DISTRACT ME FROM THE BEEEEE!

There is some kind of bee/wasp/hornet/buzzing character up in the high windows of our place right now, and I’m freaking out just a tad. I was planning to blog this evening, but right now will just have to do, because I need to do/think about something else! I told the kids the bug was a big fly. Yes, I know, I lied to them. Don’t judge me. This is survival. I do NOT appreciate this thing being in my house.

Speaking of my house, lol, Brady is actually not working there today! He is back to his usual job, while making lots of calls and sending out lots of texts, trying to organize our move. Of course, there is still a handful of things left to do on our house, but we got word that the last stuff that is up to him is ready for him! In our cabinet order, somehow, one front got missed. Then, Brady dropped and munched another. So we’ve been waiting for two fronts to be done for us, as well as the last of our drawer handles to arrive, since the ones we picked were PERFECT but the cabinet shop didn’t have quite enough on hand. Everything is now ready and waiting at the shop! So Brady will have to duck by our house tomorrow afternoon to install the last few fronts and handles, silicone our kitchen with a different color, caulk the shower doors, and re-oil the island top one last time. And then that is IT on our part! There are a few little things that are just behind that he’ll do later, but that aren’t important enough to hold up possession. We are SO ready to move in, no hand towel bar is going to hold us up!

Today has been relaxed (until this dang bee…) and I am SO looking forward to the evening! Kim and I are attempting a round two of our last date that got cut a little short 😉 So we’ll do a little bit of dinner out and maybe a shorty shop. Just a girly date, and I’m super looking forward to it! Its nice to have understanding friends who know your limits and still want to hang out with you!!

I’m in a bit of a funny position where my body is just done, but my loving husband has agreed to do some chores around the house this evening so I can rest and be nice and mobile in the evening 🙂 Thanks, hubs. I would have no social life without you.

Ok, break is over. Time to go try to chase this bee out of here. Its getting ballsy…

All of the Little End Stuff

So much is getting done on the house these days! Sorry to those of you who are bored of hearing about it, but its SUCH a whirlwind right now!! Brady went in today to install some more door handles, to secure the island top a little stronger, and to install our shower doors that came yesterday!

IMG_7713

He also managed to get bath hardware on and get a few things prepped for the plumbers and electricians to come in the next few days to install their last fixtures and such. Our painter was in today, painting the new trim and jam on the closet door in our room, and a few other things he found that he wanted to perfect.

IMG_8750

PS: Thanks everyone for your comments on this different set up. I am SO happy with the trim, and thankfully, so is Brady 🙂 And so are you guys, apparently! Brady even said the painter commented on how much more finished it looked. We are all 100% happy with this decision. Win!

Tomorrow, I believe its the plumbers who will come through. They’ll be installing faucets, toilets, our water heater, and I’m sure a few other things I’m forgetting. Also, tomorrow, we’ll get our garage door. Yay! I’m excited for the big pop of white on the front of the house 🙂 SO much is going on!

We got the crazy news this evening that our possession is actually being moved UP!!!!! This is SO exciting, and SO crazy all at the same time, but we are completely thrilled! Its sure going to be a busy time, but we truly couldn’t be happier! So if anyone is itching to move a family in the next little while, get in touch 😉 We’ll take all of the help we can get!!

Brady came home for the afternoon, and we took the kids out for some grocery shopping. Costco has SO many good sales on this week, so we ducked in there and got good and stocked up on a lot of things. We are SO thankful to be using my parents little extra freezer, because it made it possible for us to stock up on things we use often but require a freezer. I don’t know how we’d do it, just using the little one in the fridge! We are very accustomed to having a big extra one, so thanks again, mom and dad! We got nicely stocked up, and then hit Superstore, which was considerably less successful, but still decent. Dekker got some new underwear and some sweat shorts, and we grabbed some fruit and veggies. We even managed to get our hands on some of our favorite creamer that is often SO hard to find. Wins all around, really.

When we were checking out, I was hanging with Rowan at the cart, and he leaned into me and knocked his head lightly into my lips, and giggled. I made a kissy face at him and he giggled and kept leaning in for more and more kisses. Here I was with my purple lipstick, not about to deny my son kisses, so we had this little morsel to laugh at for the rest of our Superstore experience.

IMG_1272

He’s such a gem <3 Love him.

