It's a Spring Thing!

{Flashback} Knox: 1 Month!

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Sun, 13 Apr 2014 16:51:00 +0000

Ok, going back a few months :) I wrote this on time but didn't get the pictures posted. So here goes :) Note that he is now actually almost 4 months old. Poor, poor second baby!

Knox Joseph, you are a month old! You are so easy so far-- I think we know what's going on a little better too. And we get easily distracted by a little 2 year old wild man that we also run after. But you are a little rock star who just hangs out in your swing. We love you.

At your one month appointment, you weighed 10 lbs 8 ounces (up from 9lbs 5 ounces at birth). The doctor said you are doing great!

You eat between 6 and 8 ounces when you take a bottle. You are a pretty good sleeper-- you easily fell into a 4 hours schedule (eating at 6am, 10am, and 2pm in the day; then roughly 6pm, 10pm, and 2am). You have gone some longer stretches and I am so thankful for that.

Is it inappropriate to say that you are a gassy, pooping machine?? I have never seen anything like it. You cannot stand to have a single burp left in your belly. You cannot relax til you get it all out. And you poop so so so much! I'm going to go broke buying diapers for you!

You are very tolerant of your big brother's loving. You have your fussy time in the evenings-- usually while are trying to eat dinner! But we make it work. You wake up every morning and accompany me to drop Jake off at school. The teachers and the babies in Jake's class make a big fuss over you every morning.

We are going to take a picture each month with the big teddy bear, so we can compare you to your brother. But I wanted you to have your own thing, too... so you will also take a picture on your back. I also learned my lesson with Jake-- rocking chairs are not so good for babies on the move. It was great at first, but pretty treacherous after a few months. So I'm hoping this method proves a little safer!

A comparison (Jake, top; Knox, bottom):

Jake's 2nd Birthday Party

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Thu, 20 Mar 2014 12:52:00 +0000

Still catching up! Here's an oldie!

In all the commotion of waiting for baby, Jake celebrated his second birthday. About eight different times. But the true, formal celebration happened on the Saturday before Christmas. Knowing I would likely not make it to January as a pregnant woman, I wanted to get the birthday party out of the way so I wouldn't have to miss it.

We had it a place-- not at our house. It was awesome. No cleaning before or after. Just show up, party, and leave. We chose the Monkey Room-- an indoor playground in New Orleans. What I liked about this place is that the party room adjoins the play area-- so you don't have to stop playing and move the whole operation to a separate area when it's time to eat and sing. Since I knew we would have a lot of adults, I wanted this setup so that the adults could snack and mingle while kids played. It was perfect.

Here's a Momma with a big ol belly and some friends!

Family all the way from New York! And of course, one of Jake's favorite playmates, Cindy!

And more friends!

I was so lucky to have my friend Angie make the most awesome Elmo cake for this Elmo-themed party. Seriously, how awesome is this cake???

All of Jake's friends and family were there! Everyone had so much fun playing-- especially the birthday boy. He was nonstop-- up and down and all around that place!

When it came time to sing happy birthday, he got a little overwhelmed. I don't think he realized what being the birthday boy meant-- he was unprepared for the whole party to sing to him. And he was completely uninterested in eating cake, pizza, or anything. He just wanted to play! And the birthday boy gets his way, so we let him play!

He even got to go down the slides with his Great Grandparents! Here's Nonie (left) sliding!

What a great day, full of great memories!

Knox's Birth Story

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Thu, 13 Mar 2014 19:01:00 +0000

I wrote this several weeks ago while it was fresh in my mind. Between the tiredness of a new baby and my dern numb hands (pregnancy carpal tunnel that started around Christmas is only now starting to get better), I just couldn't get the words and photos all together to start posting. Luckily, when it came to the birth, I had my good friend Kristy there to photography. So this my story and her pictures. Don't worry-- she stood behind my head and claims she did not see anything that would negatively affect our friendship.

Knox's Birth Story

It's amazing to me how similar two births of brothers can be. The timeline was uncanny. Jake was due on a Friday; Knox was due on a Friday. I began real labor on a Monday for Jake; same for Knox. Late that Monday night, around 11pm, I announced to Chris that it was time to go-- for both Jake & Knox. I was exactly 38 weeks and 3 days when I went into labor for both boys. How is that possible? My body knows what it wants!

