Amara's Room

Well, I don't have much time to post anything other than the pics of our completed projects. I will post more pictures once we get a few more decorations up or once our little angel decides to make her debut. For now, this is all I got.

I finally got some sewing done, although I still have a few little things to make. It feels good to have the main stuff done and her room put together. Clayton did a fabulous job refinishing the crib and dresser Mindy & Steve gave us. He repainted them, put those cute knobs on and put new slides on all the drawers. It is like brand new! I love how everything has turned out so far...

10-10-10

HAPPY 27th BIRTHDAY CLAYTON!

I am the luckiest person alive to have found such a hard-working, loving, supportive, funny, artistic, caring, sweet and patient man to be my best friend and husband. He is my everything!Happy Birthday Cutes!

The Reveal

Our final projects are DONE. That is right folks, D-O-N-E DONE! All of our major remodeling projects are complete. Now there are only minor little things to do--IF--and when we feel like it. I am so happy with how everything turned out. The kitchen was not as time-consuming as the bathroom was last year, but I think it is even better!

Do you remember what our kitchen looked like originally? Let me remind you....we painted it awhile ago, switched the stove but nothing too drastic was changed...

Well, let's just let the new pics tell the rest of the story...

(cabinets splitting the two rooms--UGH!)

Our hired plumber :)

AND THE FINAL PRODUCT, complete with new sink, counter tops--with an extended bar that you can actually use, tile backsplash, some new cabinets, CAN LIGHTS (that we absolutely love), and new small chubbers ceiling fan. And best of all, we actually eat in our kitchen now.

(new cabinets under the bar!)

We love it!

Running...out of time

Sometimes I wonder why the time at work goes by so slow, like you are watching every moving part of the clock slowly rotate while you are trying to pass the time. While on the other hand, there is not enough time in the day to get the things I want to get done at home. What is the deal?


Here is just a fun pic of Clayton and I at my brother in laws 40th birthday party. Uhm, we were the only ones who got the memo that it was 70's theme. We felt a little bit out of place ;)

The last few weeks we have hardly made it to bed before 12 am. We were preparing for & starting on the kitchen remodel. We were painting the cabinets (me at home painting—yes with all the doors and windows open for ventilation--while Clayton was at work spraying up the doors and putting the cool edge on them), taking down the old cabinets above the stove, taking off the countertops, removing the sink and parts of our flooring. On Friday the 23rd, we got the countertops and the extra cabinets installed. IT IS BEAUTIFUL. I love our new large sink, bar and the open space without those ugly upper cabinets. We are not finished, but probably 85 % done. We aren't going to post many pics just yet :)


We found this fantastic tile a few weeks ago. It was a mosaic tile with natural stone and glass tile squares. They were browns and tan. Perfect, we bought them and planned on doing a full tile backsplash. On Friday, we pull out the tile to put it against the cabinets and countertops. I stood back & looked at it; Clayton did the same. Then we looked at each other and said,“I HATE IT”. We had taken a door sample and countertop sample with us when we picked it out, but seeing it in person, we hated it. I was relieved we both didn’t like it. The tiles were too amber-brown and looked hideous. Since we want to save money where we can, we decided to only do a halfsplash which will save us about $300. We went to Lowes, & Home Depot (several locations cause for some reason they all carry different tiles).We found three that we liked. One of which was the exact same as the original ones we bought but with blacks & tans instead. IT MATCHES PERFECT.

Last Saturday we put up the tiles and grouted them. This weekend we will seal them; I can’t wait!! We should have most everything but the can lights done by Sunday. What I really can’t wait for, is to get everything done and then clean the entire house. We have done so much work on it that we will finally be able to sit back and enjoy it! All of the projects we have left are minor that will take a couple hours here or there (re-finish the crib/dresser, re-grout a little crack in the shower, adjust the blind lengths, paint one wall in the living room a darker color, remove two screws sticking out of the concrete outback, etc). It is so nice to see everything DONE instead of this idea or task on a list TO BE DONE.

My plumber dog

Before....well we took down the doors before we took the pic, OOPS

The upper cabinets still in place...

And they are gone...

And that is all your are going to get!

What about kankles?

Besides enjoying the kitchen, it will be really nice is to not have sore, swollen feet. Just climbing up this two step ladder to put stuff in and taking it out of the cabinets left me with VERY SWOLLEN SORE feet. I brokea few blood vessels in them from being on them too long. Last Sunday I woke up feeling like I had been hit by a train. My entire body was aching! So was Claytons. We have ran to Lowes almost every day—multiple times--for one thing or another, returned several items that we changed our minds on and ate fast food all week because we couldn’t cook very easily. And honestly, who feels like cooking a meal when you are already tired? So I can’t wait to enjoy my lovely kitchen and get back to watching my game shows every night!