We spent our evening with Jerilee, watching the first episode of the Bachelorette and eating Pizza Hut. I have loved living so close to a Pizza Hut, and will likely never live so close to one again, so we’re making it count 😉 Its been a really great day, and there are a lot more to come in the next weeks!

Life is crazy, and God is good!

Yay For House Positives!

I’ve really enjoyed today! We had a nice start to the morning, I had a late morning outing, we got an exciting house delivery, Brady spent the afternoon getting good news about the house and getting a thing or two done, and I chatted on the phone with my sister for a bit while he was away 🙂 It was really quite awesome! I’ll go in order.

We woke up decently early, and Brady went out to retrieve coffees and breakfast McFlurries. I highly recommend this breakfast to all, especially when there is a good coupon out! So I kicked the day off with a double double and a Rolo McFlurry. It was a delicious morning. After a little bit of doddling, I headed to my waxing appointment. I really like it there. I always do. And it feels nice to get my legs and and brows all freshened up. I have to laugh, though. Its always at my last waxing appointment before having a baby when I come so very close to fainting. I am just physically unable to recline at all right now. So if I’m not sitting straight up, or laying on my side, I can’t breathe. She was really good about it all, though. Soon, the fan was on, and she was letting me sit in different, weird positions so I could breathe while she worked. Its hard to wax upper legs when there is an enormous belly resting on them. She rocked it though. Thanks, Jenn!!!

After my appointment, I ducked into a grocery store for milk, and then headed home. The kids were in good moods, and the house was nice and relaxed. Brady and I visited and played with the kids, and while we were discussing his afternoon of work, we heard someone walking onto our deck. Brady opened the door, and accepted the delivery of our shower doors!!! I’m SO glad they came already!!! We were eager and silly and couldn’t wait, so we opened the box up, and everything was in order, in great shape, and looking exactly as we had hoped!

IMG_2360

They don’t look like much here, but they’ll be perfect when they’re installed into our main bathroom in the new house!! EEK!

Since we’re coming to the end of the build, lots of little things are coming up for us to discuss and make decisions about. Its not the most relaxed part of the process, to say the least, but we got a lot of that done yesterday and today, and part of Brady’s afternoon was going out and making some of those changes, picking some things up, and asking a lot of questions. I’m SO happy to say that his afternoon was smooth and successful!

The shower doors came early!

The pricing we’ve been waiting for to possibly change out our exterior doors is FINALLY in, and is a solid $500 LESS than we were expecting!

The few door handles that were missed on the order are IN TOWN rather than being four weeks away like we thought! Brady was able to pick them all up today 😀

We got some answers finally about what hinges to get for our laundry chute doors, so we can finally go forward with them!

Best of all…..

IMG_6399

IMG_3271

Our garage pad got poured EARLY!!!

Ok, no, its not early. We still won’t be able to park on it for a week or two after we take possession, but we had been told the absolute earliest it would be poured was May 26th, and it would most likely get bumped. This is a lovely surprise! I’m SO happy its in already!

A little thing thats been irking me a bit is the doors in our master suite.

IMG_1262

This is our walk-in closet and our en suite. We have no intention of having a door on our closet, so we just had it drywalled like this. It looks really clean and straight and I’m VERY happy with it. But. It looks unfinished to me. With the two openings so close together, to me, it feels like they should both have trim. Brady and I disagreed for a bit, which is fine. We mulled over it for a bit and yesterday, decided to bite the bullet and change it, even though it meant the painters charging us for having to come back an additional time. We just decided to take the hit. I knew it was something that was going to bug me every time I saw it. We’ve both had a couple of those things come up, so we’re fixing them as we go. Therefore, today Brady went and picked up some casing and jambs, and went to our house to pull out some drywall to re-case and trim the door.

IMG_2462

I don’t know about you guys, and maybe I’m the only one who thinks so, but I think this is SO much better! It looks complete, and finished, and less like someone forgot to trim that one door. I am SO happy with it! Now we wait for the painters to come back and paint it. Whew! Easy fix.

While Brady worked, I visited with my dear sister. I love her, and every once in a while, she calls on her drive home from work, like today. We chatted for almost an hour before hanging up. Brady was then on his way home, and the kids were getting a bit twitchy.

