To make a long story short...

July has been a blur- a sparkler spun fast in a circle kind of blur. Intense, but fun. On the 4th we were invited to a cookout (well "out" when the rain eased up) at Tom and Marilyn Bryan's house near Sheep Mountain. It was a very warm day despite the frequent thunder showers, and we had a great time.

Sun-Bonnet Lori

Buddies- Hadley and Lori

Shooting Clay Pigeons: Sam and Ben were great shots- I even shot one down! And I had a good bruise to show for it. :)
Hangin' out with Daddy- she looks forward to this time each day and sometimes asks for "Dada" as we approach five o'clock

Well, we did it- we closed on our house on Friday, July 10th! After a mind numbing session of paper signing, we emerged official (i's dotted and t's crossed) First-Time Homebuyers! God has really blessed us with our little house. We are looking forward to giving it a bit of a makeover- nothing too drastic, but we think it'll spruce up nice. After 2 and 1/2 months of negotiations to close, we've been left with a bit of a time crunch this month. Sam's parents will be coming up for a visit next week (and maybe his brother Peter, too!), which will be a nice break from the hustle of painting, cleaning, and re-finishing the floors. We are hoping to move in this Saturday and get a little settled next week before we head to Oregon on August 2nd, after Sam's job testing for the Laramie Fire Department. God has provided us with amazing friends here in Laramie. They, too have put in long hours helping tackle the paint and give our ol' wood floors a face lift- thanks guys!

Ben displaying his expert edging technique

Wiesje and Andi's bit o' wall-flare

Lori has been great this week- exploring her new "crib"...

...and making time for a bit of mischief! No, really I found her like this and took a picture instead of stopping her- I guess it's all right to waste a few wipes if it's for the sake of a good photo! :)

Packing, packing, packing... Lori's helping me label the boxes (I decided to swap the Sharpie for a washable Crayon)

This evening, while I made dinner, she opened up the cupboard, emptied the container of hand-mixer attachments and proceeded to place them base first (the way they were in the other container) in the 2-cup liquid measuring cup that was on the same shelf. She got all but one in there (there's quite a few) then dumped them out, pretended to mix with the beater one, then started to put them in again! It's so fun to see the things she's learning!

Haha- okay, so you're wondering, "Is that a heart-shaped jet tub accented by gold fixtures and black reflective walls?". Why, yes it is. It just so happens to belong to a dear neighbor and co-worker of Sam's, and it's aparently quite the honor to get a picture in said tub.