Progress

Well, the man at Lowe's may say he mixed Benjamin Moore's Monroe Bisque, but I can tell you, this color is NOT Monroe Bisque. I'm afraid it's going to be a bit fleshy and not the nice golden-toned color we have in our room. We'll have to wait and see it in the sunlight tomorrow. Crud.

I couldn't paint yesterday as it was too dark. You just can't see how well you are covering an area if there isn't enough light. So, as soon as I got home this afternoon, I changed into my painting clothes (a bit more difficult as I now must wear maternity type clothing and who has maternity clothing to throw away?) and rolled the room. Lil insisted on helping.


She knew her space to paint was in the green and she painted accordingly. She painted Ts and Js and kitties and doggies and overall had a good time. She was patient and waited for me to reload her brush and sang a painting song while working. :o) I think I've found a new painting grunt. ;o)

In other Lily news, she has had a few more funny-if-it's-somebody-else's-kid moments. Yesterday we were going over what her jobs are at school. She was running down the list, "Take a nap. Listen to da teacher. Use good manners. Play nicely wif my friends--and don't scratch."

:insert scratching record noise here:

"Um, don't scratch anyone? Um, Lil, have you scratched someone at school???" Oh, Lordy, please say no. PLEASE say no.
"Yes, I scratched Ichie the other day."
"Where?" Not the face, not the face, PLEASE not the face.
"On da hand." Oh thank goodness.
"But Lily, why would you scratch a friend? WHY?"
"He was jealous of me and made me sad."
"Um...? I don't think you mean 'jealous', Lil. Did he hurt your feelings?"
"Uh, huh."
"What did he say?"
"Dat I couldn't come to his house."
"So? Next time just say, 'Okay' and walk away. Got it?"
"Okay."

Insert a small conversation wherein I explain that Ichie's mommy probably was not happy to see her son with scratches on his hand and that I wouldn't be too happy if I saw she had scratches from one of her friends. Then, I went on to ask how she felt about being scratched, if she liked it. I'm working on teaching empathy, but boy is it a tough job.

I mentioned the scratching to Miss Tanya--who hadn't told me about it, I do so love my child's honest streak (which will last all of another four weeks and then we hit four...)--and she shrugged it off, saying it was an accident. Alrighty then. :shakes head: She then went on to mention that Lil has been known to throw a punch once-in-a-while. Greeeeeeaaaaaaaaat. I have the class bully. :sigh:

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Today's Sparklies:

1. Dinner tonight with Pop. Nan had to work and he and she are heading into town for the ballgame tomorrow so we'll miss our Friday dinner date. It was nice to have our Friday on Thursday this week. And yes, I did change back into decent clothes. ;o)
2. I got all the quizzes I gave today graded and the grades put in the computer. I'm staying on top of things and this makes me SO happy!
3. I've been feeling Jellybean more and more lately. I'm getting SO excited!
4. Working on the nursery. I know some people don't like home improvement chores, but I really do enjoy them.
5. Did I mention Lily helped her daddy use the nail gun yesterday? He gave her ear and eye protection, held the gun, expected she would pull the trigger once and be done with it, as it can be loud and a bit intimidating. Ah, we once again misjudged our child. She LOVED it. In fact, I even heard this, "Okay, Daddy, you can do dis one, but dat one is mine!" So, there ya go. And, now, B has to make sure the nail gun is no where NEAR the air compressor and is not loaded because even though Lil is a good girl (when she's not beating up her friends that is), temptation is a terrible thing.
6. I got the cards bundled, packaged and off to the auction today. Woo hoo! Our Christmas cards are next. The adhesive arrived and I'm ready to roll. :o)

No milestones.

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The paint was a bit streaky when I was edging the other night so I'm off to do one more coat along the ceiling. Oh boy...

It Begins

Jellybean at 17 weeks 6 days--the reason we're working like fiends this week. I'm only going to get BIGGER and this sort of work won't be so easy.

Lil and I are painting this evening so this is it for tonight.

Thank you all SOOOO much for the helpful links and info about the vinyl. When we purchase the bedding, I'm going to look into them. :o)

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The room "Before". It's a wreck, that's for sure. Bob, bless his wonderful heart, came down the weekend we moved in and painted the room for me--I was about 36 weeks pregnant with Lil at that point. The green worked PERFECTLY with her ladybug bedding and I loved it. However, it's definitely time for a change.

