Thursday, April 30, 2009

Funny you should mention it.

Funny you should mention it Laura, you had just commented on the fact that you hope the kids don't ruin it. Well just to test it out (because the carpet is supposed to be 100% stain resistant, probably hence the price tag) I have had a piece of it soaking in the sink in straight liquid bleach for an hour now and there is absolutely no change to it. So bring on the coffee, juice, and marker...because if bleach can't hurt it I think we are safe. :-)

New carpet















This was my office yesterday which led to a pretty deep sunburn...ooops! Here's the staircase about half way done, it gets finished up today.The living room before and after the old carpet looks horrible so much worse than a picture can possibly describe. And the new carpet is so much nicer than the picture can show, it is made out of a corn by product and is pretty much as soft as a blanket which will be especially nice when we have all the kids from Indiana/Illinois out this summer, they will absolutely love playing on it.

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

The belly

And here's the belly, not sure what's going on with our camera it's making spots show up. Probably got some dust in it...not sure how that would happen in a construction zone. He he he. But yep the belly is getting pretty darn big, I took this picture with my shirt down after all the stretch marks are kind of gross and someone reading could possibly be eating.

Monday, April 27, 2009

Hitting the home stretch...

Ok first off this is what your yard looks like when you are in the middle of a remodel...yep just like Guatemala.












Look no railing, I haven't even walked upstairs yet today...I am sure my clumsy butt would fall right off.












Joe standing there, he doesn't seem to be scared by the whole missing railing thing.













I have been walking down these stairs without railing for a couple of days, I call these "Danger Dog" stairs now. Both Moose and I hug the green wall walking up and down. You can see Kitty Twitch sitting there having fun with the openness.








Here's Joe finishing up making the stair stringers white. You would think that would be an easy job, but it's not.













Here you can see how much sanding and wood putty it takes to make this kind of smooth. Not to mention two coats of primer and numerous coats of paint.










This is what we woke up to this morning, you've gotta love Colorado nearly May and woke up to two inches of snow.

Thursday, April 23, 2009

And some more pictures....

The living room minus the carpet, turns out the pad is crazy hard to get up...so we left it for the carpet install guys.











The kitchen with Joe painting the ceiling, it was the last room that we scraped the popcorn out of...what an amazing feeling.











The corner of the master bedroom all painted and nice.












The new closet doors in the guest bedroom.













The rest of the guest bedroom now without carpet.












The baby's room...Joe never thought he would be painting a wall pink. :-)












And look at the doors with the trim all hung.

The Dentist

I had a dentist appointment today and while I never really enjoy the dentist I was looking forward to this particular appointment. I have NEVER flossed before, I mean I used to chew up a wad of cinnamon or mint floss as a kid but never used it correctly. Until I found out I was pregnant and read an article about gum disease causing premature labor, well that's all the proof I needed. I immediately started flossing. So I was expecting a giant A on my report card at the dentist today because I am after all a people pleaser. Instead I got an F, I was actually asked by the lady on numerous occasions well but what kind of floss are you using...would that matter? Aren't all flosses created equal, basically I spent an hour and a half being called a liar...of course she was polite about it because I pay her but you get the gist of our conversation. Not to mention the fact that I am absolutely sure that my dentist was a scab picker as a child, the reason that I know this you ask...because she is brutal to my mouth, she leaves nothing on any tooth. My gums are now so swollen that they are in parts covering up my actual teeth, at least the bleeding finally stopped but I still can't chew. Oh yeah and she can't help but rest her tool on my mouth generally before I can move my lips out of the way so they are as swollen as my gums. My favorite question...are you SURE you're ok? Why would she ask it like this...because my face is covered in blood and tears are running down either side of my face. At one point I just looked at her and said I'm fine just don't stop anymore. It also never fails that I am seated right next to a child who is in and out of there in 10 minutes, they must just let their teeth rot out of their heads rather than cleaning them.

On the way home I stopped by to pick up Panera Bread for Joe and I...and then proceeded to cry when I got home because I couldn't eat it even though I was starving. In fact now that I am in the depths of pitty I have just had a heck of a day so far. The chiropractor had to "place" a rib back in place this morning. I put place in quotes because it's consists of slamming his body down on my chest with his fist where the rib in question is, to answer the next obvious question...yes it hurts, in fact it hurts so bad he smiled and said you won't like me very much this morning and then proceeded to crush me. This all coupled with the fact I have been on line working since four this morning, bring on a crying baby it HAS to be less horrible then my pager in the middle of the night. Just to drive me up over the edge it just went off again, that's 12 straight hours of paging...gotta love computers.

