Easter

Connor is the only one old enough to really look for eggs...and he has his mother's competitive spirit about doing that. Jack enjoyed running around...Owen enjoyed finding some eggs but even more, he enjoyed smashing them once he found them! As you can see by the top photo - that can be an exhausting business!

Photos from Mendocino

We took a well needed mini-vacation over St. Patrick's Day and went back to Mendocino...something we had been saying we would do for about 10 years now. Stayed in a lovely place called the Little River Inn (www.littleriverinn.com) just south of Mendocino. The view to the right is outside on the balcony that ran outside our room. The food at the restuarant there was very good too.

More photos!

Here are some socks I have made...too bad that I havent made myself make the 2d sock for each pair yet! Then I would have more to wear (but not this week with the weather in the 90's and above!)

Here is Connor - looking as though he knows what to do! Of course, it would help if he could see from under the cap! He loves watching baseball, but I don't know about playing baseball! Guess we will see as time goes by!

Some of the photos I promised

Here are the 3 boys at Christmas 2006. Soon I should be able to get an updated photo of them posted! Connor, on the left, is the oldest, at 4 years old - in the rocking chair is the youngest Jack, who was 16 months old in this foto - and the long haired cutie, Owen, is 18 months old in this photo. Owen will be welcoming a sister into his family this coming September - hopefully AFTER we come back from Hawaii!

The other photo is of Jack and PaPa at Connor's T'ball game - or Dirt Ball as we call it since the kids seem to be more interested in playing in and with the dirt than playing pre-baseball! Lots of fun - especially to see how they improved over the short season. Kudo's to the coach's patience!!

More on the bathroom

I am so upset with myself for not taking 'before' photos. The bathroom is looking so awesome!
Yesterday we got the toilet put in - no problem. Got the shower curtain rod up - spent the extra money and got one of those hotel room types, that are curved outward. And the baseboards up. Which really finishes off the floor nicely.

But the pedestal sink....now, I wont name names as to who chose the sink, but Tom (oops!!) thought it would look nicer (it does) and roomier (it does) and be easier to install - HA!
First of all, some of the younger guys at Home Depot seem to think women dont know what they are doing at all. When we picked out the faucet, I kept telling him that the box the sink was in (which was on the cart right in front of him) said the faucet was an 8" offset...but he said it was standard and anything would fit. So he sold us a faucet with a 4" offset....guess what???? Yup, another trip back to Home Depot...

Where of course they didnt have any other faucet we really liked. But this time a man who knew what he was doing helped us. And we bought a new sink (today I get to take back the old one) and sold us back the faucet we just returned.

That all fit. But the trouble came with securing the sink to the wall and the fact that there is only enough room to work in IF you have hands the size of a toddlers....FINALLY got that in (glad no one was taking photos or recording us during that part!!). Now jsut needs some finagling with the pipe, so Tom gets to make another trip cause he knows what kind of pipe he needs.

Called it a day after we hung the shower curtains. And we keep running up there to admire our work! Didnt get the window blinds up as planned - so at this point we still have to do that, the mirror (which needs a coat of paint) and switchplate covers. Oh yeah, and put the door back up.

Which brings me to another subject...builders. Now this is an original bathroom. Not added on by anyone. And as I was sitting in there yesterday I again complained about the fact that where the switch and the outlet were are so stupid cause they waste so much of the limited wall space. If you put a towel rack above, you would have to be the Jolly Green Giant to reach, and if you put a towel rack below, they would drag on the ground. And the more I looked the more I realized something else - they arent even level with each other!!! The outlet box is about an 1" lower than the switch!!! How stupid is that????

So I still dont have the covers for that because I cant find what I want although I have seen them in the past! Go figure - that is how it always goes huh! I just want white covers that are vaguely shell shaped. And I know I have seen them - but not when I am looking for it!

Got my entries for the fair turned in on Saturday. Not really happy with the way the baby socks turned out, but I do like how the blanket looks. Met up with our friends Mitch and Marilyn for lunch. Took them to our favorite Mexican restuarant (which Mitch said was good!) and where my hubby endeared himself to me by dumping a container of hot sauce on me!!!! And it also splashed on Marilyn's NEW WHITE top and her purse!!!!!!!!!!! Then went to the grad party for the son of a friend of our's. Also went to a movie that night - Ocean's 13. So we had fun on Saturday before we worked our butts off on Sunday...

