A Little Catching Up

These pictures are in no particular order, just a few glimpses into our past week.

She just looked really cute to me... that's the only reason for this one.

The kids love laying on Jack's bed and letting me get all the animals out of the animal net. They think it is so funny when they all fall on them.

Then of course they have to stand up and throw the animals off the side of the bed.

Elliott had his first sucker the other day. Jack gave him a coconut flavored one, so I'm not sure it was the best first experience, but maybe that will work to my benefit later on. Lillie was still sleeping so she missed out.

This was a LOUD activity. Jack gave them all pans and spoons, they all had a blast.

I also found a new blog that I've enjoyed reading. I come across a lot of cool blogs that catch my attention, but then I usually get bored with them (not the ones where I actually know the people). This one has a lot of crafty ideas. There are days when I wish I could just lock myself in a fully stocked craft room and make things. I have my eyes on these cool book slings. Space is a precious thing here in NYC and I have an idea of where to hand one or two of these. They are basically flat against the wall, so they function like a shelf but don't take up as much room. I hope I get to test them out soon.

Sticker Books

Thankfully Jack's decided to play with his sticker books correctly. He's really enjoyed doing the activities in his new book. Huge improvement! And much better for me.

This next picture was in February 2009.

Just Playing

Lillie and Elliott joined forces and drug this storage bin out of our bedroom to the living room. Then Lillie decided to use it to help her get the door back open... wait till you see what was on the other side.

Lillie and Shoes

Lillie has been a little obsessed the past day or so with Elliott's shoes. She has spent hours sitting in the middle of the floor trying to get them on her feet. She is never frustrated, just working hard to put them on.

Happy Birthday Mary!

Happy Birthday Mary!

Lydia made Mary this lovely cake.

"Can we have a party for Mary every afternoon? This snack sure beats what we normally get."

My First Building Project

I found this blog, Knock Off Wood, a few months ago. This girl who lives in Alaska finds furniture in stores like Pottery Barn, Crate and Barrel, Restoration Hardware, etc, that would cost a lot of money and draws up plans for the furniture for people to build on their own. Not only does it save money, but there is great satisfaction in making it on your own.

Anyway, if you know me this is right up my alley! I don't claim to be good at it, I just like doing it. So I saw this plan for some bookshelves that would go perfect in the kids bedroom. I've been wanting to build them for months, just could not find the right time to do it. So with Jack in TN for a few weeks and with Mary and Lydia's help with Lillie and Elliott the time was right! I went to Home Depot (I go to the HD in the Bronx, they were playing country music, it made me smile) on Wednesday bought the wood and by Thursday night I was finished.

Enjoy the process...

All the wood

Sides and Shelves

Side Legs

Front Legs and Top Supports

My little guy with his face smashed on the window watching Mommy.

The trim for the shelves and the top on and holes patched.

Primed

Painted Navy

(there was a smudge on my camera lens that I didn't notice till the picture uploaded)

Finished Product!

I'm really proud of my first building project. I had 2 goals. One that everything would be level and straight and two it would be sturdy. It is very sturdy and everything is level and square. Oh and one more thing, my little cordless drill wasn't very helpful for this job so I went down to our superintendents "room" and found his power drill. My drill bits fit it so I borrowed it. He doesn't know, but this would not have been possible with out it! I may have to make a purchase of my own in the near future. ;)

I'm still working on cleaning the kids room. It's amazing how one little change can make such a difference for storage. I'm thinking about painting Jack's bed this same color. I just have to decide if it will match his denim bedding enough for me to like it. I think it would add a little more continuity to the room, we'll see.

Tricycles!