Another House Project

In the four years my husband and I have lived in our house we have completely gutted and remodeled three of our eight rooms. No room in our home has been untouched. Two months ago we did a complete overhaul of our landscaping. Last week it was the kitchen. We've needed a new floor since move in day, not just b/c it was ugly, but because it was  peeling up by the door and stained beyond repair. Sometime in our first year living here the range vent, which went through the roof, began leaking during a heavy rain or snow. That leak went down into the cabinets above the range which warped and molded the wood.

'How could you possibly live with mold in your kitchen for three years' you ask. Well, we have no money and if you don't use the cabinet, the doors are always closed, and your husband never really looked at the mess in the first place so doesn't agree they need to be replaced, it's easy to pretend it's not there.

In all honesty the only way we were able to redo the kitchen is b/c the in-laws were getting rid of their basement kitchen which had perfectly good cabinets, sink, and stove/oven. We did all the work ourselves, and so we only ended up paying around $300 total for our new kitchen. The most expensive item we splurged on was the floor, which happened to be the cheapest we could find that also matched the counters (which we got from in-laws).

In one weekend we were able to remove all the old cabinets, install all our new cabinets, install our new sink with a garbage disposal, as well as install our new stove/oven and range. We were only able to get 1/3 of the counter done. We would not have been able to do all of this if my sister had not come up to help watch Babycake and keep her entertained and out of the way.

My husband happened to be working out of town the following week, so I ripped up and installed our new floor over the next two days. The night hubby got home and the following evening we worked tirelessly to finish the kitchen. Family came in town for the holiday weekend so we really needed to have a place we could prepare food and eat.

At this point, everything is installed and the kitchen is again usable. We only have the finishing touches that need to be done. We are incredibly happy with our new and improved kitchen. We have about the same amount of cabinet space, a much larger oven, and twice the amount of counter space. I think I'm in love.

We found pink paint and pink/green floral wallpaper behind the old cabinets.

The first area with cabinets
and counter finished!

Installing the first of the new cabinets.

My new work station,
I didn't have one before!
(still need to find places for everything)

New cabinets, counters, sink, and stove/oven.
Check out that floor!

A much more open eating area!

What's Currently Happening

This morning my friend shared with me it was just one of those mornings for her where she just wanted to yell "Shut the f*** up!" to her kids. I think any parent has had those mornings, afternoons, and evenings. I laughed and did the parent to parent shrug and nod expressing my understanding and sympathy.

My morning didn't start out as bad as hers. My morning was pretty normal with Babycake waking around 6:45, me stumbling to get her a sippy of warm milk with her allergy meds mixed in and then falling back into bed while she happily sings and drinks in her room. Then we did the usual breakfast, potty, dress routine and a little added bonus of me forgetting I needed to put the car seat cover back on after being washed from a pee soak. We then rushed out the door in order to make it to the Y in time for my exercise class. Rushing seems to be pretty normal for us. Something is always forgotten or misplaced and setting us back a couple minutes. In the end, we were early and I got to hear my friend expressed her frustration.

Class went well. Babycake and I had a great lunch play date with friends. Babycake had a good nap followed by a fun time in gymnastics and there was no major meltdown before or during dinner. We had a really good Skype chat with the hubs and Babycake went down for the night without too much fuss. So why do I feel so blah? Really the day, if typical, leans towards a pretty good day. Having a toddler means that by definition there will be tantrums and tears most days and today was no exception, but also not extreme.

Maybe I'm just exhausted, physically, mentally, emotionally. I wouldn't say I'm mad. I don't feel sad. I feel frustrated, but can't pinpoint why or what I'm frustrated about. Hubby has been out of town for a week and a half now. Babycake and I got to visit with him and some family for a 3 day weekend; but in all honesty traveling with a kid is not relaxing, not to mention I was not feeling well before we even got there.

We've had a leak from our roof to down inside our bedroom wall for months now, that we attempted to fix. However yesterday I had a roofer come to actually fix it, only to have it rain all day today and the problem is still here. With all the raining, our driveway is flooding again, meaning I will most likely wake to a flooded garage despite my setting up the sump pump outside and in our crawl space.

Also, I want to move. I'm done with this house. I want to live in a nice neighborhood with side walks and not on a busy street. To get our house ready to sell, we REALLY have to get new kitchen cabinets. Lucky for us the in-laws are getting rid of their basement kitchen to make room for a wine cellar.

Now, here's the fun time line part. We leave with the in-laws for Europe in June. Same time, we start renting our spare bedroom to a family friend in town for a summer internship. I want the kitchen done before then. Hubby doesn't come home to stay for another week and half. Yes, he is coming home this weekend b/c for my Valentine he got us concert tickets for Sat. Next weekend when he is officially back home, family are coming to town for the Indy 500. The next weekend we have 2 b-day parties, but we could definitely get more work in then, than the time we have in closer coming weekends; but that is the weekend before we leave for our trip. So... What to do... I don't know.

All I know, at 11pm, is that I am over being a single parent. I need a break. The time Babycake was watched by her grandparents and aunt this weekend does not count in my book as I was attempting to regain good health. I'm simply tired of being sick. I'm tired parenting on my own. I'm tired of trying to make schedules and plans work. I'm tired of living in this house. I'm tired. I'm going to bed.

