Did the kids all really arrive for Christmas a week ago today?

Once we passed that occupancy inspection, I swung into high gear like never before! Un-earthing the guest room and finding homes for each item that has rested there for upwards of 4 months. Carting boxes of dishes in from the casita in the back yard, and placing them in new shelf paper lined cupboards, scouring the bathrooms, which we have all abused since September, especially after the port-a-potty left, wrapping gifts, decorating our white fir Christmas tree from Mora, NM and filling the cabinets with holiday foods! Mom brought cookies, so I really appreciate that! And our neighbors brought fudge and cookies and breads. Thank you!

It was a truly beautiful week! And all have returned to their homes, as of today. The music, the precious looks on the faces of our little grands, the Christmas Eve tamales and posole, the traditional Christmas morning Garmische Nut Stollen, the feast on Christmas Day - thank you commander for grilling the beef tenderloin so perfectly - the joy (and mess!) we created on our big new table! All was splendid!

One down side: by the day after Christmas, our little 20 month old Piper and her mama were sick. We all holed up and drank gallons of tea as we watched "Christmas Eve on Sesame Street", the very same show our own children watched in 1980 and beyond! It still holds up! "Keep Christmas with you, all through the year", they sing!

I wish I had gotten a Christmas card out to all the people we dearly love! It has been a curious season for us. We feel we can settle in now, in the New Year and enjoy our new kitchen, fine tune some of the things yet to be completed, and begin preparing for our spring vegetable, flower, and herb gardens!

We had a big loss right after Christmas; our dear, sweet Aunt Connie passed away - much, much too soon! How we will all miss her, though we will never, never forget her beautiful heart and smile. And so much more.

Our sweet Piper Gaye. She is so interested in everything!

Sharing early Christmas with family headed to California for the holiday. Darling Abby is pretty excited about her gifts from her cousins!

Gavin & Piper love pockets!

Making the luminarias - Piper's very first time. FUN!

Christmas Eve music and tamale making.

Sweet Miles finally gave in to sleep on Christmas Eve.

Commander has a fan! It is mutual.

We passed!!

And we are IN the new kitchen! Yay!
Not a moment too soon....as the elves are knocking at the door!

Commander begins to assemble our redwood table, a task that has been a long time coming!

Then the strong neighbor men join us to bring in the top piece....beautiful!

We can hardly wait to have you join us at the table in the new LBF KITCHEN!

HAPPY MERRYMAKING, AS CHRISTMAS IS COMING! We wish you safe travel, wherever you may go, and happiness in GREAT measure!

RAIN...SNOW.........Winter! Almost CHRISTMAS!

Home, sweet home.
(Not finished yet, but already cozy.) Hopefully, by day's end, we will have our Certificate of Occupancy and can madly move in our dishes, pots & pans, and coffee pot! A plumber, an electrician and two inspections yesterday, two more inspections today.

Each week, a new "To Do" list on the white board. This is last week's list. This week's list has more on it, but the last item on this week's list is...CHRISTMAS! YAY Christmas. The kids will all arrive this Thursday!

Through this window we watch rain turning to snow, turning to slush. And many small birds scurrying about to feast on the newly revealed seeds and other yummy things.

A few pictures from the past 2 weeks. It's been pretty "happenin"!

One of our two roofers, trying to give me a heart attack! It's so slick up there!

Pedro, Sr, making the cuts for the cedar siding. Pedro, Jr and Johnny measured and nailed. They had the siding and trim up in 2 1/2 (cold!) days.

We tried to keep up with them, painting the trim that would be placed way up high, before they needed it. But it was only in the low 30s, so the paint was not very happy. Now the house looks like it has a disease of some kind - some is light, some is dark, some is not painted at all!

The new countertops are in! They are water-washed granite.

Our electrician extraordinaire had a visitor waiting for him when he came down from the attic! I think it is because he has been very good!

We begin to WRAP it up. And THANK YOU!

