New Year's Eve

Last day of 2014, and we spent it lazily in our jammies, playing Pay Day, snuggled up in the new sleeping bags the kids got from Grandma and Grandpa. 

 

 

 

In the evening, we went to the house of some friends to usher in the New Year.  On the menu?  Turtle sandwiches.  No really.  TURTLE.  Of the Snapper variety.  In barbecue sauce.  My son Quinn, who is so picky he will not eat a pasty or popcorn, ate TURTLE.  At least, until someone told him what it was he was eating.  Mama didn't touch the stuff with a 10 foot pole, but Daddy has an adventurous streak and downed his just fine.  Said it tasted just like pulled pork.  Great.  The stories of how the snapper turtle was caught and butchered was enough to ensure that it never goes in my belly, thank you very much. 

 

Seriously?  Turtle?  And they complain about MY cooking???

 

At midnight, we all braved the frigid outdoors, banged our pots and pans and lit firecrackers.

 

2014 was a pretty darn good year.  We are blessed.  Abundantly blessed.

Construction

The house has been in a continuous state of re-vamping for the past year.  Well, there were some pretty long stagnant times interspersed in there.  BUT, for my Christmas present this year, Rob decided to finish up some projects!  WOO HOOO!!  The big final reveal will have to wait, because things aren't QUITE done yet.  Feast your eyes, though, on these sneak peaks. 

 

 Behold:  storage by the back entrance!!! 

 

 

 And new (to us) doors!  The Habitat for Humanity Restore has been a good friend to us, and furnished us with some really nice, solid-wood doors to replace two of the uglier, hollow-core things that have been plaguing our lives for far too long. And then Rob found a third door up in our barn that both of us had totally forgot about.   Amazing the difference a door makes.

 

Other projects in the works:  wainscoting the hallway and bathroom, changing out light fixtures, putting beadboard on the stair case, a sit-down-take-your-boots-off cubbie, all new trim, sexing up the kitchen island, and making a book-shelf railing upstairs.  Things are coming along really nicely!!

Tobbogan Ride

Them's some wet kids.

 

Aho Year in Photos Slide Show

Christmas Morning

Christmas Eve

Notice that the boys look exactly the same in every picture, and Reagan strikes a new and exciting pose with every click of the shutter.  Like she's channeling Madonna's "Vogue".  There's more pictures than needed of Christmas Eve, but I'm posting them all, just so y'all can see Reagan's full range of facial expression.   Watch out Heidi Klum. 

 

 We have our hands full.

 

Gramps reading the kids "The Night Before Christmas", just as he has for the past 10 years.

Surprise!  Reagan's gift from grandma and grandpa - a brand spanking new Jeep Wrangler.  I want a Jeep Wrangler!!

 

Athletic feat of the night:  Synchronized Hot Cocoa drinking.