The Finishing of the Garage!

We have finally finished the garage and the gravel driveway back to it! It is just in time and we absolutely love it! The inside is spectacular, but do to hidden Christmas presents we could not post that picture at this time! But it has a massive amount of shelving and tons of space! Todd also put a garage opener in our house so although it's a detached garage we can still open the door from in our house. An especially nice perk after having gone a few days without one!

While Todd had a bobcat he went ahead and fixed up the backyard a little to. He put gravel behind the garage and made up some berms in case we decide to finish the backyard this spring! Really for just dirt the place looks great!

We especially love the garage door wrapping. Although it was an accident on how it turned out, we think it really make things look cute!

I also have to apologize for not posting more on every one's site lately. Things have been pretty crazy getting everything ready for Christmas in Twin and work is really starting to get busy! Savannah is doing great and really growing quite a bit every day! It seems as though she is sleeping less to as I feel her pretty consistently!

Thanksgiving at The Carter's



This year was Thanksgiving with the Carter's, and it is tradition that we put up my parents lights sometime that weekend! This year was no exception except that this time Todd's thinking cap was on and they used the truck instead of ladders! And instead of having to go up and down the ladders the truck just moved! When I saw this I couldn't help but laugh out loud and the wives of the genius husbands all went outside to laugh and clap at our creative men! (Driving the truck is my dad, because he is too old to be so high nowadays! And in the back is Adam, JoAnn's husband, and Todd!)

Family Photo With a Pregnant Belly!



Does it get any better? For Thanksgiving this year we updated our family photo. We have now officially taken a family photo with each girl in our family taking a turn at being pregnant. Meaning the first year it was Jana, then it was JoAnn, then Amy and finally now me! Everyone has gotten the experience of going through it so it's completely fair! It's just perfect, let me tell you. So I thought I would post it, even though a lot of you might not know very many people in the picture at least it gives you an update of how absolutely large I am getting. I am officially in my 7th month of pregnancy and feel surprisingly great! I feel so lucky.

As you can tell the girls in our family are largely outweighed by the boys! So Savannah is a desperately needed addition!

So for those of you who are wondering I will go from Left to Right Top to Bottom:

Sharyl (mom), Jana (Jason's wife) holding daughter Ashley, JoAnn holding son David, Amy, Me

Garth (dad) holding Jason's son Colton and Tracker, Jason holding his son Justin, Adam (JoAnn's husband), John (Amy's husband) holding Tyler, Todd

Shaun (Jason's son), Nicholas (JoAnn's son), Jacob (JoAnn's son), Wesley (JoAnn's son), Carter (Amy's son), and Kate (Amy's daughter)

I Got Tagged by Multiple People.

Everyone knows the rules, if not read our previous post. (This is Todd.)

1. A fact about me that most people probably don't know is that I am a horsepower nut. I am not your average, "Hey man, fast cars are fun" kind-of-guy. I am a "Fast cars are necessary for sustained life" kind-of-guy. And the only thing about vehicles I really care about is whats under the hood. I would prefer to ride around in an ugly piece of crap 1000 horsepower Dodge diesel truck, than in a new viper, corvette, Ferrari, ect. any day.

2. I am truly satisfied with my current life situation, as I hope that everyone reading this is also. I love bein me! I mean dude I am like 6' 9" and a gold medalist in arm wrestling. Really an amazing physical specimen. I love my toys, and they are to most powerful toys made, in their respective categories. Of course I am constantly wanting to make every one of them much more powerful, please refer to # 1.

3. I love to work with my hands. I really enjoy fixing and creating things. As most of you know I have been building a garage at my house lately. It has been very fun. It is very rewarding to stand back and look at what I have made.

4. Food-Love it
I really enjoy food, and I am actually quite the baker. I am partial to breads, mostly sweet breads, muffins, waffles and such. I cook breakfast every morning as I wake up absolutely starving! It is usually quite big. I eat a lot. I grew up with the most awesome breakfasts that I now refuse to settle for cold cereal!

5. I am avid waterskier. I love to get out on the lake. It's only November and I can hardly wait for next ski season. I am fairly good at slaloming, wake boarding, knee boarding and driving Lil Miss! I am hoping to get an air chair and a better wake board in the near future!

6. I have yet to list a habit which, if you refer to the rules, is part of this whole spiel. So a habit I have that drives Jenny crazy is making noises with my mouth when explaining things. This is especially true when I am explaining how I am going to put something together and then how it is going to work. It is often a click with my tongue or make another noise very similiar to that. i.e. "See it will fit in like this (click) and then work every time I do such and such (other noise)."

Being Tagged

The rules of the game should be posted at the beginning of the post. Each player lists 6 facts/habits about themselves. At the end of the post, the player then tags 6 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know that they have been tagged and asking them to read your blog.

