Thursday, February 26, 2015

Morning Cuddles


I don't often wake up with Noah since I'm already at work, but when I do, my favorite time is right after he wakes up before we leave his bedroom.  The first thing he does when he wakes up is take his little dogs out of his crib and throw his blanket overboard making sure his bed is clear.  He's just so excited to see you and ready to start his day. 

This cold weather in the last month has really messed with his night sleep.  He got too cold in his regular pjs and even with the heat turned up he wasn't comfortable.  So we switched to some flannel pjs and added socks and a tee shirt underneath to add a little warmth and that has seemed to do the trick.  Even once we got that figured out he would still wake up in the middle of the night all wet and shivering from being wet so we went up another diaper size and fixed that problem. (cross your fingers) I was telling Jeff recently, it seems like Noah used to sleep a lot better when he was younger.  He's so much more aware of what's going on and will make a complaint about it at night.  We're getting up at least once a week with a night problem. 

And while we turned up the heat for Noah, it's been super hot for us.  Between the heat and the getting up, this momma needs some sleep! 

But it's so different now getting up in the middle of the night than it was before.  I don't mind it nearly as much, and I look forward to the cuddles I'll get as we rock.  I'm sure if we get to have another child I'll definitely cuddle them more at night than I did with Noah.  Cuddle them more anytime really.  Sometimes I wonder if you love your kids more the longer they're with you, because that's how I feel about Noah. 

Tuesday, February 24, 2015

House Update - Countertops

I had all the intentions to update yesterday.  I got up, made it to work and lasted about three hours before I went home sick and laid in bed the rest of the day.  After a couple of hours sleeping Noah came in bed with me and brought me his dog and blanket and sat with me for a couple minutes. It's hard not to want to snuggle that kid.  I was hoping for a nice long night of sleep but of course Noah woke up at three and then again at four.  I finally went in there to make sure he was ok and signed for milk which he never does at night.  Growth spurt? Missing mommy?  Who knows.  He's still sleeping now at 8am so he must have gotten what he needed.   Of course I never went back to bed.  At least I made it to work early, right?

Anyway, lets get to the house update.  They're making way with the paint.  It was supposed to be done sometime last week and when we stopped by to see, they had barely finished painting the trim and were nowhere close to getting color on the walls.  When we stopped by this weekend the whole first floor was done as well as the hallway and foyer so they're finally making some progress.


The best part though was the quartz counter-tops being installed.  Exactly as I imagined when we picked them out.  All I wanted to do was give them a big hug... and touch them....and uncover them.  So pretty.  It was nice to see the island with a top too as it made it seem much bigger with the overhang for the stools.  We should have plenty of room to host parties this summer.


Next up this week are hard surfaces, which I'm assuming are tile, backsplash, wood floors? And our appliances are getting delivered which means we can haul out the crazy huge fridge and dishwasher from our current garage to make room for tubs and bins that are packed.  We have about a month till move in and sooo much packing left to do since we have done literally nothing as of yet. I'm not quite in stress mode yet and I hope to keep it that way.

BUILDING TIMELINE:
Oct 8 (Day 1) - We signed our contract and everything is official!
Oct 9 (Day 2) - Expected ground breaking - delay with permit.
Oct 14 (Day 7) - Pick out front door (similar to this), interior doors, house molding, door knobs, and decking and siding.
Oct 15 (Day 8) - Fireplace picked
Oct 21 (Day 14) - Faucets, sinks, shower heads, toilets.  Also garage door.
Oct 23 (Day 16) - Cabinetry for the whole house - knobs and handles
Nov 5 (Day 29) - Ground breaking - hole digging and laying some foundation.
Nov 13 (Day 37) - Outside brick picked
Nov 18 (Day 42) - Cabinet place again - Changed our minds of the kitchen cabinets!
Nov 19 (Day 43) - Chose lighting, sort of because that was pretty hard. Still have to finalize some choices.
Week of Nov 24 (Day 53) - Pour concrete base - framing basement - finalize light choices and custom island color, custom hood vent and misc faucets.
Week of Dec 8 (Day 68) - Finishing up the framing and starting the roof. Plywood mostly put up all around the house. It's starting to look like a house.
Week of Dec 15 (Day 75) - Framing complete and ready for siding. Roof almost finished. Electrical walk-through, still deciding on lights.  Electrical rough-in and instal of fireplace. Tubs in bathrooms.
Week of Dec 22 (Day 82) - Inspections. Insulation and drywall will be up this week. Final interior finishes picks.
Week of Jan 5 (Day 96) - Siding, finishing drywall.
Week of Jan 19 (Day 110) - Cabinets being delivered, Trim going up
Week of Jan 26 (Day 117) - Cabinetry installed - Custom cabinetry made and installed - continue trim
Week of Feb 2 (Day 124) - Finish trim - start painting 
Week of Feb 16 (Day 138) - Continue with paint. Counter-tops installed in kitchen, bathrooms and kitchenette downstairs.

