Boys will be boys...

Mom walked out of the room and snack time got a wee bit out of control...

That's right... you should be feeling a little sheepish right now.  Actually, he's probably wondering... why is Mom taking a picture of this?  I thought I was in trouble...

Boys are messy.

But then they are also so cute...

At the park this afternoon... Caleb and his friend Isaiah walking hand in hand on the way to the playground :)

Just down the hall...

*** 2 posts today folks... after this one... keep reading!***

Can't say I didn't warn you about the color...

Whenever people come over to our house and are taken on a tour for the first time they want to know how it's changed.  It's difficult to explain how interesting the color palette was before we moved in.  I've finally come up with the term "condiment colors".  The main rooms of the house were done in shades of mustard yellow, relish green, and as you will soon see, ketchup red/orange-- a BBQ nightmare.  Thankfully we had lots of helping hands when it came time to paint!

Paint made a huge improvement-- as did removing the mirrored bifold that didn't quite close all the way.  That closet door drove me crazy-- it was next to impossible to close, and if you managed to succeed... it was ridiculously difficult to open.  Not so efficient.  Like the rest of the house, flooring was next on the agenda.

Once the flooring was in, the real work began-- the finishing!  When it came to this step-- Doug and I spent more time in the hallway than any other room in the house because there are so many doorways-- meaning lots of cutting, lots of filling and sanding, and lots of painting!  But I think the finished product looks amazing-- I wasn't going to put the hallway in the tour, but sometimes I think it's my favorite part of the house because of all the long hours we spent putting it together last fall!  So, here it is!

When I saw how great the closet looked all trimmed out, I decided that I couldn't put doors back on.  It kind of looks like built in shelves.  Believe it or not, this is my linen closet.  I do keep extra pillows and duvets in one of the basement closets, but all of my bed linens are stored in here.  We did purchase a new bifold door for the closet-- so the day I can't keep it looking like this... the door goes back on.

I'll admit, sometimes I choose aesthetics over practicality.  I guess I'm a sucker for pretty things.

Amazingly... Caleb hasn't bothered to touch my neatly folded linens... and the closet has survived many bouts of hallway hockey.

Here's a few pictures that show off the amazing finishing Doug pulled off.  When we were selecting the mouldings for the house, we decided to go with a mix of modern and traditional-- flat modern baseboards and plinth blocks with more traditional architrave headers and crown moulding.  Whoa-- how's that terminology for you?  All of those art history classes have really pulled through for me!

A few weeks ago I mentioned that I made a trip to Ikea to pick up a few things for a project I was working on (see this post).  Here's the finished project... a family photo wall for the hallway!

I don't have a lot of family pictures on display in my house since there aren't many places to display them in my house.  The hallway is the perfect place for my pictures.

I am usually a fan of gallery walls that mix and match frames of different colors and textures, but the hall is pretty narrow and I wanted the pictures to blend in more so that I wouldn't be too prominent.  Ikea's Ribba frames worked out perfectly for me-- they come in lots of different sizes and they're cheap!  We had some of our favorite family photos printed in a variety of sizes, came up with an arrangement that worked for the space, and put them up!  Doug is the master when it comes to hanging pictures.

You'll notice that the big frame doesn't have a family picture... yet.  I decided to keep the boat picture in there until we have a family picture where Emerson is a bit older.

And that's my hallway!  Is it weird that it could be my favorite room of the house?

It's October?

ow it got this hot in October... who knows!  But I'll take it.  It's been a busy week in our house-- hence the lack of blogging activity.  The kids and I have been all over town-- at appointments, to the park, shopping, and we ended up making an emergency trip to Ikea (that was quite the ordeal-- I'll tell you about it later when I show you what I found :)  But today we decided that a trip to the park for a picnic was necessary.

Emerson was fussing in her crib this morning... Caleb decided to share a few of his favorite toys.  Emerson-- not so impressed.  She's thinking... put the camera down and help me get this soother back into my mouth...

Caleb's classic "happy face"...

This one's better!

What a great sandwich... eh?  Naturally Sweet... at the park, sure.  Nap time was a different story, naturally.

Emerson looking on from her carseat... where's my sandwich Mom!

I wouldn't mind a few more days like this...

[Daily Drop Cap by Jessica Hirsche]

Oh Boy

How cool is this kid?

More sewing projects...

Let me begin with this disclaimer... the following items were not sewn by me.  I was the mastermind behind the following projects, but recruited my Mom to actually complete the sewing part before she left town (if you know me, you'll know that this is my method of operation... just ask Doug)  Even though I didn't actually do the grunt work, I think they are still post-worthy.

Sewing Project #1... a hooter hider... also known as a bosom buddy (I've been telling Caleb it's a superman cape.  He's too young to learn the word "hooter".)  I couldn't find any cute ones in the stores around here, so why not make one yourself?  I googled "hooter hider pattern" and found tons of online tutorials.  My mom and I found one that was suitable (here's the link in case you want to check it out) and made a few more adjustments to make it even better... we decided to line it with a complementary fabric, and rounded the corners to make it look more professionally made.  The first time I used it, Doug asked me if it worked.  I asked if he could see them.  No.  Then it's working :)

Here's Caleb modeling his superman cape...  He's gonna really love me someday for taking these pictures...

Sewing Project #2... a removable cover for my breastfeeding pillow.  The pillow I purchased three years ago before Caleb was born (it unfortunately remained unused until now) did not have a cover that could be washed.  In my mind, all I could think about was how disgusting the pillow was going to get after regular useage.  So I pulled some fabric out of my stash, picked up a zipper, and my mom got to work.  She made up her own pattern and whipped up a cover in no time.  Check it out... Emerson's the model this time around.

