Progress

Accomplished Friday:

* Closing of the house
* Cleaning of guest bathroom
* Sweeping
* Carpet cleaning
* Assisted seller to move stuff out

Accomplished Saturday:

* Sweeping & mopping (first time)
* Scrubbing of kitched + bay window area
* Scrubbing of interior side door
* Confirmed seller was leaving

Accompished Sunday:

* Nothing (w/ church & working, it didn't leave much time to do anything)

Accomplished Monday:

* Kitchen cabinets/shelves cleaned out
* Fridge cleaned
* Mopped floor twice. Scrubbed as I went.
* My awesome friend, Ashlee, came over & scrubbed the baseboard + walls & also cleaned the interior of the front door.
* Upstairs windows & flooring vacuumed
* Pantry shelves cleaned & put back up. Pantry cleaned.
* Laundry area dusted (yuck) & mopped.
* Windows cleaned.
* Interior back doors cleaned.

Accomplished Tuesday:

* Another mopping!
* Ashlee came again & scrubbed the remaining baseboard (dining/play room, hallway, & guest room.
* Put contact paper + liners down in kitchen cabinets. (Even put some stuff in them already!)
* Unpacked three or four boxes.
* W/D moved in the house; will be hooked up later.
* Scrubbed the living room area.

It sure seems like we've done so much... and we have, but there is still so much to do. More scrubbing & mopping of the main areas. Some walls need to be primed. Almost all of the walls + baseboards need to be painted. I haven't even started the deep cleaning of the upstairs bathrooms, but want the bottom to be done first! And, obviously, we need to move in! Then, it's final painting, unpacking, & decorating... making it our HOME.

We also need to clean the current home for the renters moving in November 1. That won't be nearly as exhausting! :)

Hoping to head over more Wednesday to keep cleaning & move a couple boxes or so in the van. We will see if it happens or not...

A New Beginning

On Friday, we are set to close on our new house.

It's a 4 bedroom, 3 bathroom, two-story house set on 5.82 acres. Our backyard will include 4100+ acres of protected state forrest. There is a sweet bay window for a breakfast nook & an open floorplan very similar to the floorplans we've dreamed about. We were mesmerized by it back in May, when we first found it & made our first offer on it.


We tend to be a family that can look beyond cosmetic or even minor structural defects. Thankfully, this place has only cosmetic defects. As in, extremely messy. But, once the current owner's possessions are removed, there is just the normal, deep-cleaning, you'd plan to perform on any house you moved in with an exploring, adventurous toddler!

Because we do not feel the need for a formal dining room @ this time, we will use the dining room as Squishy's playroom. I may have a craft corner in there somewhere, too! ;) The breakfast nook will be where our small dining room goes... our current place has limited dining space, so we've used the small table for years to fit perfectly here.

Some of the features we loved...
** Stained concrete flooring. We plan to re-stain it before moving furniture in, but have always wanted stained concrete in our forever home.
** Lots of closet space! Coming from a home that has 3 closets, it will be wonderful to have the storage space in the new house.
** Secluded "neighborhood". It's almost like you can't tell there's other house around!
** Tucked away staircase. You'll see what I mean once I start posting photos!
** A dormer cut-out space for a bench or reading area.
** Jacuzzi tub!
** HUGE master room.
** Area that will be great for guests... the bottom bedroom will be a guest room & the full bathroom downstairs is just steps away. No awkward running to the bathroom for our guests! :)
** More rooms than I have ideas for... yet!
** Squishy will have his OWN playroom! Mom & I have been working on getting all the stuff for it @ Target months ago. I can't believe the deals we got & am so excited about putting it all together!!
** Lots of projects & personalization!! I will post lots about that, too!

As I sit in the midst of what is nearing 100 boxes to move, I can't help but get more & more excited!!

This weekend will consist of cleaning bathrooms & kitchen, getting a carpet cleaner hired, & wiping down walls + taping walls off for the concrete staining that will happen next week. Oh, working, too!! I will be working my regular 3p-11p shift! Probably more packing up this weekend, too! I'm anxious to clear out our stuff from the current place so I have plenty of time to clean this place before handing over keys to the renters!

Hope you will join us as we step through each hurdle & get this place up to our par! :)

{dis} Connected

After this past weekend, I've thought much about the connection I have with my child.

It's not just an emotional connection, but for us it is also physical & hormonal connections that tie us together.

On Friday, Squishy's birthday, he spent many hours in the carseat while I drove around buying last minute items for his birthday party.

Disconnected.

On Saturday, I woke up earlier than the boys & started hauling stuff out to the van for the party. Made macaroni & cheese. Fielded some calls. Prayed the rain would stop for the party. Drove to the park to begin the set-up. The whole length of the party, I was either refilling trays or chatting with all the guests. Squishy wanted to be down walking everywhere & playing in his own world. No time for Momma & I didn't feel like I had enough time for him, either. Then, I had to rush home to change into scrubs to head to work that afternoon. I got home around 11.45pm that night.

That whole day felt disconnected. With both baby & daddy.

Then Sunday began with a trip to church. Where, you guessed it, we were separated again. Squish-Squish went to nursery & Hubby-Bub went to teach the Youth group lesson. I'd be lying if I said I pretty much didn't think about him the whole time. And missing him. After church, we went to lunch with my family, then rushed out to get home in time for me to change into scrubs & head to work again.

Then, as soon as I grabbed my bag to head inside, I realized I forgot my pump. Baby is eating more "real" food & so I pump on during breaks to provide milk for his dinner & night-time snack. But, I was soon remembering that physical connection. I began worrying about how I would get through the shift. My stomach began aching & I physically felt sick. I had a hard time concentrating enough to speak to Hubby about my predicament. I couldn't answer questions clearly & felt on the verge of tears. Thankfully, my husband was wonderful & happy to come to my rescue. He drove home, then the 20miles to my job, & delivered food, the baby, & my pump. It was such an exciting moment. I hate missing most of the day with my guys on the weekend & was so looking forward to seeing them, too. We talked & I nursed & my evening became so much better.

So, even though I crawled in bed @ 11.45pm, I was so excited about the next day. Because Monday, I got to...

reConnect

I missed my little man so much & could not handle being away from him much more than those two shifts every other weekend. I think initially, after his birth, I was somewhat disconnected with him. Subconsciously. B'feeding was so difficult & I had to return to classes so soon. I am not sure why. But, when my maternity leave ended when he was about 4mths old, I couldn't fathom leaving him. I know others are better mothers because they work & others have bills that must be paid, but I could not do it. And, we assumed this in the beginning. So, we saved & cut expenses & planned for me to stay home.


And I've never truly regretted it. Sometimes going over the finances leaves me wishing I worked, but then I quickly remember what I'd be giving up. My job is amazing in that it's very part-time, great pay, & allows Squishy to remain with his parents all the week. But, it still leaves me disconnected every other weekend.


On that note, I will head to bed now. My two favorite mens in the world are sleeping soundly in the next room & I shall retire there, too.



Here's a quick photo of Baby & one of his great g'mothers. I think this is so cute!

A New Place

Both literally & virtually!

We have decided to rename & revamp the blog.

We are in the process of purchasing a new home;
which will require lots of cleaning, decorating, & personalizing!

We are blessed with a beautiful baby boy that we never take for granted.

Hubby-Bub works full-time so that I can stay home during the week with baby;
I work part-time as an RN shift supervisor to add to the family budget.

Hope you enjoy taking these next steps with us & following along!!