Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Uncle Pat's here!

Scarlett's obsessed. She follows him everywhere.

And my lil bro is cracking me up with stories of teenage romance! He took this selfie and then texted it to a girl he likes.




I asked him if he uses being an uncle to impress the ladies and he smoothly replied, "works like a charm."


Oh to be young and 17 again...

On second thought, I'm pretty thankful those days are over!! Teenage romance was hard...and embarrassing!



Monday, August 6, 2012

Jumping Pictures

David took my first jumping picture in Breckenridge EIGHT years ago! 
(oh my gosh, i just had to calculate how long ago it actually was! wow. old.) 


Since then it has become our signature shot wherever we go...






we even took one on our wedding day (also in breckenridge)



so it was only fitting to have Scarlett's first jumping picture (attempt) in Breckenridge as well


{Boreas Pass Trail}

of note: these pics were taken yesterday. this morning i went to my first body pump class at the rec center in hopes of returning my jump height (and body) to previous levels.  it was hard. but i'm headed back for sure! then it rained this afternoon, so no hike today. 

back again tomorrow. my little bro arrives from Chicago to visit for a week! yay!

Sunday, August 5, 2012

Parenting 101

This was supposed to be my afternoon leisurely reading during nap time, but literally one minute after I took this picture Tripp woke up. And then when I finally got him back to sleep, yes, you guessed it, Scarlett woke up.

I think they are in a conspiracy to have me never actually read this book.

Also please take notice of Scarlett's scribbles all over the cover, which I'm taking as a metaphorical "yeah right, mamma! This ain't never gonna work on me!" message.


Tripp-session

I'm obsessed with this boy!!!!! 


Saturday, August 4, 2012

Where did she learn that?

I ask myself this question almost daily: Where did she learn that?

Sometimes she's a clear reflection of myself, like how she's recently fond of saying "oh, gaawd!!" (Whoops! thankfully she hasn't repeated some of the other choice words I say too often), but other times it's a complete mystery.

For instance, this evening she found a broom and swept up a pile of pine needles on the deck. How did she know how to use a broom and what to do with it?

Seriously, how?

You might think that she's watched me before, but that's impossible because I don't sweep. In fact, I don't even own a broom! Yes, my floor is usually dirty. Sometimes I'll use the dustbuster, but also, I pay a cleaning lady.

So, where did she learn that?!

Continuously amazes me, that girl.



Friday, August 3, 2012

Little Hikers

We ventured out on our first hike today. It just keeps getting more and more beautiful here! 

Thursday, August 2, 2012

Ah, perfection

I feel SO lucky that this is my view during morning coffee for the next month!

Wednesday, August 1, 2012

27 day challenge!

We arrived tonight in beautiful Breckenridge, Colorado. We are sooooo excited to be here and enjoy the weather, the nature and scenery, and most of all, family time! (cheese alert!)

With part motivation to really capitalize on our time here, and part documentation to remember it all, I've decided to give myself a 27 day photo challenge for each of the 27 days we will be here.

The flight to Denver went surprisingly smoothly mainly because Scarlett's performance on the airplane was much improved compared to her last airplane experience in June. I'm giving myself all the credit for this as it was my genius idea to pack stickers for her. She, however, decided on her own that the best place for the stickers was on Tripp's head. Whatever works! He slept right through it.

Here's the first pic! And another one just to laugh at what a heavy load we travel as these days.

Check back frequently over the next 27 days to keep me accountable! Any summer vacation plans for you? How will you try to capture and remember it all?


