Unfortunately, it's been pretty darn cold and rainy lately and it's not happening this weekend. 
Another shot at the back of the house. 
Lydia joined volleyball this year in third grade. It is so much fun to watch and she seems to like it. The first game was a blast and she stayed pretty focused. Lyd even hit the ball a few times! (In 3rd grade the ball falls to the floor most of the time!) 
We may be able to start planting grass down here pretty soon! 
Roger seemed to enjoy working on the patio. He came over almost every day and placed almost every brick! As a flooring installer, he really has a good eye for the pattern and detail. He also has a lot of very handy tools. Here he is cutting the pavers to fit in the little places. He taught Chad how to do this later.
Here's a view of the patio in the beginning.
Here's a view of the "completed" patio.
Here's a view from the other side. I see a perfect spot for a hot tub.
Now the the patio is "done", Chad poured the footings for the smaller deck/landing so we can get the stairs done for the deck. Before this occurs we will start on the retaining wall to help hold the hill in place. The block was delivered yesterday and Abrahamson's Nursery will bring out all the plants and other stuff we ordered. They're also going to stage the block so we don't have to haul those blocks down the hill. The gutter guys also came out last week to install the gutters around the house. This should help with our washout issues.
When we got to the hospital, Ava got to put on her hospital issued jammies and the no-slip socks. She really thought those socks were cool and kept making sure she could bring those home. Ava thought it was fun to ride in the cars in one of the waiting rooms.
Here's Ava in her jammies. She was beyond brave this day! She never complained about being hungry or thirsty. She just went along with the day. I can safely say she was stronger than her parents were!
The new Ava without her tonsils and adnoids. She looks great! The first few hours after surgery she was hungry and doing pretty well. I think once the serious drugs wore off that evening is when she really realized how much she hurt. 
Lydia came to the hospital to visit and bring her sister a gift. Ava's teeth were always colored for the first week because of the popsicles and other various cold treats. 
It's now been two weeks since her surgery and she is feeling much better. They kept telling us it takes about two weeks to recover and it has taken the full two weeks. She has lost a lot of weight and gets tired quicker that normal, but I'm sure this a temporary deal. She doesn't snore at all anymore and sleeps really well now. She still thinks her hospital socks are pretty cool.
The next day was the family party. Here's Lydia with her DQ cake. No more princess cakes...she really liked the tie dye look. She also informed me that purple is no longer cool and she loves blue and green. This pic also caught Ava in action.
Lydia and Ava with their cousin Ellie and Great-Grandpa Jim and Great-Grandma Emilie.
Another sign that she's getting older is that people start giving gift cards and money for birthdays. She was in heaven. I knew she could count money-but she's good! Lydia couldn't wait to start shopping. She also got a lot of books that she enjoys reading. I'm glad she still enjoys reading about fairies. She also can't wait to shop at the Limited Too for school clothes - another tall tale sign of growing up...she'll always be my baby.
Here's the back yard. We still have a lot of work to do. This corner of the hill we are planning on a stone stair case. 
We are currently working on the patio under the back deck. 
A side view of the house.
Another back view. We decided to landscape the hill in the back instead of a retaining wall. We'll have a company plan it for us then we can plant it with stuff that will hold back the dirt. I'm really excited to get the patio done, so we can start on this. The little pine tree in the hill is there because we never thought it would make it. It was hit by a tree when we cleared the lot five years ago. It was under attack during the demolition of the cabin and during the excavating. We decided that we have to let it be if it has made it through all of this.
A front view of the house. The driveway and sidewalk still need to be cemented. I'm really sick of sand in the house and everywhere else. The girls & I planted flowers in pots this year since the yard is not finished. Pots and shepherds hooks are movable.
Someday I'll figure out the order of uploading pictures onto this blog...Well, here's the after shot of my Locks of Love hair chopping. 
I always wondered how they were able to chop off the hair evenly...now I know. Not just one pony tail, but many. 
Here's my before shot. I know some very lucky kid is going to have my beautiful curls on top of their head while they get better so they can grow up to be a responsible adult. =)
Jacquie, her sister-in-law Lisa, and myself took the girls to the Como Zoo on a nice cool day in July. It was freezing while we ate our picnic lunch. 
Ava, Eleanor, Lydia's friend Peri, and Lydia at the zoo. I took this picture right away just in case I lost someone...then I'd have a recent picture. =-)
The first week of summer vacation, I came home from the grocery store and heard an unusual sound in the basement. When I got to the bottom of the stairs, I realized the sound was rushing water! A compression fitting from the water heater had come undone and was flooding the basement. I figured out how to shut it off and called for help. The water was over the tops of my shoes. Luckily, most of our stuff is in plastic containers, so no major losses. The sheetrock in the utility room though will need to be replaced. Chad turned on the in-floor heat to help dry out the floor.
While looking for black dirt on Craigs list, Chad came across beach sand. We borrowed the tractor again and spent the good part of a day creating Hansen's Hollow Beach.
After a short time, we realized that this is going to be the perfect place to keep these two busy. Roger came over last weekend with his weed cutting gear and went to town on the lilly pads. I'll have to get more pics because the swimming area looks really great! I didn't think it would shape up so quickly. We have also found that with some life jackets on the girls and floaty toys, we are able to float across the lake to grandma and grandpa's. This could prove to be very useful!
Ava and I made some cookies to send over to Grandpa Jim. Of course we ate some too.
So far summer vacation has been a lot of fun...minus the flood. The girls went to vacation Bible school for the first week and we are taking care of the yearly Dr. appts. right away so they don't cramp our summer fun. Even Ariel went to the vet and then had her teeth cleaned the next week. She smells so much better! Ava is going to see an ENT tomorrow to check out her gigantic tonsils. I think today we'll spend the day down at the beach!
