Spring is Here and Now We Need Some Floor Tiles

Today is the first day of Spring and also my parents 49th wedding anniversary. They are on a road trip in VA visiting Monticello and other presidential homes. I found a few Spring blooms pushing up through the leaves.  It is coming, I just know it is.  

I had planned to work from home in the morning because Gloria had said Verizon needed to come back to hook up the phone in the addition.  She had thought it was an early work call but it turned into an afternoon one so I was home all day.  My first work from home day in the new living room.  Bob and the crew were here also and apparently Gloria had arranged to have porcelain tile put in the kitchen area.  We had the wood floors put in about three or four years ago and she wanted tile in the kitchen area.  They brought these dark wood grain planks with them and I had to send Gloria photos because she had to work over time.  I was not sold on them because they are so dark. 

But Baylor loved being there for the destruction of the floor

And the wall in preparation for the window.  

Bob brought back lighter tiles that would have been better but 

while taking up the old flooring they noticed how unlevel our floor is.  To the point where my fat big toe fits under the level as it sits across the floor.  We quickly found out after moving in our house was built in shortcuts and nothing is square, level or easy to work on.  

I had Gloria call me and I told her about the new tile color and the floor level issue and she said to tell them never mind on the floor.  I told her it was too late, the old floor was gone.  In the end they are going to get square tiles that will go with the counter tops (which Gloria picked out) and should not be too dark or too light.  

And tomorrow, I will have my light back in the kitchen. 

My children kept me company while I tried to work and entertain them both. 

And when the boys left, my stove and fridge were in the old dining room.  Good thing I have a crock pot meal planned for tomorrow because I don't think I will have a stove until Monday.  

After the new counter tops were put in last year, the shelf in the corner collapsed.  I have all my stoneware and casserole and some cast iron in there.  It all had to come out and go somewhere. 

And into the attic it went.  I had a handy helper this time who was more than willing to help me get my jobs done so I could finally play with him.  

Tomorrow the boys will pull off the cabinet side and fix the shelf.  Someday I will have to move the stuff back in there but frankly the attic seems more convenient than crawling in that cupboard.  

Two Rooms down, Two More to Go

Saturday we went to Sean's 7th birthday party. He is a friend from his preschool and while Baylor knew several of the kids at the party, the kids from Sean's school freaked him out a bit.  He was shy until the second hour of the party and sat on my lap watching most of the time.  

But he eventually was persuaded off my lap and into the limbo line.  

After the party we went home and I made my first batch of Macarons.  I  have wanted to make them for a long time and did a lot of reading and video watching before attempting.  They turned out fine, had nice feet but had the common problem of being hollow inside but that does not affect how yummy they are.  I filled them with Irish Cream buttercream and they were really good.  Baylor liked them just plain and ate all the shells he could.  

Sunday Mon and Dad were back but this time to bring two chairs I had at their house and help hang up the curtains.  In the upstairs, I do not have full length curtains anywhere other than sheers in the bedroom.  I have issues with them but since the TV is going to now be in a full sun room and I hate the glare on a TV.  So I have lined curtains that we can pull closed when the sun is blaring in.  

Dad and Baylor helped bring up the bed and make it up with the new bedding I bought for the room. 

You can hardly see the window stuff with all that light.  I love it!  

Valances bought at The Christmas Tree Shop on sale two for $3.00.  

Perfect match for bot the bathroom and bed room.  I have sheers for the bedroom windows but I need to shorten them. Ikea sheers are about 8 feet long!  I think we may buy the honeycomb type blinds because the rooms are ground level and the windows have to be big and low enough to crawl out of in case of a fire.  They are low!  

For dinner with my parents I made Colcannon with kale instead of cabbage.  For breakfast on St. Patrick's Day we had fried colcannon patties with fried eggs.  Yum! They were so good!  We had a food day at work and I had corned beef for lunch, corned beef for dinner and corned beef for breakfast the next day.  I love it!   

Tuesday Bob and his crew moved the couches downstairs to the new living room.  I bought an ottoman and ottoman tray last week.  

And they moved the cabinets to the other wall. 

The living room was bare and now had an echo.  I cleaned the floors and swept the corners.  

The table moved from the space it has been for nine and a half years to the living room where Baylor first roll over and crawled and spent many many hours of his life!  Aww, change. 

And then we moved the TV stand and TV down stairs just in time for Verizon to arrive and hook up the cable. 

.

Baylor loves it down here already and even before the TV was set up he was sitting down there playing his Leapster.  

While he was here we moved the TV up from the craft room (we don't use it much anyway) and put it next to the microwave.  Now I can watch the news while I make coffee and breakfast.  One morning Baylor ran upstairs and asked Gloria if she was watching the news upstairs while he was watching cartoons downstairs.  When she said yes, he replied he thought this was going to work out well.  I think he is right.  

Another Week of Work on the House

So last weekend Mom and Dad came over to help me clean out my wall cabinets so they can be moved to the wall where my kitchen window used to be.  They are being moved so the window can be put into the wall where the cabinets are hanging. At first I was completely opposed to the idea until my kitchen was cut off from the sun and the outside world.  Not that looking on to the neighbor's driveway but at least there will be light. And a love seat in front of it so people can sit and talk to me while I putter around in the kitchen.  Being cabinets they were full of stuff! Stuff that had to be taken out and put in boxes or bags and then I had to find a place to put said box or bag. Not an easy task in any house. And right now not easy especially in my house.  Everything is shifted and already in the wrong place.  But we made it work and cleaned out the cabinets.  It helped that we now have an empty attic over the new rooms that were waiting to be filled!  

While we were working Grandma Karen stopped by for a long over due visit.  We have not seen each other in a long and I actually gave her her Christmas gifts finally!  She had fun planing with Baylor which he loved.  He loves having a playmate and I think she had fun with him also.  

By Monday Bob the builder carpeted the stairs.  Apparently it is not a good idea to put wood floors over concrete.  So carpet it is.  

And a day later they were done with the rest of the carpet and were done with the addition. Baylor was leaping and dancing as I snapped photos.  

The bathroom was the first to be worked on, one because it is small and two because I had a lot of the stuff for that room already.  The window was the one they removed from my laundry room and it fit well in the bathroom. But it faces the neighbor's driveway and we were not sure they wanted to see anyone coming out of the shower or sitting on the loo. 

So I ordered the window contact paper and covered up the view.  But the light still gets in and that is all that matters.  I ended up doing the top window also. 

I bought the shower curtain at Ikea but the saw one at Marshall's that I liked even better.  I did not buy it at the time but I think I will get it if it is there when I go back.  This one can go in the basement shower because I still love it but just not in here.