all's well that ends well

This is kind of a funny story that I bet a lot of you can relate to:

Yesterday, our friend Carey kept Kendall for us. She was going to have to be out and about while she had Kendall, so I left the car seat out of my truck at her house for her to use. When Leah picked Kendall up, she brought the car seat back.

As I was lying in bed last night, I thought to myself, "I need to remember to put the car seat back in my truck in the morning before Leah goes to work." Needless to say, I never thought about the car seat this morning until I took Kendall out to the truck to get loaded up so I could go to work. By this point, Leah was long gone with both car seats in her car. I started freaking out a little bit, but remembered that we still had the rear-facing car seat in the basement. I went downstairs and read the warning label, which said to only use that car seat for infants up to 22 lbs. Kendall weighs more than that, but I didn't have any other options and at this point I was about to be running late. So, I got the old car seat and headed out to the truck to strap it in.

I knew that if I took Kendall outside with me while I was strapping the seat in, she would take off running - probably towards the street, so I left her in the house while I buckled the car seat in. After getting the seat buckled in, I headed back into the house, only to face the startling realization that Kendall had locked the deadbolt behind me. At this point, I am REALLY freaking out. My keys and phone are both inside with Kendall, and all of the doors and windows are locked - not to mention it is about 1 minute until I need to be on the road in order to make it to work on time.

The top half of the entry door from our driveway into our kitchen is a window, and I was just about to break it, but I saw Kendall standing just inside looking at me. I didn't have my hopes up, but I started rattling the handle, pointing at the deadbolt lock and hollerin through the glass at Kendall to open the lock and let Daddy in. At first she tried to fidget with the regular lock, but sure enough, after a second she realized I was pointing at the deadbolt and she unlocked it.

In the end, Kendall made it over to Mrs. Erica's house and I made it to work on time with a funny story to tell my co-workers.

coming along

Evan and I could easily get discouraged about how much is still left to do inside and outside our house, but when we look back and see how much we've done, it doesn't make it seem so terrible after all!

We are in the process of finishing up the kitchen right now and hope to have our counter top in the next couple of weeks. We are also adding a pots and pans drawer in between the stove and refrigerator because there is a huge gap there now. I think I'm more excited about the extra counter space than actually getting the counter top! No more turning back and forth to have a place to set cookbooks, pots and pans while cooking!

I don't think we've put any master bedroom pictures on here in the past. Here is what it looked like before we moved in:

I'm sure you are wondering if we kept the border and green carpet, right?!?!? HA! I wish I had pictures of what this room looked like right after we moved in...the carpet had been ripped out, but the border was still up. We also had our iron bed in there and sheets covering the window, one of which was a fitted sheet!

Now, it looks like this:

The terrible ceiling fan is still in there, but is really the only major thing that needs to be fixed. I'm okay with having a ceiling fan in the bedroom, just not one from 1970! It's SO ugly! We don't have any fancy bedroom furniture, mainly because we can't fit a headboard and foot board in this room and we don't want to invest in bedroom furniture until it's something we can have forever. We are in desperate need of drawer space, we only have one dresser with six drawers in there right now. My plan is to do some flea-marketing and find a dresser and chest of drawers in good shape that we could refinish and change the pulls. I would also like to add a headboard of some sort--maybe a DIY upholstered one.

We also want to frame a couple of Evan's paintings in here. One canvas is actually already up on the wall without a frame right now. And, while you can't see the curtains very well in this picture, at some point I would like to add a black valance with grommets that make the curtains go all the way to the ceiling. I also want to find a black bedspread/throw to fold up at the end of the bed.

I also found some curtains for my dining room that I can live with and Evan hung those, along with the re-covered cornice board this weekend. The curtains are a little thin for my taste, but I'm hoping I can find someone that can line them for me to make them look a little heavier and nicer. This picture is not great--pretend that ghetto ceiling fan is a brushed nickel chandelier, our floors don't have a bad spot on them, and that the table is centered--but you get the drift.

