No More Sideline Cheering

So, today we got the backerboard down. This ended my "sit back and watch Mike work too hard" streak. I'm the official mortar spreader, so I got to spread mortar for all the boards. It might not seem like it, but we have a big kitchen. :) And I now know each square inch intimately.

So here are some photos with captions:


We had to move the kitchen out into the living room... so here's our table. This is a bit stressful for me because we've had a "no food or drink out of the kitchen" rule for about 6 years now... oh well... the carpet will be replaced in a few weeks, so it doesn't really matter so much.

Here's the temporary fridge home... the kids love it, I'm sure. :)

And our hall closet has been transformed into our pantry with non-cook food items and paper/plastic products for easy clean up.


These three are just showing the floor with nothing on it...

This is Mike pre-laying out and cutting the backerboard. He really likes how his bald spot is accentuated in this picture. :)


And these three are showing the backerboard all in place. How fun! Tomorrow evening we tile. I need to spend time during the day working on the layout, marking lines and purchasing a few more bags of mortar since we used way more than I thought we would with the backerboard.

Did I mention that the kitchen is huge?

Spectator/Supplemental Support

So... what a difference a few weeks makes. I find myself fairly unable to handle the heavy lifting required to do a lot of the prep work to tiling the floor. So. Sadly, Mike is doing the bulk of the work while I either watch, provide overall direction (I'm sure this thrills him), or keep myself busy on the "sidelines" trying to do helpful things. So right now I'm doing laundry to clear the hallway out to the garage so when he starts going out there to cut tile, it will be clear. Not a bad thing to do, but not nearly as helpful as it would be if I were in there cutting the backerboard with him.

So, the demolition is done. Mike is making the dry run of the backerboard right now. Then we'll mix mortar and lay the backerboard. I will help with that process. If nothing else, I can certainly hammer many of the 400 or so nails we'll have to hammer down through the backerboard. Yippee.

Tomorrow we tile.

One Final Tile Job

Mike decided we should tile the kitchen right away. I'm not sure it's been long enough since the last tiling job for us to forget how tired we are. :) But, I'm only going to get bigger, so he's right... sooner is better.

So, here are the before shots and one of the new tile semi laid out to check my main lines.








So now we demo. Yippee!

Mush for Brains and Dry Hair... Bad Combination

Earlier in this pregnancy, I was having some real problems with keeping my head together. At one point, I couldn't figure out why we seemed to be over budget on every single budget category. Then I realized that I had completely forgotten to enter one of Mike's paychecks. And even Mike was worried when we got a "Final Notice" bill from the gas company and the electric company. Okay... and the water company. But the past few weeks, I've felt like I was doing better... until today.

So, about the dry hair. One of the things that made me think that maybe I was having a girl is the fact that instead of getting thick and not falling out, my hair has been falling out in droves since I got pregnant. And it's really, really dry. I have to put a ton of conditioner on it just for it to feel normal.

So, today when I got up and saw that my hair looked really good, I thought, "I must have showered yesterday." See. I'm an every other day kind of shower person. And my hair usually looks much better on the second day and horrid on the third (thus the every other day shower pattern). So, I get dressed and head out to the van to pick Mike up so we can go buy kitchen tile. On the way there, I start thinking, "Wait... I didn't take a shower yesterday..." (This is the part where the mush for brains comes into play.) So when did I take a shower last? Wait... really? Ack! SUNDAY! Yikes! But my hair looks great! :) I guess I need to go out and buy a shower cap.

Sweet Baby Shoes!

So, the people at church have been just super about sharing in my excitement at having a girl! One lady was telling me that it was just about the best thing she had heard and she got a little teary. :) Our old bishop stopped me in the hall to congratulate me and I told him, "I'm really excited." His response was, "Of course you are!" :) And one lady in the ward gave me a sweet little gift. She said she just couldn't resist and I'm glad. :)

Aren't they adorable? What she'll wear them with, I have no earthly idea! Maybe I'll sew her a little blessing dress.

What sweetness. :)

20 weeks!

So here I am in all my glory! (Well, not ALL my glory... that would be inappropriate.) :) I took this picture this morning before getting ready for my 20 week doctor's appointment. The baby sounded great and was running away from the doppler machine, so that was really cute. She's kicking up a storm these days, but always seems to stop if I call Mike over to feel the movements. Either she's a tease, or she's a moma's girl. :) We think Mike may have felt a little kick yesterday, though, so maybe she's coming around.

I've gained 6 pounds. Her heart rate was 133 today. Cole came with me to the appointment and was excited to hear the heartbeat. Two little cuties. :)

Productive Saturday

Well... yesterday was productive. Mike finished up the front porch railing project that he started in January! :) It still needs a little sanding and a couple of coats of paint, but the major work is done. Then he replaced the deck rails. He also managed to cook a batch of cinnamon rolls before heading off with the missionaries. The missionaries didn't have any appointments, so Mike took the opportunity to take some cinnamon rolls to his home teaching families.

My day was spent painting the kid's bedroom. Mike and I moved the furniture out and I washed the trim. Then I took Reid to a 25 mile scout bike ride. Then I went to Lowe's for the odds and ends we would need for the day's projects, came home and caulked the baseboards and trim. Then I went back to pick Reid up from the bike ride. Then I painted the baseboards and trim. Then I painted the walls. We decided to keep the same blue that is there, so I just touched up the paint to freshen it up. Then I had Reid help me move furniture around to where it would be and then got the kids (and myself) in bed.

The porch and deck look good. They will look even better with some paint/stain. And the bedroom looks really good, too.

It's nice to have a good, productive day like that. But it does wear you out.

Baby Update: Tomorrow I am officially 20 weeks. Half way point. That's always a scary point in the pregnancy for me. I remember when I went in for my 20 week appointment with Reid. Still in my regular clothes, just "beep bopping" along and the nurse said, "You're half way there." I was like, "Whoa! Lady! Slow down, there!" And after yesterday's big day, I think, "How on earth will a baby fit into our lives?" :) And then I breathe, recenter and know that all will be well. But I'm still glad for the 20 weeks I have left.