Home "Improvement" my ass!

So, we're stuck in this hell of the project. Went to sand our shitty ass wall today. There are these seams showing through and no matter how much putty you put up, the wall is still flexing. So we decided to tear the damn thing down. Howly Sheat! Not only did we find the mother load of all shit piles...and I'm serious...rat shit everywhere. The wall is more Jimmy Rigged than a 1972 Ford pick up stuck together with duct tape. Oh, did mention why all the shit??? The damn mouse chewed up the house wiring and fried his little ass to death. All that I could find was a wet spot and some dust.

I'm not sure why or what the previous owners did. They have 5 by 1 boards running horisontally across the original studs. And when they put up the drywall, they didn't nail into those boards. In some spots, there were little chunks of wood used to "even up" the wall. DH even found railroad spikes so you know these people had even less of a clue than we do. *big sigh* So, we cut out the waterboard and nailed it in properly. Only problem is we're off by 1/8". At this point, I could care less. As long as we have a wall in the end, it's all that matters. So the damn wall is up, taped, puttied and hopefully tomorrow it'll still be standing. At this point we're looking at painting Friday morning...cutting it close to our Sat night party.

In the meantime, we've got a full day of other stuff tomorrow. We need to frame the window, put up the rod and curtain. We can also paint the trim in the garage. Oh, the lawn needs to be cut. And maybe I can do some party prep. Friday we'll paint and hopefully get the room back together...oh, and the house cleaned. I want to leave all day Sat for preping food. It's making me tired just blogging it...so I'm off to bed. Enjoy the sunshine. We had a great one today. Even made a trip out (between working) to the beach on the lake. SOOOO nice having a sandy beach 5 mins away.

Night night.
~B

Just plain ol' tired

This bathroom demo is taking the good out of me. DH & I have been up late working on it. Plus I've been missing my naps which doesn't help. L is having a hard time settling and napping in the afternoon...my usual time to nap. However, she has taken up a morning nap. Now she gets up for her baba and goes right back down for a few hours. It's blissful...except that E gets up so I'm still on duty and can't really nap.

So the tile is completely done and now we just have the painting to do. Problem is the wall is in horrible shape! We're debating whether to overlook it or tear down and put up new drywall. I'd prefer not to do the latter since it's more time and $$ to do that option. My hope is to do another coat of putty and/or just ignore it. We'll see.

I'm also tired too because we have all the regular stuff to do around the house...and errands to run. That's what I did today. Dropped off E to daycare, picked up parts for MIL's car, grabbed a coffee, went into Kent to get new window trim, Costco & Superstore for the mother load of all grocery orders. This wknd's our camp out so I had to get extra stuff. My worry is between the bathroom and preparing for the party, I won't be able to finish everything. Thankfully DH's home which helps a lot. I hate to say it but I hope he doesn't get called to work this week. :)

Well, I got into another project so I guess I better run. TTFN!
~B

UGH!

That's the best I can come up with today. I'm tired, sore, did I mention tired??? DH & I were up till 1 finishing off the grout. We started at 8 and had no idea the "tidy up" would take so long. We had to scrape out the excess and patch any parts showing through. It does look good...not perfect, but I could care less. After everything, I noticed that one of the tiles is cracked. Well we ain't takin' her down now. It's a huge WHO CARES for me. I'm just glad the worst is over.

Today I went out and bought the rest of the stuff to finish off the room. In total, I think it cost us around $500 to remodel the room. I bought primer and paint (and all the fixins), floor trim, window trim, shower and window curtains and a rod, and a light fixture. DH's trying to install the light and I finished puttying the nail holes, etc. Tomorrow afternoon I'll sand and hopefully tape off to start painting Wed. I suppose I could paint the trim tomorrow too...we'll see. DH has to do his mother's brakes so I'll have to watch L. Hopefully we can get the bathroom done in time for our camp out Sat night.

