Fun House

This is our house. Which is the first house that we have ever owned. For years we were in rentals. And then there was that brief stint in military housing. That really sucked by the way. So when we finally settled here in Colorado Springs about 7 years ago, we were so excited to buy our dream house.

We were done with white walls and bad fixtures. So we went to town fixing it up and making it the fun house we wanted it to be.

I thought chalkboards in the kitchen would be cool. Luckily Craig is very handy. And the color on the walls? It's called Lucky Bamboo. Which makes double luck, right?

Then there's our antique 1940's rotary dial phone. And if you call me on my landline, which of course is also an antique, this is the phone I'm talking to you on and also why I'm referring to you as dame. Of course, the cord really restricts me and then I can't pace like I do when I talk on the phone. Not to worry though, because only telemarketers call on it. So the kids love to answer it and mess with them. Lucky thing, I don't like to talk on the phone anyway.

This is the stage Craig built. Did I mention he's handy? Did I mention that I come up with these really great ideas and then he carries them out? Oh, yeah, then there's the graffiti wall. No assembly required. But just so you know, the wall was kid tested and mother approved.

This is my favorite room in the whole house. Mostly, because it's so unnecessary to have a formal dining room these days. And it's even less practical to have a room that you don't allow your kids to touch anything in. And that's why I love it. Oh, and it's like a funky, sultry orange. That too.

When grandma was here over the summer, she helped the kids paint their rooms whatever color they wanted. Well, not whatever color, River wanted to paint it black. And, I'm not just saying that so I could fit the phrase "paint in black" in this post either.

In the basement we have a skee ball machine we bought from Cave of the Winds, a local landmark here in the Springs, for $100. And somehow that window right next to it hasn't been broken yet. Nor has anyone got a concussion from a wayward wooden ball slamming into their head. Yet.

The fun continues outside where we have s tiki bar that backs right up to the ridge behind our house. And from time to time, we get tiki with it. But mostly, we eat our breakfast out there and watch the deer meander by. We do sit perched on the edge of our chairs just in case we see a bear and need to flee though.

And then there's the hot tub. Which we have used as a replacement for bath/shower time for the kids on more than one occasion. Hey, there's chlorine in there which you know is actually disinfecting them. Because I'm pretty sure they don't actually use soap in the shower.

So, looks pretty fun right? You know what makes this house a real fun house? It's all distorted like the fun house at the amusement park. You see, in the 2 years that we lived in Morocco and rented our home out, one corner of the house sunk 2 inches. So now our floors tilt. And some of our windows won't close. So, it's all jacked up! Which is exactly what we need to do to fix it. Nope, I'm not joking. But, we're pretty sure we can do it over the long weekend and the kids can use this as their next science fair project. Ok, now I'm joking.

Let the fun begin! (And here I'm just being sarcastic.)