I'm also on the prowl for a centerpiece and toying with different ideas. I've seen some great larger-than-life colored glass vases that I've thought about, but also think that something flatter would be better. Evan and I eat at this table almost every night, and I want something that I don't have to remove every time we sit to eat. Any suggestions?

I know we still have a ways to go, but this house has come so far! We love our home and have had so much fun making it our own.

family fun

We've had a GREAT day! We actually started the morning off a little earlier than normal...Kendall woke up around 6:30ish, which is quite early for her on a Saturday. Mommy and Daddy were not real thrilled with our early bird this morning, since we both were night owls last night!

We made a Wal-Mart run before 8:00 this morning and then I came home and made the best blueberry muffins for breakfast. (I copied this recipe out of a friend's Betty Crocker cookbook and this was the second time I've made them. I upped the sugar this time to make them a little sweeter. Evan said they still didn't taste sweet enough to him. I thought they were perfect!)

Then, we decided to do this...(watch this short video!)

It was a little warm outside, but still such a fun way to spend the day as a family! We ran a couple of errands first, had a pizza lunch, then headed over to the zoo for the afternoon. Kendall is not really an animal lover--she likes to look at pictures of them, or look at them from a distance, but she doesn't want them to be anywhere near her. She flipped out a little bit when the big gorilla got right in front of her, even though there was a window. She did enjoy watching the penguins swim, which I thought was pretty neat to watch, too!

Kendall thoroughly enjoyed playing on the zoo's playground today, which I've decided is a perfect size for toddlers. It also wasn't too crowded and was a great break from her stroller.

On the way out, Kendall spotted the "bouncy," so we took her over for some fun. "Bouncy" (as Kendall says) is one of her favorite things in any form or fashion! She thinks our bed was made for bouncing!!! Kendall was more than brave!!! (Check out the video below.) We've come a long way since face planting on the bouncy slide at the pre-school Christmas party! I seriously couldn't believe she did this all by herself--over and over again! She's getting way too big!

Evan grilled pork-chops for dinner, and I contributed with rice, asparagus, and Sister Schubert rolls. Kendall was in bed before 8:00! It's been a GREAT day!

Busy...

**I forgot**
I knew I meant to write something else in this post...I'm loving how verbal Kendall has become! She's starting to put more and more words together to make sentences. Lately, I've been hearing "thank you, mommy" and then tonight on the way home from church after Kendall was begging and begging for milk (of which I had none) and she said, "I need milk." What a big girl!

that's what we are right now, and it doesn't seem like the fact that summer up ahead will slow things down any! Does anyone else over commit, but then not really realize it until it's too late to do anything about it?!?!!? One of these days I will learn to just say no!

I have eleven days of school left--nine with kids, two without. We finished testing on Tuesday, so the rest of the days will be spent just trying to make sure the students don't tear down the school! Thankfully, we've got one last field trip, a field day, and an awards ceremony to take up a few of those days. Come quickly, June 5!

Not a whole lot else is going on around here...just trying to enjoy this beautiful weather. Pretty much everyday when we get home, Kendall and I spend the afternoon outside. We stay inside long enough for me to prepare dinner, then head out to enjoy the sunshine. Kendall LOVES outside, so we usually play until it's time to eat, go inside, then head back outside for a little while after dinner. I'm a sunshine kind of girl, so I don't mind it one bit!


Kendall discovered the rocks in this flower bed on Monday, and she and Christian had a fun time digging through them and throwing them back. Evan will have to watch out the next time he mows! (Please excuse our backyard that looks a mess. We have spent our resources fixing up the inside of the house, so not sure the yard will get a lot of TLC this year!)




Kendall has also discovered bubbles. She doesn't really know how to blow them yet, but she tries so hard and doesn't want a lot of help with it. Every time we go out, she asks for "bubbles" over and over. I love to hear her say the word "bubbles" because her voice is so sweet!

And...Kendall is really into making animal noises these days. I think she picked this up from playing with Sawyer. I'm just glad she now knows that all animals don't say "woof" like a dog! :)

Last, Evan and I just finished watching American Idol. Yay Kris Allen! Go Arkansas! And, anyone else dig Steve Martin with a banjo? Maybe Evan and I are just big nerds that love a little bluegrass music!

