Summer!

Howdy! So...life is busy as we all know. We returned from our trip to KC and soon had a house full of family, which was AWESOME. All the Dirks siblings were here along with Allison's husband and their two crazy kids. It was a great time.

Here's Ryan and Liz's cat in KC, clearly begging us to take her from them. Sorry about your underwear in the picture, Caleb.

This tree! I had no idea this is what it would do! It is so beautiful and has bloomed just in the last few weeks, with increasingly more blooms. Prettiest tree on the street! There is a younger tree just like this in our backyard as well.

We know what we want for porch furniture, but are "patiently" waiting to find the right one.

My new purchases today. I've been keeping my eye out for a hanging plant to make the outside of the house a little more homey, but none have really caught my eye. Today I went to get my haircut and made a impromptu stop at a flower/plant shop right by the salon and I saw these. Also, I got really good deals on them because, well, all men were running the joint.

These are called Salvia and I need to get a pot to plant them in. The guy selling them to me told me they are highly hallucinogenic if smoked. Alrighty. Thanks for the tip, man.

This. It's a pretty purple and you can take branches of it and create starter plants, so let me know if you want one :)

Look mom! My African Violets are blooming! I didn't kill it!

Caleb's brother Adam was living with us for a brief period of time before he headed out to camp, and he became our slave...I mean helper. He took over scraping paint and sanding and prepping the ceiling for paint. Unfortunately for us, and probably with relief for him, he got called early to camp and couldn't complete his sentencing...I mean projects. So, shoot, it's back up to us. Thanks for helping out so much, Adam.

We got a new wide-angle lens recently and I've been so excited to take pictures of the house with it. This is for you, Gabe, when you asked so long ago to see a panoramic view. Well, its not panoramic, but I thought this might give you a better idea. Also, the house was untidy and I started taking pictures anyways, but I'm a little OCD for that, so I tidied up and re-took the pictures. Just. for. you.

From the front door:

My new place mats from Allison! Aren't they cute! I can't believe how perfectly they match without her ever seeing the table in person.

This picture makes me laugh and also makes me sad. It looks like a split screen of before and after, except its not. Our house is in perpetual "before and after" depending on what part of the house you're in. Clearly, everything else besides the bathroom needs help.

Here's what I've been waiting for the wide-angle for. Now you can finally see what it actually looks like instead of snippets of information.