New Roof

Our  roof has struggled for many years...and by that I mean it has leaked, we have patched, shingles have blown off, we have patched, more leaking, more patching and so on...ends up we had "Bad Shingles" installed.  They were later recalled but our builder didn't notify us of that and by the time we figured out our roof wasn't functioning "normally" we had missed the window and the Shelter Clad shingle people were out of business.  And so....

the long awaited new roof was installed this past week.  I haven't taken any great pictures of it..but I have these off of my phone I was sending to Scott while he was out of town.  He missed the 2 days of hammering.   But WOW am I grateful...no more leaks!  The drywall has been repaired inside as well...so the leak in our master bath, the laundry room and the laundry room closet should officially be over. 

It has been raining a LOT since they finished and I don't think I have ever been more grateful to not have to think about leaking.  I realize that there are people that don't have roofs...and I just cannot imagine.  

Thankful today...

Drew's Prom

 Drew was elected to be the Sophomore Prom rep at school...basically this means he will head up the Prom planning his Junior year as the juniors plan prom for the seniors.  It was a fun opportunity for him and the same one Tommy had as a sophomore.  He chose to ask his good friend Morgan Durick to be his date to the dance.  (Coincidentally Morgan was the girl that was elected as the Soph Prom rep too)  So it was a great opportunity for them to go to the dance with a friend, and take notes on what they want to do for Prom next year.   They also were busy decorating and helping with everything for this year's prom.

The Duricks have been dear friends of ours for a very long time...we have loved sharing life with them.  Jen and I text often within a small group of Moms. When you are a Mom somedays the little stuff IS the big stuff.   Steve, Morgan and Emma were with us on our mission trip to Costa Rica.  Jen has brought us countless meals when we have needed help, she has brought sick kids home for me and we have prayed often for each other and our kiddos.  So this evening was a blessing and fun for us all.

Drew headed to get Morgan and we followed a little bit later for some pictures at her house.  Then Scott headed to take pics of their group and Max and I headed downtown for pictures with Tommy and his group.  Jen sent me these pics from when Drew got to their house.

Grandma Durick was the one who mastered the pinning of the bout.

This is the part of being a boymom that I ALWAYS miss, so I was thrilled to get these photos.  I always wish I could be there the moment they see their dates...

Morgan had a beautiful bouquet of fresh flowers for ME in a Mason Jar with my name on it as a thank you for all of my work getting Prom stuff ready...seriously...how sweet was that?  Yep I cried. 

We then proceeded to snap a bunch of pictures at Morgan's house before they headed off to their group photos...

Wiping off the kiss of my boy and his very first prom.  

The entire Durick family before they headed out for the evening...even Hank.

Max and Drew before his big bro headed out...

Yep, I take pictures of everything and I love these of Drew helping Morgan into the car.  And Max watching the entire time...and Morgan smiling at Max...and Drew staring at me thinking "she seriously takes pictures of EVERYTHING"....

 

I sent my "B" team photographer with them for their group pics so I could go and take group pics of Tommy and his friends.   That is what Scott has named himself.."B Team" for Twig & Daisy Photography.  He did a terrific job with our back up camera!  He knows me well. 

Then we met back up at the Grand March and I captured this sweet one of Morgan and Drew.

They had a great night.  The Prom was fun, they took a lot of mental notes for next year's planning.  It isn't as easy as it looks to be the Sophomore Prom Reps, be the young ones at the Prom, find a welcoming group to go with, share in the committees and help whenever you can but both of them did a great job and God blessed them at every corner. 

The Arm

Well...here are some more pictures of the saga of Drew's broken elbow.

These were taken right when he got home...we texted them to Scott's friend who is an orthopedic surgeon...he asked Drew to point to where it hurt.  Yep that is when the Dr said...you had better head into the ER for X-rays.

 ER fun with Mom

 Casting on Monday, luckily they offered Buckeye red as an option

Drew has started letting people sign his cast, so Max was all over that yesterday morning before school.  

Drew is doing a little bit better each day.  The reality of losing your dominant arm has been HARD, I won't lie about that.  There have been moments of tears and frustration, by both of us...but we are learning the new normal.  He is allowing us to help him with some things, and if you know Drew you know he is NOT a fan of ever "needing" help.  This morning I came downstairs and he was unloading the dishwasher on his own, so I think we have made improvements over the week on what he can and what he cannot do.  

Boys' Bath

It always feels weird to call Tommy and Drew's shared bathroom our "Jack and Jill" bath since we have no girls...and we have a Jack..but we don't have a Jill.  Sorry...I digress.  Since we needed to redo our master bath due to a continuing stubborn leak and poor construction we decided to bite the bullet and do Tommy and Drew's at the same time.  Another big reason we did their was because my sweet friend Linda, the one who once worked for the TV DIY network show "Bath Crashers" had 2 awesome vanities and sinks that we could have for FREE!

I looked high and low to find the best tile to hide urine, I am not joking.  This was my goal.  Matching the bath was a bonus, but the priority was boys who don't aim well and hit the floors and grout...needed to have a tile that would hide ALL.  I was, and still am on the main level, tired of filthy, stained, grout that you can do NOTHING about.  Granted grout has improved vastly in 17 years since we built our home.  It is now odor resistant, stain resistant, doesn't need to be sealed etc and so on.

We stuck with the same exact paint color on the wall, John Townsley Gray we call it.  Because it is the same color as John Townsley's bed and bath in Ohio.  (John was our ring bearer and the son of Scott's best friend from Ohio State...Mike)

Drew is not a BIG fan of change, so he was not terribly excited about this but Tommy was....it is hard to tell in the pics but their vanity was about to their mid thighs...low low low.  It was designed with a child in mind, not a 6'5 and 6 teenage boy.

Here are some before and afters...it was finished yesterday!

Our Master bath is SO close to being done.   We are waiting on a mirror, some floor vents and a toilet paper holder to be hung.  I promise to post another blog with before and after pics when it is done.  It looks like a different bathroom, well, it almost IS a different bathroom.