It's coming along!

Well contrary to my way of thinking, it looks like we will actually be able to live here soon. It's really coming along...this room is now completely painted. It looks so much better I can't even believe it. I hope one day I can move into a house that I don't have to transform first. It really is a ton of work...and I am proud to say, I have done most of the acutal painting all by myself. Michael did all of the prep work, which I find very annoying, but it really does make a difference in the painting!

This happened really late one night, and therefore seemed funnier at the time. He was using his t-shirt to protect the wall, and it didn't want to come back down.

This is how we really feel about the work, although when people ask us, of course we say we're doing great...not the truth!

Gannon so kindly redid a little bit of tile in the bathroom, and Michael and Nixon were good helpers. Hopefully we can tile some more in the future...it would help the look of the place a lot.

The big discovery!

Last week, everyone came over to my new place while I was working, and Sommer had this is a jar. The hugest butterfly (I think it's really a moth) that I have ever seen. It must have been injured because it didn't move much, but it was pretty nonetheless. It was also huge.

That is Lara's hand, just so you can get the idea of really how big it was.

I think it also had a small roll in The Lord of the Rings...he helped Gandalf out when he needed to find his huge eagle friends!!! He now sleeps eternally in my garden....sad.

This is just one of the maybe 5 pictures I took over the long weekend. It's a bit of heaven trying to escape. Amazing hey? I thought it was just beautiful!

The Office -- Playing Dwight Schrute is...Jim Halpert?

This was just about the funniest EVER!!

Alas, the new house...well my half anyway!

We finally took possession of the house on Tuesday, and Emily and I have been working non-stop day and night taking down wallpaper...you'll see what I mean. We've had Lara and her kids there helping...and they LOVED it. They could destroy something without getting into trouble! Anyway, I'll take some more pictures of the progress as we go. One day, we'll have a liveable house.

The Highlight...the GARAGE!

The highlight of the new house, and TOTALLY...the GARAGE. Yes, they indeed wallpapered the garage, but again...each wall is different, and brings a new beauty to the home that we couldn't have ever hoped for.
The lillypad wall
The lovely Thomas Kinkade border
The random little boarder, with a strip of different paper underneath.
The faux brick, and notice how it's not all laid the same direction...isn't that nice!!??!!??

Bathrooms and hallway

The mainbath
The ensuite
The hallway...notice all of the variety of wallpaper...one is just never enough.
The landing with the clostet on the right and the door you see there leads into the room where the den will be.

Bedrooms

The den...now this lovely room was quite the suprise. The wallpaper you see is the TOP layer, there was another one underneath, and then there was a nice layer of paint...I'll get a picture of that...lovely flowers and all!
Master bedroom...ahh the lace curtains.
The other bedroom...I need a better picture of it. This one is the nightmare room. There are 2 layers of wallpaper as well, but both are very hard to get off...we've been putting this room off as long as we can!
My master closet...looks smaller than it is in this picture...there are tons of shelves on the left there.

The kitchen

Our lovely balcony...notice the beautiful fabric along the railing...isn't it beautiful??
The kitchen. The cupboards are bleached from the sun, but notice the wallpaper...butterflies!
Again, the butterflies!
Nice little desk, the shelf is removable, and will be removed, along with the table and chair, and phone...all little gifts left for us!

The front room

Here is the door way leading into the kitchen

Just a little nook, and the ONLY walls in the house that were NOT wallpapered.
The front entry. Ahhh...the lovely vines!
Nice fireplace
The bay window at the front of the house

Freedom!!!!

Well I've been catching a lot of flack for not updating my blog. I've been a huge slacker lately, I admit it...and it's not like nothing's been going on, there has been tons, but I've still be slacking. Maybe it's the overwhelming amount of stuff that I get so busy that there's no time to update. Yes, that must be it! Well since I posted last, I'll give you a little overview.

We went to General Conference in Utah because Dad got called to be a new Area Seventy. It was very exciting, and he's been thrilled with his opportunities so far. We are so proud of him, and so happy for him too! Then after that, since it was a good time to have Luke's blessing, the whole family made their way to Denver. All I have to say about that is that I would move there in a second. We LOVED Denver. Luke's blessing was wonderful, and it was so nice to have the entire family together...but we're being overrun with children...soon they will outnumber the adults...that's a scary thought. But they're all so cute, we'll go ahead and keep them!

Then we were home to continue our search for a new home. Well, we found one. So, we're moving and selling our condo. Since the prices of homes is so horrible here, we found a bi-level split with a walkout basement, and tons of natural light down there, and we're putting in a kitchen, and buying the house with Jeffrey and Emily, and Kevin. So we're living upstairs, and Jeffrey and Emily are downstairs. We love the house, except for one minor issue, it's COVERED in wallpaper!! So Emily and I have some serious work to do!!! And I'll have the time, because I've quit my job at the dental office...only for a month, and then I'll find another one, but it's going to be so nice to have the time to fix the house! We take possession on Tuesday, so that's crazy! But I'm soo excited to have more space! Another bedroom, a kitchen with windows, hardwood, 2 bay windows...ahhh...it's going to be awesome!

