Update from... Michigan???

Well, I (Ellie) am in Michigan for my vacation and spending time with my aunt and uncle and cousins! I came all by myself. So it was a little bit strange to not be on vacation with my whole family, since that's what we always do. We've mostly just been hanging out. We've gone to the pool, and the library, and today we went blackberry picking.
Right now Auntie Toni is making preserves to can them. Canning in jars is kind of an oxymoron, because why don't you can in cans and jar in jars? I suppose it would be more confusing. Anyway, we picked 9 quarts of blackberries, and ate alot of them too. Matt said he ate as many as he picked. Because the bushes were thorny, we are somewhat scratched up on our legs and arms. I wore flip flops and shorts, which was silly.
Mary and Matt have a mini dachshund named Lexi and she is only 12 weeks old. She is tiny and adorable. It is fun to watch her walk and play, because sometimes her back end doesn't quite keep up with her front end.
Oh, I also got two cards from Mema and Auntie Steph today. It was special to get cards while I'm on vacation.
Tonight we are having steak and potato salad and spinach salad, and homemade Reese's Peanut Butter Cup ice cream! Sarah and I made it today. It tastes pretty delicious, and I bet it will taste better when it's all the way frozen and everything.
Tomorrow we are going to go to the zoo. All of us, Toni, John, Ryan, Sarah, Matt, Mary, and me. We are going to take a picnic lunch and spend pretty much all day there.
It's strange not being at my home for a while like this. They will probably be almost finished on remodeling the kitchen.

Well, that's all for now!

Rebuilding the Kitchen

This weekend we replaced our countertop and have a new sink.

Our friend Uncle Kevin came over to watch Dad work and to give him friendly advice.

He also helped Dad. Here he is pulling out the dishwasher, but I suppose you could tell that.

Then they discovered that something was still attached. And that there was somewhat of a leak. When they got that taken care of, they ripped off the countertop with their superhuman strength.

They actually did take out the screws before they ripped off the countertop with their superhuman strength.

Then they wrestled the 10-foot-plus countertop through our full-of-corners kitchen, and took it outside.

We put things at the side of the road for the sanitation engineers (not trash men) to dispose of. Sometimes people find our trash as their treasure, and take it home with them. Let's just hope that someone doesn't decide they want a new countertop and take our old one.

This is what our kitchen has looked like. We did put the dishwasher back, so we could use the oven.

We had this one square of countertop left. It had been a butcher block, coated by this nasty plastic stuff that we started melting with our toaster oven. Needless to say, Dad unscrewed it, turned it over, and it was such a blessing to have.

This is how our dining room looks, because we had to take out the things from the bottom cabinets so they didn't get sawdust and mess all over them.

Today, Monday, people from Irving Counter Top came over and installed the new countertop.

Yay!! It is very nice to have a whole countertop. We didn't realize how much we liked and needed having a countertop until we lost it. After all, how else would you be able to make chocolate chip cookies?

Dad took today off of work to be here when the men were working, and he installed the sink. We have a lovely new stainless steel sink with a sprayer and a water filter faucet in addition to the normal faucet.

A sink with running water is a great asset to the kitchen. We really are enjoying it.

So we don't have to do dishes in the bathroom. :o)

We also have a really quiet garbage disposal now. I suppose everyone else's garbage disposals are not especially loud, but ours was probably from when the house was built. So it's a big change, and we like it.

Melissa is gone in Chicago until Friday, the 25th. We are really missing her. The house is very quiet. I don't like sitting in her seat in the van. We are really going to be happy when she is back. But I will be leaving three days after she gets back (the 28th), to Detroit. Then I will get back on August 6th, and then 9 days later, Amy will leave for the Honor Academy for all year! It seems like we will not be home all at the same time for a while! Oh, Clara and Mom are going to go to a Women's Retreat from August 1-3, so Clara will be able to do something special with Mom.

Tile Backsplash and Key Lime Pie

This weekend Dad has been working on tiling the backsplash in the kitchen.




We were able to borrow a tile cutter from some friends.

We have had to have the stove pulled out so we can work behind it.

Amy, Melissa, and I have been helping Dad laying the tiling.

This is the first of the decorative tiles laid.

On Friday I made a key lime pie because Melissa came home. The group flew in on Friday evening. We are really glad she is back because we missed her.

Demolition of the Kitchen

This past weekend Dad and our friend Matt replaced the kitchen window. So here are some pictures of that.

We had to peel off all the gold brick tile that was the backsplash in the inside.

And it has looked like this all week- construction amid food preparation.

Dad has been working on the inside now.

Yesterday Dad was gooping on the joint compound. He smoothed it out too.

And we were looking at Lowe's at the backsplash tile. These are the ones we like the best because the accent tiles match what we have in the kitchen and the design is not very strange, like bowls of fruit or something.

And RYP is over now. We were all really tired since we stayed up late both nights.

Melissa will be going with her church high school choir to Chicago on Wednesday, the 16th, for a Choir Tour/Mission Trip. She will be gone until the 25th. The choir will be having concerts at Navy Pier, Sears Tower, and Pacific Garden Rescue Mission. They will also be doing things with Armitage Baptist Church, and doing a VBS.

I (Ellie) will fly up to Detroit on the 28th to spend 9 days with my aunt and uncle there. I am excited to go, and also a little scared of going by myself.