Paint Job

For those of you who've never seen our house or simply didn't notice the paint, this post is not very exciting. For the rest of you, doesn't our house look great?

The transition from the house to the garage was one of the worst parts.

Here is the bay window on the east side of the house. After our neighbor cut down the tree in the front, you could really see how bad the house looked.

The east side of the garage with some of the new siding Mike put up in June.

The upper west side of the house needed a lot of scraping.

Here you see the rest of the new siding behind the tree.

The upper back side. I feel sorry for the guys who climbed up there in the heat to paint. Don't worry, the double doors are going to be replaced.

The east side from the back of the house.

The house looks great and it only took 4 days for the three college kids to paint it. Sorry there are no pictures of the kids in this post.

July Catch-Up

Today is our 8th anniversary. I'm celebrating at home while Mike is in Kansas. As part of the festivities, I thought I'd post some pictures from the past month.
After the 4th, Grandma Jan sent home all the fixin' for s'mores. So we tried roasting on the stove (don't try it, they don't taste nearly as good) and enjoyed the messy treat.


Here Becca is wearing my shirt from 1980-something.

When Grandma was down here a couple of weeks ago, she let the kids do her hair.

George took a ride on his favorite horse, Dad.

George can't have all the fun so Becca and Pat decided to join in.

My Hatton men.

Becca tried on my glasses from middle school the other day. She looks like Sally Jessy Raphael.

I recently let George try a folk and he doing pretty well. Please note it's in his LEFT hand. His lefty mother is very proud.


Please keep some friends in your prayers, the Godlewski and Jenkins families. Both are fighting cancer, the first breast and the second possible leukemia (2nd grader). I can't begin to imagine what these families are dealing with right now and thank God for our health with every breath.

Bon Voyage Hannah!

Last weekend the kids and I ventured west to see my folks. We also wanted to see Hannah once more before she moves to Australia next week.

So cute!

Take care Hannah and I can't wait to come and see you...someday.

George made use of the large yard and cruised. George liked scaring Grandma on the stairs too.

Pat running.

George really wanted to play with the dogs and Belle felt the same. He settled for waving at them.

Big grin from Miss Becca.

Patrick shows off the hole in his teeth.

The boys enjoying a moment on the couch at Grandma & pa's.

Grandma brought up the Lincoln Logs and George appreciated it.

Thanks Grandma and Pa for let us come visit on short notice and thanks to Hannah for finding an afternoon to spend with us.

Mike's Triathlon

This morning we headed over to Bloomington IL to watch Mike finish his triathlon. But we had to wait a little while to see him come by and Pat was thrilled!

Becca too!

And don't forget George.

Jan took some shots of random bikers or runners.

Here comes Dad! He even waved!

He even smiled as he rode by.

We waited a few more minutes so we could see him run.


Here comes Dad again!

Again, he looks too happy to be working hard.

We then moved down the road to watch him finish. Turns out we weren't at the finish (I wondered why there wasn't a big sign!) but we cheered all the runners on.

Here he comes around the bend.



We gave him the energy to make his final kick!

He finished the whole race in 2hrs 2 min 21.9sec, placing 7th in his age group. The breakdown is
swim: 11:58.9 (2:12/100yd)
T1: 2:10.9
Bike: 1:17:11.2 (19.3MPH)
T2: 1:07.4
Run: 29:53.5 (9.38/mile)

We are so proud of Mike and amazed at his dedication. Thanks to all of you for your support and Jan for making the trip down. We love you Mike!

Independence Day Weekend

We went up to Wisconsin to celebrate our nation's independence with the whole Hatton clan, minus two. Mike decided it was time to conquer the waves.

The whole family came down to see off our gallant knight.

Here he goes...but will he be tilting at windmills or in shining armor?

This is a nice sun set on the waters of Lake Camelot.

Patrick and Becca joined Debbie and myself, along with Captain Bruce. Don't they look good?



After a few attempts, Mike armor shined brightly in the sun.



Patrick and Becca gave Mike the thumbs up after his successful run at skiing.

The triumphant hero.

And the crowd went wild!

Stella wanted to get away from the puppies and kids.

Here's Gwennie running around.

Becca did a couple of laps around the fire pit.

Then the rest of us joined her while the fire got going. It was too late for the kids to roast marshmallows by the time the fire was ready.


George made sure the kayak was in good shape.


Mike and George hanging out in the back.

Becca taking a break from the water.

Patrick enjoying the sand.

Grandma watched from the grass...

The kids playing on the beach.



We hope you all enjoyed your Independence Day celebrations.

A million thanks the Grandma and Grandpa Hatton for once again hosting almost 20 people and three dogs. We had a great time with everyone and hope to see you all again soon.