Busy, busy!

It's my FAVORITE time of the year! Actually, June - December is really my favorite time of the year. Lots of birthdays, holidays, milestones, changing of leaves, sprinkles of snow and of course, all the festivities of the holidays. I'm a bit of a holiday junkie - do a ridiculous amount of baking (why? I have no idea. Platters upon platters of cookies adorn my counters and tables), love investing in ornaments and decorating the tree, wrapping balsam garland in white lights and draping it around our front and back door, shopping and wrapping, entertaining and hosting...and everything else that comes with this wonderful time of year. Of course adding children to the mix takes the holidays to the next level - not only in terms of fun, but in terms of the sheer number of things that need to get done. More shopping, more wrapping, more fun to be had. The girls and I have Christmas music on 24/7. Literally, in the car, Gloria constantly yells "LOUDER" for me to turn up the music. As the sun goes down, it's all about finding the best Christmas light displays. We also began an advent calendar tradition with Rosemary 2 years ago and have continued to carry this on through the years. As a parent, there is also a huge responsibility that comes with this time in year in helping the kids understand what we are actually celebrating. I am so thankful to have Rosemary's teachers at school to help us make sure this message comes across clearly. We have been so busy with all kinds of little projects around the house. We recently wallpapered the kitchen, had our dining table side chairs reupholstered...and perhaps most rewarding, had our COUCH delivered. It's beautiful, we really love it. It's a nice generous size, but not too 'overstuffed' feeling in our tiny family room. It's a VERY neutral fabric, part of a 'bigger picture' as I assured my mother who loves color. Of course, now that the couch is here, I'm desperate for the rest of the room together. Patients my friend! I also had my friend Steph take some pictures of the girls for the holidays - which means I was finally able to fill all the frames in my stairway gallery wall which is quite possibly my favorite part of this home! We had our 16 week doctor appointment this week for tiny baby #3. Things are going well and baby's heartbeat sounded great. I've gained about 5 pounds at this point which is a little less than I normally have at this time. I attribute it to an awful case of the stomach flu I had a few weeks back and the fact that I'm really still waiting for my appetite to come back. The nausea is gone for the most part - occasionally a bad day sneaks in there, but I'm anxious to start getting my eat on. With both of my previous pregnancies I've gained 40-50 POUNDS...WOO! So, I'm feeling a little behind in my eat-a-thon. On 12/28 at 10:30am, we will be sitting in the u/s room finding out the gender of our third child. Words can not express how excited we are. This is a first time experience for us as we've found out during the deliveries for both of our previous pregnancies. Since this will be our last baby, we decided it would be fun to experience things a little differently. I honestly could not care less what the gender is. I can envision our family both ways and both are exciting. I am a firm believer that God gives us what's best for us and I can't wait to find out what it is He sees us with! Sorry this is a really random post but we are watching Saturday Night Live while I'm typing. Thought it'd be fun to share what we've been up to though. By the way, Jeff and I went out on a little date tonight - to dinner and grocery shopping. Lol. Is this what our Saturday night's out have come to? ;-) Not sure I'd have it any other way.

Baby #3 Update

Word has officially spanned the globe that we are expecting our third child. It's becoming more and more real to me each day and I become more and more terrified with each passing moment. I'm trying to strategize things I'll be able to manage next summer/winter with three kids. Rosemary will be up to 3 days a week in Preschool which will be great for her and keep her much more entertained than I'll be able to do at home. The summer should go smoothly as baby will be confined to a carseat and with Rosemary almost 4 and Gloria a full 2 years old, I shouldn't have too hard of a time getting out and about. The harder time comes when baby gets on a nap schedule and we are stranded in the house a good chunk of the day with two energetic kids and one sleepy baby. I'm starting to understand the 'youngest child' syndrome and that in fact, baby #3 will never have the pleasure of a nap schedule;-) I had my 12 week appointment today and the whole family came along. Rosemary was SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO excited to be going to the doctor to "get our new baby!" It was tough breaking the news to her that all we would be doing was hearing baby's heartbeat, but she was equally as excited when I told her a sucker might be involved. The doctor used the doplar to find baby's heartbeat (160bpm). Once he had checked baby's heartrate, he asked Rosemary if she wanted to talk to the baby through the doplar (or 'two way radio' as he called it). She obliged and said, "Merry Christmas" to the baby. So cute. Gloria was more standoff-ish and chose not to say anything. Why am I not surprised? Ha! Aside from that, the visit was routine. Jeff and I have opted to not find out the gender of the baby during our previous two pregnancies. However, we decided it would be fun to do it differently this time and that we would find out during our 20 week u/s. The only problem is that Jeff's parents, now snowbirds, will be heading South when I'm 18 weeks. So I asked the doc if I could have my u/s a little early so they'd be here for us to share the news. He said that shouldn't be a problem. He wouldn't do it ANY earlier than that just because you run the risk of measurements not being as accurate...but thought 18 weeks would be just fine. YEEKS! So only 6 more weeks to go. I'm feeling a TON better. Still have the occassional bad day where the nausea seems to creep back, but all in all, my energy is slowly coming back and I'm having more good days than bad. Hurrah! Thanks for checking in!