Kendall's First Big Boo-Boo

Beth and Kelly brought this awesome dump truck for the kids to play with on Sunday. Kendall was having a ball. That is, until she sat in the "dump" part of it, tipped over, and face planted on the concrete! Oh, it was a disaster! Of course, my first cry was, "Check her teeth, check her teeth!" since I have this fear she's going to fall, knock them all out and not have any teeth for all of her toddler years.

Her teeth were fine, but she did bust her lip and scrape her nose really badly. Blood was EVERYWHERE!!! Evan and I were so glad that Beth, Kelly, and Carolyn were here, because had they not been, we'd have been in the car on the way to the ER!


We tried our hardest to give Kendall popsicles, ice, Tylenol...you name it, but she would have NONE of it. We finally got her calmed down enough that she fell asleep on Evan and he was able to lay her in the bed. (Which added to all the drama...she was tired anyway from late nights and an exciting weekend with her Pop.) About 15 minutes after the Blackwell's left, Kendall woke up crying, which in turn led to the nap on the couch with mommy. (See two posts down. Thanks to Evan.) :)

This was Kendall after she woke up from her nap:

This one is Kendall after her bath last night-all cleaned up. Still swollen, and today has some visible scratches on her nose and between her lip and nose. Her lip is still slightly swollen with a scab.

And I have to throw this one in of Evan being sad for her!

Needless to say, she is fine--just a little scratched up!

Mother's Day Weekend

Sometimes I hate how one blog post sucks up my whole evening. It has taken me FOREVER to upload these pictures and video tonight. What is the deal? And now my paragraphs are all running together and spell-check isn't working. I'm not fixing it, so you have to just deal! ;)

Anyway, my dad called on Thursday to tell me he wanted to come up for the weekend. I know people think this is crazy, that he calls on Thursday to come the next day, but this is how it's always worked in my family. You don't make travel plans, because everything is dependant on the weather. Arkansas received some crazy rain last week, so Daddy was able to take off and head this direction. I was glad since we haven't seen him since Christmas.

Daddy got here around 5:00 on Friday. (And if I ever say "they" in this post, it's because he brought his friend June with him. You can read about that on the blog I keep for my mom if you care to do so. I just don't want our family blog to be clouded up with my processing my mother's death! That could get long!!) :) It was actually POURING down rain when they got here, and apparently had been since the time they hit the Kentucky line. We hung out at the house for a little while, waiting on Evan to get home from work. Kendall was thrilled to have new attention around for a change!

When I was a little girl, my daddy made my sister, my cousin Laura, and I these baby cradles for Christmas one year. Daddy brought mine to Kendall this weekend. Kendall, of course, thought it was for her instead of her babies! (Funny thing is, that we have pictures of my cousin Lance sitting in the cradle, too!)

It's very special to me that Kendall has this cradle to play with. Maybe someday it will become an heirloom.

We had a later dinner on Friday at Red Lobster, then all of us came home and pretty much just crashed. I say crashed. June and I went to Kroger, then came home and crashed!

Saturday, we had a pretty lazy morning. Evan ran and got Krispy Kreme's for breakfast and then we were all just really leisurely about getting up and about. We made a run to Lowe's, Chick-Fil-A for lunch, then to the Bass Pro Shop. I always miss my mom terribly when this happens. We would have opted for Target. Funny thing is, that in my head I was thinking, "Why don't y'all just drop me off at Old Time Pottery next door and we can call when we're finished," but I thought that would be really rude of me to leave. Then, on our way out of the parking lot, June says, "What is Old Time Pottery?" When I tell her it's sort-of like Garden Ridge, she perks up. I guess I should have just asked. I probably would have found a companion! :)

After our excursion to Indiana, we get back to the house. Kendall was in desperate need of a good nap, so Evan and I left her with Daddy and June for a little while so we could get out by ourselves. That's the other thing about my dad coming this weekend-I had JUST had a pity party for myself on Wednesday because we ALWAYS have Kendall with us. We just don't have anyone that we can drop Kendall off in order to run an errand or two, or to just have some time by ourself. It's just our season of life, being in school and far away from family. Most of the time, I don't mind it, but lately it's just been getting to me! Anyway, when my dad called on Thursday (again, after I had JUST had a pity party on Wednesday) he wanted to know if he and June could stay with Kendall so Evan and I could go out by ourselves! Way to come through, God! Even just the suggestion made me feel not forgotten!

