Saturday, November 24, 2007

Progress!

The cabinets & counter tops have been ordered. Now we just sit back (for three weeks) and wait. In the meanwhile, I am perfectly content with the plywood over my dishwasher (my NEW dishwasher!) and the large space under the sink without a cabinet.








Hubby finished the perfect little shelf for the microwave yesterday (more counter space!) and made up a shelf for my cookbooks as well. There are a couple little spots that need to be stained (corners and edges and the back half of the microwave shelf) but he'll do all the staining at once when the cabinets come in.






Now that the tools are put away, the floors are swept and most of my cabinets are reorganized the way I want them, it already feels like a much bigger and better laid out kitchen. The man knows how to make me happy, I'll tell you that!

Next on his list is moving the ductwork around underneath the kitchen so we have vents for heat. The one vent that is in there is currently blocked by the refrigerator and that just won't do at all. After that (or at the same time, knowing him!) will be wiring for the (yay!) new disposal and under cabinet lighting.

After everything is in and set, we'll have our tile guy come do the back splash (that's just one of those things we don't do ourselves) and then the last touch will be painting. I think it is actually possible that this project will be done before Christmas and therefore before Baby!

Saturday Photo Hunt: Hot

Living in Michigan in November, there aren't many things that are hot. I love the change of season, the falling leaves, the brisk air. But hot I am not. Even with being 8 months pregnant, my body temperature is still desirous of a cozy blanket and warm slippers.

That being said, here is a photo of my office for today. The couch was getting uncomfortable and I found it better to sit on a hard chair to type. With my candles lit and a mug of HOT coffee, I am set for the afternoon. Lots of writing to do today.


Wednesday, November 21, 2007

Showers Showers Everywhere! aka: Pink Threw Up In My Living Room. Not That I'm Complaining. Plus other random information as well...

**Updated: Now with pictures!**

This past weekend was family and shower central for me.

Friday night we drove to New York in the evening and got in late to a girlfriend's house. They had just bought a spare bed so we got a great night's sleep and then woke up early to go to my first shower of the weekend.

I'm always amazed by how easily I forget people. Not who they are, how they fit into my life, or my memories of them, but their names!

I finally devised a foolproof method for matching up names with faces. Whenever I would open a present from someone, they got to ask me a question about myself or the baby or whatever. So I would say who the present was from and then wait for them to ask the question. Most of the time it worked pretty well...

My mom even got presents at my shower. One of the ladies brought two photo albums for her so that I can send her baby pictures and the nurses can fill it up for her. I think I'll start with sending her ultrasound and preggo pics.

She did pretty well and only tired about halfway through the shower. I was glad we were able to have the shower at her nursing home so she could be there for it.

Saturday night was a family wedding that Andy & I sang in and he did all the music for. It was fun to see so many family we haven't seen in a long time and it was such a beautiful wedding.

I am always entertained to sit with Andy while he's playing a pre or postlude. I throw out a song and wait for him to find a way to play it "background music" style. Like Sexyback or something by Usher. His classic song to work into any event is the Menards theme song. You won't know he's doing it unless he tells you. And of course, he played through most of Switchfoot's bests.

A few of my family weren't able to make it to the shower Saturday morning, and decided to come over to my Grandparent's on Sunday with their gifts. That became mini-shower #4.

Monday was the shower with the girls on my Dad's side of the family and we had a fabulous lunch together and took tons of pictures. What do you think, do we look like we all belong or what!?





Now we are home and organizing the gifts. Piles of onesies by month, booties in one box, hats in another. A few returns and lots to wash. I still need to buy the chemical-free baby detergent.

So much to do, so much to do.

Still on the list:

1. Pick a name.
2. Make a will.
3. Get life insurance.
4. Buy the rest of the necessities. Like a mattress for the crib.
5. Finish thank-yous from this weekend.
6. Find a pediatrician.
7. Make Christmas gifts and ornaments for an ornament exchange.
8. Finish the kitchen.

Number 8 isn't really part of my list as much as it is on Andy's, but we'll count it anyway. I get to do the organizing once everything is in and attached!

Just a Guess

Ok, here are my guesses...

1. Stacey
2. Talena
3. Jean
4. Hillary
5. Beth

Am I close? How'd I do?