Better get back to painting and fixing the world, which is apparently going to hell in a hand basket according to my pager.

Monday, April 20, 2009

Weekends

Whelp now we are even working through the weekends and evenings. It's ok with me though I have said in the past that I am the type of person that feels the best when something is completed, not started, not half way done...completed. So I like the final push for the finish line. I'm glad that I haven't been too tired either so at least I can help out with the things Joe will let me do.

And here we are living in a trim factory.....


And our stairs all torn up...


And for my Mom, you asked where your grand dogs were...well here's one of them hiding in the laundry room because Dad's using the air compressor. Now that's a guard dog if I've ever seen one. But you can see my AWESOME new white doors!

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Car Seats & Diapers

So Joe and I were at the doctor's on Monday afternoon and somehow it got brought up that we are full term in less than a week and a half (even though my due date is more than a month away). Both of our faces kind of went white Joe then spoke up and said well I guess I could drop you off at the hospital and go buy a car seat real quick. It was just so surreal to think we could be utterly unprepared for something like this. Luckily she won't remember that we are the parents that didn't have even one diaper at the house and had to stop on the way home. :-) Although the side-effect to this news in that Joe has shifted into high gear on the house.

In watching the news this morning I am pretty sure that the people that complain about the small stuff must not keep up to date on the news. I spend at least an hour every morning shaking my head, kids missing, people dying...now we even have pirates. Yet the radio was talking about a new Spongebob Square pants video that is bothering people...really? That lights people on fire, but finding 8 year olds in suitcases rolls off your back. I walked past a car yesterday in the grocery store parking lot that had a bumper sticker on it that read "Hurt an animal go to jail, period!". How about hurt a person go to jail? Most domestic violence charges are met with probabtion, let's not even talk about child abuse and the fact that the child (not likely) or another guardian has to press the charges. 80% of the people in prison are in there on drug charges. Murders happen every day, everywhere. They just must have better lawyers then the drug dealers.

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Joe's Project Today

Oh yeah and this is Joe's project today, it makes me laugh because it looks like we are a door company. So that's our backyard covered in over spray and new doors. :-)

Our home, in too many pictures.

This is the hallway when you first walk in...


Here is the staircase with the new green wall, however that color green makes the wood look awful...but the staircase is being replaced so it doesn't really matter.


The view from upstairs, you'll notice that I am sitting in the living room working away. And the picture window leads into my new office, that wall with the window in it is new (it all used to be railing).


The railing upstairs, not sure if you can tell but we have 120 balusters to replace. That's a lot of railing.

Monday, April 13, 2009

The weekend

We had a wonderful weekend Friday night we all went out for a friends birthday, the benefit to being pregnant is that I am the best darn DD in the world. Sober now for 8 months...kind of feel like I should get a chip like you do in AA.

Joe and I had a newborn class on Saturday morning...to which I was the only person that had never changed a diaper. Guess who got to work with the little dolly?! Learned how to swaddle, how to rock, how to burp them. All the moms reading this are chuckling right now but I'll bet you that at least one person reading it doesn't know what swaddling even is. Which is about where I am. The class got a good laugh out of my ignorance but I don't mind, I find that if I show that vulnerable side of myself it allows others to do the same. So sure enough before long we were all asking the "obvious" questions. Well that is of course after I scared everyone half to death. You may ask, how could I have done that? Just be the nearly 9 month pregnant lady who falls down the stairs. And I totally knew better...had my purse in one hand and my water bottle in the other, no hand on the rail...dummy. I am so clumsy right now I have to sit most times to put on my pants, so why on earth I thought I could gracefully walk down stairs was anybody's guess. But yep scared the hell out of the rest of the pregnant women and of course the doula hosting it. Me, I just kind of sat on my butt looking around like whelp this is a good place to sit and so much easier than getting up. :-)

Easter was good, we got about 8 inches of snow so it was a little more like Christmas. And then went over to my Dad's house to celebrate his 75th birthday. Birthdays are always odd in my family, we don't really celebrate them (especially not on my Dad's side) but we try and at least point out that someone is a year older. Well and it gave them all ample time to call me fat...they're kind people. ;-) Luckily I have been dealing with it for so long that I can shrug it off pretty easily.

Thursday, April 9, 2009

Goodbye Jeep...hello carpet?!?!

Speaking of being real life adults...we just sold the Jeep to pay for carpet. There was a time in my life that would have made me sick and while I am still emotional, I have after all owned the Jeep for almost 10 years I also know that I have put less than 2000 miles on it in 5 years. It's not fair to a vehicle that nice to sit in the dirt.