When we began this kitchen addition/redo, I vowed to NOT become consumed by the whole thing - to continue to pursue and engage in "normal" activity and communication. But that sort of went out the window as the reality and scope of the project came at us from many directions! I managed to keep up with simple graces, like birthday cards and thank you notes - occasional phone calls and Skype visits. I spent a few hours putting the garden to bed. For the most part, computer time comprised shopping for plumbing fixtures, lighting, utterly unglamourous "parts" for said plumbing or lighting. Any shopping, short of the near daily "De-pott" or "Lowies" runs for lumber, paint, "parts", was to the Co-op or Smitty's for milk, yogurt, grapefruit juice or TP.

As we begin to see the light at the end of this crazy tunnel, please accept - first - my apology for being, after all, SO consumed! For the occasional (or frequent?) whining or complaining or otherwise "carrying on" about project minutia or hurdles. You always asked how things are going. And I hope you don't much mind that we always told you! Second - please accept my gratitude! For being such amazing, supportive, loving, patient family & friends! You brought us food, you had us over for meals, you let us shower and do our dishes at your houses, you helped us with big heavy work that Commander and I could never have done by ourselves! You brought expertise to the project - above & beyond any hopes we held! You gave us the names and phone numbers of just the right people to do our jobs - so MANY people and so many jobs! You showed up to help when we didn't even know we needed help - but we DID!

And now, here we are in our last weeks of the project; nearly ready to move into our very pleasing, unique new space. Hard to believe! We are so eager to share this special new place with each one of you! That is what it is all about - the sweet times that we will all share here.

They say it takes a village to raise a child. Likewise, it takes a village to raise a roof! THIS roof for sure! A village full of loving, devoted, talented and skilled individuals - family, friends, near & far, wildly willing people - each contributing in a very personal way - to support and help create something wonderful!

Please come soon! Sit at the table with us. Relax by the fire. Stand at the kitchen sink window and laugh with us at the silly yearlings as they play, at the lone coyote who passes by quietly, at the lanky cranes feeding in the field.

THANK YOU, everyone! YOU know who you are! Thank you! THANK YOU!

PS Our "Occupancy" (FINAL) inspection is early next week. In the nick of time for CHRISTMAS! I will post recent pictures just as soon as I have the opportunity!

I'd say it is now looking like a KITCHEN!

Today we went from this......

.......to THIS! A BIG step in the right direction.

SNOW!

It's beginning to look a LOT like.......YOU know!

CHRISTMAS!

The Little Bird Farmhouse, from the road

The view Ichiban has requested -

And the view from the east drive.

The garden, at rest.

Things are moving slowly...but they ARE moving!

For example, the roofers are putting the corrugated steel roofing material on this week.

And our floor artisans are sanding and sealing the Douglas Fir floor.

What a vast change the sealant makes!

Giving thanks for.....

...the beauty of the earth, beloved family and friends, having enough to get by and also give away, five senses, precious memories, HOPE for a beautiful future.... YOU!

Happy Thanksgiving Day!

The floor is.....coming along!

Should be done next week, long about, oh.....Wednesday, or....Friday? Sure is looking pretty!

Abby helped GrubePop assemble the ceiling fan.

Abby loves to organize things! She lines them up according to type and size. A perfect helper for this job! Thank you, Abby!

Saturday, we enjoyed some fun with cousins and the grandparents!

Go Gavi, GO!

Happy Birthday, Commander!

Buckets of LOVE (and paint!) from Little Bird! LBF would not be the same without you. Thank you for all your hard work and TLC!

What a difference some sheet rock makes!

Three days of dry wallers and we have....an actual room! And so much sheet rock dust, we can hardly find each other in here! (It is absolutely everywhere!) Our new kitchen is really taking shape! Today, our electrician extraordinaire is installing our ceiling fan and more lights. It's great to have a scaffold for a few more days!

Next: painting, varnishing, and then next week - the wood floor! And this weekend....Abby and her Mom & Dad are visiting!

All weekend, we looked UP!

It took 5 of us two solid days to install our wood ceiling, and it was time so very well spent. The result makes us very happy and will for years and years to come. First, the four men nailed up some backing.

At the lunch break, Commander spent some time sanding the big beam.

Elisiel - the brains of the operation - a perfectionist! How nice for us!

Late Sunday afternoon, after the cleanup crew wrapped up. (Yes, that would be US!)