Update........
Well, I don't have any new pictures (that are good ones) to share. Some of you know about the vandals that got into our house. For those who don't, here it is!
Over the past weekend, someone thought it would be fun to go in and take bolt cutters and some sort of saw and cut every electrical wire on our first floor, including the panel in the garage that controls every electrical anything in the house. They did over $4000 worth of damage. Not to mention 2 weeks worth of work completely undone!!! Our poor electrician, Brad, was so disgusted. Of course, so were we! Not only was this the 2nd time in less than a month that we were involved in a random act of vandalism (we hope it's random anyway) but that set us back another week or so to have the house re-wired! What a joy it is to have a house built!!!! :)
So, that is the latest from Ozark! Hopefully, we have been victims of vandalism enough for awhile and they will leave us alone so that our lives can go back to "normal" (whatever that may be right now)!
Hope that everyone has a wonderful Christmas! Stay safe, happy and healthy!
God Bless!

The Chimney

Our builder decided this week that he didn't like how our chimney looked so he decided to have the framers come back in and change it. Of course, this was the day after the guys just shingled the roof, but never the less, it had to be done. So, now it looks enormous! In the following pictures, you can see the dramatic change but we are very happy with it!

Before:



After:

Week of December 12-16 update....

Well, just when we think we are getting closer, things change. This past week, the electrician (my newest buddy, Brad) has been trying to finish up. The framers (my old buddy, James) had to come in and fix some things from the inspection. Of course, I had a "to do" list for them since they had missed framing in a bedroom door and our covered front porch (it pays to go out there daily, ok, several times daily). They wired for our home theater system, surround sound, security, etc and finished plumbing and piping for the central vac system (can't wait for that)! The windows are all in. The formal dining was last in (due to it getting broken), our front and back doors are in. The master bath tub is in! We are getting there but it's all of the entricate details left to do before sheetrocking, etc. can start! It can't be done soon enough!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Little Mark....

Dylan is always putting Mark's shoes and hats on. The scariest (and cutest) part of it is that he looks just like Mark when he does.

Progress at 3604 N Brinnsfield Drive.......
(Yes, get ready for that next change of address e-mail from us!)

The past couple of weeks the progress has been a bit slower. They finally have all of the windows in (except the formal dining room on the front of the house). They have temporary doors on the front and back, so it is now pretty much enclosed for them to work inside. They now have the "paper stuff" on the roof and I would like to think they will be putting the shingles on any day now (since they were supposed to be done 2 weeks ago). The electricians were there this week (Friday) and got quite a bit done. The soffit and fascia are done on the outside. The fireplace and the built-in area for our big screen TV in the living room got done Thursday. So, anyway, little progress is progress! (Can you tell I am ready to be out of the 8 Mile and into my house?) God is testing my patience and perseverance with all of this that is for sure!

I have also included a picture of the progress of the pool house! It is going to be absolutely beautiful! Bryce is very anxious for this to be done so we can enjoy it!

We also got to visit more of Mark's family this weekend. Friday, we went to Lewisville to Monica and Jeremy's house. Mandy, Denver and Baby Denver & Rick and Carol were there also. The three boys (Bryce, Dylan and Denver) enjoyed seeing each other. Dylan and Denver are 5 months apart and played very well together. They enjoyed playing 'ring around the rosie' (picture below) and spinning on the kitchen floor! We had a great time catching up and enjoyed a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner!

Thanksgiving 2005

Thanksgiving Day was spent at Mark's parents this year. We enjoyed a wonderful dinner. Jason, Holly and peanut were there and Gary and Lois' neighbor, Joy, too! We did miss Clint, M'Liss, Emma and Clara, but look forward to their return from France in December so we can be together for Christmas! We also enjoyed our time with Donny, Glenna and Deanna Bennett. They are so much a part of this family and we love them all so much!
It was a wonderful time and we all shared what we are thankful for. That being our families and friends. We have so many people who love and care for us and we hope that each of them know that! Thanks to all of you that make our lives and hearts better and happier! We are truly thankful for all of you!

You hear about these days......

This morning was one of those days that you hear about that happen, but to other people. When Mark walked out to leave for work this morning, this is what he walked out to.




The entire front end was stripped off, hood left open. His subwoofer, amp and speakers all cut out of the backend. The police came and dusted for fingerprints but I am sure we will never know who did this. Scariest part is that we were all in the house, just ten feet away from the car while all of this was happening. At least we are safe. That is the silver lining!

Fine Details

Here are a few pictures of the fine details inside our house. Our builder was kind enough to add some arched doorways for us. He is very creative and we love what he has done. He also made our bedroom ceiling a vaulted ceiling instead of the tray ceiling. The windows are sitting in the garage and are to be put in tomorrow. We are leaving for Thanksgiving in Dallas tomorrow, so hopefully when we get back there will be more progress to report. Happy Thanksgiving to all!

Things seem to be moving so quickly these days. I took these pictures yesterday and you can't see all that is going on. These pictures show the arched entry way into our formal dining room. The other window picture is one of the windows in the playroom over the garage. The other two are pictures of the front and back of the house. The roof/shingles are being put on today. The plumbing is all done inside. There are a few finishing touches they have to do but the builder says the electrician should be there next week and then the next week we should be ready to sheetrock and drywall (courtesy of my Daddy, thank goodness)! The cabinets are ordered and those will go in after the walls are done. We are busy trying to pick out our granite, paint and carpet colors. Not sure where to even begin! We are supposed to be in sometime early to mid-January! We are very anxious!

The progress is not quite as noticeable these days. They are working on the roof, plumbing, and other things inside this week. I talked to one of the framers yesterday and he said they should have the roof finished by the end of next week! We are so thankful that it SHOULD all be under roof before any bad weather gets here!

More house pictures.....

Bryce enjoys going to look at the progress of the house. In these pictures, he was "modeling" his new playroom!

Bryce's 4th Birthday

Bryce had his birthday at Skateport in Springfield. It was a lot of fun for everyone. The little ones enjoyed trying to learn how to skate while some of the adults just tried to come out without anything broken (right, Aric?). As always, Bryce received many wonderful gifts and we want to say "Thank You" to all of you that were there to celebrate with us. I cannot believe he is already 4 years old. Where does the time go?

Halloween 2005

Bryce was the blue Power Ranger and Dylan was Spider-Man. It was a cold, yucky night but the boys both enjoyed the Trick-or-Treating. Bryce also got to go to his school and do some Trunk-or-Treating. There were about 20 cars decorated in the parking lot and he just had to go trunk to trunk to get the candy. Alot of candy....