Sugars & Spice & Everything Nice

I am so excited to have Ella's room finished. I love completing projects and now we can move on to organizing the office. It's gotten out of control!

At first I registered for letters at Babies R Us, but then I found these at Joann's and I really liked the 'E' better than the one at Babies R Us. Plus Joann's is always sending me those those 40% or 50% off coupons. So I bought all 4 of these letters for $10.03 which is less than it would have cost to buy 2 of the letters at Babies R Us. The ribbon is something that I just had on hand and Michael helped staple it to the back and hang them up.

Let's look at the room from left to right. We ended up painting the walls this two tone color. I love that look. The paint is from Sherwin-Williams and the names are Irresistible and Mocha. I was trying to save money so I found all the decorations for her room in closets or I just took them from other places in the house. Those black mirrors are from IKEA and I used them in Owen and Jack's nursery as photo frames for kids dressed in animal costumes. The sconces were used in our spare bedroom.

Owen and Jack's crib ended up being recalled so after we moved Jack to his toddler bed we took apart the crib and sent all the hardware back and received a voucher for a new crib. I love this one we ended up picking out and it didn't cost us anything!!! All of Ella's bedding, curtains and the blanket on the chair I got on Craigslist for $40 a couple months back. I love the argyle pattern.

Here's her hutch...I still haven't put the fabric in covering up the inside of the lower part because we couldn't find our staple gun anywhere. So I guess I'm not totally finished....oh yeah and her closet still needs some work. More projects!!! :) More decorations I just found laying around and the rocking horse is the one that I made and it used to be in the boys nursery.


Here's a close up of another one of those IKEA mirrors. We ended up printing out Ella's ultrasound picture and using it as a picture frame. My black ink was running out so the picture ended up printing pink, but it matches the room!
After reading about this room...I really wanted to get this chandelier from IKEA for Ella's room, but now that I see the finished product I don't think it needs it. I really like it just the way it is. I think it's really hitting me now that we have a GIRL on the way....A GIRL!!! I haven't put any of her clothes in the closet yet so I think that will really make it feel real! I am so excited I get teary eyed thinking about holding her and smelling her sweet new baby smell. Now I just have to wait! :)

25 Weeks 4 Days!

- This picture was taken on Sunday...in my Motherhood Maternity top that I got for $4 at the Mill Creek Garage Sales. I love a good deal!

- Ella is starting to get so strong now. She's been pushing herself over to one side so I've actually been able to feel an elbow, or her head, or whatever part it is she's pushing out.

- I've had a few Braxton Hicks contractions already, but nothing big.

- I'm starting to grow out of some of my maternity clothes...sheesh!

- Putting on my undies is like Michael says, "Trying to dress an egg!"

- Owen talks about Ella quite a lot now. He says her room is beautiful and when I came home today after being out for a while he said, "Mama home....Ella home!"

- Jack is always wanting to lift up my shirt to rub or pat my belly and snuggle the baby.

- Ella's room is finished! You might wonder why I'm in such a hurry to get everything ready when we still have 15 weeks to go. Well Owen came 3 1/2 weeks early so I just like to be prepared. Plus it's easier to do this type of stuff when I have help and since Michael is home right now I'm taking advantage of that while I can.

My Boys

You might have noticed that I haven't blogged much lately...that's mainly because we haven't done THAT many exciting things lately. But it's also due to the fact that these boys have been driving their Mama crazy! I love them more than words can say...they are my blessings. However, with the change to our everyday schedule we are all just trying to find our way and make sense of it. The boys are used to Daddy being gone all day everyday. Now that he's home it's wonderful...really I love having Michael home. He is SO helpful! However, it does change the balance of our lives. The boys know something is up, but they aren't big enough to understand what that is. They are also trying to absorb all this stuff they keep hearing about their new sister so that's probably stressful too. Nap times around here have been awful and pretty much nonexistent. There's just been a bunch of changes and the boys have been grumpy, I've been grumpy and I just haven't been in the mood to talk about it. Shocking I know!

Thought these pictures were too cute to post. I love having photos to compare the boys!

Owen at 14 months!

Jack 17 months!

Playin' Guitar & Eatin' At Denny's

Last Sunday we headed over to Grandpa & Grandma Martin's house to hang out since we are going to see them on Thanksgiving this year. The last time we were there Owen had so much fun playing guitar with Grandpa, but I forgot my camera. This time I came prepared...

Owen has always loved music and he really enjoys it when we all sing Bible songs.

