You Don't See That Every Day

Two more birthdays happened. Ok, actually a lot more, but in our little house, we had 2 more celebrations. April is one long party around here - so we left the decorations up all month. Even when the house appraiser came to take pictures. We now have 3 teenagers in the house. And there are days that we feel it. The grocery bill is inching its way up, despite my attempts to keep it low. I am really looking forward to summer and the fresh fruits and veggies from the farm! I have plans to can and freeze and dehydrate a lot of goodies this year! But back to the birthday girls. The Girl who Cooks is now 13. Hard to believe my little 9 pound baby is this old. She had school that day and track practice, but we were able to celebrate in the evening with all of us at home. And my baby - my last born - my snuggler - is now 6. Cliche I know, but wow how time flies! For her special day, she did not do any school work (easy to do in kindergarten!) We went out for lunch at Burger King - one of he...

Where have we been lately? House repairs don't stop for basketball and drama. At one time this past fall we had 3 working showers. And then we were down to two because of what happened over the summer . We got that patched up, and all was well. Until my husband looked at fixing the tiles in the bath - not just the temporary fix we had done for that earlier problem. And one popped out into his hand. And then he dug deeper and discovered this: About a week later, if not less, the showerhead in our master bath broke off. We knew it would need to be replaced at some point, we just didn't know it would be now. So we went from 3 down to 1 shower. At least it is the nice new upstairs shower that works!  And it hasn't been all work and no play... There was one day this week when I actually didn't have to be anywhere until evening time. It felt like a luxury. I was in such a good mood I actually decided to paint my nails. I haven't painted my fingernails in years pro...

Owning a home allows a person to have a great dating life. As long as those dates are to stores like Home Depot. The Mr. has been working on the upstairs remodel as time and money allow. And we are nearly done with it! The bedrooms are 99% complete and the bathroom is getting there. The countertop and sink and that tile is in. One light is up, but not attached. The shower has taken the longest time. He had to cut the concrete board and get it fitted for the shower. The sheetrock in the bath is nearly all up, and the mudding process will begin soon (I think). Then it will be tile, floor, toilet, and turn everything on! But then the front deck rotted out, and we've been working on that. Since the plate below the door also is gone, we have to replace the front door; which means we actually have to go down together and pick out a door to order. Which means we have to find time to do this together. Looks like another date night to Home Depot. Along with all this fun we found ano...

It has been a week since the marathon. I didn't move much last Sunday; by Monday I was walking better, once I got going. And by Tuesday I was pretty much back to normal. I even saw people running and thought, Oh I would like to go for a run. That thought hadn't crossed my mind since Saturday morning. So today since the Mr took the oldest two kids out to the farm, and because my pickup is older than his, and because it has a bed liner and his doesn't ... I was the one who went and got the load of gravel. We're fixing the non-existent front porch, and the next step was gravel. So I thankfully did not have to load it by hand! A nice man in a big tractor dumped it in there, and somehow I managed to get it home. And I spent part of the afternoon unloading it.I had a time crunch because I had to go get my 5th grader from her homeschool testing. And I didn't want that heavy load in there still.  First I threw 10 shovelfuls into the wheelbarrow - I figured out that was...

When owning a house, one does not simply own a house. Sometimes it feels as if the house owns you. We knew there was a board in the front deck that needed to be replaced. We knew it had gotten wet and was soft and unsafe. We thought that maybe it was because water had pooled under the front door mat. We hoped that it was an easy fix. But when is it ever an easy fix? The Mr tore into the deck boards this weekend, and this is what we found:  Not only were the top 3 boards wet and rotting, the under supports were not even supporting the deck. We're fortunate that nobody fell through! So what we hoped would be a weekend project is turning into something much more exciting (!?) The Mr and son tore out the entire front porch and steps, leaving behind the dirt and nothing else.  For now the front access is blocked by a sawhorse. I will probably set our cowbell outside in case anyone comes to our front door. We get to pick out a new door, new decking and teach the kids how ...

Just a sneak peek at what is happening in our remodeling process. The kids have been upstairs for awhile now, and the bathroom is the last room to get attention. The Mr has been working on it when he has time, and money; this is where we are now - He put in the tile for the backsplash and shelf. The kids have been able to brush teeth and wash in there for now, which has helped alleviate the traffic jam downstairs a little bit.

Did you wonder what had happened to the remodeling on our house? Well the 3 kids have been living upstairs for over a year now. The playroom is fully functional although the detail work hasn't been done yet (ie. trim). And now the Mr. is working on the bathroom. He got the cabinet in, and the countertop and sink installed. So we have water! This weekend he built the shelf and put up (more!) sheet rock. He's a pro at it by now. My job this weekend was to go shopping. It's a hard life. So I headed down to our lovely date spot - the orange do-it-yourself store - and checked out different tile options. We are looking at Sand Pacific if anyone wants to look it up. We (and that is a loosely used term here) are going to put tile on the backsplash and up on the shelf. Somehow we will tie it in to the shower tile and flooring. That's the hard part for me - visualizing the colors going together. If I see it in a photo, I can tell what I like and don't like. But putting ...