Friday, November 16, 2007

Doing Some Serious Damage

What is it about Rice Krispy Treats that make me feel as though, well, as though it's absolutely ok to eat the whole 9x13 pan.

I tell myself it will stop at two little bars. And then my husband brings me another one. (yes, I am absolutely blaming it on him)

And then I get myself the fourth one.

Maybe I should lock them up somewhere.



I realized last night that the NaBlo thing? Wasn't going to work out for me. We're leaving this afternoon for NY and family weddings, showers and get-togethers all weekend. I'm pretty sure we won't have anywhere to link into for a few days, and even if we did, I'm not sure we'd have time.

So you all go on back to that anonymous post and get to it. There should be way more comments. I'll do my best to guess who you are on Monday! There are inklings in my brain...but you guys are good!!

Wednesday, November 14, 2007

Wild Wednesday Wordery

I stole this meme from Heather Anne. One of those blogs that I read because of her fabulous writing.

Comment ANONYMOUSLY! Leave the answer to these in the comments and I will try to guess who you are from your answers!

1. One secret.
2. One compliment.
3. One non-compliment.
4. One love note, but it does not have to be for me.
5. Lyrics to a song.
6. How old you are.
7. How long we've been friends.
8. And a hint to who you are.

Tuesday, November 13, 2007

Highway Scare

Tuesdays we usually try to leave work a little bit early so we have time to run a bunch of errands.

Today included:

1. Stopping by the library to select a bunch of books on CD for our upcoming weekend road trip.

2. Hitting the grocery store for milk, cat food (she's been pretty angry at us for the past two days with her empty food dishes), frozen lunches for the next couple of days, paper towels and hair dye. (Gotta cover those greys before my shower, now don't I?)

3. Checking in at The Wood Source (best new-found store in town!) regarding our cabinet doors (that still aren't working quite right) and some hardware for a microwave shelf.

4. Driving to the teacher's store to stamp out some foam letters for tomorrow's family event and watching a truck in front of us take the off-ramp too fast, swerve onto the grass and roll four times.

Wait, what was that?

We immediately pulled over and called 911. Andy passed me the phone and then ran over to make sure the guy was ok. He was getting out of his truck. He was also on the phone calling for help. He seemed fine. Fine. I doubt he'll feel quite so fine tomorrow, but there didn't seem to be any real injuries.

There's a good reminder to everyone to wear your seatbelt, huh? We were both still freaked out after we left the teacher's store. As we drove back onto the highway, we saw a police car and fire truck taking care of the accident.

We'll be taking ramps a lot slower now.

Monday, November 12, 2007

Here's to a More Productive Day

*two aprons completed and wrapped for gifts this weekend

*two loads of laundry washed and folded

*one load of dishes washed! In the NEW dishwasher! and then emptied and reloaded!

*one meal prepped, cooked and eaten with friends who just brought home their newborn

*one tv show watched while putting my feet up

There are many of you out there who have accomplished a lot more in your day, but I have to be happy with what I've got.

Sunday, November 11, 2007

Stalling

Ugh and double ugh. First of all, I hate feeling as though I can't do anything. I have a couple sewing projects I'm working on and there's the laundry. But hubby has to pretty much do all of the kitchen work on his own. Right now it's all about chemicals and I'm definitely out of that game.

I don't think he begrudges me not stripping the cabinets and trying to make the stain work (cuz it's not) but I begrudge me. I know, I know, you don't have to tell me that I shouldn't and I have a good excuse, I still feel unhelpful.

Guess I'll go fold laundry.

Saturday, November 10, 2007

Ah Crap.

Well, I knew I wouldn't really make it. What if I back-date this so it looks like I did? HA! You'll never know now, will you!?

It's more that I just couldn't top hubby's amazing post yesterday. Well, who could?


I went to the strangest thing today (yesterday, but who's counting?). It was billed as a "baby safety event" but I knew going in that it would be a sales pitch. They were giving out a free gift package and I was surely hoping that it would be a great big pile of baby stuff and therefore figured it would be worth my time.

Coupons. A great big pile of grocery coupons. Fortunately, it is an online deal where I can choose what items I want coupons for rather than just random ones I may or may not use. So all in all, it was a valuable gift as intangible as it seemed at the time.