Lily was so anxious to help she was forcing her way in to tight places.


See? ;o)


I finally gave her some paint and the sponge brush. She did a great job and got paint on nothing but the wall. The wainscoting is going to go over this, so the quality of the job doesn't matter. What matters is she feels like she's being a big helper. :o)







While I painted the trim, Brien removed the baseboards and other trim. Tomorrow I'll be ready to edge and roll the Monroe Bisque. I'm a fairly quick painter so I should be able to knock it out in a couple hours. We're listening to HP Book 7 so the time is flying. :o)

Thursday, I'll touch up any thin spots as painting in the dark isn't quite that easy.

I also painted the inside of the window frames and cleaned the windows. I noticed these strange smudges on the outside of the glass and realized they were imprints of a tree frog's body--tracks where it had moved. They made me smile, thinking of my Monkey, wondering how she would feel about all this.


Lily's handiwork. It really wasn't that poor a job, all things considered.


As is typically the case, when we begin working on one room, another one (or three) fall apart. Our room has become the staging room for the nursery for the time being. The boxes will live in JB's room until Christmas, and the toys and such will be returned once the room is finished. I'm anticipating great and wonderful things for that space. :o) Now, to live with the chaos in my room until then...

Getting Ready

Christmas and the winter holidays are quickly approaching. Boxes are beginning to appear on my front stoop and I'm getting giddy with excitement. It's no secret this is my most favorite time of the year. :o)

I'm already making plans for my Christmas decorating, but unfortunately, there is so much that needs to be done before I can even begin. My things to do list keeps growing and growing, lol! This weekend I'll shampoo the carpets in the dining room, living room and on the "bridge" and stairs. I need to go through the playroom and help Lily decide which toys to keep and which to donate to needy children. I would like to get my windows cleaned (still haven't managed that one yet...) and I need to get my Christmas cards finished (come on Discount Office Supplies, get that adhesive here!) so I can address them and ship them out before too long. :o)

We'll be with Lissie and family for Thanksgiving. We will return home Friday for a number of reasons. First, I need some time to rest before heading back to work. Second, I don't want the dogs to be kenneled any longer than necessary. Third, Friday is Rachael-gets-the-Christmas-tree-and-tries-to-burn-down-the-house-with-1000s-0f-lights day. The holiday season is so short as it is, I want to enjoy it for as long as possible. In fact, I may begin decorating on my birthday (Tuesday the 24th for those interested), since that is one month to Christmas Eve.

I'm planning my typical cookie/candy making routine (yes, Lissie and Jessie, you'll get your fondant :oP) and need to talk to Sarah, Bridget and Kat and see if any of them are interested. It's far more fun to do it in numbers than alone. :o) I'm also wondering about doing some cookie decorating with the little girls--Erin and Lily. Jess, wanna come down for a weekend and let Ella and Lil make and decorate some cookies together? Just an idea to get you out of the house...

Top this off with some last minute gifts/stocking stuffers I need to get and a nursery to finish (details in a moment), and I'm a busy girlie!

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Brien is out purchasing the items necessary for doing the baby's room. He agreed the wainscoting is such a beautiful, clean look, and that it is worth the time and effort. So, he's getting the appropriate items, and my Monroe Bisque paint and we'll be working on that this weekend as well. In fact, I'm hoping to begin painting tomorrow afternoon. I can paint the top half of the room before B installs the bead board--and it will be far easier than edging. ;o)

Lily is desperate to help so I'm trying to decide what she could do to lend a hand.

And, while I'm thinking about it, does anyone know of anyone/place that does custom made wall vinyl? I'll stencil if necessary, but would prefer the easy of slapping some vinyl on the walls instead. :o) Could you PLEASE let me know if you do know of someone/place? Thanks!!

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Today's Sparklies:

1. Everyone was so happy this morning--even though it was a Monday. That day off recharged ALL of us. :o)
2. B is out getting nursery goodies. Woo hoo!
3. Lily was my cleaning buddy this afternoon. We did all three bathrooms and two loads of laundry. While she had dinner, I cleaned the kitchen and did the dishes. Oh, and paid the bills too. I'm beat!
4. Brien had a good visit with the cardiologist today. Well, sort of. I'll give the details tomorrow.

No milestones.
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I'm an evil evil teacher and gave a quiz today. The kids have another tomorrow, one Wednesday and a test Thursday. This means I MUST get today's quizzes graded tonight, so I'm off!

