It's been a busy week! I've finally gotten some transcription assignments again in the last couple of weeks. I had about a 2-month break from work - partly due to me having a baby, but also because there wasn't much work to be had. So, I'm glad to get back into it, but now I need to find a balance. I used to be able to get work done during nap time and in the evenings, but just because the other kids are sleeping doesn't mean I'm off "mom duty" with Silas. He's pretty needy after supper these days so I'm finding it difficult to find time for my work (or myself for that matter). Yet I don't want to turn any assignments down since we need all the extra money we can get these days!
We also had a few little projects going this week. Erik was inspired to do some work in our ensuite bathroom over the weekend. We have 2 bathrooms upstairs that were exactly the same - pink tiles around the tub and ugly old lino. Here's a picture of the bathroom that we haven't renovated yet:
And here's a shot of the ensuite in process - the tiles have already been painted white:
And here's the end result:
We used a linoleum stick-on floor and it turned out great. Now we just need to put some new baseboards down and get a nice shower curtain to finish it off.
And despite how busy I felt with work this week, I was inspired to do some decorating in the boys' room. I've accumulated a pile of picture frames over the years, so I filled them in with some scrapbooking paper to create their names. It was a really fun project for me:
I also got Erik to hang this white shelf and - Voila! - the finished product:
Erik got me my first set of gardening tools this week. You'd probably laugh if you actually saw the tiny space I'm referring to as "my garden", but it was all matted with last fall's leaves and weeds so I spent some time cleaning it out yesterday morning. Right now we have a vine that's flowering and I think it looks so pretty...
Our weather forecast shows sun, sun and more sun for the next 2 weeks! We finally got to enjoy our swimming pool this past weekend and the kids had so much fun. I think we're going to be thankful for it this summer! I'll have to take a video of the kids jumping into the water - they are absolutely fearless (as long as they've got water wings).
I just realized that I have NO new pictures of Micah to share, but I took some cute pictures of Keziah and Silas the other day. She is such a little mother. Erik and I are pretty sure her love language is "physical touch" as she loves to smother Silas. The other day he was fussing while I tried to burp him on my lap. Keziah was climbing all over us (and being a bit of a pest while I was trying to settle Silas) and before she knew it, she had a face full of spit-up! I couldn't help but think that it served her right for getting too close! She had a look of shock on her face for a split second and then giggled - she thought it was cute, I guess :)
Undressing her baby:
Onto the topic of sleep - we were doing wonderful in that department as of last weekend. Silas seemed to tack on an extra hour of sleep with every week that he got older. At 4 weeks he was consistently sleeping 4 hour stretches, at 5 weeks, 5 hours, etc. And on the evening of his 7-week birthday he did his first 7 hour stretch! It only lasted a couple of nights though and then he had a bad week sleep-wise. I'm not sure what the issue was (growth spurt maybe?) but I waited a few nights to see if it would sort itself out. Last night he woke up a couple of times but settled quickly without being held or fed and lasted a whole 6 hours! So, hopefully we're getting back to those lovely lo-o-ong nights!
(yawn)
Naptimes are a bit troublesome with Silas as well. He has a chronic problem of waking up about an hour into his naps. I'm generally a pretty soft (un-stubborn) person and have always struggled with hearing my kids cry. But, Erik is even softer than I am, so I've had to step up my "tough love" approach. Anyway, this week I've started getting a bit more liberal in letting Silas cry, and it really seems to be helping. This morning he had his first nap in over a week where he slept 2 hours straight through without a peep. His 2nd nap he woke and cried briefly but settled back in for another hour. It feels so good to be able to nip some of these bad habits in the bud!
Now onto the "freebie" portion of this post... Erik came home from a hockey game the other night and saw one of our neighbours about to put a perfectly good high chair by the dumpster. Erik intercepted and said he would take it. Then the guy asked if he wanted any other stuff. Long story short; Erik ended up coming home with a highchair, a baby swing, a stroller, a bassinet and a baby bath tub! We didn't end up keeping the bassinet and the tub, but the rest of the stuff is in perfect condition! Keziah was pumped when she woke up the next morning and saw the new stuff:
The next day Erik saw 2 perfectly good little step-lid garbage cans by the dumpster and snatched those as well. And then today he was outside when another one of our neighbours asked if he wanted his carpet cleaning machine! So, we got about 6 "new" things in the matter of 3 days - what a blessing!
We also had a few little projects going this week. Erik was inspired to do some work in our ensuite bathroom over the weekend. We have 2 bathrooms upstairs that were exactly the same - pink tiles around the tub and ugly old lino. Here's a picture of the bathroom that we haven't renovated yet:
And here's a shot of the ensuite in process - the tiles have already been painted white:
And here's the end result:
We used a linoleum stick-on floor and it turned out great. Now we just need to put some new baseboards down and get a nice shower curtain to finish it off.
