A good weekend

Really !? it's been 16 days since my last post.... I used to get at least one if not two in each week. Is it just me or were my posts more interesting during deployment?
I don't know... but I do know we had a pretty fantastic memorial day weekend. beautiful weather (although I could do without the humidity... so NOT a fan!) Actually I'm not a big "summer" girl anyway... I would rather be cuddled next to a crackling fireplace in a cabin in the mountains watching it snow. ;) yup.
Don't get me wrong, I love a good vacation somewhere warm, and when we went to Disney the summer before deployment the sticky weather didn't bother me at all..... but like I said, I love a good vacation!
SO... one thing we did over this long weekend was put A/C units in the kids bedrooms. Downstairs cools off enough at night, and really doesn't get too bad during the day either ....yet.
Upstairs though... another story! We live in a ranch so the roof is low and the attic is in the kids closet, not up above them... so the heat gets trapped in their rooms and on Sunday when the thermostat read 93* in K's room, I immediately went through the closets moving everything to get to those two window units... I carried them out and placed them under the windows they needed to go in, I took the screens out, and I moved all the toys away. Then I got Daddy to put them in ;) Ahhhhh Much better!! Now they can sleep more comfortably and I can too knowing they aren't sticking to their bedsheets and tossing and turning in that thick muggy air trapped in their rooms. It doesn't even cool down good with fans in the windows up there, especially when it's so humid. So for this fall and winter fan... those A/C units are a blessing ;)
It was nice to be outside all weekend though. T-ball practice friday evening, t-ball game Sat. morning (K is still playing despite that fractured wrist and bright red cast on his arm!) He's a champ... and I don't think he even remembers it is there most of the time! Only 5 more days till his x-ray to see if it's healed... yep, only had to wear it for 3 weeks...hopefully!!! :)

Anyway.... We worked on house things during the day saturday. RDaddies finishing up the deck, it's looking awesome! I got a lot of laundry caught up. (our washing machine died last week) So, that also means my playroom project is still not quite finished because I had laundry piled up in there and was waiting to get the old washer out and a new one in. Luckily our neighbors had one we were able to buy for a low price from them to hold us over for a while.
Later Saturday night we had some neighbors over for a BBQ. the kids had a blast... then it was time for them to go to bed so the adults could relax. Our neighbors live right over the little picket fence we could probably touch arms if we both hung out our windows, so they were able to put their kids to bed and come hang out on our deck....our other neighbors live up the hill, but their lil guy was content in our pack n' play until they headed home. It was a beautiful night filled with laughs.
Sunday was a "chill" day... the kids ran through the sprinkler and mom and dad lounged! Monday more good friends of ours came over to BBQ for lunch and we all laid around the back yard on blankets and watched the kids play... ok and the dads play ;) it was fun. The parade in town starts right by our house since we are on Main st. so we all sat and watched and followed them downtown for the Memorial day service. It was just a good weekend!

Backyard BBQ

 ready for the parade

Mothers Day......

What did you get for mothers day? I got to spend 2 hours in the Emergency room with my 4 year old.
The day wasn't all bad... actually a few days before Mother's day, we had a surprise waiting on our front porch when we got home. It was (as K said when he spotted him...) "An Army guy on our porch mom!!!!" Yes... Daddy had a few days off and since they happen to be doing their A.T. only 35 min. from our house, he ended up at home. So the weekend was pretty good.
Sunday we brought him back to the base around 11am and he gave us the grand tour of his room. Anyone who has been in barracks before knows it was just beautiful, hahaha. We then headed to his parents house for brunch, and the kids played with their cousins for a bit. From there it was off to my parents house where the kids helped Grammy & Grampa in their vegetable and flower gardens.
It was finally time to go home, have some dinner and find a spot in our yard for the plants my Mom had given me.
Well...... let's just say those plants just finally found spots in the yard today. (yep.... they sat on the front porch from Sunday to Tuesday) Luckily it's rainy enough I think they will make it, they are looking good.
However, the reason they sat that long is because my 4 year old took a fall. :(
I was in the house getting dinner ready and I heard him start screaming. Honestly I didn't freak out, because he tends to let out a scream when ever he gets a bump or someone does something he doesn't like in the backyard.. and then he calms down.
I did go to the door to make sure and he was on his way into the house, holding his arm into his chest and yelling/crying "MY ARRRRMMMMM!!!!" He had been climbing up the outside of our playhouse/climber in the yard and lost his grip and fell. **gulp** could it be worse than a bump??!! I instantly sent the neighbor kids home and made all mine come inside.
I tried to calm him down and check it but he wouldn't let me near it. He was also dripping with sweat from being out (it was pretty warm and humid) and was covered in a good amount of mud.
I asked if we needed to go to the Dr.'s, he kept saying "no..no"
I decided to put him in the tub, clean him up and calm him down. Calmed him a little, but not much... I knew it was more than a bump. My first thought was to send Daddy a text..knowing he would call me.
You know when your gut is telling you something, but you just need your other half to tell you..."Yes... take him in"  Well.. yeah, that's what I needed.
Nana & Pape came over and sat with the girls and got B into bed for me while I packed K up and brought him to the E.R. They were SOOO good to him, I felt like we were the only ones there when we really weren't. K was such a trooper, he had stopped crying on the way there and was actually falling asleep. He didn't cry once while we were there, and he was smiling and laughing. The Dr. & the nurses were so sweet to him. He got some x-rays and turns out he has two fractures in his wrist. :( Man he handled it like a champ... cause I would have been sobbing!
He was splinted up....