Rested

Friday was absolutely what I needed. I feel refreshed and regenerated and ready to roll some more. :o) I spent ALL day in the studio working on our Christmas cards and the cards for the school's auction. This top one is one of ours.

Recipe:
Ink: Soft Suede
Paper: Whisper White, Soft Suede
Stamps: Dasher, Signature Christmas (from Paper Trey Ink--I LOVE this set!)
Embellishments: Soft Suede Ribbon--I turned it over so the polka dots wouldn't show.

This is our other Christmas card. Don't worry, it's a mock-up, so the finished product will have the string actually lined up with the ornament. ;o)

Recipe:
Inks: Night of Navy, Brocade Blue
Paper: Whisper White, Night of Navy, Brocade Blue
Stamps: Tree Trimmings, Signature Christmas (PTI again)

And, here's the stack of paper, cut and ready to be put together. Too bad I ran out of adhesive...ACK!


And, now, for the auction cards:

I made twenty of these and will be packaging them in two groups of ten.

I only made one set of ten of this card.

There will be two sets of ten for this card.

And two sets of ten of this one.

See this box? There are 70 cards in this box. That is why I'm out of adhesive! ;o) When my order arrives, I'll be putting my Christmas cards together and can then begin working on Christmas presents for certain someones. :o)

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Yesterday, B and I traveled to Farmville to visit Green Front. Nana and Pop volunteered to keep Bitty for us so we could make a day of it. We visited five different buildings, found the crib we wanted to look at, and wound up picking up a rug for a song. The next time I need an area rug, I'm heading to Green Front--they have an entire building with stacks and stacks of rugs (all qualities from low-end to oh-my-goodness-I-could-never-in-a-million-years-imagine-having-that-in-my-house-with-kids-and-dogs. We paid less for the really nice rug than we paid for the el cheapo one I purchased from Target a couple of years ago. Wow.

We also dined at Charley's Waterfront Cafe' and had the best carrot cake I have ever had. Holy cow what a cake!

We decided since we are going to be investing in a nicer crib this time around (we want a convertible so we can have a bed for the Bean when s/he is big enough), and since the nicer crib is definitely an investment (it will be a headboard and footboard after all), we should shop around until we found something we LOVED. So, we stopped at a Babies 'R Us in Midlothian to check out their offerings. We decided this is the one we like best.

While there, I fell in LOVE with this bedding! I had decided no bedding sets this time, and then I saw this. :sigh: It is PERFECT and I LOVE LOVE LOVE it. :o)

This means I'll be redoing the painting in the baby's room after all. We're discussing plans this evening. It is the only room in the house without a chair rail, so I'm thinking we'll put up a chair rail and I'll do Monroe Bisque above (such a lovely neutral--thanks, Jessie!) and antique white below the rail.

Meanwhile, while we were in Lowe's today, I saw the wainscoting beadboard and I decided I wanted to do that instead. I think Brien may be ready to murder me... I'm waffling a bit because I know it is going to be more work and a bit more pricey. But, I REALLY like that look.

Then, I'm going to create a stencil of the bunny and the grasses and stencil right above the chair rail/top of the wainscoting as if it's the ground. I was going to try to have some vinyl custom-made, but B said he'll make the stencils for me so... I truly believe this is going to be one cute and soothing room. :o)

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Today, B and I picked Lil up from her sleepover with Nan and Pop and ran some errands. Holy COW the Outlets have already turned into a NIGHTMARE this year! I'll have to remember to visit on a weeknight evening when things aren't quite so insane. Whew!

We got some goodies from Harry & David for Thanksgiving and searched out some clothes for Miss Bit. Her 2Ts are finally getting too short. Alas, Gymber let us down (B anyway, not me) so we visited Target and found some clothes there. We do like the Genuine Kids line from Osh'Kosh. We also purchased some boots and new tennies.

When we got home, it was warm (may I just tell you how ridiculous it is that it was 75 degrees today--the MIDDLE OF NOVEMBER?!?) and time to finish our outside work. Things were a bit messy from the nor'easter, as you can see:

That would be a tree down in the neighbors' yard.

Leaves and debris everywhere.


Lots and lots of leaves.



Lil and I worked for an hour and 45 minutes and finally got things cleaned up.


This is two huge sacks' worth of leaves. Shew!