Oh, and of course the obligatory "free" mini vacation. I haven't checked yet, but I am hoping there will be a Michigan location option so we don't have to fly somewhere.

I'm pretty critical of public speakers and presenters. I've done quite a few presentations in my day, and have studied communication in its many forms, so I feel I can be critical. Though it's way more fun to be critical when you have someone with you to comment with and I was alone. So that wasn't quite as entertaining...maybe that's why the whole thing made me so grumpy.

The guy presenting? I did not connect with him on any level whatsoever. He was unprofessional in his dress, manner and speech. Plus, he kept using male cliches to relate to the men in the room which I found inappropriate. Like I said, my husband wasn't with me, but those cliches don't reflect his manner at all ane I am always irritated when men are continually put down and expected to act in a certain way.

For a baby presentation, I felt there was a huge lack of warmth or nurturing. I did learn some interesting things about baby safety, but this man made it seem as though every product on the market was likely to kill my child. Even items that weren't in competition with his products.

It was just such a bizarre experience.

Not to mention one of the dads who was sitting in front of me who, quite literally, burped at least once every minute. For two hours.

Think about that for a minute. It was so. Gross.

Obviously, he has some kind of medical problem as the woman with him did not seem to notice at all, but couldn't he possibly do something about it? Ever heard of TUMS!?

And of course, as I left the BABY SAFETY session, there was the slew of people who were lighting up their cigarettes.

Like I said, bizarre.

Friday, November 09, 2007

crazy friday...do i need to alliterate?

Hi interwebers!

Andy here filling in for the wife so that she can keep up with NaBloPoMo. First, the title of the post...since this is a blog post, doesn't the adjective for Friday have to begin with an F? like "Music Mondays" or "Tornado Tuesdays" (if you're blogging from Kansas). Thing is that I just can't think of anything good that starts with F. Any suggestions, place them in the comments! So there you go...no, not that...common, keep it clean people!

But as the title suggests, it's been crazy. you know how I know? I still haven't finished reading all my emails from today. When I can't even make it through the inbox then that means I've had too much to do. So now I'm obligated to type you all about it!

I promise to keep it short. Mostly it was all because tonight we had a rehearsal for our CD release party. That's right: CD release party. Saturday night at 7 PM in the Church atrium. Food, Music, CDs...come on out, it should be a good time. Live far away? no problem, I'll send my jet for you. Well, not much more need be said. Rehearsal involves setup and planning and as such my day was filled!

So, one more item of business. No self respecting blogger posts without a picture. Hold on, let me browse...Ah, here's a good one. 10 points if you can name the guy in the photo (not me, duh! The other guy) Hint: Country Music...

This is a Pic from the airport in Nashville. I was on my way back to MI from some mixing sessions and ran into _____ _____ while walking down the terminal. Ha! you almost thought I was going to say his name...well I'm not that easily tricked into giving away 10 points!

Alright! I think I've filled my blogging duties well. Now fulfill your commenting duties. clicky below!

Thursday, November 08, 2007

Progress?

A few steps forward in the kitchen reno.


1. Sheet of plywood in the spot where the fridge will go. The cabinet that was sitting here fit specifically into the tile. Also note the hole that the plywood is covering. Ducts will need to be moved to allow for some heat in this cold kitchen!





2. I'll bet you wish we were keeping this amazing vinyl flooring, don't you? It sure is my favorite.







3. The new dishwasher (!!!) sitting in place next to half of a former cabinet. Wires and pipes sticking out everywhere. Also: note the dirty dishes on the counter? Hopefully those will be getting washed tonight!




4. Voice mail was received tonight from the counter top installers wanting to schedule a measurement time. We are hoping that will be Monday morning.

Also of note (if only to us) is the wood supply store that we discovered this evening. They had the exact stain we needed, many odds and ends for those of us who own older homes, great advice for our project as well as an extremely sweet corner bench and table that we have always wanted for kitchen seating!

We aren't yet sure if we are going to try to find a way to fit that into our budget, but we're pretty excited to actually find a place that has what we have seen in our heads for years.

Wednesday, November 07, 2007

Design! Design!

Once a year a local paper products company has their clearance close-out discount bargain sale. (Could I have been any more redundant?)

