Many Hands Make Light Work (or work lighter!)

Last weekend was spent doing a little office makeover. All I can say is thank goodness for family. Because what we accomplished in 2 1/2 days would have taken weeks without them. Thanks to grandmas for watching children and feeding the troops... Kyle and Amanda for scraping, taping, sanding, painting, pressuring washing, light hanging, cleaning... Dustin and Marge for landscaping, painting and cleaning, Steven and Rob for patching and painting... and Sarah and Danny for painting and moving furniture! The following are before and work in progress pictures. Stay tuned for after pictures!

The before picture.

Goodbye ugly, painted over wallpaper! This was my idea (Mike wasn't so excited to embark on this journey). It looks totally awesome now, but was definitely the hardest project we took on. This is my brother Kyle. He is our handyman!

We painted the waiting area and halls "Mesa." The walls were bright white...not so inviting for a dental office. This is my sister-in-law Amanda. She is our new front desk receptionist and assistant in training.

Grandma Lemme brought McDonald's for the hungry workers! She brought my kids along so they might get a glimpse of their parents that day.

Halle in my Dad's new toy, the excavator!

Goodbye hedges! It's amazing how many people have commented and expressed how glad they are that we took out the hedges. My brother Dustin own's a landscaping business (Lawnscapes) so he took care of the front for us.

Mike and I after a few hours of sanding drywall, because I insisted it be smooth like the rest of the walls. He frequently reminded me it was my idea to take the wallpaper off!

A clean slate!

The kids get a cleaning

So now begins my back posting! Things have been nutty around here lately, so I have a lot to catch up on. Anyway, last week we had all three kids get their first cleaning. Halle has been talking about it for months now. She told her older cousin a few weeks ago that she couldn't wait until Thursday, because that was when she was going to her cleaning. Weird I know. Here a few pictures from the big day.

Asher loves the buttons! Hopefully he didn't reprogram anything.

Asher's favorite part of the office, the train table. Also take note of the beautifully painted over wallpaper. Stay tuned for what we did about that!

Notice Haven in the corner. She sat there covering her mouth with her hand during Halle's turn.

Halle was an awesome patient. She sat in the chair for 45 minutes while Daddy practiced taking x-rays with his new equipment, and Aunt Amanda was instructed on cleanings.

Asher and I observed from the hall. If he was on my shoulders, he wasn't rearranging things in the drawers.

Aunt Amanda did her first cleaning. She did great!

So after looking so worried when it was Halle's turn, Haven jumped right in the chair and was a rock star! Her favorite part was holding Mr. Thirsty all by herself.

The fluoride "chompers," it makes me gag just thinking of it.

Asher's turn. He adjusted the chair height all by himself.

Asher loves to brush with his new Little Einstein toothbrush.

Glorious (and hilarious) day!

Our business deal is finally done and Mike had his first day of work today! What a huge relief! I thought working through dental school with three kids was tough, but the past two and a half months has been the most stressful, frustrating and exciting time of our lives! I think I had it in my mind that once we made it to graduation the rest was smooth sailing! Boy was I mistaken. I must have said 100 prayers of thanks today that Mike was finally at work!

Anyway, now we are moving on to a different set of challenges. At least these challenges will be accompanied by a paycheck! For those of you who need a little update of our situation here it is... In July we moved back home to beautiful Oak Harbor, Washington with the intention to close on a dental practice on August 1st. After enduring one delay after another, and keeping the office location confidential (as requested by the seller) we are finally in business and ready to drive around town with our heads out the window sharing the news! This is not an associateship, so Mike is the only dentist (the boss man, yikes)! We are really excited about the staff we inherited and the new receptionist/assistant we are hiring on (my sister-in-law, Amanda)! Stay tuned for pictures of the office before we get our hands dirty and add some curb appeal! The following are a few pictures of our special day (and a few extra funnies)!


When I was heading upstairs to lay Asher down, I hear Haven say, "I'll be the dentist girl, welcome to my office!" When I came back down stairs this is what I saw. She was wearing a dress up hat as a mask and using a barrette as her dental tool!

Then they traded places! All of this in anticipation of seeing Daddy's new office, I'm sure!

Mike's first patient, my mom!

At the end of day, we invited all of the family to come and see the office. We celebrated with Klondike bars! The girls got a kick out of the chairs!

Halle, making sure everything is in good working condition!

A funny side note: Today I happened upon this Barbie configuration! I always get a kick out of watching my kids play. My favorite part of this Barbie gathering is Ken sitting on the giraffe while leaning back on Barbie who is sitting in a arm chair! The girls really wanted to make sure I got the snakes (the belts and necklaces off to either side) in the picture as well!


Today before naps I was reading a Junie B. Jones book to the girls. This particular book was about Junie B.'s new baby brother who she lovingly (not) refers to as a monkey. This of course got us to talking about our own little monkey. Halle said Asher is like a monkey because he climbs on everything. Then out of nowhere, Haven said, "When Asher is stinky, we give him to Daddy. When he is cute and happy, we give him to you, Mom." I wonder where they would have gotten and idea like that?

Put a smile on your face, and let me see your jeans!

