Fishing

It’s rare that I think to, or take the time time to, pause and snap family photos of all of us, lol. Usually I’m so wrapped up in enjoying the moment, that I just forget! But this time, I grabbed my camera before heading out to the lake.

Nate was so excited, he loves fishing…and sitting at the front of the boat, lol.

Lucas got to sit by dad, which is his favorite.

And I got to spend time with all my fellas! Not to mention…go fishing! I’m sure that next summer I’ll have to stay home more and go out with them a little less. At least until the new addition grows up a bit. So I’m treasuring every chance I get to spend time with the three of them right now!

Maybe next time we’ll actually catch something, lol.

Setting up for our new adventure!

We haven’t gotten to the nursery yet, but we are getting ready for our first year homeschooling!

It’s kind of intimidating, I have to say. Being so used to a traditional classroom, I was feeling like we needed some really good space (or spaces) for the boys. And also, the layout of the day. Some sort of schedule to follow that could be flexible enough for extra time or interruptions, but predictable enough for success.

After some inspiration from Pinterest and some blogs I follow, I came up with a few different things today.

First of all, I wanted to really get us in gear for scheduling. I found this idea on Pinterest and thought it was genius.

Eventually, I’d like to back these and put magnets on them. But for right now, it works great! The boys can follow it and know what to expect and I have some accountability to follow it, lol.

Next I wanted to set up a reading/quiet area for the boys. I had originally thought about each boy having a nook in their room, but I wanted to keep all the books together. Instead I cleared out their tiny toy (i.e. horribly overflowing, never put away, heap of toys *aka death trap*) and made it better.

It still has a long way to go (not to mention a good remodeling, lol) but for now I am quite pleased. We’ve got a shelf for games and puzzles. Then a shelving unit with two sided access for books! The blue tub is full of big books, and there is a tub of musical stuff on top of the shelf. Oh, and can’t forget the chair in the corner.

I had thought about also putting the craft area in with the books, but (rightly) decided to move it downstairs. It makes way more sense to be down stairs since we mostly work at the kitchen table.

So I converted a poorly used space beside the kitchen into our craft area.

All of our supplies and the little stack of workbooks we have. Plus coloring books, notebooks and letter stamps. Everything is easy to find, has a place and is easy to reach.

I’m hoping that this gets me on a roll with the rest of the home, lol. Not to mention homeschooling this year

Egg!

It’s here! The first egg. I’m not sure which chicken laid it, but we sure are happy to see them starting.

Because I’ve slacked severely with my photo project

Laundry room touch up

While cleaning my much ignored but used laundry room (which is also a mudroom/breezeway from the garage to the house), I looked around and thought, it really needs….well a lot. lol

But, until we can gut it, if figured that it could use just a little tlc and some color. I had been using some shower curtains as curtains in the living room, but had taken them down and replaced them with some black out panels because of the heat. Soooo, what better place to use them than in the laundry room! ( the window is small, so the other panel I used in the kitchen, love it!)

Since I REALLY like blue, grey, brown (dark wood tone) and white, I decided I also needed some artwork to go with it.

I already had a fantastic piece I’d made above the dryer, but I wanted something that was white.

I saw this a while back on Pinterest, and decided to make my own version

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So I came up with this:

I wanted something big, but didn’t have the right size wood, and beings it was sooooo hot today, I didn’t feel like cutting any down. So, I thought I would use a big piece of cloth and hang it with clothes pins off my clothes line! Fitting place in a laundry room, don’t you think?

That added to a shelf I put up in the other corner has really improved the space. (putting away the winter coats and boots kinda helped too, but we won’t go there, lol)

Then I had a FAMILY sign that I apparently left the L out of….

Um, hum.

Sooo, I re-painted it and am quite pleased with the out come AND I spelled it right this time….trust me, I made sure, lol.

It’s a little hard to tell from the picture, but the letters are grey and the background is a “white”wash of a pale slate blue. (disregard the awful textured walls, eventually those will go and a wonderful smooth surface with grace the hallway. Along with another wall color., lol)

Next up will be to put up some shelves in the boys room for all of their treasures and to hopefully give them a desk area.

