We are in summer break from the Montessori school that both kids attend. When we decided to put the kids in the Montessori school, we knew that there would be a 6 week period that we would have to cover somehow. Although the Pumpkin is old enough to go to some camps and the Pookie's previous daycare allows kids to come for a day or a week or whatever, those things cost money. And money is tight right now for us as it is for everyone else.
Luckily, Londo and I have wonderful, helpful family who live close enough to make kid coverage (mostly) work. My mom watched the kids one week, my MIL came up for another week, and they both will do other days coming up. In addition, Londo took the kids for one week and I will take them for another week. That will cover us for most of the 6 week period.
So that's what's been going on. It's quite a logistical feat, to get all this organized in a way that works for everyone, especially the kids. And things will come up to rock the boat, as they already have. But overall, it's a good plan and working pretty well.
Last week was Londo's week with the kids, and he took them down to his parents house for the week. That's right. I had the house TO MYSELF all week last week! I'll bet you think I would have spent the week sleeping in and writing blog posts and watching movies and generally laying around enjoying the peace and quiet.
Of course I didn't! I decided that with everyone out of the house, that was the perfect time to get some projects done. After all, the house has been in a state of disarray since I tore my meniscus just after I start a re-organization project in my closet and the guest room/my office. But finishing the organization of my closet depended on moving my old dresser out and into my daughter's room. But first I wanted to paint it so it would be cute, not old and fuggly. And finishing the organization of the guest room/office depended on painting the room first.
So that's what I did last. I painted. I may have taken on slightly too many painting projects, but it's been years since I painted ANYTHING. BC (Before Children), I used to refinish furniture, and I've missed that hobby a great deal. But that hobby, like with all painting, requires a lot of time devoted to it in which you get messy and can't stop in the middle of it. It also requires a lot of prep time and clean up time. And a place to do all of that without kids running around.
By the end of the week, I had two coats of a brownish, rosy color on the guest room/office walls, matching headboard and dresser for my daughter's room, and halfway painted shelves for my son's room (which I will finish this week sometime). Though my body aches in places I'd forgotten existed and my knee has really gone to the edge of its capabilities, I'm really proud of what I've done and so happy that I've gotten to do those projects! Now I can finish organizing everything!
This week's question of the week is:
What projects do you have on your To Do list that you haven't had time to get to yet?
The painting and reorganizing has been on my list for years, so I'm really glad I can cross them off. But I have other projects on my list.
Next up is hanging curtains! We have lots of curtains that we brought with us from our old house FIVE YEARS AGO. Besides lacking the time and energy, we also have some weird issues with the blinds on all the windows which has made it difficult to find curtain rods that will fit correctly.
I also want to frame and hang many prints, posters and pictures on walls of numerous rooms. And work on decorating the dining room better. And completely redo our kitchen (but we totally don't have money for that one!) And probably a ton of other things, but that's all I can let myself think about for now.
What about you? What projects have been on your list? Are they house-related, personal, kid-related or maybe even couple-related? What have you not been able to find the time to do? What would you do with a week at home by yourself?
Showing posts with label decorating. Show all posts
Showing posts with label decorating. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Monday, September 28, 2009
Question of the Week - Re-Organizing Rooms
This weekend, Londo and I worked together to really clean up and organize two rooms on our first floor. You see, we have let things go for months now, and I cannot let them go any longer because it's been driving me CRAZY! The sense of disorganization and clutter, not being able to find important papers and items, and tripping over crap that hasn't been put away or has no place to go... These things make me nuts.
I can ignore them for a while. When it's winter and I am too exhausted to notice, I don't have the energy to even get upset about it. With the tough pregnancy last year and then the newborn, I was just barely keeping up with dishes and laundry. But I have had to ask people to re-send me things for the Pumpkin's pre-school (her registration), for the animals (records for the dog's vaccinations), for the doctors and pharmacists (allergy information and EpiPen perscription), and much more. I can't live like that.
Before I went back to work from maternity leave, I had started re-organizing and re-purposing the kitchen cabinets, the kitchen hutch and the dining room hutch. At this point in my life, I do not need the crystal or the martini glasses handy. I do need a place to put Play Doh and other art supplies and places to put the chips and bread that is out of reach of my tall and intensely curious child. I've been so much happier since re-orgnizing those.
I had even cleaned up the kitchen counters where we drop our stuff when we get home. But those didn't stay clean for long. You see, we've not really had another place to put those items, and so our limited kitchen counters kept getting even more cluttered.
So this weekend, we cleaned all the junk off of the dining room table. I finished organizing the hutch in the dining room so that we can put things right in there, not on the table where it'll sit and look messy. Then, we cleaned out the coat closet. We went through coats and accessories for giveaway and storage, and then we organized it to work better (I hope). We did the same for our entryway, including the coat hooks and the cubbyholes I have by the door.
Finally, I re-arranged the front room to work for us at this time in our lives. Instead of being the "parlor" where only my antique chairs fit, and instead of being the "library" when all the books are in boxes on the floor until we can afford bookshelves, I will be calling it the "front room" because it has multiple purposes. The boxes of books line the wall where we will put the bookshelves, but only one level high so you don't really see them. The chairs are set up in front of the boxes and no longer hold random junk. I moved my beautiful antique, marble-topped washbasin desk to be against the wall by the front door, along with a little table with shelf. I have begun setting those up to hold the various items we bring into the house, from cell phones and mail to the Pumpkin's school papers and art. I need to buy a couple little items to finish off that area, such as a bulletin board and calendar for the wall above it and a rack to put labeled folders in. Finally, I found a good way to store the three strollers and the car seat in that front room without taking up a lot of space in the middle of the room or looking really messy.
My head is full of re-organizing and decorating, and I've got plans for some other rooms, too! So this week's question of the week is:
What room or rooms would you re-organize if you could?
I love to hear about how other people organize and decorate. There is a reason I watch so much HGTV! Have you got any good plans or ideas for your house? Is there a room (like my kitchen) which you would completely remodel if you could?
In some coincidental good timing, last week Ask Moxie had a few posts with many great comments about managing stuff and managing schedules and papers. Check it out if you need some good ideas.
I can ignore them for a while. When it's winter and I am too exhausted to notice, I don't have the energy to even get upset about it. With the tough pregnancy last year and then the newborn, I was just barely keeping up with dishes and laundry. But I have had to ask people to re-send me things for the Pumpkin's pre-school (her registration), for the animals (records for the dog's vaccinations), for the doctors and pharmacists (allergy information and EpiPen perscription), and much more. I can't live like that.
Before I went back to work from maternity leave, I had started re-organizing and re-purposing the kitchen cabinets, the kitchen hutch and the dining room hutch. At this point in my life, I do not need the crystal or the martini glasses handy. I do need a place to put Play Doh and other art supplies and places to put the chips and bread that is out of reach of my tall and intensely curious child. I've been so much happier since re-orgnizing those.
I had even cleaned up the kitchen counters where we drop our stuff when we get home. But those didn't stay clean for long. You see, we've not really had another place to put those items, and so our limited kitchen counters kept getting even more cluttered.
So this weekend, we cleaned all the junk off of the dining room table. I finished organizing the hutch in the dining room so that we can put things right in there, not on the table where it'll sit and look messy. Then, we cleaned out the coat closet. We went through coats and accessories for giveaway and storage, and then we organized it to work better (I hope). We did the same for our entryway, including the coat hooks and the cubbyholes I have by the door.
Finally, I re-arranged the front room to work for us at this time in our lives. Instead of being the "parlor" where only my antique chairs fit, and instead of being the "library" when all the books are in boxes on the floor until we can afford bookshelves, I will be calling it the "front room" because it has multiple purposes. The boxes of books line the wall where we will put the bookshelves, but only one level high so you don't really see them. The chairs are set up in front of the boxes and no longer hold random junk. I moved my beautiful antique, marble-topped washbasin desk to be against the wall by the front door, along with a little table with shelf. I have begun setting those up to hold the various items we bring into the house, from cell phones and mail to the Pumpkin's school papers and art. I need to buy a couple little items to finish off that area, such as a bulletin board and calendar for the wall above it and a rack to put labeled folders in. Finally, I found a good way to store the three strollers and the car seat in that front room without taking up a lot of space in the middle of the room or looking really messy.
