House Photo Updates

I think I typed enough in my last blog entry so I'll keep this one extra short. For those that check our blog for photos updates on the house, here you go my friends (and mother-in-law...he he). I took some pictures tonight so you could see the progress. Sorry for the clutter all over the floors, but we haven't moved in furniture yet so there's nothing to put it on. :)


Front entryway. This is at night so you can't see the true color of the outside. I'll have to take another picture in the daylight sometime.

Our very cluttered new living room (new furniture gets delivered Tuesday along with our dining room table/chairs)

Completed kitchen only without the tile backsplash (last thing to go in).

New dining room/piano room and entryway.

Yes, I pulled the ferns in the front planter (sorry to anyone that liked them). They were replaced with Impatients (flowers).

So here we are getting ready to hit mid-October and I keep asking myself where the time has gone. Lincoln will be 4 months old tomorrow and everyday he's surprising me with things. He can now support himself very well on his stomach. He loves to reach for toys/objects when you play with him. When I rock him for his afternoon nap, he loves to reach out and touch my face as if to say, "I'm discovering you Mommy". He laughs these awesome belly laughs and loves to "talk" to anyone who will listen. He's not quite rolling over yet, but he's very close (back to stomach). He's still sleeping through the night, but occationally wakes up for a "midnight snack". :) I love my little guy to pieces!

Avonlea on the other hand, is talkig non-stop!!! The girl talks in full sentences like a 3-year-old and understands directions very well. The poor thing is sick today with a runny nose, cough and very slight fever. She still loves helping me cook/bake, enjoys our evening walks (there's a little trail beside our house that each night the four of us go walking on), loves playing on her playground outside and really likes learning new songs to sing. She's been waking up 3-4 times a night for the past few weeks so I don't know what that's about!!! We started going into her room the first week to cover her up and make sure she's okay, but we had to stop that. It's kind of like letting a two-year-old "cry it out". She doesn't actually cry, but she yells "Mommy, Daddy" for awhile until she gets tired and falls asleep again. I think it has something to do with her two-year molars, but hopefully it'll end soon.

Rob and I are doing well and needless to say he earned some brownie points Monday. Monday was my 28th birthday and he took me out to dinner at Maccaroni Grill, he bought me flowers and a card and to top it all off, he scheduled me a day at the spa for a massage, manicure and pedicure. I was so excited and felt so spoiled. He's going to watch the kids for three hours this weekend while I go get pampered. Do I have an awesome husband or what?!!!

Construction is going well this week. The guest bathroom is tiled and almost finished. I'm waiting for the plumber to stop by and install the new toilet and hook up the water to the faucet and bathtub. Hopefully, this Friday it'll be finished so Rob and I can paint it. It's going to be a silver-blue color. We went to Bed, Bath and Beyone last night to pick out the shower curtain, bathmat and some little accessories. That was fun. It'll be good to finally get one room totally complete.

I've been reading this book called "Understanding the Prophecies of the Millennium" by Edgar C. James. It's published by Moody Bible Institute and was given to me by our pastor at church (the whole congregation received them). Anyone who has been interested in disecting Revelation or Ephesians (end times) from the Bible, this is a great book for you. It simply lists facts and information about the order of prophecies to come and the prophecies that have already been fulfilled for the second coming of Christ. I've read a book called "Revelation Unveiled", but it didn't break things down quite like this new book I'm reading. This is not to say that I think Christ will come back next week or even in my lifetime, but it is interesting to read about and discuss with other fellow Christians. The Bible says that we know not the time nor the hour when Christ will return. All I know is that I'll be ready for Him. I guarantee you that if you do read this book, you will learn things that you did not know before.

Don't forget to thank the Lord for all your blessings today!

The bathroom is now tiled and ready for paint.

Front entryway (shingles were being put on today)

see-through kitchen

archways

Oh No! We Have No Ceiling!

So, we don't have a ceiling tonight, but all that will change tomorrow. We had some surprises come about and found out that the beautiful wood ceiling with original beams couldn't stay. :( It's a long story, but the 4th bedroom will still have that ceiling and 2 beams in it. We've grown accustomed to having picnics on Lincoln's bedroom floor and watching tv in his room as well. Lincoln's room is serving as the "living room" right now until we gain walls back in our original living room. The house looks so much bigger now and the construction guys are moving very quickly. Our guest bathroom now has drywall in it and tile comes tomorrow. We also have a bathtub, but it's not functioning quite yet. Avonlea and Lincoln's schedules have been thrown off a bit and Avonlea is getting used to sleeping at other people's houses. Today we slept at Grandma Gigi's house and Avy did quite well taking a 2-hour nap. Yeah!!

Gotta go start dinner...

More Demolition...

So today is Monday and most of the demolition was done today. We no longer have a closet/pantry or walls in most of the rooms. The kitchen looks HUGE, even bigger in person versus the picture I took. Being out of the house has definately been difficult today and last week. I think we've got it down to a science though. I try to stay organized and pack everything we need in a day. I also keep a bag of necessities like our phone book, my Bible, daily planner, to do lists, grocery lists, etc. in a small bag and take it everywhere with me, that way if I need something and we're not home to access it, I've still have it with us.

We've recooperated from Avonlea's birthday party this past weekend and she's had so much fun playing with her new toys (where am I going to put them all?!!!). It was great because she didn't get anything too big so we've found homes for most of her things. Thanks again everyone!