Have a blog and never post…opps!

 

It’s been an embarrassingly long time since I’ve posted on here! I’m sorry to those of you who actually read it.

Life certainly has a way of changing plans and making this …. interesting.

Since I’ve last posted, we’ve been knee deep in summer fun. Not to mention a short, but intense bought of morning sickness that almost killed my whole garden, lol. Not to mention the guys were a bit at a loss without the girl around to keep things in check.

The first week of July we had a wonderful visit with my brother and to-be-sister-in-law in Kansas City. We were quite busy there, visiting Legoland, Sea Life, going to a Royals game, and a really cool Pirate exhibit by National Geographic…plus a bunch of other stuff.

When we got back, it was life as usual again. I have been attending the chickens, and trying to tame the amazon that was a garden. But recently the heat kicked in and we are trying to do as little as possible.

Tuesday of this week I had my first doctor appointment for the new baby. It went great and am so glad to have this new dr. After the normal list of questions, he asked if we (the boys were along) wanted to hear the baby, of course, yes! Then he decided we should really just look at it! With an inhouse ultrasound machine, we literally walked to another room and there our new baby was, on the screen!

This isn’t my first time seeing my unborn child on screen, I had ultrasounds with both boys. But when he felt my belly, and put the baby instantly on screen, it was magic. There it was! And from what he saw, it was doing great! (and just one! lol) From measurements we figured I’m right at 16 weeks, just like we thought. And….he was pretty certain it was a GIRL!

Wow.

We had an idea it could be, but for the dr. to be so certain….wow.

Like a friend of mine pointed out….I’m going to have to change the name of this blog! lol

But seriously, we have a lot to prepare for before next year arrives.

Of course, being a woman…who is pregnant, I’m thinking of names and nursery colors, and how I’m going to handle a newborn/homeschooling/and life in general

But, the Lord provides and I have faith. So I know that Joe and I aren’t doing this alone and that gives me courage.

I shouldn’t be surprised…

 

I find it rather amusing and yet ridiculous that I’m constantly faced with unexpected change. By now, I would think that I would just expect the unexpected, lol. That I would take anything for granted or assume it’s going to be the same is laughable, and yet I still find myself doing it. I mean just look at the past few months for example. I decided to homeschool, I found out I was pregnant, one of my hens was a boy…..(by the way, I named him Henry. He’s entertaining to say the least. Yesterday I found him in my tomato patch!)

With the completely unexpected arrival of a new baby, I should have guessed that this pregnancy would also be different than my previous two. But, of course I was blindsided by an acute bought of morning sickness, which I might add isn’t just in the morning! We are taking 24 hours a day people.

I never had any with the boys. But it seems as though it’s caught up with me, since I was completely bedridden and didn’t eat for two whole days. Luckily, my wonderful husband came to the rescue, again, and found me some PsiBands (some of you may have heard of Sea Bands) which are bracelets that basically do pressure points on your wrist. Relieving nausea, motion sickness and apparently used by chemo patients as well. I have been wearing those constantly (taking them off for a short time every 48 hours) and chewing ginger gum every time I feel a bit, well nauseous, which seems to come and go depending on what I eat. The lack of food has really run me down and right now I’m just trying to regain my strength.

Needless to say, I’m slow going at the moment and almost everything around the house was put on hold. Including my poor garden which I came out to see today Not quite sure what I’m going to do about all the grass,  but at least what I planted is still alive….right?

And my poor flower bed out front is a complete jungle that will probably get re-done in the fall, assuming I’m over this.

Luckily I was feeling well enough to make a picnic for the boys and eat popsicles with them outside. Popsicles seem to really help right now too.

Plus, I got to download…upload….load some pictures from Luke’s 10th birthday.

And a pregnant picture for all my silly ladies that have asked for one, lol.

Well, lets hope I can get over this and not have a whole pregnancy of illness….’cause that would suck…for everyone!