As for the baby—she is doing great! My belly button is almost flattened which is much more flattering than the Pillsbury dough boy look. She is kicking like crazy and Clayton loves to say good morning and good night to her. He is really sweet and is getting anxious to meet her. We ordered a really cute crib set on ebay for only $50! I thought since it was a bid item that in the last couple minutes we would for sure lose the bid—but they didn’t change the price. I was looking forward to it until I got it in the mail and found it was a piece of JUNK. We returned it and now are back on the hunt for the set of our dreams. I have made a few blankets for baby showers recently too. I can't wait to have some time to make them for my cute little one!

Baby at 22 weeks

Baby at 26 weeks (the doc said this looks a little bigger than it is, but I sure hope she has those cute lips)

I am feeling really good and enjoying not being so sick. I still get a little nauseated if I wait too long to eat, but I am not puking my brains out which is fabulous. I had a lady at work the other day say something kind of funny/rude. At first I wanted to punch her little face and then just realized that she must have slipped or not realized what she had just said. She said, “Wow, it looks like you have the entire basketball team under your shirt. Before you weren’t showing and now you really are”. Hmm, really, the WHOLE team hu? Are you sure you didn’t just mean to say a basketball under my shirt? Cause I am pretty dang sure I am not that big, but thanks for the compliment, I guess. LOL. Most people are really nice and make me feel good but there are some days that I feel HUGE. Like when I go to put on a pair of pants that fit me a week ago and now they are so tight I can’t do up the button. My cute sister-in-law & sister gave me a bunch of darling maternity clothes that have helped the wardrobe. Especially for work—who wants to get dolled up for work when you are tired and everything is too tight in all the wrong places? Not me, but with the new additions to my clothes I am set. Thanks gals!

Sweet Kicks

I have been able to feel the baby kicking a LOT. It is so sweet and crazy at the same time. Finally, after many failed attempts, Clayton was able to feel her little kicking on Saturday. I love feeling her move, but it is still a little strange to think that my growing belly is housing a baby. I don’t know if I am recognizing it more or if she is moving more but the last couple of days it has been pretty constant. It is so fun to think a little girl is in there just waiting to come out and meet us! I had a dream that I delivered a sweet little chubby face baby with tons of hair....hmmm by looking at Clayton and I, it probably won't be too far off the mark.

I feel like my belly is just getting bigger by the minute. I feel like I should be able to still just hop up on the counter to reach the top shelf with the flour, but even stupid little movements are seeming difficult. Ha,ha, I am not even that big, so I can’t imagine what it is like at 8-9 months along. I have gained some weight the last few weeks, so I am now back to my pre-pregnancy weight. Funny as it is, my clothes still don’t fit even though I am now at the weight I started at. I can eat an entire watermelon by myself in about a day and a half. That is one thing I am LOVING. Give me a watermelon and a little salt and I am a happy camper!

We were OVERLY busy this weekend. I don’t know that we had 5 minutes in between activities—they were all fun, it was just tiring. Friday night we went with my fam out to dinner for Father’s day. Saturday we took Clayton’s car to get detailed (his father's day present), finished working on our front door, did laundry, went to a baby shower, swim party and then an old work party that evening. Sunday we went to church, came home and cleaned the house, went to my nephews ordination and a little dinner, then to the hospital to see Mindy. We didn’t get home until almost 10 pm! I am completely tired…and today it is just back to work. A extra day of rest in there would have been great. I am looking forward to the holiday next Monday when we both get a day off—but my Mom will be in town for my sisters baby blessing and next weekend is filling up like the last….so I will just have to keep waiting for that “day off”. On the plus side I can’t wait to see my Mom and go pick up some more stuff for the baby’s blessing dress she will be making. YEAH!!!