Now to close off the day with supper and bedtime. And perhaps and late night McFlurry. Don’t judge. I am LOVING ice cream these days!!!

38 Weeks!!

Before I talk about my pregnancy, I want to thank everyone who texted/liked/commented on the last post. Its been fun to see who is super interested in the build, and its also wonderful to have people excited with us. You can see by the pictures yesterday just how close they are to being done!!! I always hesitate to share official dates for things on my blog, just in case they don’t work out, but it really really won’t be long now. I am SO excited to have our baby so soon, and then to move into this beautiful home! I feel like its all going to just be surreal for a while. As if this is OURS!

Onto todays events, I had what might be my last prenatal appointment of this pregnancy! Yes, I tend to be induced a little early, thanks to my last two VERY fast deliveries, and I like to know I’ll be IN the hospital when baby is born. It just feels good to me to have my babes in a controlled environment. To each their own 🙂 No judgement here! Usually, we all go into the appointments as a family, but we had a pretty rough start to the day this morning and we just knew it wasn’t a good day for it. For the last several days, no matter what Laela says, Dekker argues with her over it, or refutes her. Basically, its as though anytime she speaks, he figures she’s sucking the air out of the room. I’ve felt that way, and it feels awful. Therefore, we’re jumping on his behavior, trying to stop it fast, which results in lots of correction and even more tears. It just wasn’t a good morning to all be cramped in a small room while the kids were expected to sit quietly. Brady and I decided I’d go to my appointment myself and he’d take the kids to go fill up the van, grab coffees, etc.

The clinics waiting room was positively BURSTING with new moms and brand new fresh babies. It was SO sweet, and just made me more eager for my baby boy to be on the outside! All of the little honking newborn cries just made me ache to hold him!! But that’ll all be soon enough. I was called in pretty quickly, weighed, and then put into a room. The nurse who usually takes me back was so surprised that I didn’t have the fam with me, but I told her they were just a little temperamental this morning and she laughed and claimed to understand completely. As I waited in the exam room, I hear Dr. Guselle, rather than my student doctor, approaching, and she commented to someone that she was going to get some family time in with this next patient. I LOVE that she was actually anticipating seeing my kids, and felt a bit sad that I hadn’t brought everyone with me, but truly, it was a fantastic appointment, just she and I. We have such a good dynamic. I have missed her being my primary doctor this time around, and just sitting and chatting with her felt so normal and comfortable. As for the little details, all checks out. My BP is good, babys heart rate is good, he’s fully engaged, or “good and down” as we said, and measuring right on. We talked more about induction day and made some further plans on it. She informed me about when she is and isn’t on call, and then made some notes on my prenatal information sheet, which she then printed for me. And I WISH I could post pictures of it, but there’s too much to blur out. She wrote that she was to be called, regardless of the call schedule, and that I was to be considered a VIP 🙂 I laughed, and was also incredibly pleased, because honestly, why not? Part of me is embarrassed that I require some special treatment, but I love her, and I LOVE that she is willing to provide me with whatever I need to be as comfortable as possible. She then encouraged me a lot about how capable I am at delivering my kids, and that she was very pleased with how my demeanour is regarding delivery. “Where did the anxious mama go?” she asked. She knows how shaken up I was after Laela was born, and how nervous I was going into Rowan’s delivery. I love that she’s seen the progress I’ve worked and prayed so hard for. I feel ready. Prepared. And she knows I am, too.

After a few more pleasantries, and even a little chat about baby names, I was on my way. She teased me that I should feel free to hit the lights and just take a little rest before heading back to the family. “Tell them I was running behind, like usual,” she suggested. I laughed and said I’d go save my husband rather. It was an incredibly lovely appointment. It really couldn’t have gone smoother. What a fabulous woman.

Now, we’re home, and believe it or not, Brady is back at work for a bit of this afternoon. A couple of things came up that are his responsibility, so he’s ducked out to make a few small purchases and go do a small job or two on the house. He’ll likely go out tomorrow too, and possibly again! All of the little things are getting done, but there are still a few big things we’re waiting on. Today, the painter is back doing a second coat, but thats all I know of for sure. Still, progress! Always good to see!

Countertop Day!!!

