A Day with Daddy

My mom was unavailable to babysit today so Jo got to spend the whole day with Pepper. He had such a great time and even took pictures! These are a couple of my favorites. 

All Pepper needs is a mirror to keep her entertained. All we need is a Pepper to keep us entertained.

Tongue Twister

Once again we have discovered a new Pepper talent, tongue twisting. It is like rolling the tongue but you only lift half of it. It is impossible to do unless you are genetically "gifted" with this skill. We just figured out that Jo is the one that passed this little trick on to her. The things that you learn about each other once you have a child...

The Taste Tester

Between the two of us, Jo takes the prize for baking skills. He often bakes tasty treats for us in the winter so that we can pack on a layer to keep us warm. Today he baked banana bread. Pepper had to taste the bananas first, to make sure they were safe. From the look on her face, they were NOT safe. Evidently she still does not like bananas. Auntie Joy would approve.

Lazy Sundays

Waking Daddy up is not easy to do

"Dancing" to Christmas music

Who doesn't love staying in their jammies all day? With the hectic nature of building a house and working full time, it is so nice when we get a day to chill out a bit. Pepper enjoys time with her crazy parents even if daddy is not a morning person and mommy is a terrible dancer. I love that about her!

Christmas Lights Parade

For about 15 minutes Pepper seemed to enjoy the "floats" with lights and music. Then we noticed that she was asleep, standing up in the Ergo. It gave me an excuse to get some much needed Christmas shopping done.

Milling

Raw Larch Lumber

Off cuts

Keeping the shop warm

So strong!

Oh, so beautiful...too bad we have to paint it.

Jo teaching Pepper about a woodshop

So it goes like this. Larch trees were cut down in Montana. These trees were then milled into rough planks by Jeremy Craik, Jo's cousin. Then those planks were transported over 4 different trips from Montana to Walla Walla. Next Jo stacked the planks with stickers to allow air flow between them. This he covered with heavy plastic and set up a fan, as a homemade kiln. When the boards were dry, the planing started (thus the huge pile of sawdust). After planing, the boards were sized. After sizing, Jo created the profiles (aka notches and curves). Finally, the siding is primed and ready to be put up on the house. Thank you mom for your help. You are a wonder woman!