Nook Progress

Kitchen/Nook/Sunken Room Before - See here

Sunken Sitting Room Progress/Reveal - See here

TEASER ALERT!

I thought I was going to just do one post for the nook and kitchen reveal, but I decided to break it in two.  Lucky for you guys, you get to wait a little longer for the kitchen part.  Saving the best for last!

We actually didn’t do too much in the nook. Other than painting the walls gray (same as the sunken room), it was just art work, a new table cloth & rug, and upgraded stools.  Easy peasy.

So Here is a before picture:

Looking back at those yellow walls makes me cringe! Oh my! It looks so much better!

And the after: {My photography skills aren't the greatest, nor is my camera.  Here is my public apology for this entire blogs pictures.}

We love the way it turned out.  Looking at the after picture doesn't really give me a "WOW" factor.  It needs something else, I just don't know what.  Any ideas?!?! (Seriously, help me out here)
The rug is from Lowe's and the table cloth is from Target (where else?!).  We already had the stools from our first house, but they were black.  We had originally thought to paint them red, but once we had the kitchen painted, we wanted to bring in another accent color.  Enter Teal.  Love this color and I know it's trendy right now. I.do.not.care.  Daniel spray painted those suckers one night - and boom! There they sit looking lovely.

And just to give me the pleasure of "checking things off my list"....
I'm still in search for the perfect corner cabinet, which I'm starting to think doesn't exist! It may be years, but one day I will have corner cabinet pictures to show you!

TO-DO LIST

• Paint sunken room & nook gray
• Paint kitchen walls red
• New tile in kitchen
• Paint kitchen cabinets white again (they're currently glossy and horrible)
• Get new light fixtures for hallways, above the sink, and over the island
• New Hardware for cabinets
• Build cabinets beside fridge for a slide-out drawer trashcan & recycle
• Decorative adds above cabinets
• Wall-Art
• Incorporate a chalkboard somewhere
• TV for sunken room
• Couch & Chair & side-table for sunken room
• Bar/buffet for sunken room
• Rug for sunken room
• Art work/ decorative for nook & sunken room
• Corner Cabinet for nook 
• New stools for kitchen
• Paint current black stools red and put them in nook for the other part of the counter

8 Months of Hayden!

How in the world is Hayden 8 months already?! 

I find myself babying Hayden more than I did Hadleigh. Now, don’t get me wrong here, I babied Hadleigh.  Some probably think I still baby her in certain ways.  But, this time I’m doing things a little different and I feel like I’m babying her a little more.  I know I want another sibling for them in a couple years, so it isn't my last baby to baby.  Maybe because I know it goes so fast?  Maybe because I know it really isn't going to hinder her in the grand scheme of things?  Maybe because I’m more relaxed about milestones and growing up in general?  Whatever it is, this is what my 8 month old baby is doing these days.

You can compare Hadleigh’s 8 month recap here

Hayden likes her sleep, for sure.  She’s becoming more active so bedtime takes a little longer than before.  She doesn't want to miss anything!  Hayden consistently goes to bed around 8:30pm and sleeps until about 8-8:30am.  She still is sleeping with us in our bed – I’m almost afraid to move her if it means she won’t sleep around 11-12 hours a night!  I will randomly put her in her crib for the night, and she will end up waking to feed around 3 or 4, so I just bring her in bed with us.  It works for us.  I’m not in any rush to push her to the crib, but with her becoming more mobile I’m going to have to.

Hayden still has NO teeth!  She’s been teething for sure, and I always think some are about to come in (on bottom and on top).  But, nothing ever breaks through.  I know they will come in time, so I’m not worried about it.  I’ll enjoy the no teeth, since I still am breastfeeding ;-)

We don’t have a crawler yet, but it’s close!  She started pulling herself up on our ottoman and some of her toys the other week.  She would much rather be standing at any point in the day.  I think it’s motivation for her seeing Hadleigh walk around all the time.  She’s constantly moving and grabbing things.  I’m not sure we will get a break with this one being less active.  Hayden’s been rolling, but it has really picked up in the last week.  It finally clicked that it’s how she can instantly move.  She also just started rocking in the crawling position, but hasn't gotten anywhere yet.  It’s close and I’m excited!  I know I will soon want to eat my words when I have two mobile girls in the house!