The Story of a Light

Followers, I've been waiting to write this post for a LONG time...waiting because I was never fully confident that the light I'm about to tell you about would ever make it through my door. Several months ago, you may remember me posting this 'inspiration picture' regarding a dining room light fixture.

I came across this image COMPLETELY randomly on the world wide web (I think I first spotted it on a blog I found somewhere on Twitter) and it was instant love. I started my search for this light by stopping into a few of my favorite lighting shops in town to see if they recognized it (Southern Lights and Lappin Lighting). Neither store recognized it, both thought it was some sort of a custom fixture. They also showed me a few similar styled ones like this, which didn't have the leggy, vintage feel of my inspiration light.

You of all people know I love a good light hunt, so I carried on with my mission. Months passed as I continued combing online lighting store after online lighting store - all to no avail and all without sparking any interest in a fixture aside from this one. Frustration was building. Late one night, while reading a slew of home decor blogs on Twitter, I came across an image of a woman STANDING in the very dining room that housed my inspiration fixture. WHO WAS THIS WOMAN and HOW could I contact her? Several searches through blogs like Made By Girl brought me to the blog Look Linger Love and it's author Chassity...otherwise known as, "The Girl In The Dining Room With The Light Fixture I Love!" I immediately emailed her sounding like a complete light stalker pleading that the fixture not be vintage and instead be readily available for my purchase (gulp, and hoping the fixture be within my price range). Thankfully, Chassity was kind enough to respond to my email and share that the fixture was indeed NOT vintage, but one she purchased from a lighting store in Charleston, South Carolina called Carolina Lanterns. I immediately called the store and asked them if I could email a picture of a fixture that a customer had purchased from them roughly two years ago, could they PLEASE tell me who makes it and whether or not it is still available. A weekend later, my fears were confirmed - the fixture is No.Longer.Available. Insert heart sinking here:-( I tried to swallow the news and move on...Jeff even gave me a few pats on the back and told me I had put up a good fight. But I just couldn't close the chapter of this book quite yet. So I went online fixture stalking and specifically targeted the manufacturer this time (now that I knew it), Lam Lee of Europe. Their site was a dead-end as they only sell to businesses that need an access code to navigate through their site. On top of that, everything was in Belgian and even with translating things online, I couldn't figure out a darn thing. So I took a shot in the dark and sent an email off to their 'info' email address in hopes SOMEONE would respond. No luck. I sent one last email before putting this whole thing to rest and then Christ responded. Yes, his name was Christ and he was here to answer my prayers. The fixture was INDEED a Lam Lee fixture and INDEED still available and INDEED could be purchased by me and shipped to the US. I was OVER the moon with excitement. The fixture was slightly outside of my price range so I told Jeff I would turn around a quick Craigslist sale to make up the dividend (here's where I sold our old Queen bed frame...BAM). Next came the wire transfer where I took myself to the bank and sent my first international wire transfer (don't you feel like you should whisper those words when you walk in a bank?) I felt like a total criminal and kept repeating, "It's for a light fixture!" With the funds transferred, it was time to figure out how the heck I was going to get this bad boy to me in one piece and THAT, my friends, is where the story got VERY interesting. Stay tuned for Part 2 of The Story of a Light...and in the meantime, check out Chassity's blog which I ADORE and her gorgeous home, adorable kiddos and appreciation for all things beautiful www.looklingerlove.blogspot.com

Amazement.