Friday, July 20, 2012

kitchen and bath: during pics


kitchen and bath renovation: post demolition, beginning electrical and plumbing work


bathroom vanity and toilet spots
need to center toilet and change plumbing from single to double vanity


bathtub spot
floors and walls torn out because of rotten wood



shower head remnant
more rotten wood, need to replace leaky and damaged pipes


 kitchen
 2 layers of (hideous) laminate flooring torn out


kitchen wall #1
window removed to allow new spot for fridge and more countertop space



kitchen wall #2
 electrical wiring to be redone to meet safety codes 


laundry room
old water heater removed, prepping for new efficient tankless heater



kitchen and bath: before pics


before pictures of kitchen and bath 

(took some pics while previous owner still lived there 
to begin imagining and planning)















Follow Me on Pinterest

you can see my remodel inspiration boards on pinterest
hopefully the after pics will look as pretty as the ones i pinned!

life is a bit cray cray these days..


to wrap my head around all the upcoming events and travel for our family, i needed to write it down multiple different times, come up with 4 alternate options and have a scheduled meeting with my husband to discuss said options that lasted three and a half hours.

first, the obstacles and key players: 
  • our apartment lease is up on august 1st and it can't be extended, but our new house is not ready to move in until end of august. we are redo-ing the kitchen and bathroom in a new to us 1940s house, btw. there is only one bathroom, and it currently doesn't exist because it's been torn out, so basically the house is uninhabitable. 
  • next, remember that i've been on maternity leave since like january? oh yeah, that nice little set up has reached it's limit and i have to return to work (in california) the first weekend in august. why are you working in california, you might ask? well, because it's been difficult to find the *perfect* job (ie perfect schedule, perfect pay) in austin so i'm going to fly back once a month to work 4 days at my old hospital. that's crazy, you say?! yes, it is also crazy that i can make more working 4 shifts in california than working part-time here in austin. is it worth it do all that? yes, if you refer above, i am redo-ing my kitchen and bath, and i have expensive tastes. 
  • plus our regularly scheduled chaos/travel/visitors thrown in the mix


so we have nowhere to live starting august 1, and then i have to be gone for 5 days leaving my husband homeless with our two small children and no help. 
where are we gonna go? what are we gonna do? 


well, we figured out a way to make it all work, so here is what's up:

this weekend: david is at our good friends' wedding in south bend, in, but i'm staying here to pack and organize. my sister grace arrives from chicago to help for a week.

next week for david: traveling to cali and then seattle for work until thursday

next week for mamma: stops at house everyday encouraging speedy, but excellent, work by tradesmen. buys last minute whatever.it.is.they.say.i.need.that.you.never.before.knew.existed, makes sure things completed according to plan, being generally very annoying, tedious and detailed, i'm sure, but i also bring the men cookies and ice cold drinks so they like me and don't f up my house. oh, also, i'm still packing all our crap and watching/entertaining our children.

next weekend for mamma: required nursing recertification course on saturday, couple trips to house moving things with david in evening, sunday morning fly with Tripp and sister grace to madison, wi for gramma's 80th birthday party

following week: mamma returns on monday, movers come on tuesday, we leave for colorado on wednesday and then i fly to california on friday for work, returning the tuesday after that. david stays with kids at parent's house in breckenridge.

after all that: hopefully i can let out a huge exhale

and then after that: we can relax and enjoy gorgeous breckenridge, and pray that there are no house emergencies while we are gone. david will have to travel twice and still be working the next weeks, but at least we are surrounded by beautiful mountains and have nanasue and pop's help.

end of august?: house should be finished and we can move in for real. fingers crossed!

and after that: an even bigger exhale and huge smile after i make a delicious meal in my new beautiful kitchen and eat it as a family on our cute back porch and then take a relaxing bath in my sparkly new bathtub....aahhhh

until then...

*i'm well aware that probably no one is going to actually read through all this, but at least i have it documented so that one day i can look back and think, "wow, we really did that?!"


**also, i'm well aware that this is a first world problem: "our kitchen & bath renovation isn't finished yet, so we have to spend a month in breckenridge, boohoo." woe is me, i know. 


Wednesday, July 18, 2012

@MammaMagsAustin on Twitter

I'm on twitter!

I'll tweet about where the kiddos and I are headed for fun in Austin so you can join (pools, children's activities, music, free events, etc), my ridiculous mom-brain moments, things I'm loving this moment that you will also love, easy dinner ideas, new blog posts and more. check it out!