My head is full of re-organizing and decorating, and I've got plans for some other rooms, too! So this week's question of the week is:
What room or rooms would you re-organize if you could?
I love to hear about how other people organize and decorate. There is a reason I watch so much HGTV! Have you got any good plans or ideas for your house? Is there a room (like my kitchen) which you would completely remodel if you could?
In some coincidental good timing, last week Ask Moxie had a few posts with many great comments about managing stuff and managing schedules and papers. Check it out if you need some good ideas.
Thursday, August 20, 2009
I Am a Domestic Goddess!
When the Pookie was about 5 weeks old, my husband and my SIL asked me how I was doing within days of each other. Actually, my SIL asked if I was looking forward to going back to work and that lead to how I was doing. I didn't have a firm answer for either of them. How was I doing? I was getting by. I was in survival mode. I was healing, taking care of the newborn and trying to make sure that the toddler was being adequately taken care of either by me or others (mostly others). Mentally (which was the true intent of their questions)? I couldn't even figure that out myself, let alone tell anyone else.
I truly was in survival mode. I was living in a gray fog, waiting for that 6-8 week postpartum point. This gray fog was nothing compared to my rough winter and pregnancy. I wasn't depressed or feeling constantly miserable. It was more just that I couldn't think straight or feel straight. Survival Mode. If you've ever been in that mode, you know what I'm talking about. I knew that by 8 weeks, things should be better to some degree.
What I wasn't prepared for was just how much better everything would be by 8 weeks postpartum. In my seventh week postpartum, my good friend came to stay the week with us to help with the kids and to visit with me. I am sure that her visit was essential to my mental healing. There is just nothing like spending good, quality time with a close friend, chatting about everything, laughing over the good and the bad, knowing there is someone there for you who understands (besides your partner, who is going through it all with you and in survival mode, too). And she was such a help with the Pookie and the Pumpkin, which enabled me to take care of myself a little more.
After she left (boo hoo!), the Pookie turned 8 weeks old. And my world changed. He was through a growth spurt and just at the tale end of a fussy period. My body, though not perfect, was really healing up well from the c-section. Mentally, I was feeling like I was doing pretty well. It was like the fog cleared up. It was like I finally had made it out of a year long series of fogs, and I was finally starting to feel like myself again. Really, truly myself. My Summer Self.
I finally started to clean up the spots in the house that had gathered up piles of stuff that neither Londo or I could get to while in survival mode (I was able to start this while my friend watched the baby). I finally made personal business calls to the insurance companies and doctors and whoever else I'd had on hold until I could think straight again. I brought the Pookie into my office and visited with my coworkers. I got the laundry and dishes under control. I put away the clothes the kids had outgrown and put out the ones that will fit (including the new ones bought while outlet shopping with my friend while she was in town). I've gotten back into rearranging the rooms on our main floor to work for our lives now. (I packed up almost all the china and breakables that were in our dining room and front room, and I was putting up more breakables from the hutch so that the space in the hutch can now be used to house Playdoh and other kids stuff. It just doesn't make sense to have a formal dining room when we have young kids and need the space for their stuff, or to have a formal "parlor" in our front room when we have a gazillion books removed from what is now the Pumpkin's big girl room and need to store them somewhere; so the parlor will become the library as soon as we can afford to buy some shelves or find some for free somewhere.)
But it doesn't end there. Not only have I been cleaning and rearranging, I've started baking and cooking again! I think Londo forgot I that I used to love to cook and did it pretty frequently. I think he forgot I even knew how! For the last year, Londo has done almost all of the cooking. Between my 6 months of pregnancy nausea, winter and pregnancy full of exhaustion and the year long fog, I just couldn't handle any part of cooking--from figuring out what to make to shopping for the food to actually cooking. Over the last few weeks, I've baked quite a few things and made 3 or 4 dinners.
Last Sunday morning, I had approved Londo's plans to go out and do some fun things with my dad. We had a rough night, with the toddler awake in the night and early morning. Londo was ready to scrap the plans, as he was concerned about leaving me alone for hours with the two kids after a rough night and morning. I talked him into going, and he finally did. And you know what? I did great with the two kids!
It takes 2 hours for me to get the toddler, baby and myself fed breakfast and ready in our Sunday finest to go out of the house. I had smartly planned on it taking 2 hours, so we weren't rushed and were able to get out the door without any meltdowns! Not even one from me! We made it to church on time, where I dropped the Pumpkin off in the childcare room (hurray for the babysitters and the playroom there!) and put the Pookie in my sling, where he slept for the next hour+. My mom and grandma met me there, and we enjoyed a lovely service. After the service, my mom helped us to our car and we drove back to her house. Londo and my dad met us there, and we all had a nice lunch. I really only had the two kids by myself for just over 2 hours, but I was so proud that I handled it fine. No, great!
Later that day, I did dishes and grocery shopping. That evening, I made baked citrus fish, garlic butter asparagus and couscous (from a mix, but still) for dinner, with lemon squares for desert. The Pumpkin helped me do the dishes and make the couscous and lemon squares. I felt so accomplished!
So the next morning, when my nanny called in sick, I was ready to try a full day of caring for both children on my own! We had no real plans or time table. I thought we'd try going to the playground that the nanny usually takes the Pumpkin to, even though it was across the neighborhood. It was going to be a hot day so I had hoped to start out early, but we didn't make it out of the house until after 10 (it took 2 hours to get fed and dressed to go out of the house). The morning was pretty smooth. The Pumpkin requested pancakes for breakfast, and I happened to have a couple still in the freezer from the last time I made them. The Pookie slept in the swing during the morning, so the Pumpkin and I were able to get ready for the day without my having to juggle him... mostly.
I got both kids in the Baby Jogger City Mini double stroller (I love this thing!), and we started off! Unfortunately, it was already REALLY hot out. The Pumpkin was doing fine with her water and goldfish, singing songs with me. The Pookie, however, started fussing but wasn't appeased with a pacifier or a toy shaking in front of him or his sister singing. Then the fussing became real crying.
But we made it to the playground. No one else was there. The Pumpkin is a complete extrovert and doesn't seem to have much fun lately if no one else is at the playground. She went down each slide once, but then was bored. I couldn't run around with her, because I was holding and bouncing the still crying Pookie. It was hot, and there was not enough shade. I was still doing alright though, so I thought we'd try the swing set just a block away where there might be kids, there would definitely be shade, and I wouldn't have to worry about the Pumpkin running off (I sit her in the confined infant swing).
There was shade, but no other kids. There was no good place to nurse the Pookie, either, and he was still totally crying. It was only getting hotter. So we were done. I put the Pumpkin back in the stroller, and I put the Pookie in sling. And get this: I nursed him in the sling! I figured out how to do it, and I was able to drape my shirt around him so that no one could see anything. So I nursed the Pookie in the sling the whole way home while I pushed the Pumpkin. Everyone was now happy, although still hot and tired. And I thought to myself, I know what I'm calling the post I'm writing about this!*
After we got back, I got everyone fed, colored with the Pumpkin, got the Pookie to sleep in his swing and laid down in the Pumpkin's bed with her to try to get her to nap. (She didn't, of course, because she doesn't nap for me or Londo. But we did have a nice quiet time resting for a bit.) Then we watched some TV shows while resting on the couch and played Playdoh. It was a good day, made possible by my pre-schooler who is able to understand more directions and loves to help and my infant who I'm able to put down and sometimes sleeps for big chunks of time without being held.
Not only am I feeling like myself again, I'm feeling like myself able to handle two kids! I'm feeling like a mom of two. Who is able to cook, clean, grocery shop and do laundry. Who is reorganizing the house to work for the whole family. Who is making doctor appointments, dealing with insurance companies and getting ready to go back to work. Who is even spending time in the evenings with her husband after the kids go to sleep!
A woman who is a domestic goddess!!!!