Speaking of L, she's onto her 3rd tooth. I didn't even know she had it!! Unbelieveable how fast she's growing. Well, I suppose I better get going. I'm bushed and want to chill out a bit before the girls get up.

TTFN!
~B

Energized

Must be the workout. Yesterday and today I had/have an energy surge. I LOVE IT! I was having 2 naps a day earlier in the week. Yesterday I didn't get a nap and I still was up late unable to sleep. I'm not too tired today thankfully cause both kids slept in...thank you Jesus! L's been a bit cranky, which is not her usual self. 2 teeth poking through will do that. E's been lovely this a.m. although the day's young. :) DH's reading his book before he starts tackling the bathroom again. He's about 1/4 the way through tiling the wall. So far, it looks great and he hasn't swore much. hehehe

And I'm doing really great today. Still looking at the positive side of life. I didn't get to read much of my book yet but plan to soon. Tonight we're going to Myrn & Bruce's for a bbq so I'll try to fit it in during the day, when the kids don't need my attention and DH doesn't need help. Okay, who am I kidding...it'll be waiting for me I guess. Well, I'm gonna run and enjoy a hot cup of joe. Take care and have a great wknd.

~B

P.S. SHAY -- forgot to tell you Lynnie moved up from CB and is living with her fiance in Fairview. I think the 4 of us are getting together Sat. I can't believe she finally made the move!

NEWS FLASH

Can't believe I forgot...L got her other top tooth...2 chompers now. heehehe Can't wait till they come in. So cute!
~B

Showing signs of stress

So lately I've been trying to maintain a positive attitude. We got rear-ended but got a newer van. DH's laid off but now he has time to do some home improvement projects. I keep thinking it's not affecting me but clearly it is. I'm topping the scales again. Not my all time high, but enough to get me down. When I thought about it more though, it's just a number really. I'm no different than I was at 300, 235 or now revisiting 275. I want to make sure it's a short visit.

I started off my day by telling myself it was time to return to Curves. I've been on a 3 or 4 week hiatus. Then I made a healthful, delish breaky ticking off the food groups while doing so. I'm trying to listen to my body more...am I hungry or just want to eat? Right now? It's hunger...so coffee and homemade muffin time for me. :) Also, I'm going to pick up my food addiction book again, rather than ignoring it in the corner.

Well, gotta keep this one short. TTFN!!
~B

Ole chomper

Well I knew it was just a matter of days. Little L got her first tooth!!! The top right just broke through on Sunday. I think the left won't be far behind. She'll have that two big front smily smile. Can't wait.

So, had a great wknd. The kids were really good...however...next year I may leave them home. It's just that you always have to be "on" for them. I felt I couldn't relax and tie one on. Someone had to be responsible for them. And of course, most of the party goers were ready to party all night long. As it was, E was up till 10 and had a restless sleep...which mean I did too. And L woke at 2 a.m. when the party was winding down...so I was up feeding her. Anyway, next year, no kids so we can party down. Oh, and I missed the camp out part too. Had to stay in the house with the kiddies.

Not much else going on. DH is working with a buddy of his for the evening. It's just for today but it's a little pocket $$. We also decided to redo our main bath. The reno didn't work out very well. We're going to rip out the crappy bath surround and put up tile. Then I think we're going to redo the gyp rock and repaint. The kicker is it cost the same for the tile as it did the surround..grrr. Tomorrow will be demo day and Thurs we'll do the tiling while E's at daycare. I know it makes no sense to do this now with limited funds except that I have DH's home to do all the home improvement projects.

Well, I knew this would have to be short. L just woke up. Till tomorrow.
TTFN!
~B

Mr. Slurpy!