I wish Brady could have been home today. I’m always sad when he ends up working a stat. Somehow it just feels like a big, boring day, when I know so many families are all together and mine is not. But if Brady had to work today, I’m so happy it was on our house, and I’m SO happy it was countertop day! Countertop day is a fantastic day!!!

Of course, I’ll start with the small stuff. The main bathroom vanity is probably the least exciting part of this, but even that looks just beautiful to me!

IMG_1246

 

Its a very standard unit with very standard tops, but to me, it looks like it could stay exactly the same forever and just be crisp and nice and exactly what we need. No frills, but just right. The drawers are nice and deep, so they’ll store lots, and its all just very classic, I’d say.

The next vanity is FAR more exciting! Its the one in our en suite, and guys, I can’t WAIT to get ready for my day in there!!

IMG_3655

 

So as you can see, its a nice long vanity with a super fun raised sink! Instead of a double sink, we got a big long sink with two faucets! So Brady and I can both use the sink, but sharing is caring 😉 I think its cute and corny. Beyond that is a makeup desk for me (YAY!) and lots and lots of drawer space. There is a surprising amount of storage in this unit, which I am grateful for.

Then…*deep sigh*…the kitchen. Are you ready?

IMG_7039

 

Whew. I know. Let’s just look at it for a second…

Its true. It really is that beautiful. The island top is now installed, as well as the other countertops, obviously. It is SO ready to be in operation, trust me. It told me when I went to visit it this afternoon. Now in this first picture, Brady hadn’t cut out the hole for the sink yet, but he did that later, and even dropped the sink in to please the plumbers. And I’m SO glad he did, because I am unreasonably enamoured with our kitchen sink!

IMG_7893

Ok, maybe it doesn’t look like much, but it is a BEAST! And it is amazing. Its cast iron, coated beautifully shiny white, and let’s just say that when I first picked it out, it weighed more than I do. Obviously not anymore, because babies and stuff, but it is a super beast, and I can’t wait to use it!!! Just think of how many small children I could bathe in this sink at once!!!

If you’re looking closely at the pictures, you’ll notice that a few little things here and there are missing. A drawer front, a few handles, etc. We know, we’re on it. I still think it all looks just about perfect. Seeing it all together makes me realize just how close we are to being done, and being moved in! It also makes me really happy with all of our choices. I feel like we’ve had to compromise on very little, yet we didn’t go vastly over our individual budgets for each area of the home. Yay for not having super expensive tastes, haha!

I’m done for the day. Sleepy, happy, overwhelmed, excited, fat, you name it, I feel it. Its been a good day, and I have a great week of positives ahead of me!

The Great Car Seat Debacle

Today was the day that Brady and I decided to install the baby’s car seat! I’ll be 38 weeks right away here and the plan is for induction around 39, so we figured we should make sure everyone is going to fit well, and that the kids had a chance to adjust to the new set up before baby makes his appearance. I’ve been researching like crazy, trying to see if there is a way to put three car seats across in our van, but the dang wheel wells made it a HUGE challenge! Everyone I asked said to replace our car seats with the Diono brand rather, because they’re some of the narrowest seats on the market. They are also some of the most expensive, and replacing all three convertible seats with Diono seats would have set us back around $1000. Also, after some easy research, we saw that our car seats are about 0.5″ wider than Diono, so for the sake of 1.5″, it was NOT worth the cost. Not even close.

We wanted to include the kids in the installation of the baby seat, so we brought them outside with us the first time. It was insane, to say the least. The all were in the van with us, Rowan was crying, Dekker and Laela were getting feisty, and we had all four car seats rolling around from place to place, taking up a ton of space. Our van is not that big, haha! It was absurd. We got some ideas, and came to terms with the fact that three convertible car seats was not going to fit across in the back. We decided to break for lunch and do some more research.

I started researching booster seats. Dekker would still be good in his convertible seat for another 25-ish pounds, but he does meet the qualifications for boosters, and it was suggested to me that booster seats are often slightly narrower than convertible seats. After extensive online research, it seemed like a booster might help, if not be our answer. So we decided to go for an afternoon shopping trip and see what we could find. Brady went back outside to reinstall the car seats and came back in with some extra info. He pointed out that the convertible seats are 18″ wide, but that the baby bucket was only 15″! That gave a LOT of hope. We got everyone ready fast, grabbed the bucket seat, and headed out!