Just don't ask me how my Tuesday, Wednesday or this morning went. Turns out, I'm less of a goddess when I don't get good sleep. hehe.
*Perhaps the walk wasn't the best idea just yet. My incision and all my ab muscles have been incredibly sore, getting worse each day I do my normal activity. I realized yesterday that I need to take it extremely easy for a few days, including not picking up the Pumpkin and using my hands to get myself up from a prone position. Umm, right. I had major abdominal surgery 9 weeks ago. I'm still recovering. Oops!
I truly was in survival mode. I was living in a gray fog, waiting for that 6-8 week postpartum point. This gray fog was nothing compared to my rough winter and pregnancy. I wasn't depressed or feeling constantly miserable. It was more just that I couldn't think straight or feel straight. Survival Mode. If you've ever been in that mode, you know what I'm talking about. I knew that by 8 weeks, things should be better to some degree.
What I wasn't prepared for was just how much better everything would be by 8 weeks postpartum. In my seventh week postpartum, my good friend came to stay the week with us to help with the kids and to visit with me. I am sure that her visit was essential to my mental healing. There is just nothing like spending good, quality time with a close friend, chatting about everything, laughing over the good and the bad, knowing there is someone there for you who understands (besides your partner, who is going through it all with you and in survival mode, too). And she was such a help with the Pookie and the Pumpkin, which enabled me to take care of myself a little more.
After she left (boo hoo!), the Pookie turned 8 weeks old. And my world changed. He was through a growth spurt and just at the tale end of a fussy period. My body, though not perfect, was really healing up well from the c-section. Mentally, I was feeling like I was doing pretty well. It was like the fog cleared up. It was like I finally had made it out of a year long series of fogs, and I was finally starting to feel like myself again. Really, truly myself. My Summer Self.
I finally started to clean up the spots in the house that had gathered up piles of stuff that neither Londo or I could get to while in survival mode (I was able to start this while my friend watched the baby). I finally made personal business calls to the insurance companies and doctors and whoever else I'd had on hold until I could think straight again. I brought the Pookie into my office and visited with my coworkers. I got the laundry and dishes under control. I put away the clothes the kids had outgrown and put out the ones that will fit (including the new ones bought while outlet shopping with my friend while she was in town). I've gotten back into rearranging the rooms on our main floor to work for our lives now. (I packed up almost all the china and breakables that were in our dining room and front room, and I was putting up more breakables from the hutch so that the space in the hutch can now be used to house Playdoh and other kids stuff. It just doesn't make sense to have a formal dining room when we have young kids and need the space for their stuff, or to have a formal "parlor" in our front room when we have a gazillion books removed from what is now the Pumpkin's big girl room and need to store them somewhere; so the parlor will become the library as soon as we can afford to buy some shelves or find some for free somewhere.)
But it doesn't end there. Not only have I been cleaning and rearranging, I've started baking and cooking again! I think Londo forgot I that I used to love to cook and did it pretty frequently. I think he forgot I even knew how! For the last year, Londo has done almost all of the cooking. Between my 6 months of pregnancy nausea, winter and pregnancy full of exhaustion and the year long fog, I just couldn't handle any part of cooking--from figuring out what to make to shopping for the food to actually cooking. Over the last few weeks, I've baked quite a few things and made 3 or 4 dinners.
Last Sunday morning, I had approved Londo's plans to go out and do some fun things with my dad. We had a rough night, with the toddler awake in the night and early morning. Londo was ready to scrap the plans, as he was concerned about leaving me alone for hours with the two kids after a rough night and morning. I talked him into going, and he finally did. And you know what? I did great with the two kids!
It takes 2 hours for me to get the toddler, baby and myself fed breakfast and ready in our Sunday finest to go out of the house. I had smartly planned on it taking 2 hours, so we weren't rushed and were able to get out the door without any meltdowns! Not even one from me! We made it to church on time, where I dropped the Pumpkin off in the childcare room (hurray for the babysitters and the playroom there!) and put the Pookie in my sling, where he slept for the next hour+. My mom and grandma met me there, and we enjoyed a lovely service. After the service, my mom helped us to our car and we drove back to her house. Londo and my dad met us there, and we all had a nice lunch. I really only had the two kids by myself for just over 2 hours, but I was so proud that I handled it fine. No, great!
Later that day, I did dishes and grocery shopping. That evening, I made baked citrus fish, garlic butter asparagus and couscous (from a mix, but still) for dinner, with lemon squares for desert. The Pumpkin helped me do the dishes and make the couscous and lemon squares. I felt so accomplished!
So the next morning, when my nanny called in sick, I was ready to try a full day of caring for both children on my own! We had no real plans or time table. I thought we'd try going to the playground that the nanny usually takes the Pumpkin to, even though it was across the neighborhood. It was going to be a hot day so I had hoped to start out early, but we didn't make it out of the house until after 10 (it took 2 hours to get fed and dressed to go out of the house). The morning was pretty smooth. The Pumpkin requested pancakes for breakfast, and I happened to have a couple still in the freezer from the last time I made them. The Pookie slept in the swing during the morning, so the Pumpkin and I were able to get ready for the day without my having to juggle him... mostly.
I got both kids in the Baby Jogger City Mini double stroller (I love this thing!), and we started off! Unfortunately, it was already REALLY hot out. The Pumpkin was doing fine with her water and goldfish, singing songs with me. The Pookie, however, started fussing but wasn't appeased with a pacifier or a toy shaking in front of him or his sister singing. Then the fussing became real crying.
But we made it to the playground. No one else was there. The Pumpkin is a complete extrovert and doesn't seem to have much fun lately if no one else is at the playground. She went down each slide once, but then was bored. I couldn't run around with her, because I was holding and bouncing the still crying Pookie. It was hot, and there was not enough shade. I was still doing alright though, so I thought we'd try the swing set just a block away where there might be kids, there would definitely be shade, and I wouldn't have to worry about the Pumpkin running off (I sit her in the confined infant swing).
There was shade, but no other kids. There was no good place to nurse the Pookie, either, and he was still totally crying. It was only getting hotter. So we were done. I put the Pumpkin back in the stroller, and I put the Pookie in sling. And get this: I nursed him in the sling! I figured out how to do it, and I was able to drape my shirt around him so that no one could see anything. So I nursed the Pookie in the sling the whole way home while I pushed the Pumpkin. Everyone was now happy, although still hot and tired. And I thought to myself, I know what I'm calling the post I'm writing about this!*
After we got back, I got everyone fed, colored with the Pumpkin, got the Pookie to sleep in his swing and laid down in the Pumpkin's bed with her to try to get her to nap. (She didn't, of course, because she doesn't nap for me or Londo. But we did have a nice quiet time resting for a bit.) Then we watched some TV shows while resting on the couch and played Playdoh. It was a good day, made possible by my pre-schooler who is able to understand more directions and loves to help and my infant who I'm able to put down and sometimes sleeps for big chunks of time without being held.
Not only am I feeling like myself again, I'm feeling like myself able to handle two kids! I'm feeling like a mom of two. Who is able to cook, clean, grocery shop and do laundry. Who is reorganizing the house to work for the whole family. Who is making doctor appointments, dealing with insurance companies and getting ready to go back to work. Who is even spending time in the evenings with her husband after the kids go to sleep!
A woman who is a domestic goddess!!!!
Just don't ask me how my Tuesday, Wednesday or this morning went. Turns out, I'm less of a goddess when I don't get good sleep. hehe.
*Perhaps the walk wasn't the best idea just yet. My incision and all my ab muscles have been incredibly sore, getting worse each day I do my normal activity. I realized yesterday that I need to take it extremely easy for a few days, including not picking up the Pumpkin and using my hands to get myself up from a prone position. Umm, right. I had major abdominal surgery 9 weeks ago. I'm still recovering. Oops!
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
A Big Weekend for My Big Girl
There was a time, pre-Pumpkin, when I didn't understand why people measured their children's lives in months, or even weeks with infants. There was a lot of other things I didn't get either. This age-by-month/weeks was one I didn't judge but didn't understand. Now (and for a while), I totally get it.
