Growing up

 Hard to believe this little guy is four months already! Bennett is precious, and I've been loving this stage.  He coos and smiles so much, and often seems happy just watching his big brothers and sister. He gets so many hugs and slobbery kisses each day, but doesn't seem to mind all the people in his space. Here he is with his "oatmeal" colored afghan from Great Gram.

The Kitchen

 This was the kitchen when we bought the house.  It had very little counter space and a little half bath that took up the corner space.  We kept the windows, but got new cabinets (Thank you, Mark Jones of Modern Kitchens!), Jeff installed hardwoods and a natural stone backsplash, lights came from Home Depot, granite from Olympia Stone.  The wall between the kitchen and dining room was removed, which allows for easy traffic flow and lots of space for entertaining.

 Below is the dining room before.  The green carpet had to go...

 Here's the dining room after.  I'm inspired by Restoration Hardware.  Grays, creams, khaki.  These are peaceful colors that serve as a backdrop for the real "color" of our family-5 children!

 Here is the island-an original cabinet we salvaged from the kitchen.  We had it spruced up a little by a carpenter, and then I painted it.  Jeff added a butcher block top from Ikea, which he first stained dark and then polyurathaned. Bar stools came from Overstock.com.  This island is where our kids eat breakfast, work on homework, and on and on.  It's the meeting place of our home.

Winter

We got some snow recently, so these boys wanted to go out to play!  Chapman just turned 2, and it was his first chance to sled, so he and Hudson went down the hill in our backyard. They immediately wiped out and I was sure I'd hear crying, but instead lots of laughter and immediately walking back up the hill to do it again.

 Bennett is now two months old.  He's starting to coo and smile more. The other day when he was doing that and wobbling his head around, Hudson remarked matter-of-factly, 

"He sounds like Chap and his head is like a wrecking ball.  I think he likes us."

And we like him too.