Merry Christmas!!

Merry Christmas! We have enjoyed a relaxing holiday break with the new addition of our nephew, Carter. He has been the center of attention and has been passed from lap to lap. Everyone enjoys holding the little elf.

On Christmas morning, Dad decided to drive 6.5 hours round trip to pick up Grandma and Grandpa and bring them down for Christmas Day. It was a last minute decision, but we thought they should be with family on Christmas Day.

Amy and I have taken advantage of the down time to work on house plans. It may not sound exciting, but we are pleased to have more of the work behind us. It's slow, but we are making progress.

First Time Holding Carter

I got to hold little Carter for the first time last Friday night. It was pretty cool to hold my new little nephew (especially because he wasn't crying or pooping at the time). It is amazing how small newborn babies are. Think about it, he actually weighs less than 7 pounds! I think my first cell phone actually weighed more that that.

Needless to say, everyone in the family is crazy about the new addition (except for maybe the dog, Bailey, who hasn't found out yet). There has been no shortage of people to hold the baby. Fortunately, I have managed to avoid any of the diaper changes so far!

As you can tell from the picture on the right, Baby Carter has more hair and a better tan that his Uncle Brad.

The house is really starting to take shape on the inside now. The drywall crew was able to hang ALL of the drywall in two days! It is exciting to see the framing work transform into real rooms. I love just walking around the house that we spent months designing on paper.

If all goes well, we should have heat in the house very soon and the drywall work can continue. I think they are going to grade the lot even further this week, too. We’ll keep you posted.

Welcome Baby Carter!!

At 1:52 this afternoon, we welcomed Carter Daniel Reich (our newest nephew) into this world at 6 pounds, 13 ounces and 19 inches tall. Mom and Dad are both doing well and recovering from all of the work. The grandmothers are both sitting here in the waiting room glowing with pride.

Amy and I are both excited to have just seen little Carter for the first time. His lungs are working well and he's trying to open his eyes to this bright, beautiful world (well, the inside of the hospital room for now).

We are so happy for Dani and Brandon!!

We have a front door!

Sorrry that it has been a while since I have posted any pictures of the house progress. It's not very exciting to see pictures of the electrical wiring and HVAC ductwork. Plus, it's not easy to take pictures since the sun goes down at 5:00 these days. Yuck!

I stopped by the house this afternoon and and snapped a few daytime photos. They actually hung our front door this morning. The brickers are going to return later this week and finish the brickwork around the door.

We also have a new (and very high) deck off the back of the house. The future screened-in porch is the part with the roof over it (and missing railing). The stairs will be built later in the process.

Oh, the roof is also finished. I stopped by the house during a recent rain storm and it seems to be leak-free (knock on wood).

If all goes well (and the weather gets a little warmer), we should have concrete for the garage, front porch, and side door soon.

We are bricked!

We now have brick covering all four sides of the house! We even have limestone accents complete on the front. The roof is almost complete. We just need a front door to complete the picture.

We have windows!

Wow, we have windows now! Lots and lots of windows. Wait, who is going to wash all of those windows? That is going to take a lot of Windex.

Actually, these pictures were taken late last week. Believe it or not, they started bricking the house today. They have already completed one-third of the back wall. I will try to get some pictures of the brick work posted soon.

Happy 30th Birthday!!

My baby sister (second from left with her own little baby on the way) just turned the big 3-0 yesterday! I want to express my condolences on no longer being "twenty-something". She has officially left her youth behind and is now one step closer to an AARP discount. In fairness, I should point out that Katie (on the right) is desperately hanging onto the last six months of her youthful days! Sorry Katie, I heard that you were dishing it out pretty good last week. I'm trying to find a six-month countdown clock for you.

The good news for both of you is that somewhere after 30, your memory starts to fade and you quickly forget how old you are.

Happy Birthday!!!