(Note: no idea why the spacing isn't working on here, so please excuse the lack of paragraphs!) I was inspired to write a quick post today as Rosemary has been incredibly inquisitive lately. You can no longer slide anything past her. She wants a full and often lengthy explanation of things we used to say and hope she just kind of swallowed for the time being. NO more. She will ask multiple follow up questions wanting more and more detail. Here are a few of the conversations we've had lately that have left my jaw on the floor in wonder - when did my baby become a person? Jeff was trick-or-treating with the girls on his own for the last few houses on our block while I passed out candy. A house on our block has a 'ghost' hanging in the tree. Jeff pointed it out to Rosemary, "Look, Rosemary, there's a ghost in that tree!" Rosemary went over to it, inspecting it, front, back, examining it thoroughly and then replied, "Nope dad, it's just a sheet hanging in the tree." Which indeed it was, but...??? Rosemary, Gloria and I were riding in the car today. Rosemary asked me if Gloria is 1 year old or if she's one and a half yet. How does she know that???? Roseary picked out a new winter hat at the drug store. There were many animal hats to choose from...she chose the owl. "I picked the owl because owls are nochternal." I made Rosemary a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for lunch today (her usual fav). I normally do the grocery shopping and always buy the same kind of bread, but Jeff had picked up a random loaf of bread the other day, different from what I buy. Rosemary this afternoon, "Mom, why'd you buy different bread, this bread is harder." I have to say, the age Rosemary is at is SO incredibly fun. She has become so self-sufficient: no needing reminders to go potty, no needing reminders to stay in her bed, getting herself dressed, clearing her plate after meals, washing her hands and mouth when she's done eating and even putting her own seatbelt on. It is A.M.A.Z.I.N.G!!!!!!! And at the same time, my heart feels a bit heavy when my baby doesn't need me for every single solitary task in a day. Of course I'm proud to death of her and it's what I've been hoping would come of my little person...I suppose it's more just disbelief that time can go so quickly. Gloria, my dear Gloria. This morning I was awoken by her COUNTING in her bed. "2...5...2...5" SO cute! Gloria happens to be entering one of my least favorite stages: 18-24 months. This seems to be the time of the arching backs, throwing of oneself on to the floor and lots of frustration for the little one. I feel better versed for it this time around - patience are a little thicker and I know more what to expect (namely that it doesn't last forever;-) But she is still a complete joy these days. Hilarious! So completely different from her sister, but absolutely loving Rosemary to pieces. And of course, since this is a kid update, it's only appropriate I update on baby #3. I'm actually feeling substantially better. While still exhausted, the nausea has definitely, definitely, definitely subsided a great deal and can now be managed primarily with eating the right things at the right times. If I can squeeze a nap in my day somehow, I feel great. The days Rosemary has preschool, Gloria and I nap while she's gone. The days Rosemary is home, my mom has been super helpful in watching her while G & I catch a few z's. Only one time was I so desperate I dropped Rosemary off at the drugstore to hang with Jeff while I slept for an hour. I go to the doctor again in 2 weeks, so I'll have more to share about "baby Sparkle" as Rosemary has named her, then. Yes, she thinks it's a HER (how could she not, it's all we know in our families!) Most of our furniture is scheduled to be delivered about Thanksgiving time. A couch would be dreamy right about now!

Blognnouncement

Followers, it's no secret my blog has slipped to the wayside. It's not because I don't love you and it's not because I have a lack of things to talk about (we've been busy over here).

The truth is, I have a blognnouncement - we are baking a bambino over here (the kids had no idea why we were "taking a picture with a stick" as seen above;-). Mama is feeling like a bag of flour...well, nauseated flour. So my first topic for this post is what the heck you did to tame your first trimester nausea. My husband is a pharmacist and is really encouraging me to forgo the prescription anti-nausea meds if at all possible (while they are definitely necessary for many women, we decided to explore the other options before I talk to my doc about going that route). So, today is my first day of attempting the Vitamin B6 & Unisom combo which are two over-the-counter products said to help with nausea. My father-in-law, also a pharmacist, said this is what they had in the 'old days' and it worked like a charm. Are there any other creative concoctions you've come up with that worked like a charm (besides the same old same old?) In other news, we have purchased a dining room table, 6 side chairs, 2 head chairs, a sofa and a dining room light fixture. Still on the list to order: a rug for the family room, a chair and ottoman, a media stand for TV & components and an array of accent tables. BUT, we are getting there! We are making some serious progress on our purchases...although not one single thing has actually been delivered yet. You can bet I'll be back with pics when it does. The pallete we have gone with for the family room is alllllllllllllllllll neutrals. I think you'd be shocked to see it after all the color we have going on in this house. But the family room will rely mostly on tone-on-tone pattern and texture to create interest...with pops of color in accessories like pillows, flowers and frames. The dining room also has a few unsuspected pops of color that will give it a real wow factor. I'm excited to see it come together...too bad it isn't scheduled to be delivered until the end of November. ARGH! Here's a glimpse at the side chairs for the dining room as I purchased them (used off Craigslist). They have since undergone QUITE the makeover;-) Can't wait to show them to you!