At our first stop, we found what we felt could be the ideal booster seat for Dekker. Not only was it a nice affordable option, but it was a high back booster that had a seatbelt guide, came in a nice blue, and was available in store! Its actually kind of a shame that Laela is still so little and won’t need a booster for a while, because the pink one was cute too!

IMG_2326.JPG

(Yup, we were the parents that put our kids on the top shelf to test out the seats. Don’t judge.)

We bought the one blue one available, and headed back to the van to, yes, install it in the parking lot. We figured that, if it didn’t work, we’d go back in and return it right away, and then head on to our next place. We were determined to figure this out TODAY.

IMG_2327

So it was a bit of a clown car situation out there, haha! Once again, we were ALL in the van, and everyone was getting in each others space. However, Rowan was clipped into his seat, happy, so that helped a bit. We had the AC pumping and some music on. It also helped that Brady and I felt really hopeful that it would work. And sure enough, all three seats fit across in the back, with Dekker in his new booster!!!

IMG_2331

We knew it wasn’t a perfect set up, but we also knew that it was possible, so we beetled out of there and got some cookies and iced coffees on the way home.

When we did make it home, I freed Laela from her seat, and Brady brought Rowan in. I then went to unbuckle Dekker and, let me tell you, the struggle was REAL. I couldn’t figure it out! Finally, I realized we actually had to remove the baby seat first before being able to reach the buckle that was somehow within the bucket seat base. Basically, it was an enormous hassle. While we likely would pull baby out first anyway, it wasn’t a great set up. Brady and I sent the kids inside and did a bit more brainstorming. When we had a different direction to go in, I went inside to wrangle the kids and left Brady to his own devices in the van. And sure enough, our new plan worked 🙂

IMG_2336

IMG_2335

How fantastic is that??? We have Dekker in his booster in the back, Laela still in her convertible in the back, baby #4 in his bucket in the back, Rowan still rear facing in his convertible in the captains chair, and we’ll be able to leave that last captains chair folded into the floor so we have space to haul someone with us!!! We’ll have that floor space to make it easier for Brady or I to buckle the kids in, or to put groceries, or suitcases, or whatever else we need. Yes, it is a tight squeeze, and we will obviously be on the market for an upgraded vehicle sooner than later, but for the time being, we can make things work, and relatively comfortably at that!! I’m VERY happy with how the whole thing has turned out!

But let me tell you. We are TIRED! SO much figuring went into this whole thing, haha! And if we have another tank kid like Dekker, he could outgrow his bucket in a matter of 4-5 months. That will leave us back at square one, with a convertible seat that doesn’t fit in the back row. But if that happens, we’ll just crack out the last captains chairs and roll with it. This is good for now 🙂 I’m really really happy we found a way to make it work without compromising on the rules. Feeling successful!

Hair, Butcher Block, and Cuddles with Ro

Sorry in advance for the haphazard post about unrelated things, but at least all of the updates are from today! Does that count for anything? Hope so!

Brady had to work this morning. He didn’t have TONS to do, because he’s going to work Monday, but he went in today just for the morning in an effort to make absolute sure that Monday wouldn’t turn into a 12+ hour work day. The most exciting thing Brady has been working on is assembling our island top! I was very adamant that we have butcher block, but our island being 7′ long makes that complicated, since all prefabbed slabs are 6′. That left us buying two 6′ slabs and cutting them up, and reassembling them. This makes them run the less common way, vertical along the counter rather than horizontal. But he’s been working hard at getting everything smoothed out and glued well and I have to say, the slab is gorgeous. I’m SO excited for it to be my island!!

IMG_2302

Can you find the seam? Its NOT the one in the centre.
Can you find the seam? Its NOT the one in the centre.

Brady came home shortly before noon, bearing coffee, breakfast sandwiches, and hash browns for us. It was a delicious lunch! I got ready pretty quickly after that and headed out around 1:30 for my hair appointment at 2:00. I had one little touch up in between (just getting the side re-shaved) but otherwise, I haven’t hd the color redone since before Christmas!!! That is a LONG time for me, but the shaved part being brown makes my roots look a lot more reasonable, aaaaalmost intentional. But I was very excited to get it redone today. Since my natural color is so dark, it always takes a solid 2+ hours to get it all white blonde like I like, which means a nice stretch of away time, chatting with my hairstylist, getting pampered, and just not being “on” constantly. This time around, I didn’t make any major changes (Major Changes *salutes* Anyone? Anyone?!) I got the blonde redone, the side re-shaved, and the long hair was shaped and helped a little, but really, very little changed. I am loving the long side with the completely shaved side, so we’re going to keep rolling with it. At the end, when Carlinna styled it, I mentioned that I sometimes braid the front, and I hope to figure out a braid in the back eventually. She, of course, offered to braid the back, and it was probably 2.5 minutes later, she had put in a beautiful french braid. I wish I could always have it!!