We also found this fun creature on a leftover tomato vine in the compost bin.

And here is a "kyooge" 'pider. :o)

And now, my body is aching and I still have two loads of laundry left to finish. I also need to hustle Daddy and Lil upstairs so she can go to bed. Eek! They are playing on the internet, searching out images of x-rays, CAT scans, PET scans, MRIs and 2D and 3D ultrasounds--of EVERYTHING. Oy. :shakes head: They've been at it for over 40 minutes now and Lil is showing no sign of her interest waning...

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Weekend Sparklies:

1. Our new rug:
It's just like yours, isn't it Nana? Oops!

2. Dinner--nice, simple, comfort food: "red meatloaf", mashed chetties and broccoli. Mmmmm. The house still smells delicious. :o)
3. Getting all that outside work finished.
4. Before and after of the front of our house:

Still shrubby--you can't see our downstairs windows. When we finally removed the red tips, they were touching the second floor windows.

The nekkid front of our house. No, there is certainly NO curb appeal. We'll be putting in sun and heat loving shrubs come spring (since the front of our house is literally baked in the summer), and that should improve the front of the house quite a bit. We have been improving the landscaping in stages. We'll fill in those beds this year, and then take out those rocks and put in plants along the sidewalk next year.
5. Time with my sweetie yesterday. We had such fun together. :o)
6. Lily making me laugh so hard I get tears in my eyes. She did it to me three different times today. Boy did I miss her silliness yesterday. Boy she is a funny kid. :o)
7. My long weekend.
8. Card making. Woo hoo!
9. We finished HP Book 6 and have finally begun Book 7. Please know, B and I only do two chapters a day (we pace ourselves so we don't miss any details--yes, it's arduous, but SO worth it), so it will be a while before we've finished.
10. In spite of the unseasonable weather (I would dearly LOVE for fall to arrive once and for all), we had a wonderful time outside today.
11. Having a list of ten things to be smiling about. Woo hoo! It has certainly been a while since I had such a lengthy list. :o)

No milestones.
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I think this post has run away with me, lol! I can always tell I'm feeling better when I start running off at the "fingers". ;o)

Oh, and before I forget, to the sweet lady I met in the Michael's in Midlothian (Michelle, maybe?) I'm SO sorry I have forgotten your name, but it was so lovely to meet you and your daughter. I hope those ornaments are a hit with the fourth graders--I'm sure they will LOVE them. :o)

SOOOOO Happy!

Okay, the weather is beyond crappy. The nor'easter has been howling and raging all day. It's cold, windy and wet, and a tree went down on the next door neighbor's fence, but overall, here in Williamsburg, we're okay. I'm feeling simply awful for the folks further down on the peninsula, south side and the Eastern Shore as there is massive flooding going on. High tide came in early this morning, didn't retreat and the rain kept coming down.

W/JCC schools and our school were in session this morning. However, as the morning wore on, we began to see there was trouble. The kids were out of control--I think they had been hoping for a day off (heck, so had we)--and we lost power a couple of times. We fed the kiddos and they were sent home by noon. I had B pick up Lil and was home and napping by one.

The winds continue to rage, the rain continues to howl and more rain is called for throughout the night and tomorrow and they are calling for still more flooding. I just received a blast call informing me we will have no school tomorrow. YES!!! The break I've been needing. :o) No, I'm not happy there is so much flooding and damage going on. Yes, I'm devastated for those who are dealing with water in their homes and are staying in temporary shelters. This is indeed some crappy weather.

However, I get a day to rest, a day to sleep in. A day to play in the studio and finish up those cards and then make some for the fun of it. A day for doing nothing. Ahhhhhhhh. :o) We're turning the alarm clock off tonight and will get up when we do. Langley is once again "mission essential personnel" tomorrow so B will be here with Lil and me.

It's definitely not as much fun as a snow day, but still a fun, unexpected vacation day. Here's hoping everyone else out there is hanging in there. My prayers for those in the low-lying, flood prone areas. My prayers for those with no power, and those with downed trees. It's ugly out there.

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Today's Sparklies:

1. Having a garage to park in in the POURING rain.
2. A 1/2 day off.
3. Day off tomorrow! The rest I needed!!! :o)
4. A nap today. I can't remember the last time I had a good nap.
5. So far no flooding/damage to our home and property. :fingers crossed:

No milestones.

