Picture Day!

So, it is that time of year again. PICTURE DAY!!! Making sure that the hair cut is just so. The smiles must be just right and the clothes can not clash with the background. This year the school photographer told Logan not to show his teeth. I think he looks nice but not that happy. When I called the company that took the photos they said they were asking all the boys to smile like this.

Lexi is such a ham in front of the camera. She loves picture day and loves to look just right in her picture.

So all in all. I think the pictures turned out really quiet cute. But more imortantly the kids liked how they looked.

Piano

Logan and Lexi have been asking to learn a musical instrument. But what kind of an instrument would be good. As a child I played the piano and I played the bass. Jared took piano lessons for a little while as well. Jared's mom offered to give the kids piano lessons on the condition that they practice. So, piano it is. But where to find a piano that won't cost us a lot.
Well, we had heard of a coworker of Jared's selling a piano of his. It was a reasonable price so we decided to get it. We knew that the piano needed a little bit of work but we were willing to put in the man hours. The picture below shows the piano before we worked on it. I guess that I should mention that the piano is a Krakauer Bros. piano.

It took Jared about two days from start to finish to make the piano really shine. I think that he did a wonderful job on making the piano look almost like new. We decided to spray paint it black. Jared added new felt on the wood where the keys and wood meet. This picture shows how great it looks now. If you ask me it doesn't even look like the same piano.

In the process of getting this diamond in the rough piano. We had asked Jared's parents to put our name in a drawing for his Grandmother's piano. We in our wildest dreams did not think that we were going to win it. Well, as Luck should have it we got the piano.

The piano is a 1909 Hoffman upright piano. The neat thing about this piano is that it belong to Jared's Grandmother Smart. It also has a piano bench that has been needled pointed by his Grandmother.

This piano needs a little bit of TLC. But I think in the end we are very lucky to have it in our home. When I am feeling up to it, I will be rearranging the family room to put the piano in its permanent place.

If you were to come over to our house right now you would walk in the front door and seen the black piano, Grandma Smart Piano right next to it, then the couch and then you would see the antique pump organ. I feel like the house looks like a piano shop. But it is all good.

As for the other piano, Jared and I are going to be selling it. So, if you know of anyone looking for a piano let me know. I will be putting it on Craig's list soon.