Hayden’s personality is coming through too.  She’s definitely determined and doesn't stop until she gets what she wants.  She laughs all the time at Hadleigh and even smiles as soon as she wakes up.  Hadleigh, Daniel, and I are for sure her comfort zones.  When they are at either of our parents’ house, she will cry if Hadleigh isn't in the same room as her.  If she’s at our house, she cries when I’m not in the room with her.   If she knows none of us are around, she is fine.  But, if I’m there – all eyes are on me.  Then Daniel next, and Hadleigh at a close 3rd.  Hayden claps her hands now, which is the cutest!  Its definitely one of the top milestones they get to.

She will eat baby food, but she prefers the puffs and the yogurt bites.  I think she will have a smooth transition to people food.  Recently, I’m not sure if it’s because I feed her (and I have something better she wants = breast milk), she hasn't been too into the baby food.  She will lock her jaw up!  I end up getting her to eat, but sometimes it is not easy.

We love our Hayden Alexis so much!! I honestly cannot wait until she can run around with Hadleigh.  That will be so much fun (and tiring)!

"I feed Hayden, mama"

Ever since I had Hayden, Hadleigh has been very interested in me feeding her.  As time has gone on, it's become more normal, so she's more sued to it now.  When I first came home from the hospital, Hadleigh would lean into my chest to try and get some milk from me. Curiosity and jealousy both played a part.  

Then it evolved into her wanting to feed Hayden.  She would lay down on the bed next to her, pull up her shirt, and tell me "I feed Hayden, mama".  She would then turn to Hayden and say "come on, Hayden.  You hungry?" in this high-pitched mama soothing voice.  I couldn't help but laugh and think it was a sweet gesture.

She's even done it with her baby doll a time or two.

I still haven't caught it on video, but I was able to snap a few pictures the other week on my cell phone.

Hadleigh is going to be such a great big sister and a great mama one day!

Go Gaga! {Review}

No...this post has nothing to do with Lady Gaga. Sorry to disappoint!

The other week we were in Target (surprise!) and Daniel happened to pick up this teether/rattle toy.

Found here

At first, I didn't really have an opinion one way or the other.  It’s just a toy that Hayden is going to put in her mouth, just like anything else she can get her hands on.  But, I was quickly in love.

First, the shape is great for those little hands.  It looks awkward, but she handles it so well.  Her hands fit perfectly around the green & orange plastic parts coming out of the middle.  She loves the independence of being able to hold it, shake it, and bring it up to her mouth.

The other thing I love is that the pieces attached are all natural wood.  Just enough hardness to feel oh-so-good on her gums.  It’s smooth, so no need to worry about splinters or anything!  It’s also BPA free which is a must for anything your child will be playing with and putting into their mouth.

I definitely recommend this on the list of “must-haves” for your 4-12 month olds!

{I wasn't paid or perked for this post.  Just happened to buy it and love it.  Naturally, I wanted to share J}

St. Patrick's Day - Photo Dump

We didn't have any plans for St Patricks Day.  I really wanted to have plans, but it just didn't happen.  Daniel had class as it was an “on” weekend and then it was yucky outside.  Plus, I made an impromptu trip to KidMed on Saturday because Hayden’s eye was super red.  She had been stuffy/runny/congested (for the 100^th time this winter) and her eye was watering a lot.  Well, her eye waters a lot normally, but it was gooky as well.  It became red on the outside, but I knew it wasn't pink eye.  I took her, and they put her on antibiotic to get rid of the infection – although they never said what it was.  They just knew it was infected because of it being red and puffy.  A day into the antibiotic, her eye wasn't red and it even helped her congestion! Woohoo!

