Finishing the Basement - Framing

When we bought our house this past February I posted pictures of the house and the basement. Now, we are finally getting around to finishing the basement. Below are a few pictures of the progress.

Here's the wood we hauled in for the framing:



Mike came over to help me put the base plates in. Actually, he can over to teach me how to do it. Here's a shot of me trying out my new mad skills.


After Mike and I got the base plates and top plates put in, Chad & Chase came over to do some framing. It went up quickly, and I can't even begin to thank them for the work they did. It was a huge help.



Here's Izzie. She thinks it's the greatest to have something different to look at in the basement.


And.... Here's the finish framing:





Next is wiring, plumbing and HVAC.

Thanksgiving 2008

For Thanksgiving this year we stayed in Billings and had a nice quiet holiday to ourselves. In the morning we got up and went to some friends' house to have breakfast and hang out. It was a good time. After breakfast all of the girls poured over the black Friday adds in the paper and laid out their game plan for the next morning.

Here's Izzi hanging out making her new favorite face. This is the face she makes when she's happy, sad, whiny, excited and tired. It's her new thing and it's quite cute.


Here's Izzie and mom hanging out in the kitchen making our wonderful Thanksgiving dinner.


Here we are enjoying a fantastic dinner.


Here's the Iz having a great time and enjoying her mashed potatoes.


After dinner we all just took it easy and laid around. Then it was time to get ready for bed. Here's Izzie putting on her pajamas.


After Izzie went to bed, Lynnell and I stayed up and watch a movie together. It was a great day and we've got a lot to be thankful for.

Park'n It Up In November!

The date is November 11th, 2008 and the temperature is somewhere in the mid 70's. Lynnell and Izzie packed us lunches and came to the office to pick me up so that we could go to the park and have a picnic. It was great to be able to get outside and play in the fresh air.

As always, Izzie wanted to swing.



Slides are fun again though which is a good relief to mom and dad.




Izzie has gotten much better at navigating the playground fortresses and I think that makes it a bit more enjoyable for her.



Today we went to the park (Nov 29th) and although it wasn't a nice 74 degrees it was still in the mid 50's which isn't bad for the end of November in Billings, MT.



And of course... we had to swing.



Monday is December 1st, and according to the weather it's supposed to be in the high 50's. Maybe we'll be able to venture to the park one more time this year.