What's Happening?

I know that I haven't been doing a very good job of keeping up with my blog...it's sad. One of my favorite parts about blogging is being able to go back in time and read about what was happening at that time in our lives. Nothing to read if I don't write anything....

Life has been lazier than normal and although I've enjoyed it while it was here, I'm ready to get back into the swing of life. The girls have their first school Carnival this Saturday, which should be a lot of fun for the whole family! I have a new niece set to arrive any day now-so exciting- and we are traveling to Milwaukee soon to celebrate with my cousin, Kelsey, as she weds her handsome Brit.

Once April hits, life really starts to speed up. Spring break, Caribbean Cruise, Easter...and May is always crazy! I am honestly looking forward to all of it, especially the weather warming up, sunshine and the outdoors coming to life again. Winter is so dark and dreary that the brightness of Spring is like walking into a rainbow-too bad that pot of gold is never around! :-)

I'll leave you with a pic of the girls from Easter last year...it certainly makes me long for the brighter days ahead!

Keeping the Fairy Busy

The girls have been losing teeth faster than I even thought possible! Lauren currently stands at 6 and Tara is at 5. Their 2 permanent bottom teeth have come in but the ones on either side are still missing. Lauren's top 2 permanent teeth are just starting to poke through and I think that they will be in soon! And, on top of that, they are just starting to get their 6 year molars popping up as well!

Now, Daddy has had the "pleasure" of pulling or removing all the girls teeth for them. Honestly, I think the girls are super brave and have personally asked Mike to pull each tooth when it got too bothersome for them or painful while eating.

However, while I was helping Tara remove her sweater on Monday, her upper lip got stuck on her loose tooth and yanked it upwards. I don't think it felt very good...poor thing! So, I had the tremendous task of pulling it out for her. Yay. Not.

Those who know me know that I am not a "blood" person. I usually feel like fainting (and I have) or throwing-up (that too) at the sight of blood. I think I handled the tooth removal pretty well but the blood almost did me in...blah.

So, The Tooth Fairy has been making frequent stops to the house to exchange those little, white nuggets for gold, shiny ones. The Fairy leaves a $1 golden coin and a Chuck E. Cheese token each time. Who would have thought? I remember getting a big, silvery .50 cent piece from The Tooth Fairy when I was little and I thought it was the coolest thing!

What did The Tooth Fairy leave under your pillow?

Wordless Wednesday: Daddy/Daughter Dance 2011

My three blue-eyed babes...

Another Project Completed!

Kitchen as it looked when we bought it... (2009)

Kitchen in May 2010 after just about everything had been replaced...

Kitchen after this past week!

No more drop ceiling or florescent shop lights for us!

Projects, projects, projects...there's always more "projects" to be completed than we have the time, money or energy for. The kitchen, in particular, was pretty much complete after we gutted it back in '09. We finally added the mosaic stone and glass backsplash in the middle of last year but there was still one main thing left to do. It was really bugging us that the kitchen still had the original lighting and drop ceiling look of the early 80's. 

So....it was "Good Bye!" to the transparent light tiles, the drop-ceiling tracks, the ugly fluorescent shop lights and the bulkhead that separated the kitchen from the eating area (which was the most work). We had a lot of demo, even more drywall and patching work, new electrical, a couple gallons of paint and primer, and a lot of measuring! We installed new recessed lighting fixtures and a new light bar with pendants over the island and sink. We also replaced the outdated gold & tulip ceiling fan above the kitchen table, which was immediately more soothing to the eyes...at least mine anyway!

I'm so happy with how it all turned out and that we can now cross off one of the "big" items from "The List". I also have to say that without my handy hubby, none of this would be possible. I'm so grateful for his know-how, willingness to learn to do something new and be patient with me as I change my mind 10x before settling on the final option. I think we make a great team.... :-)