My daughter is officially two now. She is a two year old. Yet I have a really hard time telling people she is two. I will often say, "She just turned two" to most people. To people who also have young kids, I'm likely to say, "She is 24 months old." This is because there is really a huge difference between a child who just turned two and one who is two but about to turn three. There is even enough of a difference between just turned 2 and 2 1/2 that I feel the need to distinguish the Pumpkin's age.
Physically and verbally, she is on level with a lot three year olds, including her cousins. But emotionally and developmentally (outside the physical and verbal), she is very much 24 months old. She does not have the reasoning abilities of an older 2 year old. She does not have a grasp of all the concepts that an older 2 year old has. She does not have the independence of an older 2 year old. She is only 24 months old.
And yet, she's truly becoming a big girl. I see it coming in so many ways. This past weekend was just full of examples, which warm my heart and make me slightly nostolgic for the baby days.
This weekend, the Pumpkin had her birthday party and moved into her new room.
On Saturday, we had just family over for a little birthday party. Because the planning had to happen while I was still in a rough spot and Londo was doing EVERYTHING around the house, we decided to keep the party small in number of guests and have it for only 2 hours, prior to toddler nap time. We didn't invite any of the Pumpkin's friends or mine, just the in-laws who could come up and my immediate family. And there were still 15 or so adults (don't make me count!) and 4 toddlers! Next year, we'll do a bigger party, when it starts to become important to her and there are all sorts of fun party things we can do.
We had a great time. I got the Pumpkin all dressed up in a party dress and matching sweater and put her hair in pigtails. She was SOOO FREAKING CUTE!!!! We went downstairs, where Londo had put up Winnie the Pooh decorations everywhere, as I continued to tell her about her party. She started to put on her shoes, but I told her she didn't need them. Her face started to fall as she said she wanted to go to the party. I tried explaining that the party was here and people were starting to arrive, but she didn't get it! She looked heartbroken, about to start crying, and said, "I want to go to the party!"
Luckily, one of her aunts who was there next to her swooped her up and said cheerfully, "The party is in the dining room!" And with that, they went into the dining room, more guests arrived, and the fun began! (Thank you, Aunt, for quick thinking!) We ate, we talked, the kids played and played. Finally, we had cupcakes. The Pumpkin, who usually loves to be the center of attention, was a bit overwhelmed when everyone was looking at her and singing to her. Luckily, she made it to the end of the song and then blew out her candles. She really seemed to enjoy her first real cupcake (last year, I made low-sugar cupcakes), especially the frosting.
We opened presents later, after everyone had gone, and she loved them all. It was a really fun day and great time. The Pumpkin was her exuberant self, having a great time playing with her cousins, spending time with her family and eating blueberries (my goodness, the girl can put away some blueberries!).
It was so different from last year's birthday party, when she didn't really get what was going on and didn't participate much. This year, she understood what a birthday party was and seemed to love being at the party. Like a big girl.
On Sunday, after trying unsuccessfully to put her down for a nap, we made the big move into her new room! My mom, MIL and others helped me finish moving all the stuff out of the room. Londo, my dad and brother painted the room the perfect shade of yellow (I'm good at picking colors) a couple weekends ago, and painted one of the shelves that had been in there white with yellow on the back of the shelves. Once the room was cleaned up from painting, we let the Pumpkin run around in there a bit, regularly referring to it as her new room.
Saturday after the party, we let her play in it a bit. I had brought out the adorable (but thick plastic) tea set my MIL got her for Christmas and put it out on the shelf in her reach. She loved the tea set at Christmas time, but I put it away when we got home. She's been playing with another set that came with other plastic cups and a pitcher down in her play kitchen. But this one I had set aside so all the pieces would stay together. She LOVES it. She didn't want to leave her new room that afternoon because she wanted to play with the tea set! (I've made a rule that the tea set has to stay in her room so that pieces don't get lost or spread out. I hope that the rule sticks!) The only things in the room were a bin with it's top on, a small side table, and the shelves with just the tea set on them. And she didn't want to leave!
So, back to Sunday... After my nap (not the Pumpkin's), we all went into her new room to get it ready. Londo brought in her bed/mattress and box spring, which she had been sleeping on in the nursery. We haven't bought a new bedframe yet--or dresser, or radio, or bedside, or toddler table and chairs--but we realized that those things were not required to move her in. In fact, it made more sense to bring in the mattresses she had been sleeping on to help with the transition.
I was putting out things on her shelves. She was playing with the tea set and other random items she'd find. She also helped me bring books from the nursery into her room. She got to pick which ones she wanted to bring into her new room, and we'd put them in the basket I set out for books. Londo put the closet shelves back in the way I wanted them, and then the Pumpkin helped me move her clothes into her new room. Then Londo hung up the two pictures of Winnie the Pooh and friends which I had showed to the Pumpkin and asked if she wanted them in her new room. He also hung up a mirror that will go over the eventual dresser, two shadow boxes that I will put other decor in (probably Pooh-related), and a pretty little board with pegs on it at her height so she can hang up sweaters and a set of Winnie the Pooh "keys*" and whatever else she wants. We also brought in some other toys for her to play with in her room, such as a couple of baby dolls and the bassinet for the dolls.
I'm not doing themed wall paper or themed sheets, since I do want the room to be able to transition from Winnie the Pooh as she gets older. Instead, we are doing accents and some decor, mainly from things I already had with Winnie the Pooh (I was a big Pooh fan) and a quilt her Great-Granny made for her when she was just a baby. Oh, and all the stuffed animals of Pooh and friends that she got for her birthday!
The room? Is adorable! The Pumpkin? LOVES it! She's starting to understand that the toys in her room should stay in there, and she's starting to play in there... even BY HERSELF! Monday evening, while I was in my room, she was playing in her room by herself for a while (both doors open, but babygate to the stairs closed). She would come in my room and check on me or call down to daddy to check on him occasionally, but then go back in her room and play!!! Did I mention she was playing in her room BY HERSELF??? Like a big girl!
The sleeping is the same crap shoot it was in the nursery, and we're just happy it's not worse. She seems to be handling the transition pretty well so far. I expect that there will be some rough patches, but overall she tends to handle change well.
A super long post about my little girl who is becoming a big girl. I needed to write it all out as I process her growing and so I can document some of these big occasions. There were too many things this winter that I wanted to write about and record for posterity that I just didn't have the energy to write. So I may overdo it for a while now. But she's so adorable and I'm so in love with her, how can I resist?
My daughter is officially two now. She is a two year old. Yet I have a really hard time telling people she is two. I will often say, "She just turned two" to most people. To people who also have young kids, I'm likely to say, "She is 24 months old." This is because there is really a huge difference between a child who just turned two and one who is two but about to turn three. There is even enough of a difference between just turned 2 and 2 1/2 that I feel the need to distinguish the Pumpkin's age.
Physically and verbally, she is on level with a lot three year olds, including her cousins. But emotionally and developmentally (outside the physical and verbal), she is very much 24 months old. She does not have the reasoning abilities of an older 2 year old. She does not have a grasp of all the concepts that an older 2 year old has. She does not have the independence of an older 2 year old. She is only 24 months old.
And yet, she's truly becoming a big girl. I see it coming in so many ways. This past weekend was just full of examples, which warm my heart and make me slightly nostolgic for the baby days.
This weekend, the Pumpkin had her birthday party and moved into her new room.
On Saturday, we had just family over for a little birthday party. Because the planning had to happen while I was still in a rough spot and Londo was doing EVERYTHING around the house, we decided to keep the party small in number of guests and have it for only 2 hours, prior to toddler nap time. We didn't invite any of the Pumpkin's friends or mine, just the in-laws who could come up and my immediate family. And there were still 15 or so adults (don't make me count!) and 4 toddlers! Next year, we'll do a bigger party, when it starts to become important to her and there are all sorts of fun party things we can do.
