Snow, Snow, SNOW!

So tonight for the second time, we enjoyed one of the many joys of homeowning: shovelling the driveway. I remember as a kid, I used to really dislike shovelling the snow, mostly because I didn't really see the point. But tonight in the quiet darkness that comes so much earlier in the evening these days, perhaps I discovered something different about this driveway; it's mine. And as my breath steamed past my eyes in the cold, I realized the audacity the snow must have, landing on MY driveway. Smiling to myself, I turned a chore into a game, a battle of will. "Snow on my driveway? I don't think so!" And for the second time, we procceeded to let the snow know who's driveway this was. "That's right, there are some new shovels in town, and we're clearing out the riff raff. Tell your friends."
TeamFreed 2, Winter 0.
I'm pretty sure after tonight, the snow will start falling just on the yard, in an effort to avoid another embarrassment.
On a side note, my sister asked me if I thought my kids would be competitive. The only way that could happen, I responded, was if we had kids. ;)

Paint, Paint, and more Paint!

When buying a house you have to make it feel like your own. That usually means painting. Painting we have done. Luckily it has not all been done by just Wilder and I. Thanks to both of our parents, Amy, and Alan we were able to pretty much finish it in one weekend. Here are some before and after shots of a few of the rooms in the house.
Kitchen (after only):

Living Room:

















Dining Room (after only):


Family Room:

Turkey Day!!!

Well, what's a brand new house without a rush to clean everything up? We ambitiously decided to host Thanksgiving this year, and didn't really realize what we were getting ourselves into until about a day before the inlaws started showing up. But, since we're not the sort of people who admit when we're in over our heads, April and I scrambled to get everything ready for our first large scale meal. Amy and Kash drove in wednesday night from Des Moines to join us, David, and the Freed parents in an amusing night of Nintendo Wii fantasticness. Anyone who is wondering, "Is the Wii fun?" It sure is. And you know it's especially amazing when my mother is celebrating after serving an ace right past me in Wii tennis.
So late Thursday night DJ and Alan roll into town, and Thursday morning the preparations begin. We had all the classic Turkey day stuff, including my crowning achievement, a 22 lb bird (cooked brilliantly, if I do say so myself). But it was my wife that was the star, coordinating the first beautiful multi dish nine person meal in the history of our new home. This year, I decided to flex my creative muscles, and put together a comic book commermorating our first Thanksgiving. I took pictures of everything, and it came out prett well. I'm not quite sure how to share it with the world yet, so stay tuned. It was a fantastic day with friends and family. Not everyone could be there, but hey, there's always next year.