Just Another Day

We made it to the weekend! It's been a rough week, everyone has been sick and not sleeping well. We played with our good friends Kiersten and Nolan today. It was about 50 degrees out this afternoon and we took advantage. Brian worked all day and when he came home (to the hotel) he told me to go relax in the hot tub. THANK YOU DADDY!! It was nice and peaceful. Just what I needed. I stopped by the house today to see what kind of shape it was in. The construction crew tood down the boy's bedroom ceiling and sealed it with a fire sealant. This prevents the smell from ever coming back. They have done the entire house with this sealant, but needed to take the ceiling down to get into the attic space they share above the garage. The house is smelling so much better. They painted all of the doors in the house yesterday. It's looking like a maze in the living room. This is where they left them to dry. They ripped out a few cabinets in the kitchen for restoration, and have taken some damaged subflooring out. When I spoke with one of the painters on Friday he said they would be able to paint a few of the rooms starting on Monday. Meaning: Master Bedroom, Drew's room, Emma's room and the two upstairs bathrooms. It's a start! I'm beginning to feel more at ease with the thought of moving back in. The smell really takes a toll on your mind. As the smell has improved my fear has disappeared. I'm beginning to get excited about having a new kitchen and floors. :) In more upbeat news, our quads turn THREE on Saturday. It's hard to believe I've been a mommy to five kids that long. I love them all so much and couldn't be happier to be their mom. We have new LEAP PADS for them as they are all obsessed with my IPAD. I think they will all be super excited. They no longer have to fight over whose turn it is and they all can play whatever they want. Thanks to Grandma and Papa for helping fund operation birthday present!! I'm not sure I'll get the chance to post before Thanksgiving, but everyone have a wonderful holiday and travel safe. We will be heading to Wisconsin for some much needed room to run and snuggle with my family. Hopefully we will have a new addition to the family when we return. HINT HINT DADDY!! XOXO

Making New Friends.

It was laundry night this evening and of course the kids were excited. That means we get to ride the "alligator" (aka elevator). First we ran the hallways to get change for the laundry, then we needed a vacuum, and then we needed to return the vacuum and take the laundry upstairs. We managed to run into a lot of the people who also call the hotel home. An older gentleman sat on the hallway floor with the kids and told them all about Santa. It was so cute. One of the older couples a few doors down stopped and talked to us about school. We might not be cozy in our box as a big family, but the people here are wonderful. Emma is loving preschool. She always tells me "I had fun!!" Makes a mama smile. Parker, Jack and Maddox were tested for Developmental Preschool this past week. I was amazed at how far they have come. Both Jack and Maddox scored above average for language and communication. WAHOO! They both scored well in all other areas too. Parker did well in most areas. He qualified for speech and had a few things in OT that he struggled with. I'm anticipating the boys going to preschool within the next month. Drew is doing well. He's missing home and Bailey. He mentions her almost everyday. This past weekend we did make it a point to drive by the house and play in the park across the street. It was so much fun. The kids felt so much better and at ease. We've been talking about our "new" house. It's no longer the "smoky house" which makes me feel better. Not as depressing.

Our house is starting to move along. They have the north half of the house cleaned and ready for paint. The south half of the house is still being taken apart and inspected. I got a good look at the attic and the garage rafters on Monday. It's a little toasted. The furnace and air conditioner have been removed and will be replaced as quickly as possible. IT'S BEEN FREEZING HERE!! Hopefully the paint colors will look as good as I envision them. I guess I really wont care too much as long as my bed is as cozy as it was before. I have to get a new matress first! :( I've been working on our house item inventory. Who knew I had that much stuff??? I think I counted about 20 different screwdrivers, 15 rolls of tape, 25 cans of paint and more. IT WAS RIDICULOUS. Lets just say it won't all be coming back. Mama would like to park in a nice warm garage. That's about all for now, gearing up for a Thanksgiving trip to Wisconsin next week. Grandma and Papa better be ready...we are ready to run. XOXO

Still Hanging On (one month after the fire).

It's been a month since the fire. We are slowly adjusting to hotel life. The kids are ready to go home and ask to go there multiple times a day. They are trying their best to get along, but it's so difficult. There's no room to run, we can't be too loud, and we are always on top of each other. I'm sure we are going to look back at this experience one day and laugh at how we fit seven people in a two bedroom hotel suite for months. Last weeks house progress seemed slow. The cleaning crew worked hard on most of the second story of the house. Three rooms and the upstairs hallway will be ready for painting by Friday. They will begin to rip out the drywall in the garage tomorrow and open the walls in the boys bedroom as well. Everything will be cleaned and sealed while being deodorized and tested for any toxins and gases left behind. The main level of the house is just starting to be cleaned. We discovered some rotted sub-flooring today from a leaking patio door. :( My finger went right through the rotted floor. We are assuming this is why there were so many layers of flooring under the hideous white one we had. On the upside of things, we picked out and agreed on flooring and paint for the whole house. I love it when Brian doesn't put up a fight. Although, I might be in for the surprise of a lifetime when I enter the basement. It's all MAN-CAVE! Well, maybe the second biggest surprise of my life...it's kinda hard to beat those cute little quads we discovered three years ago!! Our contractor gave us an estimated move home date of January 31, 2013 but thinks we will be in sooner. We were hoping to be in by Christmas, so everyone pray everything goes well and we survive the next couple of months in the hotel. In other family news, the boys tested for developmental preschool. I'm not sure how they did, but they all seemed to have a blast. Parker came home talking about his special school. Maddox got mad and wanted to go back with Parker. Jack stayed out of the conversation like a smart boy. Emma then talked about her special school and how she was a big girl. They all make me so proud. Drew has been trying to read. I'm so glad it's something he enjoys. We love Pete the Cat!!! Well, it's getting late and mama is tired. Thank you all again for all the help, donations, and support. We appreciate and love you all. XOXO Sara and Crew