down under part ii ...

Well, the basement project continues and I finally remembered to take some photos! A few of these I posted before on this post, and a few are newer angles that weren't interesting in the early stages but now make sense.  It stills feels a long way off before we are finished but it's getting there... slowly but surely!

Before:

 After:

 After, after:

 This set is looking into the room from almost the bottom of the stairs and it will be the media/play room area. The coiffured ceiling have these ridiculous crazy multi-colored LED lights that fade, strobe, flash, dance that are "for the kids" as Dennis says but we all know otherwise... seriously, who does he think he's fooling?

Lovely garbage bags in the middle too, eh?

This next set is looking from the other end of the room back towards the stairs. The stairs are on the left which you can't see but basically it is where I was standing taking the above photos.

Before:

 After:

 After, after:

Thank goodness I put my foot down and said no way, no more crazy lights over the wet bar... I mean, really? Can you imagine just how over the top that would have been? There is no counter top on the wet bar yet and the trim and crown molding are those long black strips to the right of it. An example of how we are close but oh, so far from finishing.

Before:

 After:

 After, after:

 Big changes here too! This is the room that connects to the long media/ play room above. Dennis has plans for an office and VEX robotics work are for the team. Homa is excited to know we won't take over her dining room table this year! However, right now, I am thinking the work horses with the door on top, the orange Home Depot buckets for sitting on are making a pretty cool industrial design statement.

This next set is looking from the corner of the above room (on the left side of the photo) back to where I was standing to take the above photos. I don't think I have shown these photos yet because it wasn't all that exciting at the time and even now, it's not so exciting but I will give you a glimpse of the bathroom in a minute!

Before:

 After:

 After, after:

 The above photo is the pocket door leading into the bathroom. The ladder was placed there so no one would walk on the tile floor which wasn't quite ready yet. Just to the left of the door is going to be a built in linen closet and the shower and toilet. To the right of the pocket door is where the vanity goes, mirror and light... yet another example of how close and how far we are! 

But what I really wanted to show you was check out the beautiful tile in the shower!

Okay, well ignore the stuff in the shower pan and check out the lovely glass mosaics!

So yep, down under continues to evolve... maybe in a month I can show the finished project with instead of tools, garbage, ladders in the photos there will be a play kitchen, VEX robotic parts, Dennis' messy (very messy) desk and maybe some furniture to sit on down there which makes me think I should photograph the craziness above ground in the rooms that contain all that current stuff in them!

sigh ... keeping my fingers crossed... one more month, please!

baby george

Remember last summer how I told you about George Washington... the watermelon? You can reread about that, here.

Well, today I nearly died laughing when we went to pick up our veggies at our CSA at the end of the pick up there was crates of beautiful watermelon so I picked one out and put it under my arm to take back to the car. I called out Jaiden... Alyssa ... time to go (they love to play with the farm cat or try to catch a chicken with the farm kids) and they both ran around the corner and Jaiden said "hey, Alyssa, look it's George Washington!" and Alyssa said "oh, it's Baby George Washington!"

Jaiden secured Baby George in the backseat before I could leave... and I just realized I think Baby George is still in my car buckled up... I better go rescue him!

Now I am not sure which is funnier, the fact the kids remembered this inside joke from last summer or the fact that we left the silly watermelon still buckled in the car at 10 pm!

every step makes a difference

Go Jaiden go!

Dennis took Jaiden this morning (very early I might add!) to go walk for hemophilia, an annual fundraiser that is done in many states through local chapters and the larger National Hemophilia Foundation (NHF). 

We were a bit late in signing him up but he was adamant that he go as he knows this fundraiser goes to help pay for his camp and other education programs he attends - he knows other of his camp friends and their families will be there - he knows it is his  community where he finds other boys dealing with the same issues - he knows he will see his nurses, his doctors and the people who really care for him. 

Here are a few photos Dennis just texted me of Jaiden!

And that button on his shirt?

It reads: 

Together we walk!

I am walking for 

ME!

So sweet and so awesome - go Jaiden go!

Here is their team link if you want to check it out:

http://my.e2rm.com/TeamPage.aspx?EventID=110465&LangPref=en-CA&TeamID=470822

first day jitters...

caution... there are lots of photos... I really can't help myself sometimes!

Today was the first day of school. Alyssa actually woke up a bit early at about 7:30 or close to it. I was still brushing my teeth and getting ready to blow dry my hair when she bounced in all dressed and ready to go.

 This was at about 7:50am when I headed down to make breakfast (we typically don't leave the house until 8:40 or 8:45 am!) and just after waking this boy...

 who tried his best to lounge as long as he could.

So I took this cutie outside for a couple of photos.

 Funny story about this photo. It turned out to be my favorite because you can see that wonderfully toothless smile and that adorable nose but the funny part about this story is I was taking some nice photos of her and then I asked her to go get her backpack and she came back out onto the porch wearing her bike helmet... funny part... she took off her helmet and walked to school about 15 minutes later?!

 always... always have to have one silly first day photo - she got into it this year!

Finally, this one was ready for his first day photos...

 ... this was my favorite of him. Such a cutie!!

 ... and his silly first day photo... zombie like or maybe creeper like? who knows!

Ironically for both kids saying they were not excited for school to start, we left the house on time and walked to school with plenty of time!