Oh...and take a looksie at this antique frame I found and converted to a mirror. LURVE it!

Jeff's been busy out in the garage installing shelves and organizing tools, toys, sporting and yard equipment. I've been busy doing absolutely nothing aside from trying to find the will to get out of bed and put food in my mouth. Boo. So, once mama's energy returns, I will be back to update you on how our little house is coming together over here. Oh...one last thing...I'm wallpapering my kitchen! Can't wait to show you (once I find the paper and all;-)

Storage Room COMPLETE!

It's about TIME we finish this darn storage room project. EYEYEYYE! This one was a real dewsey - not because it was necessarily hard, but because it took a lot more effort than we were anticipating. This area in our home is located in the addition that was put on the house in 1960. The owners were incredibly intuitive to OUR needs and opted to add a full basement under the two story addition vs a crawl space. THANK YOU! When we purchased the home, it was a completely raw space: cinder block walls and a poured concrete floor. The previous owners used this space as storage and we chose to do the same.

There was definitely the option of using this space as a 5th bedroom or office. All it would have taken was a bit of framing, insulation, drywall and some electrical work. But all of that together would have boasted a pretty hefty price tag (not to mention code would have demanded an egress window be installed)...and frankly, we needed the storage space. So we opted to keep the space raw but freshen it up a bit and give it a bit more finished feeling.

Over the winter, we epoxy'd the floor with a kit by Rustoleum from Home Depot. It's about $60 and covered the roughly 225 square foot area. Here were a few pics of that little endeavor.



Next came painting the cinder block walls. We could have done something creative in the space, but personally, I wasn't trying to turn this into anything ground-breaking. I wanted it to feel clean and bright and give a nice backdrop to the colorful storage bins. So we used bright white masonry paint from Home Depot.

This 'masonry paint' is said to be a primer and paint in one, so it wasn't necessary for us to purchase two different products for the one space. It was, however, necessary for us to buy 6 cans of it in order to get two decent coats on the raw cinder block. If you've never painted raw cinder block, it's a CHORE. The block walls might as well be sponges as the paint seems to disappear as you roll it on. Now is the time for me to offer up HUGE, huge kudos to my handsome hubby for single handedly taking on the painting of the entire room. What a guy! Where was I you ask? Where else...CLEANING!!!!!

Once the walls were finally painted and the room was starting to take shape, we explored shelving solution ideas. We thought about building them using lumber and plywood, but ultimately decided we wanted something a bit more polished. Next we considered the idea of using the same shelves we used in our last storage room, which were wall mounted pantry shelves.

However, mounting them would be difficult on the concrete walls (there were studs installed behind the pictured shelves in the basement in order to install the drywall). The other thing we were trying to figure out is how we could invest in something we could take with us if we moved (the pantry shelves would have been around $750 to provide us enough space and that doesn't include the framing that would have needed to take place). We ultimately decided on these shelves from Home Depot that are free standing and easily disassemble should we decide to jump ship.

In all honesty, the first one took us about an hour to assemble and we were at eachother's throats by the end of it. Luckily, we got better at it and by shelf number 6, we were down to assembling them in about 5 minutes and high fiving the whole time! The shelves are completely adjustable which is awesome and we also had an abundance of leftover shelves. We may opt to use them in the garage, or just keep them nearby in case we ever need them. The dimensions are 72" tall by 48" wide by 18" deep. They work perfect for our space!

So, here you have it, the official afters of our storage room.




Of course in the coming weeks I hope to get my labels updated and other little label worthy signs posted. By the way, everything is organized in a progression we figured of birth to death starting with 0-3 month baby girl clothes and ending at gun ammunition. That gave us a good laugh. And as you can see, we have plenty of space to grow into. Now all I need to hunt down is a clothing rack to hang our spare winter attire seen here.