We had a great time. I got the Pumpkin all dressed up in a party dress and matching sweater and put her hair in pigtails. She was SOOO FREAKING CUTE!!!! We went downstairs, where Londo had put up Winnie the Pooh decorations everywhere, as I continued to tell her about her party. She started to put on her shoes, but I told her she didn't need them. Her face started to fall as she said she wanted to go to the party. I tried explaining that the party was here and people were starting to arrive, but she didn't get it! She looked heartbroken, about to start crying, and said, "I want to go to the party!"
Luckily, one of her aunts who was there next to her swooped her up and said cheerfully, "The party is in the dining room!" And with that, they went into the dining room, more guests arrived, and the fun began! (Thank you, Aunt, for quick thinking!) We ate, we talked, the kids played and played. Finally, we had cupcakes. The Pumpkin, who usually loves to be the center of attention, was a bit overwhelmed when everyone was looking at her and singing to her. Luckily, she made it to the end of the song and then blew out her candles. She really seemed to enjoy her first real cupcake (last year, I made low-sugar cupcakes), especially the frosting.
We opened presents later, after everyone had gone, and she loved them all. It was a really fun day and great time. The Pumpkin was her exuberant self, having a great time playing with her cousins, spending time with her family and eating blueberries (my goodness, the girl can put away some blueberries!).
It was so different from last year's birthday party, when she didn't really get what was going on and didn't participate much. This year, she understood what a birthday party was and seemed to love being at the party. Like a big girl.
On Sunday, after trying unsuccessfully to put her down for a nap, we made the big move into her new room! My mom, MIL and others helped me finish moving all the stuff out of the room. Londo, my dad and brother painted the room the perfect shade of yellow (I'm good at picking colors) a couple weekends ago, and painted one of the shelves that had been in there white with yellow on the back of the shelves. Once the room was cleaned up from painting, we let the Pumpkin run around in there a bit, regularly referring to it as her new room.
Saturday after the party, we let her play in it a bit. I had brought out the adorable (but thick plastic) tea set my MIL got her for Christmas and put it out on the shelf in her reach. She loved the tea set at Christmas time, but I put it away when we got home. She's been playing with another set that came with other plastic cups and a pitcher down in her play kitchen. But this one I had set aside so all the pieces would stay together. She LOVES it. She didn't want to leave her new room that afternoon because she wanted to play with the tea set! (I've made a rule that the tea set has to stay in her room so that pieces don't get lost or spread out. I hope that the rule sticks!) The only things in the room were a bin with it's top on, a small side table, and the shelves with just the tea set on them. And she didn't want to leave!
So, back to Sunday... After my nap (not the Pumpkin's), we all went into her new room to get it ready. Londo brought in her bed/mattress and box spring, which she had been sleeping on in the nursery. We haven't bought a new bedframe yet--or dresser, or radio, or bedside, or toddler table and chairs--but we realized that those things were not required to move her in. In fact, it made more sense to bring in the mattresses she had been sleeping on to help with the transition.
I was putting out things on her shelves. She was playing with the tea set and other random items she'd find. She also helped me bring books from the nursery into her room. She got to pick which ones she wanted to bring into her new room, and we'd put them in the basket I set out for books. Londo put the closet shelves back in the way I wanted them, and then the Pumpkin helped me move her clothes into her new room. Then Londo hung up the two pictures of Winnie the Pooh and friends which I had showed to the Pumpkin and asked if she wanted them in her new room. He also hung up a mirror that will go over the eventual dresser, two shadow boxes that I will put other decor in (probably Pooh-related), and a pretty little board with pegs on it at her height so she can hang up sweaters and a set of Winnie the Pooh "keys*" and whatever else she wants. We also brought in some other toys for her to play with in her room, such as a couple of baby dolls and the bassinet for the dolls.
I'm not doing themed wall paper or themed sheets, since I do want the room to be able to transition from Winnie the Pooh as she gets older. Instead, we are doing accents and some decor, mainly from things I already had with Winnie the Pooh (I was a big Pooh fan) and a quilt her Great-Granny made for her when she was just a baby. Oh, and all the stuffed animals of Pooh and friends that she got for her birthday!
The room? Is adorable! The Pumpkin? LOVES it! She's starting to understand that the toys in her room should stay in there, and she's starting to play in there... even BY HERSELF! Monday evening, while I was in my room, she was playing in her room by herself for a while (both doors open, but babygate to the stairs closed). She would come in my room and check on me or call down to daddy to check on him occasionally, but then go back in her room and play!!! Did I mention she was playing in her room BY HERSELF??? Like a big girl!
The sleeping is the same crap shoot it was in the nursery, and we're just happy it's not worse. She seems to be handling the transition pretty well so far. I expect that there will be some rough patches, but overall she tends to handle change well.
A super long post about my little girl who is becoming a big girl. I needed to write it all out as I process her growing and so I can document some of these big occasions. There were too many things this winter that I wanted to write about and record for posterity that I just didn't have the energy to write. So I may overdo it for a while now. But she's so adorable and I'm so in love with her, how can I resist?
Monday, March 16, 2009
Question of the Week - Help a Mama Out
I have so many random questions I want to ask around about, so many areas in which I would love some advice and opinions. How can I narrow this week's question of the week down to just one? So...
This week's question of the week is:
Can you help caramama out with answers or advice in any of the following areas?
(Hehe. See what I did there? I'm totally cheating!)
1. My daughter keeps singing some words to the tune of Twinkle Twinkle (or ABCs or Baa Baa Black Sheep--all of those have the same tune), and the words of the second line go something like, "Where you going in the night?" I have no idea where it is from, which means it probably was on some TV show I didn't watch with her (last time we had a mystery song, it turned out to be the Wonderpets song). She is singing the same words over and over, so I'm pretty sure she didn't make it up. Does anyone have any idea what she's singing? It's driving me crazy to not know!
2. I was looking at beds for the Pumpkin's new room, and most of the ones I like with drawers or trundles under have just the platform that you put the mattress on. No box spring. Londo is concerned that just a mattress might be bad for her back. Also the only ones we've slept on like that were super uncomfortable, but I think that has more to do with how hard the mattresses were then the fact that they didn't have box springs. Does anyone know anything about mattresses without box springs? I just know that the bed frames look cute.
3. I know I've gotten sibling/new baby book recommendations before, but I'm totally blanking on all of them. I keep meaning to buy some, but haven't been to a store on made an online order for a while. I'm going to REALLY soon. So, does anyone have any good recommendations for us to read to the Pumpkin to help her prepare for the new "baby brudda"?
4. Does anyone know how to safely (and hopefully easily) get cat urine out of antique fabric on a chair? I won't get into the story except to say, "Grrrrrrrrr!!!"
5. Londo and I were planning to buy a cheap dresser for the Pumpkin's new room because we are sure she will draw on it and put stickers on it and what have you. But my dad mentioned that if it's a cheap dresser it might not be that sturdy. And it is well known that my child LOVES to climb everything she possibly can. My dad was worried she's try to climb in or on a drawer (highly likely) and it would break and she's get hurt. Does anyone have an opinion on cheap vs. sturdy or a good idea to get both? (No need to recommend IKEA. I really like the idea of IKEA and the things I see other people have from there, but I can never find things I like/in my style there, unfortunately.)
6. The Pumpkin LOVES music. She also loves to push buttons, and she loves to turn on the music box attached to the crib in the nursery (where she is currently). So we would like to get her some sort of kids radio/(maybe) CD player for her new room. However, her love of climbing includes standing on toys. Also, she is not really careful with things yet, although she is learning. Anyone have any suggestions on a radio/CD player that would be good for her?
I'm sure I had more, but that's probably enough for now. I hope someone can help us out with any of these!!!
This week's question of the week is:
Can you help caramama out with answers or advice in any of the following areas?
(Hehe. See what I did there? I'm totally cheating!)
1. My daughter keeps singing some words to the tune of Twinkle Twinkle (or ABCs or Baa Baa Black Sheep--all of those have the same tune), and the words of the second line go something like, "Where you going in the night?" I have no idea where it is from, which means it probably was on some TV show I didn't watch with her (last time we had a mystery song, it turned out to be the Wonderpets song). She is singing the same words over and over, so I'm pretty sure she didn't make it up. Does anyone have any idea what she's singing? It's driving me crazy to not know!
