We're out of water!!

We've been out of water since yesterday at 9 a.m.! That means no showers, no toilets, no drinking water... nothing. Our well has had problems producing enough water and we were running out if we used too much, so we thought it may need to have the minerals flushed off of the pump to get in more water. Lockport Well and Pump has been here yesterday and most of today (although they seem to take their time getting here) trying to flush out our well to produce more water. Here's the bad news: It is now 3:30 and what they are doing is not working and they're going to have to drill to find good water. The really bad news is: It is too late to start today, so we have the option of having them come back out tomorrow or after the weekend. But you see, Paul and the boys are supposed to be leaving tomorrow for the weekend on a Father/Son camping retreat. Thankfully, my dad has been here both days so Paul doesn't have to be here, because I have no idea what they're doing out there besides making alot of noise...

We filled some 5 gallon buckets of water at my parent's last night to be able to flush the toilets, but I have no desire to do that all weekend. I also don't want to stay anywhere else because I had big house/toy cleaning plans while the guys were gone... Ugh!

At the beginning of September, it was our fridge that went bad and forced us to live out of coolers for a week. Now, we're without water... Maybe God's trying to prepare us to be Amish???

Paul's work's annual Open House

Grrrrrrrrrr!!


Every year Paul's work has an open house for all of it's employees. They put alot of effort into it, and the kids have a great time. "Skiddles" the clown does (awesome) face painting and balloon animals. She painted Noah's "tiger" face, and princess decorations on Ellie's face. Paul even dressed up this year in his cowboy boots and hat. I...well, I took a raincheck...

Soccer season is over

Coach Paul and the "Purple Lazers"

Paul and his two favorite soccer players.

Seth really enjoyed soccer. He's a natural for it. He has a high endurance level that's needed for all the running and has a knack for being in the right place at the right time. I believe he scored at least one goal in each game. (It helps to have an incentive- like getting to go out for ice cream if one of our boys score a goal) Noah, well, he really likes the treats that they get at the end of each game.

Full House

I used to watch a program when I was younger called "Full House". It was a cute program that had 3 little girls and 3 guys all living under one roof. Well, after the last 2 weeks, I can tell you that the creators of that show had NO IDEA what a "full house" really looked like. We've had our friends, Steve and Ema Anderson, from Colorado staying with us. They have 4 kids ages 7, 5, 3, and 1. Ema also brought along her 2 Romanian sisters who are in their 20's. That makes 10 kids ages 9 and under, and 6 adults. I think that qualifies for it's own reality TV show!

The picture below is what it looked like throughout most of the house on any given day...

(And, NO, my house does not normally look like this)

All of the kids actually got along with eachother really well. The 3 older boys (Caleb, Seth, and Brennen) kept busy playing legos (yeah, the really tiny ones that we'll be stepping on and vacuuming up for the next week or so) or soccer or whatever else they could find. The two middle boys (Noah and Evan) picked right up where they left off last year with Thomas the Tank Engine and playing in the sandbox. Ellie, Kaylee, and Grace played dollies (it's so nice (and quiet) to have girls). That left the one-year-old Ella to wander around the house and Nathan to be held (so he didn't get trampled or have his eyes poked out).

If a movie was playing, the most of the kids could be found sitting on the couch watching, and the others were usually playing on the floor while watching.

The Anderson family left this morning with a mini-van that seats 7, packed (I mean PACKED) full of stuff and 8 people to head to Kentucky to drop off Ema's 2 sisters before heading back to Colorado... And we have our house back!!

Nathan is 1 month old!

Nathan and mommy

I love these precious feet shots.

Nathan at 1 month

It has been quite a month. Unlike Grace and Ellie (who both intentionally smiled before they were two weeks old), I have yet to see Nathan smile. He LOVES to be held- as does any newborn- but he only lets me have free hands for 15 to 30 minutes before he starts crying to be held again. He LOVES to eat and is always hungry. Nathan holds his head up very well for a 1 month old and is very alert. It is truely a joy to have a newborn to hold again.

10-17-08 UPDATE- The day after I wrote this, I finally saw Nathan smile for the first time :)