Apparently, Kendall didn't want to take a nap for Daddy and June, they let her cry it out for 20 of the 30 mintues we suggested and then got her up to play. :) I love it. Daddy took Kendall outside and taught her a new trick with her wagon (of which there is a video at the end) and then she FINALLY gave it up about 20 minutes before Evan and I got home.

Falling asleep on ANYONE is really rare for Kendall to do, so I couldn't help but take her picture when I saw her alseep on my dad's shoulders. So precious!

We grilled hamburgers Saturday evening, then treated my dad to the Homemade Ice Cream and Pie Kitchen for dessert, since Saturday was his 59th birthday.

We went to church on Sunday, then had some friends over to grill steaks for lunch. It was a great weekend!

If you are interested in the video, here ya go! :)

How to spend Mother's Day afternoon

art

evan and i are blessed with some amazing friendships. many of which we will never be able to repay all their kindness and generosity during this season of our life. these friendships are such a gift from God, and i am so thankful.

for christmas, one of my sweet friends gave me a gift of original art, painted by our "at-the-time-starving-artist" friend, jake. my dad came up to visit this weekend, and brought my gift with him. isn't it AWESOME!?!?!?! no kidding--these blog pictures don't do the art justice. the texture and creative elements are unbelievable and i absolutely love the color it brings to our dining room! now that i finally have my paintings, i feel like i can get on with the decorating in the kitchen. we should be ordering countertop this month (woo hoo!) and evan and i are contemplating painting our kitchen a brighter color. evan is thinking red (of course, razorbacks!) and i am thinking along the lines of an icy blue or really deep purple. i guess we shall see!

Kentucky Derby 2009

It seems like the last few weeks have been so busy, yet I can't really recall what we've been up to that is really out of the ordinary. I think it really just feels busy with Evan and I both working full time right now. The end of school can't come quick enough for me!

The weather has been a little on the dreary side this week--which always makes me feel kind-of bummed out for some reason. It's done wonders for our grass, though...but I'll get to that in a minute.

Evan has been a little under-the-weather lately with some kind of viral something. Sunday night, he ran to the store to get some juice and came back with Spaghetti-Os for Kendall. Call me a food snob, but I just think those things are disgusting! I can hardly stand the smell of them. I don't even think I ate them as a kid! Anyway, at first I was giving him a really hard time about feeding them to Kendall, just because I think they are disgusting, but finally decided that she probably wasn't going to die (even though the ingredient list takes up about half the label) since kids have been eating them for like a million years. He bought the kind with meatballs, and she didn't like that, but she loved the sauce and noodles. (I just thought she was kind-of cute with her messy face in this picture. This week has been a pretty festive one in Louisville...it's Derby Week! The Kentucky Derby is HUGE here, being that Churchill Downs right in the middle of the city. People go all out for this event, and we were even out of school on Friday for The Oaks, which is the girl horse race. (No holiday for Good Friday, but you better believe we're out for the Derby. And remember all those days we've missed of school? Yep, they didn't even take this day away from us!!) While I'm not really all into the derby per-say, I do think the history behind the whole event is pretty cool, and I certainly did enjoy my Friday at home!

Kendall and I didn't do a whole lot of anything yesterday. We did run a couple of errands and go to the grocery store. While we were leaving one store yesterday morning, the lady at the check-out counter said, "Bye, honey" as we were leaving and with a big grin and wave, Kendall said, "Bye, honey" right back to her! It was hilarious. She has become SO verbal. Sometimes her words aren't super clear, but most of the time we can figure out what she's talking about.