2. I was looking at beds for the Pumpkin's new room, and most of the ones I like with drawers or trundles under have just the platform that you put the mattress on. No box spring. Londo is concerned that just a mattress might be bad for her back. Also the only ones we've slept on like that were super uncomfortable, but I think that has more to do with how hard the mattresses were then the fact that they didn't have box springs. Does anyone know anything about mattresses without box springs? I just know that the bed frames look cute.
3. I know I've gotten sibling/new baby book recommendations before, but I'm totally blanking on all of them. I keep meaning to buy some, but haven't been to a store on made an online order for a while. I'm going to REALLY soon. So, does anyone have any good recommendations for us to read to the Pumpkin to help her prepare for the new "baby brudda"?
4. Does anyone know how to safely (and hopefully easily) get cat urine out of antique fabric on a chair? I won't get into the story except to say, "Grrrrrrrrr!!!"
5. Londo and I were planning to buy a cheap dresser for the Pumpkin's new room because we are sure she will draw on it and put stickers on it and what have you. But my dad mentioned that if it's a cheap dresser it might not be that sturdy. And it is well known that my child LOVES to climb everything she possibly can. My dad was worried she's try to climb in or on a drawer (highly likely) and it would break and she's get hurt. Does anyone have an opinion on cheap vs. sturdy or a good idea to get both? (No need to recommend IKEA. I really like the idea of IKEA and the things I see other people have from there, but I can never find things I like/in my style there, unfortunately.)
6. The Pumpkin LOVES music. She also loves to push buttons, and she loves to turn on the music box attached to the crib in the nursery (where she is currently). So we would like to get her some sort of kids radio/(maybe) CD player for her new room. However, her love of climbing includes standing on toys. Also, she is not really careful with things yet, although she is learning. Anyone have any suggestions on a radio/CD player that would be good for her?
I'm sure I had more, but that's probably enough for now. I hope someone can help us out with any of these!!!
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Trading Nurseries
Since we are on the subject of the second baby and bring that baby home, and in fact HeatherY specifically mentioned the new baby's nursery in her comment yesterday, and since you all have good opinions and are always such a help to me... Let me tell you about our plans for the children's rooms and see what you think.
The plan is to move the Pumpkin into a new room, which we will do when she turns 2 in March as a birthday present. It will be Winnie-the-Pooh themed, so lately I've started getting her into Winnie (a really easy task). In June when the baby is born, we will keep the baby in our room in the co-sleeper next to my side of the bed for the first 6 months or so, as we did for the Pumpkin. When we and the baby are ready, we will move the baby into the nursery, which was the Pumpkin's nursery.
The reason for this change boils down to space. The Pumpkin's current room (the nursery, with a safari/animal theme) is pretty large and can comfortably fit the crib, the dresser/changing table, a twin bed, and the large glider/recliner that we have. Our other large room is the guest room because it can fit the queen-sized bed (plus some other small items). We need to keep the guest room with the queen bed because Londo's parents come up pretty frequently to visit, and they will be coming up to watch the Pumpkin when the baby is born, so we definitely need to keep it.
The room that we will move the Pumpkin to is smaller and was supposed to be my office/craft room, but I never did set it up in the 2+ years we've lived here. Instead, it became a place to dump and store stuff. My mom is currently helping me clean it out so we can set it up. It will definitely fit a twin bed, a dresser and a bedside table. There should be some floor space left for her to play. But there is no way that this room could also fit the glider/recliner, which is why I can't see it as a new nursery for the second child. I also want to be sure to have a twin bed and a crib in the nursery for the baby because I will likely cosleep for part of the night after we move the baby into the nursery, as I did with the Pumpkin.
To sum up:
-We need the nursery to be the large room because we need the space, therefore we are moving the Pumpkin into a smaller room.
-We need to keep our guest room, so we really can't make that room a new nursery.
-We are trying to make it a big, fun deal by making it her birthday present and having new decor with a theme she will love (she is already loving Winnie, Tigger and the others).
-We will move the Pumpkin 3 months before the baby comes, and we will keep the baby in our room for another 6 months. Hopefully, this will keep the Pumpkin from feeling like she had to give up her room for the baby.
Okay, what do you all think? Bad idea? Might work? My planning and decorating sense is impeccable? Let me have it.
The plan is to move the Pumpkin into a new room, which we will do when she turns 2 in March as a birthday present. It will be Winnie-the-Pooh themed, so lately I've started getting her into Winnie (a really easy task). In June when the baby is born, we will keep the baby in our room in the co-sleeper next to my side of the bed for the first 6 months or so, as we did for the Pumpkin. When we and the baby are ready, we will move the baby into the nursery, which was the Pumpkin's nursery.
The reason for this change boils down to space. The Pumpkin's current room (the nursery, with a safari/animal theme) is pretty large and can comfortably fit the crib, the dresser/changing table, a twin bed, and the large glider/recliner that we have. Our other large room is the guest room because it can fit the queen-sized bed (plus some other small items). We need to keep the guest room with the queen bed because Londo's parents come up pretty frequently to visit, and they will be coming up to watch the Pumpkin when the baby is born, so we definitely need to keep it.
The room that we will move the Pumpkin to is smaller and was supposed to be my office/craft room, but I never did set it up in the 2+ years we've lived here. Instead, it became a place to dump and store stuff. My mom is currently helping me clean it out so we can set it up. It will definitely fit a twin bed, a dresser and a bedside table. There should be some floor space left for her to play. But there is no way that this room could also fit the glider/recliner, which is why I can't see it as a new nursery for the second child. I also want to be sure to have a twin bed and a crib in the nursery for the baby because I will likely cosleep for part of the night after we move the baby into the nursery, as I did with the Pumpkin.
To sum up:
-We need the nursery to be the large room because we need the space, therefore we are moving the Pumpkin into a smaller room.
-We need to keep our guest room, so we really can't make that room a new nursery.
-We are trying to make it a big, fun deal by making it her birthday present and having new decor with a theme she will love (she is already loving Winnie, Tigger and the others).
-We will move the Pumpkin 3 months before the baby comes, and we will keep the baby in our room for another 6 months. Hopefully, this will keep the Pumpkin from feeling like she had to give up her room for the baby.
Okay, what do you all think? Bad idea? Might work? My planning and decorating sense is impeccable? Let me have it.
Friday, May 23, 2008
It's Not All Bad
Thanks everyone for your support. It really helps so much to just hear the sympathy and understanding (including an awesomely funny phone message from limboland la la!). This is a phase, and we will get through it, both at work and at home.
I am inspired by Cloud of Wandering Scientist (see last paragraph of this post). I am going to try to concentrate on the good and wonderful things that the Pumpkin is doing, as well as the things about work that I'm enjoying. So here are some good things that are going in my life.
-----------------------
When the Pumpkin reaches for my glasses (which I wear only when my contacts aren't in), she now get a serious look on her face and says sharply "don", which is of course her imitating me saying "don't". Apparently I say that often when she reaches for my glasses. She obviously does not understand what that word means, because she still reaches for the glasses, tears them off my face and then says "eye" as she tries to poke her finger into my eyeball. (How does she know to do this everytime my hands are occupied with something else?)
Instead of getting mad at her coming close to breaking my glasses as she pulls on them, I find her serious face and sharp "don" extremely funny and I burst out laughing every time. Ah well. It's probably time for new glasses anyway.
------------------------
Londo is now taking one night a week to put the Pumpkin to bed. We made this agreement a while ago, but I think it's been hard for me to let go of this responsibility. For my sanity, I need to take the break at least one night a week, so I've just got to let go and let him do it. He gave her a bottle to bed last night, and I was able to actually spend that time doing something fun for me.
------------------------
Want to know what that something fun was? Yesterday, I finally bought the shelves I talked about a long time ago. I got the drawer base, the cabinet and the cubbies in honey. Last night, I moved the chair from the corner out of the room, set down the drawer base in the corner, and then I put together the cabinet and put it on top of the base. And then... I put away all of the Pumpkin's toys!!! And they all fit in just those, so I can use the cubbies for my cookbooks and other books! Now, instead of the toys overflowing in a corner of the room and a chair in another corner that was just a dumping place for jackets and crap, I've got a beautiful drawer and cabinet that store the Pumpkin's toys in the family room. I'm so happy about that.
