After Photos - Duck house

 Yes, that is a John Deere tractor parked in the kitchen.

 Front of the house.  Lots of landscaping left to do for sure.

We have had a great Fathers Day weekend.  Bill was feeling energetic this weekend so I put him to work!  He is taking steroids for his poison ivy, which may be where the energy is coming from?  Ha!!  We ran errands, cleaned, moved furniture, grilled and played a lot.  I think that the majority of the poison ivy is gone from the front yard now.  Both my boys wore long sleeved shirts/pants/gloves while working today.

We will post more photos at a later date.  Lot's of items still in boxes, but we are getting there.  Jackson has told Bill several times "Happy Fathers Day Daddy", and even made up a song and and dance for him.  Happy Fathers Day Bill!  Love you and we are very lucky to have you!

Happy Fathers Day Grandpa Tony and Papa!!

"During Photos" - Duck Stadium Rehab

What, you didn't think I wouldn't slip one in of this gorgeous child...did you?  This is my annual Mothers Day heart shaped pancake! 

Widened entries, all new paint, fixtures, flooring, cabinets and counter tops.  New garage door, painted existing shutters/door.  Lots and lots of changes!!  Completions photos coming soon.

Before photos of new home

Here are some "before" photos of the home we purchased.  It looks a lot different now.  We will post after photos to show the transformation at a later date.

Just to update everyone on the other stuff going on...Jackson started summer school.  Last year we did 1 class subject per week.  This year we decided to do 1 class subject per month.  It seems a bit more consistent overall.  This month the subject is "music", which he is enjoying a lot.  They make some pretty cool instruments, and he comes home with paint head to toe every day.  The teacher really lets him get into his art!  Of course, my lady killer still has the same girlfriend, Natalie.  They are stuck together at the hip.  She wasn't in music originally, but they moved her in to be with Jackson.

Speaking of head to toe - Bill has poison ivy all over.  Poor guy is pretty allergic.  Oh, and it is pretty nasty looking.  I could go into detail, but will spare you.

We have trained our 2 older cats to use a "cat door", and they officially go potty in the garage litter box.  This is pleasing to me, I didn't think our orange cat would ever 'get it'.  He is fairly plump in the middle, so I am also glad he can fit through the door.  No more litter box in the house!  Woohoo!

We have plans to go to the Curran beach trip next month.  Jack is pumped that we will have his birthday party while there.  He wants a "Thomas" cake, so hopefully we can get one ordered.  I can't believe our baby will be 4.  Whatever you do, don't call him a baby...you will get "me not a baby mamma".

We still plan on beginning fostering in a few months.  Due to the move, we wanted to make sure the home study was only done one time.  We are looking forward to opening our home to another child (or two).  I will leave you with a conversation we had yesterday:

Jackson - "Mommy, me need a sister"
Me - "You do?"
Jackson - "Probably Natalie, my girlfriend".
Me - "Probably not Natalie".
Jackson - "Oh, okay".

We have moved!

I can't believe it has been over a month since we checked in last.  It has been a very busy time for the Curran clan.  We closed on our new home and have moved.  Everyone is adjusting well overall.  The new house is still a wreck and we have boxes everywhere.

Soon we will post some photos of the new house.  We are all super excited and doing well.  More to follow, but leaving you with a picture of the boys inside the POD when moving. 

Duck house moving along

The cabinets went in today, electrical is being done tomorrow, countertops & final plumbing next week.  The wall was blown out and arched last week, porch replaced, A/C replaced (refurbished unit), plaster repair, deck and fence repair, kitchen bulk heads removed and garage door replacement done last week. Still to come?  Flooring and final painting. Some exterior paint, home inspection...and...closing?  Maybe this one will actually close?!!!!
This weekend, Jackson is looking foward to packing boxes & buying major appliances.  I met a lady that sells scratch and dent to Builders and she has some packages put together for us to look at tomorrow.  Hopefully she has something we like, and we will move forward with the purchase.  If there is something we really like, but needs a replacement part (like a refridgerator door), we can get that ordered if it is the most cost effective approach.

New cabinets

  Old cabinets

Jackson is also looking forward to the POD that will be delivered to our house on the 18th.  I really think that we should continue to take this slow and steady to ease the transition.  He loves the excitement for sure!

We are ratified!

Well, we ratified a contract a few days ago for a "fixer upper" house.  We are all excited, but given the fact that we have been looking for a house for 1 1/2 yrs it doesn't seem real yet.  It seems we are always getting outbid, the house is sinking into the ground (literally), or all of plumbing and electrical has to be re-done!  Honestly, the cost of housing near the beach is pretty expensive so a fixer upper in a decent neighborhood is about all we can afford.  This particular house was a foreclcosure, and we are working with a contractor to get the interior fixed up.  He is doing the major items, we are doing the minor items.  The exterior will be fixed up after we move in (none of it is an emergency).

In true Curran style (well, I blame it on all of us, but its really just me), we tend to get too busy at one time.  Just seems everything gets busy at once!  We are having a POD container delivered in a couple of weeks, and plan to have most items packed and loaded by the 25th of this month.  I have surgery the 25th and will not be able to lift for several days...so really its a necessity.  Hopefully the container idea works out.  We close on Tuesday the 29th,  and hope to move that weekend!!  What makes all of this hectic, is I am supposed to be out of town for a big chunk of this time!  Ahhhhh, hectic!  Did I mention a probable torn ACL and an appointment with and Orthapedic Surgeon the Tuesday?  Anyway...we are both concerned about how this will affect Jackson.  He tends to have behavioral issues when I travel.  Couple this with the fact that his entire life will be turned upside down....it worries us.  We are talking about it a LOT, and driving by the house on occassion as well.  We think he will dig the big container in the driveway, and it will help him to see our 'stuff' is going into this container, allow him to be a big part of it and it will all go to the new house.  We packed our 1st box as a family last night, which he enjoyed (even though he kept wanting to get in it and hide or drive it like a car). 
Right now, Jackson is reading "A Mother For Choco".  It's a book about a little bird named Choco that is looking for a Mommy that looks just like him.  At the end, he ends up with a bear for a Mommy that also has a pig, aligator and a hippo for children. Jackson said he wanted to take Choco with us to the new house, which is fine with me :)

Speechless Sunday!