Haven got some new skinny jeans, and they are too cute on her! You couldn't pay me enough to slip into a pair, but I think Haven pulls them off quite nicely!

In this picture Haven is "putting" a smile on her face.

I had Haven try the jeans on at the store. When we were in the dressing room, she was dancing around in the jeans and said she looked like a "rocket star!" She said that's what my friend Catherine calls her.

This picture doesn't do Haven's buns justice...but you get the idea!

What's he up to now? About six feet!

Don't panic, we did not happen upon Asher in this situation. Mike had gone up the ladder and Asher was right on his tail. So Mike climbed down and watched to see just how far he would go (Mike is just outside the shot in this picture). If anyone is still wondering if boys are different than girls, here's your answer. I'm pretty sure my girls would still think twice before climbing this ladder, if they would do it all.

This is Asher's favorite spot in our house, on the bottom landing of the staircase. He appreciates the view out the skinny window (see Halle's first day of school post for more evidence.)

Do you see trouble in these beautiful blue eyes?

She's 50!

My mom turned 50 today! Doesn't she look fabulous? On more than a few occasions, people have mistakenly called me Connie since we've moved to Oak Harbor. She loves when that happens! We suprised mom with a prime rib dinner (great work Sar), which is her favorite, and a delicious German Chocolate Cheesecake (the Cheesecake Factory recipe). Isn't it pretty? It was just as delicious as it looks! all of her kids and grandkids were in attendance, a little chaotic, but always a good time!

Helping Grandpa with "chores"

The girls love to help grandpa with "chores." Of course, chores include riding/driving Grandpa's tractor. Take note of Haven's ear protection. That is the only way she gets close to the tractor.

First day of school, first day of school!

Today my first born had her first day of kindergarten! Boy do I feel old. Halle has been a little nervous about going to school in a new place. Specifically about making new friends, which has never been an issue. So I did my best to make it a very special day. The following pictures showcase the festivities!

Breakfast in bed, with Mickey pancakes, eggs, grapes and a fresh cut rose on the side!

Haven had to have breakfast in bed too, and she was kind enough to share with Asher.

Daddy and his big girl.

Her latest picture pose.

I love sister pictures. Haven was so excited when Halle got home! The first thing she said to her was, "Halle, do you want to play with me?"

Notice the little boy in the window!

After we let Asher out.

Polished to perfection!

The poor teacher totally blanked on the pledge! She requested help from the parents to help her through. You know how intimidating a room of 5 year olds can be!

I walked Halle to and from school which gave us a few minutes to talk. Tomorrow it's Daddy's turn. Halle had a great first day of school and reported meeting two new friends, Madison and McKayla! Last night, Halle's cousin stopped by to wish her good luck. After they left, Halle said, "That was nice, huh mom." This afternoon, Halle got phone calls from her aunts and uncles who were excited to see how her day had gone. I was touched by their thoughtfulness! I'm so proud of Halle! She is such a brave girl.

A day with the Yeates

Three years ago, back when Justin and Mike were about to begin their 3rd year of dental school, we started a tradition of an annual camping trip with the Yeates family. It's been something we look forward to each year! (Just a little background, as I stated above, Mike and Justin were in the same dental school class, Catherine and I grew up in the same stake and wish we could be neighbors, and then all of our kids are the same age!) Anyway, this year has been a little crazy with graduation, moving and the job hunt and so we condensed our annual camping trip into one fun filled day, with the intent to make our reservations for next year this October!

Justin and Catherine brought the makings for a deluxe breakfast including french toast with nectarines and whip cream, eggs, hashbrowns, and a delicious creamy fruit salad! After breakfast, Catherine and I ducked out to "run and errand," while the boys did dishes and cleaned the kitchen and this kids played. Upon return we packed up and headed for what we refer to now as our beach, on the northwest shore of Deception Pass (at Deception Pass State Park where we normally camp.) The plan was to do a hot dog roast at the beach, but that seemed like too much work, and we were still full from our breakfast. Plus, we already had all the s'more stuff ready, what else did we really need?

We played at the beach for hours. The weather was perfect and the scenery unbeatable, especially as the fog lifted. We are so blessed to live in this area. As soon as we got to the beach, the kids were begging to go swimming, in the 40 degree water mind you! What's a parent to do? After all, today was the perfect day to run around the beach in your underwear! What classy parents we are. The kids were totally content to play in the water and sand for hours and we had a blast socializing with very few interruptions. Remind me why I don't go to the beach with friends more often. We concluded our evening at the beach with s'mores and then came home for dinner. The following pictures are some of the highlights.

Thanks Justin, Catherine, Freddy, Aly and Henry for spending the day with us!

The future couple (at least that's what the parents are hoping)

What kind of parents let their kids run around the beach in their underwear?

Haven, giving it a lot of thought!

Freddy and Halle to the rescue, how sweet!

Haven was a little bummed she got wet.

Besty friends!

Henry spent most of the afternoon traversing the driftwood.

Catherine, convincing a tired Henry that he would survive without a bottle.

Mike had an unfortunate encounter with bird poo.

The happy families!