Knox's story actually begins on Sunday, December 29. My goal was to have him on Saturday, December 28, but he did not agree. On Saturday, nothing much was happening, save a few contractions. On Sunday, I knew we were getting close. I was having very few contractions, but I could just feel it. Chris went to the Saints game; Jake and I visited both of his grandmothers during the game. I made a few comments that I thought the next day might be it.

Because of my numb hands, I wasn't able to sleep very well Sunday night. I woke up at 3am and could not get comfortable. I was wide awake, so I went downstairs to watch TV. This NEVER happens. I sleep all night, every night. Without fail. No matter the circumstance. Except when I have a tiny baby, but that hadn't happened just yet. Something was just not right. I began to notice the contractions were coming more often, so I downloaded and began to use a contraction timer. For the three hours I was awake, they were 13-14 minutes apart. Nothing to be alarmed about, but pretty consistent.

As a result of being awake for three hours in the middle of the night, I was pretty tired on Monday. My mom came to get Jake just in case. At the very least, I figured I could get some rest. But more likely, he was leaving me until his little brother was born. We packed him up for a few days and kissed our only child goodbye. I rested during the day, and timed contractions from time to time. My friend Emily was still in town for the holidays, so we made plans to go to dinner with Rebecca. I needed a distraction and it was a great chance to visit without having babies and husbands around. During dinner, they were getting closer together-- more like 7 to 8 minutes apart.

After dinner, I got comfy in my bed; Chris was passed out on the sofa watching TV. Around 11pm, they suddenly jumped to 4 minutes apart. GO TIME! We, once again, grabbed our bags, cameras, laptops, etc. and headed to the hospital. By the time they got me hooked up, the contractions were 3 minutes apart and getting strong. They checked me and said I was only 3cm dilated (but 80% effaced). After 4 agonizing hours, where my contractions got to 1 minute apart, I was still only 3cm dilated. I was afraid they would send me home and I'd have the baby in the parking lot. Or at my house. Or I'd get back to the hospital and it would be too late for an epidural. I was near tears-- not from the pain, but from the fear of this not going as I had planned. I made it to 6 centimeters with Jake before I even got an epidural; and this time, 3 cm felt worse!

Fortunately the nurses said the magic words-- "We're going to call the doctor on call and ask him what we should do." I asked them to make sure they told the doctor on call the patient's name... because the doctor on call happened to be my uncle! And the doctor on call did not suggest they send me home; rather he suggested the start the pitocin. And the nurse suggested to me that I get the epidural going before I got the pitocin. My contractions had slowed down and weakened considerably by this point. And at around 5am, I got an IV (after 4 failed attempts) and an epidural. And after about 1 drop of pitocin, I looked over on the monitor and those contractions were off the charts (so glad I listened about the epidural!). By the time my doctor came about 3 hours later, I was ready. He had me labor down for a bit while he saw a few patients with appointments at his office.

By now it was New Years Eve-- an odd time to be in the hospital! The doctor came back a little before 11. The room had been readied. Family had arrived. It was time to meet the new baby!

I started pushing at 11:03.

And at 11:07, Knox was born.

9 lbs 5 oz. 21.5 inches long. Absolutely perfect.

They put him on my chest right away-- this was different than Jake's birth. Then they cleaned him up.

Our new addition!

We called our family in so they could see him being measured and weighed.

It was all so surreal and perfect. I get emotional just typing this up!!

Here are a few more photos that I just love...

If you think the second baby is any less exciting than the first, look at this paparazzi moment. You are loved, baby Knox :)

Chris having fun with our L&D nurse right before the big event:

They said I couldn't drink water while I was in labor. Absolutely killer. I drink and drink all day long. So the second the delivery was over, I had Chris bring me my beloved water bottle.

My mom and her baby and my baby.

Baby Knox's fan club.

He's Here!

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Wed, 12 Mar 2014 21:18:00 +0000

Hey Knox! Looking goooood!!

You know what this means... I'm back. Or, I'm trying to be back. I have so many posts written that lack pictures. And now I have pictures that lack posts. I'm getting there.

I want to remember all the sweet moments of Knox as a baby, like I have for Jake. I go back all the time and read what I wrote back then. And now I'm going back to compare Knox to Jake. So stay tuned-- we'll be discussing birthday parties, Christmas & other holidays, Knox's birth story and much much more!