 Red shirt on left is our neighbor, Jaiden is to his right, with Alyssa trailing a little behind, and our friend, Tyler in the blue shirt, blue hat combo.

 Not my best work but definitely my fastest - grabbed one quick photo of him outside his classroom as he quickly pretended to not know me... tried to discreetly give him a hug and a "ghost" kiss  but he shooed me away... and then he started 4th grade... where did that time go?

She tried to shoo me away too but only after she got a BIG hug and kiss, but I did have to steal one photo of her walking into her classroom. Then she started 2nd grade and luckily my girlfriend saved me from the tears that started to well up in my eyes as she did a goofy dance behind me while I tried to take this photo!

All in all, I think they both had a good first day of school... me? I had coffee with a girlfriend, went to a MEGA hot yoga class (outside felt cooler!), did laundry, cleaned the kitchen and picked out carpet for the basement... yea, really exciting day for me too!

aaaah... goodbye sweet summer

Today was the last day of summer not by the mark of Fall but the start of school. I am pretty certain we were very much in denial as we enjoyed our last day at the local pool ...

 when I saw Alyssa at the top of the high dive, I thought wow, the carefree and blissful days of summer ...  gone. My little cuteness will probably be a few inches taller next summer when she jumps off that board again. 

... and this one? He was ever so delighted to share his last day with lots... no, loads of good friends.

And the best part? Our regularly occurring afternoon thunderstorm seemed to know not to interfere and held out until 3:30pm when we arrived home. What a massive thunderstorm it was too... a lot of lightening that cracked and boomed as we saw it flash! and the squeals of 6 kids in my backyard that came scrambling in as fast as they could... yes, I had a whole day with 6 kids (technically 9 but I had another mom with me at the pool with the other 3) between ages 5 to 9 ... and yes, as crazy as it may sound, I thought it was a fabulous way to end summer!

the county fair

I am a little behind a few days as I am traveling with my sister but things are happening at home without me and I am being treated by bits of home life through the wonderful world of technology.

For example on Thursday, Dennis took the kids to our local county fair for the annual family day where wristbands if purchased early, and at a steep discount, allow the kids to ride rides as many times as they want and by the looks of it, they did more  than their fair share of riding... and quite honestly by the looks of it, it is probably a good thing I wasn't there... I'd either be very sick from all that up/down and spinning or scared watching my babies do these kind of rides!

clean your room...

the tooth fairy left a note last night outside of Alyssa's room that read:

To Alyssa

I tried to visit you tonight but I could barely get in your room,

let alone find your bed with all the toys in the way.

I will have to come back when your room is clean and organized.

love toothalina

surprisingly she came downstairs this morning with the note and smiles. She read us the note very matter of factly and then she was very busy this morning cleaning her room!

I should add the whole story about how late Friday night, well, technically she was supposed to be asleep... Alyssa pulled out a tooth. She was so excited and sad at the same time because it was very, very late and she wanted to make a small fairy pillow for Toothalina so she postponed putting the tooth under her pillow and waited until Saturday night. She spent a good portion of Saturday making this:

and there it waits under her pillow again tonight...

with a clean room ready for her tooth fairy!

update:
just as I finished writing this and posting in she came again...

with one less tooth!

so now Toothalina has two teeth to pick up tonight... 
nothing like getting a 2 for 1!

friday night...

true story, this is our friday nights lately. 

going out to dinner and then to lowe's or home depot...

in fact as we walked in tonight, alyssa said "daddy, don't buy the black toilet, it has bugs in it!"
then dennis encourages jaiden to try out the toilets and

near the bbq's were hot sauces and of course, dennis has to point out the names of them like 

bone suckin' or bad byron's butt rub...
uh, like that was appropriate?!

yes, it pretty much all goes down the drain after that ... 

no pun intended.

happy weekend!

mommy day tuesday

Hello August!

July, you came and went way too fast and I am a bit sad about that. While there are plenty of things to look forward to in August (like maybe a finished basement and less dust!), there are plenty of things I am not looking forward to - the primary fact that I have a 4th and 2nd grader in this house, and I am left wondering how fast time really has gone... I mean, take this summer, I blinked and it's almost over... sigh... another school year and the same darn thing is going to happen again, I blink and it will be over before I know it. 

Lately, I have been organizing, deleting, reminiscing, deleting, cleaning my photos from not only this year (when everything got a little out of hand) but also going back to 2009 to get Alyssa's toddler album in order. In this culling process, I have delighted in revisiting so many memories.

This was a particular series that I took in April of 2012. 

I remember being in awe that she figured out how to cut out a string of people. 

I remember how it took (and still does) me a long time to figure out to do this. 

I remember how she did the people first and proudly showed me. 

I remember the hearts came next, and I was so very proud of her. 

And I remember coming back to my computer later that day to find all this lovely treasure left by her for me. 

The crazy thing? Well, the craziest thing was that I found these photos earlier this week but it was today, trying to organize her toddler album, trying to figure out where I left off, what is missing and what is all this stuff I crammed into her box? Well, there was the hearts, the people, the I love you note ... all tucked inside that envelope... and my heart melted all over again. How lucky I am to be doted on with her sweetness... now before I blink again, I want to savor it because I am certain when I blink, she will be 14 and she won't be particularly excited that not only did I save all this, but I wrote and scrapbooked about it. 

Or maybe I will be lucky and at 14 she will still leave me bits of sweetness ...