1. I hate being pregnant and what it has done to my belly! Now... I know that Savannah will probably be worth it and all, but I still hold my stance that if Todd could take a turn I would totally let him!

2. I balance my checkbook daily. Everyday I go online to my bank's site and look at what has come through, etc. I know exactly how much money should be left in the account every month and track every expenditure. I talk with Todd about every expense that comes through each month including the utilities! We discuss beforehand each and every purchase both of us are thinking about making. And it makes me so happy! We have never fought about money, not a single aspect of it.

3. I often speed! I even got a ticket the other day, but I'm not upset. Todd and I decided that getting a ticket every once and awhile is just part of the price of driving for us, just like changing our oil. I rarely get caught so when I do I feel like I'm probably due and I gladly pay the fine! Todd got a $500 speeding ticket once on his bullet bike, but I wasn't upset. It could have just as easily been me! On the bright side of things it has also never effected our insurance premiums.

4. I am an avid Turkey hunter. For the past 17 years I have hunted 3-5 states with my dad. I've been successful a lot and unsuccessful a lot, but wouldn't trade a single day of any of it. I've taken Todd a few times and he hates every second of it. He hates getting up early, he hates hiking around in the woods, he hates sitting still, and he hates not seeing anything! When he goes he now chooses to sleep in in the morning and make breakfast in the trailer with my mom!

5. Todd and I never feel like going out to fast food at the same place, ever. Sometimes we can't agree and so we comprise and then we're both just plain sad! Sometimes we go to different places and get it to go and then eat together. He always feels like a burger and/or Denny's and I never feel like a burger or Denny's!

6. During the winter I try my hardest to fill up my gas tank when Todd is in the car. I don't even tell him that's why, I just make it look like I really need some and this is the best time to get some. If he is with me he'll get out and pump my gas for me! I hate pumping my gas in the winter when it's cold outside!

I tagged Cherstie, Cherise, Carrie and Josh, John, and Wendy but am anxiously awaiting Halee and Whitney's posts. Can't wait guys!

More Info On...The Garage

Since the new garage is the most interesting part of our life right now, I will continue on with yet another post concerning the progress of it!

While Todd's dad was down here visiting and helping he gave Todd his 2 cents worth. He said "Light It Up!" and being the obedient son that Todd is, he did! There is like 128' of floresent lighting going through the place!

We also recently got the rest of our cement poured. A 25' driveway to park cars on, play b-ball, wash vehicles, and enough room for our kitty to roll around on!

Todd is also done roofing. Which is very exciting. Due to it not snowing yet and all. He is currently working on installing the garage doors and one last window, which should be done by Tuesday, and then we will start moving everything over from our storage shed! He will still have to finish the siding, but getting moved in will be so exciting! Then after siding he'll build shelves inside for all our stuff! Man we are loving this whole idea!

Oh just in case any of you have forgotten how much room our kitty needs to roll around we thought we would post a picture of how absolutely large she has gotten in her old age!

The Last Trip of the Year



We went waterskiing the other day for the last trip of the year. Todd wanted to put fuel treatment in the gas and get it ran through the carborators and of course if you are going to the lake you might as well make a trip out of it! Luckily we had a warm spell where Sand Hollow was looking like it would hit 85 degrees so we grabbed a kid who we had been wanting to take all summer and ran down there for the day. It was probaly the best day of waterskiing Todd has had for a long time! There was absolutely no one else there (surprise, surprise the last week in October!) and so the water was glass!





Although the air temperature was in the 80s the water felt more like ice cubes on your toes! So pretty much he got in all the sking he wanted plus some! He got to slalom until he was worn out, wakeboard, kneeboard and drive the boat until he was pooped! It was a good trip for that. We always love to go to the lake but sometimes it's nice when Todd gets to do a little of everything! Include getting in his fair share of crashing!


The kid we took, Chris, got up on a kneeboard for the first time and the slalom ski. It was pretty fun as he was certain he wasn't going to get it and he ended up getting it pretty fast!



I also decided to get in a few runs for the last trip. I kneeboarded with the girl Chris brought and wakeboarded just a little bit. Jumping the wake on a kneeboard puts a little bit more pressure than you realize when you're not pregnant and after a few times of doing it I just decided to play it safe! It was so fun and now the boat is all winterized and ready for the cold. I explained to Todd that last year was a learning experience and this year I would not react the same way to a cracked engine! He understood and agreed and we are hoping next year we get in a full year of trips to the lake with a brand new member of the family!

Another Big Hole!

In our marriage I have known Todd to dig a lot of holes and really big holes at that! I have seen him dig holes much taller than himself and holes big enough for 2-3 people to hang out in! But this hole - this was the mother of holes! Lucky for Todd he rented a mini-excavator to dig this 4' deep 50' long hole! He was burying electical wire that he ran out to our new garage. The book he has says it only needed to be 18" deep, but Todd decided 4' was better!