Love this cute mischievous grin!

Last time Jack wasn't too interested, but this time around he wanted to give it a go.

After hanging out at their place for a little while we went and visited Great Grandpa & Grandma who live just one street over. Then we went to dinner at Denny's. We had a buy one get one free coupon and it was kids eat free so we ended up getting four dinners (well breakfast for dinner) for $10!!!

We got the boys these cute baseball pancakes! All in all it was a really nice evening out!

More Photographic Proof That I'm A Dork!

Tonight while the boys were being watched by Ga-Ga & Pa, Michael and I got to go out on a little date. We went down to the new shopping area in Renton called The Landing and had dinner at Daphne's Greek Cafe...seriously yummy and inexpensive Greek food. Then we headed over to the theater and met up with my friend Carmen to see....

NEW MOON!!! OH YEAH!!!

I totally did not think I would be one of those squeally, excited fans, but I am. I didn't get all crazy, but I was pretty stoked!

I told Michael to look like he was in pain for this picture. He doesn't look that bad. He enjoyed the movie even though he hasn't read any of the books. It was definitely a good movie and they followed the book pretty closely so I was happy. The theater was pandemonium! I don't think I've ever gone to a movie theater when it's been that crazy.

No Worries (The Post Where I Use Too Many Parentheses)

Just the other morning I was taking a cup of chocolate milk to the dining room table for Owen and I was being lazy (that's been a trend recently). So instead of walking around the table I decided to just gently push it across the table. Bad idea! There was something sticky on the table so the cup ended up getting stuck and then spilled over. Isn't that just how it works....us Mom's tell our kids to be careful and then we end up being the one making the mess!

First I let Owen know that I would get him a new cup of chocolate milk so he wouldn't get sad and then I started singing this song that's on Owen's Elmo Potty Time DVD. It's goes...accidents happen and that's okay! Earlier this week the boys and I were at my mom and dad's house and I let them watch The Lion King for the first time (of course I fast forwarded through the scarier parts). But Owen loved the part with Pumba and Timon. While I was cleaning up the milk off the floor (with my super shammy I bought at the Puyallup Fair...AWESOME!) Owen just looked at me and said, "Hacoo Tata!"

Let me translate...Hakuna Matata...it means no worries for the rest of your days...it's our problem free...philosophy...Hakuna Matata! I have been singing that song a lot to the boys this week, (it's been stuck in my head) but I was so surprised that Owen used it in the right context.

Crazy Boys

Last night Owen was having fun standing on Jack's stool holding Jack's No-No (Pooh Bear Blanky). Jack decided he could make a game of this by grabbing his No-No and running away from Owen. Most of the time this would totally make Owen go crazy mad and yelling would happen and it would be awful. This time....Owen got that Jack was playing with him and they really were having fun. The greatest part was Jack would be running away, but he just kept falling before he could get to Daddy. It was just so funny to see his head at the end of the bed running one minute and then the next he was gone. Enjoy!

"New" Furniture

Last week my Mom and Dad bought new furniture at The Old Cannery and asked us if we wanted their old leather furniture in return for some work done on their house. We gladly accepted since we've been wanting leather furniture for a long time.

This is our old couch and love seat in the living room.

These are our two Queen Anne chairs in the playroom.

First thing we had to do was get the old furniture out. Easier said than done! Thankfully our friend Micah was willing to stop by after work and help Michael out. Michael ended up having to take the baby gate off the stairs and remove the front door. They sure don't make houses big enough for big furniture.

It was a tight squeeze getting the old couch out and the new couch in. The old couch is also a hide-a-bed so that added to the weight.

Here's the new furniture! The couch and love seat are both recliners so they were pretty heavy too! I think the color looks really nice with our area rug and they are going to be so easy to clean! YAY!!!

I went downstairs just a minute ago to get a snack and the downstairs smells different now. It smells like leather....I thought that was funny!

Here's the playroom now. The recliners were too big to fit both of them in here. One of the Queen Anne chairs is going in Ella's room and the other is just out in the garage for now. I don't want to get rid of it though. Yesterday Michael got Ella's room partially painted so I'm hoping by this time next week we'll have everything done and in place.

Jackanese

Jack is saying new words everyday. He is pretty much repeating whatever we say!

Ahbee = airplane - He will point up in the sky when a plane flies overhead and says this very excitingly.

