The "Big Girl" Way

Reagan has gone from sliding down the steps backwards on her belly, to scooting down on her butt, to most recently walking down while holding on to the rail.  She is so proud of herself and refuses to hold a hand on most occasions!  

Our BIG girl...getting bigger and bigger every day!

Too Cool with Shades!

Our 3-Year-Old Preschool Graduate!

Yesterday was Jocelyn's last day of 3-year-old Preschool.  I cannot believe how fast this year has gone!  It seems like yesterday we were taking her in for her first day of school, and now it's over!

This was Jocelyn on her very first day of school.  She was so excited to start school, meet her teachers and new friends.

To celebrate the last day of school, Jocelyn's teachers held a little ceremony for the kids and their parents in the classroom.

Jocelyn was proud to accept her certificate!  A 3-year-old Preschool graduate!

This is Jocelyn and her best 'school friend' Bailey

The whole class!  From left to right:  Jocelyn, Bea, Jake, Bailey, Lucy, Aidan and Caden

Last time with the teachers!

And here is a copy of the program from the ceremony.  The kids practiced songs and sang them all together if front of the parents.  The kids were so cute, and it was hard to hold back the tears!

 Next year will begin a new journey!  Jocelyn will be off to a new school with new teachers and new friends.  Jocelyn is pretty upset to have to take a break from school.  She would much rather continue to go all through the summer months!  I hope her love for school continues through all the Elementary and High School years!

Congratulations Jocelyn!!  We are so proud of you!

Our Virtual Kitchen

Here are some photos of what we have now and the virtual pictures of what we hope it becomes!

Now:

Here, you can see some of the changes we are planning on making.  We are moving the dishwasher to the other side of the sink, shifting the stove a little to allow for a cabinet on the right side, and adding an under-mounted microwave oven.  We are planning on upgrading to granite counter tops, a backsplash, and an undermount sink too! 

 This is the other side of the kitchen the way it is now:

 

In this photo you can see the rest of the changes we have planned.  They include shifting the refrigerator down to make room for a pantry to the right, and cabinets above the refrigerator.

 So, what do you think??  Does this look like a good plan or do you see any last minute changes we should make??

Kitchen Project

We have decided to update our kitchen.  The plans are in the works.  Measurements are done, cabinets are picked out, estimates on electrical and floors are complete, and an estimated timeline is in place.  

Yesterday, someone was poking around in my kitchen!

The plans for the kitchen include tearing out the soffit so we can have taller cabinets and put the microwave above the stove.  Todd was exploring the soffit to make sure there weren't any surprises like pipes or electrical hidden inside.  We can see the waste pipe from the toilet in the upstairs bathroom in there, but it looks to be behind the main wall.  So, I guess the soffit better say its goodbyes now.  It's life will be coming to a tragic end very soon.

 We also pulled up some of our flooring to see what was under it.  My hunch was that the hardwood that is in the rest of the house would be there too.  Under the vinyl floor was a layer of some kind of wood and under that, tile, and under that--Hardwood!  So, we got an estimate to refinish our kitchen and dining room floors and are really happy with what it is going to cost us.  I love the idea of having one type of flooring in the kitchen and dining room.  Both rooms are small, so having the "flow" will be nice!  Hopefully there is no hidden damage to the kitchen floor under the rest of the vinyl.  Fingers crossed!  

 

So, the kitchen is looking a little battered right now, but I can live with it.  It's the living without a kitchen at all that I'm dreading!  Please, God, let this project run smoothly!

Here is an official BEFORE picture of our kitchen.  This was taken last year when we had our house on the market.  We have replaced the door since this picture was taken.  We now have an exterior french door in its place.  It really helps to open the kitchen up and add more light.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is a view of the other side.  The cabinets you see here were installed by me and Todd and was our first project in this house.  They replaced the ugly yellow floating counter top, and the equally as ugly yellow metal cabinet that were there before.  They also created a TON more space for storing kitchen items.  When we look at this side of the kitchen, we see an improvement over what was once there, but when others see it and don't know of the ugliness that preceded it, they just see a kitchen with mismatched cabinets.  Bye-bye!

And this is Todd's Kitchen Remodel schedule.  We shall see if it goes as planned.  There are always hiccups and problems, right?  This plan would be amazing if it worked out!  2 weeks without a kitchen?  I think I can handle that!  We shall see what reality brings.  I will keep you updated!

 

 

 

Crafty Sunday

I went shopping (alone) at Pat Catan's on Friday for some things I needed for some gifts we are making for Jocelyn's teachers.  It's dangerous for me to go shopping by myself without the kids.  When I have them with me, I stick to my list so I can get in and out as quickly as possible.  Most of the time--Maybe not when I go to Target--Anyway, without the kids with me on Friday, I had the option to browse.  Browsing almost always = spending more $$.  I came home with a couple of craft projects for the girls and Jocelyn couldn't wait to get started.

My first find was a wooden bird feeder.  I really, really wanted a bird feeder for a few years now, and this was the perfect fit for us!  A bird feeder that Jocelyn could decorate herself!

The girls always "ohh and ahh" over the neighbor's windmill spinners, so when I saw some that they could decorate themselves, I didn't hesitate to put them into the cart as well.

Jocelyn did a lot of painting, and enjoyed every second.

After a couple coats of sealant, the bird feeder was ready for bird seed.  Jocelyn did a really great job!