My Thoughtful Mother's Day Gifts

Hubby and I will be celebrating our fifth wedding anniversary this July. In October we will celebrate being together for 10 years. If you've been with someone special for a long time, it can be hard to come up with a new and thoughtful gift. For the last few years hubby has simply bought all my gifts. It's not that I haven't wanted or needed  the gifts he gets me, but they are always on my wish list and I know that's what I'm getting. It has been multiple years since I was surprised by a gift he came up with all on his own for me. This Mother's Day though I was pleasantly surprised by my gifts.

My gifts consisted of a full body sport foam roller from hubby and Babycake (which was number one on my wish list), a hand made card from Babycake, and a rose from my dad.






Now, Babycake is two, so there is no way she could have drawn that lion, painted it's mane, and come up with it's cute little phrase "Mom you're great and I'm not lion." Of course hubby helped her. He informed me that he went on Pinterest (yay!) to find something I would enjoy and he and Babycake could make for me.



He said he got all the supplies out, went in another room to check something, and came back to Babycake working away on the masterpiece shown on the inside of the card. There was no instruction needed there!


What thoughtful and heart warming gifts! I feel so special. I hope moms everywhere felt special this Mother's Day too.

Letter Weeks Dd and Ee

Well I'm proud to say that I was able to keep my promise of continuing the Letter of the Week Lessons with Babycake. This was a great feat for me as the last two weeks all I've wanted to do was curl up and hide under the covers thanks to allergies. Here are the crafts and activities we did for each week.






For Dd week we made a duck with a lower case d, a dinosaur with a capital D, a door from a capital D, and we colored a dog.

For Ee week we made an egg that cracks open and has a lower case e. Then we made a capital E out of envelopes. We made an elephant from paper plates, and then we colored some ears we could wear by putting them on a headband. We also played "eye spy."

This World is Literally Killing Me

While growing up I was always coughing, not like a little cough, but a deep bronchial cough that earned me second glances from those nearby. I remember my parents taking me to the doctor's office and trying to convince them I had asthma and I needed to be treated. I don't have asthma and didn't get treated for it. However, I didn't get treated for anything. I don't know if the doctor only looked for asthma or what but I was never diagnosed with anything for my horrendous cough.

I have memories of years upon years of dosing myself with cold medicine to try to relieve my cough and nasal congestion (any ideas yet what the cause could be?) I almost always claimed the family humidifier at the beginning of fall and kept it through spring. When I went to college I kept the same routine, cold meds and my very own humidifier.

It wasn't until I was 23 years old, and practically on my death bed that I drug myself out of bed and drove myself to a med clinic (not the wisest choice when your vision is a bit blurry). It was there that I was told for the first time I had allergies, that they looked pretty bad, and b/c my immune system was so focused on the allergies it wasn't defending well, and had I waited another 24 hrs to come in she most likely would have hospitalized me with pneumonia.

Hu. Allergies. Who'd have though!

I never considered allergies to be my issue b/c I didn't have the itchy/watery eyes, runny nose, or itchy throat. I had a horrendous cough and congestion/ sinus pressure all over my face. The allergy commercials don't talk about that. (ok, now they do, but 4+ years ago they didn't)

Anyway, I was told to go buy some allergy medication with the D on it. "Remember the D. That's important otherwise it won't do anything for you" said my saving grace doctor. It was amazing how much better I felt just 24 hrs later.

That was about 4 years ago. I've switched meds about three times since b/c I become immune to them. So I looked into what allergy shots do. Did you know that within 2-5 years of taking allergy shots 90% of people no longer need to take medicine to control their allergies? Um.... Sign me up!

I made an appointment and was told I had to stop taking my allergy medication a week before the testing to get accurate results. Let me just say. I have been miserable and useless for the last 4 days, and yesterday was my test day. The appointment took 3 hrs. Two years ago I would have been annoyed with a three hr appointment. Now? Nope. It was three hours free of responsibility of Babycake. She got to go play with her friends and had a blast and I got to sit and catch up on reading in the doctor's office.

For the testing, they did 69 scratch tests on my back. I reacted to 57 of them. Because I reacted to so many, the doctor wanted to be sure my skin wasn't overly sensitive and that I wasn't actually allergic to everything. So 20 mins later I received 10 shots on my arms. 20 mins after that it was confirmed that yes, I am allergic to everything.

They then did the run through of what I need to do to care for myself. No mowing the lawn, if I'm near someone mowing the lawn windows are to be closed and if I'm outside I need to wear a mask. My cat can no longer sleep in our room (yeah like I could get that to happen. Anyone know of a good home w no kids we can give her to?) The list seemed to go on and on, in the end it was a lot of washing, dusting, cleaning and avoiding I was told I needed to do.

Now I don't have a filthy home. I dust at least once a week and clean regularly. But I don't think the people at the doctor's office realize how impossible it is to have a pristine home with a toddler. There just isn't time to do it all. Also my husband is out of town for work for the next three weeks, so I'm the one left to mow the lawn. Maybe I'll mow while everyone is at work so they won't see the ridiculous mask.

In the end I left the office with five prescriptions and a promise that in a couple weeks I can begin receiving my allergy shots. I'm still feeling crummy 24 hrs after the appointment, but I can tell the meds are doing something b/c it's not as horrible as yesterday. I guess this is what I get for living in the Midwest. Maybe we should move to AZ.