Lastly, we're hoping to get away to the condo for the long weekend...I love the May long weekend! It's the kick off to my favorite time of year! We're just hoping that we can get things with the house squared away, or we might not be able to go at all. So keep your fingers crossed that our house sells! Other than all of that, Michael and I are doing great! He's working landscaping for the summer again, and importing cars from the States, so I'll enjoy my month off while I send him to work everyday. Poor guy, but hey, I did it for a few years so he can have a small turn! I'll get some pictures of the new house...I want everyone to see the wallpaper I'm talking about! But, we'll fix it, and it'll be wonderful!

The best news of all!

So, after all the new information, I thought I'd put at the top of the list...the birth of my newest nephew. Luke Thomas Christensen. He's the first of my sister Kerri and her husband Cade, and he's adorable. I think he looks just like his mom. We're all heading down to Conference, and then to Denver for his blessing, so I can't wait to meet in a little over a week. Congrats you guys! We can't wait to meet him!

So, Heather and Gannon took great care of us while we were in Portland right after California. They fed us like kings, and really pulled out all the stops to make the trip awesome. One night they decided to make some Jack Daniels bbq sauce for the pulled pork they were making (yummmm). Anyway, Michael and Gannon went to get us some Jack Daniels, and when they got home with the tiniest little bottle I've ever seen, we thought it would be funny to see what Nixon made of it. Here he is as the little Jack Daniels spokesperson!
Taking a sip (Of course, the bottle is completely sealed...we're not that horrible)
And another...
Feeing pretty good
After a few too many sips...

We laughed so hard when we saw how the pictures turned out...of course Nixon had no idea what it was, nor did he have a drop, but it's like he knew what faces to make to create such a perfect little story. Funny boy!

Disneyland-It really is the happiest place on earth!

Disneyland 2007

Well I had a week off at the end of February, so Michael and I decided to get away. We set off to California to buy a car, but also to have some fun! And fun we did have. The ultimate highlight of the trip was Disneyland. I don't know what it is about that place, but I honestly feel like I'm 10 again, and I'm so in love with it, I wish we could have stayed for a week, but one did held us over for the next few years. We stayed our first night in a little hotel right across the street from the park, so the next morning we could get right over there. We got to go on just about every ride, eat a huge turkey leg (it was amazing!), meet a bunch of characters, and basically have the best time ever. Just as I predicted, the best ride of the day was the Indiana Jones ride. We loved it. I had told Michael that it was the best, and he wasn't disappointed. We really need to go there again asap!

Universal Studios

Universal Studios 2007

So we also hit up Universal Studios, and we must have picked the perfect day, because it was pretty empty, but that only meant no waiting for us. It was a blast! It wasn't as big as I remember it being when I was there as a kid, but we still had a great time. The Jurassic Park, and Mummy rides were the highlight, and we went on each a few times! The studio tour was also awesome! We got some fun footage of it all, and with Michael's commentary on it all, it really is pretty funny. But, we mus have brought the cold with us because it was FREEZING. Honestly, that happens to me everywhere I go. The cold follows me I swear.

Hollywood!!

On our way home from Universal, we decided to stop and see some sights. We were driving down Hollywood Blvd, and there were a bunch of people on the sidewalk looking at something, so as we drive past we try to see what it is, and there he is...John Travolta. It was the premiere of Wild Hogs! So, we drove around trying to park as fast as we could, and we got there in time to see John Travolta, and his wife, and we also saw Tim Allen, but not good enough that we could get a picture. But, it was pretty awesome! Then we walking all over looking at the stars, and the sights to see. It was pretty cool to see it all!

Hollywood

A few new changes

Well, we've made some changes around the house lately (and when I say lately, I really mean a long time ago, I just haven't blogged them) and we really like them all! We got the tv for Christmas, and the couches were a hand me down from Kevin and Cyndi, and we are both in love with them. They are so cozy compared to leather, and I was very glad to see the colors all worked out. You can't be picky when you're getting something for free, but it's also an added bonus when it look alright! The computer desk is from Lara and Sean again, and really nice to have. It looks a lot better than what we had before! The other new little area is my vinyl working spot. We got a folding table from Costco, and I got myself all set up with a nice little working station. It's nice to have all of the stuff in the same spot, and be able to come in a work on it whenever I can. Although, it's also nicer to have Heather here working on it with me, but what can ya do?