Here is an update on what the garage looks like. It was nighttime when I took the picture so it isn't perfect, but there will be more to come!

Our Garden

We have been harvesting our garden over the past couple of weeks and have had some interesting finds! Our favorite was this ironic twist with a huge red potato and a little cute butternut squash! We had a great year with our garden this go around and it produced like crazy. We made plenty of fresh salsa, 3-4 batches of jalapeno jelly, 3 batches of relish (which the cucumbers that got lost could have easily been, and often were, mistaken for squash), had excellent fresh corn, and the kids picked all the peas they could find! Although all of this was excellent nothing really compared to the 30+ quarts of grape juice we were able to steam. Homemade grape juice like the stuff we have tastes better than liquid candy. We got both concord and white grape juice and have been spoiled rotten with it. So it has been quite fun as we have definitely had our years of scarcity!

Our New Garage!




We decided that because of the slow market here we are probably going to be in this house through the winter and so we then decided we wanted a garage! So Todd is putting one in! It's pretty big, like 1150 sq ft. Dimensions are 32x36. It is going to be pretty sweet. I am getting so excited! We currently have a storage shed we rent for all of Todd's tools and bikes, etc. So having them close to home will be nice. Plus we didn't want to stack up our house full of our stuff(for showing potential buyers) so there is a lot of stuff I have been missing too! So that will be nice. We are also getting our food storage in order and having it all on shelves easy to count, organize, etc will also be so helpful!




Todd's dad came down this week and helped too. They put trusses on and sheeted the roof. Todd said it was so nice to have someone to help with that part and having Randy visit was a treat too! They got so much done and had a good time doing it too!





We also had a carport put in for our boat. We hate having a few feet of snow stack up over the winter and stretch out the boatcover. So we decided to just get a carport for it. We are really glad about it as now we don't have to worry about it weathering so much.



We also put in a front yard (well Todd did!). It really makes the place look cute. Surprisingly so we both decided. It's just a little grass and a little sprinkling system, but spruced the place right up! So yes we (Todd) has been keeping himself plenty busy trying to get it all done before winter. And fixing it up nice like this has made us second guess moving! Of course we wouldn't move until it sells, but who knows, we might decide to stay a while!

Think Pink!

Well for all of you who have been thinking Pink, it worked! We are having a Savannah! It actually took a second to sink in as we were pretty certain it would be a Nater! Everyone in both our families has had a boy first and the girls are definetly out numbered, so guess it's a good thing!

I have some pretty obvious pictures that I won't show on this Family Friendly site, but it's pretty certain! This profile picture we thought was pretty sweet and we are now getting pretty excited to meet her!

The bubble above her nose on this picture is the cord.


She waved to us quite a few times and was also trying to hit with her fist. Guess that's something we'll have to work on when she gets here!

She has been extremely good at kicking lately and it was just perfect that during the ultrasound she decided to let everyone see. I am actually pretty surprised at how much she is moving. Right now it is more just a little bubbly feeling in my belly, but I am certain it will become more and more painful! In this you can see her heart, which they verified has 4 chambers! You can also see her stomach which is the black circle, and her spine! Pretty perfect if you ask us!

September Already? And It's Almost Over!

Well this September has been fairly chaotic and therefore seems as though it has flown by! It all started on Labor Day Weekend when we went to Todd's sister, Candace's house for her son, Logan's baptism. We hadn't seen them in awhile and her husband, Mark was trying to finish up his shed. So we decided to stay the whole weekend with Jenny visiting with Candace and Todd helping Mark finish up their shed. It was a nice visit and nice to be back in Cache Valley during one of its most beautiful months! We also were able to visit our friends, Josh and Carrie, while we were up there. It was so nice to see them and catch up, as we used to see them a few times each weekend!! But no pics!


Following Labor Day Weekend we flew to Washington for Jenny's Grandmother's funeral. It was a nice visit and we couldn't have asked for nicer weather. The men from our family looked so good in their suits as pallbearers we decided we could probably hire them out! Todd definitely looked studly! This picture is of Jenny's entire adult family (with 2 nursing children that couldn't be left at home yet) and her mother's aunt and uncle.

We also went and saw Jenny's father's mother, Barbara in Seattle. It was Todd's first time meeting her and it was a nice visit. Her art gallery is about a block from the Public Market and in the heart of downtown Seattle.

Flying in from Washington and driving back from SLC after we arrived put us home at about midnight. Only for Jenny to get up and leave for Montana at 4 AM the next morning for a week. It was pretty tiring but a fun trip nonetheless. In Montana Jenny had tags for deer, elk, and antelope but was hunting all of them with her bow. Which in turn was an unsuccessful trip. She went with her brother, Jason, her brother-in-law, John, and a co-worker, Adam. They all had a pretty good time, but getting within bow range was pretty tricky and with 10 tags only turned up 2 animals! The country was breathtaking and Montana is definitely a place all its own! There was a few shots at a few animals like this antelope, but they were holding out for a little bigger!

