Swimming and Floors

I'm a little late on the Memorial Day post, it's been a busy week. Thad started the long weekend by finishing the last bit of demo that needed to be done before the floors could be installed, so for the last week it's looked like a serious construction zone around here. On the plus side, I do not have to mop concrete.
Monday we gathered at the cemetery as usual with Thad's family. It was a much smaller group this year, but we had a great time as always.  Andi all set to head out.

Sammy and the traditional pilfered flag. We made some progress this year though, there were no screaming fits when we took the flag away, and we actually got it back in the right place!

The little group this year.

Then it was off to the Richards and straight into the pool.

After several hours of swimming and eating too much, we headed home for a rest before the next BBQ began that night.
Thursday Sam and Steve came over to help Thad set a couple rows of flooring and figure out exactly how to make this magic happen. Here's what the entry  looked like that night, with the new half wall Thad built.

And here is what things were looking like about noon today. It's moving along!

Changes

Saturday Thad went fishing with his dad and brought home "pets" for the kids. Meet Sally and Copper.

The kids tormented them all morning before church and then we put them in their new home, the pond. Well either they don't care for the pond, or they are really good at hiding, because we haven't seen them since. Pet failure!
I noticed after the pictures I posted of the crib paint job how bland the nursery was, so I decided the room needed some paint too. Only one wall, and I just happened to have some blue left from painting the wall in Sammy's old room. I've still got curtains to hang, and some "art" to put on the walls, but it's coming along.

This picture makes the letters look so crooked, but I swear they are straight!
It was time for the end of pregnancy hair chopping today. I don't know why, but with all three I have just had the urge to chop all my hair off. This time my excuse is that it's stinkin hot, and my hair is ridiculously heavy.  And this time around, after three and half years of growing it out, I had enough to donate to locks of love. 14 inches to be exact, I thought about posting a picture of the braided mass, but it just looked creepy. So here's a picture of the new do instead. Excuse the self portrait, but it was better than Andi's attempt.

Counting Down

The crib is done! I borrowed Thad's Dad's paint sprayer this week and got to work on priming/painting/clear coating the whole spindly thing. I may have a new callous on my hand. And I may have hijacked the kids swing set for a few days as my painting zone. Thad had this great idea to take the swings off and hang the crib pieces so I could paint all around each piece at once, instead of spray, wait, flip, spray, wait, move. It worked beautifully, and went so quickly I've been wondering why I paint anything by hand. I should have used the sprayer for the dresser too! Anyway, here are a couple before shots of the crib and dresser a few years ago when Sammy was using them.

And what they look like today!

Once I got all the bedding  on the whole nesting thing took over and I pulled out all the clothes and blankets for the first few months and washed them all and put them in drawers. I know I've still got ten weeks, but now I'm ready. Okay, maybe I still want to put something up on the walls, but the room is now habitable.
Speaking of almost there, I really haven't posted much about being pregnant this time around. I've been busy with other things, but I wanted to write a few things down to remember, especially since this time around has been a completely different experience. First difference, I had morning sickness this time which I didn't with the other two. It was more of a sporadic all day sickness, but not bad at all. I wasn't nauseous or anything all day, but I'd eat, and then a little while later it would all come back up. Really though, I actually prefer it to the horrible heart burn I had with the first two. And my heartburn this time around has been minimal, and only recently. Another huge difference, braxton hicks! I'd never felt them before, but this time I've had them since about week 22. Lately they are so sensitive. All I have to do is vacuum my house and they are in full swing to the point where I have to lay down on the couch till they go away. Lame. This kid has been camped out on my sciatic nerve since week ten. With the other two I'd get occasional twinges when I'd stand up too fast, but this time around anytime I sit or stand or bend or pretty much anything, I get a shooting pain. When I get out of the car it's like I'm totally gimpy because it takes me a few steps to straighten out and walk normally. So it will be nice to have that done soon. I have craved two things with this kid, fruit and chocolate. I actually e-mailed Thad one afternoon and told him he needed to let me know what he wanted for dinner because all I wanted was cantaloupe.And that's what I had. I don't know if it's because I'm a few years older now or what, but I get worn out easily these days. I get stuff done in the mornings, but by lunch time I am completely out of steam. Which wouldn't be so bad, but there are still two monkeys running around my house thrashing it, and I don't have the energy to even care. And then there is dinner to be cooked, we've been eating later and later these days. For the most part though I feel good, and just hope the next ten weeks fly by.