So…I settled for a little photo shoot on the couch with our lucky charms.  I dressed Hayden in the same outfit Hadleigh wore for St. Patrick’s Day 2011 and Hadleigh wore a rainbow-ish shirt.  Those girls are so cute!   Enjoy!

Taking the Plunge…

I’ve been writing on this blog for a couple of years now.  I can’t believe I started it back in 2009!  I don’t think I started for any particular reason, other than to have a blog.  I really enjoyed reading blogs myself, so I thought “what the heck?!”  Since then, I’ve become a “Mrs.”, become a home-owner (x2), and become a mommy (x2)!   I still don’t think many people read this – other than the occasional traffic I might get from entering into a contest, But I’m hoping to change that!

Honestly, I really enjoy writing whether anyone reads these posts or not.  BUT…I guess I should let you guys at least have the chance to read if you’d like, right?!  So I’m finally starting to put this out there for others to see.  Learning how to gain traffic and followers all while re-vamping little things on my blog.

Now, I’m no web designer nor do I really find myself savvy on all the new social media icons or gadgets, but I can do a few things. Since I’ve gained the confidence of making my blog public (and making the decision of course), I have added some social media icons to the left of my posts.  There you will find my e-mail, a link to my Pinterest page, a link to my Facebook page (which is now updated to a blog page), link to follow me on Bloglovin, and a box to follow me by e-mail. 

Bear with me as I dive head first into the blogging world.  There’s so much to learn!! And on top of trying to teach myself, I’m working full-time, and mommying – whew!

Thank you for your patience and for reading!  Can’t wait to share in this journey!

p.s. If anyone goes back to read from 2009-2011 - my pictures are all missing.  This happened a few months ago, and I'm slowly trying to go back and re-add them.  #icouldhavescreamed

xoxo

Erin

Lets get Real about Postpartum – Part 3

Lets get Real about Postpartum – Part 3

Effects in General

Where do I even begin?! Hopefully my pregnant girlfriends don’t read these sections (heyyy CRBD! J)

Weight & Stretch Marks

You know you’re going to gain weight when you’re pregnant, but that doesn’t make it easier.  Everything is changing and you’re getting bigger.  People will say “oh, you look great!” and you literally want to punch them in the face cause you don’t feel great.  Even after being pregnant twice, I find myself being the one telling friends this.  But I do it, because I really do think they look great, honestly.  Even though I know when I say it, they probably wish they could punch me in the face.  I complained about the weight I was gaining, but on the other hand I was eating what I wanted and when I wanted without blinking an eye.  Makes sense right?!

I was doing so well with Hadleigh until the last week and then the stretch marks appeared. Are you kidding me?!  I might have cried at the time.  They were all below my belly button and I thought for sure my two-piece bathing suit days were over. 

After I had Hadleigh it took a while for the weight to come off.  I always thought of myself as one of those women who walked out of the hospital skinny and cute. HA!  Now I know those women are freaks of nature and super-duper lucky (no offense if you’re one of them…just a little jealous here).  I lost most of the weight in the first few weeks, but the last 15 pounds were a pain to get rid of.  I actually never got back down to my original weight, but my body was back in decent shape.  The stretch marks even faded after a while.  They were still there and noticeable, but I did break out the two piece on family vacation summer 2011. Holla!

Second time around I thought for sure I’d work out throughout the pregnancy – yeah well that did not happen.  I ate what I wanted again and still felt insecure about the weight I was gaining.  Each pregnancy was normal weight gain (40 with Hadleigh & 36 with Hayden).  I got more stretch marks and my stomach is definitely in worse shape than it was the first time around.  It’s more flimsy and being I’m only 7.5 months out – the stretch marks have faded but not enough.  Not sure I’ll be breaking the two-piece out this year! The weight has actually come off a lot quicker the second time around for me.  I’ve nursed longer, so maybe that has something to do with it.  I weigh less than I did before Hayden, but I can’t tell because everything just sits different.  My boobs are bigger (nursing) and I’ve totally lost my butt.