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I don't know how well Lily will sleep tonight. She's not a big fan of the huge wind gusts and driving rain. We'll see...

Oh, and I figured out why she's not a fan of napping at school--they put them down at 12:15 and Lil typically doesn't go down until 1 or 1:30! No wonder it takes her forever to fall asleep!

Happy Veteran's Day

Finally, Blogger is allowing me to upload photos again. These were taken soon after we redid Lil's room. We had told her Holly would most likely curl up in bed with her if she got her new bed, and I do wonder if that was one of the bigger draws.

We knew Holly would LOVE to sleep with Lily because we always found her at the foot of Hannah's bed--only after the girls are asleep, of course. :oP
She curls up into a tight little ball and sleeps soundly. It's quite sweet. (Yes, Paul, the Hell dog is a sweetie pie. ;oP)
Also taken the other night--please note the new artwork hanging above our bed.


Lil drew it the other day and suddenly, there it was. I walked in the room, saw it, and grinned. I was wondering what we were going to put there. ;o)

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It seems we were excused from any tropical storms and hurricanes this year, but not from the Nor'Easters. It is a rainy, cold mess out there and there have been gusty winds throughout the day. They are calling for between 3 and 8 inches of rain over the course of the next two days and Langley has already closed for all but essential personnel tomorrow.

Poquoson--which is quite low-lying and was utterly destroyed by Isabel in 2003--has already closed schools for tomorrow, as has ODU which is located in Norfolk--also prone to flooding. I'm grateful we're here in the 'burg where we are a bit higher in elevation and have experienced very little in the way of flooding. I hope everyone else in the local area is able to stay warm and dry.

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Today's Sparklies:

1. Okay, so this one is from a few days ago. Look what I found whilst poking around the other day:
This was the night I went to the hospital in labor with Lil. It was my only true "belly shot" from her pregnancy. Good grief! No wonder everyone kept asking if I was going to make it. I get HUGE! The thing is, it was all belly--seriously! LOL! I wonder just how gigundo I'm going to get with the Bean...
2. Lily had nothing but fun things to say about her stay home with Daddy today. :o)
3. Speaking of the Bean, I've been feeling some more movement lately. According to Babycenter, Jellybean is about the size of a turnip this week. Huh.
4. It's most definitely sweatshirt weather this evening. I'm all snuggled up with Waylen and a fuzzy blanket (B has Holly with his fuzzy blanket).
5. We had a veteran come and talk with children today. I was pleased to hear his take of the situation in Iraq.

No milestones.

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And, last, but most definitely not least, to all the vets out there, Happy Veteran's Day. Thank you all so much for all you have given and continue to give.

I visit Mental Floss every day and today, they had the sweetest tribute to veterans. If you like reunion clips and dogs, you should consider checking out this link. There's also a montage of surprise reunions with military personnel and their children. Not surprisingly, I bawled my way through the clips, but the last one finished me off.

Birthday With Nana

I was DELIGHTED to go to dinner with Nana and Pop this evening. We went to Carrabba's, a family favorite and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. In fact, we're only just getting in! Good thing B and Lil are off tomorrow, huh? :o)

Dinner was delicious and the company divine. Thank you, Nana, for sharing your day with us. :o)

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Overheard after dinner, while Lil was snuggled in Nana's lap:
"If da baby is a girl, we should name her Jasmine. If da baby is a boy, we'll name him Aladin. If da baby is a monkey we'll name him Abu."

At which point Nan could no longer contain herself and began laughing. Yes, it's funny written out, but even more so when you hear Lily saying it so matter of factly following "If da baby is a boy...". It reminds me of Ella and Jessie having a kitten (or some such). Maybe I'm not explaining well enough about Jellybean? ;o)

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Today's Sparklies:

1. I had the loveliest visit with Scottie today.
2. I had a student tell me he's asking for a Day-Timer for Christmas. I almost died on the spot. The thing is, if this fella were to get one, he would use it and use it well. He's the one who has the Tide-to-Go pen and first aid kit in his backpack, lol! This is one child who is ALWAYS prepared for any eventuality. :o)
3. Dinner with Nan and Pop.
4. Lordy that Lil is a silly girl! She continually says things that have us in stitches. ;o)

No milestones.
t
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Well, B and Lil may have tomorrow off, but I don't. So, I'm off to hit the hay. Wishing you all fantabulous Wednesday. :o)