Even if there's no one still reading this blog... I'll have it for me :)

TWO!

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Fri, 03 Jan 2014 11:00:00 +0000

Happy Birthday to my baby boy. I cannot believe he is TWO. Best two years ever. This funny, sweet, loving little boy has brought us so much joy. Slow down, time. I don't want this baby to get too big too fast!!!

Photos in the Park

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Mon, 30 Dec 2013 11:00:00 +0000

We had a cute little family photo shoot to capture our family of 3 (and capture Jake at nearly 2) (and make a Christmas card). It was a gorgeous day at Audubon Park. Got some great shots of my Jakey. Some we used for the Christmas card. Here are a few other ones that I just had to share :)

And look at this little (big) baby we brought along with us!

This is his serious look. And I love it.

The wild man with the wild hair.

Done with this photoshoot! See you later, Momma!

We shared the session with our best friends, The Millers. Look how cute we all are :)

Waiting for Baby

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Sat, 28 Dec 2013 11:00:00 +0000

We are about to become a family of FOUR. I can't believe it. I can't believe I abandoned my blog for all these months. I gotta tell you, being pregnant and wrangling a toddler is exhausting. I kind of gave up on posting. But then I got to reminiscing about Jake's first year, and I'm so glad I posted each month and I want to do that again. So I'm trying to right the ship.

This pregnancy has been great. Very similar to my one with Jake. I feel like, aside from my back bothering me in the evenings, my energy has been great. There is definitely less time to rest when you have to make lunches and wash uniforms! I have gained about the same as last time (maybe a few extra lbs but not too bad). I think we have another chunky monkey on board. We'll see in a few days!

We are all ready around here. We kept the nursery mostly the same, but made a big boy room for the two boys to share later on. I'll get some pics of that soon :) We have everything washed, folded, assembled, etc. Babies require a lot of stuff, but I'm glad I have another boy coming and that most of my stuff is pretty gender neutral and classic anyway. So it all still works. I did get a new diaper bag :) Trends change, people!

Well, stay tuned. We are anxiously awaiting his arrival! Come on baby!

Merry Christmas! 2013

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Fri, 27 Dec 2013 00:59:00 +0000

Merry Christmas (one day late)! I know it's been a while, but I'm going to catch you up really soon!

A Second Spring Thing!

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Fri, 23 Aug 2013 19:48:00 +0000

We are excited to announce that we'll be welcoming another Spring Thing into our family in January! Yes, Jake will be a big brother. And the new baby, as it turns out, will be a baby brother :)

Two boys-- I hardly know what to do with this information. I grew up with all girls. It's what I ~~know~~ knew. But I love my Jakey, and I love that he is a boy. And I love that he will have a brother close in age. Very close in age-- just 2 years apart, almost (hopefully not exactly) to the day. And I have definitely learned what it means to be the mother of a boy. At least so far. I have many more days of mud and dirty hands and playing trucks and trains and going outside (ew) in my future for sure!

So how about we meet the new fellow??

This picture is very old in gestational time. It's from around 14 weeks. But at our 19 week ultrasound last week, the pictures I took home were not as easily identifiable (and Aunt Cindy has a hard enough time deciphering ultrasound photos). They were of his face looking towards the front of the image. So it's kind of hard to tell what you are looking at.

And this is the day (at almost 14 weeks) that we, very early and surprisingly, learned that our new baby was a he. We figured we'd take a look, and boy oh boy, it was clearly a boy!

But everything looked great in both visits. He was moving around waaaay more than Jake ever did. It's the best feeling in the world to see that baby on the ultrasound. We were immediately thankful and amazed at the miracle inside my growing belly.

I have been asked by many if this was a surprise baby...well, no. Very planned. Our difficulties the last time were overcome this time by repeating the same treatment that led to the best little baby I could ever imagine. If it ain't broke, don't fix it! And what we learned this time is that we can save ourselves a lot of time, stress, and heartache by putting it in the hands of the experts! So that is the going forward plan if there are future Spring babies to be had. But let's get through this one first!

The timing of that early ultrasound allowed us to learn the sex of the baby without arousing much suspicion. So I decided to try to surprise our families with the news. No parties this time-- we decided to use the good old postal service.