Camping Extravaganza

This weekend was the annual Father & Sons camp-out. Sammy was so excited all day Friday and walked around the house with his flashlight and backpack on, waiting for Daddy to get home. I wasn't there, but from the pictures and the little details I've picked up from Sammy he had a great time.

"I had smarshmellows"

 "I got an alamander!"

"There was a fire, and I slept in a tent wif Daddy!"

 "I fell off a big rock!" I guess after the photo was taken Thad kept telling him to stay off the rock, but of course he kept climbing it and ended up falling off the right side.

"I play wif flashlights wif Brody."

They came home filthy and smelly, which means it was a success. They also came home bearing mothers day gifts, Thad had flowers and Sammy had a cake. "Hey Mom, I found you a cake." And then he ran to the kitchen and got himself a fork and sat down.
 While the boys were gone Andi  and I had some girlie time. After dance we got ice cream and I let her pick any movie she wanted to watch. So we had a night of High School Musical(Yes, it's in my collection) and me answering all kinds of questions about it. Andi talks constantly during movies, and asks questions the entire time. The next day we had some errands to run, which she normally hates to do, but since this trip involved Jamba Juice and getting her toes done she was very cooperative. Once a year when the boys are gone we go get pedicures, and even thought Andi is still really young I figure once a year will not spoil her too much. I was a bit surprised when I walked in to the nail place over on our new side of town and saw all kinds of little girls there with their mommies, and two child size pedicure chairs. What?! People take their little ones to do this on a regular basis?!  And you could tell these 5 year olds were regulars. Andi was all nervous and sat right by me, and these other girls were wandering around picking out different paint colors, totally at home. Weird.
That night Thad decided that since Andi had not been able to go camping they would all camp out in the backyard. So we let them stay up late and chase frogs in the backyard. We discovered a few nights ago that there are a bunch of them back there that come out to play at night.

These kids are scared to death of insects. Anything with lots of legs or wings sends them running away screaming, and forget trying to get them to hold a rolly-polly. But apparently frogs are no big deal. They each caught about 8 before we called it a night and made them wash their hands.

I participated in the camp-out long enough to read bedtime stories, then Mommy went inside ;)

Sunday was mothers day and it was a very nice relaxing day. My parent's were out of town again, it's their new tradition I think. But we had dinner with Thad's family and I ate way too much cake. But it was from Jake's Tex-mex, I couldn't help myself!

San Diego

Thad had a conference in San Diego last week and the kids and I decided to tag along. I wasn't sure how we'd do sleeping in the same room for several nights, and then just having me to navigate SD and entertain the kids while Thad was in meetings all day. But we had a great time. We spent a lot of time at Balboa park, and the hotel pool. Not that it was warm enough to swim, but it had a hot tub so the kids ran back and forth between the "hot pool" and "cold pool" and managed to spend a couple hours there in the afternoons. Balboa park was really cool and we barely scratched the surface. I'd like to go there with no kids and enjoy some of the museums we missed. We did visit the science center, which was  a pretty sweet discovery zone for the kids, and we caught a puppet show one morning. They actually have a little theater solely for the purpose of a twice daily puppet show.

Headed into the park.

Posing with some "art" on the way to the puppet show.

Sammy stopped at every single fire hydrant we saw and wanted me to take his picture with it. I have no idea why.