And the new couch arrives on Tuesday! As for the other items for the room, I've had to redesign a bit based on the new financial situation. Will try and take pics next week after the couch is in and explain the set up I decided on.
------------------------
Did I mention how much I'm looking forward to the get together at the zoo this weekend?
------------------------
Having the nanny full time at our house has been working out really well. She is wonderful, and having her at our house has really eased my stress in the mornings. If I'm not ready by the time she gets to our house at 8:00, I can hand over the Pumpkin and finish getting ready on my own.
------------------------
A good friend and her daughter (who is a couple months older than the Pumpkin) is very likely going to come to the beach with us on vacation! We own the time share with my parents, so it will be my mom and dad there too. Family, friends, the beach and outlet shopping. Could it get any better???
------------------------
I got an award at work. It comes with money. I can now shop the outlets at the beach without feeling guilty. :-)
------------------------
I finished my May read for the TBR Challenge: Animals in Translation: Using the Mysteries of Autism to Decode Animal Behavior, By Temple Grandin and Catherine Johnson. It was really good, and I'm hoping to write up my review this weekend.
------------------------
The Pumpkin loves to "put things in." So she is picking up stuff from the floor or the alphabet magnets off the fridge and putting them into buckets. Now that I have a good place for her toys, I plan on transitioning her to "put things away." After that, it's only a short jump to dusting and mopping, right?
------------------------
So I've got that going for me, which is nice...
I am inspired by Cloud of Wandering Scientist (see last paragraph of this post). I am going to try to concentrate on the good and wonderful things that the Pumpkin is doing, as well as the things about work that I'm enjoying. So here are some good things that are going in my life.
-----------------------
When the Pumpkin reaches for my glasses (which I wear only when my contacts aren't in), she now get a serious look on her face and says sharply "don", which is of course her imitating me saying "don't". Apparently I say that often when she reaches for my glasses. She obviously does not understand what that word means, because she still reaches for the glasses, tears them off my face and then says "eye" as she tries to poke her finger into my eyeball. (How does she know to do this everytime my hands are occupied with something else?)
Instead of getting mad at her coming close to breaking my glasses as she pulls on them, I find her serious face and sharp "don" extremely funny and I burst out laughing every time. Ah well. It's probably time for new glasses anyway.
------------------------
Londo is now taking one night a week to put the Pumpkin to bed. We made this agreement a while ago, but I think it's been hard for me to let go of this responsibility. For my sanity, I need to take the break at least one night a week, so I've just got to let go and let him do it. He gave her a bottle to bed last night, and I was able to actually spend that time doing something fun for me.
------------------------
Want to know what that something fun was? Yesterday, I finally bought the shelves I talked about a long time ago. I got the drawer base, the cabinet and the cubbies in honey. Last night, I moved the chair from the corner out of the room, set down the drawer base in the corner, and then I put together the cabinet and put it on top of the base. And then... I put away all of the Pumpkin's toys!!! And they all fit in just those, so I can use the cubbies for my cookbooks and other books! Now, instead of the toys overflowing in a corner of the room and a chair in another corner that was just a dumping place for jackets and crap, I've got a beautiful drawer and cabinet that store the Pumpkin's toys in the family room. I'm so happy about that.
And the new couch arrives on Tuesday! As for the other items for the room, I've had to redesign a bit based on the new financial situation. Will try and take pics next week after the couch is in and explain the set up I decided on.
------------------------
Did I mention how much I'm looking forward to the get together at the zoo this weekend?
------------------------
Having the nanny full time at our house has been working out really well. She is wonderful, and having her at our house has really eased my stress in the mornings. If I'm not ready by the time she gets to our house at 8:00, I can hand over the Pumpkin and finish getting ready on my own.
------------------------
A good friend and her daughter (who is a couple months older than the Pumpkin) is very likely going to come to the beach with us on vacation! We own the time share with my parents, so it will be my mom and dad there too. Family, friends, the beach and outlet shopping. Could it get any better???
------------------------
I got an award at work. It comes with money. I can now shop the outlets at the beach without feeling guilty. :-)
------------------------
I finished my May read for the TBR Challenge: Animals in Translation: Using the Mysteries of Autism to Decode Animal Behavior, By Temple Grandin and Catherine Johnson. It was really good, and I'm hoping to write up my review this weekend.
------------------------
The Pumpkin loves to "put things in." So she is picking up stuff from the floor or the alphabet magnets off the fridge and putting them into buckets. Now that I have a good place for her toys, I plan on transitioning her to "put things away." After that, it's only a short jump to dusting and mopping, right?
------------------------
So I've got that going for me, which is nice...
Monday, April 28, 2008
Question of the Week - Pimp Your House
I know I haven't been around in a while. We went to the inlaws this weekend, which went pretty well, except for the 5-6 hour car trip each way with a little girl who HATES the car. Oh, and the migraine I've had on and off all weekend. That's fun with a screaming kid in the car. Real fun.
On the bright side, I have been relaxing by watching decorating shows and reading decorating books and magazines. I'm so ready to start organizing and cleaning and hanging and rearranging. As soon as I have any free time (what's that again?) and don't have a headache, I'll get right on that spring cleaning.
I did catch the end of an episode of Cribs, in which I got to see Jewel's house. GORGEOUS! And last week, one of the radio shows asked each other a good question that I'm stealing for this week's question.
Question of the Week:
What Crib-like feature would you want for your house?
I was thinking of a fantabulous, fantasy pool or maybe a macked-out kitchen, but then I realized I would want a really amazing library. Maybe even a library wing! I'm talking a two-stories high, large, open room, with a balcony that lined the second level and ladders that go up to the top shelves on each level. With comfy chairs nestled together in front of windows and a large fireplace, soft, deep rugs and lots of lamps and maybe a beautiful chandelier. A room that is light and airy, but with a dark, intellectual decor. The books would all be grouped in genre and then alphabetical, and they would all be logged in a program on the computer. There would be a work table as well as a couple desks with computers.
That is my idea of heaven in a house. How about you?
On the bright side, I have been relaxing by watching decorating shows and reading decorating books and magazines. I'm so ready to start organizing and cleaning and hanging and rearranging. As soon as I have any free time (what's that again?) and don't have a headache, I'll get right on that spring cleaning.
I did catch the end of an episode of Cribs, in which I got to see Jewel's house. GORGEOUS! And last week, one of the radio shows asked each other a good question that I'm stealing for this week's question.
Question of the Week:
What Crib-like feature would you want for your house?
I was thinking of a fantabulous, fantasy pool or maybe a macked-out kitchen, but then I realized I would want a really amazing library. Maybe even a library wing! I'm talking a two-stories high, large, open room, with a balcony that lined the second level and ladders that go up to the top shelves on each level. With comfy chairs nestled together in front of windows and a large fireplace, soft, deep rugs and lots of lamps and maybe a beautiful chandelier. A room that is light and airy, but with a dark, intellectual decor. The books would all be grouped in genre and then alphabetical, and they would all be logged in a program on the computer. There would be a work table as well as a couple desks with computers.
That is my idea of heaven in a house. How about you?
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
I Have Designs For Those Rooms
I'm exhausted and dying to go to sleep, but I wanted to cheer myself up a bit by talking about My Brilliant Plan for our family room. (I hope this is coherent, because I'm so very tired.)
There are two things that you would realize about me if you walked into my house these days. The first is that I love to decorate. However, we moved into this house when I was in my second trimester, and my pregnancy exhaustion and then that whole having an infant tihng kept me from having the energy to buy decor, hang paintings and curtains, paint walls and furniture and do all those other things I love. I didn't even have the energy to buy proper family room furniture instead of the uncomfortable and awkwardly placed hand-me-down furniture we currently have in there. We don't even have a coffee table! All of the beautiful decorating I've done for this house has been in my head, usually during those late night wakings when I nursed the baby in the dark with nothing to do but think.