We sent this card out:

When one of your best friends is a photographer and happens to have a studio (and a delicious Mexican restaurant nearby), you can make an excuse to drive 30 minutes, snap a single picture, eat some Mexican food, and pop this sucker in the mail. Which is pretty much how it all went down.

Though everyone was certain we were going to have a girl this time around, they all welcomed the news of another baby boy. Now the big question is-- will he be rocking that gorgeous black hair that Jake was born with?? Could it be a blonde baby? We'll see in a few months!!

I'm due on January 10. I went into labor 11 days early with Jake. So this could be a December or January baby, I suppose. A Christmas or New Years baby, too. But hopefully he will pick a nice day, not right on a holiday or his brother's birthday! We'll be happy to meet him whenever he decides the time is right-- I will defer to his expertise in this case. But after that, he better start listening to me!

Happy Belated Birthday, 'Merica.

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Sun, 18 Aug 2013 10:30:00 +0000

We had a great, low key July 4th celebration at our house. We were joined by our good friend Jonathan, who is Jake's godfather. We did lots of cooking, and subsequently lots of eating.

I made a trip to Houma for work, and along the way, stopped at a roadside produce stand. I picked up several things, and on the Fourth, we cooked most of them.

First, I got a few eggplants and creole tomatoes. I sliced the eggplant, brushed it with oil, and roasted them in the oven. Then I sliced creole tomatoes and mozarella, and stacked it all up. Topped with some fresh basil, and baked it til the cheese melted. Delish!

With the rest of the creole tomatoes, I made this DELICIOUS recipe from my friend Elizabeth's cooking blog. Make this now. I ate a substantial amount of the dressing with a spoon. It has cucumbers in it-- so it's like a mini salad. Right??

I cut up some potatoes, tossed them with some herbs and oil, and baked them to make fries. They were delish.

We grilled steaks. I ate about 2 bites of steak. I had filled up on the sides. On the lower right were portobellos that Jonathan marinated. And jalapenos from his garden.

We also had some sausage that Jonathan picked up in Cajun Country. Chicken and pork. It was awesome.

And if that wasn't enough, we also had dessert. I wanted to do something with strawberries and blueberries, both because they are delicious and because they make any dessert look patriotic.

I loosely used this recipe from Cooking Light. The main difference was that I used prepared pie crust because I am lazy. It was delicious and worth it. I'm not sure how to avoid this, but the juices from the berries flooded the container. This happens to me every time I try to bake a pastry with fruit. But being that it was just for us, I wasn't worried about the presentation. The taste was perfect. I did use the turbinado sugar, which required Chris to visit two different grocery stores right before lunch. But it was totally worth it. The crispiness of the sugar, even after baking was just right.

Mmm. Happy Birthday, America.

And what good's a post without a Jake? So here's the baby American enjoying his snacks while I cooked.

Blurred Images (Not Lines)

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Fri, 16 Aug 2013 10:30:00 +0000

This is the sweetest, funniest kid I know.

His little personality is really shining through these days. He is so happy. I think that is what most people notice about him. Even when he pushes the limits and has to get punished, he is smiling and happy about it. It makes my job kind of hard!

He never stops moving. Never. That's why all of my pictures are blurry, like this one! He rarely sits. He does not fall asleep playing. He does not watch TV. He moves. All. Day. Long.

More blurry pictures. But that's all I had! It was a beautiful day, and we tried to get some good pictures.

Here's a blurry picture of a boy and his dog. Boy has their relationship changed. Harry used to be so interested in Jake. And Jake would be annoyed by him all of the time. Now, the tables have turned. With a vengeance. Jake is all up in Harry's business and Harry is now the one annoyed. They are slowly starting to play together more. But it's a slow process. I think it will happen one day.

Kiawah 2013: Beach Trip #1! (Continued)

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Wed, 14 Aug 2013 10:30:00 +0000

Kiawah 2013: Beach Trip #1!

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Mon, 12 Aug 2013 15:22:00 +0000

I haven't been the best blogger. It's not that I don't have things to say. Or that I'm not taking pictures with the sole intention of blogging them for you; it's just that I'm having trouble finding time to get them ready and write up my posts! I will try to catch up :)

Now that we have completed our second beach trip of the Summer, I'm realizing I haven't even written about the first one. So that means we're going way back to June. Oy.