E got to play assistant to the Hygenist at the Dentist today. She held Mr. Slurpy and had SO much fun with him. I couldn't help but laugh...with the instruments in my mouth and everything! She sat in the chair after my cleaning and had her teeth counted...10 on bottom, 8 on top. She got a prize from the toy chest (mermaid kit), a pink toothbrush and pink timer (to time how long to brush), and dentil floss. What a doll! Afterwards we went to the DMV and registered the van. The whole morning she was a deliciously well behaved girl who merited timbits on the ride home. Once we got home, her tune changed. I know it was just because she was tired...and probably a sugar crash...but she was sent to bed without lunch. Well, she had crackers at 10:30, timbits at 11:30 and 2 or 3 bites of spagetti. She's just so tired...and definiant!

Well, I'm gonna have a nap myself. I have scrapping tonight. I'm going to work on the Christmas album (a few pages each for 06 and 07). Getting closer to getting an album together for 07 minus the pics (since I lost them all). SHAY---If you have any 07 pics from E's b-day or other stuff we did together, let me know...THANKS! Till tomorrow.
~B

My Baby's Back!!!!

Or rather I gotta new baby! We bought a 2000 Dodge Grand Caravan tonight. Good milege, great body, and an amazing price! She's blue...not a dull grey blue like the last one. She's a shiny, bright, happy blue...and Mama's a very happy camper! We just have to replace the spark plugs and DH's going to grind down a touch of rust. Tomorrow I'm taking her to the DMV to get her registered...after E's first dentist appt!!!!

I'm going for my bi-yearly check up and E's coming with me. They'll take her through the drill...no pun intended. Hopefully it will go well. Thurs, L & I have chiro appts. Oh, and today I was at the ENT. Busy week. The ENT said my inflammation is gone and to continue with the meds. From now on I'll just consult with my GP for more meds. So that's good news.

Other than that, just catching up on the housework. And I must say, it's much easier when there's an extra hand around. :) DH's been a great help. Both of us finished our lists today...Honey-Do and Mama-Do. :) Team work...gotta love it! Well I better get off the comp and join my honey for a celebratory beer. Wherever you are, have one for us!

Night, night!
~B

Catch up & Crashes

Wow...it's been a while. I'll try to give you a brief summary cause there's lots to talk about. Thursday, July 3rd (my mom's b-day, coincidentally) we headed to CB for DH's family reunion. The trip was going fairly well till be got rear-ended in construction around exit 26 (between NG and Antig). Thankfully we are all okay but our old jalopy van is written off. Yes, that's my 3rd vehicle in 3 years...guess I like having a new ride every year. :) Today I'm getting the paperwork done for it and hopefully walking out with a cheque for the van. We kept on thinking the van was okay but as we drove, DH could feel a pull in the steering wheel. We stopping in Antig for a rental which was an ordeal of it's own. Long story short we made it to Ingonish in 12 hours. UGH!!!

The following 3 days were heavenly. What a wonderful time we had. And the chalet was awesome!!! It was well worth the extra $$. We had beautiful weather and enjoyed 2 beach days, a lobster boil, dinner & dance and Bunny's famous brunch (DH's step-grandmother). Since DH's aunt Debbie was heading back to Sydney with a fairly empty van, the girls & I road with them (instead of Mom & Dad meeting us in Englishtown). DH went back to Hali with his Aunt Sandy & MIL (he had to go to work Monday).

Mom & Dad's was great! They cleared their calendar a bit to accommodate us. We went swimming in the neighbour's pool one day, visited a bunch of our relatives, and laid low the rest of the time (the humidity was wretched). We also played a lot with my nephews at my SIL's place. On Thurs, DH called saying he got laid off...which we knew was coming (terrible timing after the accident). But Friday he put his name in at the painters union and is likely to be working late this week/early next. So, guess we can't complain...we're doing alright. Sat a.m. DH came to CB to collect us. We enjoyed a lovely BBQ at my brother's that night and headed home early yesterday. Fortunately our trip back was much better than our trip down. :)

So today I'm enjoying our last day with our rental vehicle running errands. DH's checking out a van tonight (fingers crossed). Hopefully we won't be long without a van...especially since DH's off and we could be enjoying some downtime together. Well, wish me luck. Will keep you posted.
~B