Change is good (um, usually. . . .)

(At least this type of change is good.)

We've been having some actual progress on improving our apartment lately, and I must say it's certainly a relief. I'd have to search around to see if I have any "before" shots. (Most likely I'd find them among pictures H's taken--although I can't remember having seen any of them.) Maybe I'll have to draw a floor plan of what it used to be like to give some kind of idea of what a crammed place it was. (And if you think it's a mess now, which it really is, think of how bad it might have been before!) I feel like I'm finally starting to get all moved in. Ahh, what a nice feeling that is. . . .

(Sorry, it's laundry day for the linens.)

No more bachelor chest eating up the walkway--just a pile of stuff to bulldoze through! That's not as difficult to dodge, considering I had to turn my hips in order to avoid hitting them on the corners of the chest. Whenever the time comes--no, not an announcement, it looks like we may actually have room to put the bassinet there instead of inside the walk-in closet.

I'm sure there are laws against putting an infant in a closet, but until now there hasn't been much space elsewhere for the first few months. When baby's sleeping for longer periods of time, we'll move him/her to H's room. We want to disturb as little of her--and our--sleep as possible!

It's exciting for me to have curtains that match my bedding! It's taken me a LONG time to accumulate coordinating items, and it's so refreshing to actually get to use them! Behind the lamp there is the shelf that goes in my grandmother's cedar chest. S and I need to work on that together.

And here's the bachelor chest!
(It wasn't as messy when we first moved it there, I promise.)

I found that picture hanging on the wall on clearance at Kroger--of all places--for $7! What a nice way to add a little more of my accent color to the room!

I'll get all the clutter cleared off the dresser and bachelor chest eventually. I have to take care of what's on the floor first so we don't trip and injure ourselves.

More Guided Tour and Next Projects

Check out that floor space (and potential floor space). :)

We moved the bed over to make room for the bachelor chest, which took the place of the night stands we had bought when we first arrived. (before my wonderful mom sent out the beautiful furniture...I know I'm spoiled there!)

1. figure out what to do with all the stuff I used to keep in that top drawer.

Ops, coulda put S's pjs away. . . .

More potential floor space!

This is where the bachelor's chest used to be, opposite the foot of the bed. No more squishing between a big block of furniture and the bed on my way to the ladies' room. However, I think the stuff smooched under the bed is trying to escape.

2. Finish fixing books, etc. (pile on rt)

3. dust x-rays & store them away . . . behind bachelor chest?

4. sort thru junk in boxes, tossing out as much as I can

5. oh, and I guess I should unpack and put away that bag hanging on the door, huh. . . .

Look! Nothing on the floor for me to put away!

(If S wants that gallon of distilled water sitting there, let it sit there.)

S could use a couple more inches here, though. I think only an inch or two is left between the bedroom door and the bachelor chest. Looks like we'd better make that more like a quarter inch.

6. Framed Photos/pictures for us to hang up . . . somewhere. . . .

(The blue blanket is insulation from the cold breezes that come from that at-least-I-think-it's-too-huge space between the floor and the floorboard.)

So, where to put them?

I'm thinking up there for the big traditional wedding photo. However, there's so much space there that I'm tempted to put the second one there too--but how could I arrange it so that would actually look good? I don't think I can. . . . I'm so obsessed with symmetry that I am also not sure what to do about the fact the dresser isn't centered with the wall so that we can have enough room for our laundry hampers (hint: they're under the blankets). Do I go ahead and center it above the dresser even though that would leave a extra space on the left side of the wall? Or, do I go ahead and center it to that portion of wall and . . . blech! Maybe I do need to just make room for the hampers on my side of our closet. . . .
Do I hang something small on the right and left sides of the bed? I would put the traditional wedding photo up above the headboard, but I'd like to eventually make a big flower wall-hanging, like my mom has, to go there. Actually, I'm sure I could do other things with the space as well. Someone please give me some ideas! I don't like having heavy things above the bed since it's a potential safety issue--I'm a worrier, so hanging the big photos would just be bad--and thus the flower arrangement idea. What else can I do in this huge space???

There on the bachelor's chest is the matted picture I'd like to someday get framed. I think a frame matching the handles of the furniture would work.

I'd like to center that small Christ picture between the windows here.

If only I could do something other than "centering". . . . Oh, well!

Here's my beautiful girl, coming along to help.

Mama, me take pictures!

