And....we're back!

Hello again everyone.  Sorry for the gap in posts, but we've had an absolutely crazy last few weeks.  Of course when other priorities come calling something has to give, but as things slow down a bit we'll get back in the swing.  I know we've got a big review coming from Aaron and Karen has started something as well so we should have a few updates for you really soon!

In the meantime, let me catch you up.  Like I mentioned, we've had our hands full recently.  Two weeks ago we had to make an impromptu trip to Roanoke, VA as Karen's grandmother passed away.  She was one of my favorite family members to visit...mostly due to her blatant honesty.  The last time we saw her I mentioned that she looked well, to which she smiled and responded "we both know I look like hell".  That was just her way.  I'll miss her stories (and she had plenty of them)...  I struggled with whether or not to let the kids go.  I didn't want their first funeral experience to be creepy or uncomfortable, but this was definitely not.  I am not a religious man, and I struggle with funerals that focus on the loss of an individual, but this was really a celebration of a life well lived. I'm glad we went...we'll miss you Grammy...

Of course while we were there we got to spend some time with family.  It's always nice to get together and share some time as a group.  Karen's parents are refurbishing a country store in Arcadia, VA, so we spent some time out there.  The picture at the top of this post is the view from their homesite on top of the hill.  It is right up against the national forest, and about as pretty a place as you'll ever see.  The pictures from my phone don't do it justice.  It was great to have everyone together out in the countryside with the fresh air and the hummingbirds buzzing by your head.  They've been kind enough to actually build us a campsite on their property, so we'll be spending 2 weeks there in August right after we wrap up Stephanie's Junior Olympics.  I'm excited to get back out there!

The other big adventure recently has been the deconstruction and subsequent reconstruction of our kitchen counters.  It's really been a bit of a fiasco...  7 years ago we had granite counters put in.  A couple years back we noticed a crack on the seam in front of the sink, and last year the left front actually broke.  I contacted Home Depot in February and although they were initially resistant to fixing it (granite has no warranty apparently), I was able to finally get ahold of Teah who has been unbelievably helpful.  They determined that the issue was actually that there were no shims under the left side of my sink, so because it was installed incorrectly they replaced it.  That sounds great, but didn't come without challenges. First, I had to remove our glass tile backsplash and replace the drywall underneath.  Then when they removed the granite we found a cracked board (from not being shimmed) and a bit of water damage where the seam had leaked when the granite broke, so they had to stop and get a carpenter to come out.  This left us without a kitchen for about a week.  Finally they were able to get the granite in, but somehow the plumber didn't get scheduled so we had another couple days without a sink while that was sorted out.  In the end we have new counters, sink, and faucet...so we are finally back up and running.  Once we get the new backsplash up we'll share the final product with you as well.

All that on top of twirling practice damn near daily, crazy amounts of work, and packing for our trip.  Needless to say it's been insane.  I'm hoping this coming week will bring some exciting things and we might even get out for a short camping stay in the very near future.  Of course we are still counting down the days until we leave for our big trip, and that will bring more family time...we can't wait! (By the way, I'm the pretty one on the right and the one on the left is my favorite sister-in-law Penny)

We'll keep you all posted!