We had a great vacation. But I didn't use either of the two real cameras I brought with me. I only used my phone. So here is what Instagram observed of our trip to Kiawah Island, SC, this year.

1. This is pre-trip. It's just a Mommy/Baby selfie. He likes seeing himself on the phone screen.

2. Pre-trip pool practice. We joined a swim club near our house. Jakey loves to swim in the pool. But what he really loves are the snack breaks you take during 10 Minute Break. This day, it was cheese puffs he shared with his friend Rex. It's great to eat them at the pool, where you can be promptly rinsed off before touching anything important.

3. Pre-trip hair cut! Had to get those curly locks trimmed. Thought he might look like he had a mullet on the beach if we didn't.

4. First plane ride! Cousin Maddie flew with us. He was very good. We had the pacifier and lovey in hand in case he needed comforting. But mostly on his first plane ride, he wanted to chat, play, and look around. Oh, and bother the people sitting around us, of course.

5. Second plane ride... I guess the excitement of the first one led to exhaustion. He looked out the window for take off and was lulled into a deep sleep. Unfortunately this trip was only 30 short minutes. But we were thankful for the easy flight!

6. First day on the beach this time around. Last year, he liked the beach, but he wasn't sitting up that well and it was hot and the sand was a little bit aggravating to him. This year was a whole new ballgame. He looooved the sand. he loooooved the water. He thought the sand and water tasted GREAT. He liked rolling in the sand and rubbing it all over his body.

7. First bike ride of the trip! We love our bike seat, and Jakey loves it too. I got to take him on his first bike ride right away.

8. Lunch in Fresh Fields Village. We snuck away to get some golf supplies for Daddy, and ended up grabbing a bite to eat. He got to use a to-go cup, because we forgot his sippy cup. He loves when that happens. We don't.

9. The splash park. We got to the Splash Park right when it opened. In fact, a few minutes before the big opening. We were waiting outside this gate and he could see the pool. He kept looking at me, pitifully, as if he thought I could magically make it open. Moms have a lot of power it seems.

More pics to come... but you'll have to wait for the next post!

Jake: 18 Months!

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Mon, 15 Jul 2013 03:13:00 +0000

It's hard to believe Jake is already 18 months! But he is! And he is looking and acting soooo big!

He knows so many words. His favorites are ball, outside, all done, eat, more, up, Dada, Mama, Chlo-Chlo (Chloe - the cat), uh oh, apple, eyes, please, and done.

He knows all of his animal sounds, and does motions for the ones we aren't sure about the sounds (alligator, elephant, etc.).

He is so helpful-- we send him on little errands. Bring the book to Daddy. Bring your cup to Mommy. He loves doing his chores :)

The outside obsession continues. All day, every day. All he wants to do is go outside. He likes to pull the wagon, ride in the wagon, run, jump, play with his toys. Play with sidewalk chalk. Throw balls. Walk. He has a little puppy dog toy on a string that he walks up and down the sidewalk. And he likes dirt. He's a legit boy.

Inside, he likes to build legos. He looooves stacking toys-- he has several. We stack them high and he knocks them down. Over and over again. He has lots of moves, too-- sometimes he knocks them down with his hands. Sometimes with his feet. Sometimes he backs into them and swings his hands. You just never know what move you will get.

He still loves his indoor slide. Up and down. Now he brings special toys up to the top and watches them go down the slide. It's an elevated status for a toy to get sent down the slide.

This kid is cracking us up all day every day. We spend most of our time at home just sitting there watching him, being amazed at every little thing he does. He's perfectly spoiled rotten. We love him so much :)

Jakey-- slow it down, bud! These last 18 months have flown by!! But we love this moment in time, and wouldn't trade it for anything.

Instant Replay: Our Instagram Life 5!

