cora c

this is proof that cora crawley only has one facial expression on and off the air! that weird chin down, lips pursed, eyes up thing that she does. if you watch downton abbey you know exactly what i'm talking about! it is as if she is saying "i could be mad, or secretly happy, or also possibly feeling naughty".

see below.

in the 80s

 on the show

 and off (third row)

the projects

many of you have asked for "before" pictures of our house. i have said without blinking that it is rough. i am not one to be falsely humble, ever.

the house is pretty long so it's hard to get it in one shot. i also asked mobile welding to get out of the way, he did not comply.

 my second house in a row to start out with astro turf.

 really cool long porch, unfortunately completely cracked...

 no floors, but the hallway to three bedrooms and two bathrooms. i wish i would have gotten a shot of the light fixture, it is great.

 this is the bedroom (far right in the picture above) that EM proclaimed as her room.

 bathroom (really love terrazzo!)

 the pic i took when em bumped into me, it is vaguely of the room across from hers.

 another bathroom

 living area

 dining and kitchen

 close up of kitchen

 garage, which will be converted into what i would like to call the "master's retreat". i think i saw that in a david weekley brochure one time.

 a view to the existing back porch

 the outside view of the master's retreat.

new mexico

a few weeks ago we set out on a road trip to new mexico. jeremy had it in his mind to go on a horse packing trip so we made arrangements and headed out.

some people think of new mexico as desert, but a lot of it is very green and mountainous. it was really beautiful.

eating breakfast in silver city, cool little town with great food!

 she had a weird little bed at our vacation rental. during her nap she had already been on, off and at this point was halfway. the coffee maker was used in the stead of a nightlight.

 walking around in the gila cliff dwellings. really cool to see the perspective on building homes 700 years ago.

 at the hot springs. pretty hot, i kind of got a headache after a while.

 on the way home in alpine, tx, at the maverick inn. we were all very tired...

her first cowboy hat from the iconic big bend saddlery!

 roadtrip activities...

 lots of pee and no restroom to put it...

and as most trips go, it was really good to be home...

back in business

i got another computer. somehow my world wide web paradigm has squeezed down since the last time i was a blogging regular. but i am making some room again.

outrageous saag paneer at garaj mahal in austin

 life is so much fun, 3 minutes after you wake.

 this kid is still so skinny. now in the 97th percentile for height and 25th for weight. her doctor says unlimited ice cream. so we stopped off at amy's on the way home.

word world

JSE performing some repairs to the ceiling...

em performing her best gang sign...

sign of the times

really proud of this...

sweet endings

how time passes. she will be asking to go to pg-13 movies next. answer is no.

uproot

we are moving. this is what most of the house looks like now, no floors and a pond underneath. but grass and pasture for as long as you can see...