Sunday, August 28, 2011

Summer Fun

We've tried to do some special things with the kids this summer and thought I'd share some pictures!

We went on our very first (and definately not last) camping trip. We went to a small campsite at the bottom of the Sequoia National Forest. It was perfect for a family with little ones.










Our big trip was a surprise for the kids...Disneyland!! We just got them up in the morning without telling them where we were going. We kicked things off with a stop at Krispy Kreme.











We had a great summer (but hot and exhausting!!) and we're ready for Fall. Apple picking and Pumpkin carving are just around the corner!!!

Saturday, August 27, 2011

Making Our House A Home...

We bought our first house almost 2 years ago. It was a new build home so everything was white and we just left it that way. For Mother's Day I decided I really wanted to paint our Master Bedroom. I felt like we hadn't made this into "our" place yet. Our room is always the last thing to be worked on and I thought that should change. We painted it a pale grey-blue and I love it! We haven't been able to buy the accessories and headboard I want yet but it's much more welcoming.


We've started planning how we want to add personal touches to our downstairs great room. I picked a paint color for the 2 main walls.




It's a bit bright but I think it will work with out dark wood furniture. The rest of the walls will get a new coat of white to cover all the finger prints!


We've also been wanting a new (larger) dining table for a long time. Noah will be outgrowing his highchair before we know it and ours only seats 5. A new table isn't exactly in the budget but thanks to my new addiction to Pinterest, I'm feeling creative and crafty. So Jay and I have decided to try building one plus a bench seat (maybe with storage underneath?). We'll buy chairs though...that's a bit out of our ability! Probably unfinished ones though so we can stain them the same color as the table. I'm thinking something like this but stained all a dark brown (no white):




We also plan on pulling up the carpet downstairs and putting in laminate. We learned the hard way that getting the cheapest quality carpet/padding when building a home isn't smart. We cleaned our beige carpet with our carpet cleaner and the blue color from the padding bled through. We now have blue spots everywhere! :(


I'll post photo updates as we get things done! I'm also going to be making some holiday/home decor from ideas I've gotten on Pinterest!

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

We're Back and Ready for Fall!

Long time no see! My blog was pushed to the back of my mind with all of the changes this past year. Juggling 3 kiddos, working and going to school can be insane...and exhausting! So we're back and with a new name and design!


We're hanging in there. Jason is still out of work but hasn't really been looking. It's so easy having him home to pick the kids up from school and be with the kids while I work from 3p-1130p. His unemployment won't last forever though so his job hunt will start again soon.


The girls start school in less than 2 weeks and are really excited. I'm so glad they enjoy school. I loved elementary school and I hope they continue to! Hannah decided she wants to try gymnastics this year instead of cheer. It seems like it'll definately be more of a workout and will hopefully get rid of some of her extra energy! Avery will be starting her last year of preschool and her cousin, Hayden, will be in her class. She's very excited! I can't believe I'll have 2 kids in elementary school next year...


Noah's such a little man now! He just turned 14 months and is a full-on walker now. Not really talking at all...more of a squealer...but Avery didn't talk until around 18 months so I'm not really concerned. He's such a happy, well-behaved boy! He's extremely tolerant even when his schedule gets messed up.


I'm enjoying my new job but it's tiring working full-time. I have my moments where I wish I could go back to part-time or be a SAHM. But that's not something we can do right now. It'll be hard once the girls are in school because I'll only see Hannah in the mornings before she goes to school and on the weekends. I worry that she'll look back on her childhood and think I was never around. I would definately switch to day shift if the opportunity came up!


I'm also back on Weight Watchers and finally trying to get rid of the last of the baby weight. My hope is that we will be in a better financial situation next summer and I'll have gotten down to my goal weight so we can TTC#4 (and our last!).


I've also become a Pinterest addict as of late and am feeling the urge to get crafty! I plan to post all of my crafts, decor and baking here as I go!