Daddy, I want to help. This little one loves to be in the thick of things, whether it is hauling firewood (she actually sobbed the day the kids were helping move firewood and I wouldn't let her outside) or helping build the addition - laying down flooring in the girls' room.   So these pictures were taken earlier in the week. Today!! was moving day. Even though the bunk beds were put up -and slept in - on Tuesday, it wasn't until today that we had time to start moving more furniture, clothes, books, and all the paraphernalia that two girls have. I had hoped to have photos to share ... but the girls have discovered something on the camera called "video" and have worn out the batteries. So no new photos until I go to the store and get some more. But at least they are happily ensconced in their new bedroom. And I have a bunch of organizing to do downstairs!

In my little corner of the world, many things catch my eye throughout the day. My little girl's curls. I just love them. My dog who sleeps curled up with a hose  My son showing off his muscles  by carrying around his sisters  And finally - an advance in the remodeling department! ( disclaimer: there have been many advances of which I have not blogged about, mainly because they were the type that don't photograph well, like texture. You can't really see it in a photo.) Step 956 of 1 million: paint in the girls' room The two girls who will occupy this room first picked out the colors, and prepped the area, then we got down to work. I let them do most of the painting, with a little help to reach the high places. Tomorrow will be the second coat, and then we'll paint the other walls white. And that leads us up to the finishing steps - flooring! Curtains! Trim! Move in! (not all in that order)  

I'm back to running again. Although when it is 30 degrees out, it isn't so easy to get motivated to step outside for anything! I started just running 1 mile a day for the first week, and I have finally made it up to 2 miles, without feeling terrible. After the first couple of runs, my arms were so sore .. and it took me awhile to figure out why (along with my sweet husband's suggestion that it came from running/using my arms). But they are back to 'normal' now, thankfully. I have 12 weeks to get in shape for that half-marathon. So I looked at my training for last year, and by this time in January of 2012, I was already up to 4 milers. So it looks like I have some ground to cover quickly. But I am confident that I can do, if I can make sure to stick to a schedule. Even in the ice-cold winter weather. In other exciting news, we bought paint today! Not just any old paint, but lavender and mint green paint for the girl's room upstairs! I have some excited kids t...

I'm sneezing. I've taken a couple of naps. It's not even 9 and I am almost ready for my bed. My sweet little minions have taken my words to heart and shared with me. However, sharing a yucky cold isn't quite what I had in mind when I taught them that lesson. My husband has not gotten to that part yet. I'm hoping for his sake he doesn't. He has been working upstairs these past few days; the girls' room is almost ready! Yes! He and the kids painted the primer layer today. Next comes texture, and then we get to paint, and put in the flooring, and move the girls in! We are doing the happy dance! This vacation has truly been a good relaxing time. We haven't been rushed do anything. We've had the cold run through the family, so there has been a lot of TV time, and relaxing. Last night we played games as a family to ring in the New Year (except the 2 year old who was in bed early). I'll have to say I've enjoyed this time with the kids and husband...

We've had quite a week smashed into 3 days. Along with a new hand for myself.  Every mom needs an extra hand right? Mine just happens to be made out of carrot.  'Handy' when the kids get hungry. We , er, G. finished painting the hallway and ceilings. The kids helped. Although they really wanted to slide down instead. In between painting, and chores, and school, my oldest daughter got her crafty side going. She has been begging for sewing lessons for quite awhile now. I finally unearthed my machine, and had it sitting in her bedroom. On her own, she grabbed it, some thread, some material, and sat down to create. She made a skirt, without a pattern, and a sort-of shirt. I had to show her a few tricks initially; and there were a few mishaps with threading and bobbins and such,  but I think she actually learned something while having fun sewing. Here is how the hall and upstairs looked when I left the house Wednesday morning. Same as it had the day before,...

A day of giving thanks for all we have. I am thankful to have children old enough to really help. The girls helped make brownies and pie yesterday. All the kids took orders well and got the house cleaned and food prepped for the feasting today.   And then a neighbor brought by more sugary goodness. Aren't these the cutest treats? We are so blessed to have a number of terrific neighbors! And like every other holiday, there was home improvement work to be done. Yesterday G and the Boy tore up the stairway, to fix the running boards that go along the side of the stairs. The top photo is looking down the top stair into the garage.     Here we have the end of the day work - the side running boards are in, and the stairs are back in place. A few more items on the to-do list (texturing and painting) and then the carpet comes in!!    For the first time, the family signed up to run a Thanksgiving Day 5k. This was the sunset we walked out the door to. ...