 Oh, and I did get everything I needed for the Teachers' gifts as well!  I think they turned out cute!  They are Ice Cream Sundae party gift baskets complete with sugar cones, waffle bowls, hot fudge, caramel, sprinkles, mini Oreos, mini M&Ms, mini chocolate chips, Skor bits, sprinkles and a gift card to Giant Eagle for the Ice Cream and Whipped Cream.  I wish I could say I was creative enough that I thought up the idea on my own, but I really found it on pinterest, which led me here.  I like the way I put mine together better, though, and it's a really great idea as a gift for Jocelyn to give because having an ice cream sundae party is certainly one of her favorite things to do!  :)

Fun with Friends!

We got to spend time with some of our favorite people yesterday!

Thanks for a fun evening Bert, Trish and Charli!

Pittsburgh Children's Festival

Yesterday we went to the Children's Festival!  It was our first time and the girls had a lot of fun!

That dinosaur is HUGE!

Reagan got to ride her favorite animal on the carousel!

Jocelyn chose the Sea Lion.  We just saw some at the zoo!

We found the perfect photo op for Reagan!

Jocelyn had fun making music at the sound wall tent!

Reagan did too!

It was a fun morning!  We enjoyed the beautiful weather, lunch and lots of fun activities!

BBQ

We had our first family BBQ last weekend!  

It was a beautiful day to cook on the grill and hang out in the back yard!

The girls always get excited when we get to eat outside.  Mommy enjoys it too because there is always less of a mess to clean up!

Jocelyn had her first ever corn on the cob that was actually still ON the cob!

Reagan just plain enjoys having her picture taken and giving kisses to her Daddy.

 The Ice cream man even came!  How perfect!

Jocelyn's First Big Girl Bike!

Yesterday we bought Jocelyn her first bike with training wheels!

 

    

We went to Toys R Us and let her pick the one she wanted in the appropriate size for her age.  She chose the one you see above because "polka dots are her favorite and this is the only one with polka dots."   It also happened to be the least expensive one they had (and was also on sale for $20 off)!  How often does that happen? 

Big Girl on a Bike

Reagan enjoyed riding bikes with Jocelyn even though she's not quite big-girl enough for a big-girl bike yet!  Little did we know that she was actually unintentionally practicing being a big girl in the picture you see above.  How is that?  Well, for the first time in my 4 years, 3 months, 26 days and 11 hours of mom experience, I got one of my kids dressed and forgot a very important article of clothing.  Can you guess which article of clothing I forgot to use when I got Reagan dressed this morning?  You can see she has a shirt on, she also has shorts and shoes on...what you cannot see is that she does not have a diaper on.  When I got Reagan dressed this morning I forgot to put a diaper on her.  We have NOT began potty training her.  Not even a little bit.   

I have no idea how I managed to forget this most important article of clothing for an un-potty-trained toddler. After breakfast, I put her on the changing table, took her PJs off, and got her dressed sans diaper. We played outside while Todd cut the grass, were back inside for a little bit having a snack, then went to the park to let the girls ride their bikes.  As we were standing in the parking lot where they were riding, I looked down and noticed pee coming out from under her shorts!  I immediately wondered what was going on!  Why was there pee pouring out of her?!?! My first two very quick thoughts were:

1. That her diaper was so full that it was leaking.  But that didn't make sense because of the way the pee was splashing onto the ground. 
2. That somehow the diaper got shifted in a way that didn't allow it to catch the pee anymore.  This was a much more logical thought since she had just been riding a bike, but then when I looked at Todd and he asked me if she even had a diaper on, I pinched her bum, and low and behold, she didn't!!!!

So, Mommy has lost her mind.  I forgot to put a diaper on Reagan when I got her dressed this morning.  I don't know how or why, but I did.  To be perfectly honest, I am a little concerned with myself! I am impressed, however, that Reagan went so long without peeing (maybe we should potty train her), and I am also very grateful that she didn't poop. That would have been a bigger mess and I probably wouldn't have found the whole situation quite as funny. I wonder if Reagan enjoyed her morning of freedom?? She must have since she didn't tell me she didn't have a diaper on!  

Oh, and I guess my Dad is off the hook for his diaper mishap that occurred when Jocelyn was a baby.  He put a diaper on her backwards, which went unnoticed until the next diaper change.  I still don't know how he managed that one, but I have to admit that a backwards diaper is better than no diaper at all! 

Oh my!

Pool!

It was warm enough.

Mommy was begged enough.

 So....

Reagan's First Skinned Knee

The dreaded day has come.  Reagan got her first skinned knee of the season yesterday.  Actually I'm pretty sure it is her first skinned knee ever.  I'm sure it's not the last, but I can only hope.  

 Although she looks pretty calm in the picture, she didn't take the boo-boo well. 

It was a good thing it was almost bed time when the accident occured because afterwards it was all tears until she was ready for bed.  She wanted the band-aid on.  Then she wanted it off.  Then she wanted it back on.  Then off again.  The poor girl didn't know what to do with herself.  She wanted to walk, but it either hurt or felt weird with the band-aid so she stood, arms outstretched crying, "WALK!"  It was almost as if she believed she would never walk again.

Today, she is better.  Thank goodness!

(You may remember Jocelyn's first skinned knee too...if not you can read about it here, ironically it was on the same knee)