It's seriously the best sale of the year. Hands down. Gift bags? Fifty cents. Patterned, colored tissue paper? Ten cents. Paper plates & napkins? A dollar. Stuffed bunny? Two bucks.

Stock up for the whole year. Put aside some things as gifts and some for you.

Plus, it's such a rush. The mad grab for an empty box to put everything in. Shuffling through all the cards and bags and papers. Finding new items put out on the table every few minutes. You don't want to miss a thing, so you walk back through the whole room again just to be sure.

Insanity. But totally the funnest shopping, the most chaotic atmosphere, the most amazing bargains you will find all year.

Tuesday, November 06, 2007

Signing My Life Away?

No, we haven't purchased life insurance yet. That's still on the to-do list.

Instead, tonight we ordered new counter tops for our kitchen. Frankly, I'm pretty excited about it.

Ok, here is my fancy-shmancy diagram of the current kitchen. You get the idea. Under the sink there is a dishwasher. It is probably as old as the kitchen itself and doesn't work as much more than a dish-getter-wetter.

The counter tops are weird looking fake white & gray marble with nicks, scratches, and plenty of kool-aid stains. I have never liked the counter.

But they've been serviceable.


Here is why we have need to replace the counters. The main purpose is a new, working, energy saving, sterilizing, larger interior space dishwasher.

One we won't have to run twice to get the dishes clean. One that will fit more than a single meal's worth of dishes inside.

As you can see by my second fancy-shmancy diagram, the fridge will be moving and the cabinet unit which was in the fridge spot is
going out and a smaller one is going in.

The dishwasher will then be where the fridge is currently and the counter top extended over the top of that as well as a small cabinet next to it.

We have a new sink that was given to us when friends of friends were remodeling their kitchen. It also has a lovely disposal attached which we are greatly looking forward to having.

The plan was to go with a nice laminate, have Home Depot install it and carry on our merry way. Initially, we both wanted a solid surface, but after pricing it all out, we discovered it wasn't really best for our budget. I was ok with the higher cost for the many benefits, but hubby put his rational foot down.

Tonight when we went in, we had them do the official quote with all of our measurements.

Turned out that it was more to do the laminate than we originally assumed and less to do the solid surface! Well, hooray for me! I actually get the counter I really want!

The overall cost was higher than we would prefer, but we got the 10% discount for a new HD card and have a few months to pay for it. Plus, we have a few things lined up already to help cover the cost.

Now we wait for the installers to come and make their exact measurements, order it up, and get it installed! Tomorrow hubby is going to be moving the cabinetry, fridge and other sundries around.

I cannot wait for my "new" kitchen!

Monday, November 05, 2007

The thing about babies...

...is that I want to buy more stuff for them than for me. I suppose that's a good thing, right? Consumerism plagues me like any other American, but since both my hubby & I work for a church, we:

a) know we don't want to get wrapped up in meaningless "stuff" and

b) can't afford it all anyway!

But the cute baby things? SO cute!

My heart has been full to bursting with all of the gifts we have received. We have already had two amazing showers and there are still three more to come! It is so much fun to celebrate this crazy little monkey wiggling around inside and such a blessing to have friends and family provide what we need for her.

Saturday one of the ladies who volunteers to teach in our children's ministry gave me a pair of sweet pink & green booties she had knitted for the wee one.

Sunday a friend who serves on the music team with Andy gave us a cute little pink bunny costume.

Today I got a fabulous surprise gift in the mail! A friend from one of my former jobs sent us the cutest pink & brown onesie. James, you ROCK!

It's such a reminder that I need to stop stressing about how we're going to "make it" when I don't work as much in the spring, not to mention while I'm on maternity leave. We need to make wise financial decisions and be ever so careful with our money. But so much has already been provided for us that I know we will be able to make those wise choices and get by just fine!

Thank you, my friends. I feel as though I don't deserve your love and your care, but I appreciate it so very much.

Sunday, November 04, 2007

Squishy

Everyone keeps asking me if the baby is kicking? How am I feeling? Man, you look great!

Well, first of all, thanks. I still feel pretty good. I know the time will come when I don't look so hot and am just huge and big and icky. So I'm reveling in the still-cute-phase.

The tiredness comes easily and following on it's heels is the grumpiness. Not to mention the laziness. Some nights it is so hard to get myself off of the couch!