Ambee = Ambulence

Lala = Ella

No-No = Pooh bear blanky he sleeps with

Av dat = Have that

Chow = McQueen from Cars (He says it this way because McQueen says Kachow in the movie)

Daaa = Doc from Cars

Foe = Flo from Cars

Maa = Mack from Cars

Nay-Nay = Mater from Cars

Gukee = Cookie Monster

Nernie = Ernie

Meemee = Mickey Mouse

Menee = Minnie Mouse

Dondald = Donald Duck

Goat = Coat

Soooo = Soap

Tuttle = Turtle
How = House

Choo choo = Train

Boo = Boot

Mmm eye!! = Mine (Thanks Ga-Ga! :))

Ello = Yellow

Dow = Down

Dant U = Thank you

Jack can now make the sounds for a cat, dog, monkey, pig and his sound for rooster is CACO!

He can point to his ears, nose, hair, belly, wee wee and his teeth. He can also beep his nose if you ask him too and give high fives. He's actually been able to do the high fives for a long time, but I never blogged about it before...at least I don't think I have! :)

Just today when Michael was walking out to the garage to get something he waved and said, "Bye bye Daddy!"

Welcome To The Club!

On Thursday Michael joined the many thousands of other people in America that are now unemployed! It's been a slow year all around for painting, but it still was shocking. Michael does have his own painting business, but that was just for side work...not full time. Michael is very optimistic that this is something that God is in control of and it's His way of closing doors in preparation for opening new ones. We aren't sure what the news doors will bring, but we are excited to find out.

New Beds

Tonight is night two of the boys sleeping in their new beds. Last night went surprisingly well....no one came out of the room and I only had to go in once to tell Owen to quiet down.

Today at nap time was another story though...Jack ended up falling out of his toddler bed and Owen got out of his bed numerous times. I know it's just a new thing for them so the novelty hasn't worn off yet.

You would think that Jack was super happy during this picture...well you'd be wrong! It's amazing what happens when your kid is crabby and you say, "smile!" and they listen, but once the camera snaps...it's back to being crabby again!

Cha Cha Cha Changes!

On Monday morning Jack's highchair tray was dirty and I was being lazy so I decided to just push him up to the table with us to eat. We have always tried to prepare the boys for new adjustments in our house by changing them before they really need to be changed. Like moving Jack to the table because eventually Ella will need to sit in the highchair and we don't want Jack to feel kicked out by Ella. We want him to feel that it's just a part of him getting bigger...which it is. It was fun having up there with us and he enjoyed it.

Another big step Jack made on Monday was sleeping in Owen's toddler bed during nap time. Owen and Jack have napped in separate rooms since we put them in the same room at night. Nap time it just doesn't work! Anyways we are preparing for Owen to sleep in a twin bed and Jack to sleep in the toddler bed because soon Ella will need the crib. Right now Owen's twin bed is in Ella's room, but we will be moving it to their room and moving the crib into Ella's room soon. We will then be trying out nap time with them both in the same room since that's how it's going to have to be when Ella comes. Lots of changes for the boys, but so far they are both really excited about them and it doesn't seem to be causing them any panic attacks.

Ella's Hutch

Michael's Mom and Dad just recently moved and they needed to get rid of a couple things that wouldn't fit in their new place and this hutch was one of them.

Michael's Dad actually made this years ago from reclaimed barn wood. I love it! I have always loved it and I'm so glad he decided to give it to us. I knew immediately I would put it in Ella's room. I want her room to have a shabby chic feel so this will be perfect. I can already picture this cute crystal lamp sitting on it with a frilly lampshade. I am going to make one adjustment though. The bottom part has chicken wire covering the doors and I love the look, but on the inside it's not finished off very kid friendly so we are going to cover that so no kids get poked and I'm going to get some cute fabric to put on the inside so you won't be able to see all the stuff that's stored in there.

It's A Beautiful Thing!

An organized and freshly painted garage that is! I can't tell you how giddy I am about our garage not being a creepy crawly place anymore. In fact it's been finished since Saturday, but I just parked my van in there for the first time tonight because I didn't want to make it all yucky with wet tire tracks. If you want to see the before pictures of the garage click here.

See the white garage door on the left. So much brighter! It's amazing what a little fresh paint can do. There is the cool cabinet I got at the garage sales.

Here's all the poisons and fertilizers stored safely inside out of the kids reach.

This corner wasn't that messy to begin with, but now the brown cabinet is actually being used properly to store things that aren't in storage containers already.

