how I spent my summer vacation

Growing up in my family meant we bought a house, my dad would totally remodel it then sell it. My dad was a professional painter, wallpaper hanger and a school teacher. It must be in my blood because I love painting, doing mouldings, wood trims, decorating and etc. My sister, JaNae, has the same interests. We dream about flipping houses! Being busy moms and now grandmas we're not sure this will ever happen. So, we decided to remodel our parents home in Orem, Utah. We did the master bedroom last year. Then we went up for the whole month of July this year and did the rest of the upstairs. My parents home was very cute in the 80's. But it was time for a new updated look. My parents are now 86 years old. My sister and I had a blast! Check out the slideshow of the before and after pictures. There are a few things that weren't finished when the pic were taken, but I think you'll get the idea.

sign us up for parents of the year

Toree has been begging like a dog.....I mean... she has been begging for a dog since she could speak. I mean talk !! She would crawl around the house with a leash hooked to a collar. Her brothers and sisters would humor her and take her for walks. She would say: I'm a dog. My name is Purdy and I'm a Dalmatian dog! This went on for months and months. She even licked my ankle once when I was working in the kitchen. That's when I drew the line! We always thought that this dog phase would fade away.............but it actually got worse Dennis was raised on a dairy farm and he always told the kids that we would only get a dog if we moved to a farm. We have said- no to a dog all these years. So this is quite a shock for all the older brothers and sisters. Our family and friends cannot believe we are really doing this. I think I'm still in shock! Are we crazy????
It's amazing how sometimes things are just meant to be. We were introduced to a new friend that needed a home for her dog. It happen to be the only breed of dog I would ever consider owning. We had a chance to adopt her so......for about a week we had to keep the biggest secret of the century! Toree's birthday isn't until August 29th. While Toree and Jamee went to a stake fireside we went and picked up our new dog.
At first, Toree just looked at the dog. We kept saying Happy Birthday Toree. She kept saying-are you serious?
even if you're not a dog lover, admit she's darn cute!!!
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