Wednesday, April 8, 2009

Product of society

It's no secret that I don't believe in throwing away kids. Yesterday I was confronted with a true product of society. I went to school with a boy who was heavily bullied and at the age of 12 snapped and stabbed another kid in the back with a knife. While the wound was no more than superficial (only needing a band aid) the incident occurred just at the start of when schools were starting to see real violence in them. So as an example they put him in a men's medium security prison for 6 years. You can't even speak to him now, he won't make eye contact, wouldn't shake my hand...he is effectively a shell of the person I knew. Some of the same facial features but the eyes are gone, the sparkle that kids have...completely wiped out. He is now an adult who spends his days paranoid and angry, as in so many cases this anger comes from being scared but isn't it always easier to be tough and angry rather than lonely. I am not saying by any means that he should not have been punished, violence needs to be eliminated from schools. But can we not just look at the crime to make sure the punishment is appropriate but that the outcome after the punishment is what we want.

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

Real Life Adults

My friends Dad passed away this weekend. It's the first time a parent of someone I have known has passed away from natural causes. I remember thinking to myself a while back as my Dad gets older and more worse off that it is becoming my turn to be a real life adult. Joe Rogan does a stand up routine about being real life adults just realizing one day in the grocery store line that you are the one that the bagger should call ma'am or sir really shakes you to your core. Not just because you know how much older you are, but because you are absolutely positive that you still don't know what's going on but are being left in charge. Funerals are always sad not just because someone you know has passed away but that nothing puts your own life in perspective faster. So my thoughts for the day...Mom buy the boat, J I'll still visit you in London, promise.

On a more cheery note, there was just a special on the Today Show about hugging and how they are coining it the new hand shake. I love this, because I love hugs. However they were showing the different types of hugs and of course the A Frame and one armed hug were in there, boy do those hugs drive me crazy. I think it's a good way to tell someone I am hugging you out of obligation but would rather not touch you. So let me get this straight you are choosing to hug me and make me feel awkward all at the same time...gee thanks.

Monday, April 6, 2009

Go Heels!

First and foremost I have to send a giant good luck (not that they will need it) to the North Carolina Tarheels. For those of you that don't follow basketball they will be playing Michigan State tonight for the NCAA title.

I had a wonderful weekend filled with what I can still do, which is basically eat. I had lunch with J and Kelley on Saturday and then lunch with my family on Sunday. Oh and I "helped" Joe out on Friday with some of his projects around the house, I have to put helped in quotes because I drive him absolutely crazy. Imagine someone who is super eager, won't ask for help, and cries if you correct her strategy. Yep, it was a long Friday for Joe. Did you realize that the average women speaks 10,000 words a day which is why my lunches with either my family or friends always last hours. So while I am not able to participate in a lot of the activities I would like to, I am at least getting in my daily words.

I read this quote the other day "You have not lived until you have done something for someone who can never repay you." If you have not seen the new movie Seven Pounds but enjoy this quote I would suggest watching it. Speaking of movies Joe and I watched Slumdog Millionaire last night which was also a fabulous movie. I have to admit that I still cannot grasp true poverty, I just can't imagine seeing the neighborhoods featured in that show in person.

Saturday, April 4, 2009

And the belly....

Well here's the belly, notice the kissey face I am giving the wall. And that my posture is getting so much worse with my belly pulling on my back that I think I am shorter now.


Friday, April 3, 2009

TGIF!

I haven't posted in a while so let's see what's been going on...

My belly is growing everyday and I have always heard that stretch marks were hereditary but there were certain things you could do to help prevent them. So I have tried everything I drink 2 gallons of water a day, I have gained weight slow (put on about 20 pounds now and I used to be able to put on a good 10 pounds in one Mexico trip), still go to the gym all the time and continue to do hundreds of crunches and sit ups. Not to mention all the vitamin E, neosporin, aquaphor, belly butter and lotions. And as fate would have it my first two stretch marks started this week, I try to stay positive but it's hard. Joe calls them love bites to make me feel better but it doesn't help. And then I feel guilty for being so vain, after all I am growing a little girl in there and if she needs more room then by all means stretch my skin.

Speaking of the seven deadly sins Joe and some friends went snowboarding last weekend. I thought I was getting better at accepting the things I can't participate in, but again I spent the night pouting. Just being selfish on my part I am sure.

So coupled with the selfishness and vanity I had a good solid dose of guilt. But at least it has been leading to me getting more things done around the house and at work, I tend to not be able to sit still when I feel guilty.

The house is coming along wonderfully, and Joe is doing an amazing job. We ordered the new stair railings and carpet yesterday. With every update we do to the house Joe gets more and more set in the fact that he never wants to move, but I am sure he will change his mind someday.