And despite how busy I felt with work this week, I was inspired to do some decorating in the boys' room. I've accumulated a pile of picture frames over the years, so I filled them in with some scrapbooking paper to create their names. It was a really fun project for me:
I also got Erik to hang this white shelf and - Voila! - the finished product:
Erik got me my first set of gardening tools this week. You'd probably laugh if you actually saw the tiny space I'm referring to as "my garden", but it was all matted with last fall's leaves and weeds so I spent some time cleaning it out yesterday morning. Right now we have a vine that's flowering and I think it looks so pretty...
Our weather forecast shows sun, sun and more sun for the next 2 weeks! We finally got to enjoy our swimming pool this past weekend and the kids had so much fun. I think we're going to be thankful for it this summer! I'll have to take a video of the kids jumping into the water - they are absolutely fearless (as long as they've got water wings).
I just realized that I have NO new pictures of Micah to share, but I took some cute pictures of Keziah and Silas the other day. She is such a little mother. Erik and I are pretty sure her love language is "physical touch" as she loves to smother Silas. The other day he was fussing while I tried to burp him on my lap. Keziah was climbing all over us (and being a bit of a pest while I was trying to settle Silas) and before she knew it, she had a face full of spit-up! I couldn't help but think that it served her right for getting too close! She had a look of shock on her face for a split second and then giggled - she thought it was cute, I guess :)
Undressing her baby:
Onto the topic of sleep - we were doing wonderful in that department as of last weekend. Silas seemed to tack on an extra hour of sleep with every week that he got older. At 4 weeks he was consistently sleeping 4 hour stretches, at 5 weeks, 5 hours, etc. And on the evening of his 7-week birthday he did his first 7 hour stretch! It only lasted a couple of nights though and then he had a bad week sleep-wise. I'm not sure what the issue was (growth spurt maybe?) but I waited a few nights to see if it would sort itself out. Last night he woke up a couple of times but settled quickly without being held or fed and lasted a whole 6 hours! So, hopefully we're getting back to those lovely lo-o-ong nights!
(yawn)
Naptimes are a bit troublesome with Silas as well. He has a chronic problem of waking up about an hour into his naps. I'm generally a pretty soft (un-stubborn) person and have always struggled with hearing my kids cry. But, Erik is even softer than I am, so I've had to step up my "tough love" approach. Anyway, this week I've started getting a bit more liberal in letting Silas cry, and it really seems to be helping. This morning he had his first nap in over a week where he slept 2 hours straight through without a peep. His 2nd nap he woke and cried briefly but settled back in for another hour. It feels so good to be able to nip some of these bad habits in the bud!
Now onto the "freebie" portion of this post... Erik came home from a hockey game the other night and saw one of our neighbours about to put a perfectly good high chair by the dumpster. Erik intercepted and said he would take it. Then the guy asked if he wanted any other stuff. Long story short; Erik ended up coming home with a highchair, a baby swing, a stroller, a bassinet and a baby bath tub! We didn't end up keeping the bassinet and the tub, but the rest of the stuff is in perfect condition! Keziah was pumped when she woke up the next morning and saw the new stuff:
The next day Erik saw 2 perfectly good little step-lid garbage cans by the dumpster and snatched those as well. And then today he was outside when another one of our neighbours asked if he wanted his carpet cleaning machine! So, we got about 6 "new" things in the matter of 3 days - what a blessing!
8 comments:
I love your "scrapbooked" boys names project! What a great idea! And, despite having three busy kids, it seems as if you're handling things well! Good for you! It's encouraging to see, because some days I feel completely overwhelmed with two! Glad to see the sun is shining out your way too! :)
The names look great! How handy that they have the same amount of letters. :) Did your neighbours just expect someone would snag the stuff or were they just going to let it be tossed. They must not know about Craigslist!
Your vine is a clematis and should bloom every spring for you; ours is very beautiful every year. I haven't learned how to prune our dead vines back without destroying next years growth. If you figure it out, let me know...
Sandy
Love all the pics, and the clematisis beautiful. I am planting one this week, and have been reading up on them. I'll lelt you know what I learn. Wjat other plants do you have there?? Miss you guys...Mom
your projects have all turned out wonderful!!! everything looks great :)
so great that you got that free stuff - it all looks quite new, or at least in really great shape!
Hoping Silas gets back into those longer nights and starts getting past that 1-hour wake up pattern for naps.
looking forward to seeing you either on Thursday, or at church on Sunday :)
I'm also a SAHM and am really interested in getting some info from you about this transcription work you do at home, it's always great to have some extra $
Thanks alot and I'm glad you are doing so well. I only have two and somedays feel like my head is going to explode :)
Marilyn
You are so creative!
I love the flowering vine - I want to have something like that up the side of our deck (once we get around to building our deck). And I love how you've decorated the boys' room. Looks great!
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