SO relieved to have this project behind us. Next we'll be moving out to the yard and garage and will wrap up house renovation #2 with a laundry room refresher:-) In between those, ALL kinds of fun;-)

Where to begin?

Ugh. Blogger confession: I seem to have misplaced my blog time. I've been out of town for the past two weekends in a row sans kids, and this week I've returned to my not-been-disciplined-or-told-no-in-two-weeks children. Eyeyeye. They are whiped out and I am too. So...it's been a little crazy getting back on track here.

Here's my other confession: keeping my house clean and keeping up with laundry is taking up ALL of my spare time. I'm so fortunate to have two great sleepers for kids and their 6:30pm bedtime is right up there with winning the Powerball in my book. Despite the fact that I don't go to sleep until at least 11pm, for some reason, I am having a hard time accomplishing much in the 4 1/2 hours I have to myself each evening. I have so many projects going on that I'm having trouble getting anywhere with any of them. Here are a few of the things I've been working on:

- Gloria's wall hanging - it STILL isn't finished!

- Rosemary's coordinating wall hanging - it's about half done

- Rosemary's birthday party invitations - a princess tea party theme

- Basement storage room - it's 5/6th's done being painted...UGHHHHHHHH...just need to finish it (that's tonight's goal)!

- Basement light fixtures - installed the new ones...BIG TIME BOO. Had no idea they were flourescents and they ruined the basement in the flip of a switch. Need to return them and hunt down new ones.


So, while there are all kinds of things underway over here, none of them seem to be getting finished. And what did I just take a break from writing this post to do? Photograph stuff in the garage that needs to be listed on Craigslist. WHY? When did I become so A.D.D.? The underlying problem here? I have no list. I work best off of a prioritized list helping to keep me focused and on track. Clearly I'm no good without a list and am becoming incredibly frustrated with my lack of accomplishments lately. You'll be happy to know that my kitchen is sitting a mess right now and I have clean laundry waiting to be folded, yet I've prioritized reaching out to my faithful followers because YOU. ARE. IMPORTANT!

So what would be next after I finish allllllllllll of these projects up, you ask? Tackling this puppy:


The laundry room. Eyeyeye. In the coming days, I'll do posts on each of the above projects and I can tell you all about how much fun painting raw cinder block is (sense the sarcasm because I'm doing my best to lay it on thick;-) Let's just say that Jeff just cracked open paint can #7 on the extremely modest sized storage room!

So, stay tuned as I promise to get back on track with you. I miss you (and frankly, I NEED you;-)

Good news & Bad news.

Remember my little cup turned bathroom tumbler that I picked up at Anthro the other day?

Well, Rosemary's chugging got the best of her and my poor tumbler is now just a pile of glass shards. Jeff says we aren't ready for a glass tumbler in the kid's bathroom. I said that I AM ready for a glass tumbler in our master bath. Being that they are the same bathroom...let the great debate begin.

On to the good news! The main floor powder bath mirror is ORDERED!

I was able to negotiate $50 off on my ebay purchase which put the mirror into my desired budget. Yeeks! It says it takes 2 weeks to ship...I'm hoping that's not the case, but with free shipping, I'll happily keep my mouth shut!

I know I still owe you finished pictures of the wall hanging I was working on for Gloria's room. But the truth is, we hung it in her room and I immediately decided it didn't belong in there. I think it would be cuter in the playroom downstairs. So, until I can get around to moving it, I'll have to keep you in suspense. The problem with Gloria's room is that there is very little uninterrupted wall space in her small room (here's an old pic for your reference).

Between windows and wall angles, my 40" installment looked cramped no matter where we tried it...except over her crib which is, simply put, a death sentence for my handmade wall art. So, my plan is to make a coordinating piece for Rosemary and use them to balance the art in the playroom. Now if I could just get around to making another one...eyeyeye! Stay tuned!

Ladies Update.

While my blog is intended to be my oasis to carry on about everything home related...it just wouldn't be right to not include the occasional update on my two favorite girls.

This summer has been all about fun in the sun! Last summer we were pretty bogged down with an incredibly fussy infant, a home for sale, a closing, a move, a new home search, etc...but this summer, Rosemary has grown out of napping and Gloria can survive on one nap a day which means our days have been rather free to get out and explore summer in the city. I try to get the girls out for one activity a day. More than that seems to send them spiraling into crabby person syndrome and less than that means we all go stir-crazy. So each day we make a point of taking an adventure together - whether it be to a park, to meet a friend, to a pool, to a zoo or museum, etc. We've had an absolutely wonderful summer!