Just a view from a lookout point they spotted an elk from one evening.

There is a deer in this picture feeding in this creek bed if you can find it!

While Jenny went to Montana Todd went up to Twin to visit the folks. He got to work hard and get a little spoiled as an only child! He helped his dad fix some sprinklers (which he is really good at!) and hang out with his parents. He always loves his mom's cooking and visiting with his dad, lucky for Jenny he doesn't mind coming back home!

After Montana Jenny begged Todd not to do anything the next weekend. But when Jenny's sister, Amy's family could go watersking we just couldn't say no! So on Wednesday we went to Sand Hollow with the Petersen's for some excellent water activities!

The kids loved the sand. Which is most excellent at Sand Hollow!





And begged to go again and again on the tube!

We really lucked out on this trip. The wind was bad enough that EVERYONE had gone home by the time we got there, but since all we really wanted to do was tube it was perfect.

The boat ride after the sun went down was a little more chilly, but didn't put a damper on how much fun everyone had!


We stayed until the sun went down and we couldn't have asked for a nicer trip to the lake. (Well unless your Todd, who really would have liked to get in a good slalom run!)

This is Amy's youngest, Tyler, who often gets Jenny and his mother, Amy, confused! But we took advantage of it and he smiled big for the camera! And for those of you dying to see Jenny's 17 week belly - there it is. Being a very prodominant part of Jenny's life! The next time you see her you won't be able to miss it!! Both Todd and Jenny are at record weights - very exciting!


Oh and PS our duplex did Sell and Todd is currently putting in a front lawn for us. This is kind of how he feels about it!!

For now we are recuperating and trying to catch up. Jenny is getting a cold (which is common with a month like this!) and Todd is taking care of her like usual! The last weekend in September we will go up to SLC for Jenny's sister, JoAnn's baby blessing and then October will be here! Ultrasound scheduled for Oct 10th! We'll let you know!

Done With the Duplex

The duplex we bought in March in finally finished and under contract. It looks like it should close on Monday or Tuesday (10th or 11th). This is really good and we feel really blessed! The market here has been pretty slow, but we priced it low to move it fast. Here are a few pics of the finished product. The pics above are all of the upstairs apartment. We posted what it looked like a little after Todd got started. You can view those by clicking on this link http://toddandjennylei.blogspot.com/2007_04_01_archive.html. Make sure you scroll all the way down there are more pics of the roof and stuff. We are still trying to decide what to do over the next few months. Todd is doing a few projects around our current house like a front yard and stuff. It should be interesting! We are thinking about getting something to fix and rent, since the market isn't really conducive to flipping right now! We'll keep you posted.

This is the bsmt kitchen. It really turned out cute. It is already rented and it was surprisingly easy. The buyers did all the work to get it rented and everything. It was pretty nice.

This is the bsmt bathroom. It is pretty stinking cute compared to when we bought it! Totally usable and not so nasty with the beadboard and everything! You have to walk through the shower to get to the toilet, but nothing cheap rent can't fix!

This was by far the most interesting part of the house. An old coal furnace that everything is still ran through! It just don't see these everyday! The duplex has gas and is getting central air, but they just still use the old ducts, etc.

Waterskiing with our Mechanic




This is our diesel mechanic and well yes, Todd has become quite good friends with him. So much so that we have gone waterskiing with them twice. Turns out he has waterskied a time or two and was pretty fun to watch on the wakeboard. He did a switch-a-roo and it was pretty cool!

The fun part about this is that his wife, Jackie, and I get along well too and she has the exact same due date as me! It has made for some pretty fun conversations! The water was pretty rough but luckily her and I got some of the best of the day! We kneeboarded together since I convinced her that the doctor would approve!

Unfortunately the water was so bad for most all of the day that we ended up floating around a lagoon/cove thing that we found. It was pretty fun though and it turned out one of the places was just a mudbog! It was a little startling, sinking down to your thighs in mud! Of course the guys were pretty macho about it and it was hilarious!

We also paddled around on the kneeboards and their daughter, Sydney, thought that was pretty fun!

When we finally decided to try some waterskiing again the water was much, much too choppy so we got out the tube and Ryan and Jackie rode around for awhile.

Unfortunately they got thrown off!

Sydney also got to ride but I never was sure whether or not she was happy about that!

Since Ryan had grown up around boats we let him drive for awhile and Todd and I tubed. It was pretty stinking fun, I was pretty certain I was going to get thrown any second! Thanks Ryan.

Signing off!