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Mon, 24 Jun 2013 10:30:00 +0000

And we're back! With another Instagram Roundup!

a. Jake's school has these strollers that seat six babies. Jake LOVES it. His teachers told me that if he isn't the first baby to be picked up and put in the stroller, he gets upset and thinks he is being left behind. Now, that has never happened-- they take them all every time, but he's rotten and has anxiety about everyone going outside without him! This picture was sent to me by his teacher on a day when I was out of town for work. Totally brightened my day.

b. Poor sick Jakey. We don't get too much snuggling from him anymore. But when he's sick, he likes to be extra snuggly. So while we don't ever wish for him to be sick, we do know it comes with a few perks.

c. I made these zucchini muffins for Chris & Jake. They loved them. They did't even have any sugar in them, but the boys ate them up (the big boy may have eaten more than his fair share!).

d. Here's the little boy gobbling up his muffin. Love when they don't know it's healthy :)

e. This is the little man helping me out at work. Towards the end of his several day illness back in April, I brought him to work with me for a few hours. I gave him a pen and an engineering drawing, and he got to work! Good little helper. Future engineer??

f. Baby & Daddy footprints while playing in the puddles.

g. A glimpse of my future! We got trapped in the car while we waited for the rain to break, so I let Jake hop in the front seat. He knew just what to do! I found that fascinating, because his seat faces the rear still. So how does he know what driving looks like? Or was it just instinct???

h. Chowing down on some goldfish while I push him around in his stroller. These snack cups can keep him occupied for soooo long! Genius!

i. Playing in the grass! We love the warm weather and playing outside!

Little Sister Gets Graduated!

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Sat, 22 Jun 2013 20:10:00 +0000

This is a little late, but I've been a little lazy.

Baby Sister graduated from college! With a Bachelor of Science in Biology! (I happen to think a BS is the best degree :) It's hard to believe-- sometimes, I still think of her as that little kid watching Spice World (the Spice Girls movie) in the other room while I had my friends over in the den. But she's not a little girl! She's a big ol' college graduate!

I accompanied the parentals to see this momentous occasion.

My dad was thrilled to wake up early and drive all the way to Baton Rouge.

He was very proud of his baby girl :)

This is THE moment of degree conferral!

Congrats Kacki! On to the next adventure!!

Instant Replay: Our Instagram Life 4

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Wed, 29 May 2013 02:20:00 +0000

Well, here we go again! Instagram remains the easiest way for me to share photos! So here are a few for you!

a. Awww.... so much snuggling going on in my bed. There is hardly room in there for me! I hope you see three snugglers in there! A cat, a husband, and a baby puppy.

b. This face. Post-bangs trim. I can't bare to give him a real hair cut, but his hair was totally covering his eyes, so we gave it a trim. They grew out nicely. Now he needs another trim. But I am too nervous to do it again!

c. Not oysters-- these are actually cute little potatoes that made for some delicious mini twice-baked potatoes for Easter. Everything is yummier in bite sized :)

d. Easter baby! His basket was kind of lame (a fork and spoon, peeps, and Goldfish. But he loved it nonetheless!

e. Family picture (still on Easter)-- we don't take nearly enough of these!

f. This ham was taking all kinds of cute pictures on Easter. This is in an old rocking chair at his grandmother's house.

g. And he hammed it up at his other Granny's house in this car. It's his favorite now every time he visits!

h. Trey & Katie are MARRIED! These gorgeous friends are also our neighbors! So excited we got to share their special day :)

i. While Trey & Katie were getting married-- Jakey was getting bathed. And he was not all that pleased, as you can tell. It seems the bubbles scared him (?), and his Granny tried to get the bubbles out of the tub quickly, but it wouldn't work. Poor baby.

Home Improvement

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Sun, 19 May 2013 10:30:00 +0000

We've got big happenings over here at Casa del Spring!

Please meet our embarrassing, dilapidated carport.

Not only is it run down looking, but it also features a ridiculous low ceiling, a non-functioning garage door, a too-small-to-be-useful storage room, and a Josie Grossie bathroom (by bathroom I mean very small room with toilet. Think outhouse).

With so much charm, I know you're wondering what more we could ask for??

I'm not asking for much. Just maybe to blow the whole thing up.

So we got to thinking. And planning. And then we got to packing it up!

This is only a fraction of what was housed in that tiny storage room. All of this moved into a nice, big shed. Some for permanent storage; some for temporary storage while we work on Phase 2.

Packing it up and organizing the junk was not easy-- but it was made better by the presence of a cute little helper. He sat in the wagon and ate goldfish while we worked!

So anyway, we got all of that done. And then THIS happened:

And now we are here:

We're hoping for exterior doors any day now. Then hardy plank and a roof. Then we'll be rocking & rolling!! I can't wait to show you more as it has happens!!

We are very excited to have a closed in space for storage, projects, etc. We have been dreaming about doing this since we moved in. I kind of can't believe it's happening! Stay tuned!