We had some company during our picnic lunch in the park. This guy ate right out of Sammy's hand!

The cube tower of death at the science center. This thing is cool for maybe two kids at a time, but there were field trips going on and like 20 kids all over and in it. Madness.

On our way out of town Friday we stopped at the temple so the kids could have a look around. Andi was impressed with the size of Angel Moroni. "He looks so small in my picture." Then she spent the next half hour singing I love to see the temple and doing her best Jackie Evancho impersonation. If you don't know who Jackie is, google her, and then imagine Andi trying to sing like her ;)

Friday we left SD and drove up to meet my mom's family at Camp Pendleton and spend a couple days on the beach. We used to camp there as kids with my moms side of the family, and it was pretty much exactly like I remember. I have no pictures of the day and half we were there, but a good time was had by all. The kids finally got some beach time in with Daddy, they got to make smores, and fly kites, and chase/try to trap  a rabbit around our site.
Sammy was very social this week, especially at the pool with every stranger who walked in. "Hey, you going to swim wif us?" "Where's your swim suit?" "I'm Sammy, I'm ten." He's decided he's really big now so he's not three anymore, he's ten. He also had us cracking up as we came back in from the beach Saturday afternoon. We walked by two teenage girls in bikinis and Sammy stops and grins at them and say's, "Hey, you all naked," Then continues watching them walk away. Little creeper.
It was a nice week, but I was very glad to be back in my own bed with the kids in their own rooms by Saturday night. Today we are anxiously awaiting the arrival and our wood flooring! Of course we have a million feet of baseboard to take off the walls, and carpet and tile to remove before the floor can actually be put in, but I'm just so excited it's almost here!

Nursery Progress

Slowly but surely we are getting there! This week Thad was out of town for a few days so I used the evening time to work on refinishing the old dresser/changing table. This is a bit of a family heirloom. My Aunt used it with her two boys, who are both in their twenties now, and I used it with Andi and Sammy. Because I didn't buy it I hesitated painting it, but I finally did it this time around and I think it looks great. The crib will be painted to match as soon as we get a hold of a sprayer and Thad has some spare time. Here is the before, back when it was in Sammy's nursery.

And here is it today, awaiting a new changing pad for the top. Better yes?

Bedding

Well the crib bedding is done. It is a bit wrinkled in the picture because it had just come out of the dryer, and it's not displayed properly on a crib because I haven't painted and set it up yet, but at least the bedding is done!

There is a dark brown skirt to go with it, and tan sheets. The crib and dresser are going to be Ivory and I'm so excited for the finished product. I also love that this bedding was 100 % free. I didn't even have to buy batting for the bumper pads because I had a bunch of left-overs from random projects.

I had a 31 party last night (http://www.mythirtyone.com/CallieClanahan-Horn/), which was a lot of fun. Mostly it was a great excuse to have friends over to the new house, and we all got some super cute purses as a bonus! Here is Andi at the end of the night modeling all of the bags and totes at once.

We are still on the name hunt for this baby boy. But now it's down to the middle name. It's making me crazy that we haven't decided yet!

Snow Day

So we've had rain pretty much all week, which made the kids a little stir crazy. And this weekend we had a ton of little things to check off our list, like oil changes, and a few last minute fixes to the old house to get it ready for out renters to move in. But we took a few hours to drive up the canyon to find some of the new snow that they got this week. It was totally weird to be playing in the snow in April, we should have been playing in the pool! This was Sammy's first time in the snow and he had a great time. Of course our last minute decision to go meant the kids had no snow cloths that fit, but we made due and they lasted a good hour before they were cold and wet enough to get back in the car.

Eating some snow.

Building a snow man/eating snow.

Andi's sad/scary one eyed snow man.

Mid crash. Sammy fell off already and is back in the trail.

Sledding with Daddy. You can't see him, but Sammy is squished in there between Thad and Andi.

