So Behind

I am terribly behind when it comes to blogging.  Quite frankly, I am not sure how much I will be able to do once this new baby comes!  We have been busy around here trying to get things ready for the baby's arrival, but it's been very slow going.  I'm pretty limited to what I can do physically and the energy that I normally would have, just isn't there right now.  Uncas is still recovering from throwing his back out.  It's definitely better, but hasn't healed as quickly as he wants it to.  And it doesn't help that he is probably doing more than his share around here because of me!  Talk about a vicious cycle! 

But we are doing the best that we can.  We love our new basement and spend time down there every day.  Last night after Eddie went to bed, Uncas, Sammy and I were hanging out down there!  This weekend we moved our desk, file cabinets and printer down there.  I love being able to do "office stuff" without going upstairs and waking up Eddie!  We still need to move all of our books out of Eddie's new room and hope to do that this week.  This weekend we also went to IKEA and bought a new bookshelf for the basement.  And we also found a toy box for Eddie's new room along with the cutest little table and two chairs for him for the basement.  They were out of stock on the table and chairs, but I plan on going and picking it up this week because more will be in on Tuesday.

Last week I also bought Eddie a little swing for our yard and a little slide for him.  I figured he'll get a lot of use out of both since we may not be traveling a whole lot once the new baby comes.  I also found a dresser for his new room and a new rocking chair.  I found everything on Craigslist or at garage sales! 

As you can see we have been busy spending money and getting the house in order.  We hope to finish up Eddie's room this weekend and start our garden.  And then maybe we'll have a couple of weekends to relax before the baby comes!  I have been telling people that if I haven't gone into labor at this point, then I will most likely reach my due date and/or beyond!  I am glad that this little one is listening to me when I tell him/her to stay put!!!!

35/35

Today I am 35 weeks pregnant and I have 35 days left till my due date.

The Basement!

I am happy to announce that as of this week, our basement remodel is done!  There are still a few final touches that will need to be done, but it's not going to stop us from moving things down there and to start living in it!  In fact, we already have!  Eddie loves going downstairs!  He runs around patting the walls, the stairs, the couch.  It's super cute.  And Sammy is warming up to joining us down there as well.

Before I launch into what was done, I have to say a huge THANK YOU to Uncas for all the time and work he put into this project.  It was a huge undertaking since I was little to no help (I'm cooking a baby).  He sacrificed many evenings and weekends down there, which was really hard on the whole family.  We did make the decision to "out-source" a few of the tasks which turned out to be a great decision.

Here are some before pictures:

We (when I say we, I mean Uncas) took down all the wood paneling, removed the drop ceiling, fixed water damaged frame, sealed all holes going to the outside and insulated the walls, rewired new lights, and hung sheet rock.  We paid our neighbor to put in new windows and to do all the mudding and taping.  Then we painted.  And last week we had new carpet installed and some new furniture delivered.

This project took us longer than we (I) wanted.  It was stressful since the room that Eddie will be moving into was basically storage while this project was on-going.  We still need to clean out that room and move our "office" down to the basement, but unfortunately on Friday Uncas threw his back out!  As a result this weekend we didn't make any progress on that part of the project.  BUT, the basement is done and functional and I am so pleased with the outcome.  Please excuse the after pictures.  I took them the other day and you can tell that it's Eddie's playroom.  And quite frankly it seems silly to pick up the toys for a picture when they'll be all over the place in two minutes flat!

We still need bookshelves and toy storage for the basement.  Eventually we'll probably put a tv down there too, but for now it's comfortable and open and we really enjoy spending time down there.  To see pictures of the whole progress of the basement - check out the album here.

Happy Mother's Day 2011

I hope all the Mamas out there had a great Mother's Day.  I was able to spend this weekend with my own mom for the first time in 5 years, which was wonderful for me!  Unfortunately I was feeling a bit under the weather for most of the day, but ultimately, it was a great one.  Towards the end of the day I realized that I really wanted to get a picture of me and my adorable son who makes this day so special for me.

AND thank you to my wonderful husband - without him, I would not be a Mama!  He truly went out of his way to make this day special for me!

Wordy Wednesday - Weekend in Duluth

This weekend we headed to Duluth to visit Grandma and Grandpa N.  I was going to post earlier today, but I couldn't find my camera!  I was sure I left it up there, but when I looked in the final place (my purse), there it was! Thank goodness!

Anyhow - we drove up Friday night, which in hindsight, not such a great idea.  Eddie didn't do very well sleeping that night and as a result, neither did Mama or Daddy.  Fortunately that did not stop Eddie from being in a great mood all weekend!  Saturday morning Grandma and Grandpa played with Eddie, so Uncas and I could get a little more sleep.  In the afternoon we went to the Great Lakes Aquarium in Duluth.  Eddie had a fun time playing with the water, checking out the fish and watching the otter show.  Here are some pictures:

The Bald Eagle and Eddie checking out each other

Practicing fishing, so he can go out with Daddy and Grandpa some day soon!

Playing in the water! He would have stayed there all day, but the otter show was about to start

Watching the otter show with Daddy

After the aquarium we went out to dinner with not only Grandma and Grandpa, but also Aunt Abbie and cousin Anna.  After an early dinner Uncas and I drove around Duluth and Uncas pointed out his old stomping grounds, while Eddie slept in the car for awhile.  Anna ended up spending the night with us, so Eddie had a fun time playing with her.

Reading time with Grandma and Grandpa

Fortunately Eddie did much better sleeping-wise on Saturday night.  Sunday morning Eddie and Anna played some more and Aunt Abbie came over for breakfast.  We headed home early afternoon.  It was a fun weekend.