Kicking? She doesn't do a whole lot of that. Though the other day when I was reading, I noticed that my book was jiggling up and down quite a bit. Frankly made me a little seasick.

No, instead there is a lot of pushing and shoving and stretching. Most of the time I try to push and shove back. Feet don't need to stick out of my belly, thanks--they can stay right inside where they belong!

There's still a lot to be done around here before baby is allowed to arrive:

1. the crib is coming Tuesday (fingers are still crossed on the rocker, cradle, dresser & bookcase)
2. kitchen needs to be remodeled
a. countertop will be ordered tomorrow
b. installation of said countertop
c. buying and putting in a few new cabinets
d. moving refrigerator and new dishwasher in
e. installing plumbing for new dishwasher and new spot for refrigerator
f. tile the backsplash
g. repaint
3. all of the teeny baby clothes need washing and put away
4. garden needs to be winterized
5. bulbs to be planted and hid in the basement for late winter forcing
6. we haven't yet talked to an insurance rep to get life insurance
7. wills need to be made out

Geez. I'm even more tired now. I guess we'd better get to work, huh? I'm planning on at least potting some bulbs tomorrow...can't promise much other than that.

Even worse is the fact that I'm sure there are a bunch of things that need to be done that I'm completely forgetting.

Saturday, November 03, 2007

Saturday Photo Hunt: Classic

Guest blogging with us today is my hubby. This was the first thing that came to mind for me in our home that fits under the "Classic" title!

"So, I'm supposed to explain why this is classic...go buy an album by Jimi Hendrix or Led Zepplin and you'll get it!"


And that folks, is that. The classic guitar amp by Marshall.


Friday, November 02, 2007

What a Pain in My Butt

One of the joys of pregnancy is having your blood drawn. Golly, that's just one of my favorite things. At my very first OB visit they took five vials and I just wanted to cry. The lab tech informed my husband that it was so very horribly painful and he had sure better take me out for dinner that day.

He did.

They discovered at that drawing that my blood is Rh Negative. I don't really know what all that means other than the fact that I had to get a protective antibody injection. Yay me!

Those folks who need this shot are supposed to get it at 28 weeks...

31 is close to 28, right?

Due to our recent floor refinishing, paperwork and other random important documents got rather misplaced.

This past weekend, while finishing up the cleaning and reorganizing, I discovered that I forgot about the needed shot.

Fridays being one of the only days of the week we have available for running outside errands, today I was taken to the med center. Frankly, I don't quite understand why they weren't able to just give me the shot at my OB's office, but that was the case.

More blood was drawn. And then the shot.

She said she'd never heard that it was all that bad.

She said I'd just feel the poke.

She lied.

I felt the poke all right, and then the stabbing pain as the medicine went in. Now I'm feeling the ache in my tush as I sit on the couch. Perhaps I need to get a little ice pack to sit on.

As I left she said, "Well, that's nothing compared to labor!"

Thanks for the encouragement, lady. I'm trying to put off thinking about the labor part for as long as possible!

Not Just For Babies Anymore...


I knew it would come to this. But everyone loves a cute pink stroller! We finally decided we had better fold it up so it wouldn't be completely covered in cat fur. It's too bad though, sure does look comfy.

Thursday, November 01, 2007

Halloween '07

Tonight was the third annual Shaun of the Dead Halloween movie-watching. We decided to make a party out of it.

In spite of the rain, there were still plenty of trick-or-treaters and the full-to-the-brim cauldron now has only a small layer of "the good stuff."





A few costumes for your viewing pleasure. Who do you think won best costume?


A fabulous dread pirate.













College Student. Always a clever cover for "no costume, thanks."












The "great pumpkin" and her pumpkin farmer.











Buckethead guy. Now really, who can top this creativity?













And of course, the monk and his pregnant nun. What's that you say? You want a close-up of the pregnant nun? Anything for you, dear internet.







Pregnant nun* at 31 weeks.













I also made a Monster Cake for the occasion...He turned out pretty well for the time I had. Really now, I don't know how they make these as perfectly as they look in the pictures.





And since it is now 12:02 am, this is officially my first NaBloPoMo post!! If you haven't signed up yet, you'd better get on it. Happy November everyone!

*Please no offense to any actual nuns or Catholics...