My Mom is a sewing genius.  I've got more sewing projects from my house to share (house related projects, not baby ones).  Ones that my Mom helped me figure out.  Stay tuned!

And now for a craft update...

On the mornings we're at home, Caleb and I do crafts while I drink my morning coffee... make that coffees.

We've done some painting, played with playdough, glued macaroni (and ate it while gluing... Caleb, not I), we've made thank you cards, made telescopes and binoculars out of toilet paper holders... the possibilities are endless.  All it takes is glue, paint... basically anything messy.

And when we're done with the craft... we just play with markers.  Cheap entertainment.

Just when I think I'm ahead of the game...

The kids pull out a little tag team action and decide to gang up on me last night.  Emerson started out strong with an explosive diaper of epic proportions.  Caleb followed with a middle of the night nose bleed that left his bedroom looking like something out of a horror movie.  These two incidents resulted in 6 clothing/bedding items with major stains.  After soaking all morning and a full hour of scrubbing in my laundry room during nap time, this momma is winning the battle... the count is 4 to 2... four items saved, 2 will have to be left behind.

No pictures were taken of the fiasco.  However, after spending so much time in my laundry room this afternoon, I'm feeling like it could be project time again... as I'm guessing I will be spending quite a bit of time in this room in the next months and years.  Here's the laundry room when we moved in... it looks exactly the same today (with the addition of a few piles of dirty laundry :)

And how about a bit of laundry room inspiration for you?

Dreaming big with this one!

How cool is this room?  I could spend a lot of time in here... drooling, not doing laundry.

This one's more like it... a basement room just like mine...

It's fun to dream... if I decide to tear things apart, I'll let you know :)

(last three images from Canadian House & Home)

You know you've been at home too long when...

1.  Going to a baby shower means that not one, but two out of the ordinary shower activities take place... you go to a party for a baby and you actually take a shower so that you can go out in public and look respectable.

2.  You constantly catch yourself humming/singing songs from Dora, Diego, Mighty Machines, and Bob the Builder.  Then you dream about them.  (btw... why on earth do Dora and Diego both have to shout everything they say instead of just talking normally?  The shouting is beginning to drive me crazy, and also began to bother my mom after three weeks in this household)

3.  You begin to find yourself thinking... "wouldn't it be fun to go to work today?  I could get dressed up and out of the house... and oh my goodness... you actually get a lunch break AND coffee breaks!"

4.  The highlight of the morning is the mail man delivering a stack of bills and flyers... and the highlight of the weeks is the garbage truck picking up our trash-- how exciting that is in our household.  Today was extra special since the yard waste removal truck came too.  Much screaming, pointing, and jumping took place at the front window.

5.  Your ipod/iphone is not used to communicate with the outside world and is not used for listening to music.  No.  It's primary task is to occupy your three year old.  I'm pretty sure Caleb knows his way around that thing better than I do.  And by the way, if any of you receive or have received a really weird email from us it is likely not a virus, it could be from Doug it's probably not from Doug, it's not from me, Caleb has been known to send emails out a time or two from the ipod.  I've had a few emails come back to my inbox undelivered since the email address looked something like this: adlfkjetbej1039ggdfjnhmdld.

6.  In your mind, the most genius creation known to man is the Starbucks drive thru.  Both kids are tied down buckled in and you have a few moments of peace to order your coffee without arms full of bags, a carseat, and a three year old who is attempting to pull every $10 ceramic mug off the shelf for inspection.  Then you have a few minutes to enjoy the first few sips of coffee as you drive... and if you're smart, you'll take the long way home or just do a few extra laps around the block.

Well folks, consider this a brief glimpse into what life is like around here.  I love it.

Getting girly around here...

Emerson needed some girly things... I did my best to find some gender neutral clothes and blankets from Caleb's stash, but we needed to introduce a little bit of pink around here!  Since newborns basically live in sleepers and pajamas, I figured Emerson could use a few feminine blankets to wear!  Time for a project.  Last weekend I did a bit of online shopping on one of my favorite sites to order fabric and found  some really cute flannel that was perfect for making baby blankets.  Luckily it was on sale!  And after searching online for a coupon (found one for 20% off) my menno heart was happy.  The fabric arrived at my door three days later, and I got busy sewing!

Here's Emerson modeling my newest creations.  

Blanket number 1...

And number 2...

And the girly-ness continues around here.  My friends and family threw a baby shower for Emerson and I last night.  We brought home a ton of cute, pink, girly clothes and blankets to add to her closet.  Thanks ladies!

I knew Caleb might be a bit envious, so this morning I woke up early and re-wrapped all of the gifts so Caleb could re-open them for Emerson.  He had a blast pulling the tissue paper apart and showing Emerson all of her new things.

And why not throw a picture of Caleb in?  He may not be girly, but he's cute :)  This week I did my best to do a few crafts with him in the mornings while Emerson was sleeping.  I was having a bit of trouble coming up with projects... finally I remembered one of my favorites from children's church when I was a kid-- the classic shoestring licorice fruit loop necklaces.  You all think I'm so creative... not so when it comes to kids crafts.  Caleb may have had more fun eating the craft than making it, but in the end we had a necklace to show off... for a few seconds at least.  Here it is!

Do any of you moms have fun craft/project ideas that Caleb and I could attempt?  I may be able to stitch a blanket or two together, but I sure am not all that crafty... any suggestions would be much appreciated!