A House Remodel!

Ragnar and I have been talking about extending our back patio for a while. We enjoy sitting outside and watching the kids play, but we never really had a space to do that in. Due to an unexpected bonus this year, Ragnar and I decided to spend some of the money we always put in savings and build a patio. We got a few quotes and decided to go with a man named Bernardo Sibaja-Torres. He is a man that several of our neighbors used and recommended. Here are the beginning to end photos.

This is what we had before. This tiny patch of concrete.

It begins...

My peeping tom pictures of them working as I sent updates to Ragnar at work.

Stamping the concrete.

 Bottom finished..on to the cover.

He FINALLY finished!! He told us it would take 3-5 days. On day 20 he was finished. I tried to be patient because his brother died and he had to take care of business there with his family, but when he didn't come back hardly at all for another week I was very frustrated. I am so glad it's done and there are no more workers at our house!!! I am excited to put some furniture out there and play games and BBQ together!!

Family Pictures 2017

I love getting new pictures of the family each year. It is the gift I ask Ragnar to give me every Christmas. I love getting pictures done to update our house and for Christmas cards. I however, don't love the stress of the impending pictures. I hate having the outfits consume you, the worrying about the weather, the hairdos, the scheduling, the praying everyone is rested and happy with no bumps on their face ;) This year we got lucky and it was the one cooler day of the Fall we have had so that helped.

My favorite one.

I have some beautiful children that I am pretty fond of. 

Deacon is at one of my favorite ages. He is such a cute kid. He is a ball of energy. He loves to be running and playing with balls and is a sweet kid.

Channing loves to pose! She loves to get her picture taken and she is adorable!

Cavin we always call our gentle giant. He is a shy but strong kid. I love his big toothed happy smile.

Ella is a joy. She is so innocent and carefree and I love the example she is to our home. 

I have two very different but wonderful girls.

Three amazing boys in my life.

I love this picture or Ragnar. I feel like it's his true smile and I love it.

I thank Heavenly Father every day for the family that I have been given.

Rockets Run 2017

The annual Rockets run was last weekend and the kids really look forward to this race every year. My brother Chris was nice enough to get us a hotel room so we could hang out downtown and not have to wake up so early on Saturday morning.

The kids love to be together and it makes me so happy.

The older kids were finally able to meet Cai and Channing was super excited.

Morning walk over to the Toyota Center. Our hotel was only a half mile from the race.

They were ready for the kids 1k!! Sadly, Caden wasn't feeling well so he didn't join us.

The kids did a good job. Deacon ran the whole way and beat Channing ;) Cavin and Ella both improved their times. 

A family who runs together stays together :)

After the race while we were waiting for the awards ceremony, the boys all did some free throws.

I ran the 5k. I finished in 23:10. 11 seconds slower than my goal. I got 2nd place in my age group though. I was a little bummed because if I would have reached my goal I would have gotten first. She only beat me by 2 seconds. 

I got 6th overall for the women. There were over 900 runners. I felt good about it. I have been training a lot, but I can't eat a hamburger and fries the night before and expect to have a stellar race. Hopefully I can figure out a better diet so I can be even stronger. Another Rockets run in the books!

October Festivities

October has flown by. The Rocket's season officially began. We went out to the first game against the Mavericks and the kids had a blast.

Deacon and Cavin were doing a good job chanting and cheering.

Surprisingly even Channing seemed to enjoy herself. Usually she isn't a big fan of watching the game. They won so it was a fun night! I think it's going to be a great season!


October being breast cancer awareness month, we had a breast cancer 5k fun run at work this past weekend. The people I work with put together a race to support those who are affected by the disease. It was a really cold morning for Texas, but we bundled up and went for a run. 

We had a decent turnout for how chilly the morning was.

Even though it was a small race, I was happy I was able to win. After having finished 4th the last two races, I wanted to try and redeem myself a little.

I am grateful that although my job is just a couple hours a week, that I get to do what I love to do. I have always loved running and I am so grateful my body has been healthy and able to continue to run.

Halloween weekend we got to go over to the Toyota Center and participate in the Trick or Treat in the Suites. The kids really enjoy this event and we enjoy being with Ragnar at work. 

Ragnar and I wore traditional German attire. Ella was an emoji, Cavin black panther, Channing was Mal from Descendants, and Deacon was a storm trooper. 

I totally look German, right :)

Deacon was super excited to see that all the power dancers were storm troopers like him. I think he was by far the cutest though ;)

Ella found her matching emoji.

After the trick or treat in the suites, we hurried over to the Trunk or treat at our church. It was the second year in a row that they were on the same night. I hate that we have to hurry through each event, but the kids love them both, so we made it work.

For an early release day, my parents came over and my mom made slime with the kids which they were excited about. I'm grateful my parents take advantage of the early release days and come and hang out. We enjoyed seeing them.

 
Halloween night ended up being rainy, so that was a bummer.

We went over to our friend the Blands house to have dinner and trick or treat with many friends. We did our best through the rain and the kids were happy.

Channing and her friend Mallory stuck together and thankfully Mallory survived Channing's control of the umbrella! There were not a lot of trick or treaters out past 8:00 since the world series Astros game was on. In fact, we didn't even have one single trick or treater. We have had a good month and we are excited for what the holidays will bring.