Random Bad Cell Phone Pics of a Cute Subject

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Fri, 17 May 2013 10:30:00 +0000

All I have for you are some random bad cell phone Jakey pics :) But that should hold you over til we can get something better together!

Here's your dose of random Jakey.

1. His teacher texted me this highlarious picture of him passed out in his chair at the lunch table.

2. She also sent me this picture of him finger painting!! It's so terribly cute! Budding artist!

3. And lastly, we took him to New Orleans Hamburger & Seafood Company, and we got him the kid's menu shrimp basket. This chunky monkey ate the WHOLE THING.

Do you see all that shrimp? He finished it! And was looking for more!

Old Window Turned Chalkboard!

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Thu, 16 May 2013 02:06:00 +0000

So Jakey's class needed a project for their school auction. I volunteered to make it. My main objective was to make something that anyone would want, even a parent for another class. Thanks to Pinterest, I found a lot of great ideas-- I got the idea to make a magnetic blackboard from an old New Orleans window. And to make magnets for each child. If you had no attachment to the kids in his class, you could toss the magnets and still enjoy the window!

I bought the window at the Habitat Restore. They charged me $10, but then realized it was supposed to be $5! It was a beautiful old window, but it needed to be stripped. I was worried about lead paint-- and I was worried about other parents being worried, too. I decided to take it to a place in New Orleans called Strip-Ease. It sounds risque, but it's simply a place that strips wood :) It cost me $15 to strip-- way cheaper and easier than doing it myself!

So the finished product was bare wood and wobbly glass. I was on the fence about whether to paint over the glass or to put in plywood in place of the glass. Well, the putty was hanging off, and it just seemed worth the effort to remove it all and start fresh. And safer to not worry about glass breaking in someone's home.

I followed these instructions. It wasn't hard, but it took a long time, and my fingers were very sore after! Some places, where the putty was not brittle, it came off in big strips. But in other places, it had crumbled and took a lot of chipping away. But in the end, I was glad I spent the time.

Then it was time to paint. I knew I wanted a crackle effect on the window. I wanted it to look old and weathered.

After much debate and research, I decided on the Martha Stewart variety from Home Depot (she sells one at crafts stores too-- but they are different). The guy at Home Depot seemed very familiar with the product and told me good things about it. He suggested I apply it with a putty knife.

So I painted a base coat of a darker color of leftover paint I had from another project. I wouldn't worry too much about this step-- just pick a color. It shows through only in tone; you really can't tell what color I used.

Once that dried, I applied the primer. You have to use the primer. I did accidentally forget it at one point, and the crackle finish did still work but the crackling was very minimal. You definitely want to prime it first WITH THE MARTHA STEWART PRIMER! Let that dry (it's not long-- whatever the jar says).

I was NERVOUS. People online said it didn't crackle. But the guy at Home Depot said it did. I ended up prepping a leftover board with the base color paint and the primer/sealer. Then I applied the crackle in various thicknesses. And then I went to sleep, praying that when I woke up, there'd be crackling up in here.

And there was!

It looked soooo good. So I slathered some on the window. Well, actually, here's where I forgot to prime. Then I scraped all the crackle mud off. Then I repeated this messed up process on my test board (paint, no primer, scraped off mud, primer, crackle)-- and it still worked! So there is hope if you apply the crackle mud before the primer but then go back and apply it later!

Anyway, you can't see the crackling in these pictures, but the effect was beautiful. It doesn't even have to be an even application-- there were stroke marks in mine, and it still looked great in the end. Very natural.

You just have to be patient to wait for the magic to happen. The best plan is to apply the mud before you go to sleep. I'm not kidding-- it takes HOURS. And the thicker you apply it, the longer it will take.

So after that was all done, Chris cut some plywood panes for me.

I painted them with magnetic paint and then spray paint chalkboard paint. A few coats of each. I tested out the magneticity (word? no? magneticness?) after each coat until it could hold a magnet. Also, my magnet paint was a few years old and needed a good shake in the mixer-- but I did it the old fashioned way and my arms paid for it.

Then Chris blew my mind with his suggestion for installing the panes in then window. We rested the staple gun on the plywood, with the staples shooting toward the window frame, keeping the gun a few millimeters from the window frame. Then SHOOT, and enjoy how crazy smart your husband can be sometimes!