Weight is definitely an ongoing struggle, but I keep telling myself I look pretty good for having two kids – and if someone has a problem with it – I’ve had two kids, so there!  I have insecure days for sure, but as long as I don’t think about it, everything is good.  Totally normal.

Hair Loss

For me, this was ridiculous.  My hair got a little thicker during pregnancy, but not thick enough to lose as much as I did!  Daniel said next time he’s going to shave my head, so my hair isn’t around the entire house.  Anytime I did laundry, I’d find hairballs of mine that got tossed together in the wash.  And although I’m not losing my hair very much anymore, I still find hairballs in the laundry. Ahhh! I’ve even stopped wearing my hair up in public, because I have very thin spots next to my temples.  I can’t wait for it to all grow back, but you know, then comes those annoying baby hairs that stick straight out of your head cause they’re so short. Excuse me if you see me in public for a year after I give birth, more than likely my hair will look like crap. Actually, let me use that excuse for the next 18 years, please and thank you.

Periods

“Ugh” is how I’ll start this section.  That about sums it up!  After Hadleigh, I bled for 7 weeks.  It’s insane, I know.  Most people (I don’t think) bleed that long – lucky me.  Then, I went back on the pill a few months after.  It was the same exact pill that I was on for years prior to getting pregnant and it worked fine before.  This time around, not so much.  I constantly had break-through, so I finally said screw it.  My periods actually became normal after that.

After Hayden, I only bled for about 4 weeks.  I think I would have bled longer, but because of the birth I had (where they had to scrape me clean practically), there wasn’t much left to get rid of.  I again, tried the pill thinking maybe it would work. I was wrong, and had 2 periods in one month. NO THANK YOU. So, I’m back to being on nothing and it’s working wonderfully.  So funny, how your body changes in so many ways after child birth.

Morning Conversation

Conversation with Hadleigh this morning as I was trying to wake her to get her ready for school. She is not a morning person as I’ve said before…

Me: “Hadleigh, it’s time to wake up baby.  You’re gonna go to school today” (in a cheery voice to make getting up and going to school sound super fun)

Hadleigh: “No, mama.  I go to sleep.” (Since she loves going to sleep soo much at bedtime)

Me: “Come on.  Mama made you some chocolate milk and we can watch some TV after we get dressed.” (as I turn on a light)

Hadleigh: “No mama! No light!

Me: “Hadleigh, we have to get up.”

Hadleigh: “No, mama! You’re not listening to me! No light! I go back to sleep! Go away! Go to work!”

Yep. This is pretty much how every school morning goes these days. Love my stubborn little princess!

Hayden's 6 Month Pictures!

I got the CD back from Nikki Santerre Photography and I’m in….

oid L.O.V.E oid 

Is that enough emphasis for ya? OK. I thought so.  I love the subject, of course, but Nikki captured such sweet pictures.  I had 6 months pictures of Hadleigh done – so it was only fair to do them for Hayden.  Without further ado – here are a few of my favorites.  And it was hard to pick just these!  

Next time we get professional pictures, my baby will be a year.  I can't believe time is going so fast!

Sunken Sitting Room Progress

To see the first post go here

This renovation has taken so long.  We really didn't think it would take this long, considering we weren't tearing any walls down or anything. But, what do we know?! We are so close, I figured I owed an update.I still have to organize pictures from the kitchen and really decide how I want to update it, so I'm starting with our sunken sitting room.

The room really just needed some TLC and to get rid of that awful yellow!  Let's start with the before picture:

 Nothing to jump up and down about for sure.  We left it empty for over a year because we didn't exactly know what to do with it at first.  We thought rattan furniture would look great - and then call it our sun room.  But it didn't feel like a sun room to us,  We decided we would just treat it as another living room / sitting room.  Which works, because there's a direct line of sight from the kitchen into this room.  I know I'll love it even more when there's a TV hung on the wall and I can look into the room at the girls easily from the kitchen. 

