The Bathroom Project

This weekend Jason worked at my sister Gwendolyn's house fixing their bathroom. It was quite a project and Jason is a little sore, but it looks great. The toilet had leaked and destroyed the floor so that had to be removed. Fortunately the sink and toilet were fine so those didn't have to be replaced.
Here is Jason standing in the crawlspace working on the bathroom.



This is the project all finished.

Happy Birthday Jill...

Saturday night we celebrated Jill's birthday. She is the big 26 now!! We had a good time hanging out with friends and having a little BBQ. Here are a few pics...

Remembering Patriot Day

O beautiful for spacious skies, For amber waves of grain, For purple mountain majesties Above the fruited plain!

O beautiful for pilgrim feet
Whose stern impassion'd stress
A thoroughfare for freedom beat
Across the wilderness.

America! America!
God mend thine ev'ry flaw,
Confirm thy soul in self-control,
Thy liberty in law.

O beautiful for heroes prov'd
In liberating strife,
Who more than self their country loved,
And mercy more than life.

America! America!
May God thy gold refine
Till all success be nobleness,
And ev'ry gain divine.

O beautiful for patriot dream
That sees beyond the years
Thine alabaster cities gleam
Undimmed by human tears.

America! America!
God shed His grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea.

I posted this song because I absolutely love it. The words are so meaningful. My two favorite parts are where it asks God to confirm America's soul in self-control and our liberty in law. Today so many Americans love to talk about liberty and the freedom to do certian things, but they don't want to remind themselves that our liberty is availble because of the law. I have the freedom to go out and walk around my city streets because the law protects me from those who would do me harm. Self-control is something that many Americans have abandoned. We must have a moral responsibility to the law and follow it because it is the right thing to do not because we are worried about getting caught. I remeber being very worried that when I asked some of my students, "Why don't you rob a bank on your way home from school?" The only answer they could come up with is, "Because I would go to jail." This may be true, but it is not the only reason we don't rob the bank. Self-control to follow the law is important. My second favorite line is when it talks about how beautiful the heroes who sacrifice their lives for us are. They love their country more than they loved themselves and they love mercy more than life. Looking back on the last six years, I think of all those who have gone overseas to protect us. They have sacrificed time with their families, comfort, peace, and many have sacrificed their lives. I am so grateful there are those willing to do that. I am thankful for the police, firemen, and soldiers who risk their safety for ours.

Family in town for Labor Day

On Sunday we went to church in the morning then we headed downtown. We went to Rosebuds for dinner, which was awesome! We had Italian waiters who actually spoke Italian. One of them looked like Ray Liotta in Goodfellas. They waiters really liked Logan. They kept calling him piccolino. We looked it up online and it means little, cute, or tiny. Anyway here are some pictures of our adventures downtown. This is a quick picture of us walking down Michigan Avenue. We only walked about two blocks, but it was really nice. The weather was perfect the whole weekend. Grandma and Grandpa couldn't believe how alive the city was. There were people everywhere.

Logan looks back to make sure that Great Grandpa and Great Grandma are okay crossing the street. "Hurry up guys, the light is going to change!"

Grandma Gies and Logan check out a horse getting a quick drink from the horse drinking fountain.

Because Grandma and Grandpa couldn't do a lot of walking we didn't get to walk around Navy Pier or that kind of thing. Jason found a great lookout point so they could see the water as well as a great view of Navy Pier.

On Labor Day we went to Terri and Joe's house for brunch. We hadn't taken any pictures of all of us yet that weekend so Terri helped us out with that.

Four generations of men, well maybe not all are men just yet.

Three generations of ladies and one boy

We had a great time visiting with grandma and grandpa. They said they had a great time too. They are one spunky couple and I hope we are as much in love as they are when we have been married sixty-six years.

Cubs game

On Saturday we went to Wrigley Field to see the Cubs. My grandpa has been a Cubs fan for over 60 years. He enjoyed seen the Cubs and all of the excitement around the field. Personally I think this is one of the best sporting events I have ever been to. The crowd was great and the Wrigley is so amazing. It really reminded me of going to old Tiger Stadium.

Dad, Grandpa and Harry Caray

Grandpa and me

Dad and me

Grandpa enjoying our great seats

The legendary Wrigley Field

Cubs WIN! You can see the W flag flying. The beat the Astros 4-3