It was a quick trip, but a nice little break from all the work we've been doing around here. I'm almost done with the crib bedding. Then all I have to do is get the crib and dresser painted and we can get the nursery put together.

Easter Fun

This has been one big Easter party week. Monday I took the kids to a play group Easter party, where they made bunny ear hats and got their faces painted like bunnies. Tuesday we had an Easter princess picnic in the park with friends from Andi's dance class. They both came home with baskets overflowing with candy eggs. Wednesday we had some friends over to play. And no, of course I did not take pictures of any of these things. The weekend was dedicated to tidying up the yard and house because we hosted both sides of our family for Easter dinner. For the first time ever we had room for all 15 adults and 9 kids to eat inside the house! But let's back up. Sunday morning the kids enjoyed their egg hunt before church, followed by waffles and a little bit of candy.   I don't know what's going on with their weird smiles.

We enjoyed church, and Thad gave a wonderful talk on the atonement.

Then it was back home to finish chopping up all the salads for dinner. I know Easter dinner is traditionally ham and potatoes, but the thought of that was making this pregnant lady want to vomit. Thad of course wanted to BBQ tri-tip, but even that sounded yucky. So I made the most delicious chicken Waldorf sandwiches, with a broccoli salad, and fruit creme salad, and a spinach and strawberry poppy-seed salad. Totally hit the spot, and even the boys didn't notice the lack of meat too much. Then we had another egg hunt with the cousins. I did manage to take a picture of the kids enjoying their spoils. The rest of the evening was spent between croquet, bocce, and eating brownies and ice cream.

In non Easter related activities, I made Sammy a new quilt this week. It is probably my least favorite quilt I've made, and if I had my way it would have gone a totally different direction, but Sammy has been begging for more color in his room. You may think that weird, but really, the 3 year old was running around the fabric store picking out every neon striped multicolored fabric he could find. Then Andi found some fabric with rocket ships on it and he was in love, but he still wanted "rainbows" on it too, so I found some striped fabric with the same colors and he loved it. Like I said, I don't love it, but when I put it on his bed he got the biggest smile on his face and said "wow, it's all rainbowed!" and he keeps going in his room to look at it. So he loves it and I guess that's more important than my original room decor plan.

But since I loved his old quilt so much, and it really is not that old, and since I can't seem to find nursery fabric that I like; this weeks project will be to disassemble his old quilt, and re-assemble it into a crib quilt and bumper pads.

Moving Right Along

We are still moving along with projects around here. I painted Sammy's bookcase a couple of weeks ago, and last week finally found a dresser for his room, so that got painted too.  Here is what that corner of his room looked like a few weeks ago.

And here is the $20 Craigslist dresser I found to replace that sad little stack of rubbermaid drawers that his clothes are too big to fit in.

Ya, it needed some help. So here's that area of his room now.  It's coming together.

Thad also jumped up in the attic to run some wires for the TV and internet, so we no longer have them dangling down the wall from behind the TV which is super nice.  I had to get a picture of his attic gear, this is serious business.

I have been slowly working on painting the dining room, and this weekend we finally got the painting done. We still need to add the chair rail and the trim boxes that are going on the bottom area of the wall, but the trim can't go up till the new floors are in because we are going to have to move baseboards and all that fun stuff. For now though, I love the contrast and if I squint I can see the finished product.

Thad also started putting the swing set back together this weekend. He got the tower section with the ladder and slide back up, and hopefully by next weekend we'll have swings and monkey bars as well.  He managed to get a nice sun burn on his back while working on that project so the kids have had to do without some of their rough housing time with Daddy. Andi tried to give Sammy a horsey ride in his stead, but Sam climbed on and she couldn't move. I think he might outweigh her at this point.

We did relax on Sunday and enjoy conference. The kids actually did pretty well this time, and we only had to send them away for the last half of the second session. Big improvement. Now to enjoy a party filled, school work-less spring break week.