Work has been going good—I was just moved from an office to a cubicle out in a little area and then moved again into full on CUBIE LAND. I have never had to work in an area like this and I don’t know that I like it. I don’tmean to be an office snob, but it is hard to make phone calls to clients when 500 others are on their phone or chit-chatting. Some peace and quiet would be appreciated. Not to mention everyone’s conversations are to say the least interesting. You would think that since everyone can hear you,you might not tell ridiculous stories or personal info…oh no. I get to hearit all. I try to just keep my ear buds in, but honestly I would just like a little office. Put me in a corner, I don’t care, this cubicle land is driving me nuts. However, I am super lucky to have a nice boss who I can send funny IM’s to, saying “save me, please call me into your office” or“Your office with a view sucks compared to my cubicle”. He usually just laughs or plays it up. It is nice to have a boss you can joke with (like calling him a wuss, creepy or old man (when he is only 35)) and actually enjoy their company. I know a few of my previous managers should take some lessons from him. So I guess I should not worry about the cubicle and just enjoy my super nice boss and the fact that I have a job.

And since I can't really say when I will be posting again until after the holiday......HAPPY 4th of JULY!!!!

No Soliciting

Ok, although it may a faux pau on my blog, I am going to put this out there anyways.

It is semi-official. I have started a business. I have my name registered, I got my business license; bought the software and coolest piece of office machinery (my beautiful 10 key). Now I am going to be looking for some clients...so if you know someone who would need a bookkeeper, send them my way ;). I will be offering accounting services and payroll services (accounts receivable/payable, bank or account reconciliations, preparation of financial statements, processing payroll, quarterly filings, W-2 and 1099's). They can email me with questions, set up a free consultation or request my resume & references.

Thanks for letting me sell my services here...while keeping my clothes on. And a special thanks to whoever made photoshop--I can have hours of fun making cool stuff like my logo or digital scrapbooking pages, or editing photos that were not quite up to par. Thank you cool designer folks.

Names

Well--for Christina--here is my belly a couple weeks ago(16 weeks). I will post another pic after I take my 20 week photo this weekend! I can't believe I am almost 1/2 way done!!

We have been looking at a name book and there are some interesting names out there. We haven't picked any out for certain but I do like more unique names that are feminine. Not some crazy off the wall names, just pretty ones or ones that won't have 15 in a single class room (like Madison or Brooklyn--even though I love those names).

My family lives by nicknames--so I need to keep that in mind when picking a name for our baby girl. What will we call her? Does the nickname sound just as good? Silly but true. No one goes by their real names around our houses. My Dad would really like it if we named her Velda just so someone can carry on the V (his name is Verlan). Nice try Dad, but I don't think so on this one. Violet maybe, but no Velda.

We have laughed super hard with some of the names and their meanings in our book. The best was a name that meant: beautiful; like a creeper. Really? Like a creeper hu. I don't really picture any creeper beautiful. It was an indian name and I can't remember which one it was--but if I find it I will let you know.

Here are some names that we laughed at. Nothing tops beautiful like a creeper though. How endearing.

Brunhilda: armored warrior.

Bum: duty; fragrance. (very interesting)

Anuhya: something pleasantly unexpected. (oh so an OOPS baby)

Anais: gracious. (not the first thing that comes to mind)

Clearly we haven't gotten too far in the name book. I will try to keep a better list of the laugh out loud names so we can all enjoy.

The verdict is in...

We are pleased to announce our little bundle of joy is made with sugar and spice and everything nice. It’s a GIRL. Clayton was right and can’t wait to have a Daddy’s girl. I was secretly hoping I would have a little girl to dress up. We are both very excited!!!

We had our target ultrasound yesterday. Everything is looking great. The baby is about 8 oz and 5 inches long (crown to rump). The lady doing the ultrasound said, “Well here are the legs and feet and oh here is a perfect shot…..what do you think it is?” I stared for a moment and Clayt said, “It’s a girl!” “Yes, it is a girl indeed. No doubt about it.” We got some cute pictures of her precious little face. She had her hands up next to her face the whole time. She was crossing her legs and they took a cute picture of just the bottom of her feet.

After our doctors appointment, we ran to all-a-dollar and made little baskets with boxes of sugar and spice and a little candy (everything nice) with a “It’s a girl” balloon. Then we delivered them to our parents. Everyone is excited for a little girl! On my side of the family, I have two sisters that just had baby girls—so they will have little girl friends 6 months apart. On Clayton’s side there are two boys on the way and one born a couple months ago so she will have some boy cousins close in age as well.

Now for the shopping, craft, bow and blanket making! I am so excited to use a pattern I bought on sale a few weeks ago to make a big blessing dress out of the train from my wedding dress. Well not me, but my cute Mom will make it for me ; ). I will keep to the simple stuff that is ok to mess up—but not the blessing dress.