This is so awesome! Michael bought this system called Shelflinks from Lowe's. It's these black plastic bracket things that comes with the hardware and all you have to buy are the 2X4's and you can make the shelves any size you need. Michael built two shelves and the two movable workbenches on either side of his saw. It only took him a Saturday morning, so it was super quick. I love the pegboard hanging on the wall...I keep trying to find more things to hang up. This shelf is holding all the kids clothes, some toys and all the leftover paint we have.

Here's the other shelf. This one is holding all our camping, Christmas stuff and Michael's painting equipment.

And this is one of the main reasons we did this whole project....I am going to love having a place for the boys to play "outside" during all the yucky rain. They have already had fun out there having snack at their picnic table.

This Is What Happens....

To your kitchen, if you pantry is infiltrated by a mouse! Yes, that's right....A MOUSE!!! We just got done dealing with having a mouse in our house for over a week and a half. Why so long you say? We'll let's just say don't spend the extra money and go out and buy the fancy traps....just get the regular old wooden ones and call it a day. After trying two different traps we went and got the old reliable ones and got the mouse the first night.

This is all the food....

That fits in our pantry! I don't know whether to feel disgusted by the fact that I feel the need to have this much food on hand or whether or not I should pat myself on the back for fitting it all in the pantry.

I'm sure you've guessed that Costco is one of my favorite stores. See the two Goldfish cracker boxes? Yeah that's what happens when you go to Costco without thoroughly looking through the pantry to see what you already have on stock!

Surprisingly I didn't have to throw too many things away due to mouse. There was poo everywhere so I vacuumed and disinfected everything though. He did chew into one package of apples and cinnamon oatmeal, he tried to claw his way into the peanut butter jar and he ate through this brand new bag of chocolate chips....he sure knew what the good stuff was.

Here's what my pantry looks like all cleaned out! It took me almost 2 hours to do this whole project and afterwards I could barely move!

Here it is all put back together, organized and most assuredly....CLEAN and mouse free!!! After everything was out I took expanding foam and filled in the hole that he was getting in through.

23 Weeks

23 weeks and I look like I'm going to give birth any day now. I'm gonna be huge!

At my last doctor's appointment I was measuring a couple weeks ahead and I gained 8 1/2lbs in one month. Just that morning I had realized that I'm always pregnant over Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas. No wonder I gain so much weight! As you can probably surmise my appetite is quite healthy...in fact I could probably eat continuously throughout the day. I'm always hungry!

Ella is moving all around and we can now watch my belly move. She has her busy times which are first thing in the morning and then right before bed.

I've been feeling pretty good. Bending over is definitely not something I can do anymore. If I need to pick up anything that is below my knees I have to squat to get it. My pelvic bone is starting to hurt again when I roll over in bed. This happened with my pregnancy with Jack. It's really painful!

We are almost finished with the garage organization and then it's onto Ella's room. I have everything pictured in my head so it will be nice to actually see it for real.

It's Trick Or Treat Time!

This was our second year spending Halloween at Ga-Ga & Pa's house. Their neighborhood is very kid friendly and almost everyone participates so you don't have to walk very far to get a lot of candy.

I wanted to wait to start trick or treating until the boys had seen at least one trick or treater come to Ga-Ga and Pa's. Last year Owen did much better after he had a visual of what to do. In this picture Owen is yelling....trick or treaters, COME HERE!!!

This is Ga-Ga's stash for the trick or treaters...minus one bowl and one more bag of candy. They get a ton of kids in their neighborhood. In fact I asked her to keep track and at the end of the night they had 189 trick or treaters. We did have 1 one stop by at 9:44pm, a good hour after the one before that, but we didn't get to the door in time and they had moved onto the next house.

Time to get dressed up!


All ready!

What are all those other kids doing Mama?

Oh yeah I remember! Last year I think Owen said "Trick or Treat" once or twice, but this year he said it almost every time as well as saying, "Thank you". Jack on the other hand would just look at them and say, "MORE!"

Owen's favorite thing to say after he had got his candy was, "Next house!" He definitely got it!

Hey I know this house....it's Ga-Ga & Pa's!

This is their loot...Owen's is on the left and Jack's is on the right. Jack got a bid more than Owen because people would let the boys reach in and choose their candy and Owen knows how to count so we would say two and he would take two. Jack on the other hand would just stare at the people and keep reaching in the bowl and take more until we stopped him. He was so cute of course they wouldn't stop him.

All done...time to get all sugared up!

Happy Halloween!

Okay can you take this off now?