IMG_2318

When I got home, Rowan was in a bit of a state. He had napped most of the time I was away, and had been fairly out of sorts since he had woken up, which is not normally the case with him. Brady said he was trying to cuddle him, but Ro would struggle to get down and then burst out crying the moment he was down. We’ve all been there :/ Its not an uncommon baby thing. But I scooped him up into the big recliner with me and he just morphed around my belly, tucked his fist under my boobs, and was still and silent. It was adorable. It felt good to be needed. After a nice ten or fifteen minute snuggle, he was off and happy to play.

IMG_2316

IMG_2312

Brady and I are both feeling decently wiped at this point, however. Our bodies know our Saturdays are usually different that this one, so we’re a bit sleepy. Looking forward to some lazy hours after the kids hit the sack. T-30 until bedtime routine begins!!

Another??

I’ll admit that I feel like the wind has been knocked out of me. After a bit of a difficult day yesterday with the build, today has been almost as frustrating, and I have spent the better part of today feeling discouraged. What I CAN say is that today has been better than yesterday! I’ve completed a few things on my list, which I really had to psych myself up for, but it feels good to have accomplished at least a couple of small things. I made some calls, scheduled a few things, and I did several days worth of dishes. SO thankful we’ll have a dishwasher again at our new place! Besides my small but relevant accomplishments, the kids slept in nicely, and I can tell they’re working hard to behave, as I’m rocking my emotions on my sleeve :/ I appreciate my kids so much. They are incredibly sensitive.

That being said, I hid from the kids for a little while and called my mom. I had a bit of a rant to her, which she handled so very gracefully, supportively, and prayerfully. What a relief it is to have a friend in my mom <3 She never once told me to just buck up and blow past everything. She let me feel how I feel and encouraged me to take my feelings to God. She’s basically a rockstar.

I was then blessed again, by a friend. Right when I got off the phone with my mom, I had a Facebook message waiting for me that made me feel excited and uplifted. Even though it was not directly related to me at all, hearing positive things just made me feel lighter.

While I’m not feeling 100% awesome today, I’m working hard to see the good in the day. It is Friday, after all! And tomorrow, I get to disappear for a couple of hours and get my hair redone! So I can look all fresh and new for when the baby comes. Because that is SOOOOON!!!!!

Not The Smoothest Day in Home Building

As the title suggests, it wasn’t our best day of news with our house. Brady DID have a great day working there. It DOES look fabulous inside. There IS still lots of progress. I AM still very happy we’re building a house. There is still lots and lots of good 🙂 Our kitchen sink came today, and its GORGEOUS!!! Exactly what I wanted and asked for. We discovered a miscommunication we had that can easily be fixed, which always feels wonderful! I was able to go pick up some drawer fronts in an effort to save on some delivery charges. I got an iced capp. I say again, there is lots of good on the build today.

We found out a few bummers along the way, though. Lots of our cabinet stuff still isn’t ready, and Brady was supposed to be done cabinets by tomorrow :/ Somehow, our information got lost in the shuffle (it has to happen sometimes, just sucks when its you) and no one had assembled our drawers for our vanities. We’re also missing a front or two, and all of the hardware. Its a bummer. Also, we discovered today just how much damage has been done to our railings already, and they cannot be stained or repaired too much, being that they’re already completely installed and surrounded by all forms of flooring, and lightly painted walls. Only so much can be done to repair those. And our garage pad. Sigh. I’m SO disappointed about that. In an effort to have the ground be as settled as possible, they plan was to pour it later on in the build. However, there is now even a chance we won’t have it before we move in, and once it is poured, whenever that is, we won’t be able to park in it for a month. A MONTH! I’m sooo disappointed about that 🙁 There were a few other things that felt like monstrous hits today, and at least speaking for myself, I feel a little bit discouraged. BUT!, not every day can be 100% happy, or awesome. Some days are just ho-hum. And really, today was NOT ho-hum AT ALL! I spent the afternoon at my moms with the kids! We ate delicious food and visited like we’ve been apart for weeks. Probably because we have been!! We talked about recent shops, baby stuff, pregnant stuff, doctor stuff, house stuff, trips, summer ideas, upcoming events, etc. My mom and I just gabbed and gabbed. We played with the kids and she read to them and snuggled with them and they all really got their fill of each other 🙂 After lunch, the kids were tuckered out and zoned a bit in front of some tv, and then we could really get a good chat in!