The second thing is that I hate hate hate clutter. It drives me nuts. I will try to let things go, but if it stays cluttered for too long, I just can't take it and a blow up about how I can't stand the house and have to do something. The problem in this house has been two things: our kitchen and family room don't have enough places to put things (no pantry in the kitchen?!?!), and the baby has a lot of stuff and I've not bought things to put them in. So it overflows in the kitchen and in the family room.
And I've had it. I cannot take the current furniture or the clutter. And now that it's spring, I have a bit of energy to do the shopping I have needed to do. I finally got Londo on board with the couch I have coveted for 3 years, and I ordered it last week! It won't be in for 8-10 weeks, but then we will have the perfect couch! We have found a great leather chair (I think it was that one) for Londo that we need to order. I've been working on a coffee table, an accent chair and shelves for storage.
Speaking of storage, I'm dying for some place to store the toys (and cookbooks and magazines and whatever else). We don't have an overload of toys, although we do have plenty. We just have no where to put it all where it would be organized and accessible. I was ready to break down and just buy some cheesy plastic bucket-shelf thingy which looks like something for a kid's playroom with its primary colors and cheapness, which would definitely not match the nice decor I had in mind for the room. But I need to put those toys SOMEWHERE!
Then I read this post by Jen of Amazing Trips. I was inspired! I was not going to settle for some piece of crap in my family room! I was going to search for the vision I had in my head and make it happen! So that afternoon, after checking online, I went to Pottery Barn Kids. They have this fantastic modular shelving system that is EXACTLY what I have in mind. I'm going to get three of four pieces and put them on top of each other in the perfect spot in the family room. I think I'm going to get the honey color, because I got the couch in oatmeal and we'll get a brown leather chair, so I think the honey will keep with the relaxed, casual feel of the room.
I've also suggested that we get this activity table (although I will probably get these storage bins) to use as our coffee table. With the storage bins underneath, it can hold a lot of the Pumpkin's toys, as well as blankets and other items we have kicking around the room. Once the Pumpkin is older, we can either take the bins out from under and keep it as our coffee table or let her (and any future kids) have it as a play table. I asked Londo what he thought about the activity table as a coffee table. He was fine with it. When pressed, he said he just wants a coffee table. Any coffee table. Just somewhere to put his cup of coffee. I could pick whatever I wanted. So, I've picked.
Londo wants to do some final measuring to make sure what I want will truly fit where I want it to. After that, I will go to the store and buy the shelves and table! The best part about those is that the store has the honey-colored shelves and table in stock, so I will be able to bring it home immediately!
Next on my list is ordering the leather chair and finding a proper table for the kitchen. I'm thinking this one (in mahogany) might be perfect or maybe this (although not those chairs) for our smallish kitchen, but I have to measure the space, look at them in person and think about what would be just right. I also want to look at other stores and see if I can't find an even better table at a better price. After that, I will work on finding an accent chair, a media stand for the TV, and a console table for behind the couch. Fortunately, I don't feel the rush to do this all right away, as Londo and I have agreed to buy them piece by piece, making sure each item fits in the room correctly and works for us and then evaluating what we really need next.
I'm so excited about finally decorating the two rooms we use the most in the house! I do have a limited budget (which we've had set aside since the sale of our last house), but I'm looking into sales and prioritizing what we need most.
Alright, now it's way later than I intended to go to bed, but I am in a really good mood thinking about all this. We're also going to go through our boxes of pictures and knick knacks that we haven't unpacked since we moved to find just the right decor to match the room. And then, maybe then, I'll feel like I live in a house that I've made my own, like I've got rooms in which I've put my creative ideas into reality. If I can do this and be happy with it, I hope to continue my momentum and finish up some of the other rooms--maybe even all of them!
And then, I'm sure we'll move again.
There are two things that you would realize about me if you walked into my house these days. The first is that I love to decorate. However, we moved into this house when I was in my second trimester, and my pregnancy exhaustion and then that whole having an infant tihng kept me from having the energy to buy decor, hang paintings and curtains, paint walls and furniture and do all those other things I love. I didn't even have the energy to buy proper family room furniture instead of the uncomfortable and awkwardly placed hand-me-down furniture we currently have in there. We don't even have a coffee table! All of the beautiful decorating I've done for this house has been in my head, usually during those late night wakings when I nursed the baby in the dark with nothing to do but think.
The second thing is that I hate hate hate clutter. It drives me nuts. I will try to let things go, but if it stays cluttered for too long, I just can't take it and a blow up about how I can't stand the house and have to do something. The problem in this house has been two things: our kitchen and family room don't have enough places to put things (no pantry in the kitchen?!?!), and the baby has a lot of stuff and I've not bought things to put them in. So it overflows in the kitchen and in the family room.
And I've had it. I cannot take the current furniture or the clutter. And now that it's spring, I have a bit of energy to do the shopping I have needed to do. I finally got Londo on board with the couch I have coveted for 3 years, and I ordered it last week! It won't be in for 8-10 weeks, but then we will have the perfect couch! We have found a great leather chair (I think it was that one) for Londo that we need to order. I've been working on a coffee table, an accent chair and shelves for storage.
Speaking of storage, I'm dying for some place to store the toys (and cookbooks and magazines and whatever else). We don't have an overload of toys, although we do have plenty. We just have no where to put it all where it would be organized and accessible. I was ready to break down and just buy some cheesy plastic bucket-shelf thingy which looks like something for a kid's playroom with its primary colors and cheapness, which would definitely not match the nice decor I had in mind for the room. But I need to put those toys SOMEWHERE!
Then I read this post by Jen of Amazing Trips. I was inspired! I was not going to settle for some piece of crap in my family room! I was going to search for the vision I had in my head and make it happen! So that afternoon, after checking online, I went to Pottery Barn Kids. They have this fantastic modular shelving system that is EXACTLY what I have in mind. I'm going to get three of four pieces and put them on top of each other in the perfect spot in the family room. I think I'm going to get the honey color, because I got the couch in oatmeal and we'll get a brown leather chair, so I think the honey will keep with the relaxed, casual feel of the room.
I've also suggested that we get this activity table (although I will probably get these storage bins) to use as our coffee table. With the storage bins underneath, it can hold a lot of the Pumpkin's toys, as well as blankets and other items we have kicking around the room. Once the Pumpkin is older, we can either take the bins out from under and keep it as our coffee table or let her (and any future kids) have it as a play table. I asked Londo what he thought about the activity table as a coffee table. He was fine with it. When pressed, he said he just wants a coffee table. Any coffee table. Just somewhere to put his cup of coffee. I could pick whatever I wanted. So, I've picked.
Londo wants to do some final measuring to make sure what I want will truly fit where I want it to. After that, I will go to the store and buy the shelves and table! The best part about those is that the store has the honey-colored shelves and table in stock, so I will be able to bring it home immediately!
Next on my list is ordering the leather chair and finding a proper table for the kitchen. I'm thinking this one (in mahogany) might be perfect or maybe this (although not those chairs) for our smallish kitchen, but I have to measure the space, look at them in person and think about what would be just right. I also want to look at other stores and see if I can't find an even better table at a better price. After that, I will work on finding an accent chair, a media stand for the TV, and a console table for behind the couch. Fortunately, I don't feel the rush to do this all right away, as Londo and I have agreed to buy them piece by piece, making sure each item fits in the room correctly and works for us and then evaluating what we really need next.
I'm so excited about finally decorating the two rooms we use the most in the house! I do have a limited budget (which we've had set aside since the sale of our last house), but I'm looking into sales and prioritizing what we need most.
Alright, now it's way later than I intended to go to bed, but I am in a really good mood thinking about all this. We're also going to go through our boxes of pictures and knick knacks that we haven't unpacked since we moved to find just the right decor to match the room. And then, maybe then, I'll feel like I live in a house that I've made my own, like I've got rooms in which I've put my creative ideas into reality. If I can do this and be happy with it, I hope to continue my momentum and finish up some of the other rooms--maybe even all of them!
And then, I'm sure we'll move again.
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