They gave him a little sling too so he doesn't bump it on anything. (Not gonna lie...he looks pretty cute!) ;) They gave him stuff for the pain too, I gave it him at night incase he woke up to it hurting.... but honestly this kid is so tough.... he has not once complained that it hurts... or complained that he can't do things like he did before. He's doing awesome!

resting up with his little "buddy" Mungo the monkey (who now has his own seat in the crook of the sling) yup... he get's rides around the house! ;)

his bowl kept sliding away when he was trying to scoop out the ice cream, so he resorted to holding it with his mouth while he scooped... so creative

Well, we go tomorrow for more x-rays and they told us they will put it in a real cast for 4~6 weeks. Hopefully closer to 4 since he is young and healthy and should heal quick. (let's hope!) We need that cast off to fully enjoy summer! 

on hold...

Well, we have been doing a lot around here! New Windows through out the house, a new back door. (Which wasn't in the original plan...) But after tearing up the floor by the back door and putting in new insulation and building it back up, the old door wasn't working anymore.
Picture it.... 7pm rain is on the way and I have a HUGE gaping hole in the back of my house. The back door was a double french door and basically made up the back wall of the kitchen. Thankfully Lowes happened to have a door that was in a decent budget for us and that would fit. So thankful for that! So by around 11pm that night.... the hole was closed up. PHEW! (OH... and P.S.... this all took place the night before Easter.... AND the local newspaper wanted to do a story on "Veterans returning to daily life" and decided to call my husband who so graciously invited them to our home in the middle of this to talk to him & take pictures....SWEET!) 

 Old door

 Gaping hole

 new door

Installed YEA!

And so the house upgrades continue.... trim went up around the inside and outside of the door. The floor inside still needs to be replaced, at the moment is is just plywood... but first things first. We needed to get to work on the deck we were putting on. This needed to get started because we were literally tossing the kids out the back door to go play in the back yard. (Yes tossing... because it was about 5 steps down before we took the back stairs off to put the new door in) 

The deck is now almost complete. It was put on hold because of A.T. (Annual Training for the National Guard) It is coming along very nice though. I have to hand it to my man... he is pretty crafty ;) It's a little further along than this pic. and there are some stairs (the old ones) rigged up on the other side until he gets back and can build the new ones.

Of course who can stop at those things... taking out the old windows and putting new ones in inspired me to re-paint our playroom/laundry room. I guess I was inspired because I have been wanting to do it, and since the old windows were real wood and the trim was never painted, we needed to paint that at least to match the new white windows. So why stop at trim? I painted the room a pretty blue to brighten it up and am now on the look out for some nice window treatments. I have what I want in mind... it's a matter of finding it in my budget ;) 

However this is on hold too.... mostly because with him away at A.T. i don't have many free minutes. Not that I had a ton with him here doing all the other work.... but it somehow seemed like I did. Well... I also have to wait to purchase the storage shelf I want for in there and I haven't made it to Lowes again to get the chalk board paint. Yes I'm painting a chalk board onto one of the walls for the kids. Here are a few before pics.....(well before the walls got painted, but after some of the trim was done)

 Nice new windows!

 THIS is why I need to purchase that storage shelf I mentioned!!!

Although it is "on hold", it is painted and looks much better! I painted the wooden shelf I had on the wall too and then did my best at the "distressed" look. I like it. You can't really see that in the picture though....

SO now for some windows coverings and the chalk board paint... and yes the storage shelf. Notice I didn't put a picture of that view... it's scary! ;) I will have to update later when it's complete. For now it was it is, and it's a work in progress. Everything is coming along, and soon we will have a completed back deck, new floor and freshly done laundry/playroom. Thats when we move on to the next projects! Right!?!?! ;)