Lincoln is growing more and more each day. He's beginning to grasp things with his hands now. He loves rattles and uses his burp cloths to snuggle. Avonlea has a little bear that she goes to sleep with and Lincoln has become rather fond of it so today we were off to Burlington Coat Factory (baby section) to find another bear for him. We looked for blue, but white will have to do. (They were out of blue.)

I know there are a lot of people that get frustrated with demolition, but Rob and I are so excited (granted it's only been a week, so I may change my mind in awhile). We love coming home and talking about what will go where (furniture-wise), how big and spacious things look and how different everything is. As for the dust, it's not nearly as bad as I thought. American Housing has done a great job in making sure they clean up everyday and leaving it livable for us. I was a little leary at first about having the kiddos around everything during the process, but so far so good. We've sealed off the hallway/bedrooms with a large tarp so the dust stays on one side of the house and since we're only here for the nightime, they're really only in their own rooms anyway. The not-so-fun part is (like I said), not being home during they day.

Well, I'm off to spend some time with my hubby and son (Avonlea is asleep)...

A Bucs Game and DEMO!

So we FINALLY started demolition this week and it feels so good to get rolling on this project. The guys began Monday morning at 8:02 (I was very impressed that they showed up on time!) and so far the guest bathroom is pretty much gone. The front porch has been "mapped out" for concrete and pillars and today's goal is to accomplish the remaining demo in the guest bathroom and then get the pantry and some other walls knocked out by Monday. Being up and ready to go by 8:00 a.m. with both kids has definately been a challenge the past two days, but well worth it. We've been "bunking out" at my parents' house during the day (the kids need a somewhat quiet place to nap) and sleeping at our house at night. We've been debating whether or not to look into sleeping elsewhere at night while the kitchen is being ripped apart. We'll see.

Rob and I were fortunate to go to a Bucs game this past Sunday. Rob won tickets through his work and it was such a blessing to get out just him and I for the afternoon. It was a crazy game and we wound up winning 24 to 3. It also downpoured so the picture is of Rob and I right after it was raining. We were SOAKED, but it felt so good after an hour of HOT Florida sun.

I'm Back!!!

Wow! It feels so good to have internet again. Rob and I have been cut off from the outside world for about a week now. The move went well and we've officially moved into our new house. We had 4 guys show up early Saturday morning and we had all of the main furniture and boxes moved by 1:00ish. Thanks so much guys!!! The rest of the weekend was spent making a few more trips back and forth from the old house to the new house continuing the moving of boxes and odds and ends. It's amazing how much junk you can find and be willing to throw/give away when you move! It was a good thing though because we went from having a two-car garage to a one-car garage so storage space is limited. Our renters move in after this weekend and yes, I splurged and had a cleaning lady come in to clean the old house from top to bottom. It was so nice not having to worry about that part since I can't smell most chemicals or bend over anyway. The lady was there for a good 3 hours cleaning out the house. She did the ceiling fans, blinds, windows, baseboards and cleaned all of the regular things too. We still have some things in the garage, but the renters will have to live with it for a little while until we are able to go through it.

As far as the transition, it went very well. Avonlea was a little confused when she took her first nap here, but she slept for 3 and 1/2 hours! That night, I had found all of her bedding, night-night luvies, her noise machine, etc. so it made things a lot easier. She's back on schedule, although she was never really off. She's familiar with this house being Rob's mom's house and all so the familiarity helped. She loves jumping on the trampoline and playing outside with Riley (our dog). They chase lizards, pick flowers, play ball and so much more. The porch has been wonderful to set up some toys on (painting easel, sand table, etc.). I can let her play on the porch while I keep an eye on her from inside the house.

As for me, I won't lie...I'm tired and feel as though there's always something to get done with not enough time in the day and not enough energy. We've still got boxes everywhere, but the nice thing is that we're not unpacking 1/2 of our stuff due to the fact that we'll be starting construction in a few weeks. We meet with our contractor this Saturday morning to discuss details and sign a contract for construction. We couldn't be more excited! I'm a little nervous about having two small children here while dust and things are flying around, but the bedrooms are all on one side of the house and we'll have to stay on that side for awhile until the "dust has settled". We're also going to be out of the house while major things are going on. We'll probably be living at the park and friends' houses during that time, but at least the kids won't be breathing in anything harmful. My belly is as big as a watermelon (which I have been craving lately) and "the day" is approaching quickly! Next Monday is the day and I can actually say that I feel as ready as I can be. Bags are packed and by the door (just incase), Lincoln's room is set up enough so it's functional (we've still got to finish putting up the chair-rail around his room and would like to put in a close organizer, but those things aren't too crucial. I finished washing the last load of baby things tonight (burp cloths and blankets) and got the baby bouncer, swing and pack and play up, cleaned and functioning in the living room. An extra bed is set up in the living room for my good friend Corlee who is staying with Avonlea the first night we're in the hospital. I was really worried about how that would happen. I'm still a little scared as to what we'd do if he did come early because it wouldn't be cool calling anyone in the middle of the night to come watch Avy, and it would be impossible to take her with us. I just hope this little guy stays put until June 11th. :)

Well, Rob and I got cable/internet installed today so we're going to sit down and enjoy a little television before bed. Enjoy the pictures and I hope everyone had a great Memorial Day!