Here is what it looks like today:  Still a work in progress!

We love it so far! First, a few close ups of the furniture:

We originally looked at Arhaus Furniture, and really loved a couch there.  We didn't want to cough up $2,000 just for the couch, so we continued to look.  The next day we happened to go to Rooms To-Go and found the exact same couch for about $800! Sold!  

We wanted a rug with a pattern, but we decided on something more neutral since the chairs have such a bold pattern in them.  We also knew we wanted to decorate with colors and trinkets, so going neutral was the best decision.  

We were lucky to find this gem.  It had all of the colors and the look we were going for in this room.  My hubby has a good eye :)

This is hanging on the wall next to the doors going onto our deck.  We have to find a few more trinkets to put on the shelves, but we're doing well! 3 days ago, this was empty!  We still have a side table and coffee table to get, as well as, a TV and some other decorative objects.  Stay tuned for the final result! {Hopefully it won't be too far down the road}

Couch & Chairs: Rooms To-Go

Rug: Lowe's $64

Buffet: Rooms To-Go but it was an old RoomStore piece

Lamps: Lowe's

Wooden Wall Cube: Arhaus Furniture

Trinkets in the Wall Cube: Stuff we already had/Hobby Lobby/Michaels

    TO-DO LIST

• Paint sunken room & nook gray
• Paint kitchen walls red
• New tile in kitchen
• Paint kitchen cabinets white again (they're currently glossy and horrible)
• Get new light fixtures for hallways, above the sink, and over the island
• New Hardware for cabinets
• Build cabinets beside fridge for a slide-out drawer trashcan & recycle
• Decorative adds above cabinets
• Wall-Art
• Incorporate a chalkboard somewhere
• TV for sunken room
• Couch & Chair & side-table for sunken room
• Bar/buffet for sunken room
• Rug for sunken room
• Art work/ decorative for nook & sunken room
• Corner Cabinet for nook
• New stools for kitchen
• Paint current black stools red and put them in nook for the other part of the counter

No, I Told You No...

Really?!  Is a 2.5 year old supposed to already talk back to you?!  Please tell me I'm not alone...

The tantrums have been in full force the past couple of weeks, but this talking back nonsense has been the last week or so.  Maybe her vocabulary is growing and she knows how to communicate better, but come on!

We have about 2 tantrums/melt downs a night and I’m really trying not to give into them, but it’s hard!  Last night, I was getting ready to put Hadleigh to bed and she goes for the drawer in our kitchen with the play-doh in it.  I tell her no, that we’re getting ready to head upstairs for bed and that we will play with it tomorrow.  The norm these days is to tell her “no”, and then tell her “no” about 100 more times.  In there, I’ll say “I told you no”…to mix up the plain old “no”. Well she now looks right back at me with this all-knowing look and says “no mama, I told you no”.

Lovely huh?

I give her time-out, which then turns into a meltdown. Crying and whining and screaming.  A few nights ago, I actually tried whining and fake-crying back at her.  {yes, I went there}  It semi-worked. She did not like me whining at all and told me to stop, which distracted her a little from the full blown meltdown she was having.  She’s also getting upset if I go and try and put Hayden in the highchair.  She wants to sit in it, so I let her.  I’m picking my battles, and if it doesn't hurt anyone or anything, go for it.  Last night Hadleigh, at 2.5, ate her dinner in her sister’s high chair.  We've actually had to start asking for two high-chairs when we go out to eat.  As soon as Hadleigh sees Hayden in one, it’s cause for a potential meltdown in public. 

I’m not really seeing the light at the end of the tunnel anytime soon.  I hear 3 is worse, and then 4 is no cupcake either.  By the time Hadleigh is 4, Hayden will be 2, so the cycle will start all over.  I see a lot of wine in my future.  CHEERS!