I actually had a little scare with Kendall this morning...Evan left before 7:00 to go to a Men's Ministry prayer breakfast at our church and I was here with Kendall by myself. I decided to try out this new blueberry muffin recipe I found, and while I was messing around in the kitchen, I heard her go into the bathroom. (She loves to brush her teeth and if we leave the bathroom door open she will go in and get her toothbrush and toothpaste.) I went in to get her, and of course, she was mad. As I was trying to lead her out, she threw herself on the floor (sadly becoming more and more prevelant these days) and started in on her fit. When I picked her up, she was holding her right hand like it was hurting but it didn't really look like there was anything wrong with it. I put her in her highchair to eat, but the fit kept coming! Her cry really sounded more like an "I'm hurt cry" than a "mad" cry, so I decided I'd keep an eye on her. All through breakfast, she never lifted her right hand. She ate the whole meal with her left one. I'd ask if she could raise her arms up, and she'd only raise her left one. Even through her meal, she'd occasionally let out a little whimper. It was so strange. All I could think is "Oh my, I've hurt my child somehow!" Finally, after finishing breakfast, I call Evan and he suggests for me to call the pediatricians office. I do, and they suggest I come in for an X-Ray. At this point, I call Evan back and I'm in tears about the whole thing, thinking that the doctors/nurses are going to think I beat my child or something when I tell them the whole story! Evan tells me he's on his way home, and we'd both take her.

Well, wouldn't you know it! As I'm sitting on the couch in my tears, waiting on Evan to come home, the little stink starts dancing around and moving her arms like nothing ever happened!!! My little drama queen!!! I called the pediatrician's office and cancelled the appointment. She's been fine all day long.



The rest of the day was spent doing some necessary but not fun things...like taking the Hyundai car to get new tires and making a quick Wal-Mart run. Evan worked in the yard most of the afternoon, digging up some bushes from our front landscaping. (Kendall and I helped for a little while.) With our house being empty all last summer, our yard was not very well taken care of, so we've got some work to do! Thankfully, we've got some great things to work with and we aren't having to start from scratch.



I've got a few pictures of the front of the house from today. Hopefully, we can do before and afters to show the progress!


This is the south side of the house. We have landscaping timbers that are in rough shape all down the side, but nothing is planted. Just some grass and weeds growing. We have a bed of what we believe are day lilies that I am thinking I will transplant to this side. Also, not sure what that ever-green shrub is, but I think Evan is just going to dig it up since it's pretty much dead anyway...unless someone knows how to make it come back really pretty.
This is a picture of all the lovely weeds that need to come up. (Still on the south side.) The two boxwoods on this side are BEAUTIFUL. I worked on these weeds a little bit, but I didn't have any gloves on and my hands kept getting poked.

Evan dug up all four of those red sticker bush things today. I think his intent was to move them back a bit, but I'm not sure if that is his plan anymore. We want to plant some flowers in the front part and then have the shrubs in the back. I'm thinking about some mums that will be really pretty in the fall.

Okay, I know this post is getting long...but one more thing...

Tonight we went over to our friends' house (Andy and Tracy) for a Derby/Birthday party for their little girl, Anna Catherine. We had such a great time! We just did appetizer type foods followed by birthday cake and derby pie. (YUM!)

(BTW-Andy and Tracy have a beautiful home. Her mother owns an art gallery, so they have all these awesome art peices. She's also got all these fabulous flea market/antique finds and then just has an amazing way of putting it all together to make it look new.)

Kendall and the birthday girl!

All the kids

Watching the Derby

Singing Happy Birthday to Anna Catherine

While Tracy was cutting the cake, Kendall decided she would munch on a piece of broccoli and a tomato from the veggie tray in front of her. (Eating those tomatoes will make her Pop proud!)

Sharing cake with daddy

and mommy

LOVING the bouncer!

Oh, and I think something was on my lens and was making my pictures all really blurry. Hopefully it's all cleaned off now! I was beginning to wonder!

I know this post was so long...we've just got a really busy few weeks ahead of us with Evan and I both working. We have state testing coming up at the end of this week and will go on for two weeks. Crazy, huh? Maybe it will make the days go by faster! C'mon summer!

PS. My spell check is being strange, so if you see any mispelled words, ignore them. Also, if the layout is messed up, ignore that, too.