Another rundown

Do you ever wonder what you should title a post? Of course you do. What if I titled a post RUNDOWN last year or something…what if I start using the same ones? A repeat. I don’t know if anyone cares but I want my titles to be clever or unique. But for the life of me, I don’t know what to title posts these days and there is nothing creative about them.

We went to the doctor on Wednesday. Our caterpillar is now a BABY!!! Hooray. I don’t think it is a lump of chub anymore. It was really sweet tosee the baby kicking and moving around like crazy. I just sat there and smiled because I don’t feel anything, so it was nice to get somere assurance that there is a growing baby in there. Maybe the baby was moving around because I had just eaten a Lynn Wilson Beef & Potatoe burrito. I know I was excited to gobble that goodness down. Or it could be,a happy baby, due to a happy Mom, who is able to hold down small amounts of soda. You read right, I have finally been able to drink a little soda. It is not my daily breakfast of champions like it used to be…(although I must confess, today it was—thank you McD’s)...but I can have a little here and there without throwing up. I have finally stopped losing weight and am now beginning to gain a little back. I lost 9 and have gained 2 back. So atl east I am still under my pre-pregnancy weight (although I feel like my belly just looks chubby).

I have a little appetite back and am feeling MUCH MUCH better. There are still times I get a little sick; if I wait too long to eat or if someone discusses fish. Kind of funny but even the thought of the SMELL of fish about sends me over the edge. I don’t like it when I am not pregnant and I really don’t like it now. Clayton thought I was kidding when I asked him one day to stop talking about a fish story from work….some co-workers were eating salmon eggs or something—and I finally had to put my hand in frontof my mouth and say, “Seriously honey I am going to throw up”. Ha, how stupid is that? But then again to me, fishy smells are awful any day of the week.

Back to the baby—we were hoping to find out the sex at Wednesday’s appointment but it was moving around and the doc didn’t really say much. I really want to know though! Next month we have our big ultrasound and they will tell us. I can’t wait! Several people are thinking it is a little girl. I really don’t know. I don’t know how to even feel or guess at what I think it is. I would like a boy for the mere fact that we have a ton of boy stuff from my sis. But with my heart, I would love a little girl…however Clayton already is surrounded by girls in our house (with Chloe & Izzy) so a boy would help even it out. He thinks it is a little girl. I just don’t know. I haven’t had any dreams about a baby. I used to….I have had several dreams with the same little girl in them named Jordyn, but I haven’t since I have been pregnant. I have had some funny dreams but none about a baby, labor or delivery, etc. I haven’t really had any cravings either, besides when I was waiting for the day that I could have some de-licious soda.

Aside from the baby, Clayton got a raise at work! Hooray. It isn’t enough to solve our financial situation when the baby comes, but every little bit will help. We still don’t have a solid plan for what we will do inNovember, but everyone keeps saying, “Something will work out”. I have began filling out papers and setting up an accounting business to start on the side. I am hoping and praying I can get a few clients this summer and then maybe make something work when the baby comes. I am anxious because I hate not knowing the outcome. I know I can do the work but it is getting and finding good clients (that pay their bills ON TIME) that make me anxious. I wish I were a little taller too. People seem to take taller people more serious. For me, I can blend in with elementary school kids….and that doesn’t always have a great first impression. Maybe if I wear RED, a power color, it will do something for them. I am hoping that if I send my resume to them first it will speak more about what I can do than how tall I am. I know it sounds ridiculous, but that is a concern of mine. I am a nervous nelly; always have been, always will be. Now if I could just predict the future that would be fabulous and maybe then my mind would rest.

We replanted our backyard again for $15(darn thing always dies in the winter) and we have GERMINATION. I love seeing the beautiful bright green stubs sprouting up. I am sure the pups will be in heaven when it all comes in nice and thick. Now, if we could just move out of a condo and into a house with a large backyard….I would be in heaven.

Ultrasound

Here is our little guy/gal. I started laughing when they pulled it up on screen. Doesn't it look like an over-fed caterpillar? So he or she is chubby, who cares :). Not really, the doc says everything looks good, I just can help but chuckle when I think of this pic compared to my baby pic fresh out of the womb (see below for a VERY good laugh). I may have only been 7 lbs 6 oz, but it was all face. I will try to scan a baby pic of Clayton for a little comparison. He was a skinny little guy.

Do you already see a similarity here....

Pics

I took a few pics of my sister and her fam this weekend. She is going to have her baby any day now. A couple turned out way cute!! (If you click on the pic you can see them better)

(these two are my fav)