At the end of Brady’s work day, he came over and mom made an AMAZING supper, of which I ate THREE large helpings. Don’t judge me. It was that good. The kids ate pretty well too, and we all had a really nice time together. It was SO nice to all be back in each others company.

Our last thing we did together was go tour the house. Minus installing a few pieces of hardware that we are short, Brady has finished his second stage of finishing, lol! Doesn’t make a ton of sense, but his “finishing carpentry” stage of the build is now done. Tomorrow he’ll hopefully finish up cabinets and vanities, if the drawers are ready. We’ll still be short that one missing front, but you work with what you’ve got, right? Maybe he’ll even get our island top installed tomorrow?? That would be SO exciting!

IMG_2292.JPG

The place really looks awesome, though. We had a LOVELY day, and the kids stayed awake the whole drive home, so they’re very ready for bed. It sometimes makes for a sadder bedtime but then they fall asleep nice and fast, which is good. Its hard to stop playing when the day has been sooo dang good. I’m happy everyone is happy 🙂

But tonight calls for a bath and snacks for Brady and I, then some “Good Wife” and then to bed! So ready for all of the above mentioned things.

Busy as Bees

The kids and I spent the afternoon at Kims house, playing outside. They ate outside, played in the little lap pool, with the water table, in the sandbox, with the hose, with the toys, in the grass, etc etc etc. My kids had a riot, and were SOOO dirty by the end, hahaha! Dekker was probably the cleanest as usual, but Rowan was soak, his socks were FILTHY, and Laela was definitely the dirtiest, her legs covered in sand and purple freezie, her baby pink hat now grey. Worth it tho. Everyone got lots of sun and really seemed happy. All of our kids played well together, no scrapping or struggling. It was a big success. Kims youngest slept through most of it, but the rest of us enjoyed the outdoors today.

Around 4:00pm, Brady was done working for the day, and since he was working nearby at our house, he came over to help me load up the kids, just because he’s nice. Dekker had an absolute throw down, he was so sad to leave. Laela was very accepting, and did as she was told, which was nice. And Rowan was just happy to see daddy and unaware of pretty much everything else.

I expected everyone to crash on the drive home and sleep the short 20 minutes, but only Rowan slept, and it took a little while to get him there. So unfortunately, my kids were TRASHED once they got home. We put on a show so they could zone and rest a little bit, but I bailed for the evening, as Kim and I had some prearranged plans for a supper out and a quick little shop for a few camping things for her.

Brady texted shortly after I left about the debacle that was bathing the angry kids, and what a disaster his evening was. (For the record, he wasn’t trying to guilt me or anything, we just try to find humor in our kids sometimes) But I could reassure him that Kim and I were having a bit of a debacle ourselves, as her youngest son had come along with us and despite his 2.5 hour nap, was incredibly unhappy and would NOT have it. Any of it! We ended up getting our food packed up and took it to go. He finally gave into sleep in the stroller and we managed to limp through our shop with him waking and sleeping on and off. And I do mean limp. I was in a bit of a lame state of things right along with Ellijah. It was kind of a funny, messy, haphazard evening, but it worked, and we got what we needed to. I bought some nice tank tops and Kim got what she came for as well, snagging some groceries and a new Starbucks mug.

It didn’t last too long, however, and Kim is already on her way home. I’m home as well, and Brady has run a tub for me to soak in, so I’m going to go focus on THAT for a bit. Can’t wait! After such a good, but VERY busy day, I am ready to rest and call it an evening. I promise to show you pictures of Bradys work on our house very very soon! Tomorrow, second stage of finishing should be DONE!