Monday, February 16, 2015

Sweet Valentines

This weekend went by so slow which was so nice because we really took the time to enjoy our time together.  We started the celebration with a super happy Noah.  So cuddly and smiley.  I think he knew it was Valentines Day too.  We enjoyed some pink heart shaped pancakes and opened up gifts and cards.  Noah mowed right through those pancakes and his favorite part was probably the whipped cream and he kept asking for more... even when his mouth was stuffed full.


Jeff had to work Valentines night but Noah was a good substitute.  We watched some Doc McStuffins and had my favorite rice bowls together on the couch.  Jeff and I went out last night to our favorite restaurant, six.one.six and bonus for us we had the whole place mostly all to ourselves.  Of course Jeff had to try something new at dinner.  Bone marrow... It's just as gross as it sounds. I went the safe route with lamb.  Always a favorite of mine. We finished the night, and a great weekend, with drinks on the couch cuddled under a heating blanket and watching Chopped.  Couldn't have asked for a better Valentines day with my sweet Valentines.

Thursday, February 12, 2015

Kitchen Island

The kitchen island was probably the most scary choice I've made so far in this house.  It's bold & unexpected and because of that, super scary.  We picked the color on a little paint chip so we kind of just hoped once it was on the island it would be everything we hoped, and it is!  What a relief! I cannot wait to see what the finished kitchen will look like with this little beauty inside.


I also took a couple more progress pictures. Nothing super crazy but still exciting seeing all the little pieces come together so quick.  Since the trim is all done, this week they'll start touching up the drywall and starting to paint.  It'll be so nice to see some color on the wall.  (and again, we hope we made the right choice when picking out colors from a little paint chip!)


BUILDING TIMELINE:
Oct 8 (Day 1) - We signed our contract and everything is official!
Oct 9 (Day 2) - Expected ground breaking - delay with permit.
Oct 14 (Day 7) - Pick out front door (similar to this), interior doors, house molding, door knobs, and decking and siding.
Oct 15 (Day 8) - Fireplace picked
Oct 21 (Day 14) - Faucets, sinks, shower heads, toilets.  Also garage door.
Oct 23 (Day 16) - Cabinetry for the whole house - knobs and handles
Nov 5 (Day 29) - Ground breaking - hole digging and laying some foundation.
Nov 13 (Day 37) - Outside brick picked
Nov 18 (Day 42) - Cabinet place again - Changed our minds of the kitchen cabinets!
Nov 19 (Day 43) - Chose lighting, sort of because that was pretty hard. Still have to finalize some choices.
Week of Nov 24 (Day 53) - Pour concrete base - framing basement - finalize light choices and custom island color, custom hood vent and misc faucets.
Week of Dec 8 (Day 68) - Finishing up the framing and starting the roof. Plywood mostly put up all around the house. It's starting to look like a house.
Week of Dec 15 (Day 75) - Framing complete and ready for siding. Roof almost finished. Electrical walk-through, still deciding on lights.  Electrical rough-in and instal of fireplace. Tubs in bathrooms.
Week of Dec 22 (Day 82) - Inspections. Insulation and drywall will be up this week. Final interior finishes picks.
Week of Jan 5 (Day 96) - Siding, finishing drywall.
Week of Jan 19 (Day 110) - Cabinets being delivered, Trim going up
Week of Jan 26 (Day 117) - Cabinetry installed - Custom cabinetry made and installed - continue trim
Week of Feb 2 (Day 124) - Finish trim - start painting

Monday, February 9, 2015

Twenty Months

And we're down another month, and just that much closer to his second birthday!  I almost feel like it's time to start planning a little but since we'll be moving to the new house just a couple of months before, maybe this would be a good year to keep is small and not worry so much about planning a huge party.  Noah is really getting a personality and dare I say an attitude.  He's so stubborn and wants to do only what he wants.  No exceptions.  When he doesn't get what he wants he throws himself at walls and rolls around on the floor.  And I try not to laugh but it's kind of funny. Gotta learn some day you don't always get what you want!

On the flipside, Noah has been super lovable and cuddly and a total mamas boy and I love it.  We're constantly having tickle wars and rolling around the floor.  Our dance parties are still going strong and no signs of stopping.