You know, it's pretty handy having a three-year-old around. . . .

So, how would it look there above the windows? Is there enough space? I have a small picture I need framed that I want to put between the windows. I probably need it up before this long one will look good up there.

A few ideas

The bridal makes the windows look small, and the Christ picture makes the windows look big. :)
I hope the bridal looks better above the bachelor chest after it's cleaned off. ;)



bleech....there's gotta be someplace I can put the vertical one.....maybe it will just have to go above the windows. Does that look okay to put them there?


I think there just might be enough room above S's little side table to hang those vertical pictures. So I guess my bridal on one side the the vertical pictures on the other.

So, does it look better in the bedroom or the living room?

Oh, wow, have our bookcases gotten messy again. I re-arranged things and straightened them up probably only a month ago.

maybe this will have to go in H's room?
Ha, where?

Nice Work, Hun!

He's so great, isn't he?

Yeah! Look at our wonderful chairs!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, TINA!!!

Look! Even H was singing!!!

I think I want to do this every year!!!

S came home from work with a bit of a headache, and H and I had had an interesting day as well. So, we decided to pull out some ice cream and sit down and watch a movie we'd been meaning to watch together. Chocolate Fudge Brownie ice cream for dinner. Gotta love it!

H's First Composition

H got a hold of the camera one day. This is what I saw as I flipped through the photos:

Um, S, you didn't happen to take a picture of H's bear and doll, did you? No? . . . Well, um, I guess we have H's first composed photograph. . . . at the age of three years old. . . .

Happy B-day!

Now that H is healthy again, it's time for celebrating her birthday with her friends! We took cupcakes to our Wednesday Playgroup.

surrounded by friends!

My 3-yr-old Baby

She's been obsessed with babies for over a year now. She switches back and forth between saying she is carrying twins like a dear friend of ours ("Me two babies in me tummy!") and acting like a baby. The latter activity has become nearly non-stop since her illness Feb. 2, but I'm really hoping it starts to become boring to her sometime soon. Then, maybe she'll STOP. . . . This was just too cute, though. Is it just me or does she actually look like a baby with her short hair and chubby cheeks?

I have to say I love this clip because as a baby she had hardly any hair, didn't babble, and didn't even do a typical crawl! (She did the knee-foot thing.)

Our Baby Girl is THREE!!!

It's been a fun day for H and I.

First off, H decided she wanted pancakes for breakfast. With our bag of mix smelling a little off (about time, too, really!), I was eager to make a big batch of whole wheat pancakes from scratch.

Here's H helping stir--right as she began grabbing the baking soda and pouring it into the bowl! (That explains the great smile I got on this photo, vs. the previous ones I just went ahead and deleted.) We mixed up the dry and the liquid ingredients and then only mixed a little of the two together in order to just make a few pancakes for the two of us at that time. We excitedly added some frozen blueberries we had picked last summer, fried a couple up--the initial "sacrificial pancake" that actually didn't turn out that bad, and a snowman for H--and sat down to enjoy them. After the first several bites, however--specifically those without syrup or blueberries in them, we realized the pancakes were disgusting. Either my whole wheat was bad, or perhaps H had gotten more baking soda in them than I had thought. . . . So, I experimented a bit, and discovered that the wet ingredients I had remaining (eggs, milk, etc.) could be turned into pretty decent crepes with just a dash of vanilla and a few scoops of white flour. PHEW! Breakfast is saved!

I'm grateful I'd seen a Good Eats episode where Alan Brown stored crepes by placing them in between layers of wax paper and placing them in the refrigerator. I think we're having crepes tomorrow. . . .

When Papa came home, very unfortunately with a headache, H was thrilled to be presented with a package from G&G S. (She had already opened her package from G&G C--pretty much as soon after it arrived as she could!) Here are some pictures:

And then it was on to drawing and painting with her art kit.
I probably have five videos of all the fun she had!

Showing off her fudge-face after helping make brownies.

(Once we're all healthy again, we'll have cake & ice cream with friends.)
Once she was washed up, she was back to drawing and painting!

Time for singing the Happy Birthday song.
(Notice the paint supplies? She wouldn't let us move them!)
After we sang, she declared, "Me paint . . . now!"

I afterward learned why H didn't want to come to the table and had to be assisted by her Papa. She thought I was going to light the candle. :) She was very much relieved when I reminded her that I bought the 3 candle BECAUSE I knew she didn't want fire on her birthday cake!