I am anxious to make this pattern called Scrawl (http://www.funknits.com/scrawl%20pattern.htm) but dont like the color choices in the yarn it is made from. So finally decided on a yarn...and of course my friend Joan at http://www.monarchknitting.com/ has the yarn but it is so hard to choose colors with seeing them! Maybe I can get down there at the end of the month. Meanwhile I am forcing myself to finish 2 UFO's. One is a Christmas gift for a friend who might read this...and one if the sweater I started how long ago?? from homespun yarn. Love the colors of the yarn. And I have the back and sleeves done. So as soon as I finish the Christmas present I can do the fronts of this sweater. And then I can maybe make that shrug pattern! If I get too bored, I have about 3 - 1/2 pairs of socks done!!

But this week is the week to clean the house for Owen's birthday party next Sunday!! He is already 2! So unbelievable! And that means that Jack will be 2 in August and Connor 5 in November! And in between that, Owen will welcome a little sister in September! This family is growing!

Tuesday

Well, we grouted the tile floor in the upstairs bathroom last night. It is really looking nice! I am really pleased with how it is pulling together. I only worked that 1/2 day on Sunday so we went and dropped $$$ at Home Depot ... got the sink and the toilet. Those should go in on this coming Sunday....maybe even Saturday night if we get really ambitious!

Better news: I think I am actually going to be able to finish my Fair entry today! I only have to turn it in on Saturday! I am making it a bit smaller than the pattern states, but I think that if I did it the same length, it would be too big. So....if I can finish it today, I can wash and block it tonight. And start on the baby socks tomorrow!! YAY!

Bathroom Update

I am so excited! The upstairs bathroom is really coming together. And Tom is doing most of thw work. So the tilework and tub refurb is done....and we already painted. Got the new lighting fixture in place (which looked so much whiter in the store!) Tom laid the tile floor yesterday and I am surprisingly still pleased with the tile we chose - I am no interior decorator and making all these design choices is very stressful.

I am really so pleased with how the tub and surround look! And was so thrilled when the guy chose a shell dish to replace the broken soap dish. I mean, he didnt even ask and it is so perfect becuase the shower curtain has shells on it and beach scenes!

One of the people at work needed Wed afternoon/evening off. So I said I would work it for her - so she worked this morning for me. So we made a very expensive trip to Home Depot (should buy stock in that place!). Bought the pedistal sink and the new toilet...the baseboards...toilet paper roll and towel bar (although coming home I found I bought the wrong one so will have to take it back), shower curtain rod and rings...Still need some kind of "furniture" - AKA shelves or something to hold things! and realized that I will have another design decision to make soon...rug and towels!!! This, of course, is hoping that the shower curtain I bought really does go well with the room!

We need to repaint the mirror. Now that was the best find of all - free! We were driving down the street coming from breakfast one day and saw a pile of things in a driveway with a "FREE" sign on them. Tom spotted the mirror - I was sure it was plastic - but we went back to look anyway! And it was wood! Not a break or a crack or anything on it. Not sure why they were giving it away! And it has a sorta nautical theme on it already - it is already white but will need a coat of paint to brighten it up!

When we were away last weekend we did some of what I call "dumpster diving". Meaning, going to thrift shops and garage sales and all. I am still regretting passing up something at a garage sale. A lovely wooden round coffee table with marble top. Did have one stain on it. But it was a good buy and was quite lovely. Oh well. We went to the Coarsegold Peddler's Fair and I talked myself out of quite a bit there too. I am tired of being such a packrat and trying NOT to add any more - but it is hard! It was very easy to pass up the stuff at the Oakhurst Peddler's Fair - it was crap.

When we went to our first Oakhurst Peddler's Fair it was WONDERFUL! And entire street and all the parking lots filled with "antiques" and what they wanted you to believe were antiques! It was heavenly and it literally took hours to go thru. Then it moved to another parking lot area and was a mix of flea market junk and antiques. The last couple of years it has been in yet another area - and this year was the smallest I have seen. And yet they still have the audacity to charge $3 for parking! I think we were there for 30 minutes and that was only because we bought some edibles from the Root Family Farm People (they have the most awesome Golden Caramel Corn Nuggets - too easy to eat a whole bag of those myself!!). Next year we wont even waste the time there...

The last weekend I worked, we had 2 high school students with us for a couple of hours. From a Health? Science? Academy locally. Supposedly there becuase they were interested in nursing as a career. Well, as we talked with them we found out that neither one had ever even thought of nursing...they were thinking more a being a doctor. This week I recieved the lovliest of all thank you notes from one of them...thanking me for the time I spent with them and also for all the useful information I gave her about nursing and what a wonderful career it it - and that she was now looking into nursing as a career!!! I have that thank you note on my clipboard to look at on bad days...like this last Friday was when I came home ready to look for another job.