  • Stats: Size 5 Diapers | 2T clothing
  • Size: 32 lbs
  • New Abilities: I don't know if there is much new as just improved.  His fork and spoon usage is great, we're working on using the bathroom; maybe the most new thing is learning to jump which is more like a skip and doing somersaults.
  • New Words: Nothing new this month. We're still waiting on the appointment with the speech therapist. Will casually say "mama" when he's singing or asked to say it but not often.
  • Sleep: Ok, so the one nap is here to stay and I'm feeling okay about it.  It's been working out pretty good and he sleeps 1.5 to 2 hours so we'll take it. After the crazy nighttime sleep of last month it finally went back to normal and he's sleeping through the night again with the occasional wake up during some teething weeks.
  • Mom Check-In: I'm really getting into a good workout routine.  No weight-loss but definite toning so I'm pretty satisfied.  I'm hoping to keep it going as long as possible. The house is coming along nicely and I have been pretty busy thinking about it. Jeff has been working way too much and not been home as much as I would like which is giving Noah and I a lot of extra time together.  Sometimes good, and sometimes bad. We've been really lucky to have Aunt Molly around to help us out and mostly let me regain some sanity. 

Thursday, February 5, 2015

My First House Buy

I've been waiting so patiently to buy new things for the house mostly so I have a better picture of what we need and where things will go, but sometimes Target just gets you and you have to buy that cute little rug for the mudroom.  So I did.  ...and maybe a couple other things like spatulas and tea towels for the kitchen.  Target never fails to suck me in. Noah was a big helper as we walked around during a house showing... wasting time... or spending money. (So ya... our house is for sale.  Do you live in the Grand Rapids area and want to buy it? Send me an e-mail and I'll send you the link!)

We also stopped by the house later on.  Things are moving pretty fast around there will all the cabinets going up etc. The pillars on the side of the arch are half up and looking good and even the cabinets in the basement were in!  But really, lets be real, the most exciting part was when we saw our custom navy blue island in the middle of the garage. It was so dark and late at night that there was no pictures taken but *sigh...* I'm so excited to see the finished product!

Monday, February 2, 2015

House Update - Cabinets

We haven't walked thru the house for two weeks as of yesterday so we were really happy to see all of the progress they've made around the house.  All the cabinetry around the house is up and mostly installed.  Most of the trim around the windows and doors are done as well as some baseboards in the basement and the upstairs.  Some of the custom cabinetry is done, like the lockers in the mudroom and the built-ins around the fireplace but we're still waiting for the kitchen hood and island. With all the cabinets in though, it's much easier to get a feel of the amount of space we'll have left for other things.

We're still waiting a little on the weather so the trim around the windows can be painted white and I'm guessing they're also waiting for better temps for the stone on the outside too. 


It's looking like we're going to have too much storage for the things we've got.  I'm sure not a lot of people say that but I'm happy about it.  I'm sure as the years go by in this house we'll accumulate enough things to fill all the cabinets. We'll also need to think about a step stool because after standing next to the cabinets there is no way I'm going to be able to reach the top!


BUILDING TIMELINE:
Oct 8 (Day 1) - We signed our contract and everything is official!
Oct 9 (Day 2) - Expected ground breaking - delay with permit.
Oct 14 (Day 7) - Pick out front door (similar to this), interior doors, house molding, door knobs, and decking and siding.
Oct 15 (Day 8) - Fireplace picked
Oct 21 (Day 14) - Faucets, sinks, shower heads, toilets.  Also garage door.
Oct 23 (Day 16) - Cabinetry for the whole house - knobs and handles
Nov 5 (Day 29) - Ground breaking - hole digging and laying some foundation.
Nov 13 (Day 37) - Outside brick picked
Nov 18 (Day 42) - Cabinet place again - Changed our minds of the kitchen cabinets!
Nov 19 (Day 43) - Chose lighting, sort of because that was pretty hard. Still have to finalize some choices.
Week of Nov 24 (Day 53) - Pour concrete base - framing basement - finalize light choices and custom island color, custom hood vent and misc faucets.
Week of Dec 8 (Day 68) - Finishing up the framing and starting the roof. Plywood mostly put up all around the house. It's starting to look like a house.
Week of Dec 15 (Day 75) - Framing complete and ready for siding. Roof almost finished. Electrical walk-through, still deciding on lights.  Electrical rough-in and instal of fireplace. Tubs in bathrooms.
Week of Dec 22 (Day 82) - Inspections. Insulation and drywall will be up this week. Final interior finishes picks.
Week of Jan 5 (Day 96) - Siding, finishing drywall.
Week of Jan 19 (Day 110) - Cabinets being delivered, Trim going up
Week of Jan 26 (Day 117) - Cabinetry installed - Custom cabinetry made and installed - continue trim
Week of Feb 2 (Day 124) - Finish trim - start painting