Rosemary is starting preschool this fall and I am so unbelievably excited for her.

Personally, I'm feeling completely overwhelmed at the idea of my daughter venturing out 'on her own.' However, those feelings are completely overshadowed by how independent, out-going, social and friendly this child is. It would only be a disservice to her to not offer her this opportunity - and for that, I am proud of both her and myself! It isn't easy letting go, is it. Rosemary will also be starting a dance class this fall. She'll be taking a ballet/tap combo class and I am giddy with excitement for her. Today, her and I went on a special outing to purchase her first pair of ballet and tap shoes. I hope she is even a fraction of how excited I am for her.



Gloria is hysterical.

Really...she has us laughing all of the time. She is still extremely particular and still prefers to be carried at all times (which of course isn't possible and is therefore deemed unacceptable by her).

Still not walking and although wishing for a walking toddler seems like an oxymoron, when said walking toddler is in the 103rd percentile for weight AND height (and head size), it's only practical to beg her to walk as carrying her is becoming...how you say...difficult. But, she is my little snuggle bug. No matter where I'm sitting, she'll do everything in her power to climb into my lap. When she gets tired, she'll lay anywhere - usually in the middle of the floor where the most traffic is flowing. She's talking ALL the time, many of her words are starting to come out crystal clear. As for the others, we usually have a pretty good guess as to what she's implying.


Overall, life is good and we have so much to be thankful for. The store remodel is coming to a close this week and while painting the storage room is underway, life has slowed down for us drastically. We are looking forward to investing in a few pieces of furniture in the near future, but in the meantime, we are so enjoying this house and the little family that it holds!

The little things.

If you are anything like me, you can get excited about the smallest thing. And I, am literally excited about the tiniest little thing...a cup.

I love browsing home stores - in fact, I am usually dressed like a homeless person in the grubbiest of clothes, hair undone, makeup smeared...but as you know, I love keeping my home in tip top condition. Of course, this is at the expense of every other area of my life. On my 'day off' this week, before heading to my local Caribou for a bit of free wifi blog reading, I slipped into Anthropologie to check out their latest home collection. I found this little beauty for our upstairs bathroom.


My mom always had a tumbler in the bathrooms for a late night glass of water, but because I don't have a matching bath accessories set, I've sort of just collected pieces that are pretty and purposeful as I find them. So this one slips right into my little collection of doo-dads I adore.

Rosemary seems to have taken a particularly strong liking to it and can often be found in the bathroom chugging water. Anyway, for $6, it's a fun and fanciful piece for our master bath, family bath, original bath, only getting ready bath:-)

I am SOOOOOOOO excited about the piece I'm working on for Gloria's room. Stay tuned for final pics tomorrow...yippee! In the meantime, here's a sneak peek!

Powder Bath Glam.

It's no secret our main floor powder bath is lacking in the mirror department. In all honesty, I haven't really been missing a mirror in there. With Rosemary being potty trained, I've been thankful to have one less thing to clean in that bathroom since it's one that requires a daily disinfecting. But, my need to double check whether my not done hair is presentable enough to go in public led me to search the world wide web along with every Homegoods in town and here's where I've ended up.

I was quite certain I wanted a gold framed mirror. I found lots of PLASTIC, gold framed mirrors but I just couldn't stomach the echo of the plastic against my wrapping fingertips when I tested the mirrors durability. Not to mention most of them seemed to have cracks and other imperfections in them from shipping and what not. I decided to check out eBay to see if I couldn't find a vintage gold mirror. The dimensions I am working with are tricky being that the pedastal sink it will hang above is only 21" wide. So I needed it petite in width but still plenty lengthy. And then came you:

COME ON - a gold gilded iron mirror with a BOW on it? Yes, please! The price is a little steep for my liking, so I'm working with the seller to see if I can't get a little deal. I'll keep you posted! Sure would love to see it adorning the petite powder room wall someday!

Window Treatments.

The main floor window treatments are IN! They actually went in last week but due to our ever infuriating internet issues, I had to wait to share them with you until I could make a quick escape to my neighborhood Panera. The good news is that all our issues will be fixed (BY LEAVING QWEST) on Wednesday when the new folks come to get us up and running again. So please do hold on because I have much more fun to share with you.