I used a lot of staples to make sure it held.

Then I went through and caulked the edges, for further holding. The end result was kind of a mess. And all my brown craft paper was painted on. And it was very late the night before it was due. So I ended up stapling some fabric around the edge on the backside for a prettier, finished look.

I loooove how it turned out!

So the night of the auction, my mom came over to me and let me know that the item for Jake's class was really cute and TOTALLY looked like something I would like and hang in my house. So she bought it for me! I guess I forgot to mention that I made it... but now it lives in my home :) And I'm thankful to my Mom for getting me such a thoughtful gift! And I do like it :) I'm glad it turned out so well since I now own it!

More on those magnets later!

New Look!

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Sun, 28 Apr 2013 04:23:00 +0000

I was getting the itch to update things around here, and I finally got around to it.

We have a new look! Make sure you head on over to my site to check it out!!

This Boy

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 10:30:00 +0000

This boy.

Loves outside.

He cries at the door and says "out" over and over again until we take him outside. And since we're working on his words, I feel like I have to comply.

Every time we put his shoes on, he thinks we're going outside to play. Every time he sees his dad, he thinks we're going outside to play. Every time we walk downstairs or into the kitchen, he thinks we are going outside.

The consequence for not going outside is a colorful display of his cute temper. Tears. Massive crocodile tears. And screams. Same goes for coming inside after playing outside.

I keep trying to explain to him that Mommy doesn't love outside like he does. He doesn't seem to care.

This boy loves outside!

Pantry Progress

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 10:30:00 +0000

We've got some projects going on around here! Lots of projects. In progress. Nothing done. But I wanted to share some in progress reports.

Like the pantry. I'm beyond thrilled that I even have a pantry. Our old house didn't, and what a pain. But our pantry shelves are too close together and too deep to keep it organized. So I got to thinking. And to pinning.

OMG, Martha. You kill me with cuteness. The painted shelves and wall. The chalkboard. It's too much to handle.

From here.

Again with the painted walls and chalkboards. I think I love it.

Where from?

So pretty & organized!

So I got to thinking on how I could make my pantry more functional. And the root of the problem is the shelves.

And all that space with the hanging mops and brooms is wasted space. They could easily live in the laundry room. And it's about a foot deep. Hmmm....

So Chris & I built a simple shelving unit. First I built the "box" in order to line up the shelves with the existing shelves.

Ooooh it's getting better already!

A little white paint, and we're getting closer!

Now, as you can see, it's still not the picture of organization. But I do have a few shelves for storage of lunch boxes, baby food making supplies, extra ziploc bags, cake pans, etc.

So the next step is prettying it up. I wanted to live with it for a little while to see where things naturally fall. And we're doing some other work in the area, so the painting will take place when that work happens :) And you'll be almost the first to know when that happens!

Stay tuned!

Various Visiting

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Sat, 20 Apr 2013 10:30:00 +0000

We have done lots of visiting in the last few days. Our good friends from Seattle, the Hansons, are in town! We got all the baby cliquers together for the first time ever!

Elizabeth was very mature and cooperative. Jake, not so much. He was blurry in every picture. But at least they are all relatively not blurry in this one. Jake was NOT interested in holding the baby or sitting still.

But he's cute even when he's bad :)

Then, Bec & I did some more visiting the next day at Mount Carmel (our high school). We visited our dear friend Rig. Zach slept the whole time. Jake tore up Rig's office. He opened every single cabinet. And tried to get the keys in the locks. And ate her magnets. In fact, he's eating her magnetic nametag in this very picture. The next day, Rig went to wear her nametag and found it still had Jakey slobber on it. That is a true story.

And of course, no trip to MCA is complete without wearing some cub slippers!

Been fun visiting :)

Bunnies & Baby

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie) — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 10:30:00 +0000

We had a great Easter. Jake's second! The Bunny visited and brought a few goodies for all of us:

Jakey passed on the dark chocolate Dove Eggs & the peeps-- but he loved the toddler silverware and colored Goldfish!

We visited with both sides of the family. And snapped this rare picture of our small family while at my parent's house...

Jakey looooved playing in the car!

Later, we went to visit the other side of the family, and Jake's cousin Ashley snapped these adorable pictures of the baby boy.