So - back to the window fancies. If you remember, we did two different types of treatments on the main level. In the family room, we did Hunter Douglas honeycomb shades, matched to the trim color in order to have them 'disappear' when in the open position. I absolutely love these! I had never even considered these until my friend Jenn suggested them. I just felt they were far too modern for my liking and I liked the look of the wood blinds better. But these are great because they really do provide 100% privacy and are virtually undetectable when upright. Hunter Douglas was having a promotion for a FREE upgrade to the cordless variety - so all you do is push these up with the lightest touch of a finger. Glorious in a home filled with curious kiddos like my own!




In the family room, we did the woven wood romans by Hunter Douglas. I love them. The colors are absolutely perfect and I love the added texture and tone in the room. A WELCOMED change from my normal sea of white. These do not provide 100% privacy, but we figured this was ok in the dining room where we really aren't hanging out on a regular basis. There is the option of lining them, but we really felt like we wanted to be able to have them down with the light peeking through during the day vs full darkness.




Other items on the docket: final mudroom re-reveal with all of the hardware finally installed! Also final sod pictures, playroom decor and two new fancy wall-hangings for the girls rooms by yours truly. Oh FUN!

Grass-ias

No, not thank you - but Grass-ias...meaning, sod thank you. The sod is here! It has been a crazy week. Oddly enough, the house has been busy with workers and I've been busy with house work. Whew. It isn't easy having the cleanest, most organized home in the world. My mother-in-law stopped over the other day and asked if we were having a showing. Nope, no ma'am. My house is literally ALWAYS that clean. I've added to my list of daily tasks: making beds which is proving to be lovely at 11pm when I get to unfold mine and hop in (and believe, me, I'm hopping these days now that the windows are covered), but it also proves to be dreadfully exhausting keeping it made all day with the you-know-who's running around all day. Do you know I have 14 nieces and nephews? Yep, they aren't helping either.

Of course I wouldn't have it any other way, but I'm exploring my capabilities as a home maker these days and where to draw the line and yell at the top of my lungs that this just can't possibly be worth it. In the meantime, I'm feeling amazing being ahead of the curve and staying on top of things. Yesterday was the great clothing shuffle of 2011 which simply put, involved unpacking every piece of children's clothing I own, sorting it, discarding stained/damaged pieces, re-folding and properly stowing away until perhaps another stowaway comes along. The method behind my clothing shuffle madness has everything to do with our determination to dial in the storage room. We found a shelving solution that we believe will work perfectly for our needs and plan to assemble and properly place our storable belongings upon in the next week or two. Of course PLENTY of photos and details to come on that.

But let's get back to the grass-ias. The sod is about 2/3 done and perhaps the most satisfying part of the project. I don't know if it's that it signifies the end of the project or if it really is just that amazing to have grass - either way, it's looking, feeling and functioning amazingly. The yard was pretty much in shambles by the time they showed up. Literally, it was embarrassing. I wouldn't necessarily say Jeff or I have a green thumb, but we most certainly have a tidy thumb and the yard was looking everything but. The parts that were bad were patchy - bits here and there where concrete was removed or materials sat for long periods of time killing the grass. So we had to make the decision of whether we wanted to just patch in the spots that needed it with new sod and attempt to blend it in with the existing yard OR have them essentially remove the entire yard and start from scratch. We compromised somewhere in the middle and drew a virtual line across the yard and removed everything from there over and had all new sod put down. The entire yard WASN'T bad and we COULD seed and fertilize and come up with a nice product, so that's what we decided to do with the side that was salvagable. We also had them remove most of the gardens in the back yard in order to create the most grassy play area possible for the kids. We had a new garden laid out on the side of the addition where sod wouldn't have been able to grow anyway.

The sod has been slotted to start for weeks now and you might be wondering what the heck took so long. Well, the truth of the matter is that we used the cheapest company out there. Literally, their bid was 1/3 what everyone elses was. We used this crew on our last project and had the same problem getting them actually over to the house to do the work. But they do a good job and you get what you pay for and...well, we are cheap and we are talking about grass here.

So anyway, I'll stop blabbering because I have to head home now (no internet = blogger at Caribou). Here are the in progress pics of the sod from embarrassing yard to glamorous Grass-ias:
Before - Yikes!


Screen Shot - In progress: our 'start over' line

After - Feel the Grass-ias Love!





Yet to be finished...


Can someone please tell me when my newborn baby turned into this gigantic creature?